A Christian's Hope and A Warning

1st Peter 1:3-25
3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:
That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.
Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:
Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.
Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.
Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:
But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;
Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.
And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:
Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;
But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,
Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.
Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

For all flesh is as grass,
and all the glory of man
as the flower of grass.
The grass withereth,
and the flower thereof falleth away:
25 But the word of the Lord
endureth for ever.

And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

This passage is full of hope for Christians, but it also has it's share of warnings. As we start the passage, we are encouraged by the inheritance we have in Christ. Peter reminds us that our inheritance is only through our Lord Jesus Christ, and places it as our sole hope in the world, even when placed in trials.
He encourages us to live with a faith that will last through fires, and bring ultimate glory to our Father. While we aren't able to see him, his presence is revealed through the revelation of Jesus Christ. Our faith is based solely upon this, and it is through grace by this faith that we are to receive our ultimate inheritance, the kingdom of heaven.

Peter continues on to speak of how we are to live our lives, resting on Christ. "rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ". He writes that we are called to be holy, warning to "conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed of corruptible things, like silver and gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot".

He makes it clear that we are to fear our failures, but place our hope in Christ's blood. A warning is made against "aimless conduct" or "corruptible things", anything not of Christ, which we inherit as our natural behavior from our fathers.

In the final verses, we are encourage to love one another; and the infallibility of God's Word is strengthened. "But the Word of the Lord endures forever", this means that it has always been, is, and will continue to be applicable in all areas of our life. It is also specifically preached for each and every one of us.

Flashes

Flashes

The blades of lighting
Are silently striking
The outline of a distant horizon
Profiled by a raging storm
As crickets continue
A melodious drone
The hum of a thousand voices
Becomes one monotonous rumble
The flashes of a thousand fireflies
Bringing a surreal focus to the night
The fields, fences, and trees
Neither near nor far
Waiting on the dawn
To define them
Over this landscape
A spring breeze travels
Carrying on it's cooling caress
The scent of honeysuckle and cut grass
The occasional car passing
Breaking the tranquil peace
Whether by thumping bass
Or flashing squad lights
Within a matter of seconds
All has returned to rest
Content to continue this pattern
Until the sun rises
Creeping across the sky
Bringing along the bustle of life,
The cares of this world,
And the promise of another night

Finally

So, I just found the Gears of War 3 launch trailer.... and yet again, it's stunning! The gritty feel of the trailer blends with the always haunting choice of song creating a beautiful trailer. Thought I'd post all of them here in order....

Gears of War (Mad World Trailer)
Gears of War 2 (Last Day Trailer)
Gears of War 2 (Rendezvous Trailer)
Gears of War 3 (Ashes to Ashes Trailer)

Rendezvous

Was reminded recently of this poem, it's one of my favorites, so I thought I'd share. I really like a lot of Alan Seeger's poems.

Rendezvous by Alan Seeger
I have a rendezvous with Death
At some disputed barricade,
I have a rendezvous with Death
At some disputed barricade,
When Spring comes back with rustling shade
And apple-blossoms fill the air--
I have a rendezvous with Death
When Spring brings back blue days and fair.

It may be he shall take my hand
And lead me into his dark land
And close my eyes and quench my breath--
It may be I shall pass him still.
I have a rendezvous with Death
On some scarred slope of battered hill,
When Spring comes round again this year
And the first meadow-flowers appear.

God knows 'twere better to be deep
Pillowed in silk and scented down,
Where love throbs out in blissful sleep,
Pulse nigh to pulse, and breath to breath,
Where hushed awakenings are dear . . .
But I've a rendezvous with Death
At midnight in some flaming town,
When Spring trips north again this year,
And I to my pledged word am true,
I shall not fail that rendezvous.

Sleeping...

Ok, so in an effort to make my time more productive and to fit all the things I want to do into my day, I am trying a new sleep routine.

Bed at 9 up at 3.... We'll see how this works.

