Believer Music

Last night at work, I was looking for an accompaniment track for someone when I found a song called "The Best is Yet to Come." The name sounded so familiar and it took my a while, but I finally figured out that this song was the infamous "believer music" that Quan would sing with me in Chicago.

Quan singing that song has been stuck in my head since last night, so I had to do a search for it today and I found a place where I could download and get the lyrics.

The lyrics and the link to download are right here: "Hold on my brother"

I might go and give blood today, but I don't know if I have time before work and after homework.

Later.

When I Go Down

Clue went great on Friday. It was a lot of fun as always.

On Saturday I went to the Station after work with most everyone that works at Hage's. BTW Dave, I think I've realized the folly of my ways for working in the "devil's marketplace." I'm hatching a plan to take them down from the inside.

I spent a lot of time thinking on Sunday. There were/are some definite things I needed to change in my life. I reached the realization (again) that I can't make any changes without relying on God. Just like Eustace in the Chronicles of Narnia, I can only peel away thin layers of my old self, without ever truly making a difference. I need God to work in order to pierce me to the heart and peel back my old self all the way, making me new again. This song from Relient K really gets to me when I listen/read the lyrics. It's some pretty powerful stuff coming from the band that brought us "Sadie Hawkins Dance." I'll also include a few lines from "Let it All Out," another song that rings true with me.

When I Go Down

I'll tell you flat out
it hurts so much to think of this
so from my thoughts I will exclude
this very thing that
I hate more than everything is
the way I'm powerless
to dictate my own moods

I've thrown away
so many things that could've been much more
and I just pray
my problems go away if they're ignored
but that's not the way it works
no that's not the way it works

When I go down
I go down hard
and I take everything I've learned
and teach myself some disregard
when I go down
it hurts to hit the bottom
and of the things that got me there
I think, if only I had fought them

If and when I can
clear myself of this clouded mind
I'll watch myself settle down
into a place where
peace can search me out and find
that I'm so ready to be found

I've thrown away
the hope I had in friendships
I've thrown away
so many things that could have been much more
I've thrown away
the secret to find an end to this
and I just pray
my problems go away if they're ignored
but that's not the way it works
no that's not the way it works

When I go down
I go down hard
and I take everything I've learned
and teach myself some disregard
when I go down
it hurts to hit the bottom
and of the things that got me there
I think, if only I had fought them

Any control I thought I had just slips right through my hands
while my ever-present conscience shakes its head and reprimands me
reprimands me
then and there
I confess
I'll blame all this on my selfishness
yet you love me
and that consumes me
and I'll stand up again
and do so willingly

You give me hope, and hope it gives me life
you touch my heavy heart, and when you do you make it light
as I exhale I hear your voice
and I answer you, though I hardly make a noise
and from my lips the words I choose to say
seem pathetic, but it's a fallen man's praise
because I love you
oh God, I love you
and life is now worth living
if only because of you
and when they say I'm dead and gone
it won't be further from the truth

When I go down
I life my eyes to you
I won't look very far
cause you'll be there
with open arms
to lift me up again
to life me up again
-----
Let it All Out

Let it all out
Get it all out
Rip it out remove it
Don't be alarmed
When the wound begins to bleed

Cause we're so scared to find out
What this life's all about
So scared we're going to lose it
Not knowing all along
That's exactly what we need...

...And you said I know that this will hurt
But if I don't break your heart then things will just get worse
If the burden seems to much to bear
Remember
The end will justify the pain it took to get us there.

The Magnificent Davey and Andy

As most of you know, tonight is Jr. High Clue, performed annually by high school and college students. This year, David and I have come up with some pretty unique characters. We'll be a duo of professional entertainers. Our "specialty" is miming. Considering that the Jr. Highers have to ask us questions, it should be interesting trying to answer them without actually talking. We're going to end up being not very good mimes, making for some funny interactions.

If you're a middle schooler reading this before Clue:
*In Madagascar penguin voice* "You didn't see anything..."

Speaking of the Madagascar penguins, you should all go see Wallace and Gromit just to watch the 10 minute cartoon featuring them before the movie.

"Hey! What's your favorite planet? Mine's the sun. I like it 'cause it's like the king of the planets."

Watch out for Nunzilla!

Thumbing through some books last night at work, I found this mentioned in Praise Habit by David Crowder. Marc and I had a good laugh at this little wind-up toy that carries a Bible in one hand, a ruler in the other, and shoots sparks.

According to David Crowder, it is best to not look directly at Nunzilla. Wearing the color orange is also advised against.

Apparently, you can buy Nunzilla online from a lot of different places. At first, I thought it was something that David Crowder was making up. I guess not.

