God Came for the Sinners

My pastor at Grace City presented a sermon a few Sunday's ago that had a rather personal meaning for me. He, Seth, talked about how we Christians sometimes like to think of ourselves as orphans in this world. He mentioned that there are a lot of broken people at Grace City, being healed. That while we believe in god, we feel that he is the only one that we can connect to. John 15:19 comes to mind.

He talked about how, when we chose to give our life to Christ, God made us part of his family! We have more brothers and sisters and cousins than we could possibly imagine! 

Fast-forwarding a bit, I was walking down Monroe Ave earlier, and I couldn't help but notice all the people who have lost their way, or are broken.

I cant help but think, how could god reach out to all these people. So many people here are hurting for affection and the feeling of being loved truly by someone. All the guys that are out there, desperate for attention. All the woman, scantily dressed, believing that they must be in order to attract the attention of someone so as to have a mutilated feeling of the love and caring that God has for us all.

And it think, how can God possibly reach out to all these people?

Then I remember everything that God can and has done.

John 15:13
Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. (NIV)

New International Version (NIV)

 ¹⁶ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners--of whom I am the worst. 1 Timothy 1:15

Thousand, millions, BILLIONS.....these numbers may be huge for us, but they are tiny compared to the power of our god! In him, all these things are possible :D 

 

Skillet- "Looking for Angels"- Poweful lyrics, definately worth a blog post

Normally i don't do this, but the song is so powerful. These are the lyrics for Skillet's song "Looking for Angels"


"Looking For Angels"

Going through this life looking for Angels
People passing by, looking for Angels.

Walk this world alone try to stay on my feet

Sometimes crawl, fall, but I stand up cause I'm afraid to sleep
And open my eyes to a new day, with all new problems and all new pain
All the faces are filled with so much anger
Losing our dignity and hope from fear of danger
After all the wars, after settling the scores, at the break of dawn we will be deaf to the answers

There's so much bigotry, misunderstanding and fear
With eyes squinted and fists clinched we reach out for what is dear
We want it we want
We want a reason to live
We're on a pilgrimage
A crusade for hope
Cause in our hearts and minds and souls we know

We need it we need
We need more than this

[Chorus:]
Going through this life looking for angels
People passing by looking for angels
Walking down the streets looking for angels
Everyone I meet looking for angels

So many nations with so many hungry people
So many homeless scrounging around for dirty needles
On the rise, teen suicide, when we will realize
we've been desensitized by the lies of the world
We're oppressed and impressed by the greedy
Whose hands squeeze the life out of the needy
When will we learn that wars, threats, and regrets are the cause and effect of living in fear

Who can help protect the innocence of our children
Stolen on the internet with images they can't forget
We want it we want
We want a reason to live
We represent a generation that wants to turn back a nation
To let love be our light and salvation

We need it we need
We need more than this

[Chorus]

I became a savior to some kids I'll never meet
Sent a check in the mail to buy them something to eat
What will you do to make a difference, to make a change?

What will you do to help someone along the way?
Just a touch, a smile as you turn the other cheek
Pray for your enemies, humble yourself, love's staring back at me
In the midst of the most painful faces
Angels show up in the strangest of places

[Chorus]

[4x]
Walking down the streets looking for angels
Everyone I meet looking for angels

Well, That was odd.....

So, im walking back from the UCC late tonight and i run across a group of 4 girls looking for directions. (Which shall henceforth be known as A, B, C, and D)

A asks me for directions, and me being my nice self obliges. They are looking for Kings and Vanburen.

I point them in the direction of vanburen(we were on jackson). Right off the bat, B starts disagreeing with me, while C agrees with me and D, is  very obviously intoxicated (also probably high on something), and stays quiet.

As we start towards vanburen (i was headed from harrison), D decides to ask me if she can shoulder walk with me, and without waiting for an answer, grabs ahold of my shoulder and starts using me as a leaning support. Confused and not sure how to respond, she starts going off about how the drugs are calling to her, and how she is a terrible person, while C reprimands her, telling her she chooses how to act. a few seconds later, D comments on how my sweater is warm, and starts leaning even more, if possible, against my shoulder.

Completely unsure of how to respond, and feeling very awkward,
(wishing that she would stop trying to shove her right boob against my elbow) i accept that we are only about 100' from vanburen, and decide to just go with it.

