Married young.

I came across this the other day. It's from one of my fav rappers (trip lee) that i saw posted on his facebook page. (btw aust, you should check out his music videos bc he has some sick styles of clothes that are right up your alley)......... anyway back to Jesus.

It's from his blog and he talks about why he got married so young. (he's 23 and married at 21) He kept on getting asked that question and I can see why. I mean I feel like I have questioned those who have gotten married early in life by asking, "didn't you wanna live a little before you got married?" He's got a sick answers to all those questions, which really made me stop and think.

I won't steal his thunder by reiterating what he says in his blog, but the idea that stuck out to me was that being a single (and very available) man isn't the most fun I'm gonna have in my life. (which is hard to believe bc what could be better than bromance?) Our culture says that you gotta get your thrill in now bc once the you put a ring on it's game over. Women need Godly men to step up and say, "Girl, I want to take on responsibility and own it. I want to love you the way Christ loves the church, and I want to be a leader." There's pretty much nothing more manly than that.

Disclaimer: In no way am I thinking about tying the knot anytime soon, because i know i need to mature a WHOLE lot more for me to be ready for that responsibility. But I don't want to live in fear of the idea. Hopefully, God's got this totally sexy and sweet girl picked out for me. (please let it be true) and I pray when the time comes I'm man enough to get ready for the most fun I will have with her rather than just me and my friends.

check it: http://bragonmylord.com/post/11958265429/why-did-i-get-married-so-young

Too long....

Besties this is so not acceptable. First off, my bad....I have not done a good job on this blog or checking in with you guys to see how your lives have been. Second, I would like to chat with you guys soon to catch up and see whats been going on in your lives. I seriously miss you guys a ton and can't wait for CHRISTMAS BREAK BABY! A little mistletoe....oh ya.....muchos smoochos! Anyways....guys I've been thinking about you a ton and praying for you guys! Hope all is going well and that you still check this thing cause it's been a while for me...ooops!

Love you guys
(big hug, little kiss)

--C swag (that's my nickname in the AO house haha)
Cully

nadyne.

i honestly don't know how to say this. um a girl who graduated from apu with lindsay frey died yesterday.  she was a young life leader, a staff person at high sierra and by all accounts an on fire Christian. her name was nadyne. i met her when i visited chase at high sierra last semester. obviously i didn't know her very well but so many of my friends here did.  i can honestly say that she is the first person that i have ever known that has died. and obviously my connection is so insignificant compared to her true friends but it has made me realize even further how fragile life was.  she slipped while on a platform at camp and fell 30 feet. i have gone through what that would be like in my head a dozen times.  i feel so terrible for my friends who knew her more intimately but what can you say? the comfort is temporary because this world is broken. i have every confidence that nadyne is in heaven rejoicing with the angels but at the same time i have my own doubts. i do not want to die. and knowing nadyne is in heaven does not make the earthly pain any less. 

i don't know how to say this exactly but seeing nadyne's death and its fallout has made me think about losing someone that i care about.  i can honestly say that i do not know what my response would be to lose a friend from westside, younglife, apu. i pray that God can ready my heart and faith for when that day comes. i pray that God readies my heart for when i meet Him. 

i love you guys. 

learning to love your flaws. ~ don miller

this is so good. talked with one of my young life leaders and she talked about how tough camp was because the girls looked at it as just another place to be judged.  she said they wouldn't go in the pool because they didn't want to wear a swimsuit. and these are quite honestly beautiful skinny young women who should have nothing to hide.  i wish there was some kind of self confidence pill you could make teenagers take (let's be honest, i'd take it too) so they could see their own potential, beauty etc. but i thought this blog was surprisingly appropriate for happening right after that conversation and the video is really neat too. enjoyy!

"Had a long talk tonight with a friend about our flaws, how as we were growing up we were fat or freckled or wore glasses, and about no matter how much we change, we still feel like that rejected kid. She wasn’t quite as chubby as I was (or still am!) but she still got made fun of in school. For both of us, the healing really came when we learned to accept ourselves as we were.

It’s a slow process, for sure, and for me it included forgiving myself without feeling sorry for myself, and deciding to enjoy life now, not “when I lose weight.”

For me, that was the beginning of a long journey of losing more than 150 pounds. I don’t always love my body, but I rarely if ever hate it anymore. I’ve come a long way from those times that, in high school, I’d stress about not fitting into my band uniform. It’s been an incredible journey. I never diet anymore, and I keep a closer check on the crap I tell myself than I do on the scale (though I confess I weigh every day as, for me, it’s healthy to see that number and accept it rather than hate it.)

I used to hate seeing pictures of me back when I was so much heavier, but now, I love them. I was a good guy back then. I was carrying around a lot more than weight and it only produced muscle. And being that big gave me a big heart. I’m grateful.

It’s true we impress people with our supposed perfections, but we connect with each other in our flaws.

I’d rather be connected than perfect. After talking to my friend tonight about our flaws, I’m going to bed connected. Feels pretty good. Hope you’ve got some folks to celebrate your flaws with too.

Thought this video from Caitlyn Crosby was great.

Feel free to share your very favorite flaws in the comments below!"

incredible encores.

... perhaps God is strong enough to exult in monotony.

it is possible that God says every morning,

"do it again" to the sun; 

and every evening, "do it again" to the moon. 

it may not be automatic necessity that makes all daisies alike;

it may be that God makes every daisy separately, but has never go tired in making them.

the repetition in Nature may not be a mere recurrence; it may be a theatrical encore.

~ orthodoxy

Dude this new picture is HUGE.....

Dude this new picture is HUGE!

Gentlemen of the Road.....

Guys, so mumford and sons has this youtube video series called "gentlemen of the road" and i think its cool and ive only seen pt. 1 but im posting the link cause i think you guys will enjoy it....dont know how many parts there are but it shouldnt be to overwhelming (hopefully).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gW35oPXWd_Q

^^part 1