Another post..for lack of a better title

  This is another blog post. I don`t really have a cool title for it as you probably saw. Because I really don`t even have a game plan for what it`s going to be about. So, brace yourself. Yeah, so here I am again. Typing. Life is busy, so that`s why there hasn't been a lot of it going on lately. :) Lots of things going on, like college basketball! March Madness has begun and (as usual) my bracket is completely destroyed. Haha so it goes. But yeah. Anyway, that`s sort of irrelevant. Just thought I`d let you all know. ;) So, anyway, one thing that amazes me--especially as of late--is God`s faithfulness. And I've probably said that quite a few times, but it really just never ceases to overwhelm me that a holy God would save us wicked people from His wrath. And after this we STILL run from Him, STILL wanting our own way, STILL chasing after vain things, even after all that He`s done for us. But through our rebellion, He still pursues us, brings us back to the gospel, and reminds us that everything we could ever need is in Him. We do not deserve this kind of faithfulness. How many times have I failed miserably and He still brings me back to His arms? O Lord thank You! Does this not cause you to want to shout for joy?? He still loves us! With a fierce, jealous love. Despite our wickedness. Despite our ugly sin. He loves us enough to speak to us through His Holy Spirit while reading our Bible. Causes us to read something that we didn`t even know that we needed to read! Pretty unbelievable. And we are so weak. Just when we think, "Surely I can`t possibly make that same mistake again," we`re right back where we were. We need grace. And lots of it. Lord we need You. Every day, every hour, every second we need You! How I want more of Him in my life! To come and purge me of myself and my selfish ambition. I want Him to be my all in every aspect of my life. Because if Jesus is only in our life and is only important on Sundays and Wednesdays, then we`re embracing Jesus Christ the religion, not Jesus Christ the person. He should be our all in everything we do, including things that nobody even sees. Our God is to invade and affect every decision and every move that we make. Otherwise, how different are we from everyone else? I think there is more to this "Christian" life than we realize. Luke 14:25-33. And I am directing all of this at myself. I sometimes feel so deeply that there is more. There`s more for us to reach out and grab. There`s more than going to church on Sunday and learning good theology and doctrine. We still need those things, but surely we can go deeper in our spiritual lives. But again, this is not something we can do on our own. We need to ask our Father that He might graciously reveal His presence more in our lives. So, anyway, those are just some things running around in my head right now. Also, I`m pretty sure this gets the award for one of the longest blog posts ever. Haha alright, enough rambling. I`ll just leave you with this song by Gungor that kinda ties in with what I was saying about God`s faithfulness. I love the hope at the end of the song. You should give it a listen. Anyway, hope you enjoyed (or painfully endured) reading this post and I apologize for my tendency to ramble! :) Haha have a good weekend!




--Rye Bread

The Problems With Christian Music

       I recently read this article about what a lot of Christian music is like today. About why a lot of it is so blaaaah, and why we can pretty much tell right away whether we`re listening to a secular or Christian song. It`s written by Michael Gungor and it`s somewhat lengthy, but I really think you should try and read the whole thing, if you have time. http://awakengeneration.wordpress.com/2011/11/16/michael-gungor-on-the-problem-with-the-christian-music-industry/

Now, don`t get me wrong either. Although I do agree with what he is saying, there are a lot of Christian artists that I enjoy listening to who have good lyrics and music. So, I`m not shunning Christian music or anything like that. But in general, it seems as if Christian music has slowly become a marketing term rather than God-glorifying art. But just go read the article before I tell you everything. ;)


--Rye Bread

Time to focus

         Hello, it`s me posting again. And (drumroll please) I am not posting a video or song!!!!! *crowd applauses* Impressive right? Haha anyway, just been thinking a lot lately on what`s really important in this life. Because we Americans live crazy busy lives and it`s all too easy to get caught up in that. But our eyes are to be fixed on Christ! Not on trivial things that will disappear one day anyway. Christ is our life, our hope, our joy. And when we forget that, we`re forgetting everything that matters. We are so fickle, getting distracted time after time. Just when we`re about to spend some time in the Word and in communion with our Father, we remember, "Oh yeah, I still have to do *fill in the blank*." And guess what? There`s no time for God Almighty. Sometimes we just need to STOP! and look to our Father. To lay aside every weight and sin! And at the same time "looking to Jesus"! (Heb. 12) In our Christian lives, we just need to slow down and simplify sometimes. Stop obsessing over doctrine and theology and be with the One who the doctrine and theology is about. (Side note: don`t get me wrong, doctrine and theology are the bomb and they are very important, but they can also become a burden.) There`s so many times where I just need to take a step back, and glory in what Christ has done for me. To be still and know that HE is GOD. To simply praise Him. 

