Thank You For That Reminder, Facebook

Now, please excuse me as I go binge upon chocolate and reflect upon my wasted youth.

As The Level Raises.....

I'm officially snowed in at Dawn's house, as the snow emergency level just moved up to 3. Which means, all day jammies! Woot!

I ventured out in the snow to document this glorious event.

These are the two favorites-

In Which A Lot Of Snow Falls And I Try Not To Embezzle

There is a lot of snow. As you can see. The White Death has befallen us, and, as goes snow/natural disaster/weekend/any other day I don't have school tradition, I'm at Dawn's. Like, the second that they called the White Death, Dawn texted me and asked if I was coming over, as usual. I did. The picture was taken from my bedroom window this morning. The picture doesn't even do the white badness justice. The snowflakes are gargantuan and falling really fast. We're on a Level 2 Snow Advisory at the moment, and they, because Jesus loves me, cancelled my Business Law class tonight at COTC.

In addition to this beauty, you will be glad to know that now the interwebs believe that I will become an old maid. I got a special offer from Match.com in my email yesterday, titled "Your love may already be waiting". That was nice of them, especially when ramping up on my favorite holiday.

I'm so glad that I have their blessing to look. Because that is all that has been standing between me and the plethora of men that think that I am one hot babe. Allow me to take one big sigh of relief.

*sigh*

Thanks.

Anyway, as for the Paraguay update, as I'm sure you want, I sent out twenty-four letters to Ohio churches this weekend. They were very well versed if I do say so myself, and I'm really hoping that something will come of them. If not, that's okay. Well, not okay, but I'm sure that God will provide some other way. But after licking twenty-four envelopes, I would hope to get a few shekels. I'm doing a presentation at our church in March, and I'll show that clip about the school and tactfully beg for money, which seems to me like an oxymoron. I really do hate asking people money, you know, outside of my parents. And even with that, while I had a job, I tried not to. Someone asked me this weekend, after I put on Facebook that I had sent out my fundraising letters, if I was sending out individual requests, but to be honest, I really don't think I can justify doing that. If people come to me and tell me that they want to contribute, then that's one thing. If I do a wide fundraising thing, like to a whole church, I don't have a problem with that,either, because I'm not putting people on the spot, asking them specifically for money. Especially in this economy. I don't want to pressure people into giving me money by sending them an individual letter like the sample that Headquarters sent me. It just seemed tacky to me. Maybe I'm just touchy. Who knows. I really just don't want to resort to the individual donor thing.

Off of the soapbox.

I made a withdrawal from savings yesterday. A painful, painful withdrawal because I didn't want to cash the contribution check that I received from one of the churches, before I even sent out the letters. I'm not quite sure of the protocol for all of that yet, so I didn't want to cash it or put it in savings for the trip, spend it on my passport, and then find out I was supposed to do something else and it look like I was embezzling. I'm pretty sure that would effectively end my short stent as a missionary-wannabe. So, I pulled the money for my passport out of my savings from the dreadful summer. It was like watching an old friend leave.

Hopefully, this week I will get my passport pictures and the application in the mail. Then I can book my ticket to Argentina and Paraguay. And have a breakdown again because I've done something else that solidifies my leaving.

P.S. Much love to Mrs.Lemon for this.

Girly Geeky Classics

I'm on this girly classic kick right now.

We read Pride and Prejudice at school, so then I got Wuthering Heights and read it and loved it, Mom bought me Jane Eyre and that was going to be next on my list. Then, Masterpiece Theatre did Wuthering Heights all this week, so of course I watched it. And Sense and Sensibility is next week, so I'm putting off Jane Eyre. After checking the site, I saw that I just missed Tess of the D'urbervilles. I can't say that I am at all sad about that in any way, shape, or form.

I'm trying to figure out when I crossed the line of geekiness into looking forward to Masterpiece Theatre all week. I think that may be a little bit sad.

Broadway Saves The Day (Again)

I heard somewhere that the best way to motivate someone to learn something is to find something that they're interested in and use that as a teaching tool.

