Sports Rule Changes

I'd like to consider myself a sports purist (get rid of the DH), but my friend, Joey, isn't exactly the sports enthusiast I am. He thinks they are boring. He found these rule change suggestions on Tyler Stanton's website, and I couldn't help but share. They are too funny.

Oh, and...

GO GAMECOCKS!!!!

Fear

God has been dealing with my anxieties a lot lately. I’m not going to get into particulars, but I will say that it is not just one area of my life. In fact, it’s most, if not all areas of my life. It’s almost like a chain reaction. I worry about one thing and it sets off something in my head and heart that begins a cycle of worry.

At the center of my anxiety is pride and unbelief. However, as Paul reminds Timothy, “…if we are faithless, he remains faithful…” (2 Timothy 2.13). God continues to open my eyes to this sin, rebuke me, and offer grace and encouragement.

That grace and encouragement has come recently in some things I have been reading. The first is a chapter of a book that a friend sent me awhile back. The book is called Scripture Opens Blind Eyes, and though I’ve only read the “Don’t Worry” chapter, I’m sure the rest of the book is also helpful. Here are some quotes that stuck out to me:

- There’s always something to worry about.

- We worry about things that are inherently uncertain.

- You worry because of you, not because of things.

- We lose sight of God because what we want (and worry about) is the only thing we see.

- Central to worry is the illusion that we can control things…Worry assumes the possibility of control over the uncontrollable.

- A worrier is storing “treasure” in the wrong place. If what you most value can be taken away or destroyed, then you set yourself up for anxiety.

- Some things are certain (namely Christ and His love and provision).

- If your life isn’t made by having money, then your life can’t be unmade by the lack of it!

- He (God) will give you what you need to live on if you need him in order to live.

- Anxieties feel endless and infinite – but they’re finite and specific.

- Anxious people “eagerly seek” the gifts more than the Giver.

- Your Father cares about the things you worry about.

- In the darkest hole, when life is toughest, there’s always some way to give yourself away.

I also listened to the following clip from a message by Mark Driscoll. The blog post basically says what he says in the video clip.

http://blog.marshillchurch.org/2010/11/21/7-truths-about-fear/

I hope some of this is helpful or encouraging to you. Finally, I’ll leave you with this promise:

“Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you.” 1 Peter 5.17

Go Gamecocks!

35 - 21

Wow. Hard to believe, but I love it! We beat Alabama! So that means...

January 26, 2010 - Basketball beats the #1 team (UK)

June 22, 2010 - Baseball beats #1 Arizona State

October 9, 2010 Football beats the #1 team (Bama)

...and now baseball IS the #1 team.

I also found these facts (from ESPN.com) very interesting:

In a 2009 win over South Carolina, Mark Ingram had 246 yards as the Tide totaled 264 rushing yards on the Gamecocks defense. On Saturday, Ingram had 41 yards, while the Tide as a team had 36.

Quick Notes on South Carolina's upset * First win over No. 1 team in school history * 35 points on Alabama is most since LSU scored 41 on them in 2007 * Ends Alabama's 19-game win streak and 18-game SEC win streak * Held Alabama to 36 yards rushing (3rd-fewest in Nick Saban era)

Marcus Lattimore has 2 Rush TD and a rec TD today vs Alabama. The last player to have 3 TD vs Alabama? Tennessee WR James Banks in the Vols' October 25, 2003 shootout with Alabama. Banks had 2 receiving TD and a Rush TD. Tennessee won 51-43.

The trio of QB Stephen Garcia, WR Alshon Jeffery, and RBMarcus Lattimore will all have eligibility remaining after this season. Garcia is only a junior, Jeffery a true sophomore, and Lattimore is a freshman who was one of the top recruits in the country last year.

ESPN Stats & Information

Proud to be a Gamecock!

Happy Birthday, Carlyn!

On her 25^th birthday, I thought I’d share 25 things about my sister, Carlyn.

· Her name is Carlyn, which is pretty unique. So is she.

· Someone was named after her. A girl in her kindergarten class’s mom named her other daughter after Carlyn.

· She is totally the middle child – center of attention and peace-maker/seeker in the house.

· We’re 20 months apart. When we were younger (and our mom dressed us alike), people thought we were twins. Sometimes they still do.

· She once saved a child’s life…when she was about 5. A friend’s little sister slipped in the pool and since none of the adults saw it right away, Carlyn jumped in and pushed her out. Pretty impressive, I know.

· She is really good with money. Since I know how “great” she was with money in high school, I know that’s amazing. Dave Ramsey should be proud.

· She is super smart. She didn’t always give a great effort in high school, and she’ll tell you that, but since she was about 19 she has studied/read about/learned all kinds of things including banking, money, real estate, raising kids, marriage, and the Bible.

· She once met Donovan McNabb (at Michael and Marcus Vick’s house)…and didn’t know who he was. (Her defense is that he wasn’t on the Campbell’s soup commercials, yet.)

· She paid her college roommate to let her use the bottom of her closet for her shoes because they wouldn’t all fit in her own closet.

· She is a really good dancer.

· She is great with kids of all ages, which helps a lot in her marriage.

