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Posts tagged A Man Should Never Have To Teach Himself

Who Gives a Crap What Jesus Was?

May14
2010 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

This post is going to be somewhat of a finger-painting. Reason being that I’m going to give you a quick update/apology and then I’m going to get into the post. Contain your excitement.

Real quick….

I’ve been mad and bitter, and I’m sorry. I’m sorry to my friends and my family.  I’ve been bitter with God and it quickly sucked the life out of me.  Thanks to a swift kick in the spiritual groin from Charlie Loften last week, I’m stepping out of my pitty party and getting my crap together. 

Bobby Hamilton at NLC once said that bitterness is like drinking poison, and then waiting for the other person to die.  I finally understand how true that is. 

So let’s move forward and not let this junk continue. 

One of the things that Charlie really got in my face about was basic.  He simply said, “Do you believe that Jesus is the answer that everyone needs?  That He alone is the hope that people need?”

Pretty simple question, right?  Either you do or you don’t. 

In that simplicity I found something much more complex.  We (me) spend entirely too much time dwelling on what Jesus was.  We look at Jesus as if He existed at one point, and we want to know what He was like then. 

We talk about Jesus as if He never got up from His death-bed.  No wonder our faith is so weak at times.  No wonder the Christian recovery community is buying into the BS that tells them they are going to have to deal with their addictions for the rest of their lives. 

If Jesus was, then we have nothing.  What is critical for us to figure out is what Jesus is. 

The more we preach, teach, write, or view Jesus from the perspective of what He was, the further we are removing ourselves and others from actually understanding who He is and what He is doing, and can do in our very lives. 

I feel like I’ve been taken back to Christian Kindergarten with this.  But, what a revelation it’s been for me. 

I don’t want to spend my time chasing what Jesus was, because if He was then He isn’t. 

You wouldn’t go spend your money on Enron stock today would you? 

I want to spend my time chasing what Jesus is, because that’s what He was and will be….

Posted in Christianity, Misc., Outreach, True Recovery - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Throwback Thursday – Dear God, Let’s Trade. You Give Back Tupac, We Give Back Justin Bieber!

Apr15
2010 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

Posted in Christianity, Misc. - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

A Bottle and a Book: Why Men Should Cry

Apr07
2010 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

Check out this amazing guest post by Kathy Gilbert Taylor about the inability of men to experience emotions…..

You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle.You have recorded each one in your book. Psalm 56:8

Societal pressures cause us to rethink the validity of things that seem so natural. When things happen to us in our early years, they tend to seem normal. What we learn at an early age often becomes internalized.

Most people don’t scold a two-year old boy when he smashes his finger or breaks a bone, but can we say the same about a boy who is ten? As boys approach adolescence, they hear this message loud and clear: big boys don’t cry.

Pain brings tears, and the older we get the more pain we experience. If boys and men are taught not to cry, it’s difficult for them to know when they can allow themselves to be vulnerable. Whom can they trust with their insecurities and sorrows?

When it is deeply buried, sorrow can evolve into anger. Unexpressed pain foments, and it becomes apparent when it has the power of a man behind it. Angry men are often intimidating and frightening, and we don’t dare tell them to “buck up” the way we tell young boys to do so.

The problem, as I see it, is that we blame the man for his anger. All we see is the road rage or the domestic violence. If only we could have seen the boy who had to hold in his tears, the boy who felt as though he had no one to talk to when his parents divorced, the boy who wanted to be exonerated when someone at church made a false accusation against him, or who wanted to talk about how much it hurt when he was rejected by his first girlfriend.

Showing anger seems so much more appropriate. By the time a boy becomes a man, he’s learned that it’s acceptable to be angry about losing a football game, because of work-related stress, or at the person who didn’t give him the right-of-way.

Once others are intimidated by this grown man’s emotions, society offers plenty of solutions, everything from anger management to psychological counseling. I don’t understand how these remedies can truly be effective if we don’t allow the individual to express a full range of emotions, and that expression includes tears. Here’s the rub: the problem is that the grown man is out of practice. He doesn’t know whom he can trust, know who will hold him while he cries, or who will accept him and his pain without using his “weakness” against him.