I'm taking piano lab this semester to fulfill the rest of my fine arts credits that I need to graduate (I took Theater Arts last year), and we took our pretest yesterday. I took piano about 8 years ago, and didn't think I would remember anything. So, we get our pretest, and it's reading notes and matching notes to their keys on the keyboard. In my head I could remember my Aunt Julie telling me, "Every good boy deserves fudge" (lines on the treble clef). I aced that thing. So, today, three of us get called to the teacher's desk.

"Umm...you guys are pretty proficient in your note-reading, so I have some books here and I want you to pick a song and you're going to learn that while I'm teaching the rest of the class notes, okay?"

I'm proficient? Sweet.

So, I'm going through the books, expecting to find your basic piano classics- Fur Elise, Chopsticks, Greensleeves, Canon- you know, the works. Nope. This guy has a sweet collection. Best of the Beatles, Songs of Queen, Billy Joel, Coldplay's Hits, and then, I see it. A sole light shines down from heaven as I hear a voice say, "For you, my child."

Yessssss, Jesus loves meeeeeeee.

It was all there. Chicago, Fiddler on the Roof, Hairspray, Chorus Line, Cats, Music Man, Evita, Rent, [continue babbling long list of musicals that only I and possibly my immediate family member  cares about.]

I plunked away at All That Jazz, All I Ask Of You, I Can Hear The Bells, I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face, and then finally get to the two that I have to decide between.

I have to choose between Eva Peron and Mark Cohen. Johnathan Larson and Andrew Lloyd Weber. Evita and Rent!

Say it ain't so!!!!

I have to pick between Don't Cry For Me Argentina and Seasons of Love. What to do?

But still, I can't wait to get back to class in the morning, and I'm really excited about playing the piano again.

So, once again, the day is saved thanks to Broadway.

Too Much Random Crap For A Title

I got my first contribution check yesterday in the mail. I was about ecstatic. We are officially on a roll. Woot! And the letters haven't even gone out yet, people! I still haven't printed them off. Darn it.

I have, however, printed off my passport application. That contribution check will be paying for that passport and visa, thankyouverymuch. Now all I need to do is go get a picture that doesn't make me look fat. Which may be a challenge.

Speaking of my fatness, I am now successfully in week two of working out. I've actually stuck to it. Although I really hate fitness videos. They're all skinny people. All perky. All wearing *shudder* pink. Ew. And on this video, there's only one guy and he's old. Really old. Also, a stick thin woman who "just had a baby", and a girl who the star of the show says is "modifying the routine for less intensity". What she's really saying is, "Dude, you're a wimp." Also, after two weeks of the thirty minute, two mile walk, they say we're ready for the three mile walk. Yeah. We so aren't. The two mile kills us.

I also filled out my very first tax return and I'm getting money back. Woohoo! Now the question is do I spend it on Spanish books or clothes? Either way, it's going towards something that is going with me to Paraguay. I'm thinking splitsies will work. But who knows, really?

I'm getting plenty of teaching practice this week. Tonight, I worked with Rachol and Erica in Junior Youth helping them do their first five books of the bible. We're going to try to get them to know them all in order. They were out of control! But we did have fun, for the most part. Tomorrow, I'm doing an icebreaker lesson in the eighth grade language arts class, which I rather hate, thanks. The teacher is cool, but once again, the kids drive me insane. I'm dreading tomorrow a little bit.

Pray, saints, pray!

Your Scarring Visual For The Day.....

A friend of mine kept putting up MySpace bulletins last night advertising his new (scarring) video that he and his brother made. So, I watched it and about died laughing.  Slightly disturbing, yet hilarious, especially if you know him and his brother.

And so it begins..

I am in full fundraising swing at the moment. I have a letter drawn up to send out, added a tacky give-me-money-please button to my sidebar (By the way, I would like it very much if you took note of that. Or not. Whatevs.)

During the foreign missions report last night, all three people that I hadn't told yet found out that I'm leaving because they announced it while talking about what's going on in Paraguay. I think I'm pretty locked-in now, even if I wasn't before. I also emailed my Uncle Mike last night, asking him if he would be guardian of my estate for my brother and sister in the will, so that I don't have to pick which one of the two that I like better. He said he would and wanted to know when I was leaving. It was at this point that I realized that I forgot to tell him. Oh, snap.

Aunt Julie won't answer her phone/ texts. She should. (That's right, Aunt Julie, YOU!)

