Caught up in life

Well it has been quite a while since I last posted. Many bloggers would apologize and beg for forgiveness from their faithful readers, but I'm not that popular so I'll just get right into it. The reason I have failed to post my wise words of wisdom in the past couple of months is because I have been 100% caught up in the wonderful adventure of life. At some point in time I will go into more detail about the events that have transpired over these long crazy months but for now I'll just give you the spark notes version.

About a week after my last post I got on a plane and flew across the great blue ocean all the way to England. Now, for those of you who don't know, England holds a very special place in heart. I am actually half British. I love the food, the culture, the people, and everything else. So naturally, I was instantaneously caught up in life as I started my adventure. I spent two weeks with 115 people from my church working in various parts of the community. We had groups working all over the Middlesborough area. We worked in parks, gardens, shelters, schools, churches, and even on the side of the road.

After those two long weeks were over I waived goodbye to those wonderful, happy, awake, smiling faces. When everyone else was leaving to go home to their families my best friend/bass player/traveling comedian and I stayed behind to go and see my british family. For the next week we explored Croft on Tees and London. I visited family, wrestled king kong, enjoyed incredible live music, discussed the meaning of life with millionaires and homeless drunks alike, got kicked out of music stores and hostels, got lost, made new friends, and had the best food in the world.

When I finally arrived back in the good ol' U.S.A I slept for a good two days. As soon as I adjusted to my life back home I packed my bags once again and headed out to my favorite chill spot at Lake Wedowee AL. I spent a solid week there slowing cooking myself in the sun. Enjoyed my time with friends, hammocks, jet skis, a pontoon, and a rope swing. Just a calm relaxing time out at the lake.

After a very long month traveling and experiencing life to the fullest I was ready to go home and get back to my regular schedule. But wait... theres more. When I got home I had the privilege of packing every last belonging I owned into boxes and moving down to school at Point University. It was a very strange experience for me. Other than vacations, missions, and just family trips I had never actually moved. We always came back to the same house. But now I had to pack and find my new home. My new base of operations. Even though it was all such a strange experience It was also one of my favorites.

The more I think about it the more I realize how amazing and thrilling it was to just be caught up in each moment as they happened. As I watched buskers and all sorts of crazy people having fun I didn't just pull out my camera and start live tweeting the experience. As I sat down In a secret hole in the wall restaurant to pay through the nose for world winning steak and kidney pie I didn't pull out my phone and instagram my meal. As I went flying over the lake water at 65mph I wasn't worried about what anyone was thinking. I spent the past two months completely immersed in life. Sometimes the greatest thing you can do is to put the phone down and go. Who says you need to take 450 friends with you to dinner or out to a party. Maybe try going out by yourself. Meet some new people. Share you life by telling stories face to face. Embrace every moment and no matter what you do... GET CAUGHT UP IN LIFE.

P.S - Also, try not to bind yourself to big plans. Go out and explore. You don't have to have every last detail set in stone. I went out the other night and my plans changed every 10 minutes. And I actually had a lot of fun!

The Center of Christianity

One of the most common things an evangelist will hear from people is that it takes works or good deeds to get to heaven. Your average person believes that all religions (including Christianity) consist of man attempting to reach a higher power. The fact is that they're right about almost everything, except Christianity. Christianity stands out above all other religions because of Christ. If you are a believer then you know that Christ is Gods one and only son Jesus. All throughout history man has attempted to get to a higher power by deeds or sacrifices. But in one moment, eternity in the making, that higher power reached down to us.

Most Christians would stop there. They would say "Yup, that's the gospel. Now lets pray that prayer so I can add you to my list of people that I've saved." If the fact that a higher power would reach down to us isn't amazing enough, wait, it gets better. The fact is the gospel is everywhere. It is the heart of Christianity. C.S Lewis said "Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important". It really becomes one of those make it or break it moments. It can't be moderately important. The gospel can't just be here and not there. It has be the center of life.

 

According to the gospel all you have to do to receive eternal life in heaven is to believe and accept what God did for us by sending His son to die for our sins. There are some people who would go on to tell you that even after you except that truth that you still have to change your ways and dress like them and talk like them and act like them. But that is simply not the truth. Because the gospel is so huge and so powerful It is not you who has to change your ways. By you choosing to trust in God, He will make the changes. His love and his grace will turn your life around. And don't think for one second that its anything but his love and grace that can do that.

"Once I realized the emptiness of life apart from knowing God, when I embraced God and the truth of the gospel and the truth of the Bible, it was a no-brainer decision to see that that was a treasure that was infinitely more valuable than some sort of an atheistic Hollywood party life." - Kirk Cameron

The 17 Lessons that Stood Out in "In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day" by Mark Batterson

1. Seize the moment - When an opportunity arrives there is a crucial decision to be made. Do you take the risk? Or do you let the moment pass by?

