Between The Lines

The Extent of Affection

2012-01-26T14:08:00.000-06:00

Observations of an Elderly Couple at a Coffee Shop.

They shared the same table. They shared the same drink. They shared the same thoughts.

This is the extent of their affection...

Sharing.

How many kisses do they have between them?

I'd imagine more than harsh words.

How many times have they exchanged themselves like they are exchanging

sips from that same cup of coffee?

I'd imagine more than they shut each other out, separating one another

by walls of selfish intent.

How many times have they desired themselves over one another?

Never.

Because they understand that they are not their own to desire.

They belong to each other.

This is the extent of their affection...

Sharing.

Over China

2012-01-21T10:10:00.000-06:00

Appreciating Poetry for It's Own Sake

I made a new friend last night. His name is John.

John is a poet and I met him while he was conducting a discussion and poetry reading from a book that he wrote.

A Year In The Life of Empty.

That's the name of his book.

He was at a local coffee shop and he was holding the discussion for those who were either not familiar with his work, or were inquisitive to the meaning behind it.

It's always exciting to meet another writer who has a passion for creating art with words, and John has a unique and creative perspective from which he draws his ideas and forms his craft. There are not many poets around, nor are there many who appreciate poetry for the art form that it is.

Many people are lost when it comes to metaphors, and many take them too literally. Some try and think too hard, over analyzing the simplicity of the piece. Others don't think at all, and just see words and broken sentences on paper. Both instances are tragic, and John understands this.

That's the reason he was holding the discussion last night at the coffee shop.

He and I talked for a bit. He read his material. I bought a copy of his book. Then we talked some more.

I asked him if I could post one of his poems on my blog. He said yes. Maybe he was just being polite because I bought his book.

Still, he said yes. I'm sure we will have more conversations in the future.

Over China

climbed the sky last night, dark as pitch. scaled

the tallest tree, leaped open armed

into ethereal ink and invisible, climbed invisible

rungs, found each one right where

it should be, and each star in hand I

grappled, pulled myself up until I could

see all the stars, stark without moon, earth

without sun, earth without me.

waited and waited until she hushed silver over

the horizon, passing below.

hopped down onto her no- sound skin, left my

Tony Llama prints in her three inch dust, ran

scary and barefooted into the dark side and back,

drove the buggy all around, waved

the flag for folks to see, but they didn't see, I'm

sure.

it was only me. descended back upon the tree.

sat looking for a very long, silent time,

silent as the moon in her mind, dusty feet

reminding me that I had left my boots

over China.

by J.E. Glaze

From A Year in the Life of Empty

pg. 82

Cars, Planes and Deathbeds

2012-01-15T17:39:00.000-06:00

Learning to Love in Spite of Pain

I'm no fan of goodbyes.

I've had my fare share of them, from airports to driveways, to deathbeds.

It's a funny thing though. Even when we realize that goodbyes are inevitable, there is still something that we look forward to in the process of bidding farewell. There's still that last moment hug where you cling to one another in mutual affection, longing for time to freeze and the moment to last forever; or maybe that final kiss where lips meet and emotions bond, only for the strand to be severed a few moments later by the rush of time; or maybe it's that final conversation at their bedside, when the hour glass seems to have opened itself wider, turning its daunting grains against you, siding with fate.

I have experienced all, in one fashion or another.

And I have come to realize that the part I hate the most is about 10 minutes after that person has actually left. That's the part where I am sitting there alone, wondering. That's where reality strikes like a home run connection, and I begin to understand that the game is over and this one is heading for the fence with no hope of being caught or returned.

It's that moment when the plane is leaving the strip, the car is rounding the corner down the street, or the casket is lowered into the ground.

It can be moments such as these that form our views on life and love.

We are all wounded in these instances of vulnerability. Some are affected by these wounds in a way that creates in them a fear of pain. These are the people who decide never to love again, for the distraught of losing takes too great a toll on them. They avoid deep affection from that point on, gradually growing distant from what was once familiar, until they seemingly disappear all together.

