Hillsong – The Stand
An amazing song that I recently discovered. What an amazing song of surrender! I hope ya’ll enjoy!
Women in the media and mens eyes
WHY?! Why must the media and the Internet always parade scantily clad women in front of men? It is so difficult as a man to keep my mind and heart pure when I have images of bikini wearing women flashing in front of me. I aim to lead a life that is a blessing to God and those around me and these pictures don’t help in any way shape or form.
I can’t imagine what it’s like being a woman and being told you have to look like that. That’s such an unrealistic look for women. I believe all women should learn to be comfortable in who they are not what they look like. Something I wish everyone could learn is that women are beautiful creations of God and they don’t need the world telling them where or how to get their worth.
I wish men would stop promoting it. If men didn’t buy the product the hot girl was promoting, it would move our society out of the dark ages of sex. While I do think sex is a wonderful thing, I only want to experience it with my wife and no one else. I don’t need some lady in a bikini (or less) making my thoughts wander. It’s frustrating and I wish it would stop.
I am not certain how to affect a change but I really want one to come about. I’ll step off my soap box now.
Posted on January 21st, 2010 by howie | 4 Comments »Another day another class
I’m sitting in the lounge of the JCA waiting for my next class to start. It kinda throws my day off when I have a break between classes. I don’t know what to do with myself. Normally my classes start at 12:30 and end somewhere around 4 or 5. On Wednesdays though I start at 11:00 and my next class isn’t until 1:30. I have no clue what to do with myself during that time.
I usually buy lunch in the cafeteria (which I don’t have money for) and then I kinda just chill and relax. Like right now I’m sitting with my friends Krystofer and Mickey watching CNN. Got class in twenty minutes though so soon I’ll be busy until 5:00 tonight. Then it’ll be on to homework and cleaning!
Posted on January 20th, 2010 by howie | No Comments »On School
Today is the first “full” day of school for me. I’ve been in classes since Monday but they’ve all been “welcome to class” and “here’s what the syllabus looks like” or “here’s how to get an A.” But today, I’m taking classes I’ve already taken which means, actual learning today! I’m quite excited.
Today I’ve got a lecture on biblical study methods at 11:00, then I’ve got a break until 1:30, then it’ll be general psychology. Followed quickly by a bible study methods lab. I can tell right now that bible study methods is going to be one of my harder classes. I also have a feeling that Philosophy is going to be a harder but a very interesting class.
I am worried I’m not taking the right classes or taking enough classes. I’m going to try and meet with the registrar and make sure I’m on the right path and everything is good to go. I think I am on the right path, I just don’t know where I am on the path to graduating. I know I officially am a transfer student but I am not certain how many of my credits have transferred over, if any… Guess I’ll find out today.
I am enjoying the schedule I have right now though. My earliest class is at 11:00 AM on Wednesday. All of the rest of my classes don’t start until 12:30 on Mon, Tues, Thurs, & Fri. I’m usually done around 3:30 on most days as well. On Friday’s I only have two classes and I’ll be done at 2:30. Quite nice. Again, not certain if I’m “doing it right” or if I need to make things harder or not…
Posted on January 13th, 2010 by howie | No Comments »It’s been awhile
Not certain why I keep ignoring writing on my blog but I do. Here’s an update on life and what’s been happening w/ me:
We had a very merry Christmas this year. Funding was tight for all parties involved so the tree had smaller amounts but better gifts for all of us that were there. It was a great Christmas with a lot of family.
It was hard to get into the Christmas spirit this year because we were packing our apartment up as we were preparing to move me down to Portland to start school at Multnomah University. It was looking a little dicey for getting all of our stuff together but with the help of my friends and my parents especially we were able to get all of our stuff packed up and loaded into our moving truck.
On Monday Dec. 28th, we left Spokane and started the long trek from Spokane to Portland. My parents joined us on the road trip down and again were a HUGE help getting us down here and set-up. We now have a nice three bedroom apartment that is a big upgrade over what we had before. It’s two stories with the living room, kitchen and dining room on the first floor and all of the bedrooms upstairs. It’s a much better layout than our last apartment. It also has a lot more windows meaning we get a lot more natural light in our apartment. This is a very good thing. Once I get it more setup, I will post some pictures for people to see.
