Dive Deep Archives

Change of Blog Site

2009-01-17T22:07:00.004-05:00

Greetings!

I hope that you are all having a great week! I wanted to make an announcement about our current blog address.

After careful consideration, we have chosen to move the Dive Deep blog to Wordpress.com. With the launch of Dive Deep Ministries, this will serve us best. If you are using our RSS feeder function, the new RSS address is http://divedeepministries.wordpress.com/feed.

The current blog site (http://stealthpilot17.blogspot.com) will become the Archives for 2008. All of our 2009 post have been uploaded to the new blog.

To access our new blog, you can go to http://divedeepministries.wordpress.com

There will be a new blog going up on Monday about relationships. Be sure to check it out!

Dive Deep,

Kyle (aka KC)

http://divedeepministries.googlepages.com/home

Rebel

2009-01-08T00:00:00.001-05:00

I have decided this year to try and blog a tad bit more frequently, and take one word a week and break it down. Hopefully this will be inspiring, and we can help each other together become more than we are by ourselves. We can do much more as a community, and we become stronger when we are a community that goes after God's purpose and desire.

There is a rap artist called Lecrae, and he just produced a CD called Rebel. His first song, Rebel Intro has sparked me to think of a few things, like what it means to be a rebel. I also ponder about the difference between a rebel, and a revolutionary.

Rebel

To refuse allegiance to and oppose by force an established government or ruling authority

Revolutionary

constituting or bringing about a major or fundamental change

Rebels seem to be more of in favor of just standing in opposition to the normal standards. They chose to stand up, and not back down. This is not a bad thing, but if we just stand in opposition to something, we can not influence a change. This has been my way of thinking for a long time until I listened to Lecrae's song Rebel Intro. At one part in the song it says:

I know that in our day rebel means sinner, but everyone is sinning so it is no longer rebellious to sin. Jesus was a rebel who was counter cultural
You are just a conformist, if you are drunk and naked, driving around on a lot of motorcycles,smoking cigarettes and breaking commandments, and getting pregnant out of wed-lock. Everyone has do that it is so tired. If you really want to be a rebel read your bible, because no one is doing that.... that's rebellion that's the only rebellion left.

This caused me to investigate more of what I though about rebels. If you look around, the entire world around us is committing sins, and the world looks at it as a good thing. Where we need to rebel is against these things. Rebelling means to go against the status quo, live above the standards that the world has. The issue is, rebelling isn't enough. Its not enough just to stand by ourselves, and just to stand against something.

This is where the revolutionary comes into play. We can rebel all we want, but it doesn't bring about a change if we just stand by ourselves. Revolutions are started when a group of people take a stand against something that isn't lined up with their beliefs. For us, that means that we should stand up for the principles that God has set in place in the Bible, not our own personal convictions that we chose to apply to the whole world.

We have to take a stand for what the Bible says, not what we say. We can't do this alone, we must be in a community that stands with us. We must take our knowledge, and not condemn others, but inspire others to assist us in this change, this movement. Jesus Christ was a Rebel and a Revolutionary, but He always inspired others. He had the right to condemn people because He is God. If we are to condemn others, I think we start to act like we know everything, and force our beliefs on others.

Christians are usually painted as the people doing wrong. Why are we ok with this? The Bible says that we will be persecuted, but that doesn't mean that we can't stand up for what is right, instead of being persecuted for what we do wrong. Lets burn so bright that the darkness can't touch us. Lets fight for what God wants, and push ourselves aside for a while. Live for something greater than you. Set yourself on a Christ centered life, and what really matters.

May God bless us and our mission. Lets pray that God keeps us on His purpose, and lets shock a nation to the fact that we will not stand by and let them destroy what God has set in place, but rather lets inspire change!

Ignite the revolution in the next generation!

Dive Deep,

Welcome to the year 2009

2009-01-05T23:00:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year! Well, it's a tad late for that, but I wanted to start off with it anyways. I hope that everyone had a blessed Christmas and a safe New Year's Eve.

I haven't blogged in a while, life has been crazy as always. I have been doing a lot of thinking recently about a bunch of things, and really what would be needed in this new year.

A few post ago, I highlighted the song 'Live your life" by T.I. Every time that song comes on the radio, I can't help but think about the main underlying theme, which is living your life in a way that impacts others. This can be summed up in one word.

Inspire

This word is defined by Merriam Webster as

to influence, move, or guide by divine or supernatural

Inspiration is best used in the context of dreams, imagination, and the intangible feelings that we all have.

Inspiration is everywhere. Its in art, music, poetry, building design, and even our own thoughts. Young children love to imagine things, and I think that as we grow older that we begin to think that we can't use our imagination anymore. We lose sight of the inspiration of life. Maybe we forget what it was like to imagine things, or maybe we have been hurt by our dreams not coming true that we don't think that dreams exist anymore. This is way off from what God has set up for us.

God has created us in His image. Most people believe that this could mean physically, but I believe that our souls are created in His image. This means that we have the ability to do amazing things, with God's help. I also think that God is a dreamer. He wants us to dream of new things, because when we dream, we can develop ideas to help further His kingdom.

God wants us to be inspired. I think thats one of the reasons he created the sunrise and the sunset. I love just sitting there, watching the sun peak above the horizon, and in the evening drift out of sight. Its unexplainable the power of that moment. I think God likes them too (I would hope so, He created them :)).

The one thing that we lack sometimes is the ability to take our inspiration and share it with others. Songwriters are some of the most inspiring people, and they understand this. When they get an idea, they write about it, produce it, and push it out to fans, much like T.I. with Live your Life. But how do we do this when we aren't a big recording artist like TI?

Its quite simple actually. We just live our lives with a Christ centered focus. When we face trials, we begin to lose our inspiration, and begin to believe the lies of the enemy. We must fight against this, because when we stop believing, it affects those around us.

So I challenge all of you to start off 2009 with this in mind. Lets become an inspiring group of people, that are set on Christ centered inspiration, and lets share that with the world. It could be though song, blogging, encouragement, phone calls, or anything really. I'm taking this challenge, and I hope that you all will join me. Let us become a generation that is looked on as the most inspiring in history. Let us motivate our culture to change for the better, and not a change any politician can give us, but what our Christ the King can give to us.

Lets be a generation that seeks the God of Jacob, and lets share that with the world.

God bless you all as we go into 2009. Lets go after this!

Dive Deep,
KC

It's all about Love.....

2008-11-26T00:40:00.003-05:00

So I hope that everyone is having a great week! It's getting to be my favorite season and Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Its an amazing time of year. I have been really thinking about a topic that I'm not sure I fully understand yet myself, but wanted to share some thoughts with you all and see what your thoughts were. So lets go after this.

Love. Yep, it's all about love right? Thats what the songs say, telling us that Love is the answer, all we need is a little more love, It's all about love, and the list goes on. We have movies telling us what love is, books, magazines, friends, family, and TV, so how in the world do we know what Love really is?

Well to help with this, I decided to Google the word Love, just to see what I would get. Turns out that my search returned over 2,300,000,000 results. Now that is a lot of sites about love. When I looked on Wikipedia for the article on Love, it says that there are:

Love: This diversity of meanings, combined with the complexity of the feelings involved, makes love unusually difficult to consistently define, even compared to other emotional states.

So from this, we can already see that Love is a vast topic, and looks very complex. I think its alot simpler than that.

There are three types of love that I believe exist within our world today. There is the Spiritual Love, Physical Love, and Emotional Love. These three go hand in hand to some extent, so lets break it down.

Spiritual Love is the starting place for the whole concept of Love. Fundamentally the whole big idea of love was created by our Creator. So who better to teach us about Love than the one that created it? One of my favorite verses about love actually gives us a clear definition of true love. It says:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

So that is what God tells us that Love is. Quiet simple when you really think about it, but much harder to practice.

Probably the place where people struggle most with this is learning to not be self-seeking. We all want to be heard and tell everyone about us. This makes us feel good about ourselves. Brian Regan shows exactly how we look when we do this in this video. It's an exaggerated view of self-seeking people, but when we talk only about ourselves in conversations, this is what we look like. If we can move past ourselves, it makes love easier.

What exactly is the Physical aspect of love? This has to do with physical acts of showing affection. The problem here is that sometimes we miss the whole relationship side of love, and jump right into the physical aspect. This surprises us, but it shouldn't be. We as Christians fail to practice what the Bible tells us about love, so rather than help others though this, they hear songs and see movies talking about love. People fail to create boundaries, and if they do, they decide that they are strong enough to begin playing as close to the edge as they can get. Boundaries are meant to be kept, and stayed away from, not played with. If there is a fire in a fire pit, you don't usually try to get as close to the fire as you can, you stay away from it because its hot, and heat can hurt you. If you apply the same thing to your physical love for someone, you will have a much stronger relationship because of the respect. This can work, as long as you practice self control. If you find yourself having to remind each other of your boundaries, maybe its time to re-evaluate some things.

You have to also strive for purity physically in a relationship. This means that no matter how much you want to do something, if you feel that it could lead you down the path of impurity, then its probably not a good thing to do at the moment. The Bible is clear on what we can't do, but we have free will to determine the rest. I was reading a blog about purity earlier this month that I think you should all check out, if your in a relationship or not. You can get to it by clicking here.