I'm a little scared about what Sis.Potter's great idea for fundraising is. It could be anything. Seriously. Anything. I'm not so much scared as very, very curious and a little nervous.

And I now have nothing else I can presently do to work on AIM. It's driving me a little crazy.

El Noche de Sabado Vivo Es Muy Comico

Me and Gideon

36 Gideon said to God, "If you will save Israel by my hand as you have promised-

37 look, I will place a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you said."

38 And that is what happened. Gideon rose early the next day; he squeezed the fleece and wrung out the dew—a bowlful of water.


39 Then Gideon said to God, "Do not be angry with me. Let me make just one more request. Allow me one more test with the fleece. This time make the fleece dry and the ground covered with dew."

40 That night God did so. Only the fleece was dry; all the ground was covered with dew.

Judges 6:36-40, NIV

I was talking to Dawn today, and she brought up the story of Gideon, saying that it was a lot like what has transpired with me over the past six months. I started talking about this decision back in August, but I have never really told what motivated me without a shadow of a doubt to go to Paraguay.

Thursday night of youth camp was the first time that I had ever really felt that God was actually speak to me about something. A few months before camp, I had learned about the Next Steps program, and even blogged that I was going to apply. The doors never opened, and to be honest, the newness of the feeling was wearing off and I knew that I wasn't called to do that. However, I had been spending my entire summer in a little coffee shack, serving nasty, ungrateful customers, to save up money for this trip, that now I wasn't even sure that I was supposed to take. Talk about confusion.

Thursday was all about calling. The preacher preached until we were on our faces sobbing. Rachol got her calling that night and, of course had to tell me. I was so glad for her, but despite my joy that she now knew what she was supposed to do, I was really upset that she had learned what she was supposed to do, and I was even more confused than before. My calling had been "taken away", and I didn't know what was going on, and now she gets a shiny new calling? Unfair, much?

Consecration that night. Again, he talks about calling, and I'm starting to get the tiniest bit bitter, maybe even a little bit discouraged. Why do you keep throwing this in my face, God? Yes, I get you're talking to me, but could you at least explain to me what the muffin you're trying to tell me? For the love of cheese, really!

So, I did something risky. Something Gideon-like. I had no idea who Gideon was, but I was channeling him, nonetheless.

"God," I said, "You told me that I was supposed to go overseas. I'm working my butt off at this stupid job that I hate. I need to start college applications in a few months. You need to tell me what on earth is going on. I need an answer within 48 hours, or I'm throwing this thing out the window and doing what I want to do."

Did I mention that you should never test God like that, unless you really, really want to know what he's thinking?

I get a text less than 24 hours later. I'm sitting in my dorm, getting ready to go to choir practice, and my dad texts me from the Hispanic Outreach Picnic that the church is doing. He's talking to the Goodrums and they want me in Paraguay, like, yesterday.

That was fast. But maybe it was a fluke.

I get home at about 1 AM on Friday night. I go and talk to my mom who basically relays the entire conversation to me. The missionaries pretty much flat out read my mail. All that my mom said was that I had been thinking about doing a missions trip.

"Oh, she should come to Paraguay, she would love it there. She could come to our school, and teach, and oh, she would just love it."

What they didn't know was that I had already enrolled in Teacher Academy. And that I taught Sunday School. And that, oh yeah, I was taking AP Spanish.

"Is your daughter here?"

"No, she's at camp."

[Insert lightbulb]

"Was she there Thursday night?"

Scary?

"God spoke to me Thursday night. I wouldn't know your daughter if I saw her, and I don't know if I prayed with her or not, but God told me that someone got a calling that night. God called her. You tell her that God told me that Paraguay needs her."

He wrote 'Paraguay needs YOU' on a slip of paper with their cell number and their e-mail, and said that they would be basing out of the campgrounds for the next few weeks. I met with them, they gave me the DVDs about the school and the missionaries, and I've been emailing with Sis.Goodrum ever since then. She helped me edit my application and has become a great friend over the past six months, always asking me what's going on with school and such, and helping me with whatever I need to get ready to go.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

How does this relate to Gideon?

God gets me. He gets that I like to weasel my way out of even the slightest bit of adversity. I don't like change, and I need to be locked into something.

