Super Bowl 2013 - #NotBuyingIt and the #EndItMovement

Today started like any other Monday: wake up at 8, go to class, and have a bagel at Panera during break from classes. For a Monday, I was in a relatively pleasant mood. That is, until I started to browse through Facebook..

**This post contains references to human trafficking and sexism that may not be appropriate for young readers**

I was blessed to spend my evening at work - studying for exams and other assignments while manning the front desk - during the time that everyone else watched the biggest television event of the year: the Super Bowl. Blessed is not usually a phrase I throw around very much in regards to having to work during sporting events, especially football. But as many of you know, and some of you do not, the negative effects surrounding this game are now beginning to have a greater impact than the game itself. 

For example: I honestly had nothing at stake in the game (and if we're being real, few of us did) but we all are a part of something that has much greater importance which was made clear to me and many others last night. In fact, two somethings, whose root cause are very similar..

1) Increased use of sexually suggestive ideas and content in ads with no regard to morality, children viewers, or character.

2) Despite phenomenal efforts by strong organizations, the apparent tolerance and ignorance of sex trafficking, especially at large sporting events

1) Look, let's not sugar coat this.. Because of the way a man's brain works, ads containing sexually suggestive content automatically have an initial attention grabber. This is typically either caused by the shock that something like this is on T.V. or the enjoyment and stimulus it can provide. To say that as a 21 year old college student I am immune to these things would be an obvious lie and would render this whole writing discredited. I don't think I need to explain the consequences that can come from this kind of sexism.. 

But from a business perspective, manipulating a weakness to get an increased profit is not only collateral damage but their explicit intent. Basically, Profit > Morals, and no one seems to mind.. At least, not enough to do something..
What about the children who have now absorbed those images and ideas because they were watching a seemingly harmless football game with their family? What about the people who were knocked off the path of recovery and sent back down the spiraling path to addiction (if you think this is a farfetched example, you are sadly mistaken)? #NotBuyingIt

2) Read an account by Mars Hill Church written pre-Super Bowl last year here, because they say it way better than I can. A similar situation occurs at the Olympics, World Cup, etc. We have gotten to the point where the unthinkable has become an all-too-present reality.. #EndItMovement

Both of these action groups are born from this - the view of how a man should behave and the morals he should possess have been severely skewed by sexual desires and cultural tolerance. These same men think women are here for their pleasure and do things irregardless of the effect it may have on others, including children. It's easy to point the blame at the media or to those orchestrating sex trafficking. But just getting rid of the symptoms in this case will not cure the disease! Jesus cures the disease!

It's time that Christians took a stand! I don't merely mean a boycott or a petition. I mean a real, legitimate, Biblical stand against immorality and sin! One where we call upon Jehovah Nissi (The Lord our Banner) who is our victory and fight. One where the Biblical model of a family is restored and men are held responsible for their actions. There is no hiding. There are no sidelines. There is no room for wimps. We can not afford to stand by and watch as the cultural standard of morality continues to be corrupted..


"Oh give us help against the adversary,
For deliverance by man is in vain.
Through God we will do valiantly,
And it is He who shall tread down our adversaries"
- Psalm 108:12-13

         Whatever It Takes,
          Ryan

Changed Hearts, Changed Lives

It seems the new trendy thing for christians in America to do is abandon all of the luxuries and blessings we've been given to empathize with those in other countries or social settings. Which is fine (1 Corinthians 9:20) as long as it's done in the right heart.

Sometimes I think we try to blame things on the world instead of owning up and realizing it's our own fault. What good does blaming our heart issues on an inanimate object do?? We can sit around and complain to the computer about how much time it wastes or get angry with the 'media' for corrupting us but it comes down to a heart issue.

Christianity is a life-long life-changing process that can only happen when we become broken. "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit" - Psalm 34:18 "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise" - Psalm 51:17 One of the hardest things for us to do as people is let go of our pride and control. Ultimately, it's a heart issue.

The only difference in any church building between two people singing songs and giving money is their hearts.

