hmmm...Two weeks down

I really don't like people that steal. That's just not cool. Two nights ago someone cut the screen on our porch, came in, and stole my (essentially new) bicycle. I had the privilege of riding it to school all of two days. Really not cool, not to mention I now have to deal with the hassle of filing a police report for breaking an entering and theft.

On a much happier note, my per diem for cruise finally came in. Since this is a decent chunk of change replacing the chunk of change I spent this is definitely very much appreciated.

Finally, go Jackets! Bring home a win before I have to settle down to do work the remainder of this holiday weekend.

School Resumes

So it is now the second week of school. Lots to do this semester, starting with getting my packet to apply for BUD/S in order. Once this is taken care of things should be a lot happier...not. There will still be classes. A couple classes seem all right but a couple are going to be quite unpleasant I suspect. Oh well. Football is here in less than a week. PT is here every day.

Anyway, still have stuff to take care of before bed. May post here more frequently now that I am back in school.

Cruise, Almost Done

So last Thursday through Friday we had a 22.5 hour evolution that was easily the hardest thing I have ever done. By the time they secured us I was completely exhausted, had numerous abrasions, blisters, chafing, sore muscles, and bruises. I slept for about 10-12 hours and all day Saturday movement was very difficult. Now, almost a week later, I am mostly healed up, the only medical issue I have lingering is blisters on my hands, and looking back it was a good experience that helps keep things in perspective as far as what to expect from actual SEAL training.

Today we got to do one of my favorite things: shooting. Starting out with M4's I got an M4 with a 10" barrel, 4-position stock, aimpoint red-dot sight and suppressor. Fun stuff. We shot off maybe 100 rounds between zeroing the sights and doing target aquisition drills. Then we moved over to the Sig Sauer p226 pistols and that was a blast. Along with a little familirization fire we went over a number of the basic skills used in the Navy's standard pistol qualifications and then actually shot through the qual course. While I ideally would have liked to have shot expert, I missed the 5-rings a few too many times and had to settle for a score of 216/240, which still qualified me as "sharpshooter." No complaints really since I have never shot a course like that for score.

Thursday we have interviews that will go into our BUD/S application packages and then we are essentially done with our 1/C cruise here in sunny Little Creek. I'll catch those big birds home on Sunday and then it is back to the real world. Wheeeeeeee!

Starting Week 3

So yesterday we got to do some stuff. In the morning we got hammered a little bit for an infraction and then yesterday afternoon they had us paint the CO's office. That's right, paint the CO's office. Learned a lot about SpecWar doing that. But with eight of us and the right tools it really didn't take that long, maybe an hour. We also got to talk to one of the guys that is a sniper so that was pretty cool too.

This Thursday/Friday we are supposed to have a "Hell Day" that simulates what a day of Hell Week would be like. We'll go for about 24 hours and it will not be very pleasant. One guy in the last group quit within 40 minutes of starting. But it will be educational too. Learn how far we can push ourselves.

On another note, I think I am getting "the HoJo Funk." We have been in the hotel for about two weeks now and several of us are getting weird respiratory issues. Definitely not fun. Thank God for Lysol I guess.

Cruise, Week 2

So it is now official, after this weekend we will have had more days off than we will have had days of actually doing stuff. This is primarily due to the fact that since this week had the 4th of July holiday we only did two days worth of stuff. Add to that only 4 days of stuff last week and you end up with 6 days of work to 7 days off. Honestly I'm starting to get a little bored by it, but fortunately the next two weeks should be a bit busier.

I have decided that I really don't like the bar scene. I have volunteered to go out with the other guys to be their designated driver and it bores me out of my mind. I don't drink and have no interest in meeting strange girls in these bars and so that leaves me with little else to do but sit and watch whatever the bar has playing silently on the TV. Fortunately I have maybe only two more trips out like that before I end up coming back home.

Honestly, to an extent I already feel like I am ready to come home. Little Creek is great and all, and what we have been doing is pretty cool, but this is not my home (yet...). I'm also starting to get quite tired of eating out, which is pretty much my only source of food. Oh well, we're halfway through at this point so I guess it's all good...

Cruise, Week 1

One week down, three to go. We finished up our week with NSWG-4 and next week we'll be reporting in to one of the SEAL Teams here to do our other three weeks.