Catharsis is good for the soul, and what is good for the soul is good for the man. Our society needs less aggression and more empathy. God has given us all permission to cry, regardless of our age or gender. He meets us with healing in His wings. Because he records each one of our sorrows for us, we can let them go as our tears begin to fall.

Kathy Gilbert Taylor, Certified Rehabilitation Counselor, is the author of With Great Mercy, a devotional for people who experience pain. She advocates for individuals with disabilities, specializing in facial pain. Kathy also taught high school English, drama, and journalism and worked as an editor. Prior to teaching, Kathy spent several years in the Air Force, first at the Air Force Academy Chapel and then in special forces at Hurlburt Field. An ordained minister, Kathy volunteers for Prison Fellowship Ministries and has also been a Guardian ad Litem and a foster parent.

 

I strongly encourage you to check out her website at http://withgreatmercy.com, and you can find more great writings like this on her blog, HERE. 

You can find her on Twitter at @so_tweet. 

But most importantly, grab a copy of her book right here!!!

Posted in Book Reviews, Christianity, Misc., Outreach, True Recovery - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Map: The Way of All Great Men by David Murrow

Mar27
2010 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

I don’t know very many people who can tell you what manhood is, or what it is not.  That’s including grown “men”. 

The subsequent consequence is that since older men don’t have a grasp on manhood, they surely haven’t taught their sons or younger men how to do this thing called manhood.  From boyhood, through the teenage years, and into early adulthood men are left trying to figure out how to be one.  This is something I’ve blogged about a lot and am very passionate about.  A man should never have to teach himself how to be one. 

In a world where simple answers are thrown from every direction at the wandering souls, confusion is rampant.  Misguided men are everywhere.  Some realize it and some don’t.  Many spend their lives trying to learn how to simply be a man.  If a father is still trying to figure it out while raising a son, what do you think the son is going to learn from his father?

Men are basic.  We are simple.  For the most part, we are visual. 

Give me a map and I can get there.  Finally, we men have a map thanks to David Murrow.  I strongly recommend getting a copy and following it to the pinnacle of manhood. 

(This review was written in exchange for a free copy of this book from Thomas Nelson, through http://booksneeze.com)

Posted in Book Reviews, Christianity, Misc., Outreach, True Recovery - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How to be a Real Friend, and Keep Real Friends

Mar12
2010 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

Click to see all the other posts that are a part of the

“A man should never have to teach himself _______” series.

Part of what brought this thought to me was a recent post by Pete Wilson, about how the majority of pastors have no friends.  You can see that post HERE. 

This seems to be a common issue for men.  My personal observation is that insecurity plays a large role in creating the issue.  I don’t know any men that deny the existence of some level of insecurity in their lives. 

The really jacked up part of this is that these insecurities are often revealed in the presence of other men.  Our problem is that we allow them to become a problem instead of a means of growing stronger. 

Iron sharpens iron.  That’s what the Bible says.  Meaning that men sharpen other men. 

When our insecurities are exposed by other men, we often shut down instead of allowing ourselves to actually be real about them with one another. 

I struggle in areas that some dudes don’t.  Some dudes struggle in areas that I don’t.  If all we do is shut down around each other, neither is getting sharpened.  Neither is growing. 

Let’s be real.  If we don’t welcome transparency then our insecurities can be paralyzing.  I don’t want to live in that, do you?

Nobody ever taught me how to “have friends” or how to “be a friend”.  That’s probably why I still have very few at my age.  I’ve learned the long and hard way just how crucial this is to my spiritual and mental health. 

If only someone had taught me this at a young age, I might have forged friendships that would have me sharpened well beyond the dull rock that I am today. 

Today I’m learning friendship.  It’s hard to admit that when I’m 28, I’m just now learning how to get and keep friends.  Real ones.  Not acquaintances or fluff builders.  But real life friends. 

A man should never have to teach himself how to be a real friend, and keep real friends!

