the internet is a funny place....

what can't you find on the internet??? and i wasn't even looking for it lol....http://www.jamiefrost.co.uk/narniaquiz

As Prince Rilian, you are brave, noble and intelligent, but easily misguided! Just make sure you don't go after any green women.

not feeling so hot

i'v been sick this week. jr got sick first then passed it on to us. and with him being cranky from teething and having the cold and mom and dad being sick too, it was quite the adventure. i've also had alot on my mind and plate lately. having some car/money issues and that kinda stuff stresses me out. not really having the money or time to get to the shop, plus wanting to take better care of the car. and again money is an issue so it can be depressing.

i've also been distracted with trying to create a new template for this blog. i found one that someone else created and i like it alot, but i wanna tweak it and i'm having trouble. its written using css and i know some but not like i should so i've been teaching myself. i wish i had more time to concentrate on it. or i wish i made better use of my time. i have alot of interests. it's difficult though. life can't be truly scheduled. at least that's my experience. but its kinda cool trying to teach myself but i'm not usually disciplined with it. i prefer being taught and having some structure.

i finished the chronicles of narnia! excellent series. my wife was right. she said i'd wanna read it again once i was done and i do kinda want to review it. i really liked the last few books of the series, there was quite a bit that stood out . so i wouldn't mind quickly going over the first couple of books to see what i may have missed or forgotten as i got further along in the series. the one thing that stood out the most from the entire series was how God's nature was portrayed. its hard for me to find the words to describe. and that was another good thing about the way the books were written. at times c.s. lewis would basically say something was hard too explain or describe to really get across what a character or characters were experiencing.

but yeah, it makes me wonder why we have the view of God that we do. our view of Him in general seems that He's always angry and waiting for us to mess up. maybe its me but thats something i've observed. i wonder if when we come to realize how awesome and powerful God is, (and really it is beyond our imagination) we fear for our lives. i mean that in the sense that we think like humans do. we think, "well if i was a Holy God i know how displeased i'd be with someone like me". but we forget about how much God says He loves us. and we forget that God looks deep into our hearts and is more interested in the motivation behind our actions. and i think Jesus gives examples of that in some of the parables He told. but we concentrate so much on His anger. i wonder why. and fear motivates in the wrong way. i don't think that's God's intention. Jesus says to take on His yoke and that His burden is light. why don't we believe that. (belief is something else i've been thinking about ever since reid posted on faith and belief a while back. for some reason we don't believe it or don't believe we can handle what God would throw our way. i dunno. this life is a trip. at times i feel like a bear that had a very small role in the "the last battle" of the chronicles of narnia. he simply says "i..i..don't understand". there was so much going on and it was happening so quickly that it was all he could say.

Christ and hip hop

i'd like to comment on the music that i play on my site. the first song that's playing is by a group called the cross movement. i support this group by buying and listening to their music cuz there's no question that they are trying to reach souls for God and their music doesn't try to hide the fact that they are Christians. Jesus Christ crucified is what they preach and there's "no shame in their game". since being introduced to their music i've stopped listening to secular music and they've inspired me to strengthen my walk and to be more in the Word.

that being said...i read an article about them written by rondy long of exministries and for one, he misquotes a song or takes the lyrics from a song out of context. the song is called "hip-hop-cracy" and the song is about the state of hip hop today and its negative influence on the world today. one line from the song is “And when that last tic-tocks, I’m (God) coming to your block to see what you did with my Son and with my Hip-Hop!” . that line refers to God giving us the abiility to make music and what we do with it. hip hop being one form of music. rondy seemed to think that that line makes it sound like Jesus and hip-hop are equal. here are the lyrics within context:

Now if Hip-Hop is gonna be true to life
I'm tellin' you Hip-Hop’s gotta be true to Christ
‘Cause as the Hebrew writer cites,
That His creative endeavors made all things and holds all together
So that kick and snare that jerks your spine is ‘cause God made noise work by design
So it’s Divine and not by chance that you can make a hot track or do a little dance
Or write a little rhyme
Ain’t that crazy?
Words whose sounds matched that stimulate the mind
And what if you can write a verse?
How you paying homage to music’s Maker with punchlines of curse?
And the stanza’s that modern man does are full of vanity, vulgarity and propaganda
But I guess that’s this age –
We Thugs and Fools
We even stick God up and saying, “Run the jewels!”
But God ain’t the type to just lay down flat and put His hand behind His head and turn His back
He’s the type to look right back down your pipe
And see the Cross in the crosshairs of your site
And be like, “Oh you sticking me up? No you’ not…
I’m loaning you my stuff, but you on the clock.
And when that last tic-tocks, I’m coming for your block
To see what you did with my Son and with Hip-Hop!”
So woe to all men who have abused the craft with unjustified math and filthy cash
“Will a man rob God?” No indeed
But that’s the sin and attempt of Hip-Hop-cracy


rondy believes that hip hop is music is influenced by demons. and i guess my question would be...what about rock music and the culture that comes from it? new age jazz?? r&b?? etc...what kind of spirit is behind these genres?? should christian rock be abandoned by christians? what about when "christian music" takes on the forms of these othere genres? should christians only sing songs you find in hymns??

at any rate, he also thinks that this group is promoting hip hop. i disagree. i believe what they are trying to do is reach a subculture that seems to be getting ignored by the church. they are reaching them through a language that is familar to them. but still telling them about the love of Christ for us.

nowadays there are alot less parents in the inner city taking they're kids to church. there are alot more single parent/broken homes and they are not turning to God. the family structure is not what it should be and respect for God is hard to find. they are turning to drugs and alcohol to fill that void. their heros are the rappers they see on video and hear on the radio and they want to immulate them. most rap music today promtes promiscuity, violence, drugs and the worhip of money.

the cross movement and other artists/groups like them are trying to show kids that idolize these rappers and the life style they promote that there is another option. some kids have such little biblical knowlege and no one to guide them towards God. some of these kids feel like the church won't accept them as they are. these guys are trying to tell them that God loves them just as they are and that they don't have to wear a suit to be loved by God. they don't have to change how they dress, change the slang they use (obviously if its offensive to God it must change) and change who they are to be accepted. they use hip hop to reach these kids but that doesn't mean they feel that is the only way to reach them. but right now rap is what they listen to and what they are influenced by. hip hop being a way of expressing one self. parts of hip hop are style of dress, slang and other elements. i commend them for going into a very competitive, very hard industry and preaching Christ.

rondy talks about a young man who came to Christ and changed they way he dressed, got himself nice and clean-cut and respectable and raised his grades in school after getting saved. and he did this without being told to. and that's great, but we're not all the same.
I Samuel 16:6-7 6 "When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, "Surely the LORD's anointed stands here before the LORD." 7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." This is what God told samuel when he was to choose who would be the next king of Israel. saul was looking for someone who had a certain appearance. God had him go to jesse of bethlehem to pick the king. jesse brought all of his sons before samuel except one, david. and none of them were who God was looking for. david is who God wanted. the bible says that david was "ruddy with a fine appearance". he was young and handsome, he did not have the rugged experienced look of man ready to take over and become a king.

i believe when paul says "therefore, if any man is in Christ he is a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come!" II Corinthians 5:17 , he's referring to that inner man. not necessarily his outward appearance. when someone has changed from the inside, it shows. when there is something different about you its evident and how you dress does not always indicate that. and i have a good example. people who lived in my apt complex noticed something different about me but couldn't put they're finger on it. then i pointed out that i don't swear. now i'd been around them for quite some time, i dressed similar to them but they could see that something was different. maybe its the word hip hop that is causing the problem. i dunno.
its laughable though.

by what rondy writes, it seems that the church is saying you can only come in if you look and act like they do. no baggy jeans, t-shirts and sneakers allowed. cross movement is reaching out to the youth. they are going to them where they are. who else do we know that did that? the cross movement preaches Christ crucified and in a language this culture understands.

ok, i'm tired. enough on that for now...time for bed.

andrew aka...

width="240" height="180"
alt="Artificial Networked Destruction and Rational Exploration Worker"
border="0">

hearing the call

"Please, what task, Sir?" said Jill.

"The task for which I called you and him here out of your own world." This puzzled Jill very much. "It's mistaking me for someone else," she thought. She didn't dare to tell the Lion this, though she felt things would get into a dreadful muddle unless she did.

"Speak your thought, Human Child," said the Lion.