         So yeah, first let us be thankful. Thankful for Jesus. Thankful for the cross. Thankful for a personal relationship with the Almighty God. And then let us press on. Press on toward the goal. Putting all distractions aside. We are called to "RUN" not "jog at your own leisurely pace." And let`s encourage one another. Even just hanging out with friends, do we ever ask how their race is going? I am directing all of this at myself, by the way. And I`m not saying it`s bad to goof off and have fun and laugh and joke. But isn`t the state of your eternal soul a somewhat important subject? Hmmm….

Anyway, I`ll try to wrap this up, sorry if this was a depressing post. I hope you didn`t see it that way. ;) And it was also kinda rambly, but whatever. And it`s ok to be busy, because I know I am. But may our eyes always be fixed on the prize! Even in the busyness. 

Have a great weekend!

--Rye Bread

For now...

  So, it`s been forever. I know. But here we go. I`m not even really posting anything exciting because I don`t really have time, but just thought I would say that I will hopefully be back sometime soon to post an in-depth something or another. Maybe. Hopefully sooner rather than later. But anyway, I`ll just leave you with this "song" by Beautiful Eulogy. Although it`s more like a sermon jam. But anyway, you should definitely check out their music, reeeeeaally good stuff. Gets you thinking. In fact, you can get BOTH of their albums for FREE on Noisetrade right here. Anyway, I`ll post the video now.





--Rye Bread

A song...

  There is this awesome band called Rend Collective Experiment and I`ve been listening to them quite a bit lately. One of their songs called "Desert Soul" is one of my favorite songs right now!! It`s pretty sweet, so I`ll post it for you so you can listen to it. :)




--Rye Bread

"Acedia"

    So, there's this pretty cool music that I've been listening to by Ancient Mariner. I don't know whether to say "group" or "band" or what because its just one guy who calls himself Ancient Mariner, although he does have a drummer now ANYWAY...really sweet tunes, go look him up on Spotify or iTunes or whatever other doo-hicky you like to use. :) And actually, it's kinda weird cuz this guy is and has been my cousin's best friend since childhood (the cousin with the crazy guitar skills) so I kinda sorta have met him but anyway, rabbit-trail...so anyways, it's pretty cool, good lyrics, cool music and I'll actually post some lyrics to one of his songs called "Acedia" and if you look up what that word means you can probably figure out what the song is about. :)

My words spill onto the floor

They lose their taste when they're lukewarm

They don't mean a thing

I've sunk into the room and lost heat and the dead air and I don't feel a thing

In apathetic torpor

I'm lost in quiet torture

I can't feel a thing

I watch the future unfold

Plans and emotions seem futile

It wouldn't change a thing

I couldn't name the demon

The noonday sloth that creeps in

Into the abbott's mind

Exaggerating time

There's danger in passivity

The lion pounced and swallowed me

Trapped behind the teeth

Of foul Acedia

From the end of the earth I call

My heart is faint with no more strength

Bring my soul out of this prison

And then I shall praise Your name

--Rye Bread

Vacation(s) Part 2

  Okay, so the title is pretty self-explanatory. Here`s pictures of our family reunion at Johnson Lake!! :)

These two were in the water pretty much right when we got there!!

And, naturally, TUBING!!!!!!!

The sun looked super cool behind this cloud one evening. Made for a pretty legit pic.

Me and Eddie Joe getting ready!!!

YEAH!!!!!!!!

Chillin` by the fire

Peaches and Eddie Joe love hanging out with their cousin Lauren!!

Oh and there happened to be a few national sail-boat races while we were there. Crazy!! So if you saw a sail-boat race on ESPN, we were there. Haha :)

  Yeah so there weren`t really that many pics, but it was a really good time!!! Well, thanks for reading!! Have a great rest of the weekend and dude God is awesome!! Find your joy and satisfaction in Him. Cuz that`s where it`s truly at!


--Rye Bread