Supposedly, every hour of sleep before midnight is worth two hours after midnight, so any time lost should be made up for. I will do a lot of my studying in the morning, which should be better, as my mind is fresh and there are no distractions in the morning. I need to be more consistent in my daily devotionals and this will eliminate my excuse of "There's not enough time". I am also trying to work out every morning.

In an effort to be with friend I may change to 10-4... not sure yet :P or alternate on different days... we'll see how this all goes.

Last night I went to bed at 8:30 and even though I planned to wake up at 3, I slept till 4:30. But I did feel rather productive this morning, I got a good deal of studying in before leaving for classes. Though, my eggs did taste soapy... what's up with that?
In the absence of my ability to write at the moment....

"Let the Waters Rise" - MikesChair

Don't know where to begin
Its like my world's caving in
And I try but I can't control my fear
Where do I go from here?

sometimes its so hard to pray
When You feel so far away
But I am willing to go
Where you want me to
God, I trust You

There's a raging sea
Right in front of me
Wants to pull me in
Bring me to my knees
So let the waters rise
If You want them to
I will follow You
I will follow You
I will follow You

I will swim in the deep
'Cuz You'll be next to me
You're in the eye of the storm
And the calm of the sea
You're never out of reach

God, You know where I've been
You were there with me then
You were faithful before
You'll be faithful again
I'm holding Your hand

There's a raging sea
Right in front of me
Wants to pull me in
Bring me to my knees
So let the waters rise
If You want them to
I will follow You
I will follow You
I will follow You

God Your love is enough
You will pull me through
I'm holding onto You
God Your love is enough
I will follow You
I will follow You

Ohhh

There's a raging sea
Right in front of me
Wants to pull me in
Bring me to my knees
So let the waters rise
If You want them to
I will follow You
I will follow You
I will follow You

Cloudburst

Wrote this thinking it applies to all situations in life, not just rain. There's always a brighter side to things, we just may not see them yet :)

Also, I was listening to Apocalyptica, so it's rhythmic...

Cloudburst
Outburst
And I'm lying
On the ground

Soaking
Breaking
Wishing to
Be drowned

Screaming
Not believing
I can't even
Look around

Wind whipped
Soul stripped
Can't utter
Just one sound

Sunbeams
They stream
They're tearing
Through the clouds

Green Grass
I laugh
God's helping out
The ground

Cursed?
It's heaven's verse
You're just
Twisting life around

25 Random Things

  1. I have lost 68lbs in the past year


  2. My dream home has a loft, and I keep thinking about it

  3. I have hit myself in the forehead with a hammer... hard

  4. Seeing people laugh makes me feel awesome

  5. Working out is really relaxing

  6. I find it really impressive when a girl is not worried about what everybody else thinks

  7. I'm so lazy, but I love to be on the move constantly. As long as I'm with people.

  8. Some day I want to take a backpack go into the wilderness

  9. I love the smell of rain and storms.

  10. I used to build forts :D

  11. I still love the songs and movies from when I was young.

  12. My favorite color boxers are green/dark blue plaid

  13. When I was little, I used a oatmeal cylinder as a oxygen tank when playing fireman

  14. I've punched a kid in the nose

  15. I would do anything for my friends

  16. I like to tease my friends

  17. I am amazed everyday of my life by the world around me

  18. Worrying doesn't solve anything. Relax.

  19. I am 18, have never smoked, and have no desire to.

  20. I pray for my future spouse every day

  21. For my 21st, I don’t want to go crazy. I want to go out and buy a fruity alcoholic beverage, and then hang with friends

  22. I love black, white, and tan. I do go overboard. Deal with it.

  23. I am running out of ideas

  24. I've been to speech therapy

  25. I love dancing, but I'm not very good at it.... One day.....

    Ok, since pretty much no one reads my blog, I'm tagging the first 5 people to read this... leave a comment once you're tagged :D