So what is emotional love? This is the non-physical aspect of human love. Emotions are things that you can't touch, but you can affect with anything you do. Emotional love is when someone uplifts the other in a relationship, offers a nice word, spends time with them, and other things that show love, but don't require any physical interaction.

You have to have all three parts of this to truly understand love, and even then we don't get the concept, but we can begin to practice Godly love.

The first place to start is with the spiritual love. You have to accept God's love, then learn how to show love like Corinthians says. If you can't do this, you will never fill the void only God can fill, and this leads to going from one relationship to another in search of something you will never find. This is critical to be able to love others. Once you have a strong foundation, and understanding of Godly love, you can begin to show emotional love. This builds a bond, and is concentrated on the relationship, not on the physical displays of affection. The best relationships are those that are build on friendship first, then relationship second. If you do that backwards, or don't have a firm friendship, the relationship has a higher potential to fall. I'm not saying that it will, but in most cases it doesn't last to long. The final step is physical love. This is showing your affection by holding hands, hugs, kisses and the like. I would highly suggest that you set your boundaries early in the relationship, and commit to them. If one of the parties breaks them, the couple will need to address this in that moment. Boundary breakers don't have respect for the other, because if they did, they wouldn't cross them. Boundaries are just a way to check your self control, but if you know Godly love, it shouldn't be a problem.

I wish I could spend so much more on this topic, because there are things that I have learned, and examples that I wish to share so that we can all learn. We need to reclaim from society the word Love and restore it back to its sacred place, not something that everyone uses to satisfy lustful desires. Lets start a revolution, and reclaim ground for our King!

Have a great Thanksgiving!

Dive Deep,

Fitness and Self Discipline

2008-11-16T23:07:00.000-05:00

So its been a great past few weeks of life. God is so amazing, and I am in awe of his blessings. I want to go after a new topic of fitness. So I'm excited, and I hope you guys are to. Lets go after this thing.

Recently I have started to go to a local gym to work out. I'm quite enjoying it, and it always makes me feel better to know that I am keeping myself in shape. Now with working out, there comes a discipline. I have to make the choice to drive to the gym, actually work out, and make it worth my time.

I have been thinking about this recently that when I go to work out, I spend about 1:30 hours doing things to get me in shape physically. There are a lot of people that work out much more than me, and longer than I do to keep themselves physically in shape. When I was watching the UFC fights a few nights ago, I was listening to how hard and long they train. Their life revolves around building up their bodies and becoming stronger. They put lots and lots into their physical stature so they can fight harder, and win.

So the point is, they have great self discipline to become better physically. Now how many of us Christ Followers train this way for our walk with Jesus Christ?

Its a simple concept, but it is not easily implemented. We should be training as hard as these guys so that we can fight for something that will last forever. The UFC fighters want to win the belt, a material possession. Christians are fighting for souls, and they are much more important. So why don't we step up and train for Christ as the UFC fighters train for their fights. It's simple, and it comes back to self discipline.

One of the lies that we believe is that we are not fighting a "war". Well we are Christians, and it is as real as you and I are. When the Bible talks about the full armor of God, its not just doing that so we can have a good Bible story to tell young children, God actually wants us to practice it! Think about this, if we started fighting for Christ as we did when we worked out, or trained for anything, can you imagine what we could do? We would be unstoppable, and we could make a change that is God given, not man given.

We lack self discipline. We can't hid behind any lame excuse, thats it right there. The issue is US! So how do we change this?

We have to realize that when God says something in the Bible, He means it. And we can't just know that in our heads, which I am sure we all do, but we need to know it in our heart. We need to be striving to get into the Word of God and actively pursue him in everything we do. Well maybe you are thinking, Kyle you have no idea what is on my plate, I can't find time to spend with God. Thats quite sad to hear, and exactly what our problem is. God gives us every moment of every day, and we can't even find a few minutes to give Him?

Christians, we have to learn this. We are losing a war that we should be winning for no other reason than we don't want in the game, and if we do we get defeated because we are not equipped. To get in the game, we have to be prayed up, and educated in the realm of God. We have to seek Him so that we have direction, and so we know how to fight the enemy!

If you have this stuff down, good for you! I urge you brothers and sisters to go to others and teach them how you do it. Lets help our brothers and sisters to rise up and become unstoppable. Lets tune into the heart of our God and listen to His voice.

So I ask, where is it that you are lacking in self discipline? Maybe its not your faith walk, maybe its another area. Either way, we should search this out and ask God to help us in this area. We should also praise God for where we are strong in self discipline.

Let us train for Christ as the fighters train for their fights. Let our goal be to glorify Christ, and we have to do that by being in tune with the heart of God. Let us strive to spend time with God and demand His attention. He wants us to know him better, He desires it.

I urge you to dive into the word, if your not sure where to start, read a couple chapters a day from Romans, 1 or 2 Corr, or a host of other books. Just dive into the word. Live a life of worship to the King of Kings. Make God your life, not a priority in your life. He wants to be your everything, so lets move that from our head to our heart, and apply it.

May God guide you all in your walk with Him and may your relationship be strengthened. Let God implant a desire to know more about Him so that you can't go a day without having a God encounter. Lets be the church that God intended!

Not to us, but to God be all the Glory!

Dive Deep,
Kyle

The mask we wear and the live we live

2008-11-03T23:29:00.001-05:00

So I have been pondering about something lately, and I want to go after two topics, one being Mask's and the other being a new song by TI called Live your Life. So lets go after this stuff.

We all wear a mask. Sometimes our mask are used when we are around certain types of people, or maybe it is when we are doing certain things, but either way, we all wear a mask in some fashion or another.

Mask are not always a bad thing, and at some times they can be quite good. We use mask to hid who we are, which we shouldn't do, and sometimes we use them so we can be strong for others in times of need. The only problem with wearing a mask is that we forget that no matter what we look like, or who we act like we are, we deep down are still ourselves.

People see though our mask. They can tell when we are being fake, posing as something we are not, and this is a dangerous place to live in. Probably this video shows what this is like. In the video, you have a group of people with mask on. Thats us, living in a world of people with mask. All of them wanting for us to conform to the pattern of everyone else, live a life with no differences, don't live for something higher than yourself. One of the guys takes off his mask, and the world around him starts to try to stop him, but they can't. He runs and starts taking off others mask, awakening them to our calling as Christians.

Pretty much, most of us don't want to engage conflict, and in doing so we become like those around us. On the other hand, we as Christ Followers should be different. We should be the ones without the mask on, challenging those with mask to live for something larger than themselves. Calling them to come with us on the path Christ has called us to.

So this brings me into another issue of living our life. The new TI song "Live your Life " does a good job in showing us some things that we as Christ Followers should already know, and we should be the one's telling others. It has one or two questionable words, but the overall message of the song tells us that we should be happy with what we have, go after what matters.

We spend so much time on the things that don't matter. How much time do we spend on shopping, doing stupid stuff, cars, work, and all that? During this election, we have spent huge amounts of money on electing a President of the United States. What would happen if we took that money, and used it for things that matter, like saving souls? I'm not saying the president isn't important, but what happens to the man who gains the whole world, but loses his soul?

The point is that we need to live life as Christ would want us to live. We need to search ourselves, and take off our mask. We can't live the life that we have been called to without removing the mask, then prioritizing what really matters.

If God is the center, and fully in control of your life, this change should be easy, and evident. If God is still a priority in your life, you need to do some searching and see what really matters. Asking those around you is a place to start, as well as searching your soul.

Dare to be different. Dare to make a change, an impact. Dare to be an outcast, because those who are persecuted for Christ are blessed. Live above insignificant things and go after what really matters.

Live life, and love always

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Run

2008-10-28T14:49:00.000-04:00

I was just thinking today that I haven't posted in a long while. Not intentionally, just been busy (like I'm sure you all have as well). So I have been thinking about this post that I have been wanting to write for a while, and to introduce a new song idea that I have that might actually go somewhere :)....

So here is the new song idea, then I want to kindof break it down to the reason I wrote it, and how it relates Biblically.

So I'm running back to you
I'm running for my life
Away from all these things
That seem to pass me by

I can see where I have been
I'll leave it all behind
So I can run to you again

It takes a lot of faith
To set the world aside
But with everything I am
I know in You that I'm alive

I can't see where I'm going
But I know where I have been
So with all that I am
I'm running back to you

I'm sure you can tell that this is the first draft of the song. I'm still working on refining it, which will probably take me a bit. I want to kindof break down where this song came from, and the hope that the words can offer to us as Christians in this world.

We as Christians struggle with the concept of living in the world and not being of the world. Romans 12:2 says that we should not conform to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our mind (paraphrased). I think that some people look at this verse and say that we should never engage in worldly things.

I think this is exactly contradictory to what Christ meant when he said that we should go out and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19). We were not meant to put ourselves on the judgement stand as we have, but to live within the world and shine His light at everyone's level (not saying we are on different levels, but you can reach more people by following God and living your faith than telling people if they don't turn they will burn).

So where does this tie into the song. Well since most of the time we as Christians can't figure out how to live outside of the worldly things, we end up getting in the middle of them. While we do this, we find ourselves slipping into the way of the world instead of the way of Light. Sin of the world (and I'm not saying all worldly things are sin, but we end up there at times) becomes more and more inviting.

