Where Do I Start?

So I'm sitting here, dead tired after studying eemingly all day for an accounting exam, and I've got a million and one things on my mind. I'm not even sure where to begin. I keep thinking about my future and how I can possibly do all of the things I want to. Open a bilingual, poetry club/coffee shop in Spanish and English countries. Learn as many languages as possible. Do missions work, especially in the 10-40 window. Write a book. Work with the mentally and physically handicapped. Make a CD. Work as an interpretor in hospitals in Spanish countries. Climb as many mountains as possible. Break down religiosity. Quite an extensive list. And the thing is, I can't picture myself not doing any of these things. I'm not sitting here thinking it will be impossible to accomplish all of these things, it just seems like I'll need, oh I don't know, 500 years to do it haha. Of course this brings to thought the popular verse "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Phillipians 4:13. So.. that being said, I'm not really sure what I'm getting at. Though I suppose the above verse sums it all up, no? Berom till Guden :) Court

Let it Rain

Ok. So, compliments of my bestie, (did I just say that?) I wanna share a part of a wicked awesome song. It's called My Soul Longs For you by Misty Edwards. Every time I hear it, I can't help but be absolutely overwhelemed by the glory and beauty of our Lord. Little disclaimer here, I realize that this entry is quite a contrast to the last, which is quite a good thing! So anyway, it say this: My soul longs for you My soul longs for you Nothing else will do Nothing else will do I believe you will come Like the rain I believe you will come Like the rain So let it rain, let it rain So let it rain, let it rain Let it rain, let it rain Let it rain, let it rain There are other part to the song, but that's the part that gets me pumped every time. Let it rain. Man! Can you say hallelujah?? God, let it rain. Oh God, LET IT RAIN!!! I don't care how cheesy I sound, THIS is what I desire. And guess what? Even more than I desire it, he desires it for me. To let it rain. He is forever pouring out (sounds like rain, no??) his Spirit unto us. I just picture God very nearly shouting 'Come to the fountain, that I might drench you in a downpour of blessing!!!' Amen. Thanks!

The Least of These

So... this post will most likely just be mini ramblings of thoughts that I have had lately. Just finished my round of interviews for being an SLA. I'll find out by the end of next week I believe. Anyway, I've had some random thoughts as far as ideas for events if I were to get the job. Perhaps 'The Triple G' meaning 'Giving Gifts to God. Thought this would be cool because it applies to everyone; and they can create a gift for God in their own creative way, whether that be writing a poem or a song or drawing, could be anything. Another idea I had was something along the lines of 'Shout it from the Rooftops.' It would basically be exactly what it sounds like. Climbing rooftops and throughout the day just proclaiming the goodness of the Lord. So often we tell God 'I wanna shout your name from the rooftops.' I say why not actually do it. Now whether or not that would be effective and how it would be effective, I don't know. Like I said, just ideas. And now to something that I have so been challenged with lately: Seeing people the way the Lord sees them. The other day I was talking with a girl and then came upstairs and had a friend say to me 'Why do you talk to her, she's weird.' I found myself truly offended by that statement, wondering how she could say that. I mean, that is God's child. We are all God's children. Sadly; however, I myself without even realizing it say the same of others. 'Yeah, she's super weird.' "Yeah, I saw him carrying around action figures and playing with them like they were his friends.' Well so what, we're all a little weird. I got to thinking what if God said 'Courtney, I can't talk to you. You're too weird for me.' If we truly desire to be like God, equally loving his people despite differences is something that we are always going to have to face. And honestly? It will always be hard. But by continually submitting this problem to the Lord, it is possible to begin to see others through his eyes. To see that no matter how different they may be, they too are a child of God, just as we are. The least of these. Now, I realize that for the most part when this verse is referenced, the general ideas that come to mind are the drug addicted,the sex offenders, the murderers, etc. But it also refers to that person that you don't see eye to eye with, or that you think is weird. What if someone thought you were weird and therefore chose not to help you in your time of need, because you didn't fit into their definition of normalcy. I mean really, what is that anyway? Social norms were set by somebody. And before that, they were set by someone else. In the end, it's just a never-ending cycle of ideals being passed down, generation to generation. How about what God says? That we are all equal? That the 'weird' kid that sits next to you in class is just as much a child as you are? We are all God's children. 'Who is he that condemns? It is God who justifies.' By condemning the least of these, we condemn God. Because whether we realize it or not, we are saying 'You're not as important as I am,' to the other person. In the words of someone I know quite well: 'We could all be a little more crazy So let's stick it to the status quo And paint a picture that forever is changing All that we have ever known We've all been given a creative mind By the mastermind behind it all So wake up, wake up to come and see And follow me on this journey... Jump into the boat and climb up the river now Come on everybody lemme hear you shout: Let's dream together, dream together. And start walkin' on our hands and writing with out feet As we start making our way down Love Street And we paint together, paint together.' Thanks!! :)

