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Below are the 25 most recent journal entries.

	2009.10.15  00.21 oct 15 Friends only post up. that is all.

	2009.08.05  00.08 August 4, 2009 I think I'll put up a video blog if I can later this week. For now, update: I'm better now. No longer sick. still waiting on the Air Force. Also: bought new shoes today. First time in like 6 years (not counting when I bought boots in Washington so I could go on the mountain. No today I bought my first real shoes. Me. With my money. It was several levels of awesome. Um, that's all I can think of at the moment. Later.

	2009.07.25  21.51 sick so it appears I'm sick. I was sick on tuesday but the fever broke that night and I thought I was okay. Until I started coughing today. See my sister had something similar only she was coughing. She was also diagnosed with swine flu. I started coughing today and so I fear that I may in fact be quite sick, so please remember me in your prayers. I really don't want to get any worse than I am.

	2009.06.19  01.09 June 19, 2009 So what's going on? I now have a job. It's not extravagent but it's income. Also: my grandmother died last Sunday. I miss her, but I'll survive. So with me now having a job, that means I can actually start looking at girls again. I'm not sure how to go about this, since I've never had a godly example to watch, so guess I'll have to wing it. That's all that's going on right now. later.

	2009.06.11  18.18 June 11, 2009 Today was my first real day of work. It wasn't bad. I go in again on Saturday.

	2009.06.06  20.49 June 6, 2009 I have a job at Chic-Fil-A, I start monday. The navy turned me down, I don't know what the Air Force will say. I shaved my beard. THat's all I can think of.

	2009.05.24  14.42 May 24, 2009 - Awesome sauce politician This guy is running to be a Senator representing Florida. If he's even half what he seems to be in this clip, I'm voting for him no question. Keep watching all the way through. He shifts gears about half way through and it becomes amazing.

	2009.05.12  00.06 May 11, 2009 Great article on the gay marriage subject. Thus far I'd been ... ambivalent on the subject (leaning away from legal definitions of marriage), largely because I'm more of a libertarian who prefers minimal government interference in people's lives, but this article has convinced me to change that view. I may not be a "thorough, scholarly" article with reference after reference, but it's better than that: it's common sense and written so anyone can understand it. I recommend reading it even if you've already made up your mind. Full article in private journal in case of deletion.

	2009.04.28  12.09 April 28, 2009 SO I've been eschewing livejournal in all it's forms of late. There's really not been much for me to say, since I decided to stop emo posting (which is useless). Soo hm. Well the army rejected me because of my knee. That was a bit of a fight since I could reasonably have said that "no I've never had pain in my knee" and was sorely tempted to do so but that would be lying. The result is that I was rejected by the army and quite possibly by all the branches. Right now my only chance of getting in seems to be to apply for a field in high enough demand that someone in the chain of command can convince the doctors to see if maybe they over reacted on in my case. Right now it looks like being a Navy Nuke officer is the only thing that I have a chance of that working with so I'm gonna try that. As a result of this I have over time begun to doubt myself wondering if I should have just lied on the form since in all the time I've been to the gym since it hasn't bothered me. No one would have known but me and God, and most people - even other Christians - don't see the big deal. But if it is God's will for me to get into the military, I can't imagine that he would let me be disqualified just because I was completely honest. There's been stuff but not worth mentioning. Oh, a guy at our church has asked me to do a website for him. I'm not doing so well. I don't like the way it looks and I'm way behind schedule. Part of that's my fault but part of it is the fact that I was just so overwhelmed with the task. Still am actually. It should be hard, but I've never been good at making things look nice and that's the part that bothers me. But I suppose I'll learn. Or have a nervous break down trying. Mostly this is manifested in reluctance to work on the project since I've no idea where to go. I suppose tradition mandates I something about girls, huh? Um. They aren't guys. I think that covers it.

	2009.03.15  13.54 March 15, 2009 I was reading my journal at church today and came upon this entry which is amazingly good, and obviously not something that's of me. My putting it here the lesson become more ingrained in my mind, and maybe someone else could use this lesson that I needed to learn. ( Entry for January 8, 2009 )

	2009.03.11  18.03 March 11, 2009 I want o decorate the outside of my house with bouganvillas. They look very beautiful.