The Bible says that we are to flee from anything that is immoral (sin). This song is about us running back to God, knowing where we have been. It makes the contrast that we should be excited about the new adventure that He is going to lead us on.

One of my favorite lines says "I'm running for my life". It kindof has a few meanings, one being that your running hard and fast away from the worldly things, or maybe its running for my life because you know how much more your life could be.

In the end, this song should be the anthem for our lives. We should be living for God, shining to those around us, not becoming like those around us. Does this mean we should shut ourselves off from everything worldly, go to church all the time, only listen to Christian music, and never engage in worldly things. Absolutely not! We should although have discernment in what we listen to and do.

A few weeks ago at Waters Edge, we talked about how we should be the people saving the goldfish (others). This means we have to get our hands dirty, step into their world, but not become their world. We can be in places to minister without having to put ourselves on a pedestal. The difference between us and the rest of the world is that we are redeemed though the blood of Jesus. We aren't any better, because in the end we are all still sinners, but God cleansed us.

So rise up, dare to be different! Dare to live a life that God has called you to. Show the world that God loves them. This was probably summed up by a quote that says:

Minister always, and when necessary use words.

Lets go be what we have been called to. May God bless you all and have a great week!

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Everything Vs God - Who wins?

2008-10-12T22:53:00.001-04:00

So it's been a while since I have posted anything. Life has just not allowed me time to share thoughts that have been stirring within me. I'm pretty fired up so lets go after these thoughts.

With everything that is happening in the world today, I'm sure everyone is worried. You have the presidential election, the bailout, the declining economy and a host of other things plaguing our world. It is really easy for us to lose site of a few key things in times like this. I want to try to provide some since of security (at least hopefully help you feel more secure) with these scary times.

Most people are watching this election closer than most in the past. You have Mr. McCain and the other side Mr. Obama, talk about health care, the war in Iraq and the like. I think that we have vastly lost site of what really matters. Let me make this clear, no matter who gets elected, we will still (hopefully) be around. The world is not coming to an end or anything like that because one candidate gets elected over the other one.

Now I'm not saying that you shouldn't go out and vote. My point is that no matter what, God is still in control. He isn't up in Heaven running around gathering the Angles and holding an emergency meeting to figure out what went wrong. They don't have all the alarms sounding and dispatching everyone available to take care of this stuff. As absurd as this concept seems, most people are acting like this.

This brings up the question, what is important to you? Or maybe rather, is the president of the US or lost souls more important to you?

I got the chance to go to the Tribulation Trail in Stockbridge last night. I was very impressed on how well they did on attempting to create the imagery of the last days of this world. As we moved station to station, I started to think about all of those out there who have no idea what is coming, and not just non believers, but believers as well. The Tribulation will be horrible, no matter if your a follower of Christ or if you are not.

With this in mind, what would happen if we were as concerned about this as we are on the next president? How many lives could be changed? How many people could be reached?

How about we stop worrying about things that we can not control and let God take care of those. Lets rise up a revolution to save lives. Lets become proactive in pursuing souls instead of pursuing worry of the things that we can not control.

Rise up! The time is coming when we will be out of time. And when that time comes, there will be no second chance. I urge you to become bold in your faith. Stand for Christ even when you are mocked, humiliated, and persecuted. For the Lord suffered for us and took on all the sins of the nations, the least we can do is to stand up.

If you don't have the courage to stand, ask God for help in pressing though your fear. Courage is not the absence of fear, but pressing though the fear.

May God ignite your hearts with burning passion. Lets go do what Christ has called us to!

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Revolution

2008-09-21T22:54:00.006-04:00

So I have been pondering exactly what to title this post, and I have settled on revolution. I am excited and fired up, and I hope that this might inspire you as well.

God is so utterly amazing.

At 12 Stone (my home church), we have just rapped up what we called The Awakening Weekend. For me, it started a day early with Waters Edge :). Pretty much it was a weekend set aside for intense worship and diving into God's direction. There are no words to describe the amount of intensity and depth of the weekend, you just have to experience it. This got me thinking about a lot of things, and got me way fired up.

A revolution happens when a group of people rise up to take new territory. It refers to a change in views or approaches to something. The past few months, this question has began to work within me. It has brought the questions like why do we as Christians not stand up? Why are we so private about our faith? When do we decide that we need to follow though with our God given mission?

I think it is because we are scared. Scared of what people might think. Scared that we will become a "religious fanatic". In the end, its fear that keeps us from speaking out, trying to advance the Kingdom of God. The enemy loves this, thrives of of our fear. When we are fearful, Lucifer begins to implant lies into our head. These range from how we are not ready to how can we even be a part of this because we are so messed up. Well guess what, those are lies! We are so ready to believe them, because they sound so much like us. The more we tell them to ourselves, the more that we believe they are true. Brothers and Sisters in Christ, fight against these lies! They are only true as long as you allow yourself to think they are. I can call you a carrot all day long, and you won't believe it because your not a carrot, your a human. But if you believe that you are a carrot, then that changes things. Don't allow yourself to be deceived into thinking you are less than you are. You are a God given creation that was created to worship the Living God, and further His Kingdom agenda.

One thing that is becoming more clear is the stronger we get in our faith and the more outward our faith, the harder the enemy tries to dissuade us. We need to remember that our Lord Jesus went though more than we could ever imagine. He never lost faith, never once did He turn away from his path, even though He could have. Let us keep that in mind as we fight for His Kingdom!

Wake up Christians! Let us mount up, and fight for Christ as He fights for us. It is not a battle of the flesh that we fight, but of the spiritual realm. The war is real. Let us stop sleeping and take back souls that the Enemy has taken from us. Let us fight for those who don't know Christ as we do. We don't have to be perfect. No one is anywhere close to that. The Bible tells us that the Lord is with us always, and He will never leave us. Lean into that brothers and sisters. When you get weary and feel like you can't fight, lean into the love and healing that is in Christ Jesus.

Lets take our focus off of ourselves and look at others. Lets fight for the lost soul who is engaged in drugs and substance abuse, for the teen who is fighting depression and has no where to turn. If we all pray for someone wholeheartedly and model Christ's way of life, they will notice it.

I heard a quote this weekend that sparks a fire in me. The lead singer of Switchfoot said "They say there is strength in numbers. Numbers aren't always right. Dare to be different". Thats what we should be. Dare to be different. Dare to be considered crazy because we follow a God that we can't reach out and touch. Dare to purse those who have told us they want nothing to do with God, because God wants everything to do with them.

We are the revolution. I read something once that just renews my purpose. It's called the Spiritual Warriors Creed. It says:

I am not an innocent bystander, I am a threat to my enemy
I am powerful, I am strategic and bold

I will not sit idly by, I will take ground, I will advance
I will tear though my enemy, My enemy will hate me
I will not avoid the difficult fight
I will fight, I will be wounded
I will be targeted, I will not tire, my wounds will be healed
I will see tragedy, I will feel pain but I will be restored
My feet will not stumble, My hands will hold fast
I will not be intimidated
I can not be stopped! I will stand by my brothers in arms
I will fight until my last breath, I will push the limits
I scaled the mountains, My enemy will cower
I serve a great King!

This is the passion that we need to stand up for. Let us pick up our swords and fight for the lost. Let us fight against the enemy.

Dare to be different. Dare to take a stand. Dare to live beyond ourselves.

I hope that this has sparked the fire within you. It's not enough to just sit with the fire burning, lets take the fire into the darkest places and shine light to all of those around us. Lets go be the movement.

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Close the Gap

2008-09-16T23:11:00.000-04:00

I have just now realized it has been quite a while since I wrote anything on my blog. Life has just been busy, as I am sure it has with you are as well. So in returning to this blog, I was pondering what to write about.

I have a new direction with this blog. You have probably noticed from a lot of my recent post are beginning to talk more about Spiritual matters than others. There are reasons behind this, and hopefully they will be clear enough in the near future that I will be able to share, but still working out some of the details.

A few weeks ago, I heard a very profound statement. We are supposed to keep our faith internal, it is not for the public eye to see.

This struck me as an odd statement, but I then realized that it shouldn't have. We are routinely taught to keep things internal, even if its not our faith. The world says, if you can't handle something, don't come to us about it. We as Christians should be the exact opposite.

It is quite easy to be a Christian in private, around those you are comfortable with. It is much more difficult to be a Christian in public. There is a gap that exist in most of us, in one area or another. This is the gap that we live one way in private, but outwardly another.

I have been learning that if we live the same way that we do in our private lives to those around us, it drastically changes the game. I know so many people who are great to be around, when no one else is, but get them in a group of people and it becomes another story. We all have people like this in our lives.

As Christians, we need to be constantly working to eliminate our gap. One guy I know once told me, be who you are, not who others want you to be. This statement was a defining moment in my life. I have tried to practice this, and I still have a ways to go. Thankfully I am blessed to have people around me to encourage me when I begin to create a gap. They call me out on it, and they allow me to do the same for them.

My question to you is where are you having gaps in your life? Where do you act one way in private, and another in public. Sometimes we put on a facade in public, and sometimes we do the opposite. Maybe we are afraid that people will not accept us if they know our faults and what we can't really do. If you have people around you that you consider friends that put you down because of that, maybe its time to evaluate that relationship.