Others accept the pain and allow it to become a part of them. They grow to believe that the pain itself is inevitable, and so they end of expecting it in every aspect of their relationships. This simply creates numbness, and soon they are able to move from one pain to another without any sense of feeling. They make decisions based off of the end result being painful, and so they are always prepared for it. These people in turn, end up causing others even greater pain, for they act on selfish impulses to enjoy what pleases them, since they believe pleasure will not last anyway.

And still others experience the pain and they accept it with an understanding that it is not the final word on the subject. They know they are experiencing pain because they know that they have loved well, and they have been loved well. They allow the pain to grow in them a deeper appreciation and desire for love. This desire becomes selfless, because they understand that to love is to give. They are not afraid to give because they know that by giving, they only gain a greater desire to give more.

This is not physical passion I am talking about.

This is sincerity. This is affection. This is friendship. This is charity and compassion. This is trust. This is communion.

I can personally say that I have been in all three stages listed above. I have allowed myself to fear the pain of goodbye, hindering me in creating long lasting relationships. I have believed that pain is inevitable and still decided to go forward in my selfish endeavors, causing pain to others once the time for goodbyes had actually come. And still, I have loved selflessly in the attempt to give myself as a friend and a companion, expecting nothing in return.

The first stage left me alone and bitter.

The second left me convicted and ashamed.

But the third left me satisfied and fulfilled.

Yes, I hate goodbyes, and yes I do believe that to an extent pain is inevitable at some point. But I also believe that you can choose how you respond to that pain. You can let it turn you into a bitter or ashamed individual depending on your circumstance or your situation; or you can appreciate it knowing that you gave everything you had to give and that you loved without limiting yourself.

Theology

2012-01-12T18:04:00.000-06:00

I'd rather see the world in black and white

than have to depend on distorted colors.

Over embellished thoughts sound nice

but truth opens your eyes to honest details.

She says the sky is blue, he says the night is black.

In reality air has no color, yet we all see it

for what we think is beautiful.

But few take time to learn heavens habits.

We are all meteorologists in our own mind:

"Looks like rain."

"No, it will be nice and sunny today."

"You might want a light jacket."

"No, it's not that cold outside."

We debate the forces of nature

in which we have no real understanding,

yet somehow we all feel justified in our own

ability to predict.

We have taken our own colors and splattered them

all over God's design

We think we can paint pictures better than He.

Yet we don't realize that the true value of art

is not in the piece itself;

it's in the name of the artist.

Christian Charades

2012-01-09T21:01:00.002-06:00

It's Not about You

Growing up, I had the hardest time accepting compliments from others.

Being raised in a Christian home and brought up in the church, I easily learned how to make myself look good. People would compliment me on my character or they would compliment my parents on what a fine young man I was. As far as outward appearances went, they were right. I knew all of the right answers when it came to morality and peer pressure, I had a good knowledge of scripture and knew my way around the Bible pretty well.

I was the poster child for purity in my youth group and I acted the role of a counselor for all of my friends. They would come to me with their problems and troubles, and I would offer them bits and pieces of advice from spiritual books that I had thumbed through or lines of wisdom I thought up in my head. It all sounded great.

I was regarded as the kid who had his head on straight and his life on track.

And yet I hated receiving compliments from people about my character because I knew the truth about myself. I knew it was all a charade.

I knew about the things inside that they couldn't see. I knew about the thoughts I had when I lay in bed at night. I knew about all of the things I did in the dark when no one was around. I knew all of the evil desires that were in my heart, and I knew all of the crap that I told people about being pure was merely a cover up to make myself look good in their eyes.

People would remark how "spiritual" I was, and I couldn't even look them in the face because deep down I felt as if I was robbing them of their own words.

I felt like a slick oiled salesman who sold worthless products to sweet old ladies and the conviction was catching up to him at night.

You can't fake a relationship with someone. Either you love them or you don't. If you were only nice to a person while other people were around, but then you treated them like dirt when you were alone together, they wouldn't want to hang out with you because they'd know you for who you really are. Hypocrites have no friends.