We get the street, and me, very happy that i could now escape from D, gives further directions, and after a hug from C, starts across the street. D then follows me across, and only comes back after her friends call her back telling her to leave me alone.

All in all, a very odd experience.

A Dream of Unity

On August 28th 1963 (consequently 27 years exactly before i was born) a speech titled "I Have a Dream" was given to crowd of over 200k people at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. This was a landmark moment in the Civil Rights Movement, in which Martin Luther King Jr spent all of his adult life attempting to gain the freedom that was part of regular life for Americans of European Dissent.

I have a dream also, though it has to do with a completely different area of society. Mine is a dream of the unity of Christianity.

My campus minister told me that almost all denominations have the same basic beliefs, and after that, they really branch out. I disagree. Throughout my life, i have attended two particular denominational church's. Those of the Roman Catholism Denomination, and those of the Church of Christ view. It has been my view that they are incredibly similar. Sure, they may have some different traditions, but when it comes down to it, is that what really matters?

I have a friend who is a very strong believer in the Church of Christ Ministry. He has an unshaking belief in Christ, that has come from many years of being a Christian. Though he often can come off as stubborn, i pray to god that one day, my relationship with god will be as strong as his.

I have another friend, you has spent, to my knowledge, her entire life in the Roman Catholic Ministry. While she might not talk about it as much as the first, it has been my experience that she has just as strong a relationship with god as any.

What is the difference between the beliefs of these two people? Besides the titles of their churches, not much. They both love god with all their heart, and strive daily to be more like him.

A good example of what i have found to be the core of almost all christian denominations (one or two exceptions), is the Nicene Creed. (http://www.creeds.net/ancient/nicene.htm If your interested)

What confuses me so much is why all these denominations feel the need to disagree with one another on the smallest of things. It has lead my attendance at my current church to fall noticably. I truly want to be around other christians, but when all i seem to hear is discussion about how this denomination is wrong, or how this translation of the bible is wrong, it gets rather draining at times.

Which brings me to this question. What truly matters?

To me this is simple.

Jesus Christ was born of the virgin Mary, and became a human. Throughout his adult life, he strived through ridicule and torture so that i might not die, but that i will be able to go live eternally with god that created me. Jesus lived a life that i should have lived, and died a death that i should die......for me. God wants to have a relationship with us. An analogy that i always agreed with is that we just need to take one step, and god will take the remaining 99 steps.

A song that i think represents what i have written is linked below. It is truly amazing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IIRxdSFxwY

Thank you for reading this. God Loves You!

David Bade

My Meanings in Song Lyrics - 'All Things New' Sidewalk Prophets

This song really stuck out to me as i was listening on youtube and KLove (AMAZING RADIO STATION, by the way). It really made me think of my life. So without further ado-

'There’s a place deep inside of me
No one else has ever seen
And I fight to keep the light
From reaching the darkness within me
I’ve been holding onto secrets
That I can never tell
Cause if I did, then you’d know
That I was really someone else'

We all have things that we like to keep to ourselves. I definitely do. This blog is actually part of an attempt for me to let more people in to my thought (in a non scientific way, for any science majors reading this). Even though we may hide them from others, god always knows. And it hurts him to see us try to hide them.

'Can you forgive, will you forget
All these wrongs and make me whole again
You restore the broken, You heal the sinner’s heart
You make all things new, all things new'

A lot of people that haven't come to see god, as well as some that have, worry that they have done so much wrong in their lives, and that they have no chance to be reconciled. However, God always loves us. I seem to remember a story in church about a guy that sent 3 lieutenants, one after another to capture Elijah. He still loved him. Hebrews 13:5-6 "Let your conduct be without covetousness, and be content with such things that you have, for he has said, 'I will never leave you, nor forsake you,' so that we may boldly say, 'The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do to me.'"

'On the cross Your love was spoken, You even wore the scars'

Even when we were nailing his hands into a cross, to crucify him, he still loved us.


'You have carried all the pain
So heavy on my soul
Lift me up, and hold me close
You will never let me go'

God wants us to give him our troubles. He works unspeakable good out of the evil in this world. For he wants us so much.

'I should have know the walls I built
Were never strong enough
To keep You, from reaching me
Nothing’s greater than Your love
Can you forgive, will You forget'

No matter how strong the walls we build, he is always there. Always ready to come closer to us. All we have to do is ask.

