Does time fly or just run really fast?

It seems as another short year has come and gone... I cannot believe that Christmas is almost here and even more, that this year is almost over. With all that has happened and all the people that I have met and places that I have been, I still cannot believe that it is almost a new year. I can only wait and pray that the next year brings even more adventure and new things that keep my soul warm inside. Knowing is not always fun for me... Then unknown is a vast horizon just waiting for me to explore and I am going...

Are there any who will go with me? God is my Guide, the Bible is my field manual, and the Holy Spirit is my walking stick...

Oh yeah, and by the way Merry Christmas...!

Under Bridge Fly

This guy has some really big guts...

Water Freeze...

Maybe, it will get this cold in Georgia this year?...

Derek Webb...

Wow! I can only say Wow!... Derek Webb's new album Mockingbird is absolutely amazing. Anyone who has the chance or means, should download his new album. It really speaks some great words and I love his amazing attitude in life...

The song about zero's and ones is really neat. I guess Derek hit the nail right on the head when he wrote this one. The things he speaks about in his songs are so relative to the world that I am so familiar with. I pray that my life leads to places where zeros and ones are not so important, but instead names and faces....

Just a Short Thanksgiving Video...

There are great memories at Thanksgiving... Hunting, and Food, and Football, and Friends... But one thing is for sure, it is a great thing that the hunter killed the pretty Turkey...

A Short Update...

Well, it is almost Thanksgiving already here in America and I sit here thinking to myself, "where has all the time gone?" Another year has almost gone and so much has happened this year that I don't think that I will ever be able to keep track of it all. I have been blessed to travel all over Europe and visit Africa three times already this year! I cannot believe that in January of this year I had no idea of what I would be doing. But I guess that this shows how God can do amazing things in your life, as long as you let Him...

I have made many new friends and lost some... But I know that God has a reason for this and I have learned a great deal about people, friendship, and trust. I know that God is preparing me for a future that is dedicated to Him and the service that he wills for me...

Until next time...

Proud Big Brother...

The following poem was writen by my 15 year old brother last year for a poetry assignment in English class. I guess that something just makes me proud about this that I really cannot explain...

“O King My King”

O King my King Your job here is finished
Your back is torn but Your Father’s goal was accomplished
The time is near; I can hear it, all the praises of Your name
The war was won in flying colors and now nothing stands in the way for Your return
But King my King You’re gone until that time
The holes in Your hands
In the rock You lay
Cold and dead for three turns

O King My King it has been three
Show them that You’re back for they don’t believe
Show them your scars and the holes in Your hands
Go out and give Your last command
But until that time of your return we finish Your work
Now it is almost a dream
The time You lay in the rock
Cold and dead for three turns

I don't know why, but I just like it. Maybe it is the childlike truth in these words...

-A Dreary Day At The Shop-

One one never think that business could be so slow. I have been at work now for about five hours and have only taken in about $20. I am beginning to think that God must be doing something great and supplying a miracle to keep this place running. And I know that it is only by the grace of His hand that my physical body is operating.

I am soon off to go vote. I priviledged that I probably take for granted more than I should...

God is testing my family, our business, and my life. Everyday I become stronger for Him and defeat obstacles that have always slown me down in the past...

GOD'S SPEED TO ALL...

Back home again...

I cannot even believe that I have been back from Egypt and Europe for two solid weeks now. It seems as though it was so long ago that I was there, yet the time is not that long gone. I feel as though I am connected to this life of exploring cultures and I pray every day for a new opportunity to travel overseas... (or under) Living here in America with so many opportunities, I take many ever day actions in my life for granted.