You should strive to be more like Christ, but not be Christ. We will never achieve that in our life. No one can. I encourage you to find a mentor, advisor, trusted friend or whatever to help you along. We all need grace and help, the first step is reaching out for it.

So I challenge you, lets close the gap that exist. We all have them, and if you say you don't, maybe thats where you should start. Let us, the generation of now, change the course of history for the better. Lets start by closing the gap

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Web 2.0? Wait....... the internet got an upgrade?

2008-08-27T23:15:00.000-04:00

Ok so maybe not. But I know that a lot of people might have heard in recent years all the talk about Web 2.0. I wanted really to talk about it in this post (yes, a deviation from my regularly topic of blogs). So where to begin........

I guess I should define Web 2.0. I actually looked this up on Wikipedia to give you the best definition that I can find. So Wikipedia defines Web 2.0 as a term describing changing trends in the use of World Wide Web technology and web design that aims to enhance creativity, information sharing, and collaboration among users.

So thats the definition, but what is it, and how do you use it.

The technology and web design that Web 2.0 includes are things like Social Networking sites, Forums, blogs, video sharing and the like. A few names you might recognize are YouTube, Facebook, Myspace, and Blogger.

This also refers to the way that web pages are set up. Most people are getting away from HTML and moving towards PHP, JAVA, ASPX and other website coding languages. HTML is an old way of writing a web page. Someone had to manually change a text document every time something needed to be updated. Now if YouTube was using HTML, think about what a job that would be.

PHP is a newer (at least becoming more popular) language among the Web 2.0 community. PHP uses limited resources on the host server, and runs a lot of content from the person browsing the website. Things like colors and animations are actually controlled from your PC. Because the server is using your PC to get all that info, it can move much quicker and be more reliable.

Another thing in the Web 2.0 community is the software that is used to develop websites. When I was first getting into web design, I used a simple HTML text editor that I though was really really good. Today, its not exactly cool to see a basic HTML site. People want things that are shiny, interactive, and have a nice feel to them. Adobe has revolutionized the way that people build webpages. If you take a look around their site, you can see it is quite impressive. The software is expensive, but to stay on the cutting edge it is becoming a necessity for people like myself to have.

In a recent blog post that I was reading, the author remarked about Open-Source projects. This goes back to the Information sharing that I talked about earlier. One day, some people decided that they really didn't like Microsoft, and weren't to keen on Macintosh either. So what do you think they did? They created an open source operating system called Linux. Linux has grown to be a favorite in the Web 2.0 community from a programing and system stability standpoint. If your looking at getting out of the Microsoft world, and don't really want the Apple products, I would suggest Linux. A little known fact is that a lot of web servers (especially ones for organizations that don't have much money to spend on things like that but host their own sites) run on a type of Linux Server.

Personally, I think that Microsoft is beginning to fade from the picture. Now to all of you Windows lovers out there, it might be considered treason to say such a thing. Heres why I think that Microsoft is headed out the door:

Apple is much more stable than Windows, even though Vista has had some upgrades
Vista Bombed, plain and simple. It has been shown that 75% of Vista users downgrade within the first 7 months
People don't want to pay the outrageous prices for Microsoft Products. Why pay $600 for an operating system for Server 05/08 when you can download one for free? Why buy the Microsoft Office products when you can jump on with Open Office?
Microsoft has made to many changes to quickly

Now I will say that I am a happy Vista user. Of course, being a Web 2.0 person and a computer guy, I have configured it exactly how I wanted it. It was a pain, but it has made my Vista experience pretty good.

Probably the best way to grab hold of this new phenomenon called Web 2.0 is to jump on board with the things that I have talked about. Be willing to venture outside of the Microsoft area and experience new things. A lot of programs I use are free (Open Source), and I actually like them a lot. I'm not saying abandon Microsoft all together, just check out other things.

So I can't conclude without talking about one of the biggest things in Web 2.0. Social Networking Sites.

The 2 largest social networking sites are Facebook and Myspace. So you might be thinking, what's the difference in the two? Its a valid question, so let me try to give an overview that is objective.

I am an active Facebook user. I have had mine for about 8 months now, and I quiet enjoy connecting with my friends from around the nation, and even some that are out of the country. I have found Facebook to be nice and secure. Facebook has made a commitment to security, and I have seen it put into action. There are over 150 security measures currently in place to protect Facebook users from predators, and other people who want to deceive others. When someone is found out they are not who they really are, or they trigger some key factors, their account is deleted, and if they try to re-register their is extra precautions taken. They are also a privately held company of about 300 employees. They could be potentially hurting themselves with the New version of Facebook (following in Microsoft's quick release of to many changes footsteps)

I must admit that I have never used myspace except to view peoples profiles. They are usually cluttered with backgrounds that cause headaches, music that automatically plays when you visit, potentially harmful HTML code embedded within the pages, and have been featured in a lot of news stories about teens being preyed on. This is not totally MySpace's fault, but I think I have only heard of one instance of a Facebook user being preyed on during its existence. Am I saying MySpace is bad? Not at all. I just happen to prefer the more professional looking Facebook over the playful Myspace.

So thats pretty much my take on Web 2.0. I'm always open for questions, so feel free to post comments, or e-mail me. Either one works.

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Thoughts about music and application to life part 2

2008-08-16T23:30:00.000-04:00

So I have been pondering the past few days on which song to write about as the topic of this blog.

There are so many songs to chose from. Honestly when I look at my music library and see there are over 12 GB of songs, what do I chose? So I have decided to talk about the newest single from Linkin Park called Leave Out All the Rest. The entire song is really good. It is a change from the normal sound of Linkin Park, but it is a very powerful song. It has a lot of depth to it as well.

Now before I get to the part of the song I like the best, I do want to note that Linkin Park is not a "Christian" artist. Some people may feel like the following post in regards to the song may be off base, but I believe that music is open to interpretation.

The first verse says:

I dreamed I was missing, you were so scared
But no one would listen, 'cause no one else cared
After my dreaming I awoke with this fear
What am I leaving when I'm done here?

Later in the chorus, the song goes on to say:

Help me leave beyond some reason to be missed

Now some could say that this song is really about death. It is in part, but I want to focus on the last line of the first verse.

What am I leaving when I'm done here? On the surface, it seems like a fairly straight forward question. Most people say they are leaving a legacy, others say monetary possessions, and the list goes on. I think that above all else, leaving a legacy is the most important.

I have been pondering this question lately, and I would like to think that I am leaving behind an impact on lives. An impact that has blessed many people, and hopefully helped them improve.

So I ask you, how are you living these days? What are you leaving behind when you go?

If your life is Christ centered, I would hope that you would leave a legacy that would point to him at all times. Now I know that we are human, and we fall, but it's important for us to live our faith.

One quick sidebar question as well: Is God a priority or a lifestyle? These are two very different things, and they drastically effect everything you do.

I want to leave this earth knowing that I have pursued God and done his work. Nothing more nothing less. It doesn't matter how much I make, what car I drive, the place that I live, etc. What matters is how I live my faith out.

One thing about living your faith, is you have to understand that you are not bulletproof. You are not some super Christian that gets everything right, and when you don't just covers it up. We all have problems, issues, and things we are not proud of. The difference between Christians and everyone else is that though the blood of Jesus, we are redeemed! (that just fires me up to say that!)

I believe, and it has been modeled by those in Christian leadership around me, that after you have gotten though something hard in your life in regards to sin, you should be able to use that to help others who are going though the same thing. Most people think we should hid sin, but instead of hiding it, maybe we need to reveal ourselves at times and certain situations (I'm not saying tell everyone everything).

Some people will connect better with you if they know that you have felt the same or been though the same stuff they are going though. This is not by any means me saying go and sin, but if you have gotten though a sin with God's help, be willing that when the time comes and someone says they are having a problem with the same thing, to share this with them. Not necessarily the sin itself, but how you and God got out of it in the first place.

This is how you leave a legacy. Pursue truth at all times, change God from being a priority to the center of your life, and live like today is your last day. Live within the boundaries but don't be afraid to do things and try new things (as long as they are within the God given boundaries).

So what are you leaving behind? Think about it, and see if you may need to correct some things in your life. The hardest part is actually making that change.

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Thoughts about music and application to life

2008-08-14T23:30:00.000-04:00

This is actually going to be part one of a few blog post about music and application to life.

I have always loved the band Anberlin. They have a great sound, and their songs seem to always have practical application. One of my favorite songs comes off of their "Cities" record.

The chorus to Alexithymia says:

With downcast eyes
There is more to living than being alive

I think that this really does have practical application to life. During Waters Edge tonight, Kevin Queen (Pastor- 12 Stone) summed it up really well. He said we cant live our life, our little 5 seconds life, about us, because when we say our name, the angles don't rejoice.

Most people, depending on who it is I ask, have very different views on life and purpose. Some think they are here to serve God, some think they are just existing.

I am in the group of the first opinion. I am here to say that I am on map on mission for Christ my Lord and Savior. I want to talk to 2 groups of people tonight. The first being fellow believers, the second being those of you who really don't know where you stand spiritually or have opposing views.

