Kayaking

Last weekend I went kayaking with some friends to one of my favorite places in the world on the Dix River in Jessamine County. It was my second time making the trip and I really couldn't wait to get back to those cold waters that run out from the depths of Herrington Lake. The whole trip I just felt at ease with the world. Completely free. Which is why I love kayaking so much. But I started thinking about how much we get caught up in our worldly lives. Everything that we do as humans seems so major...and so conspicuous. However, I would argue that there is so much more than what meets the eye, or even the mind. I was reminded by these verses that I have been studying lately of just how small we are on this earth and how skewed our thinking is. As Switchfoot once put it, "we were meant to live for so much more..."



If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you...

-Colossians 3:1-5a

I am not saying what we do in our lives is not important. We are blessed with life for a reason. However, we should make life just that, a blessing, especially to those around us. A simple life. Only that of which can be found in a kayak sometimes.

The Fantasy Factory

A couple of days ago I was watching a marathon of the TV show, The Fantasy Factory, with Rob Dyrdek. I thought the show was a lot of fun and found myself laughing out loud quite a bit, but I also fell in love with Rob's enthusiasm for helping others discover and reach their dreams. I'm not saying that I agree with everything that Rob does in his make believe world, but I can say that his enthusiasm made me want to go serve others. This weekend I was lucky enough to be blessed with an opportunity to do so.

Unfortunately, I heard I missed an awesome wedding this weekend. And I am very happy for my cousin Michelle and her husband Jason. Instead, I was asked to participate in a retreat with the athletes, coaches, and sports administration of Asbury University. We got to do some really cool stuff and we got to serve the local community of Monticello, Kentucky as a group. I can say that I got to hang out and interact with people that I would have never got to know if it wasn't for the trip. I am happy for the new relationships that I formed, but I am even more excited to somewhat understand what it means to put others before myself. I am not quite at the point where I can be completely unselfish, but this weekend I watched others model the characteristic. It was a relief to see, especially in the world that we live in today. The entire weekend I studied and reflected on Philippians 2:1-3.

-So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.

Although I am not Rob Dyrdek, I love having the opportunity to do something for someone else everyday. I hope that I can be more in tune to the guidance of Christ in my life and be of one mind and of the same love as other Christ follows. I challenge others to join me, call me, text me...let's go serve some people and become the hands of God's Fantasy Factory.

Happy Birthday America

Oh, what a weekend. It was great to be home and visit with friends, especially those that live far away that you don't get to see often. But maybe the best thing about this past Independence Day was not only our right to freedom, but my individual freedom from work, responsibility, and "to do" lists. It was an impossible task, but I tried my best not to think about any of those things this weekend. My sole focus was to enjoy the times spent with others and alone in resting, reading...and maybe some tv/movie watching.

This morning I started one of the books I wanted to read this summer, A Farewell to Arms by Hemingway. I'm only about 45 pages in, but I am already enjoying the character development. In my opinion, Hemingway had a gift in creating these unbelievably exciting female characters. Both Brett Ashley (The Sun Also Rises) and Catherine Barkley (A Farewell to Arms) are brilliant and I recommend discovering both of them if you are into literature. I mean, you don't know anything about them really, but you cannot help but love them right from the start.

The World Cup semifinals start tomorrow, but I won't be able to watch the games because of work. I wish we were like other countries and stopped everything we did for situations such as these. For the first time in my life, I think I wouldn't mind living in France. Because despite whether or not work permitted, I would just go on strike for the day...supposedly it's an accepted practice. Since the US of A is out, I'm pulling for my second favorite country in the world, Spain!

Cool fact of the day, the title of Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises, is linked to the verse Ecclesiastes 1:5.

-The sun rises, and the sun goes down, and hastens to the place where it rises.

If you've read the novel, the whole first chapter of Ecclesiastes seems to tie in someway...