'All these wrongs and make me whole again
You restore the broken, You heal the sinner’s heart
You make all things new, all things new'

God can do anything when we believe in him. In Jesus, nothing is impossible.

'You release the chains
Of all my yesterdays
And I am not the same, Lord
I am not the same'

If we believe in him, and honesty move all our attention on to him, we will never be the same.

'From the beginning till the end of time
You love will never change
You make all things new, all things new
From the sand upon the shoreline
To the stars up in the sky'

'¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”' Matthew 28:18-20

 I skipped some of the repeated parts

These are my thoughts on the song, i would love to hear yours! 

My Meanings in Song Lyrics

The next section of posts will be part of a string that I'm starting about what a lot of christian songs mean to me. Most of them have great messages, and i like thinking about how they apply in real life. Specifically in my life, as i am the one writing.

Me Socially/Dating

Its been quite a while since i last posted. I figured that since ive gone over my early life, and a brief overview on my beliefs, that i should venture into yet another aspect of my life, and one that ive been trying to learn about and grow in during the last 3 years of college while i was taking classes. That is to say, the social spectrum of things, and in particular, Girls/Woman.

Throughout my life, like i mentioned in an earlier post, i didnt really try to expand much

in my social life. I liked to watch people, and try to learn about it, but it wasn't in my list of goals, shall we say. When i entered college, i decided that i wanted to change that.

I had 3 main goals when i entered college.

1. To pursue a degree which i could use to mold a career path for myself

2. To learn about God. In particularly the christian faith.

3. To expand in my social life, in a healthy way (to make a distinction)

I hadn't had much luck in number 3 during high school or middle school. I had tried once to work on it, and that didn't turn out too well.

To be specific, i had a middle school crush. At one of the school dances, i decided to approach her and ask her to dance. It seemed like a good idea at the time, from my minimal knowledge of social how-to-do's. I waited for a slower song, and asked her. I got a very blank stare in return, and after waiting 5 or so seconds (it seemed like a whole day at the time), i turned and left, at a double timed pace. My heart was beating out of my chest, and i was really unsure of what to do, or what i had done wrong. Later that day i decided that i would avoid actively getting to know people of the opposite gender from now on. (probably the first time since then that i have told anyone about it)

During college, thanks to a few azalean friends, i got rather involved in ballroom dancing. At a dance I met someone by the name of Kirstin. It turns out that she had recognized me from a biology lab that i stood in for. She had been the TA. I rather stood out during that year. I was still very much a Butte Creek Wrangler through and through (well in clothing at least). We danced, and later she found me on Facebook. I started to get to know her as friends, with an interest in becoming more than that. She was a very unique and amazing human being. I don't think i have ever met someone so fascinated with bugs, in particular, cockroaches. She could list out all these different but cool facts about bugs. (not exactly my area of expertise)

However, in my rather un-knowledgable state, i acted in ways that i now regret. Like for instance, not showing interest in things that she loved to talk about, even though she would ask me questions about horses, for instance. (more my cup of tea)

Our friendship never grew into someone more, but i learned many valuable lessons about being around people. Many of them, i'm just now realizing.

After that i did a lot of soul searching, and over the next 2 years i tried to figure out just what dating meant to me, along with what i was looking for in possible girlfriends/wives. I friend of mine, Daniel Thornton, expressed his views earlier this year on the same subject, and i very much agree with what he says.

Im not up for short relationships and the like. When i date, i am trying to look for what i would want in a wife. Ive never had a girlfriend. I guess you could say i have just never found the right person. Or perhaps i have, and i haven't realized it yet.

Either way, i know that god will, at some point (maybe he already has and i haven't noticed it yet), bring the perfect girl my way for me. When this happens, i will devote all the love, honesty, and happyness that i can to her. I strive to do that to people around me, in the hopes of growing in it, so that i will be prepared when i find that person.

When i find her, i will be the luckiest person alive, and i will strive to show that she is the most beautiful person that i have ever met.

As for what im looking for, a friend of my explains it very well. "
I'm not trying to set a high standard. I'm looking for a girl who's single. I'm looking for a girl that shares my faith. I'm looking for a girl who gives me the impression that if I ask her on a date, I have chance. Just a chance. I'm looking for a girl that I can make laugh, and who can make me laugh. I love to laugh and I try to be funny. I'm looking for a girl I get along well with. If the laughing matter is there, this probably is too. Just saying. I meet girls like this all the time. Except one thing. Seriously. One thing is usually missing. Specifically they all seem to be either non-christian, or non-single."