So the Special Boat Teams here have some pretty awesome PT going on right now. A couple of petty officers have created a program that resembles Crossfit but it is more like Crossfit on steroids with special emphasis on the lower extremeties to better enable the SWCC guys to take the bouncing of boats over the waves (a four hour mission in moderate seas can be the equivalent of going through 100 car crashes!). Yesterday's PT was an hour and a half long and completely wiped out everybodies legs with all the squats and other exercises. Today we did swim PT in the pool and that completely kicked my tail because I am not the best swimmer (can we say side-stroke almost the entire way?).

So you know how when you were little your mother would tell you not to stick stuff up your nose? Well in combat when someone is hurt their nose may be the easiest airway to keep clear and to do that you use a nasal tube. So to get the idea of what that is like each of us had one inserted in our nose yesterday as part of some medical familiarization training. After the nasal tubes it was off to lunch and then time to play around with IV's. Now I am not a needle and blood type person but after seeing the IV's done by a few guys I got my arm stuck with an IV and then stuck someone else (got them done first try :-D). Honestly I was expecting it to be a lot more disturbing to me, especially feeling the warmth of my blood pouring over my arm when the dude doing me forgot to apply pressure to my vein but it wasn't that bad.

This weekend should be pretty chill and then it is off to hang out with the SEALs so we'll see just high speed things can really get!

Cruise, Day 3

So flying wasn't that bad, and the first day was pretty chill since all we did was get to know each other (the eight guys doing this cruise) and settle in to our living arrangements. We actually are not staying on base but are instead in the Howard Johnson hotel right off base. Unfortunately we are responsible for our own food so hopefully there will be some sort of per diem coming in eventually.

So yesterday we went through a bunch of briefs on Naval Special Warfare Group-4 and did some PT that bore a great resemblance to the kind of stuff done at Crossfit. Today we did some more PT, watched some videos on the SWCC guys, and then got a ride in the 11-meter RHIB, which is a sweet board capable of cruising at around 40 nautical miles per hour (most boats are usually not capable of even half that).

Things aren't too bad when you get started around 0700 and you are done by about 1600. We'll have some longer days I'm sure, but for right now things are moving along nicely.

Summer Cruise

So in about seven hours I'll catch a plane to Charlotte and on to Little Creek, Virginia to do my "Naval Special Warfare Familiarization Training." I really don't know what I'll be doing still but I'll try to post up some info once I have a clue as to what it going on. Hopefully we'll be given enough to do so I'm not bored out of my mind but just in case I'm taking four books with me: "The Warrior Leader: You," "The Five Love Languages of God," "Mere Christianity" (to read again, this time more slowly), and "Desiring God."

If you want to get ahold of me I should be able to check my cell pretty regularly and may get some email access occasionally as well. I'll have my computer with me so maybe if I can get internet access then the emails should flow freely dependent only on my schedule.

Anywho, stay cool down in Atlanta, have a cold Coke for me and I'll see people when I get back (though if you happen to be up in the Hampton Roads/Newport News area between June 26th and July 21st let me know and if schedules permit we can hang out). Peace.

Summer Cruise Reading

So a week from today (Monday) I leave for sunny Little Creek, Virginia to hang out with 7 other midshipmen and men from one of the SEAL teams up there for four weeks. Right now I have no earthly idea what all I'll be doing so I plan on taking a couple books to work through (in addition to my Bible) and that's where you come in.

I am open to suggestions on what to read while I am there. I don't really care what genre it is in so long as it is good. Christian/secular, fiction/non-fiction, biographical, whatever. I'm just looking for good reads. I don't even care if it is something I have read before. Maybe I'll read it again.

So on the count of go, start shooting ideas my way. Wait for it...steady....GO!

Funny of the Day (from Boston)

So the fact that a man had to be restrained on a flight is not funny, but the comments at the bottom from the wife of the former police chief that did the restraining are a hoot:

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2007/06/05/graying_duo_keep_passenger_in_check/

Kudos to the men who did something and shame on those who were unwilling to help.

Stuff to do...

So God had come through for me with some work in the last week and a half. While I was sitting talking to my mom about work opportunities and where to apply she receives a phone call from a lady in her Sunday school class wondering if I would be interested in doing some work for her that day. This ends up turning into several days worth of work helping her prepare houses to be occupied by new tenants. In addition to that through one of my Sunday school teachers I have been hooked up with some guys that need a worker to do landscaping at Advanced Auto Parts stores here in Gwinnett.