Posted in Christianity, Misc., Outreach - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How to “Make Things Happen”

Feb08
2010 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

Click to see all the other posts that are a part of the

“A man should never have to teach himself _______” series.

This one has been rolling around in my head for quite some time now. I never was sure about putting it into this blog series. But, today it’s snowing outside so as I’m gearing up to do some writing today I thought I would just unload this thought.

People just don’t seem to know how to do “stuff” anymore. You could see a decrease in what some might call initiative, starting particularly with my generation. Kids were growing up on their own and never learned how to live life but by trial and error.

The generation behind me seems to be really lacking in the ability to just do things. It concerns me because sometimes they are literally clueless about critical things in their lives. Nobody has taught them “life”. Nobody is giving them sound advice; or, if they are it is not being listened to for some reason.

Simple things. Things like opening a checking account, getting a drivers license, applying for jobs, buying a vehicle, managing finances, cooking, booking a flight, and even IRONING A SHIRT!!!

How can you send your kid off to college without them knowing how to iron their stinkin’ shirt??

Where is the breakdown? Are parents not teaching kids what it means to have initiative? Are they not showing them how to simply maneuver through life?

Or, are the kids just not giving a rip? My bet is that they are being enabled and haven’t had anyone force them to learn anything outside of the classroom.

Let me go ahead and say that I am NOT a parent. I have no idea what it is like to BE a parent. No idea!! I have no problem admitting that.  If you are a parent and think that I’m out of bounds, by all means leave a comment and put me in check!!

But what I do know, is that teaching yourself how to get through life is hard. It will set you back many years. I know because a lot of what I have learned in life has been a result of teaching myself, or learning the hard way. Some of it because no one taught me, and some because I made horrible decisions. Don’t get me wrong, my parents love me and I have the most self-less mother on the planet!!  I would be dead or in the slammer without them.

However, a man should not be having to teach himself how to “just do things” when he is pushing thirty.   Dads, teach your sons how to be men!!  Teach them how the world works!  Then when they finally leave home, you won’t have to be dealing with all of their drama and garbage.  They will know how to “make things happen”!!

A man should never have to teach himself how to “make things happen”!! (especially ironing) ;)

Posted in Christianity, Misc. - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,

FREE BOOK by Brian Tome (@briantome)

Feb01
2010 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

I’m gonna go right ahead and tell you that you may not want to read any further than this if you are easily offended, because I’m gonna make a statement about this book that may make you never come back to my blog.

Ok, if you’re still reading then you must really want to know what I think. Well here it is: This book is the enema that most Christians, and the Church as a whole needs.

Let me tell you why. Brain Tome understands something that few ever will. He understands the central theme of the gospel. Freedom.

The fact of the matter is that most Christians live their lives in bondages. If for some reason they actually identify them, they try to learn a way to live with them and manage them. To be frank, many are wasting the work of Jesus. Jesus doesn’t want to help you learn to live with bondage, he wants to eradicate it from your life. I don’t care if you buy that or not. It’s true.

Tome has insight into freedom that must be incorporated into the Church. Period. This book is a MUST read, if you even think you know Jesus Christ. Don’t believe me? Then waste your life away living with your every struggle. Or, buy the book and get after your freedom!!!!

Follow Brian on Twitter, HERE!  And then buy the book here:

Posted in Book Reviews, Christianity, Misc., Outreach, True Recovery - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Can a Social Media Blackout Lead to Addiction Annihilation???

Jan29
2010 5 Comments Written by Aaron Reddin

OK friends and family.  This is one that will require your help.  Don’t click away.  Hear me out. 

Most of you know my story of being freed from addiction to meth almost 8 years ago.  Most of you know that I am vehemently opposed the approach of many “recovery programs” due to their possibly unintentional breeding of hopelessness. 

The Church as a whole is just as guilty as AA, NA, etc…

The Church has “recovery programs” that do not teach or show people that their addictions can be COMPLETELY DESTROYED.  Secular recovery theories are brought into such programs as Celebrate Recovery, where people are encouraged/pressured to continue confessing addiction over themselves.  Thus, breeding hopelessness. 