For my Christian brothers and sisters, I want to talk with you for just a minute. There is a question that I have been thinking about for a long time, and I always have to remind myself of the answer. Am I here for God, or for me? Immediately I am sure you all (for the most part) said the first, and your going Kyle I know this. But do you really? Who do you talk about most with others?

There is a great line in Batman Begins that really gets at what I am saying. During one of the scenes, Batman is asked who he is. He replys by saying, "It's not who I am underneath... but what I do that defines me". So who are you underneath? Are you still all about God, or are you more about yourself. If you really want to know, ask those around you. Trust me, they will let you know.

Now for those of you that are spiritually unresolved, I would like to propose this question. What is your purpose? Why do you exist? There are probably thousands of answers out there for you to chose. The question is, which one keeps you fulfilled? Correct me if I am wrong, but you are trying to fill a gap that you have. We all have different ways of filling it, but only one way will fill it 100% forever.

Jesus is the only one who can fill that void. To put it into perspective, I am not going to fix a Dam with some silly putty. Sure I might fix it for a little bit, but then a leak springs again and I have to find something else. Or I can use the proper tools to fix the Dam and not have to worry about it.

So what are you fixing your leaks with?

Just some food for though. Interesting what you can get out of a song. I do have a few others that will follow hopefully you will find interesting.

Hope that everyone is having a great week! Best wishes for those of you starting college on Monday!

Dive Deep,
Kyle

What fire's you up?

2008-08-05T23:20:00.001-04:00

The question was asked to the college ministry at 12 Stone Church during the Wonderlust series, what are you passionate about? Up until this question was asked, I never really though of this question.

I have began to ponder that question over the past few weeks. I am beginning to discover that when I really think about what makes me passionate, it always comes back to kids from 10-19. Now maybe that sounds strange seeing that I'm only 19, but I do.

I have always loved kids. I help out at church with the younger kids, and I work with teens in an organization im a part of called CAP. When I really look into myself, I have a heart for helping kids that are in bad situations. This doesn't mean anything major, but I think you get what I am saying.

So what this means for me in the long run, I'm not quite sure. My plans have not changed. I'm still going to school regardless of when I go, and I still want to get my degree in Computer Systems and Security. I feel like God wants me to use my talents that I have to glorify Him.

I am really praying though my passion and looking into what God might have for me there. Maybe I'm supposed to start something, or maybe I am just supposed to be around and poor into kids lives.

Whatever it might be, I can't wait till one day I have a family of my own. I look forward to kids (at least 2.... maybe more), and if God would bless me I would love to have at least one girl and one boy (not that I would object to 2 boys or 2 girls, I would love them all the same), but of corse thats not up to me. I really don't care, I just want to have kids.

So find your passion. What makes you intense? What do you want to change in the world? Find it, grab hold of it, and run with it. Be the change you want to see in the world.

All you need is a passion. A purpose for something. Do it and pursue it.

I would highly suggest that you look up the Wonderlust Series on I-tunes (you are probably listening to music right now on I-tunes). If you search podcast in the I-Tunes Store for Miles Welch, then look under Waters Edge College Ministry, download Part 3 of 7: Wonderlust: Destiny though Intensity. It might make much more since than I do sometimes. And if you don't have I-Tunes, you can get it here

Always remember, best way to live is to Love God, Love People. It works. Trust me.

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Summertime Intermission

2008-07-30T22:00:00.002-04:00

So summer is almost over :(....

I have to say, it has gone by so fast. It was so nice last week to go on vacation and just chill out with my family. Even getting stung by jelly fish was fun (in a strange sort of way).

I guess how fast the summer moves is a reflection of how fast life moves. We seem to always be going from here to there, back and forth. Always moving a mile a minute.

I just looked up the word Vacation, and the definition is:

1: a respite or a time of respite from something : intermission

and Intermission is the state of being intermittent which means:

1.To cause to cease for a time or at intervals : discontinue

Now intermission is not something we usually identify with a vacation. We usually think about a long play or something of the like. My brother went to a church retreat down in Panama City Beach FL earlier this summer, and strangely enough the topic was Intermission.

Intermission is taking a pause from something. The act of being intermittent.

Since life is moving so fast, sometimes we just need to take a break. We all need intermissions to re-connect, re-focus, and rest.

I find it so easy to in the blur of life get so focused on one thing. This summer I have learned to take small intermissions, wether it was swimming with friends at the lake, chilling for my birthday at Stone Mountain, or just having a quiet lunch away from the office by myself or with someone else.

You see, sometimes we can't control what life tosses at us. That's not our place to be in control. We have to make the best of what we are given, and when we start to lose focus of that, and begin to feel like we are all in control, we need intermission.

So take a break every once in a while. Hang out with a friend on the weekend. Take time to just relax with loved ones. Dive into the word and swim in the refreshing waters of the Bible.

You will be amazed at how the last one helps. I know some of you reading this don't read the Bible, and for various reasons. I challenge you to just open one someday, sit and read for a few minutes. It's not like it is going to kill you or anything.

So take some time with a good book, some coffee (or other drink of choice), and have an intermission.

You will be amazed at what it will do for you.

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Hello from Vacation in FL

2008-07-22T00:36:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone,

Hope all is well with everyone.

I may have told some of you that I was going on vacation. I think I may have told less of you exactly where I am going... not on purpose, just got busy up until I left.

So I am writing to you from Navarre Beach FL. We got here last night, and things have been great since we got here :).

Today we have gone to the beach. That was pretty fun, except for the jelly fish stinging me, cody and dad. Yeah, right on the foot. Then we came back and played in the other beach for a few minutes before heading to the pool. Got to visit Destin for a bit, and probably going there tomorrow.

So it has been a fun day. Now time for rest.

See you all later :)

Pics to come soon

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Just a quick note

2008-07-15T23:38:00.002-04:00

So it has been a few weeks since I have last shared my insightful (or maybe not so insightful) thoughts with you. Probably because life has kicked into a tad higher gear, not for any apparent reason, but just because its life

I also have been without internet for the past 2-2 1/2 weeks up until now because my cable modem was shot from the storms a few weeks ago, couldn't get out and get a replacement, tech support was less than helpful, and finally got a new one that works kindof. So yeah, just figured I would check in.

going on vacation in the next few days, and no, you don't get to know the location lol. Hope everyone is enjoying their summer. i am working on doing some more regular postings on topics, but not sure what to do them on yet. If you have a suggestion, twitter, facebook, im, e-mail, or reply to the blog, and ill see what I can do.....I'm thinking about talking of relationships, and some leadership stuff....

Dive Deep,
Kyle

A thousand thoughts running though my mind....

2008-07-05T23:49:00.002-04:00

So I guess I'm just writing tonight. Nothing inparticular as a subject, just writing. Its soothing to me I guess, writing that is. I actually enjoy writing. I love to write anything pretty much. Songs, blogs, even some poems. Why I'm not quite sure, but this is the way that God geared me, and I like it.

So any of you guys remember the song I do believe by Steven Curtis Chapman? Old school I know but the first verse is the thing running though my head tonight. It says:

Sitting in a traffic jam 11 52 p m
Just a few miles south of cincinnati ohio
I take my pen and start to write
The thoughts that fill my head tonight
Nothing terribly profound
Just these simple words
That keep my heart anchored down
That keep my restless heart anchored down

So maybe I'm not in a trafic jam, and I'm actually in my room writing this post, but the rest of the verse applies to me.

I'm going to be a little bit open with all my readers tonight. Nothing teribly profound, just thoughs that maybe will be helpful to you, or just to get them out there.

I'm quite confused about a lot of things right now. Well maybe not a lot of things, but one or two. One in particular is eating at me. I know it shouldn't, but thats just me. I feel I may be even to bold putting this out there, but i dont know.

Its not a strugle, more like a test of my leadership, loyalty, and trust. I haven't had my leadership tested like this particular instance in, well ever. Its an uncomfortable place to be in. I like being in places where I can know what to do, but this one is unfamilier, uncommon, and quite frankly a tad bit scary. With this, I am discovering what leadership actually is though. Its not getting someone to do something else, its loyalty, trust, and character. I am learning as a leader, you have to sometimes stand up for your followers, put yourself in the way perhaps of an oncomming bullet (not a real one, a metiphorical one), and be ready to take it. I have to be loyal because people count on me, and my followers are much more important to me than my superiors at this moment. If I go against the system, put up a fight, I am realizing I have to do it for the right people. I would rather disappoint my superiors because I stood up for my followers, than be disloyal to my followers and give in. Standing is hard, remember that about leadership. But a good foundation allows for me to stand.

I have to admit, my methods in a lot of things are crazy. I take gambles sometimes I shouldn't, but leaders have to believe in those under them. I have been critizied by those above me, below me, close to me and far from me. I refuse to let that diswade me though. Leadership is about being who you are, and aligning yourself with Gods leadership goals for your life. I think he would know about leadership, He is only the ruler of the Universe.

Otherwise things are quite the normal in my life. Well normal, lets just say they are regular. I don't think anyone is really normal, but thats not a bad thing.

All I want to say to anyone who wonders about who I am, what I do, why I do it, or the like is this. I am Kyle, a regular person, who doesn't have the answers, can't do everything, messes up a great deal, fails, trys, worries, and has every other emotion that everyone else has. I am nothing out of the ordinary, just a plain old guy who strives to do everything right, but fails, and relies on grace to take over.

