Who do I think that I am?

I have a serious confession to make.

Today I got home from a school for work and changed clothes so that I could go running. I went in the garage and got a water and then put the water on the cabinet where I had bought a basket full of goodies. That was when I noticed that the basket was no longer there. The goodies where there but the basket is gone. I went running, wondering where the basket could have disapeared to and then when one of my roommates got home I asked him if he knew what happened to it. He just replied oh yeah my girlfriend used it for this thing and she said that she will replace it. Well with all that has gone on in this house and between me and him over the last couple of years that $3.99 basket almost got the best of me. I was almost ready to flip. I have looked past the scuffs on the coffee table that I bought and he has torn up becasue he puts his boots on it. I have just cleaned and recleaned as he and his girlfriend act like tornadoes in this house. But this basket almost sent me to the point of no return. This piece of cheap plastic almost sent me over the edge to a point where I explode.

What do you do in a situation like this? How do you be "Christ" to someone who has continuiosly disrespected me?

It sure makes me think about when Peter asked Jesus how many times he lets someone do wrong to him and Jesus told him to let them do it 70 times not just 7. And then after reading that I set and think about how many times I disrespected Jesus in the ways that I was living life and thankfully Jesus never turned His eyes from me. He never just left me. THATS THE CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE. Who am I to say that what I have done and the forgiveness that Jesus has showed me doesn't extend to this friend of mine who has disrespected me. If there is anything that I should be good at and remember first hand is to understand the forgiveness that God has for each of us.

Who am I and how great am I that I cannot forgive this guy for disrespecting me in many ways when I turned my back on God and yet God still forgave me. God doesn't need me. He doesn't have to have me. He wants me and He wants to have a relationship with me. How humbling is that! How amazing is that! I can't believe that I let my anger get so far before i sought after what Jesus said about forgiveness.

"Thank you God for your mercy in my life. Thank you for helping me to see that I was wrapped in anger to where it was beggining to consume me. Lord, the forgivness that you have shown me should be extended to those around me and then to so many more. Help me, oh God, to remember this lesson about forgiveness and help me to remember that conversation that you had with Peter so that I may walk closer to you and I may know you more. Lord, thank you for everything. In Jesus' name. Amen.

How big is your ripple?

Just a little over a week ago I was talking with a friend on my facebook messenger and she has known me for quite some time and so I feel comfortable asking her some questions that I would with others. But anyway we were talking about all that God is doing in our lives and I came out and asked her... "How has my life and all that I have been through impacted you?" I won't give you the entire answer but I will say it was a positive one.

How amazing is it that me and that particular friend live over 250miles away from one another and yet we still impact each others lives.

Today I was talking with a friend and he gave me an insight that I have never thought of before. "Life is a bunch of small groups" Christian, Budhist, Hindu, American, Chinese. It doesn't matter. You have a small group. And you, like everyone else, have more than one small group. So now my question is this.... "How does my life impact those people in those different small groups?" How do I encourage them? How do I discourage them? Do I put a smile on their face or do I bring anger and discontent to their heart? HOW DO I IMPACT THEM? Do I bring them joy? Do I bring them hope? But them most important question is this...Do I bring them the love and mercy that Jesus has for me? How big and what kind of ripple effect do you have on people.

Downhere sings a song entitled "Here I Am". I have posted some lyrics on my facebook and myspace statuses and the lyric that hit me the hardest is when they sing out "Here I am. Lord send me. I live my life as an offering." How powerful! To live my life as an offering. WOW!!! What a testimony that would be. What a "ripple effect" that would have if all of us "christians" had that kind of heart. I'm not saying that some don't but what about those that seek Christ's face but is that their prayer? Is that my prayer? Am I willing to give up all that I am to TRUELY live my life as an offering? I would like to hope that, that is my heart. And I would like to hope that I would give up all that I have in an instant to praise The God Almighty.

I would just like to challenge myself and if anyone else would like to do the same I encourage it. I want to challenge myself to try to live my life as an offering. Live my life for God and only God. I know that we are all human and we all screw up. I hve screwed up many times in the past and I will surely do so again in the future but I hope and pray that I have people out there that have been impacted by my life or by the life of another christian to pick me back up on my feet so that I may press on toward a life that is an offering.

Philippians 3:12-14
Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also lay hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Here I am, Lord use me.

Ok so as most of everyone knows I am back to drilling again and so far it has been a pretty good experience. I had to do this last year and it was much less enjoyable. But anyway I have these guys working for me that are some of the greatest guys in the world. But I got to know a little bit more about one of them today on our way home from the rig. I had my I-pod on my radio in my truck and it was louder than normal because I thought that everyone was asleep(haha) and I was starting to get kinda tired since I get up at 2am everyday and don't even get off of work until 2pm but, anyway there we all were, I-pod playing my Christian Music playlist and one of the guys asks "Cody, what religion are you?" I said well I am a christian but am nondenominational. He just said, oh ok cool. And then we went on into a great discussion about what God has and is doing in our lives. What an amazing way to end a long week at work. I found out some very great things about this man's story just as he did about me as I opened my heart to him. Today's conversation was different than what you might think. This man was also a believer in the saving grace of God. I had heard that he believed in God and what not but little did I know that he shared my desire to know God intimately. I had no idea that there was another man that worked with me that had a heart like that. Today's discussion was so awesome. God grace and presence was so thick in that truck today that I can't wait for the next moment to share my story with another person.

I never thought that I would compare God with alcohol or tabacco but I am addicted to being so close to God that it feels as though He is carrying me as though I was the man in the poem "Footprints".

The Start of a Revolution

As I set here and look at my life and the lives all around me, I see that so many people all have this burning desire. They all feel God doing something in their lives. If they are like me they have trouble distiguishing whether it is something that God is guiding them or their own selfishness.

Although we may struggle in realizing God's will, it is so amazing that we are feeling God call on us. Just yesterday I was talking with my mother, which is one of the most amazing women in the world, but she was talking to me about some changes that she is making in her life and she was telling me that she was feeling God to call her out of her comfort zone and to learn more how to serve Him rather than a opportunity to serve becomes a obligation.

Not putting my mother down at all but lifting the name of God, I never thought that I would here those words from my mom. Not because she doesn't look for God in all things because I know that with having 4 kids and knowing how some of us stressed her out more than others, I know that her prayer life has, is, and will always be strong and I know that she has always looked for God to shake us kids up in a nice way so that she didn't have to kill us and then come up with an reason why we were missing. ha But it none of that at all. It just goes to show that God will and can challenge everyone, reguardless of age, sex, religion, or anything else.

God is doing an amazing thing in San Angelo. God is working in peoples lives in a band new way. He is revealing Himself in a new light and this time people will not be able to turn away. God is starting a revolution and I am so excited to be a part of it and to see it all unfold.

I am also so very excited that I can start each day saying something to my Heavenly Father that I will probably one day have to say to my earthly wife every day as well, and that is "I am sorry for all that I have done, I beg for you forgiveness and mercy on my life. Please use me God. I want to live my life as an offering."