	2009.03.01  12.49 March 1, 2009 Today my pastor was talking about the reprobate mind. (Romans 1:24-32) It was pretty convicting stuff. Reprobate meaning corrupt, polluted, and/or depraved. Simply put the reprobate mind is one that focuses on the worldly things more than anything else. There are Three ways to identify a reprobate mind: Changing the truth of God into a lie. This can happen one of two ways: living in denial of the truth (You know what the bible says but you ignore it and avoid it) Changing it by reasoning it into change (justifying it) Serving man instead of God. In otherwords you do those things that make other people happy even if it is displeasing to God. Loving pleasures (things that make you feel good) more than God. This is a hard one since it means that if you like something or it makes you feel good, you'll deny and ignore the truth so you can continue it. He also pointed out that as flesh and blood humans, the fight against a reprobate mind is a constant one. The reprobate mind is one that goes after the wrong things (Romans 8:5-6) - things that our flesh desires. The solution is in Romans 12:1 - conforming with God not the world. How? How do we right our mind? Staying away from worldly people, places, and things. Renewing our mind by thinking and paying attention to those things that are described in Philippians 4:8. By Replacing the fleshly thoughts with Godly, pure thoughts. (See verse 9 as well). I focus too much on worldly things.

	2009.02.26  11.37 February 26, 2009 *sigh* I'm watching the news (reading actually) about what's going on in this country, and honestly? There's no words to describe my disappointment. Even when President Obama says two mutually contradictory things in one sentence, no one seems to notice or care. He pushes a $1 trillion "stimulus" package that is nothing but alot of pork and earmarks, then talks about ending pork and earmarks, and paying down the national debt - which he's adding to more than any president in American History. Every day it seems like Europe is actually gaining freedom while we lose it. People want the government to do everything for them. Nobody seems to care what the consequences are. I maintain my belief that liberalism is like an abusive boyfriend - convince the victim she can't do anything herself and that without you she'll fail at everything. That's what they're doing. Telling America that this economic problem is unsolvable, that without their help, we'll never get out of this alive. Heck we might not get out of this even with their help. We've fallen so far from a country that fought and struggled and worked hard to be free, to a country that wants to be enslaved. And no one cares. The media is complicit in this too. Am I the only one who knows what happens when the media shills for the government? Am I the only bothered by the fact that some media outlets want to be bailed out by the government (which means the media is literally owned by the government)? Probably not, but things look bleak right now. The only silver lining is that Christ is coming soon. Which is a pretty big silver lining really. I just need to learn to keep my eye on the big picture.

	2009.02.14  23.47 February 14, 2009 Happy V-Day everyone. Totally unrelated. Mostly for elaina-girl but everyone should read it. Piece on evolution and creation, mostly how the argument is stupid. here

	2009.02.09  10.34 February 9, 2009 II Corinthians 4:9 - "Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed" No matter how bad things get, no matter how difficult, or trying, we are not forsaken. Praise God.

	2009.01.16  15.48 January 16, 2009 New study by the Institute for Slowly and Painfully Working Out the Incredibly Obvious: "Refusing to have sex on the first date 'increases the chance of finding a good man'" Seriously. Completely unexpected! Never saw that coming! Most important quote "This may help to explain the commonly held belief that a woman is best advised not to sleep with a man on a first date." "may help" mind you. There's still some doubt about it though. Wow, seriously? They really needed to actually work on this to decide it's true? No wonder I've almost zero confidence in academics: they can't figure these things out with a simple bit of common sense. Seriously. *rolls eyes* :)

	2009.01.13  00.16 January 13, 2009 So I was at the gym and happened to see some show on CNN - it was a news show - with Wolf Blitzer. They were highlighting a story about how Prince Harry said something that "people in most nations find highly offensive." I new the moment he said it that only self-righteous fools are offended by it. Apparently prince harry referred to someone as a "Paki" cause he's from Pakistan. Wow. How horrible. And all I could think was this: The global economy is collapsing, the politicians responsible are getting off scott free, the president elect is nominating people whose only virtue is that they are party hacks, Russia is turning back into the Soviet union, Iran is building nukes, the UN is blatantly corrupt, the EU is trying everything it can to chip away at the freedom of Europeans, the middle east is a powder keg about to explode...and you think some powerless English figurehead's "racist remarks" is actually an important issue for American to know about? Can you get anymore out of touch with reality you moron!?!? Also: Foam insulation

	2009.01.01  10.39 New Years - first day of '09 First day of the year. A time that provide a chance to review your year and your hopes for the next. I did. I hope this years has found you better than the last did. Happy New Year.