I took my letter and Partners In Missions slips to church today to show off. Almost everyone I showed them to asked me if they could take one of the slips home with them. Oh yeah, by the way, PIM slips are contribution pledges. Sis.Potter, who has been gung-ho for me going on this trip since the second I told her about it, was incredibly psyched about me getting my slips and is working on some secret project for the craft fair in March that will raise a lot of money for me. My world-traveling friend, Jacqueline, has a bunch of books with stuff to know before you pack to go overseas.

Yesterday, I was having a nervous breakdown, telling my friends and parents that I didn't think I was supposed to go to Paraguay anymore, because of all of the changes.

Gideon asked God for signs. He wanted to know that there was no grey area, no fine print to get him out of God's will for him. He did everything in his power to make sure that what God was telling him was in fact God. I have a feeling that he was probably a little weirded out about the idea of leading Israel to victory. And both times, God showed him that it was in fact him, without a doubt.

God gets that I will take the loopholes if I can get them. I will jump at any chance to say, "Well, you didn't specifically saaaaay......"

Seriously, just ask my parents.

So, he provides, quickly, and clearly, and without any loopholes to make sure that I get that I'm doing good and that I'm doing what I should do. He's awesome like that.

Oh yeah, by the way, Gideon comes out victorious in the end.

Disturbing Trend?

I noticed a disturbing trend when going through my old Facebook profile pictures...

I'm not sure exactly what this says about me as a person....

Keeping The Faith

I'm officially official now. I have been appointed to Paraguay.

Slight change, though, I'm only going for six months instead of a year, which may mean being able to go to college during the second semester rather than a year late. This is all good stuff.

However, upon the reception of my budget, paperwork, etc., I had the world's biggest freak-out.

The budget is around $2,500 more than my estimate, they have me living in an apartment rather than the Bible School dorm, and, oh yeah, did I mention that my time plan is off?

What is going on?

My mind flashed back to my family's situation about two years ago, when we went up north to pastor. The whole year was extremely confusing and tumultuous and not what we expected at all. It was really hard and a lot of it has been blocked out of my mind. So, why do I feel like I'm going through the same thing again?

I sobbed for a while, asking God why he couldn't just stick with the clear, original plan that he gave me at an altar in July. He had proven that he was calling me somewhere, giving me a specific calling to a dinky country that I had never heard of, so it must have been him. He had answered within the amount of time that I had begged him for. I had never had God speak to me so clearly, then, so where was he now? Why is it that after I followed after everything he asked me- saving up money working at the stupid coffee place, spending some of that money to send off the ridiculously long application to FMD, waiting and waiting forever to hear back, and offering to sacrifice a year of my time, putting off going to my first choice college and program to go to a very poor country and live- why is it that after I listen and do all of this stuff, that he decides to turn it upside down and be nowhere near where I am.

I can kind of imagine God sitting up in Heaven, listening to this, drumming him fingers, letting out a huge sigh, and going, "Dude, are you done, yet? Can I talk?"

Every step of the way, I've hit some kind of jam. It took me three months to fill out the application, I couldn't find my application fee money, FMD took a VERY long time answering, I got an acceptance letter the same day as I got a letter from Foreign Missions. The coffee place was horrible. Without fail, I've hit adversity through every tedious step of this process over the past six months. Why should the real stuff, the stuff that counts, be any different?

God brought me through every last part of this process. He has never failed me, and although sometimes he's seemed distant, he's never left me during this entire thing. He knows I'm a wimp and can't do it on my own. So, he helps me.

I just have to keep the faith.

WOOOOOOO

My last two exams have been pushed back to Tuesday thanks to the White Death. So, today, I'm going out with Ren, Dawn, and various other people to go sledding behind the church. I have lost track of how many layers I'm wearing.

In other news, at least five people that I just looooove (sarcasm) have gotten accepted into KSU and are "super excited about how much fun they're going to have just partying all the time and having a great time living up the Kent State experience WOOOOOOOOOO"*

Hooray. At least four more years of these people.I can't wait.

*actual excerpt taken from Facebook wall. I kid you not.

The Blog's Most Appropriate Quiz...