The Ultimate Sock Rocker

I think my cat was just having a nightmare. On the irrelevant scale, I'll say that's about a six. It may have been very crucial to a few of your lives to know that. All two of you that is..... buuuut anyway. Now to the socks. The Socks He Did Rock; He Rocked the Socks A short story by Courtney Ball Once upon a time there was an ultimate sock rocker. No matter where you were, he rocked socks like it was his job. Purple socks, polka dot socks, dinosaur socks, zebra socks, he rocked them all. Did he wear these crazy socks? I like to think so. Just because he could. But to 'rock socks' did not mean to 'show them off' as a display. It was to rock socks OFF. And he did just that, with such efficiency that one often questioned whether or not it was real. Nonetheless, he was the best sock rocker in town. Not only in town; however, but the world. There were none like him. And those that came after him would be no match for such infallible sock-rocking abilities. I am talking, of course, about Jesus Christ. THE END Jesus.....is.....AWESOME!!!!!! I hope he's rockin' your socks off; because he's sure rocking mine off!!! What a wonder that is too, because this is holy ground, amen?? Haha. I always love thinking about that. Holy ground. All the earth.... Lovely. Anyway, no real point to this post... I'm super tired and not wearing any socks and got to thinking about how much the Lord rocks, and rocks my socks, and vuah la, (how do you spell that?) we've got a short story! So here's to our Lord, the ultimate sock rocker! Amen! Here's to kickin it Jesus style, Court

Irony is a Funny Thing....

If only for a moment I could take a look through your eyes Then, maybe then I could see what you see Do you really see me the way I feel you do Just another pawn in your twisted game of life? A piece used to replace the emptiness That inhabits your body within Better to drag another spirit into the ground Than to get rid of the beast in whom you’ve found solace. Where you lead, they follow blindly As the broken spirit sits alone in the corner Silently and ashamed she cries herself to sleep As you, the assumed victor, begin to march. Ah, but alas, take not another step For the battle is itself still raging on The spirit arises once again to a brand new day With valiant face and an abundance of grace. For you see, inside of that very spirit which you seek to destroy Is an instrument seldom recognized by the untrained eye. Love. A love forever present and ever so abounding One not of its own accord but that of a King A love binding even those with the most unyielding of hearts A Love that dances and sings with those who are simply willing to accept. Love conquers all. And so this brings to question Will you take the road less traveled? No doubt it will at first seem to you unobtainable But this love, oh this love, is insurmountable Let not the beast derail this opportunity With unveiled face, surrender. Set free the spirit of the one you have entrapped As well as the one you’ve sought to bury inside. Love conquers all. A new dawn is breaking The self you’ve always known has disappeared No longer do you mask a counterfeit façade For the spirit to which you are called, found in this love, has finally come to be Love conquers all. So. Holy crap this pertains to my life right now more than ever. The craziest part of it all is that when I wrote it, I was picturing myself as the spirit being tormented, not the tormentor. No doubt I have been a tormented spirit. But there are things that I have in common with the tormentor. Now, I don't think (at least I hope not) that I have been dragging other people into the ground. What I am talking about is the fact that I myself have been masking all my life a counterfeit facade, without even realizing it. This, my friends, is truly one of the most painful realizations I have come to, but at the same time, the most necessary. I've burie things of my past so deep inside of me that I didn't even know they were a problem anymore. So I always wondered why I'd get in the moods that I would when, as far as I could see, everything was going fine. That's the problem really, fine. That's not a feeling, AT ALL. And that lack of feeling, I'm realizing, is that most dangerous thing of all. Since I generally try to leave advice rather than just talk about mt life, I would simply say this: Allow yourself, through the work of the Holy Spirit and friends dear to you, to become naked. That sounds weird but that is very literally what has to happen in order for the transformation to be complete. Take off the mask and face the ugly, that you might very literally become a new creation. This is one of the most crucial points I think I will ever make.