I just ran into a mother and her daughter from Germany who were trying to figure out what to do with some old oil and paint that they were trying to get rid of. I told the lady that I could throw the oil out for her, but did not know what she should do with the paint. The only thing that I recommended was to throw it in the trash, but when I told her this, she just looked at me as if I was a crazy or bad person because "there must be some kind of recycling for this like we have back home in Germany." This statement immediately made me miss the cleanliness of Germany, although the rules and regulations can become tiresome, it is truly an interesting culture... We talk for a few short minutes and began a friendship, not because I did a deed for her or her for me, but because we liked each other and good people know good people. So I told her to give me the old paint and I would dispose of it and for her not to worry of it anymore. This was the end of our discussion but I did get the opportunity to get her phone number and make a friend who can help me with my German. I hope to see them again some day....

Of course, I must not be busy if I have the time to be writing this post while at work....

Here in Egypt...

so, i have a few minutes to update the public with my current position on the planet and to tell a short story...



i am here in giza egypt having a great time. aside from the extreme smog and past few days of 45 degree temperatures, i have no complaints. i am very happy to inform that many things are coming to light in the situation here in egypt. people are so happy here right now due to Ramadan, islamic holy month...

The food is great, i am great, laila is great, mohammed is great, life is great...

God is Great...

Less than a day till my travels begin...!

I cannot wait for this upcoming trip. I am going to Cairo tomorrow via Rome Italy. I only have a week for travel, but this trip I hope and pray is going to very rewarding...

So many things are to be discovered and explored. I know that I am going to learn new things and meet new people and make new friends and make old friends all the better...

I guess that right now, the thing that I am looking forward to the most is the absolutely amazing smell of Cairo! Some may think is invasive, but I find it to be quite comforting and exhilarating at the same time... and just to think all this feeling is to come from only one sense of the human body. I have heard that smell is the strongest sense of a human... I don't know for sure though... I guess it does spark lots of memories...

Well, I must be off now. I have preparations to attend to and packing to finish... Oh and by the way for that person that is living up in the more northern part of the world, "Don't worry, I will make sure that the bananas and mangos and chai are all in order for your arrival..." Oh, and also don't be too envious of my arrival two whole days before your own! LOL

Until next time, Good Luck and Good Night...

Upcoming Events...

Once again, I am preparing myself for another trip to the ancient land of history and culture. A place that is very dear to my heart, a place in which I feel so connected that even though the distance of over 6,000 miles is very real, I feel as though I am right there with the little "Nura" whom I hold so dearly, or the mother who is feeling pain due to what life has given her, or might I say taken away.

But this is only something that I feel, and I constantly ask myself, "how much more is there?" "How many more feelings are there?" One can only imagine, (and then I find it hard to fathom) how many lives are "going on" in the world. How many stories, pains, joy's, and lives there are in this expansive world. But all that I can do is to live my life to it's fullest potential and seek that in which God has given me to pursue. I feel as though I will never stop the draw upon my life to meet new people and visit new places... Just the thought of it makes me excited....

So here I go again, down to the river that flows north, and to where the feet of Moses and Jesus have walked, and now, where the feet of such a wretch as myself have the honor to tread...

I will partake on my travel with a different feeling than ever before, not only as a traveler, but as a explorer eager to learn new things and bridge gaps in societies that were never thought crossable...

Will there ever be enough time?

Wow! How the days fly by. It has been over a month since my last post, and so much has happened within these past few moments. I have begun to allow myself to wander into deep thought on the subject of how much there really is and have not even began to scratch the surface. I know that God has created this world in His majesty, yet I can't even comprehend the amount of information within 100 miles of my home, much less the entire rest of the world...

If only there were more time... More could be accomplished; but the more that I think about this, the more that I realize, that I would only fill up this time as well and have no time once again to do that which I do not have time for...

Oh well, this is what I have been given and the only thing that I have, is to decide what to do with the time that has been given to me...

Living the Busy Life...

Man, it sure has been a while. So much is going on with preparations for the future. I will be leaving in only four days to go to FINLAND! I cannot wait. I have always wanted to visit some place in that region and the opportunity has arisen so I am taking it. I will only be there for a couple days then back to the "rushed" lifestyle of the America's. Well, better be going for now...

How Big Are We?