-One is truly worshiping because he has forsaken his own gain for the gain of Christ. What he sings has meaning, what he gives has meaning, how he interacts has meaning. He has truly grasped what it means to be a Christian and can rest in the grace of the Gospel.

-The other does things out of show. He does things because he thinks he is expected to, as if there's some kind of check-list with things like tithing, going to church, reading over small group material, etc. and God will one day give the person with the most checks the best seat in Heaven.

This is exactly the idea Jesus is trying to get across in Luke18:9-14. The tax collector was broken before God and held nothing as his own to boast. But the pharisee thought that because he did all of his "chores" for God that week that he was better off. "I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted." - Luke 18:14

Christianity isn't about doing things to do them, it's about doing things to worship God; it's about giving God our everything and submitting our desires to His glory.

"Either change your name or change your conduct" - Alexander the Great.

Beginnings..

When I was 8, my church was hosting a Power Team crusade for the week. The Power Team is a group of men who share the message of Christ using their feats of strength to draw people to the events. I had attended every night and halfway through the week I realized that these guys, being the strongest and biggest guys I had ever seen, could do nothing by their own strength against the powers of Hell to avoid suffering forever. They were breaking bricks and blocks of ice, tearing apart license plates and phone books, and bursting hot water bags, but were utterly defenseless to Satan’s grasp. Then they told us the one thing that was saving them; the one saving grace - something that we are given that we don't deserve - that keeps them from experience eternal Hell. That thing is the death of a perfect man on the cross paying the price for our sin. His death serves as a sacrifice for my sin and a once-and-for-all substitution for all mankind. Nothing can take me away from Him and I'm forgiven for my sins. I gave my life over to Christ that week and was baptized shortly after.

6-7-8: Coincidentally

Well. Apparently more people than I thought miss my blog postings. And I've only posted once since I've been at school - which was 7 weeks ago. So here we go.

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A few weeks ago, I was getting dinner at Chik-Fil-A before going to Lynchburg Church of God for their Fall Festival. Not going to lie, I was wanting to get in and out of the drive-through as fast as possible, and as such was not acting like a very patient person as I waited between the speakers and window. I got out my debit card and honestly was feeling agitated that it was taking so long. But when I got to the cashier she told me the driver in front of me bought my meal. I mean, talk about being convicted of my crappy attitude, that hit me hard. And then, being an analytical person, I thought about it the whole drive. That person will likely never see me again and if they do, they likely won't remember that time they covered my dinner. I don't think it's a coincidence by any means that the same week I had taught on how much small things can matter and then the next weeks, Clayton King spoke on generosity at church. ----I'm sure you may be asking, did I then buy the meal of the car behind me? well, I was shocked at what had happened (and I was trying to figure out who this person was). In my confusion, I couldn't do anything. But, I'm working on it.

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With my prayer group, we've been going through a series on being like Jesus, because what better person to model than our Savior? So, we're going into the 6th week of this study, and the one that has stuck out the most to me so far is the widow at Naim (affectionately named "the n-word" because we don't know how to say it) whose son was raised from death.

Luke 7:11-17

"11Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. 12As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. 13When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said,“Don’t cry.”14Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said,“Young man, I say to you, get up!” 15The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.16They were all filled with awe and praised God. “A great prophet has appeared among us,” they said. “God has come to help his people.” 17This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country."

[[I can't fix the formatting to change the paragraph spacing.. :(]]

I titled this lesson "8 words that changed history." Jesus was a busy man, arguably the busiest ever - I mean, he was only sent to save mankind and all.. All joking aside, even through His busy life, he felt compassion for people and stopped to help them. In this instance Jesus comes upon a woman whose son had died and was now being taken out of the town in a casket. He felt compassion on the woman and tried to comfort her. Then, by simply touching the casket and saying "Young man, I say to you, get up!" he brought the boy up from the dead.

These few words affected so many people. First, the boy and the mother were obviously directly changed for ever - the son was now ALIVE again. Secondly, the people around that witnessed this event and praised God for what had happened. And then, these witnesses went throughout the world and told people about what they had seen - and even now as I'm telling you about what is written it's making an impact.

