Tags: Summer, fun

I have an exciting, and slightly scary few weeks ahead of me. I leave early Monday morning to do a three week tour of youth camps doing PR for GBS. Ahh.... I feel tired already But, I know it'll be fun. I can't wait. I'm traveling with a amazing and fun group of friends, which will make it much more enjoyable. I'm afraid I won't be able to update too much during this time, but I'll see what I can do. I'll try and take some cool pictures along the way. We'll be in NC, VA, and OH. That's a lot of miles. Well, I need to pack and get ready to leave tomorrow. Shout back, if you're still out there

- Ryan

Tags: GBS

I have fallen in love with the book of Colossians! How can so much truth be packed into so few words? It's the Gospel in a nutshell. It's theology so complex that I can study it for a lifetime and still learn something new on my deathbed. But it's so simple I can explain in to my 6-year-old niece tomorrow. I sometimes wish I could write like Paul (taking verbal-plenary inspiration into account, of course ). He just has a beautiful writing style. That coupled with stirring truth has sharpened my soul in the past few weeks.

Please, I cannot contain it. I must share. Indulge me. 1.12-14 (NIV) "giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, and the forgiveness of sins." Doesn't that make you want to jump? Our allegiance has been changed. For so long we were thugs, fighting on the side of injustice, but we have been rescued! The Father has "qualified" us on the basis of the death of His Son, and we can now switch sides. Call it a healthy defection. We are no longer thugs, but fierce warriors on the side of justice and truth. Where do I get that? It's right there in v. 13, "For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves." This requires a whole paradigm shift. We can't keep thinking about and working towards the exact same things we did before we switched allegiances. 3.2 says, "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." Further, 3.3-17 goes on to define some specifics of what this change involves. You have, "...taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self." I'm afraid too often I live a new life in old clothes. I'm no longer a thug, but I still carry around my brass knuckles. I've been a thug so long it's just what I'm comfortable with, it's just what I do, who I am. Wrong! It’s who I was! I have to stop living with a past mindset. I'm no longer a thug, I'm a warrior unleashed. I'm no longer a minion of the devil; I'm a warrior of the King! My previous tools need to go by the wayside. What does a warrior, armed with every tool he needs (2.10), need with the tools of a thug? So, lately I’ve been turning over my tools to the King. It's kind of sad, I used them so long that I don't even realize I'm still carrying them sometimes. It's kind of like wearing glasses, after a while you forget they're even there. It's slow, and a little embarrassing, but I have a gracious, and patient King.

- Ryan

Tags: Bible

Have you ever heard the song by 4 Him entitled "Roller Coaster Ride"? It's a really good song, and it has a line that says "... this roller coaster ride of life...." That pretty much describes how I feel right now. My great aunt passed away 2 weeks ago, and so we had to deal with viewings, the funeral, etc. It was tough. Then I left Monday morning at 6am to go to IHYC youth camp for the week to help out with their media needs (photography/videography presentations each night). I came back on Friday and left Saturday morning for Beulah Grove camp meeting for the weekend, arriving back late Sunday night. Monday I had to buy a new battery for my car (ouch!), and I was awakened today by a call from my Mom telling me to get to the hospital ASAP because my Grandpa was at the ER with chest pains. That's where I'm writing this from now. Ahh... I'm glad I don't have to have everything under control. i can't wait until i can have some down to to just recoup my life. I haven't had time to just read and write. I've taken thousands of pictures over the past few weeks. I'll try and throw a few up soon. Well, they're getting ready to move my Grandpa to CCU, so I need to head out. Pray, if you think about it.

- Ryan

Tags: Personal