Both these jobs came to me in about 3 days and have thus far proven to be good work for me that I enjoy for the most part. They are also quite flexible and have decent pay so I am certainly not complaining. On the contrary, I am quite grateful for these opportunities that I have been blessed with.

What to do...

So the job hunt has come up empty thus far. I have a couple more places I can apply to but honestly I don't get too excited by them. The other option I have considered is trying to do some freelance landscaping type work and then finding ways that I can volunteer with churches or other organizations like the North American Missions Board or the Georgia Baptist Convention. The problem with that option is that there wouldn't be all that much money flowing in. On the other hand I would have a good reason to get up in the morning that is certainly more motivating than eight hours of mindless grind just to bring home a paycheck and I'd be helping people in the process. So what to do...

Bring on Summer

So school is done, I have come home, and summer can be considered officially here. Now if only I had a job. Guess I'll just have to find something. In the mean-time I am getting my right eye redone on Monday so that will leave me partially out of commission for about a week. That is honestly one thing where the results are worth the discomfort though. To have gone over half my life needing some sort of aid to see to being able to see (essentially) completely fine within one week is simply amazing. The human eye is a phenomenal piece of creation and what medicine has been able to do with it is nothing short of astounding.

Hopefully this summer will be a little more productive than previous ones have been. Ideally I will be doing PT five days a week and will also improve on my Russian and geetar skills. Working a job would be good too. Summer will essentially be chopped in half by my going to Little Creek (home of the East Coast SEALs) for about a month, but other than that I'll be in town chugging away. I kind of would like to find a way to also get more involved in either First Baptist Duluth or Atlanta doing something either with music or with older high school guys or both. We'll just have to see what God has in store for me on that.

Wheeeee!!!!

Just took my last real final of the semester. Four finals in two days is not fun. Now I just have to take a basic take-home final and I am home free!

Good luck to all still working on their finals.

Band-aid on Arterial Bleeding

It is hardly surprising that in the wake of the evil brought upon Virginia Tech that the issue of gun control has come up in a big way. However, I don't think the issue here is a problem with gun control laws (unless you want to talk about how the student were left unable to defend themselves from this murderer) but rather a people problem. There's no getting around this fact: there was something VERY wrong about the person that did this. There's also no getting around the fact that whether this person had guns or not, they were willing and capable (from the emotional/psychological side of things) of doing this act of great evil.

If you take away guns you know what you have? You still have people with problems that will find other ways and other implements for doing evil. You can try to regulate everything that could conceivably be used as a weapon but if you don't fix the problem that exists within the hearts of people then you will find you have people killing one another with bare hands.

But Charles, you might say, if he didn't have a gun and had to use a knife, for instance, maybe he wouldn't have been able to kill as many people. That's possible, but at the same time the real issue is not the number of people that he killed, it's the fact that he was killing people in the first place. On the other side of the coin, by the same hypothetical game it can be argued the maybe if one of the students in Norris Hall had been able to conceal carry a weapon on campus they would have been able to stop the killer and keep more people from being killed. We can play what-if games to the end of time but all of them revolve around trying to put a band-aid on arterial bleeding.

We want these band-aids because they're a lot more simple than trying to prevent the bleeding from the first place or at worst stopping the bleeding immediately when it starts. Slap some gun laws down, take away people's guns (or give them more guns in the interest of having people ready and able to oppose such killers), train police forces on the new regulations and call it done. But it doesn't actually fix the problem.

Fixing the problem requires much more than a band-aid. I don't know what set this troubled young man down the wrong path, but does it not strike you when after these things happen you find that these individuals are often branded as loners who are anti-social and hold people in such low regard? Anybody noticing a trend here? How often could this trend be reversed by people actually taking the time to love this person and make positive investments in their life? The problem is, that requires us to do more than sit here on the internet and cry out to our politicians to take away or give back our guns. It requires more than firing the latest scapegoat and replacing them with the next person. It requires people getting off their butts and actually getting involved in the lives of those around them. It involve Christians actually striving to show the love of Jesus to everyone around them and start seeing people the way Jesus sees them and love them the way Jesus loves them.

I'll be real honest and self-incriminating. Looking at my track record of showing real, genuine love to others around me, those words seem real hollow. But at the same time God has been working in my life a lot recently, things are changing, and this is one area that I hope I will continue to change and grow in.