	2008.12.28  13.07 December 28, 2008 What is the love of God? That he would give is only begotten son to live a miserable fallen world, so that that same son could die for a sinful ungrateful creation that has no love of it's creator. that he would come not for the best humanity has to offer. Not the strong or the beautiful or wealthy or powerful or successful, but the least of man: the poor, the rejected, the outcast, the blind, the leper, the halt, the unloved. That is the love of God that he takes the worst that we have and, if we ask, will make us heirs to an eternal kingdom of beauty and joy. The love of God is this: That lazarus who in life suffered greatly, enjoyed peace after his time on this earth was over, and the rich man who lived in comfort, without compassion to Lazarus, suffered in the life after. Yet even he with a black heart could be reborn for such is the love of God that no matter how unrighteous and evil we are, God will still cleanse us and make us anew. All because he loved us first. So should we love him. Whereas we love him because he first loved us, he loved us for no reason that because he does.

	2008.12.27  00.19 December 27, 2008 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, and all that is within it and upon it. Of all his creation on the earth, he created Man last - his most precious creation. He created Man uniquely, making him in His own image. Curiously God created Man with a lacking such that it "is not good for man to be alone", so God created woman to fill this need in man. Of all things in the garden, there was but one law: Do not eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge. Only one rule. In the his Hitchhiker's Guide series, Douglas Adam suggests that God put that tree there as a "gotcha" - that he was just waiting for Adam and his wife to screw up so he could jump out and say "Ah-Ha!" I can't read those books anymore as I'm struck with a sense of how miserable and empty his life must have been for him to produce the books he did. His warped perception of God is evident in this characterization. God didn't put that tree int h garden as a curse to man, just to hurt man, but rather as a gift. Perhaps the greatest gift he could give: Freedom. Without that tree, Adam and his wife had no choice but to have fellowship with God. The tree gave Adam the opportunity to choose if he wanted to be with God. God put that tree there, knowing what would happen, but also deeming it to be worth the pain and trouble of what would come, to give us choice. At every turn God gave us choice in whether we were to follow him. Yes, there were consequences to our choices. When the Hebrew people rebelled against God and chose not to enter the Holy Land, the spent 40 years in the desert. But what good is choice if your choices are of no consequence? Freedom only comes when you can choose the path you take. Making a choice that has no consequences is not a choice at all - besides, that results in bratty children who later on have a hard time understanding that actions have consequences. Freedom comes from being able to affect the course of our life, and God has always left the course of our life in our hands. The best course is the one that follows when we give our life back to him. But he still gives us that choice. He gave the Hebrew people a choice in repentence: you couldn't make a sin offering for the individual sin of anyone, except yourself - though the law did require sacrifice for collective sin, personal sin was a personal thing. Even in the matter of salvation, Christ died on the cross for all men knowing that many would reject the gift of salvation, yet God does not force salvation on anyone, but instead let's everyone choose. because our ability to choose him of our own free will is important. It is because of this that I believe in freedom. The ultimate freedom - freedom of choice - was granted to us by God. Doesn't it follow that lesser freedoms - speech, assembly, even religion, which gets back to the original choice to follow God or not - should be supported by we who claim to follow him? I think so. I think that we should guard freedom more jealously than any other people, because ... well, God has given us freedom as well. Christ died so that we could be free from sin. Free from the bondage of doing sin's will. We often choose not to make use of this freedom, but we Christians have it. The ol' song says "As christ died to make them Holy, let us die to make them free." We can't save a man's soul, or do much but point him in the right direction spiritually, but we can make men free in the material things. Freedom is a gift, and one we should treasure and take care of and use responsibly. Not only should we not misuse our freedom of speech, but we should not misuse our freedom of choice given to us by Christ. Paul said it best "All things are permissible, but not all things are expedient." Yes, we have freedom and we can use that freedom to sin, but to do so is gross misuse and negligence of so great a gift, gained at so high a price to our God and King. I can't free a man from the bondage of sin, but I can free a man from the bondage of tyranny.

