To All My Friends

I delight in you. I am not sure i have ever said this before, but i really do delight in our friendship. I delight in spending time with you. This is why i spend so many waking ours on the computer, because i miss being able to spend time with you. It is why i use too many of Landon's cell phone minutes, because i get so caught up in talking with you that i forget i am doing it on his dime. One of my greatest joys in life is being able to hang out and have conversations with you, whether deep or shallow, because i delight in being with you.

Part of this i believe is because we can relate on a level that not everyone can. We know Jesus Christ, our Lord and savior, and because of this deeper knowledge of life we can relate in a way that is more real and authentic. There is nothing holding us back from true friendship. And because of this i know you will understand when i tell you that we won't be able spend as much time with each other from now on.

I feel i have neglected God. As much as i delight in you, i want to delight in Him all the more. I want to delight in Him upon my waking, and upon my sleeping. I want to delight in the fact that He is present through out my day, walking beside me and guiding me. As funny as this sounds, it is because i delight in Him more than i delight in you. And i love how i can tell you this and you will in no way feel upset or jealous, because you delight in Him more than you delight in me too. And i love how i don't have to explain why this is, because you understand, and i love how you understand. It is why this whole deeper relationship thing is so beautiful.

So i may not be on AIM as much from now on. I may not frequent my Facebook quite as often. I may not reply as quickly to E-mails and Blogspot comments. And forgive me if i do not initiate the phone calls all the time. Because i am going to be with God. I am going to be delighting in His presence more than i ever have before. And i want to give Him my undivided attention.

-Kevin

More than Deism

We had our first bible study tonight.

One of the staff guys from Christian Challenge named Cliff called me up last week wanting to know if i was interested in a possible bible study. So Alex and I met up with him, another staff guy whose name escapes me, and Mark last Wednesday night at 7 to get some hamburgers and get to know one another. Mark is another freshman at SMC who i found out has been attending the same church as me. He plays volleyball ladies. It was cool hanging out and getting to know them, they all seem like good, Godly men.

So we decided that we were all free on Wednesday nights at 7 and that we would continue to meet and have a weekly bible study. We met at the school cafeteria tonight and it looks like we will be meeting there from now on. It is cool because we are able to be a witness to our fellow students, instead of just having it at Starbucks or something. Cliff led the discussion which was entitled "Concept of God" and dealt with good biblical truths about God. It was a good time and i got to know the other guys hearts a little better.

But, above all, the best thing of the night was that i got to talk to Alex afterwards about something that came up during the bible study. He really opened up about some stuff that had been going on in his life and effecting his relationship with the Lord and i was able to pray with him. It was a really big step forward in our friendship and it is cool how God used this new bible study to bring it about.

Shows

Venue: 3rd St. Promenade
Performing: Seis Cuerdas





Venue: Henry Fonda Theater (aka: Music Box)
Performing: Goldenboy, Copeland, The Rentals





Free shows by great artists are the best. I really enjoy listening to those two guys playing a sort of rocked out version of flamenco on their acoustic guitars. If you search for them on google you will come up with their site that has music on it.
Copeland was a little disappointing because only the lead singer was there, the rest of the band couldn't make it on account of some sort of family emergency. But it was still a pretty cool acoustic set with a violin accompaniment. I was also a little bummed because they did not play California.
Please forgive the poor video quality. Natalie said that me with out a video camera is like a person with out an arm, or leg, or some part of their body. Well, i guess i lied, i do have a video camera...it just is really tiny and can only record crappy 15-17 second segments.
Goldenboy was cool. They have a cool sort of driving sound that gets my head bobbing. And The Rentals were a surprise to say the least. They are quite a mix-matched group of musicians, but with high energy that's fun to experience live. I think if Jared Parker was the lead in a band he would perform like the lead guy of The Rentals.
O, and the sound quality was great. I think i am going to enjoy attending more shows here in Cali. Especially Brand New...oooohhh, Brand New...

O...and ^she^ was in The Rentals...

God Bless You

Today, as i was riding back from lunch, i heard the loud and all too familiar sound of a tire popping. I turned and saw that this white car had taken a right turn too wide and hit the curb way too hard, popping the front left tire. He then continued up this incline where he could get out of the way of traffic. I decided to check and see if he needed any help, even though i figured he wouldn't.

I get there and it is an older man with a younger girl, presumably his daughter or grand daughter. I offer to help and he actually accepts my offer. Well, it turns out that it is a rental car from pretty far away and the wrench in the trunk doesn't actually fit the lug nuts. It also appeared the man had not changed many tires in his lifetime. So i proved to be of some use after all.

I made two short trips home to try and find tools in the garage of the house where i am staying. The first time i found a wrench that was too big, and the second time i found one that did not have a long enough handle to provide enough leverage. So, the gentleman handed me twenty bucks and i rode down to the local Kragen (same as a Checker Auto Parts) to purchase a brand new lug nut wrench.

Upon my return we were able to remove the tire and put on the spare. The man was very grateful and shook my hand and said "God bless you." Which was funny, because that is exactly how i was hoping God would use me, to be a blessing to him. Then we parted ways.