You Are a Blueberry Muffin

You are a nurturing, domestic, homey person. Of all the types, you are the most likely to make your own muffins at home. You don't like to rock the boat, and you're most content when you're making everyone else happy. You are very loyal. You'll defend your family and friends, even if you secretly disapprove of what they're doing. You tend to be a bit shy and withdrawn. You don't make friends quickly or easily. But once you do make a good friend, the chances are high that you'll be friends for life.

What Kind of Muffin Are You?

The One Where The Muffin's Day Sucked

I thought that it was going to be a good day today because my English exam was kind of ridiculously easy. I love Pride and Prejudice. I don't like Mr.Darcy, though. I think he's a crapweasel.

So, then, I go to my placement at the Middle School and my supervising teacher isn't there. There's a sub, a highly attractive, no, smoking hot sub. So, I'm just thinking that this day is excellent.

Well, then by the pretty much clueless expression on the sub's face, I figured that he had no idea who on earth I was. The teacher apparently was unexpectedly absent and hadn't said anything about a student teacher. So this guy goes, "Oh, are you here to teach? Do you have your own lessons or do you use hers?"

Dude, are you insane?

So, there's nothing for me to do all day while I'm there. So, I just sit there. And sit there. And sit there some more.

Meanwhile, outside....

...that is happening.

So they decide to let out an hour early, and they give all of us about an hour's notice. So, Mr.Genius-I'm-So-Attractive-That-I-Don't-Have-To-Use-Common-Sense decides, "Hey! I can leave now!" (Seventh period is planning and eighth was cancelled). So, THE GUY LEAVES! An hour before the early dismissal. He's really, really smart.

So, he leaves and I'm sitting there in the classroom hanging out and deciding what to do. This is an hour and a half before my bus is supposed to get there. I have no idea what I'm supposed to do because yesterday they wouldn't let me in the school after I left after exams because they were doing makeups. So, I call my mom, in hysterics, because I don't know what to do to get home and it looks like this outside-

And it's freezing. So, my grandma calls. "We're coming to get you, because Grandpa has 4-wheel drive."

"No, you're not! The roads are crap!"

"Yes, we are."

"No, Grandma. Seriously."

"Yes." *click*

Okay, then.

So, because the roads are crap, the normally five minute drive took them fifteen minutes, all of which I'm freaking out that they're going to spin off of the road to their death.

Because I'm a drama queen.

Yeah, also, there's this snow drift next to me while I take this picture that goes up to my thigh. Nice. I love snow.

Then, I decide to go in and wait for my grandparents inside. Like I'm not 'upposed to.

And what happens?

My phone rings, of course.

Loudly.

And a bunch of other people hiding in the school secretly start shushing me and my Rent ringtone.

I had a good day. Really. I did.

Look What I Did Today!

Because the Teacher Academy is so much fun and had the grand idea of making us begin placements today  even though due to exams, I should have gone home at eleven, I started my Middle Childhood Placement today. I'm doing eighth grade Language Arts, and although I love English, I have a feeling that I'm going to grow to hate this placement. The kids are bratty, mouthy, and disgusting. Frankly, my preschoolers had better manners. I want to punch them in the face. But I'm not allowed to. Something about rapport.

I also finally cleaned out my closet today, like I've been meaning to for the past couple of months. It looks rather nice, if I do say so myself.

I don't think I really ever realized how many stinking pairs of shoes I have. And this isn't even all of them!

Also, to free up more cabinet space to store crap that I don't need to store, I moved my blankets to this shelf. Also, that way my brother and sister can steal blankets without ripping everything out of my nightstand cupboard.

I think that later this week I am going to rearranged my desk so that it's over by my window. There's a leak in our ceiling and I can't put my laptop on the desk, so it's been on the nightstand since I got it, three weeks ago.   More pictures later. I'm sure you all can't wait for those.

Feel Free To Bask In The Muffin's Awesomeness....

I am just that cool....

Wow....

Thanks to one of my great friends, who is much more techie than I, I have imported all of my previous blog posts from the past four years that I've been  blogging. On the sidebar, there are links to all 4 previous seasons of "What The Muffin?".

It's so weird how this blog has transformed since June 2005. I remember that I started it on a whim, because my dad had one, after dinner at Olive Garden with my then-boyfriend, Mr.X (and our parents). 