	2008.12.13  01.51 December 13, 2008 This article retreads an argument I've heard many times before. The west will lose to Islam because of our secularization. Mr. Morrissey here misses the point. He comments "But it’s worth asking whether a religious debate would help much" misses the point. The Jihadist, have absolute certainty and clarity of purpose. They firmly believe that they are right. We don't necessarily need to engage in a debate over religion and scripture per se - indeed, it would frankly be rather pointless, because the only scripture the Jihadists and other muslims recognize is the Koran and why would they listen to non-Muslims saying what they think the Koran says? Moreover, the middle east doesn't have the same deal where they feel obligated to listen to other points of view like we do, so they most likely wouldn't even listen, just smile and nod and then blow us up with bombs planted while we were talking. besides that, most in our world couldn't honestly contend on that subject. What we can do though is decide what is right and wrong. We can agree that sending your children to kill themselves is wrong. That attacking innocent people is wrong. We can agree on alot of things, like freedom of speech, religion, and press. We can even agree that God isn't one to decree suicide. The point is: we need to have a backbone to believe that there is such a thing as right and wrong. We need to believe that we may not be perfect, but in this conflict we are right. I speak this from a largely secular standpoint. Realistically, a culture that rejects God will be unable to stand against a culture that embraces one sort of god or another. A culture that rejects a higher authority will be unable to maintain a strong belief in right and wrong. Truthfully, if the country doesn't draw closer to God, our culture and country will fail. ( Bailout )

	2008.12.08  23.46 December 8, 2008 I think I'll be a Hobo. But not just any hobo. I think I'll be a fabulously famous and wealthy hobo. IE. Instead of speading my money on booozzee, I'll spend on high yield mutual funds. I'll be amazingly wealthy but I'll still live under a bridge and no one would ever guess that that stain on my torn and tattered jacket is the juice from a fillet mignon I had for dinner. Course, the restaurant would make me eat it the back alleyway but that's okay. I'll become famous for looking really bad but always smelling good. My charming demeanor and good hygiene would only serve to make my more than wealthy, but push me into fabulously wealthy. People would like to be near this strangely nice smelling hobo so much that they'll stop and take pictures. They'll be signs that say "Welcome to Our Town - home of the only pleasant smelling hobo". I'll become a state treasure in no time. soon I'll be on billboard and tv shows. Then everyone will be a hobo and the economy will collapse. Even more I mean. Sounds like a fool proof plan to me! Also: If I decide to actually be a normal person and have a house, I must make sure that it has a faucet for a hose on opposing sides of the house. One on side, and another on the other. I will not have one on the side and one in the back, or any other arrangement that involves having a water faucet on two consecutive sides of the house unless there is a third faucet that is positioned opposing another. just felt like writing. Maybe I'll post something serious later.

	2008.11.30  13.30 November 30, 2008 Ways Evil Overcomes Good Wear them down. This method is exactly what it sounds like. Just push and push and push until those who are defending good just give up. An example of this would be the following: eHarmony is a private company who targets their services mostly at Christians, and yet it has refused in the past to help people arrange same sex meetings - never mind that there are already plenty of gay dating sites. eHarmony maintained this positioned for a while, but due to repeated and continual litigation, they have given up and stopped fighting. That's just one example. There are many more (this is a favorite tactic of my sister who will continually badger my mom for what she wants for hours on end - nonstop - until my mom gives in). The only way out is to refuse to listen at all. When that's not possible, then the answer must be firm and unmoving.

	2008.11.28  18.28 November 29, 2008 You know what I'm thankful for? That I have parents that are still together, and a family that loves me. I've met so many people for whom neither of those are true. It makes me realize how blessed I am.

	2008.11.26  10.54 November 26, 2008 ( stuff )