Without the understanding that you can be totally free from your addictions, there is no hope for your future and the work of Jesus was absolutely pointless for your life. 

I believe this so strongly, that I will not rest until I find a way to change the Church’s view of and approach to addiction recovery. 

I’ve been piddling around with writing my first book on this topic for over a year now.  It’s time to make this point to the masses.  While I still have a little bit of time off due to recovering from back surgery, I want to pump a crap-load of hours into completing my manuscript. 

This is where the social media blackout, and your help come in:

I plan to begin a total social media blackout starting Monday.  This will give me the time to pump out a cool thousand or two words per day.  Hopefully, allowing me to wrap up the initial writing. 

What I need from you: 

Prayers – this text will be so powerful that I need a strong prayer cover while bringing it to life.

Encouragement – without knowing that others believe in this truth, I am vulnerable to drying up.

Support – no, I’m not beggin’ for dollars.  I do however need a “volunteer” editor, someone to help me shoot 2-3 promotional videos, any connection you may have with a publisher or literary agent.

Comments – the only media outlet that will remain in my sight is my email (hopefully).  If you would kindly leave a comment here to support and encourage me, it will hit my phone in an email and I will gladly receive the love. 

Guest Blog Posts – I would like to russell up some guest blog posts over this weekend and get them scheduled to post over the next couple weeks to help keep this blog alive and pumpin’.  Please let me know if you would be so kind as to write something for me. 

Share – PLEASE retweet this post, or past the url into a FB status or just email it to someone you know who is passionate about addiction recovery. 

So, there you have it.  My hearts desire is to see people step into the freedom that Jesus has already placed into motion.  I’m tired of seeing Christians use Jesus as a crutch while they learn to live with their addictions and strongholds.  I’m tired of seeing the Church breed hopelessness. 

If people can’t be free from their addictions, then Jesus didn’t really die to give them life abundant.  What do we really believe?

Please take a moment to leave a comment of support and encouragement, and PLEASE retweet or share this post with anyone who may find interest. 

Posted in Book Reviews, Christianity, Misc., Outreach, True Recovery - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Writers!! Warm up the Writing Chair!!

Jan12
2010 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

Calling all writers!  OK, maybe not ALL writers.  But definitely some of you!

You’ve probably heard me whining about the fact that I’m having my 3rd back surgery on Thursday.  If you haven’t, you get to now!

I will be in the hospital for a few days, and then in rehab for a few days after that.  By the time I am able to come home, who knows how I will feel.  I’m going to assume that it may be a little while before I feel like doing much writing again.  That’s why I need your help!

pic from Davison Highley

I’m asking for guest blog posts.  I don’t care of we know each other or not.  If you can write some good content that you think would really fit well with my blog, I want it!  Get your butt in your writing chair and send that stuff over! 

One of the first guest posts that I can’t wait to post for you, is from a hysterical Twitter icon.  Emergent Jesus is writing a post about why he is so much cooler than all the other Jesuses.  If you are unfamiliar, Emergent Jesus is a satirical Twitter figure who makes me laugh every day.  You should check him out, and follow him HERE.

A couple of other good friends are providing posts as well, but I need more.  Here’s the problem though.  I will need to get them plugged in and scheduled to post before I go in for the surgery on Thursday morning.  So I really need your guest post submissions by about 8PM tomorrow (Wed) night.  You can do this.  I know you can. 

I’m asking for posts in one of these categories:

Using social media in outreach

Homelessness

Men’s Ministry

Anything funny

Book reviews

Your own ideas, if it’s not lame :)

Or you can contribute to my ongoing blog series, “A Man Should Never Have to Teach Himself ______.”

I’m asking that the  posts meet this criteria:

400-700 words

PG or cleaner

Some type of picture/video is encouraged

Original work, not posted somewhere else, and no plans to post somewhere else

Please email posts, along with anything you want me to link back to, to aaron@aaronreddin.com.

READY…

SET….

GO!!!!!!