The writing from then, back when the blog was "About Abosolutely Nothing" (note the typo, which is semi-intentional), is absolutely atrocious. I actually used the phrase "LOL" and didn't believe in grammar and/or punctuation back then. *shudder*

I'm really glad that my writing has grown in the past four years. Who knows where I'd be if it hadn't. I really don't want to know. I don't like to remember myself as one with out exquisite form, punctuation, and grammar. And who used smileys way too much.

There are some fun things back in the posts, too. I left some pictures and stuff up for Tiffany once in a while, as a joke, because she used to read my blog. There are a lot of Brian Vickers pictures littered throughout the previous posts, which are rather nostalgic.

So, go ahead and look back at my previous bloggage. 

Just don't say I didn't warn you about the smileys.

I'm a RentHead....

I got to cross something off of my bucket list today. I went to see Rent with my dad, which I had never been able to see on stage before. I've seen the movie about a million times and have always wanted to see the musical. The music is amazing and the plot is awesome. When it went off-Broadway, I was so incredibly bummed. But today, Dad and I braved the ice and snow to make the trek up to Cleveland to see this show.

As much as I've wanted to see Rent, seeing the show was not the thing on my bucket list. I've always wanted to see a show with the original cast. So, if any of my readers are RentHeads, this next picture may send you in a whirlwind of jealousy.

When I found out that Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp  were going to be playing in this show, I about screamed. I was so stinking excited. When Rent opened on Broadway in 1996, these two played the two main roles in the show. Cleveland was the first stop on the Broadway Tour , which has three people from the original cast- these two and one of the members of the ensemble who plays a homeless woman. I think this may be as close as I will ever get to seeing an OBC show, and I'm good with that.

The first time I had ever watched a show on stage that I had listened to the soundtrack over and over again was Mamma Mia!.  When I saw it on stage, it was a huge, huge letdown. This was because the voices were ingrained into my mind to be what Sophie, Donna, Skye, and so on, were supposed to sound like. They were all British. And I saw the show minus accents. I still loved it, but that kind of took away from it.

Now, with Rent, I have seen the movie a million times, listened to the music over and over and over again, and am completely obsessed with it. If I ever go to see this show again, it probably won't be worth it. Because now I have seen the show with the actual actors and the actual voices in person, which is a surreal and amazing experience. I love Broadway, and if possible, I think the show today made me fall in love with theater all over again.

Confirmation!

Yes,  people. Foreign Missions finally got back to me and I will officially be an AIMer by the end of this week and will be on the field in June or July. I have no particulars as of yet, because they haven't given me any. I will know this week. Until then, here's a video to show you what I'll be doing. The voiceover is sinfully boring, but you should enjoy it anyway. The kids are adorable.

What do you all think...

...of me live-blogging from Lambare, Paraguay, starting in July?

Change My Tag!

I got back from Mid-Winter Youth Retreat this afternoon.

Yesterday afternoon, I got a call from Sis.Redmond, telling me that both of her parents were in the hospital, and that she needed me to fill in as the chaperon for the girls going. This was not a big deal, as the girls are well-behaved, and I'm pretty good friends with all three of them.

I missed a lot of the service last night, because Lori wasn't feeling great and I was afraid that she would get sick. From what I've heard, the service was excellent, and what I heard was really good.

We had fun at the University of Akron Recreation and Wellness Center for the "after-party". (Note: Previous post was about pizza. It was late/early and there was too much Mt.Dew in my system to be coherent. Also, I like to be vague.) We didn't get to bed until late/early. About 3 AM.

None of that stuff will stick with me.

Bro. Tim Rutledge spoke this morning. I had heard him before, at youth camp, and knew that he was an excellent speaker. What he taught this morning blew me away.

I looked up this story that he told us today, and unfortunately I couldn't find it. The story was about a jewelry store break-in. Nothing was stolen. Some people broke into this store and all that they did was switch the prices on the jewelry. They put the prices for the genuine, expensive jewelry on the fake, imitation jewelry, and the prices for the imitations on the genuine jewelry. They did such a great job of this "heist" that the store went on with business as usual for half of the day before noticing that anything was amiss. Because of this, things of great value were bought quite cheaply and looked at as commonplace and insignificant, and outrageous prices were paid for things that, in the end, had no real worth or value of any kind.