I am also a strong believer in Jesus Christ. I will proclaim that all the days of my life. Sometimes I fail at living it, but I don't want to. I work to correct my mistakes. If you have a problem with me believing that, I hope one day you will understand what I have. God has blessed me with amazing friends and family. For those of you that are close to me, know that I love each of you, and I value our friendship over anything else. You guys are part of my family and I love you just the same.

I have never really said thank you to my friends, but you guys have no clue on how much I rely on you, trust you, listen to you, want to be around you, and the list goes on. Most of the time I feel unworthy to even be in your circle, but I know that God has put you in my life on purpose, maybe if nothing else just to be there. No matter what happens between us, I love you guys, and I will do anything, anything at all for you. Thank you for being my friend :)

I guess I'll leave it at that. Hope everyone had a great 4th of July, and continues to have a great week. And btw, if any of you college students want to come to waters edge Thursday night, let me know so I can be watching.

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Faith...What is it, Why do we need it, and how do we get it?

2008-06-20T23:47:00.002-04:00

Faith is defined by most as believing in something that you can not see. While this is the case, I think it is just a surface description of what faith really is. It is kind of funny that in the past few weeks, I have been asked by multiple people the seemingly simple question, "What is Faith?". At first, I though it would be quite easy, but I think that it is a much deeper question to answer. Fact of the matter is that to answer the question, you must understand Faith.

I don't clam to know what exactly faith is entirely. I do know what I have learned about it though. So for those of you who are wondering what is faith, and the why and how, this is for you.

Most of the time faith is referred to by people of God as the stronghold of their beliefs. We can't see God (physically...well at least 99% of us). For that, I know some people think I am crazy to believe in a God that I can't see. I find that quite interesting, because if you can see something, where is the faith?

A common analogy I use is about the air. We all breath it and without it we would not be alive. We require O2 to live. It is how we were created by our Creator. But we can not see the air. I know it is around me because I need it to survive. I see the wind move the trees in the breeze, and I can feel the wind when I am outside. Now it takes faith to believe that air exist.

Now some of you are saying, well science has proven that it exist. But what if it didn't? What if there was no proof of air? Should we rely on science to prove something that is already evident?

So we all have faith. Some of us are willing to believe in air because we need it to survive, but are not willing to believe in a God that they can not see.

I have faith in God. Hopefully this is evident in my life. I rely on God more than anything in this world, because I know that he comes though at the times of need.

God has granted me unique experiences to grow in my faith. He has delivered me from a serious skiing accident, has show his love in the difficult situation's, and has always met my every need.

A lot of times, we lose faith because God didn't show up when we wanted him to, or in the way that we think he should have. We sometimes expect God to just show up on earth, grab us out of a situation, and then we can have faith. I don't think that God ever intended for us to work like that. We take for granted most of what God does for us anyways (not everyone, but a majority).

God lets us go though situation's to grow our faith. Faith is a choice that we have to make. Do we chose to believe in God and be patient, or do we decide that He does not exist and that we should just push Him away?

God is a loving God. I know and believe that He exist, and is in control of this world. I have learned though experiences that I have to wait for His timing of His plan, and trust me, it is always right.

Now some of you might think that God's timing is way off. Some of you might say, He didn't show up for me. Well I think that if you really search deeply, He did show up, because he always does in one way or another. I think we just want to be mad that it wasn't our way, so we take it out on God.

I did that for a while, until I realized that God wanted me to have Faith that he was taking care of everything. I also remember thinking, who am I to question my Creator?

I hope that this has helped any of you who have a hard time with faith. I still have a hard time with it in certain situation's. I just know that God exist, He loves me and us, and He knows whats best for us.

If you really want to know the secret to a full, enjoyable, life, start there. Faith is not easy, but when you begin to understand it, it is such a joy.

So I hope that one day everyone can say that they love and live life because they have had their Faith renewed.

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Yes I still exist...

2008-06-16T23:49:00.002-04:00

So I just wanted to give a shout out to everyone who checks my blog....like the 3 people that do. I'm still here...alive and well.

Here is a glimps of what I'm working on blogging on later in the week:

Faith- We have to have it, but what is it?

Bringing Technology to light- The SDG explanation.

Leadership in tough sitchuations- How to lead and not cave

So yeah, only about 2 of those might get written, but just a heads up.

BTW, for those of you who do read this, any suggestions to what I could blog about feel free to shout them out.

Dive Deep,
Kyle

A word to the Graduates.....

2008-06-07T00:14:00.002-04:00

For those of you that know me, you know that I enjoy speaking in public about different things. I have always wondered what it would be like to be able to speak to a group of young teens about whatever. Recently with all of the graduations going on, I just wanted to write a little word to those graduates of 2008. So if I had the privilege of being a keynote speaker at a graduation, this is what I would say:

Congratulations!!! You have made it to the end of your journey though high school. You are all graduates and you should be proud. You have made friends, and maybe some enemies along the way as well, but hopefully more friends. I want to talk to you all about friends, and why they are so important, and how to better prepare yourself for the road ahead.

To begin, friends are a vital part of your life. It doesn't matter if you are an introvert or an extrovert, everyone needs friends. Some people tell me they don't, but trust me, there are very few ways to survive without human interaction. One thing that some of you may be thinking is that since school is over now, you don't have to worry about that friend that you don't like, but act like you do. Hate to say it, but no matter what, friends are friends forever. Over the past year of my life, I have come to understand the meaning of that.

Michael W. Smith says it the best in his song, "Friends". A line says, "Friends are friends forever", but we don't think about it this way. I have gone through times where I have had friends hurt me, and use me. I find that the harder I try to forget about them, the more they pop up in my mind. So even though you want to forget someone, a friend, you never will. I still remember some of my friends from grade school.

We also have to remember that friendship is a 2 way street. We can not just take everything from our friends. We have to give something in the relationship too. This is the key reason why most of you will not be dating the same person in a few years, if you are even dating at all. Most relationships fail because people don't want to get past their own needs and consider someone else.

The fact of the matter is, life after high school is hard. You get a job, or go to college, or some of you decide that you will just live with your parents or move in with your significant other because this was just meant to be. Now let me stop and say that I think its pretty dumb to though your life away because you think you have found love. At your age, I don't really know if you know what love is. I know grow adults that would say the same thing. So most of you are blocking this out, but at least consider it.

So you need friends to help you along the way. You need people to hang with, talk with, learn from, and feed off of each other. Life is hard without friends. It is hard being out of the river of community. Even those of us who are Christians have a hard life.

I have spent a lot of time investing in others, and I don't say this to brag. I'm not the best advice giver, but sometimes people just need someone to listen, get a hug from, and just be there. We all need influences in our lives, and good ones at that. We need people to lift us up when we are down on the ground, being kicked around. We need advocates, and after high school, you need them even more.

So hold close to your friends. Find true friends, and hang close. Be influences on each other. No one can change the world by themselves, well maybe you can, but it is easier with a group.

So enjoy your time Class of 2008. This is your time to rise up and impact a nation and the world. Rise up and make a difference, as friends.

Thank you.

Dive deep,
Kyle

A hodgepodge of information floating in my mind...

2008-05-29T23:18:00.003-04:00

So maybe I am a tad scatterbrain tonight. This would surely explain the title of my post. So I haven't blogged in about a week.... not that it is a bad thing though.

I hope that everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend. I got to see my grandparents for the first time in 3 years, so mine was really good. It was great to be around them and help them out with little projects. I also accidentally secured someone else's wireless network....I guess that's what happens when you think its actually yours but its someone else's.

Recently, I was talking with someone about God and religion, and they said that if God exist, why did bad things happen to them. This is a question that I have just recently began to grasp, and by no means do I have the full answer but here is what I believe that God says in his Word about trials (I will paraphrase most of it though).

Everyone has trials. I have them, you (yes, you whom is reading this), your parents, your Pastor, and the list goes on and on. Some of them on the outside may seem bigger than others, but I think that no matter what the situation, they can all impact us with the same severity. In my time of being a friend to people, and with Civil Air Patrol leadership in particular, I have found that everyone has a story, each with trials.

So why do we have to go though trials? Why can't life be just as easy as we want it to be? The answer actually lies in my second question. WE want it to be our way. WE feel like it should be easy. Well last I checked, I'm not God, and I can never be Him. I can strive to be like him though, and that's what we need to do. But back on topic.

We always want things our way. From our Job to our car to our Latte at Starbucks. We pitch a fit if someone does our order incorrectly at a restaurant. I'm just as guilty of it as the next person. Problem is that WE are not in control.

I think that people who can't believe in God are just concerned that if they do, then they lose control of what they can and can not do. As a Christian, there are things that God has set to show us how to live. I don't follow them because I have to, but I want to. I want nothing more than for God to tell me that He is proud of me. This is all that really matters.

So with that in mind, lets think about this. God is a good God. There is no evil within Him. On the flip side, there is Satan. Satan is the deciver, the evil one, whos only job it is to destroy what God has created.