· One time at a homecoming assembly in high school, she stood up on the bleachers and started dancing, and eventually everyone in the gym was chanting, “Go Carlyn, go Carlyn.”

· She once tried to make cookies, but they turned out a soupy, boiling mess. When my mom asked her what went wrong, she said, “I don’t know. I guess it’s because I used diet soda (instead of regular soda).”

· Her sports motto is, “If you can’t be an athlete, be an athletic supporter.”

· She was invited to be in Who’s Who of American High School Student Athletes. We’re not really sure how.

· She got married over a year ago, and it’s still kinda weird to me.

· Before they started dating, she wanted to set me up with the guy that she’s now married to. I was living in China at the time, so I didn’t end up meeting him until they were engaged.

· She has incredible fashion sense (or so I’m told). In high school, she would frequently forbid me from leaving the house until I changed clothes.

· She’s a great wife.

· When I was in China, she gave up her Christmas and New years to come visit me, and even hiked up a mountain to stay in a village and build a greenhouse.

· She’s going to be an awesome mom.

· Though we haven’t always seen eye to eye on everything, she’s an amazing sister.

· She started talking late because when we were younger, I knew what she wanted before she could figure out how to say it, so I’d just tell our parents what she was trying to say. She’s more than made up for that late start since then.

· She’s really good at talking.

· She loves the Lord and loves people.

That gives you a little glimpse into my sister, though it doesn’t come close to telling you everything she’s about. I hope if you haven’t met her, you get the chance to. It will probably help you understand me a little better, too.

I think the thing I love most about my sister is how much she has grown in Christ over the past several years. It has been totally amazing and humbling to see her draw close to the Lord and let Him teach her. I love the conversations we are now able to have because of where the Lord has brought us and how His Spirit has worked in our lives. She seeks God in all that she does and the advice she gives me is Biblical and inspired. I don’t always want to hear it, but I’m so thankful that God is using my little sister to sharpen me.

I’m so proud of the person you’ve become over the last 25 years, Carlyn. Happy Birthday! I love you!

Learning from Experience

I don’t like learning from experience. I like having experience. I like knowing what to do based on experience. I just don’t like the process of learning from experience. I think experience is the best way to learn something, but if I could learn everything I need to know by reading a book and studying, I would.

Learning from experience is humbling and it’s usually hard. That’s why I don’t like it. In order to learn something through experience, you typically have to be experiencing something you’ve never done before or at least not done much. That means that you don’t know what you’re doing. And it usually means you will fail. And many times when you don’t know what you’re doing, people are watching. They are watching you, and they know you don’t know what you’re doing and they think you’re an idiot. At least that’s how it feels to me.

I don’t like to make mistakes. I really don’t like for other people to see me make mistakes. And why is that?

Pride.

Pride is my biggest struggle. It’s the sin I see most often in my life. And by most often, I mean everyday. Multiple times a day.

I want to be perfect…in everything I do…all the time. And I want everyone around me to know that I’m perfect. But you know what? I’m not. I’m far from perfect. I know that, but I still want people to think I’m perfect. How arrogant is that?

I think that if people see me as perfect, they will like me and respect me. Well, first of all, everyone won’t always like and respect me. And even if my perfection would guarantee my popularity and respect, that’s not God’s plan. God’s plan is to bring glory to Himself, and if people hating me, disrespecting me, and looking down on me brings glory to God, then that’s what needs to happen.

My humility, not my arrogance will allow people around me to see Christ. My dependence on Christ, not my pride in my abilities will turn people to Him.

God has placed me in situations lately that allow me to either choose humility or get smacked in the face with it. I’m batting about .500 in choosing humility, and that’s being generous. Many of the situations He’s placed me in are painful and difficult, regardless of if I choose humility or get smacked with it. So why would God place me in these situations?

I’ve been questioning Him about this for several weeks now. Last week at community group, a friend said something that really hit me. We were talking about qualities (in us or other people) that attract people to Christ. She said that the people who have shined the brightest for Christ in her eyes weren’t those who had it all together and seemed perfect. It was the people who seemed to struggle well with life who shined the brightest.

That hit me hard because currently I am not struggling well with life. I’m certainly struggling with life, but I’m not struggling well. That thought has stuck with me as I attempt to press on each day. In every situation, everyday, God wants me to struggle well with life that I might “shine as lights in the world” (Phil. 2.15).

Then, Oswald Chambers hammered the point home when he said, “God places His saints where they will bring the most glory to Him and we are totally incapable of judging where that may be.”

Ouch, that hurt my pride…oh wait, that was the point.

Another Free Audio Book

Ok, so Forgotten God was really good. I haven't listened to my August download yet, but I can tell you you definitely want to get this month's free audiobook from Christian Audio. Go here and download Spiritual Leadership by J. Oswald Sanders. I'm almost done with the paperback and have filled up several pages of quotes. Be sure to listen with a pen and paper. Great book.

Thrifty

So buying a cabinet at Goodwill for $15 and then sanding it and painting it black so it looks good in the kitchen isn't specifically mentioned in Proverbs 31, but it's implied, right?

Either way, I like my little coffee station. :)