What I Believe- Part 1

I was debating for a while today about what i wanted to write about. There are lots of things i plan to right about, but i decided on this. This post will be the 'What', on my beliefs, the other parts like how i came to believe this will come later

In a nutshell, I believe God created the world. How he created it, i have no idea. A friend of mine put it well when he said, " If god created the world in six days, THATS AMAZING!!!!" "If god created the world through billions of years by using a process similar to evolution, THATS AMAZING!!!!"

Either way, god created the world.

I believe that god sent his only son to be born of a virgin, to die on the cross for my sins so that i might go to heaven and be with god eternally. He was crucified, resurrected, and transcended into heaven.

I believe that God is Love. Unfortunately, this is where i start to split off from the mainstream.

I am an adamantite supporter that people should have the right to have a gay marriage should they wish to. They are not hurting anyone else. All these laws that are created in order to remove their right seem to me to be self styled 'Christians', wishing to impose their beliefs on others.

I do not believe that is what Jesus would do. Jesus didnt hate the non believers, and force them to follow him. He loved them, and should they wish to follow him, he was their teacher waiting with open arms.

Why should we force our religion on others, when christian, in its simplest form, means Christ-Like.

However, i do believe that abortion is wrong. I believe that when someone has an abortion, they are preventing the unborn child from having a life. They are committing murder, and that is illegal.

Bottom line, i love Christ with all my heart, and strive to be closer to him. I think that Christianity in its simplest form, is love. Because of this, i do my best every day to be a friend to everyone i meet. In this way, i hope to become a beacon of Christ's love. I have a long way to go, but then again, with Christ in my heart, i have an eternity to work on it.

About Me- The Beginning

I have always been cloistered. I like walls. They have been an integral part of me for almost as long as i can remember. To explain this, ill start at the beginning.

From the time i was born, till i was 7 years old, i lived in Groton Connecticut, mostly with my mother and brother, but also with my Dad when he wasn't aboard a submarine going who knows where (i usually didnt know). My Dad served in the Submarine Force section of the Navy. He was a Chief Petty Officer. Although he was gone alot, i am very proud of my dad for all that he did. However, it is not suprising to say that i am closer to my mother.

From what i can remember, we were a very close and reserved family. While i participated in Cub Scouts and the like, i never knew very many people. My favorite companion was definately my Golden Retriever.

When i was seven, we moved my to the home territory of my father, Oregon. He had decided to leave the Submarine Force, deciding that 21 years was enough. I grew up thereafter mostly in Forest Grove, with a 3 month stay in Vancouver, WA. I liked to keep myself busy. For me, the happiest time of my life, was when i was so busy, i didnt have time to think.

Needless to say, while providing me with a very good resume, and a lot of life experiences, i was somewhat behind in the social aspect of life.

I didn't particularly enjoy fifth and sixth grade. I was a popular target for people that liked nothing better than to pick on others. Pretty much all of it was verbal, but even so, it was very draining at times. It was an adult leader in my local Boy Scout troop, that finally helped me out of it. While on the way to a camp out, my entire patrol was riding with one Fred Sherill. He said a lot of things that changed my life, but there was one thing in particular. I don't know how we got on the subject of verbal abuse and the like, but he had an interesting view on it. Basically, he said that while people that exploit others through verbal abuse may be in the wrong, we don't need to let it bother us. We all have these verbal pressure points. Buttons that others can press to get an emotional response out of us. However, the only person that is allowing those buttons to effect themselves, is the person under verbal assault.

That moment changed my life. And now we connect back into the original statement. I started making walls around my mind. Nobody, but the very few good get to me emotionally. It was a great triumph for me, or so i thought.

While this lead to a near impenetrable fortress around my mind, it still had its drawbacks. While i considered nearly everyone to be my friend, i had no "close" friends, in particularly of the female gender.

My only real attempt into changing that, turned out disastrous (slight hyperbole admittedly), which lead to my continued cloistering through the end of high school. I stayed busy to the point of non thinking, so as not to brood over my lack of knowledge or success in the social realm. I was happy, and i was learning a lot. I graduated with honors, top 10%, 3.84 gpa and all that jazz. Then i moved to Oregon State University.