This is shaping up to be a busy week. I finally got my history paper back, and it was not a very pretty sight. It was enough to make me seriously worry about the chance that I'll lose my scholarship because my GPA could end up below a 3.5. If you think about it, could you please pray? I've never asked for a prayer request about my GPA, but if I don't get my history grade up, it could cost my thousands of dollars. I set up an appt with my advisor to talk about what my options are for this class, so hopefully tomorrow he'll be able to help me out and put my mind at ease. It may come down to working really hard the last half of this semester to try and pull my history grade up, and then dropping out of the Honors College and fulfilling my gen. ed. requirements the normal way.

My other two classes are going fine. Econ is a piece of cake, but Chem requires some work to keep it up.

I should get back to my homework now, it is my day off you know.

If I had one wish....

.... well I don't know what I'd wish for. But if I had a million zillion wishes I'd use one to let... me have more time to post here.

Sorry I've neglected to keep this page updated.

Life's been pretty busy lately. It seems like this is the new trend for starting my blog posts.

The TFK concert was great two weeks ago. We had an awesome time, and it was cool to meet Ben there. He fit in so well with our group.

Work has become just a natural part of my routine now. I enjoy being there because the people are so much fun to hang around and we can joke a lot.

Last weekend, I saw "Flight Plan" at the Cinema with Sarah. Great movie, not entirely predictable, but with a minor plot hole or two.

Last night after work, Sarah, David, Ryan, and Dallas came over to watch "Robots." It was very funny, but that's to be expected with Robin Williams.

Today was the Outrageous Saturday sale at work. It got really busy at some points, and it stayed steady all day.

After work, I went to Dallas' house to hang out at a bonfire he was having. I didn't know that he was inviting his new friends from GH. Once Jennie, David, Cade, Melissa, Kim, Jason, and Jordan got back from getting pizza, the tension was so heavy between all of us and Dallas' friends. I wish that I could go back to the time when our group of friends didn't boil down to a bunch of childish drama. It's almost as if our relationships have gotten less mature lately. I'm sick of "he likes her, but she likes him, who likes a different her, but she doesn't like him like that, like, totally." I wish friends wouldn't change. Don't get me wrong; so much change that I've noticed in my friends is for the better. It just saddens me when I think of how some of my friends have changed in other ways. I really don't know what to do sometimes. I think Pastor Bill hit it right on the head when he talked about how much better off we'd be if we didn't have secrets. It seems like everyone does, though. I wonder how practical it could actually be for us not to have secrets. Could it ever even be done? Or would we still all be holding back a little something? Who knows? I sure don't.

The above paragraph sure does sound depressing.

Maybe there's something to be learned by all that. Relationships don't work when we're not open with each other. Openness is what builds trust. Trust is the key to being able to truly love another and be there for each other. I definitely need to work on that one.

I should be getting to bed now, sorry to be such a downer, but it's really been on my mind lately.

Hasta la vista.

"Who's that Spartan in my teepee?

It's me. It's me."

(Just a little randomness to get the post started.)

It's been a busy week. Hence, I haven't blogged much. Work is going great. I'm learning a lot, so I'm starting to feel more confident. I'm supposed to regularly get around 20 hours, but I'll have more the entire month of October because Jeanne, who works there, is leaving for a month to go on a missions trip to Africa tomorrow.

I think I'm getting a handle on handling homework with "work" work. Now, I just feel like I'm not connected with my friends anymore. I hardly ever talk to or see my closest friends anymore with being so busy. Luckily, I get to hang out with Sarah, David, Ryan, Dallas, and more tomorrow night at the TFK concert!!! I've been really looking forward to this all week. It's a chance to hang out and just be Andrew the friend, not the student or the employee.

Also, tomorrow is the annual MSU-UofM game. I guess we're watching it at the church this year as opposed to the Sandison's.

I've gotta get offline now and finish my Sunday School lesson since I won't have time tomorrow.

Peace.

Work

In memory of the last post of Dallas' old blog, this post is titled....




....and...............because I got a job today!!

I'll be working at Hage's Christian Bookstore starting tomorrow afternoon.

I interviewed on Tuesday when I was told it was likely I'd get the job, but not definite. The manager called back today and said he'd like to start training me this weekend. Therefore, I won't have all that much time to hang out this weekend, since I have homework, too; but once I get the hang of balancing my job with school, I'll be able to do more.

Later.

The Shadow Proves the Sunshine

I know it's been a while since I last posted, so I'll give a quick update.

Middle School Mania went great last Friday. My team was successful in both the treasure hunt and the cardboard pirate ship building. I saw Batman Begins again with David, Shannon, Cade, Jason, and some others from Calvary. That movie has so much meaning that I think I'll have to wait for the DVD before I can sort out all of my thoughts. Afterwards we went to Chili's for some chips and salsa. I don't think the waitress liked us much. PDF. On Sunday we went out to Logan's before church and sat in Alyssa's section. We took up all of her tables. There were 13 of us, so it was a ton of fun.

School went fine this week. No big assignments, just everyday routine. There was this kid sitting next to me in Classical World that was wearing the same white jacket that Ryan always wears. Everytime I looked next to me I kept picturing Ryan.