Posted in Book Reviews, Christianity, Misc., Outreach, True Recovery - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Everybody Has One, But THIS One is Mine

Dec23
2009 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

I hate putting up generic posts such as this, but today that’s what you get.  A simple and generic post, that will show you part of the core of my being. 

I don’t know everything there is to know about recovery, but the things that I do know and believe, I am very passionate about.  If you have read any of my previous posts regarding this topic then you already know that. 

If ever I discuss my beliefs about recovery with people, it gets heated.  People, for some reason, want to LIVE WITH their addictions and somehow manage to not act on them.  This is simply STUPID.

I had addictions.  I didn’t want to keep them.  I will not live with an addiction, simply looking for a way to manage it.  I will never be a meth addict again.  I WILL NOT.  So, this is my life’s song.  This is part of the core of me.  I’ve faced it, a life wasted.  I’m never going back again.  I don’t care if you believe that or not. 

Since it can sometimes be hard to decipher the lyrics coming out of Eddie’s mouth, I have posted them below so that you can read them if you wish.

You’re always saying that there’s something wrong
I’m starting to believe it’s your plan all along

Death came around, forced to hear its song
And know tomorrow can’t be depended on

I seen the home inside your head
All locked doors and unmade beds
Open sores unattended
Let me say just once that

I have faced it, A life wasted
I’m never going back again

I escaped it, A life wasted
I’m never going back again

Having tasted,  A life wasted
I’m never going back again

The world awaits just up the stairs
Leave the pain for someone else

Nothing back there for you to find
Or was it you, you left behind

You’re always saying you’re too weak to be strong
You’re harder on yourself than just about anyone

Why swim the channel just to get this far
Halfway there, why would you turn around

Darkness comes in waves, tell me,why invite it to stay

You’re warm with negativity
Yes, comfort is an energy
But why let the sad song play

I have faced it, A life wasted
I’m never going back again

I escaped it, A life wasted
I’m never going back again

Having tasted,  A life wasted
I’m never going back again

Oh I erased it, A life wasted
I’m never going back again

Posted in Christianity, Misc., True Recovery - Tagged , , , , ,

Living A Reactionary Life, Is Simply Not Living

Dec17
2009 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

Click to see all the other posts that are a part of the 

 “A man should never have to teach himself _______” series.

I have to admit that when I started to write this post, I had to go to dictionary.com to make sure that I was spelling reactionary correctly.  When I got there I found a definition for the word that I had never known.  Apparently it can be used to refer to ultra right-wingers, or neo-conservatives as I sometimes like to call them (or y’all).  Anyway, no offense.  Just sharing what I learned.  On to the post we go:

Quite simply, if you live your life reacting to life and it’s circumstances, your life is gonna suck.  For real.  Life is tricky.  Life can be amazing, and it can be debilitating.  It can be joyous, and sometimes it’s hard to see the sunshine. 

Here’s the key:  You HAVE to tell your life what to do.  You can’t just let your life tell YOU what to do. 

If you go through your life always just reacting to the circumstances thrown your way, you will never accomplish all that you were created to accomplish.  Life is always gonna throw some crap our way.  If we use all of our time and efforts reacting to said crap, we will get to the end and realize that we didn’t achieve anywhere near our potential.

Tell your life what it’s going to do.  Make plans, set goals, take risks, and do things.  Be objective with your life and with your time.  Do what you want to do, the way you want to do it.  When life throws crap at you, you can stand there and let it hit you or you can deal with it, and throw it right back!!

One of my favorite quotes ever is this:  “When life hands you lemons, make grape juice. Then sit back and watch the world wonder how you did it.”  

I don’t know who said that, but they knew how to live their life.  They knew how to spend their days doing what they enjoyed.  They knew that life is best lived with your chin down, “dukes” up, and feet moving.  Go forward.  Don’t get wrapped up in the trivial details that will only waste your valuable time. 

I see too many men who live a subjective life.  Most of them never had a father that taught them how to “grab life by the horns”.  Yes I just used the phrase “grab life by the horns”. 

Too many men are off their center of gravity, off balance, being pushed backward by their lives and the circumstances it has laid at their doorsteps.  Too many men are not telling their lives what to do.  They are letting their lives tell them what to do. 