You Gobble Like a Turkey but Your Meat's So Dry

So... about the title. Just gonna go ahead and be honest, I just thought it would attract attention! It's something my friend said, and no, there is no relevance behind it whatsoever. Actually... Whoa. That's legit.... What if... It's a metaphor for Christians that speak the Word of God and shout praises to Him and yet on the inside they are nothing more than dried up meat? All talk, no action. Or all talk, no application. Wow, legit, I literally had no intentions of actually using that saying for a word; let alone an applicable one. But what the heck let's run with it. And see if it can actually work. The Lord does have quite a sense of humor after all! (Like, for instance, why turkeys gobble? Was God just up there making silly noises? I like to think he was, and that makes me happy :D) So... turkey's gobble, that's what they do. That's how they communicate. And how do we communicate? Through words. At least I hope so, I have yet to meet a human that gobbles.... Anywho, how do we communicate with God? Through prayer, obviously. Now, the problem here is that the turkey would not be able to help if it's meat were dry or not. It has no control over how good a cook the person is that's cooking him up. Haha poor turkey..... Ok. So, anyway... Back to us. We CAN control whether or not our meat is dry. Is this reminding you of anyone in the Bible??? The P-Dizzles and the S-Sizzles? Or in other words, the Pharisees and the Sadducees. Well I don't know about ya'll, but I would not want people to think I was a P-Dizzle or an S-Sizzle. (Is that bad? It sounds like I'm making them sound cool when in reality, they were dried up turkeys!) And this is a problem I have with so many churches today: It's become all about ritualistic practices and not about relationship. So many are lost in this; and it breaks my heart. I imagine people such as this hating their lives if I had to be honest. I mean, it would appear to me a monotonous routine, that takes place day after day after day after day. Of course there are many that very literally believe in what they are doing; and that their performances are pleasing unto God. And those people truly are some of the most pitied among men. I'm not saying that we shouldn't follow in the commands of the Lord. But when that becomes what it's all about, and we forget about the relationship that we are called to have with our Lord, that is when Satan truly has the power. It is churches and organizations such as the kind I listed above where the enemy thrives. And I believe that the church, the bride of Christ as a whole, not only needs to spread the word of Christ as we are called to do, but also seek to destroy religiosity. That may sound crazy to you. After all, Christianity is a religion. But it goes back to the fact that it is not about the religious practices, but about our relationship with the Lord. And don't get the wrong idea here. When I say we ought to destroy religiosity, I am not saying that we should just march right in and shout like crazy people and start flailing things about like jabbering bafoons; rather we need to approach it in a peaceful; non-judgemental way. And just think how many more people, if brought out of their bondage to decaying religious practices and into the glorious freedom of the sons of God (:D), would be preaching the good news about the chance for a RELATIONSHIP with Christ?? I hope this is making sense! I've gotta get to class, probably a good thing thing because I could write on this all day!! Remember, it's all about RELATIONSHIP. Thanks!! :D