I felt like i needed a card or something, like that guy who helped out Landon and Aley when Landon's car broke down. But i think the fact that i helped out was enough. It was cool, my legs have been really sore from riding around everywhere, but the whole time i was helping him out i did not feel it one bit. Serving actually gives me fulfillment, and i am glad that God has put that in me.

I Clicked Create

I am going to be writing a lot of posts. I have been trying to keep track of who i have told what, and who i have not told what, and what i have not told to whom, and whom i did not tell of what, and i loose track of it all. So, short of keeping a log of what topics i cover in what conversations, i think that creating more blogs will help me to keep the bases covered.

I have been doing a lot of reading and watching of movies of late and i must say i thoroughly enjoy it. I just finished reading "90 Minutes in Heaven" and i have moved on to Praise Habit by David Crowder. I have read a grand total of about 12 pages, and from that little bit i have decided that i absolutely love the book. David Crowder's writing is humorous and fun, but also poetic and deeply moving...

Where were the God moments? Where was Living Praise? Did praise Happen? Could praise happen? What if it did? Were opportunities missed? Was praise just beneath the service? Could it be a flood? Maybe it's just damned? Maybe if the damn burst we would drown in it. Do we dare pick up a sledgehammer and start swinging? It could be difficult. It could wear at you. This could be hard labor. I don't know if i have the back for it. And i think i like my water in small doses. I like the sound of the drip. But there is cracking in my lips and they bleed when i smile. My hands are dry to the touch. So dry i can't feel you anymore. Pick it up? It is needed? It is what is necessary? I want to drown. I want a different air than what i've been breathing. I will swing. I will swing with all my might. I will swing until there is the sound of breaking. I will swing. Over and Over and Over and Over and Over and Over ad Over and Over and Over and Over...

-David Crowder-

I love how he compares the thirst for water, and the cracking of dried lips when smiling, to our need to give God praise. I know that feeling. The feeling of your skin cracking as you try to express enjoyment. The lines showing where there is not enough moisture. Lines that split when strained. It is annoying, perhaps not unbearable, but very unpleasant. And that is what life becomes when we go with out acknowledging God's glory.

Reading what i write, and paying attention to my thoughts, i have come to realize that i romanticize a lot. Although i feel it is usually in relation to God and what he is doing in my life and the lives of people around me. Perhaps i want my life to be like the stories in the movies and the books. I think that life with God is like that though. And so with this post i will continue to romanticize with God. I suppose he does not have a Create button.

A Month In

I said i would let you know how i like Santa Monica in a month and a half, and it has only been a month, but i say that is long enough!

Jinky's, where to begin...

Santa Monica is a lovely place. It is sunny and cool every day. Perfect beach weather all the time. Yet, i have realized that i had grown to love the sporadic weather of Hawaii. Showering one second, sunny the next. It was like we had the best of both worlds, all the time. Although i have heard that the sun makes humans happy. Having to do with releasing some chemical in the body. Which would be a good thing for my first month here, because it has been harder than i thought it would be.

In fact, i did not think it would be hard at all. I thought it would be great and exciting. The experience has been good, but i never realized how important friends and family are to general happiness in life. I took for granted having so many friends in Hawaii and having my family in Arizona. Coming to Santa Monica meant i would have neither. Well, i have had Alex, but i never really talked to him for more than 5 minutes before coming to Cali. I have come to realize just how important meaningful relationships are in life. With out them i feel empty on the inside, and it has taken me this long just to really start to feel better. Although the feeling still creeps in from time to time.

That is not to say that my experience here thus far has not been exciting and grand. Santa Monica is a place unlike any of my previous living experiences. School is good, and easy, and i am enjoying my classes. The beach is a short distance West from our place and i can ride my bike there in a matter of minutes. There are also a plethora of shops and coffee houses and pubs and music venues to be found within short proximity. So exploring my new home has been fun.

Church has been another good experience that is making me feel more at home here, and i knew it would. I met more people than i can remember names for at church this past weekend. Then, at school yesterday, there was a table set up for the on campus christian club that i had been looking for with no luck. Not to mention my relationship with God is growing in to new places that it has not been been before. Now all i need to do is find a job and i will be set.

In conclusion...

I think i need to start making more posts about my life in general here in SoCal, because it seems to sum it all up in to one post is out of the question. Lesson learned. I am looking forward to seeing where God has to take me from here.











Photos Courtesy of Alex D.

You and Me

"You and me, we've seen everything to see, from Bangkok to Calgary. And the souls of your shoes are all worn down. The time for sleep is now, but it's nothing to cry about, cause we'll hold each other soon."

-Gibbard-

I know i cut out part at the end...but it will be okay...

I think this would be a very lovely thing to say to my wife as i am about to die. To think that we have spent our years traveling, and now that we are at the end we are still so close. That we can look forward to seeing one another in heaven; comforted by the fact that we have spent our lives dedicated to God, and that he has assured us with the promise that it won't end at death. Now, i know that marriage will not carry over into the afterlife, but it is reassuring to know that the relationship will be just as meaningful there, if not more meaningful because it will not be hindered by sex.

I hope to find a wife that i can traverse the globe with, sharing our love of Jesus Christ with others, and never tire of the relationship i have with her.