The Bible says that we will never be tempted above what we can bear. We will never face the trials alone, and there will always be a way out. God allows us to go though things to show us that HE is in control. I have been though a lot of things, and I know some of you have been though much more than me, but one thing still rings true. God always comes though. You just might not be able to see it, and it probably isn't the way that you wanted it. But again, WE are not in control. God has a perfect plan, that is much better than any of ours. We just have to accept it, and try to live according to the guidelines that God has set for us.

I have had a lot of people ask me, How can I believe so stronly in something that I can not see? How do you prove God's existance?

My first response is that I don't have to prove that God exist. There is no way that everything just happend, or we evolved from something. If it was true, we would be able to re-create it. All I ask is that you disprove that God exist, because you can't.

Second, Look around at the world. Look at the exact placement of Earth. 1 degree forward or backward we would all die. Look at the air. Wait, thats right, we can't see the air. We can see particles in the air, and the effects of the air, but we can't see air. But we believe in it, right? We breath it. It is a nessecity to live.

God is the same way. He is nessesary for us to live. And I don't mean just living, but to fully be alive. I think that someone who has faith in something that He can not see is much better than someone that always has to have proof.

I hope that this begins to stir something in you, a rising up of questions, maybe a curiosity to really dig into this. I try to look into the religions of the world so that I can be more understanding of your position. All I ask is that you do the same.

Hopefully you will find (if you haven't already) the meaning to the saying, 'Every man dies, but not every man fully lives'

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Life is like a song....

2008-05-20T23:45:00.000-04:00

Have you noticed it? A few years ago, music was on tapes and FM radio. Now we have ipods, mp3 players, wma players, satellite radio, music videos, and the list goes on. I think that music is becoming more a part of our life and society. Most of us listen to music all the time. I know I do. Makes it easier to get though the day, occupies the mind, and this makes me wonder how this fits into the scheme of things.

I think that music is very much a part of us. American Idol is one of the top shows in the nation because music is a part of us. There is a song out there that speaks to everyone.

Mine changes randomly, but right now I am totally in love with the song "Unbreakable" by Fireflight. This song is not only a good song musically, but the lyrics are deep.
My favorite part of it (well its acutally the whole thing) is in the chorus where it says:

God i want to dream again
Take me where I’ve never been
I want to go there
This time I’m not scared
Now I am unbreakable
It’s unmistakable
No one can touch me
Nothing can stop me

I think that as I go though the motions sometimes I forget about what this song says. I sometimes lose site of what God is doing, so I have to constantly remind myself.

I am unbreakable, not because of me, but because of God in my life. It is so cool to watch when a trial comes my way, and if I react and go to God, its like I have a shield protecting me. If I don't, then I'm trying to stand on my own two legs against an enemy that is much bigger than me.

Some of you may think that this doesn't work. Maybe you tried it, and God didn't answer. I think that's where we lose site of this principle that God takes care of us. Later in the song, it reiterates this by saying:

Sometimes it’s hard to just keep going
But faith is moving without knowing
Can I trust what I can’t see
to reach my destiny?
I want to take control, but I know better

That last line is where most people Q zone (Quit). They quit on God, on life, on whatever. We like being in control, but that was never what we were made for. We are put in charge of certain things, but the control is God's alone.

And trust me, its not easy in this life. Trials come at you from all sides, and that's when you have to make a choice. Do you trust God fully, or do you decide that you are God and have the ability to control a situation. Maybe if we though about that, God would make more since.

He is in control because He is God. I am confident that he knows much more than we do, might be because He created us. So the question that has been tossed around for years, Why do bad things happen to good people? Maybe it is because we take control, maybe to teach us, or maybe a combination. Either way, its your choice to trust Him.

He can do this without you, and he will make you learn, if not now, when you die or He comes back to this earth for the last time. But He longs for you to come along and be a part of this amazing plan.

All you need to do -- is trust.

Dive Deep,
Kyle

Spiral/ Other song Ideas

2008-05-20T23:35:00.000-04:00

So some of you know my secret, but some of you have no idea. I am acutally a very creative person, and God has given me the gift to be able to take my thoughts and put them into song lyrics. While I can't acutally write the music, I still enjoy it. So here is some very rough choruses of a few different projects I'm working on.

Spiral (April 08- 1st Draft)

You think, nobody cares none at all
You feel, your life's spiraling out of control
You don't want to feel this anymore
but you cant just walk on out of the door

Deeper Still (May 08- Pre-First Draft)

I'm diving deep
Swimming so deep I can't breath
I keep pushing though the water into the unknown
Breathing in air that I didn't know

My story

2008-05-15T23:32:00.003-04:00

Hello again all (or to translate the like 2 people out there that actually read my ramblings). Hope everyone is having a great day and such. I wanted to share my testimony with you all. Just as a preface, the glory of my story is not my own, but that of my Creator. He is the reason why I am still existing.

So here it goes:

I accepted Christ as my savior when I was 8 years old. I always grew up in a Christian home always around church, so the whole concept of Jesus and God was nothing new. As I grew older, I began to grow more in Christ. Up until I was about 12ish, I had kindof a lukewarm to cold faith. Not sure exactly why but it was.

When I went on a skiing trip with my scout group, I was looking forward to fun times (which it was :)). God apparently wanted to get my attention. Funny how we always think our plans are better than His. But anyways, I was skiing with the group at night, got cut off by a snowboarder and was thrown from my bindings and did a wobble motion on my head then fell on my back on solid ice. I was out cold, and one person though that I might have been dead. By the grace of God I was able to walk away with that. My neurologist that I had (I got a concussion, whiplash and cracked a few vertebrae) said that with the severity of impact I should not be here. This became a turning point in my life, to life life to the fullest that God would wish for me.

A few years later my faith was tested greatly. My grandfather was working out on a job (he was an independent contractor) in Texas. One weekend he came home and wasn't feeling well. He didn't go to the doctor but went back to TX the following Monday. A few days later he was found unconscious outside of the apartment that he was staying in. He was immediately rushed to the hospital and put into ICU. It was about a week until they figured out what was wrong. He had gotten the West Nile Virus, and the strain he got was lethal. He was in the hospital for a long time, every organ that could fail did. The doctors did not think that he would ever recover. He was on the ventilator for 3 weeks, and as some of you know after that long you don't come off of it, but by the grace and blessing and prayers, God got him off of it :). He is doing much better now, although he is still paralyzed on his right side. He is a living miracle. No one can tell me that could just happen by chance. This is one of the reasons why God has granted me strong faith. But as anything it comes with a price.

For the past few years, I have grown close to God, although it has not been an easy road. The best thing is that I am confident in Christ that He will take care of me. I have no reason to be afraid of anything, because He got this. I have learned great things though my journey and I am looking forward to learning and growing more for eternity. You don't stop learning and growing when you die, it just keeps going.

I have found that if you have God as a priority in your life, it doesn't work. God does not want to be a priority in your life. He doesn't want to be something that you check off of your list or put at the top of it. Instead, he wants to be your life. He wants you to be fully consumed by Him.

God is doing some amazing things in my life right now, and teaching me more than I can imagine. He is blessing me with great friends, some discernment, wisdom, and talents. I will never fully understand why a God that is perfect would want to pour that into me, but I know that it is because He wants to shine though me. I'm not perfect, nor do I get things right, but I really want to be the man that God would want me to be.

It is so true that it is about the relationship, not religion. God wants to be your all consuming fire.

I hope that this doesn't come across as all about me. When I was in high school, I heard God say, Go tell your story to the World. Maybe that is something that some of you can't or don't understand, but God is real, He is my God. I will serve Him all of my days forever and ever.

So be all the Glory to God. If you ever wonder why I am who I am, look to Him first, then my parents for the answers.

Dive Deep
Kyle

What do I believe?

2008-05-14T00:03:00.003-04:00

So I think that it's time that I came right out and clarified what I believe in. Most of you know what I believe, but sometimes I am vague with my beliefs. So here it is, my statement of faith per-se.

I am a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. I believe that he came to this earth in human flesh and died for our sins. I believe that He is the Way the Truth and the Light and no one comes to the Father except though him. I am not ashamed of being a Christian and I wish that everyone would come to know Jesus as their Lord. I also understand that free will is co-existent in this world, and because of that becoming a Christian is a choice. I believe that we must be in the world and not of it, and doing that means living differently. My faith is strong thanks to Christ leading me though a lot of situations. There is a spiritual war going on co-existent as well. I believe that Satan is real, and is the arch enemy of my God, and I will fight along side the rest of the Christians to combat the enemy. I believe that Christianity is more about a relationship then just doing the motions. Guilt is not from God, but from the enemy. God is a gracious God, but also a firm God. He practices High Affection and High Discipline (more of that to come in a later post). He is a loving God. The only way you can accept the Bible is the whole thing, not part of it. Either it is all true or it is all false. I am in no way perfect nor will I ever be anywhere close. All I can do is strive to be more like my Father in heaven.

As I can continue on, I'm actually going to leave it at that for now. I'll probably expand on this more in later posts, but I hope that though this you will not see me, but what God has done though me. We are all a part of this world that God created, and He can do everything without us, but He would love to have you be a part of it. As it was once said, We are imperfect people, living in an imperfect world, who's lives fall apart every day.

God Bless and have a great day.

loving and living life,
Kyle

The amazing jungle of computer programs...

