My Thoughts (For Better or Worse)

I’ve spent the past year questioning all I’ve ever learned. Whether it be philosophical...

Thu, 09 May 2013 04:59:16 -0400

I’ve spent the past year questioning all I’ve ever learned. Whether it be philosophical or physical. Through this time I’ve made some regretful decisions and some that I will be glad I made for the rest of my life. To most outside people I know I appear crazy for living like this WILLINGLY. In fact if I’m completely transparent I’ve had more than a few days where I’ve questioned my motives and my direction. As another year goes by I’ve come to terms that life is unfair and can be downright cold. Every day consists of work that is needed to be done and running away from problems only make them worse. A lot has changed since I last attended a class in college, and plenty more will change within these next few months. In everything though, the one thing that keeps me going is this: Hope.

Hope is what keeps me focused and driven. The hope that this broken world can only be fixed by it’s creator. Many a night, I’ve laid on a couch, on the floor, in my car crushed from that days obstacles and every time I find myself finding peace in the hope of my eternity with my savior. Now I don’t want to seem overly dramatic. I know others have had worse circumstances. I’m just sharing what’s currently on my heart because I feel led to.

To all my friends who are either in or about to be in a season of uncertainty, I can assure you that in Christ, no matter the circumstance, our future is secure. Our hope will one day become reality, and because of that, you can survive another day in this world.

Bacon Cupcakes #ThatJustHappened

Sun, 24 Feb 2013 11:24:46 -0500

Bacon Cupcakes #ThatJustHappened

untitled by Alexandre M. Morgado on Flickr.

Thu, 21 Feb 2013 17:40:04 -0500

untitled by Alexandre M. Morgado on Flickr.

Photo

Mon, 18 Feb 2013 20:03:09 -0500

freakoutiness: theoncomingapocalypse: this is very...

Mon, 18 Feb 2013 19:33:02 -0500

freakoutiness:

theoncomingapocalypse:

this is very calming

Can someone do this with a triangle?

"No greater treasure can be conceived than the Son of God."

Mon, 18 Feb 2013 15:18:18 -0500

“No greater treasure can be conceived than the Son of God.”

- John Piper

This gif is so suspenseful.

Mon, 18 Feb 2013 00:04:44 -0500

This gif is so suspenseful.

goldenclitoris: i would kill someone if they did that to my...

Mon, 18 Feb 2013 00:03:43 -0500

goldenclitoris:

i would kill someone if they did that to my kid

"Life ends… Or does it? Is this all we see, Or will we wake up in eternity? Are there oceans..."

Sun, 17 Feb 2013 16:55:40 -0500

“

Life ends…
Or does it?
Is this all we see,
Or will we wake up in eternity?

Are there oceans in heaven,
Or do we stay buried…
in a cold and lifeless coffin?

Will I always be loved?
Or is it over when you die?
The sky could either be so blue
Or it could be so black…

If you and I ever make it to heaven,
And I happen to see you again,
Do you think we’ll remember one-another?
And maybe just maybe,
I could take you back?

”

ohhellocheeky: 4 months to go…

Sun, 17 Feb 2013 14:30:39 -0500

ohhellocheeky:

4 months to go…

Paper Route

Sun, 17 Feb 2013 01:02:36 -0500

Paper Route:

I can’t go a day without listening to this song and thinking about the words

"God creates out of nothing. Wonderful you say. Yes, to be sure, but he does what is still more..."

Sat, 16 Feb 2013 23:55:54 -0500

“God creates out of nothing. Wonderful you say. Yes, to be sure, but he does what is still more wonderful: he makes saints out of sinners.”

- Soren Kierkegaard

The first day of the rest of my life….

Thu, 24 May 2012 18:35:41 -0400

It’s been 6 hours and 25 minutes since I left Virginia. My jeep, Carlos, is dead, and I’m stuck in a hotel in a place called Pennsville, NJ. A quick search on Wikipedia shows that this town has a population of 13,194 and one of its most notable residents is none other than Dave Romansky, the famed Olympic racewalker (That’s a sport? Who knew?). Needless to say, this place is far from home, and is almost exactly the same distance between Lynchburg and Lowell.

So this is what the newest chapter of my life feels like, huh? If so, this could be quite the adventure.

gakerly: misconception - lecrae (ft propaganda, braille, odd...