I was wondering -- I mean -- could there be some mistake? Because nobody called me and Scrubb, you know. It was we who asked to come here. Scrubb said we were to call to-to Somebody-it was a name I wouldn’t know-and perhaps the Somebody would let us in. And we did, and then we found the door open." "You would not have called to me unless I had been calling to you," said the Lion." - C.S. Lewis The Silver Chair Book 6 of the Chronicles of Narnia

i'm reading this book now and when i read this it touched me. i stopped reading and thanked God for calling me. its good to know that He desires us. i'm glad i answered the call. there are many who hear the call but don't answer. sometimes we as believers hear His voice when we've gone astray and ignore the call.

jill then asks "Then are you Somebody, Sir?" and he replies "I am". Pretty cool Mr. Lewis, pretty cool.

frustration

i started this blog cuz i really like doing web pages, its a challenge and i enjoy it. also i was intrigued by blogs. like other blogs i was reading at the time i wanted to blog about things that are going on in my life. mostly to rant. lol. i was the angry black man at the time. lol. not angry at "the man" or any thing in particular, just angry. then i had a change of heart, i turned to God with some things i was dealing with and i also wanted to keep in contact with Him instead of turning away like i had done so many times. it was one of the many things i was angry about. i didn't want to turn to God only in times of trouble. thats not the kinda relationship he wants and i know that. once i had the change of heart i wanted to write about my "journey", my walk with Christ and all its challenges. i haven't posted anything in awhile cuz i'm discouraged right now and haven't been in the mood for various reasons.

i'm back at a job site i don't like to be honest. it's kinda like the epi-center of everything. it feels that way anyway. it's the busiest site and its a very challenging place to work. its a challenging site to get to, either by driving or the T. and you could swim in the atmosphere of negativity here. for whatever reason when you're at this site you know what everyone else is doing. and the disorganization!!! it reeks!!! anyway, the negativity plus the language here makes it quite the challenge to not get caught up in it. not to fall into the complaining and the attitude that permeates this place. when i was at my other site i had my own office and i was able to do my devotions and sometimes that would just lead to studying or prayer at length. now i know i could find time elsewhere but it was really good cuz it was the first thing i'd do at my site every morning. nothing like starting your day like that. i'm just frustrated.

i'm also frustrated with some of the blogs i've read lately. i think i've mentioned this before. there is not one of us who knows the mind of God but so many come off as they do. whatever your belief is, in my opinion it is still not a Christ like attitude to knock a certain group for what they believe. as i understand it we're supposed to pray for each other. we're supposed to pray for our enemies!!! not for what we want but for God's will to be done in people's lives and i don't see that being said very often at all along with the criticism of what one believes. its one thing to disagree and its another to generalize a group because of experiences you may have had with people who look at God differently than you, and i'm referring to different views of doctrines or scripture not the worldy view on God, i.e "the church". not all churches are the same and not everyone who attends the same church looks at God the same way. people who attend church are not hypnotized zombies without their own minds. once service is over everyone goes home and leads very different lives. we're also supposed to pray for wisdom and discernment. we're to be seeking His face, not trying to prove that our view is the correct one. we are finite! we're limited in our knowledge, no matter how much studying we do, whether it be on our own or through group bible studies or seminary or whatever the source of knowledge is. i dunno...i'm just frustrated about alot of things right now. now i know for a fact that i don't always follow what this scripture subscribes as much as i should but i do believe that it would be pretty hard for people to have different views on this verse:

Proverbs 3:5-7

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;

6 in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.

7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD and shun evil.

none of us should be wise in our own eyes, and we shouldn't lean on our own understanding. now i don't know how else to lean on the wisdom of God except through his Word and through prayer. if the bible wasn't reliable i have a hard time believing it would be here for you and i to read today. i can only imagine how many people have tried to discredit it. doesn't the longevity of the "good book" speak for itself??? and if you can find flaws in His Word ask Him for the answers to the quesions you have. its still up to Him to decide whether or not you'll get the answer but there can't be harm in asking. James 1:5. the bible even says that God's foolishness is wiser than man's wisdom 1 Corinthians 1:25. and actually read that whole chapter to see the context of the message. it speaks on divisions in the "church", the church being the body of believers. ahhh...its time for bed and i could go on and on. hopefully i'll be back to blogging soon. i'm just more concerned about getting my personal time with God back.