As far as my stance on guns goes, I believe in having the right to defend myself and those around me and to be properly equipped (within reason) to do so. While it is presumptuous of me to start speculating with any degree of detail what I would have done in this or a similar situation I can say with confidence that there is no way that I could have sat by and done nothing in the midst of such carnage and evil. Preventing law-abiding citizens like myself (a service member and future commissioned officer no less) from taking the prudent precautions like owning and carrying a gun does not prevent crimes but instead prevents the possibility of them being properly equipped to potentially bring about an end to whatever threat is posed by someone like Monday's killer. But while it is my desire that carry laws for college campuses and such were to be changed, I do however realize much like the writer of Psalm 20 that it is not firearms that will win out at the end of the day.

"Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God."

Oh, God, Where Are You Now?

This is a question that I'm sure many in Blacksburg and around the nation are asking at this moment. In the wake of such evil many wonder how God could allow such a thing to happen, such horrific violence upon so many innocent. While it may not seem like it though, God was there.

He was there when Professor Librescu stood in the doorway to block the killer, allowing his students to try to escape through the windows; giving his life so that others might live. (In all the accounts I read of yesterday this is still the one that gets to me the most. "A greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." To have that kind of courage and love for others to be willing to sacrifice in such a manner; it sweeps me away)

He was there when Zach Petkewicz motivated his classmates to move a table to block the door of his classroom, preventing the killer from getting into the room and killing more people.

He was there when Derek O'Donnel, despite already being shot, worked with other students in his class to block the door so that the killer could not return to kill even more students.

He was there when police responded to the calls for help and proceded to secure the scene and get aid to those that were wounded.

He was there when doctors worked to save the lives of those who had been shot, not once, but for several as many as three or four times.

And He is here now, comforting those who are greiving from the horror of this evil brought upon us.

While free will exists, allowing man to do horrible things to each other, God is there in the midst of it all. In the end what man would do for evil, God will turn for His glory. And while we are completely incapable of fathoming how good can come out of something that brings such sorrow and sadness, we can trust that in all things God is sovereign, good, and just.

I don't know how God plans to work in all this, but it is my prayer that as He moves among His people others will come to know Him and the "peace that passes all understanding" that allows someone to face such horrors with confidence that "all things work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose."

It's Friday...

But Sunday's Coming...

Panic not, for it is all good...

Нужен Мне Лишь Ты - "All I Need is You"

A friend of mine was telling me about hearing a recording of Louie Giglio talking at Passion '07 about how when we get to heaven it's going to be a grand old party and it most likely will not be in English. So to find a video of the song "All I need is You" being done in Russian (a language I am studying in school) is really cool. When we get home we can all sing it together.

Hillsong Kiev-Нужен Мне Лишь Ты

"...and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father."
Phillipians 2:11

"The Stones Would Cry Out!"

So funny story from spring break:
Some other guys and I decided to go walking around where we were staying in Lauderdale by the Sea and ended up walking to the really large church. The outside was nice and the main building had a steeple so tall that lights were put on it to warn away airplanes. Stain glass decorated the buildings and in front were three fountains as well. As we approached the fountains I noticed that it sounded like music was coming from around them somewhere. Intrigued, I followed the music to its source and was surprised and amused to find that the speakers that were playing it were disguised in what looked to be either real or artificial rocks. Now why is this funny? Take a look at Luke 19:37-40:

Now He came down near the path down the Mount of Olives and the whole crowd of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the miracles they had seen: "Bleesed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven and glory in the highest heaven!" Some of the Pharisees from the crowd told Him, "Teacher, rebuke Your disciples." He answered, "I tell you, if they were to keep silent, the stones would cry out."

(emphasis added)

So to be standing outside a church and to hear praises rising up from the rocks...

It took me all night long....

Yeah, another paper that had to be completed. Makes for two papers now that I have stayed up all night to complete. It's fun. If April 12 is reached while still maintaining sanity it is home free except for finals.

So since sometime over the weekend I have felt...motivated. That's really the best word for it. For the first time I have actually felt like I am hungry to read God's Word. It's exciting. I'd say more but in light of the fact that I have only had about 1.5 hours of semi real sleep in the last 42 hours, articulate thought is not my strong point at the moment.

Sifting away chaff

So this morning Dr. Stanley's sermon was on the process of "sifting" that God will put us through in order to make us suitable for service to Him (sifting being the process by which the actual usable part of wheat is separated from the unusable portion, or "chaff" as it is called). In closing out the sermon Dr. Stanley encouraged the congragation to go before God and seek out whatever sort of chaff He would identify in our lives for removal. The scary thing is, I think I was getting my answer before the suggestion was fully made (I don't think I even had a real clue as to what the suggestions was going to be) and the frustrating thing is that what has been pointed out to me is something I don't think I want to let go of.