Now, clearly I don't view bringing someone back to life a miniscule task under typical circumstances. But, for Jesus, speaking a few words and walking over to a casket seems to have taken little effort. So what does this mean for us? It means things that don't seem big or extravagant may have eternal significance and just might change lives and do more than we could have possibly imagined.

Whatever It Takes,

Ryan

September 26 - Apologies and Abandonment

Apologies -

Well, My last post was 1 month and 19 days ago I believe. I do in fact realize there's like 2 people probably that read this, so I'm apologizing to a very select group of people. But to you, I'm sorry, life is crazy on the mountain. It's fun none-the-less. I could tell plenty of stories ranging from awkward to amazing and surprising to scheduled. But I will spare them, as I have homework.

"If we continue to live a life of mediocre faith, it will only turn out to be a life of monumental failure." - Jonathan Falwell

JF was the speaker in convo on 9/1 and his message was "we need to get real!" This concept is very near to me - I believe it's one of the major barriers the true church has to overcome and something that I need to constantly be reminded about. Sunday morning christians are killing the way the body is being viewed.

Colossians 2:6-10

⁶So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, ⁷rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

⁸See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.

⁹For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, ¹⁰and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.

There are 4 main points he gave from this passage:

1. Get Real in our Hearts (vs. 6) - The only way to get real is if we are truly continuing to live in Christ. Continually means without ceasing; means not just when it's convenient to us, but all of the time.

2. Get Real in our Faith (vs. 7) - Rooted, built up, and strengthened in the FAITH. This is the central reason for everything we do - our faith. And what good is it to us if it crumbles under pressure or the weight of things we get into?

3. Get Real in our Lives (vs. 8) - We do this through worship and fellowship - the RIGHT way. If we let people get to the vulnerable part of us who are just going to tear us down and away from the Gospel, they have no part being in our lives at all. Worshipping Christ is not only something we do on Sundays.. I should praise God when I go to class, work, or even just in my living room. Saying you're a Christian and living as a Christian are two totally different things.

4. Get Real in our Service - Understand, there is a big world that needs to be reached for Christ. Who are we to play judge and pick who gets to go to Heaven. There is NO partiality in the Gospel. James 2 tells us it is not our place to decide for people.

If we truly want to live a life that doesn't result in failure, we have to abandon our lives; be completely removed so we don't stand in the way. I wish I could get more people to understand this. But this is the best I can do as of now.

Whatever It Takes,

Ryan

August 7 - Catch up

Ok, so it's been a while since I blogged.. Sorry. Lot's of working and such.

Honestly, nothing exciting worth blogging happens frequently in my days, so there's not a lot I can say..

Today I burnt my finger on a hot plate of Mac and Cheese. It was one of those times where my manager clearly told me the plate was hot, but I didn't comprehend it until my flesh was burning.. First work related injury there.

2Kings 6:15-17

¹⁵ When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. "Oh, my lord, what shall we do?" the servant asked ¹⁶ "Don't be afraid," the prophet answered. "Those who are with us are more than those who are with them. ¹⁷ And Elisha prayed, "O LORD, open his eyes so he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

So a few weeks ago at camp, Ken Freeman decided that as we were going around campus, one person should yell out "if God is for us" and everyone aroudn who could hear would respond "who can be against us?!" I'm honestly not one for yelling out in the middle of everything in a cadence form like that, but I did because of the meaning behind it.

Here's what's happened in this chapter - the Arameans were fighting against Israel and set up camp in a strategic yet random place. Elisha then went and told the Israelite king where they'd be. Obviously, this made the Aram king angry. So he sent spies to find Elisha and then surrounded the city with people. E's servant got all scared (as most people would) when he saw that they were surrounded by the enemy. E showed his servant that God was always with them and the enemy didn't have a chance. I imagine a cartoon where they keep saying 'you're surrounded' 'no you're surrounded' etc. Except, God always wins this one. How cool would it be to see that Chariots of fire are protecting you? When God's on our side, no matter where he takes us, who can be against us?

Whatever it takes,

Ryan Sandy

July 30 - ahh....

I honestly can't think of a good story to put here.

sooo, I'll try to do better tomorrow..