I had the chance to catch up with a lot of my friends that I haven't really seen since graduation this Friday. I saw Rudy at Subway at the end of his shift, so we talked for a while; then, at the football game I ran into quite a few of my class that stayed around Muskegon this year. It was good to catch up.

Last night, Sarah, David, Dallas, and I drove to GR to see a Battle of the Bands at one of the local Christian bookstores. A latino band named Tierra ended up winning, but Mesa County Fair was a really good band. I also had the chance to talk to two people who saw my CSM shirt and asked about my trip and shared about their trip to Washington D.C. I enjoyed being able to re-visit some of the thoughts and experiences I'd had this summer.

After the concerts, we went to Steak 'n Shake for dinner. It was a good time just goofing off and hanging out. Some lady came up to us afterward because she and her daughter had been debating whether we were in college or high school. Weird.

I started teaching my small group this morning. I'm going to enjoy these guys this year. There are about 5 that come regularly, which, in my opinion, is just about the perfect size. I can't wait to get to know them and be able to be an influence and also be influenced by them.

Keith let me borrow Radical Reformission by Mark Driscoll. I'm anxious to get going in that book; I've heard nothing but good things about it.

By the way, the title of this post is in reference to the new Switchfoot CD. It's really good, and I love the name of this song. It's so cool to think how God allows tough times in our lives to give us a chance to see Him shining through. When life's just peachy and easy, I think we quickly forget how much we need God. Being so busy with life has made me forget God as I go through my day. Being busy + forgetting God = Not good. I just need to reconnect by doing what I know I should. Pray for me if you remember.

Oh, if you'd like to go to a Thousand Foot Krutch concert in GR, on October 1st, visit Sarah's blog. If we get enough people, we'll get a group discount.

That's all for now.

Until next time.

Shiver Me Timbers

AAAAARRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHH!!

Tonight, I have the great privelege of dressing up like a pirate!

The Middle School youth group has their first event of the year tonight, Middle School Mania. The theme is "A Pirate's Life for Me," so I get to be a pirate from 6-11pm!

If any of you HS'ers aren't busy tonight, you could help out if you feel like it. (You don't HAVE to dress like a pirate)

Besides Middle School Mania, I'm not really looking forward to the weekend. Sure, I'll get to sleep in a little tomorrow, but I've got to write a 6 page paper for Classical World Civilization. It will be a lot of work even though I really enjoy the subject matter: The Iliad.

I'm one step closer to a possible job at Hage's. I talked with the manager on Tuesday. They've already started interviewing, but he said my application had been set aside. He wrote down a note of when I could work to attach to my application, and said he'd probably call sometime soon. I hope I get this job, it'd be a BIG help in getting me to and from Allendale everyday.

I've got to get going because I've got a class on the other side of campus in a little bit.

Until next time.

"Quan, can you see me?" - Cade
"Yeah, I can see you. Can you see?" - Quan

That Seagull is a Work of Art...

If you don't know what the title means, don't ask. I might be able to tell you later.

The last half of my school week went much better than the first half. My new Economics class will be a piece of cake. My Chemistry class is looking like it will be mostly review, but it will require a lot of my time. My Classical World class is getting better, and I'm looking forward to some of the stuff we're going to learn about Greek civilization. The Iliad and The Odyssey are two books I've been wanting to read, and this class gives me that opportunity.

I ran into Dan Quist today while walking out of my Econ class. For the majority of you that don't know him, Dan was my counselor at GYC two summers ago when I was on the Tim Team. He's in his senior year of studying to be a High School History teacher. He does a great impression of Robert "Goulet."

Sarah, Dallas, David, Becca, Melissa, and I went to see Red Eye tonight. I thought it was a good movie, but there were definitely some parts that we laughed at that weren't supposed to be funny.

After the movie Sarah, David, Dallas, and I attended to a very important task at a friend's house (the point of the title)... When we finished, we patted ourselves on the back and all went home.
Dallas set off my car alarm, and I think he might have woke up the Keurs. Oh well.

I'm looking forward to the start of the new school year with the Jr. Highers. We had a farewell "ceremony" for the 8th graders last Sunday, and this week the new 6th graders move up and we'll have a welcoming "ceremony." I think my brother is excited about finally being in youth group.

In Conversations, we've been talking about the Church in culture and where we fit in. Do we seclude ourselves to the extreme or do we completely immerse ourselves in culture to the point that we are fine with sin and are being negatively influenced by it? Obviously the ideal spot would be somewhere in between. I think I should be a little bit more immersed in culture than I am now, but I'm not sure exactly how that should play out. Any thoughts?

Where's the balance between becoming a part of culture because we live here and we need to be able to relate to the people that God is trying to reach out to and keeping ourselves from being negatively influenced?

I'd like to keep on typing because my thoughts normally become clearer as I type them out, but I'm a little too tired and it could end up a jumbled mess. (Even more jumbled than this post already is.)

Buenas Noches!