So now I have this rather unpleasant flesh vs. spirit sort of battle going on in my head/heart and I really am not sure where the battle lines are, what's on who's side, what the rules of engagement are or anything. Intel is falling down on the job so to speak. Of course, Dr. Stanley did point out that the sifting process isn't exactly a pleasant one. Just pray that I will seek after and find God's will, and then that I will be willing to trust and follow it.

(throw on top of this a paper or two due almost every week until school is over and I may just about reach the edge of my sanity. This could get interesting...)

The loaded question

So tonight I met for the first time with a man who I hope to meet with a bit more in the future as I see there being a potential for me to learn a great deal from him. He is someone I have a great deal of respect for both as a man and as a Christian.

So I guess the biggest thing I took away from this meeting is his question: "What is the chief end of mankind?" Whoah. I mean, I essentially knew the answer but at the same time it is not something I had really though of much.

"The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever."

It is amazing how much your perspective on things changes when you take that into account. Add onto that 1 Corinthians 10:31 " So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." and how you approach your day-to-day tasks has to change too. I'm not sure of all the ramifications of this for me now, but it's worth praying about a bit. So I'm out until next time.

Why indeed...

So I was struck with an interesting thought a while back: Why is it that we as Christians are so willing to trust God with something so great as our eternal salvation but yet we so often won't trust Him with even this very day He has given us?

I mean seriously. Think about all the things we often don't trust God with. Relationships. Finances. Jobs. School. Possessions (which ironically aren't really ours anyway). The list could go on. Sure I say that I trust God, but when I look at what I spend my time and energy working on and thinking (or is that worrying?) about I can't help but be convicted that it is not a matter of merely saying that I trust but I still have to actually let go of that control. Easier said than done. Something I can't claim to have a real handle on how to do either. But I guess that figuring that out is a matter of trust too eh?

On your mark, get set, panic!

Or not...I just have a test tomorrow that I haven't studied much for and then Wednesday morning I do my physical fitness screener for summer cruise (if you happen to be up at 0600 feel free to send up a prayer :-P). Oh, and I'm still in the recovery phases of being sick last week. It's fun. So once I make it to about 0800 on Wednesday morning I am home free for the week in a sense.

So here's something weird. I have not been one to just go on trips with friends during college, being not the road trip sort of guy. However, when I have learned of trips to go do relief work in New Orleans/Mississippi sponsored by CCF or Campus Crusade I have jumped all over them from the moment I first hear about them. So when I found out that Crusade was still doing spring break relief trips to NO but GT's group was going to Miami I was kind of put off and wrote off the trip. However, a couple weeks ago an email was sent out with a list of events/activities for the trip and strangely enough I felt like I was supposed to go. So I signed up and will be going to Miami for spring break.

On the other hand, CCF is planning another Geaux to the Gulf type event for Easter weekend this spring and while the idea excites me, something brings me to pause and I don't know why. I have not signed up and I'm not sure that I will. It's weird and I really can't explain it...

Running sub-100%

I don't know if trying to run the PFT in the rain and getting completely soaked had anything to do with this, but I have not felt that great since about yesterday afternoon. This is really not good since I have to inspect a bunch of high school kids on Saturday morning and also study for a test next week in a class that I haven't learned much in. Oh and let's not forget the physical fitness screener that I have to run next Wednesday that helps determine what I do for summer cruise. This is really not a good time for this...

In other news, the silence is doggone deafening, but at the same time I find that I still have music of various sorts running through my head (mostly of the P&W variety). No facebook = no big deal. Been having trouble having quiet times though due to all the stupid crap that has suddenly piled up this week. But the week is all downhill from here, so I will not panic. It is all good :-).

Lent

So while I am a Southern Baptist I have decided to observe Lent in a way since the principle behind it is not that bad (sacrifice something for 40 days as a reminder of Jesus' sacrifice and to allow that time for seeking after God). I came to decide that I would give up two things: facebook, which is probably not a bad thing to give up anyway since it is way too easy to waste time on that, and listening to music when I am by myself, which I have noticed has become more like noise than anything else and is probably part of why I have such a hard time getting myself to "be still." It will be interesting.