I say enough!!  Dads, teach your sons how to take hold of their lives and LIVE IT.  Men, lets begin pushing our life around and not letting it push us around.  It’s time for us to stop REACTING, and begin just ACTING!!  Let’s set goals, and go for them!  Let’s plan and dream for our futures and go after it!  Lets quit letting circumstances bog us down and waste our time!

A man should never have to teach himself that living a reactionary life, is simply not living!

How much time have you wasted by just reacting to life?  What can you do to turn that habit around? 

Posted in Christianity - Tagged , , , , , , ,

How to Avoid the MAJOR Screw Ups

Dec12
2009 2 Comments Written by Aaron Reddin

Click to see all the other posts that are a part of the 

 “A man should never have to teach himself _______” series.

If you know me personally, then you know that the last 48 hours have been some of the toughest hours in my entire life.  If you don’t know me personally, all I will say is that my pastor/mentor was arrested and forced to resign due to a gross moral failure. 

I debated long and hard about whether to address this on my blog or not.  And if so, how to do it appropriately.  I have decided that this is the approach I’m taking.  I’m going to include it in a series of blog posts in which I have addressed things that a man should never have to teach himself.   

I screw up.  A lot.  I screw up at least a few hundred times per day.  But I have learned (mostly the hard way) how to not make the MAJOR mistakes.  I have decided with every single ounce of me, that big screw ups are simply NOT an option. 

Everyone struggles.  Everyone screws up.  Some people go their entire life without giving in to what I call a MAJOR screw up.  Some people spend their entire life doing MAJOR screw ups. 

Most of us are never taught how to keep from doing the MAJOR screw ups.  I wasn’t.  I knew right from wrong, but I had no idea how to keep from giving in to things even when I knew they were wrong.  Even if they were MAJOR.  This is something I simply had to learn and teach myself along the way. 

Struggles suck, but we all have them.  It’s how we respond to them that determines our quality of life. 

I saw first hand how a man who I believed had it all together, forfeited every single bit of it by responding incorrectly to a struggle.  A very good and great man, couldn’t seem to avoid a MAJOR screw up and has now effected the lives of hundreds of people forever.  

Was he ever taught how to keep from giving in?  I don’t know.  Was he simply having to learn this the hard way?  I don’t know.  Will this teach him how to keep from making the MAJOR screw ups in the future?  I don’t know that either. 

What I do know is that humans cannot simply control every struggle in their life without help.  Without being taught at an early age how to keep from giving in.  Without having authentic and committed accountability partners.  Most importantly, they can’t do it without being continually attached to the branch of Jesus. 

A man should never have to teach himself how to avoid the MAJOR screw ups. 

How have you, or are you, learning this lesson?  Did anyone teach you how to keep from making the MAJOR mistakes? 

Posted in Christianity - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How to Encourage Other Men

Dec10
2009 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

Click to see all the other posts that are a part of the 

 “A man should never have to teach himself _______” series.

This one is critical for a successful manhood.  I don’t care how tough you think you are, you need the encouragement of other men in your life. 

Ever know a dude who was bitter, angry, and you couldn’t stand to be around him?  Odds are, nobody is speaking encouragement into his life.  When male encouragement is absent in our lives, we begin to live in our own little shell.  We isolate.  We hide. 

The encouragement of other men awakens your spirit.  It brings you to life.  It will radically transform you.  It will bleed out of your pores and it’s contagious. 

Encouragement breeds encouragement. 

God is pretty smart.  He created us.  He knows what we need.  He knows what we want, whether we are too macho to admit it or not. 

He tells us through Hebrews 10:24,25 “Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.  And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near”

Most of you know that I’ve been home for a week now, awaiting my 3rd back surgery.  I’m in a ton of pain.  I’m bored.  I’m lonely during the day.  I miss the men that I am privileged to serve in our recovery program. 

They understand this concept.  They know how to encourage me, as you can see here.

From The Guys

A man should never have to teach himself how to encourage other men. 

How has the encouragement of other men changed your life??