Thu, 24 May 2012 17:02:08 -0400

gakerly:

misconception - lecrae (ft propaganda, braille, odd thomas)

“You probably have it all figured out, right?
Like you’re the type that believes that if you act right,
then that just might make you righteous in God’s sight
You’ve been a really good person,
you’ve followed the Good Book as much as you could,
you probably didn’t go to Church as much as you should,
but its all good.
I mean you never really killed anyone,
never really steal from any body,
you never really lusted much,
or did much touching of any, bodies.
You never used the Lord’s name in vain,
and you respect your neighbor,
and you try to maintain peace,
love your enemies,
and not hold on to anger.
You really believe that you can receive God’s favor
by your good deeds and right behavior.
But you’re dead in your transgressions and need a Savior
Cause you could never win God’s approval of the removal of sinful discretions.
Your righteous acts of removing God’s wrath is in fact the biggest misconception.”

“He must increase, but I must decrease”… those 7 words haunt me. They are an...

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 02:24:24 -0400

“He must increase, but I must decrease”… those 7 words haunt me. They are an ever-present reminder that comfortability and apathy aren’t options. The sheer power of that statement is the reason Christians are killed everyday. If we actually lived like Jesus was our source of life… Let’s just say our world wouldn’t look like this…

How beautiful is God’s Word. Think about it. How beautiful is it that Jesus gave me a book to learn more about Him? It’s incredible. God sent us a letter. Read that again. GOD wrote us a book. I have no words to describe the sheer insanity of that thought. Yet it happened… We who have been privileged to experience God through the knowledge of His Word should be absolutely ecstatic whenever we read a verse. Heck even if the Bible was ONE VERSE LONG it’d be the most incredible gift of all time because of who wrote the verse!!!

Anyways, I just wanted to say that my life has been change by John 3:30 tonight. I pray that it changes yours too.

Passion 2012

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 13:03:01 -0500

As pretty much everyone knows by now I went to Passion Conference in Atlanta, GA this past week, and it was amazing. By far the best present I have ever received (Although the N64 did give this a run for it’s money). The thing about all of this is that people will want to know how I liked it or who was my favorite speaker, and while those are good questions there is just one thing I want to tell everyone…

Jesus Changes Lives

Seriously, when the Holy Spirit is thick in a place you can’t help but respond, and respond we did. When you have 44,000 people who actually WANT to be there, and are committed to Christ all bets are off. We raised 3.1 MILLION dollars to end slavery and sex trafficking.. and they say Christians are stingy with their money ;) haha

I can give story after story about making new friends, growing closer to others, walking the streets of ATL or taking naps in the trunk of a van (which was incredibly spacious), but what I want people to know is that:

When Jesus is in something it can’t help but change lives

Right now there are 27 Million Slaves in the world right now, and they make literally everything we wear or eat. I took a survey at SlaveryFootprint.organd it took 48 slaves to make all the stuff I own. If that wasn’t a punch to the gut I wouldn’t know what was. The thing is that if Christianity got so behind this cause of ending slavery, then by the next generation there could an astoundingly lower number of slaves in the world. I truly believe we can change this world for Christ. So donate to DoSomethingNow.com which partners with organizations like:

Tiny Hands: Who help build border stations and new homes between Nepal and India (2 major hubs of slavery) to make it harder to smuggle slaves between the 2 countries

A21: Who are helping teaching prevention classes in Ukraine to those who are at the biggest risk of become sex slaves. Ukraine brings in the most girls to the sex trafficking industry (500,000 in the past 10 years alone).

International Justice Mission: Who help fund rescue operations for those stuck in slavery. Right now they are working in Chennai, India where forced slavery is huge, and they are committed to finding the places where slaves reside and freeing thme thorough rescue raids (Sounds intense right?). They also have a 2 year healing program to get former slaves assimilated in everyday life.

The Atlanta Project: Little known fact, but the ATL is a big player in human trafficking in the USA. 5,000 girls a year are kidnapped and are used for sex, and the Atlanta Project is committed to ending that atrocity in the city.

Hagar: Which takes care of sexually exploited children (Yes, CHILDREN) in Cambodia, a hotbed for selling Children for Sex. They give medical attention, a place to live safely and the opportunity for a better life.

Wellspring: Which is a place that provide homes, therapy, education and most importantly the love of Jesus to those who have been freed for the sex trafficking scene in the ATL.

As you can see, there are some great organizations that can use your help, and I pray that if you feel led to donate that you do just that.DoSomethingNow.com is the website.