2. Trust - "I look behind me and You're there, then up ahead and You're there too." If you do believe in God then it falls to logic that you trust him also. If you truly believe that God created all that is and all that ever were and that He sent His son to die on a cross, why would you not trust him? When the moment arises we can think of 100 reasons why it is not possible for us to pursue that opportunity. But if you truly trust God wouldn't he take care of the reasons we give to not seize the opportunity.

3. God takes the worst positions and turns them completely around - If you have read the bible enough to know the stories of the Israelites and their descendants then you know that God is in the business of turning really bad situations around and making them great situations.

4. The little things are amazing - A lot of times we focus on the big stuff. And that is part of the reason why we get so disheartened. The big stuff is big. Its hard to control and hard to manage. But the little stuff is nice and simple. It doesn't always work out perfectly but if we take notice of the times where it does then it makes life a lot more bearable. And sometimes the little things really are the best.

5. Prayers can be misguided - What does the average prayer look like? It usually looks something like "Dear God, thank you for _______ and ________, but I've been having a really rough time with ______. Could you just take _________ away from. I don't want to deal with it. I'm too busy for it. It's just not good timing." In reality God can do anything. But his will isn't always to remove our troubles. No, most of the time he wants something better. He wants us to overcome them with His help. So maybe you should stop praying that He would take away your problems and instead he would empower you to overcome them.

6. Your focus determines your reality - Just like the saying "Where your passion is your time follows." If you focus on the bad parts they will overwhelm you. But if you focus on the good parts then they will bring joy into your life.

7. Faith is a risky business - Putting your trust and faith into someone or something isn't always easy. There are risks on both ends. However, the greater the risk, the greater the reward.

8. It's not a sacrifice its a privilege - A lot of times when we look at something we have to do or something that we are asked to do for someone it's easy to look at that situation as a sacrifice. I'm giving up my time to do this or that and I'm putting my resources towards this or that. However in reality it is truly a privilege to be trusted with that task and to serve others by it's completion.

9. When stepping out in faith you almost always second guess yourself - The most common feeling associated with Faith or trust is doubt. After all its only natural. But you have to learn to separate healthy doubt from unhealthy doubt. Most times it's the last minute second guessing that shows natural and healthy doubt. I try and use that to fuel my confidence on the other side. If its natural doubt that I must be doing something right.

10. Waiting for greater certainty may cause you to miss an opportunity - A lot of times we tend to wait to be more sure about a decision before making it. Or we want to see if something better comes along the very next day. And to a certain degree that's a smart move. But it's also a safe move. And safe moves don't get you very far. Take the opportunity while you still can. It wont always be logical but have faith. If we're truly honest with ourselves we know that temporary sinking is better than prolonged sitting.

11. Inaction regrets last a lifetime - There are two types of regret. One is the regret of an action we took. 9 out of 10 times, that regret doesn't last very long. The other type of regret is of an action that we didn't take. And that lasts forever. There will always be that doubt or question of what if I had taken that inaction. And that regret is not something you want to live with.

12. Stop cursing the darkness and start lighting some candles - Isn't it true that often we would rather sit around criticizing others? Most times we sit back and criticize others actions not even realizing that while they are taking action we take no action at all. This is part of the reason I started this blog in the first place. I saw other posts online and instead of criticizing and arguing with someone about their thoughts and opinions I decided to share my own in a manner that showed some integrity and conviction.

13. Opportunity costs are more damaging than actual costs - One good thing to think about when making a decision is to weigh the opportunity costs against the actual costs. Don't compare what you might loose to what you currently have. Compare what you might loose to what you could gain.

14. Theres a difference between a  transcript and a resume - Most people don't realize that a transcript is nothing more than scores and numbers. It's a report of what you know. A resume however is a report of what you've done. Everything you've accomplished. Academic instruction can only get you so far. If you want to learn everything you can you have to learn by immersion. "Do or do not, there is no try"

15. A dream becomes a reality one opportunity at a time. - We have to remember that nothing comes immediately. While we have technology that makes it seem as if it does there is always a process to be followed to get from one point to another. The reason that technology moves so fast from point to point is that computers take all fear and emotion out of the equation. It sees nothing but one task at a time and it completes that task on point. We have to remember that in order to reach our goal we must move one step at a time.

16. Neoteny - "The retention of youthful qualities by adults." Simple but very important. Children show no fear. If they want something they ask (or scream) and if they see an opportunity they take it without hesitation. We could learn a thing or two from the kids.