Posted in Christianity, Outreach, True Recovery - Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,

Reject Everything – A Guest Post by Jacob Slaton

Dec10
2009 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

Lately (the past 10 years or so) I have been standing directly on top of this idea of rejecting all that which I believe to be total bullcrap. 

No one believes anything anymore, and if they do, they sit on it like a duck on a hardboiled egg, waiting for it to hatch. 

Everyone is timid. Everyone is calm. Everyone is careful. 

Well I disagree.

The people I know are not calm. They are enraged, deep inside their throats. At their bosses. At their mortgages. And their paychecks. They are freaked out, just like me. They lie. They stand inside their fear yet keep it hidden deep in their ragged pockets. 

 What are we waiting for? 

 Every generation thinks its the end of the world. Atomic bombs, terrorism, global warming. Kim Jong Ill. Old Sammy Bin Laden. We’re all going to fizzle out and die, so just hold on to what you’ve got and keep going to work everyday. Pass the time quietly. 

 Well I happen to think that I am going to live my entire life and never see the second coming through these earthy eyes. I’ll be fifty. I’ll be sixty. I’ll be ninety. And those years won’t be spent on my tip-toes, careful not to disturb or disrupt. They won’t be wasted walking past things. Next-time-ing things. 

 A nudge is a tackle. Don’t deny it. When the spirit of Jesus touches you, move with it. Don’t brush it aside and pretend you didn’t feel it like an accidental graze from a stranger at Kroger. Some people don’t mean to touch you when they walk past you. We avoid each other. But when Jesus brushes against you, it is not accidental. It is intentional. Planned. Perfected. Opportune. Momentous even. Don’t deny it. Step into it. Embrace it. 

 Jesus doesn’t bug people. People bug people about Jesus. The Liberating King stands beside us, and gives us every opportunity, every single day, to touch him. To interact. To connect. He just stands there, totally available. Waiting. 

 What do we do? We buy a Totino’s pizza, swipe our debit card, and shuffle out the door to our car, staring only a few feet in font of ours, hoping to never make eye contact. 

 He’s like a Facebook friend that we ignore in public. We want nothing to do with him outside of our coffee and quiet-times, hidden in the early morning hours at home where no one can walk in and catch us in the act of a relationship we are truly ashamed of. 

 This, my friends, is what I reject. 

 If you love something, you have to tell everyone in the world you love it. You can’t love something to one person and not to another. That is the definition of an affair. 

 If you feel a draw towards something, go to it. If you really claim to be chained to the furious power of the Liberating King, but don’t truly live it in real everyday life, then you don’t truly believe it. Belief is belief. There is no varying level of degree. It is all or nothing. It has to be. If you believe, then you believe. If you take Jesus in his entirety, then you take all of him. Every last impossible difficult thing that you really can’t handle. He loves everyone. Everyone. Everyone. Everyone. Terrorists, black people, Mexicans, porn stars, human traffickers, suicide bombers. Will you accept it? Because it is true. 

 Live it or don’t. Believe it or not. But make a decision. Jesus does whatever he wants. The only thing that is up in the air is how we feel about it. 

 If he is the most trustworthy person who ever lived, and he is standing next to you in the unemployment line, will you trust him?

 Because I will give anyone all the money I ever make in my entire life if he ever leaves or forsakes you. I will give you my firstborn child. 

 He will never leave you and he will never forsake you.

This is a guest post by my good friend Jacob Slaton.  I asked him to write a post for my blog because he inspires and motivates me to live my life in freedom.  He challanges me to live a life that is full of joy and passion.  I know you will enjoy this.  To read more of his stuff, check out his blog at http://jakefreedom.com

Posted in Christianity, Misc., Outreach, True Recovery - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

Two Books I’ll Be Working On Just For Your Pleasure

Dec08
2009 Leave a Comment Written by Aaron Reddin

Here are two books that should be on their way to me, from Thomas Nelson. My review for the Sara Evans book will not be posted until the books official release in January.

obstacleswelcomesaraevans

Posted in Book Reviews, Christianity, Misc. - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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