As I am sitting around here at my job, not doing much of anything, I read the paper and begin to think of how much there is that that I do not know. I read of war here and there, starvation seemingly everywhere and a never ending supply of political upheaval. Although physically existing in this ever changing world is it possible, that we as humans are not in "communication" with that which we call home?
Lives are changing every day for the better and for the worse and one must think to themselves, “how is my life changing?” Am I participating in “life” to make it better or worse or am I just doing it “because?” I feel as though I am being drawn to a higher purpose, possibly to put off my own self and take on the lives of a few people who do not have it quite as good as myself. I feel as though a sacrifice is in order for needy people all around the world.
But as I take on this journey to supply to those of whom I do not even know, what happens to my own life. Do I begin to suffer as they do? Or do I just do “life” because I have been placed in the first world country that all around the world know as “AMERICA?” Is this stereotype a curse on my life and that which I may do for its entirety? Or will it be a tool, useful for changing the lives of many across the globe? I hope and pray that it is the latter of the two options… But only time will tell.
All that I have to do is to “decide what to do with the time that has been given to me.”

Finding the Meaning of Life...

Suppose that you are in a situation where you must answer the question "What is life?" Now quite possibly you believe that this question warrants a simple answer with need for little thought. But I seem to feel that this question is just a little more important than we all seem to think. "Life," as practiced in the American culture has just become another part of everyday and we to fit it in our busy schedules some way or another but ultimately we are not even taking part in it.

Taking time out of the day to experience life is something that can be found all around the world except in the majority of American culture. There is always something to do and always somewhere to be. Never do we sit down to spend time with the family or just have a casual conversation with a friend. We are all to scheduled. We must plan everything, we can never just plan on not doing anything and taking life in as it comes, because we must be in control of all things that enter our lives.

This mentality has devastated the home life of millions of families throughout the United States. Now of course I am not saying that America is the only country that contains this type of lifestyle, but beyond a doubt, there is no other country in the world that is affected as bad as the United States.

Quite possibly this is the detrimental reason that our country is in such a state of unknown... It seems as though every day something occurs that just makes you think if all this stuff is ever going to just go back to normal. With the war against terror, (that by the way is very important) and the "Crisis in the Middle East," (which by the way is a terrible name, for if one country is blowing the bits out of another, then it is called WAR!) all the political squabble prejudice, hate, fear, and bad attitudes, how could we as Americans ever think that our country is going to be back to the "normal way of life?"

Some may say, that it is just the way life is, but how do we know life if we don't even allow time for it?... So you tell me, “What is life?” Does it have a definition?

Another hot day in DIXIE...

Most would not think of how hot it can be in the wonderful state of Georgia nestled in the far south Eastern United States, but for the past week, I guess that you could say it has just been a little more than hot! Not only have we had temperatures of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or for you Europeans, 38 degrees Celsius..., but there has also been at least 60% humidity for the past week even getting in the up range of the 90 percents...

One can only imagine that living here in this tropical paradise, one would be so far from the "tropical" that we all think of. No relaxing beaches, no cool breeze throughout the day, and definitely no break from work that would let you just sit around and watch the endless waves crash upon the never ending sliver of sand beneath your feet... Oh and might I mention that most would not even want to venture out realizing that our lovely paradise is not only top rated, but the 6th most polluted ozone area in the country... Everyone take deep breaths...

I guess that not only does this type of weather bring us to closer wits end, but also closer to one another, because we are all huddled together in the house trying to find a refreshing source of cool air that we over here in the states call "A/C." Of course we are all to spoiled in our luxuries and have come to a point in our lives where there are just some things that we are not willing to give up.

Air Conditioning and Cold Sweet Ice Tea, take these away from us people down here in the place called DIXIE, and you've got yourself and genuine problematic situration... If ya no wat I meen...

So, Where Should I Start...

Well here i am just wandering around in the allmighty Sahara... Not really that bad of a place, I would say, just get use to the heat, sandstorms, scorpions, and asps, and you will right on your way to a great time. I guess that there are only few who could say that this type of environment is inviting, but in my case I desire to call it my home...