2008-05-07T00:12:00.002-04:00

They say that it's a Jungle out there. I for one have to say it really is. Everyone fighting for themselves, but I don't think its just a jungle in the work force. I think that technology is a jungle all to itself.

Think about it. If you have ever seen any code for any of the programs or websites you visit, it looks rather menacing. For programmers, we get along great with IF, WHEN, ELSE, DO, and one of our favorites, the great and mighty EVAL. For websites, you have HTML, HTM, Java (and I don't mean coffee), XML, PHP, SQL, and flash.

I probably have just lost a lot of you with all that jargon. Some of you may acutally know what I am talking about. For those of you that do, I think you would agree that to the untrained eye, this is very very complicated. But if you take some time to learn it, everything is quite easy.

Coding is not as hard as it seems, and if you get stuck you have the power of Google at your hands. It just takes sitting down and looking at it to get it.

So whats the point of this random blog post? Well its to show that you can do anything if you put your mind to it. No matter how hard something looks, always strive to be more than you think you can. Always remember, you never fail, you just take a longer time to get to the path that works. Enjoy the ride along the way, enjoy life, and strive to challenge yourself.

Loving and living life,
Kyle

What an interesting weekend.....

2008-05-04T23:44:00.003-04:00

So we all have interesting weekends. I acutally think that there isn't a day that goes by that something interesting doesn't happen. I just wanted to share one highlight from my weekend that just makes me smile....maybe its right or maybe its wrong to, but I find it funny.

So Cody and I went into work at the Church on Saturday night. That was just kindof weird. Some people or a person was in the church and was somehow staying one step ahead of us. But we ended up working 2 extra hours which put us clocking out at about midnight. Since all these strange things had happened, we decided to double check the parking lot before we left. That's when things got interesting.

We go up one section and turn around to head back down the parking lot, and in the shadows of the dark section of the parking lot, we see a vehicle. This is not exactly uncommon, but when we see something like that we check it out. So I corner the vehicle in and we give 911 a call (we decided to call them from now on instead of chasing them down like last time). After they go ahead and get all the info and tell me that we can leave, I circle around to the lower lot and head back up. As I am doing this, one guy and one girl pretty much jump out of the "trunk" of the Scion and run to the front seat. The driver puts it in reverse at about the time that I get back up there (Thankfully I had the truck, much more menacing than my Aveo). When we finally stopped them, they told us they were just "talking". I told them I didn't really care and they would have to tell that to the Cops. So for the next 5 minutes until the Cops got there, we watched as they were scared out of their wits and had to call parents (I wish I could have better heard that phone call). Today I found out that the Cops had their parents come out and pick them up.

So I really don't think they were just "talking". I mean 2 guys 2 girls, both sitting with each other...or something. At midnight in a dark church parking lot and trying to run when we left.....

Needless to say I have to smile when I think about that....ruined their night....sort of...but probably for the better...

Loving and living life,
Kyle

Take the Plunge

2008-05-02T00:08:00.002-04:00

I love to swim. I was on a swim team back in Middle School and got fairly good at it. I have also been a lifeguard and love the water. I also love going underwater because it is just fascinating.

I have in a since taken a plunge into deeper waters. This is a good thing though, because it will benefit my relationship with Christ in the end. I'm excited and a tad nervous at the same time. It is kindof like when you are on the high dive and look down, and see the water, and think to yourself, oh no what am I doing, but then jump anyways and you love it. I'm excited to be diving deeper and allowing myself to be more consumed by God. This means I'm making some changes for the next few weeks, but all manageable. I hope to continue part of this after March 29th, and get the experience to do this sort of thing again.

I can't wait to see what God is going to be able to do with me. I am open and ready to receive, and this time from today till the end of the month will be great. If you want to know the details of what I am doing, I would ask you contact me personally about that. My e-mail is listed in my profile, or you can get ahold of me a bunch of different ways.

Though this all glory be to God.

Diving Deep,
Kyle

If life was as easy as facebook status' and applicaitons...

2008-04-30T23:45:00.003-04:00

I wish that sometimes life was as easy as Facebook makes it seem. You always log on, tell how you are feeling or what you are doing, what you are looking for, your relationship status, and nicely displayed are all of your friends. If you have some friends, you might consider adding a Top Friends application to let everyone know who's in your top circle.

But reality is that life is not like Facebook. It is not like you can just click a button and make your problems go away. Facebook and things like that sometimes just prolong or make a situation worse. Sometimes people take the internet way to seriously. I mean if you have to go to Facebook to get to know your friends, you need to get out a tad bit more.

I hope I don't seem harsh or offend anyone with this post. I just like the irony of us getting so rapped up in the world of internet social networking sites that we forget that these people acutally are real and we can go see them lol.

I guess this just goes to show that the internet is becoming more and more vital to people, and we just have to remind ourselves that we have control over it, not the other way around. Don't let your life be consumed by the internet, its better to experience the world than just sit behind a computer.

This reminds me of the song "Online" by Brad Paisley. I know not everyone reading this likes country, but the lyrics are great. The choruses goes like this:

'Cause online I'm out in Hollywood
I'm 6 foot 5 and I look damn good
I drive a Maserati
I'm a black-belt in karate
And I love a good glass of wine
It turns girls on that I'm mysterious
I tell them I don't want nothing serious
'Cause even on a slow day
I could have a three way
Chat with two women at one time
I'm so much cooler online
So much cooler online

I chuckle and smile when I hear that, because sometimes it is so true.

So life is easier online, but its not reality. Things are what you make them. Make the most of your life and have control over the things that could control you.

Loving and living life,
Kyle

Life moves at 100 MPH.......

2008-04-29T23:58:00.001-04:00

This is such a true statement. I know for me, one day its this, next day it is that. Sometimes it really does seem like life moves much faster than we ever intend for it to. On the flip slide, most of us would go crazy if there wasn't something or some type of drama occurring.

I wonder why we like to rush...why we always have to do something every moment. I know I love doing things, but sometimes I need to rest. If I don't rest, God makes me rest. Sometimes he will just put everything in place to give us quite time, but we just fill it with stuff.

I think that God doesn't want us to be doing something all the time every day. I think we need time to rest, not only physically but emotionally and spiritually. We were not made to burn at both ends 24/7 365.

So I challenge you, as you go into the next few weeks, find time to rest. Read in a book. If you don't have one in mind I would suggest the Bible....but that's just me.
Take some time to just stop and admire the beauty, watch a sunrise or set (sunrises always start my day off right), or just rest.

Loving and living life,
Kyle

Who am I?

2008-04-28T21:40:00.004-04:00

It may seem a little strange to you the question that I labeled this post. In fact, on the surface it seems like we all know who we are. We know our likes, dislikes, what music we listen to and everything in between, but it begs the question, do we really know who we are?

For me, I found this out when I was about 13 years old, at least so I though. At 13 I though I knew exactly what I wanted to do, who I wanted to be, and although some of those things are still true, I have also experienced many changes.

Changes and circumstances shape who we are, who I am. It doesn't matter if they are good, bad or just in between, they all impact us. After I had talked with someone about some things that were going on in their life, I began to realizes something. No ones problems are more important, they just impact us in different ways, but in the end impact us like everyone else. The difference is how we deal with the changes.

I wanted to go into the Air Force, I really did. I still may, but earlier this year I went with the family of an Army Reservist that had been called up to serve for 1 1/2 in Iraq. He has 4 children under 10 years of age and his wife. He answered the call, but seeing the faces of the children, its something I can not explain. I don't think I could do that to my family.

I have changed some plans now with better direction from the circumstances God has allowed me to go though. I am blessed to have a great job where I get a lot of hands on experience with computers and programing. I would like to one day work for NSA, FBI, CIA, or the Air Force (but stateside duty). My mom once said, "Don't try to learn new traits, just use what God gave you". This doesn't mean don't learn, but allow God to use you, don't try to change who you are if that is the way God made you unless He wants you to change (ask me to expand if that came across wrong)

That is so right on. We all try to do things and make ourselves into someone that we are not. I am thankful for the direction that God is taking me and I am learning to be myself, not who others think I should be.

Hopefully this makes since, and I haven't bored you to death ;). Maybe for those of you that are searching for yourself can find you now. The real you. As the Army used to say "Be all you can be". Do that and be yourself. People will draw to you if you are yourself, so just try it and see.

Loving and living life,
Kyle

This Crazy Week

2008-04-26T00:59:00.002-04:00

So this is my first attempt again at acutally having a blog. As the title says, it has been one wild and crazy week. At least since Wednesday.

On Thursday, had the regular work routine, then headed to the Carrie Underwood Keith Urban concert. It was an amazing concert. I think that pretty much says it all.

On Friday, I woke up fairly early and came down to the user conference. Spent all day listening to seminars and such. I have to say it was a fairly good time. Tonight, I was going to go out with some of the clients, but apperently Buckhead has a ordinance that says only 21 and older in the bars...which counts me out. I still had a good time with a few of the clients that didn't go with the rest of the group. We went over to this nice quite resturant/bar combination. After a while, we came back to the hotel and chit chatted with a pilot for British Ariways. I was quite in my element. Now i'm headed to bed....up early tomorrow (without a hangover like most of the clients will have) lol......

Loving and Living Life,
Kyle