Today started orientation for school. This helped us figure out which classes we wanted and what schedules we wanted as well as what we needed to get done for our major’s. I had intended to have all day full of classes but all of the classes I originally wanted we full so I had to adjust my schedule around and now all of my classes happen in the afternoon. Kind of a cool/scary thought that I’m in charge of scheduling my own classes and taking them when I want. I’ve never had that before.
One cool part that they had with orientation was they had a Faculty Friend outing. Basically all of us transfer students met up with a professor, Dave, and hung out and got to know him, and each other a lot better. I made some cool friends with a very young married couple that are going to Multnomah on faith just like I am. God is an amazing God that is providing a lot for a lot of the people I met tonight. It’s awesome to be able to brag about how big and amazing my God is. It’s nice to know that He’s big enough to share too :p
It’s late so I will cut this blog off now before I continue to ramble for another six or seven paragraphs. I need to rest. Early morning tomorrow too.
Be blessed!
Posted on January 9th, 2010 by howie | No Comments »Character Profile
Random character sketch I was inspired to write late at night
A dark and grey morning greeted the man as he stepped past the threshold of his door. He had been hoping for something more promising on such an important day. “Oh well,” he shrugged to himself as he trudged into the cold, “Hope the rest of my day doesn’t end up like the weather.”
He was a tall man, 6’5″, with somewhat curly hair and glasses that looked like they belonged in the 1950′s. While his original hair color was a dark brown, it had grown more salt and pepper-like with the passing of time. He was at one point a very muscular man, some might have even called him linebacker worthy, but now he carried several years of married food around his mid-section and his love handles no longer surprised him whenever they greeted him in the mirror.
He enjoyed a simple and content life. One filled with problems, as everyone has, but nothing so drastic or devastating that he couldn’t handle. He had two great kids, one a Junior in High School and the other going on their third year in the navy. His wife was the love of his life and they routinely went on romantic getaways to remember just how in love they were.
A big part of the reason he was able to enjoy life as much as he was was because of a deep rooted belief in God. The hope and assurance he found in the Creator made life so much more bearable. While he was uncertain about where his kids were in their faith walks, he knew they all had chosen to follow God and have Jesus Christ be their Lord and Savior. What a blessing.
Posted on November 14th, 2009 by howie | No Comments »A Writing Prompt
As the few of you that follow my blog have probly noticed, I’ve been very lax in making updates lately. So I decided to try and get back on track by digging up a writing prompt to see if it’ll help get some of those writing juices flowing. I found this one posted on Live Journal this afternoon.
If you had one night left to live, what would you do? Would you prefer to spend your final night with a loved one or alone? What would you choose for your last meal?
That’s a very easy question for me. I would absolutely spend it with my wife. I would want to do something I’ve never done before. Maybe play at an open mic night or something like that. My last meal would definitely be pizza. Probly from either Pizza Hut or Rocky Roccocco’s in downtown Spokane. Pepperoni pizza with a Dr. Pepper drink. Mmmm… that sounds really good.
This question does remind me of a man who had the ability to answer that question. Randy Pausch was a professor at Carnegie Melon and he had been given six months left to live from an inoperable tumor. He was given the opportunity to answer the question “If you could give one last lecture, what would you say?” While I don’t agree with some of the things he says, he’s got some really good things to say. It’s a long lecture but worth watching.
Posted on November 3rd, 2009 by howie | No Comments »Worship Planning for October 18th, 2009 – Part II
Here’s the final list of music for this weekend:
Above All
Amazing Love (You Are My King)
Wonderful Cross (Chris Tomlin/Matt Redman Version)
The Old Rugged Cross
Resurrection Hymn
Special Music: The Hammer Holds – Bebo Norman
Not certain on the order yet but I’ll be working on putting music together for the rest of the day. Whoo hoo excitement!
Posted on October 13th, 2009 by howie | No Comments »Worship Planning for October 18th, 2009
I haven’t been thinking a ton about music for this weekend but I’m thinking a service about the cross and the finished work that was accomplished there. I haven’t gotten all of the music planned out yet but here’s some ideas:
The Old Rugged Cross
The Wonderful Cross (Chris Tomlin/Matt Redman version)
Special: The Hammer Holds – Bebo Norman
Not certain what other songs to go in there yet but I plan on spending my day figuring something out. I’ll add more songs as I think of them.
Posted on October 12th, 2009 by howie | No Comments »
@cptfarell Gratz!