May Jesus teach you and challenge you with something new and scary today. May He burden you with His love for others, and I pray that we as Christians unite in the name of Him.

Noel

Good (Adam & Eve) by Matthew West & Leigh Nash

Fri, 23 Dec 2011 10:49:55 -0500

This song gives me chills whenever I listen to it…

It’s a song written through the eyes of Adam and Eve after The Fall. Honestly, I’ve never really stopped and thought about their lives after Genesis 2. I mean to have once tasted and seen perfection, and then all of sudden all of it’s gone. Can you imagine the guilt they experienced? The long nights without sleep just thinking about if they had done things differently… It’s actually kind of sad. Just think about it. When I sin it usually doesn’t have world-changing implications, but for them it did.. Crazy, huh?

Anyways, let’s just be thankful we weren’t the ones God chose to start mankind with. Adam and Eve must have been some incredible people for God to give them that task. I look forward to meeting them one day. I’m sure they will have some pretty insane stories to tell too.

http://grooveshark.com/#/album/Music+Inspired+By+The+Story/7168299

It's Interesting to Think...

Wed, 21 Dec 2011 14:43:23 -0500

It’s interesting to think-

That our lives have no ending.

That death has no meaning.

That the “Goodbyes” we’ll be saying-

Instead should be “See You Soon”.

That for eternity we’ll be spending-

Our lives with the Creator of all men.

It’s interesting to think-

That we have hope like no other.

That my Father provided a way of rescue-

For not only myself, but for all my other sisters and brothers.

It’s interesting to think-

Our love has everlasting meaning-

To an everlasting being-

That we have no way of seeing with our eyes-

Until the day He returns,

And our meeting with Him-

Turns into indescribable celebration.

It’s interesting to think-

That when death has no meaning-

And hope is fulfilling-

And love has no ending-

That to the Christian-

Just knowing these things-

Is just the beginning of our life with Christ.

What really is Christmas all about?...

Sat, 17 Dec 2011 15:48:12 -0500

As I sit in front of my family desktop facing the living room listening to music, it hit me. My house is Wicked “Christmas-y.” Off in the top-left corner next to our TV is a humungous Christmas tree filled with white lights, beautiful ribbon and family-related ornaments. The fireplace to the left of the tree has a nativity scene on the mantle and stockings are hung directly under it. A Christmas reef is put up on a window directly across from me while the words “Merry & Bright” rest below the reef. To say we are festive would be an incredible understatement.

As much as I enjoy the colors throughout the house and as much as I love the warmth I feel whenever I just stop and scan the rooms, there just seems something strange about this whole atmosphere. People tell me all of this is getting into the mood of Christmas, but honestly, aside from the Nativity scene, what does any of this have to do with my Savior coming down to save the World from Hell?

Look, I’m not trying to be a downer or a scrooge. I just get really into the meaning of Christmas. For years all I cared for during Christmas was giving/receiving presents, getting time off of school and getting into the Christmas spirit. While those are not necessarily bad things, my focus wasn’t on the things that truly mattered.

Whether or not you are a Christian, if you’ve grown up in America you have probably heard the Christmas story roughly 435 times. Everyone knows why we celebrate Christmas, but comparatively few actually understand the significance of Christmas.

To put it bluntly: THE SAVIOR OF THE UNIVERSE, OUR MESSIAH, WAS FINALLY BORN!!

The One that could save us from our sins, God Himself, had finally arrived. Without this event happening, very few people outside of Israel would have found true salvation. I cannot stress this enough. This is why I celebrate. Because Jesus came to my rescue, and before I was even close to being born my Lord made a way for me to meet Him face to face. I get to spend eternity with the very creator of Love for the rest of eternity. How cool is that?!?

Now if you have not experience the redemption that is in Jesus, but do know the Christmas story, I implore you to do more reading. Yes, you may know Matthew 1-2, you may even know Chapters 26-28, but really take a good, hard look at Chapters 3-25. Jesus was more than just a good man, or a wise teacher. The words in that book prove to me that He was SALVATION and in Him I have life and life to the FULLEST.

If you have any questions, text me, message me on facebook, get at me on twitter, or leave a message on my tumblr. I would love to talk about the healing and restoration Jesus brings to a life. I pray that God will be on everyone’s mind this Christmas season, and that in some way we show our gratitude to God for coming down and rescuing us.

I hope you all have an incredible Christmas.

Noel

Photo

Sat, 17 Dec 2011 00:25:26 -0500