In this situation, the price meant nothing. If you go into a store, Bro.Rutledge said, you can ask any salesperson, "How much does this item cost?", and the answer will come quickly from the salesman, "$29.99", usually after a quick glance at the tag or a price check. You can then ask the salesperson, "How much is this item worth?", and the salesperson will tell you, once again, "$29.99".

The worth of something is not determined by its price. Only the buyer can determine the true worth of something. For example, I went out and spent forty dollars on my Twilight series, but their are those who think that it is ridiculous and a waste of time and wouldn't pay a dime for all four of the books.  The cost is worth it to me. It's not worth it to some of my friends. The worth of the jewelry in that store was much greater than the price tag said, as well.

The world today is much like that jewelry store. Things that, at one time, were worth a great deal are worth nothing at all, even looked down upon in our society. Honesty, character, and sexual purity are cast aside and viewed as old-fashioned and outdated. Getting ahead, no matter the cost, is looked at as valuable, no matter who it hurts in the process. But those things are only worth as much as people are willing to pay for them. And as soon as the transaction is made, the buyer is free to do as he wishes with the item he has bought for the price on the tag. At the point of transaction, it is no longer the right of anyone else to decide to worth of that item, because the buyer has paid in full.

As Christians, we have been bought with a price- 3 nails and a crown of thorns. At the point of this transaction, the world lost all rights to place its worth or value on us. It does not matter what you have been through, what your past is, how much you've sinned, if you grew up and have a solid Christian background or if you walked in off of the street, a drug addict and an alcoholic. No matter what your background, you have been bought with that price.

II Corinthians 5:20 says, "Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God". An ambassador can be defined as the highest representative of an individual or origin. Therefore, no matter what your background is, God paid for you in full, and has made you a representative of him. Ambassadors hold diplomatic immunity in the country to which they are traveling. They are not bound by the laws or the customs of the area. Their job is to represent and to act like an individual in that country should act. Through being an ambassador, we are not bound by the expectations of the world- the swapped price tags. We have a diplomatic immunity of sorts, and are free to represent our God. This doesn't mean that we have to go shoving religion down peoples throats. That is not what this means, at all. What it means is that you do not have to conform to and be what the world says you are. If the world says that you are a drug addict, a nobody, a loser, it doesn't have to be that way. They didn't buy you. They don't get to decide your value.


In Vietnam, after a battle, the medics would disperse to assess those wounded in the battle. There were three basic tags placed on an individual. The first signified that the person required immediate attention and needed to be transported as soon as possible. The second said that the person was injured, but could wait a while to be transported and cared for; the others should go first. The last sent a message to the medics saying, "Don't bother. This person will not make it, anyway." One soldier after a battle severed a major artery and was lying on the battlefield, bleeding. He was still conscious,  however, when a medic came by, assessed him, and marked him with the third tag. The soldier understood what this meant and became hysterical, refusing to let go of the medic. "Change my tag!" was his cry, over and over again, "I won't let you go until you change my tag!". Just to get the soldier to shut his mouth, the medic changed his tag to the first, requiring immediate attention, and through sheer will-power, the soldier survived.


The picture above is my tag. I'm supposed to wear it for the next one or two weeks. The world has committed a crime, much like that which occurred in the jewelry store, placing values on things that they have no business placing values on. I have been given a price and my worth has been determined. Nothing that the world says can  change the worth that God sees in anyone, and by looking at the tag, it reminds me of what my actual worth is. 

Nothing anyone else says matters. I have been bought with a price, and my value has been set.


And they aren't the one who set it.

I....

Am.

No, wait, maybe not.

No, I am.

Or not.

Chowder

As my dad mentioned, Chowder has become a big thing at our house recently. Here is my favorite scene. It reminds me, unfortunately, of some people that I know.

Happy New Year!

I don't really have any great words of wisdom for the beginning of the New Year, so let me just wish everyone a great New Year, some awesome resolutions that you can actually keep, and sweet dreams this first night of 2009.

And if you're really lucky, maybe even some tapioca pudding that is so delicious that you can look past it's texture that is akin to fish eggs.

That is some good stuff.

Happy New Year, everyone!