17. 9 out of 10 times criticism is a defense mechanism - Often times someone will say something about me or my work and it will upset me. They will take something professional and make it personal so they can bring me down. That's all personal criticism is. Someone bringing you down. They want you down to their size. Well don't let them. You have to keep rising so far above their size that you forget they exist.


All of these lessons in mind. The entire point of the book is the fact that if you have God and a handful of whits about you than you can accomplish almost anything. And if you're smart enough to take some of these points to heart you can do it with minimal stress. Many people will look at my attitude and mistake it for carelessness. But the fact is that I do care. I care a lot. However, no matter how disastrous a situation may be I know that in the end it will all be okay. I have faith that I can accomplish anything. No fear. 

Do the Next Right Thing

When I say "do the next right thing", I am talking about two sides of one thing.

The first side consists of the philosophy that even when you get knocked down or you find your self in a bad position the best thing you can do is get back up and move on. It is simply simple. You cannot change the past. You cannot see the future. However if you can concentrate on whats directly in front of you then you can take on anything.  Don't worry about the past or the future. When the opportunity arises do the right thing.

The second side consists of the philosophy that the best way to overcome something large or to just make it through the day is to complete the next task, no matter the size, and to complete that task the right way. Repetition is key here. the more you do something the easier it becomes. When you complete each task you are developing a rhythm. And as that rhythm continues on it becomes easier and easier. However this is not about simply completing one task after another. That kind of repetition can lead to a dreary and robotic type of lifestyle. You must complete that task the right way. You give it your all and do the best you can. It is challenging and it is tiring. But the more you do it the easier it becomes.

You also get quite a good bit of satisfaction knowing that you can cross another item off of your list. And since you did the best you could there's a pretty good chance that it won't end up on your list again. It is a fine line to walk upon. If you simply repeat a task over and over again it will loose all meaning. However if you can repeat something and maintain giving it your best effort, it will improve and become a motivator for what's ahead.

"The best thing you can do is the right thing and the worst thing you can do is nothing." - Theodore Roosevelt 

Welcome to The Conviction Notes

Every day as I browse through the book of faces (Facebook) I see people mindlessly sharing ideas, photos, and thoughts. That is what the internet is for isn't it? To share ideas at the speed of light. To connect people from one side of the world to the other. But what happens when every time we see something that makes us smile we hit the share button. We start to flood the market with funny little videos and sayings. Still no harm done. In fact I enjoy those funny little videos and sayings. The problem arises when younger, sometimes older, people share or post their morals, ideals, and deep thoughts online without any conviction. It has become so easy for people to post their beliefs that they don't even think twice about it. Sometimes they don't even proof read it! I'm not saying that everyone has to get their degree in English before they are allowed to share their thoughts online, but what if we were required to go into deep explanation and provide evidence supporting what they were saying?What if instead of a maximum character count, there was a minimum?

The other day I saw a post from my friend that said something along the lines of lets ditch theology and just love endlessly. Not all bad. We need more love in the world, but to leave all advanced thought and theology could be catastrophic. Now, this young woman is very smart. I'm sure there was more to this post than what she revealed. However, if I were to comment and challenge her on it then most likely and argument would break out. In that simple post there was no conviction, no extended thought, and no support.

Merriam-Webster defines conviction in two ways,

1) The act of proving that a person is guilty of wrong doing.

2) A strong belief or opinion.

The purpose of this blog is to take on simple thoughts and expand them. In some cases that means tearing them apart, and in others it means building them up. In both cases I will do so with both personal and spiritual conviction. I am not only man but I am a son of the Father and a follower of Jesus Christ.

He must become greater and I must become less (John 3:30). For when I was still a sinner Christ died for me (Romans 5:8). Because he died for me I earnestly and wholeheartedly seek his will out for my life (Isaiah 55:6-7). And as I follow along in his footsteps I seek to show others the love, mercy, and truths He has shown me (Matthew 28:19).

I know many people who would leave that last paragraph out. They would think "they don't need to know this about me, it doesn't matter, I'm just trying to make a difference, they'll think less of me because of my beliefs".  But I choose to leave it in. I choose to show you what I believe because it is important to me. I hold the personal conviction inside of me to stay firm to my beliefs. You may not like what I have to say. That doesn't matter to me. You may not agree with what I have to say. That doesn't matter to me. You may find spelling and grammar errors. Okay that matters a little bit. Anyone want to be my editor? This is the very heart of what I believe. I'm not saying that if you disagree you're going to hell. But there needs to be more people who go about life with conviction. There needs to be more responsibility for thoughts. My name is Samuel Craig Crenshaw, I am 14 days shy of 18 years old, and this is The Conviction Notes.