They'd know you have no love for them because, if you did, it would be evident by your actions.

I said I loved Jesus with my words, but my actions spoke differently.

Jesus talked about this all the time.

John 14:21-25

Matthew 15:1-20

Matthew 7:17-23

I could go on and on with scripture, but I'll encourage you to find it for yourself.

You cannot truly accept Christ for who He is until you get over the desire to make yourself look good on your own.

I had to get to a place where I realized that life is not about me. That is a difficult place to be in. It's a desert where righteousness burns brighter than the sun, and it scorches the pride inside of you. And the only thing available to drink in that barren wasteland is humility.

You will never be able to accept other people's compliments on your character until you receive true freedom in Christ by understanding that you are powerless on your own, and that life is not about you. Of course, receiving their compliments won't really matter that much to you anyway, because that's not the point.

The point is that you will be truly free because you will know that it's not you they see anymore - it's Him.

Christmas Contest Recap

2012-01-04T21:03:00.000-06:00

In Case You Missed It

In case you missed it, Colleen was this year's Christmas Sweater Contest Winner, taking home the prize pack with 27 of 51 votes! (emails included)

Colleen showcasing her prize pack:
A stocking stuffed with -
D. Millers "A Million Miles in a Thousands Years
$15 Itunes Gift Card
$15 Stabucks Gift Card

I got this photo from her not too long ago, and wanted to share it with you guys.

Congratulations again, Colleen!

All you other guys will have to bring the heat next year!

My Thought on 2012

2011-12-31T12:21:00.010-06:00

I know what you're thinking...

Another year is coming to a close and it's time for a big resolution post or a sappy reflection on past 2011 events.

And normally you'd be right, if this was a typical online diary of a blog and I had nothing more important to do than to try and stimulate you into a slideshow of emotion.

The year 2011 was not necessarily the best year ever, and there is not a lot that I would want to reflect on. I'll admit it had it's moments. But it's mostly over now, so why try and reflect on something that I have anxiously been counting down the days until it is over?

My friend Sara is visiting me right now, and we are about to go to the zoo. This is probably the highlight of the year.

Okay, that's not true. But for some reason it feels like it. All of the good things that happened this year feel as if they occured ages ago, and all of the downer moments feel as if they happened this week. Why is that?

Why can't we hold onto the good feelings like we do the bad?

Anyway, that's not what I want to talk about today.

Today I would like to address the subject of:

SYRUP

This morning I had breakfast at my grandparents house with several of my cousins. And my friend Sara, of course. We couldn't have her visit without feeding her.

My grandmother made us all pancakes. And bacon. We are big on bacon. While I was slicing my pancakes into neat symmetrical pieces, my cousin (also named Sara) made a remark about how I don't like syrup on my pancakes.

This is not true. I do like syrup on my pancakes. At least I do now. When I was younger though, I did not. I would butter them up, slice them and eat them dry. Why would I do this? Because when I was younger, I had a relatively peculiar sense of taste, and I did not eat very many sweets. Syrup on pancakes was too rich for me. So I would butter them enough to where they were a little soggy, and them down them with a glass of O.J.

Of course, I did eventually succumb to the savory nectar. But it took a lot of persuasion. That, and some really bad pancakes. It doesn't matter how bad the pancake, syrup will always make them edible.

Some people like things a certian way because it is familiar and comfortable. They stay in their own little section of reality and limit themselves to what they know.

This is a touchy subject for me, because I can be one of those people. As I have established in previous posts, I am not a fan of change. However, I am learning that the key to changing is simply embracing a mindset of adaptation. Over-analytical people tend to scare themselves or talk themselves out of change because they think beyond the general realm of "what if" into a region of "worst case scenario".

These are the people who don't ride roller coasters until they are 20 years old, or don't have their first drink until they are 24 and alone by themselves in their apartment with a bottle of Smirnoff that they secretly purchased from the grocery store along with an enormous list of relatively healthy or necessary items.

Now, I'll admit I am guilty of the rollercoaster thing. But the drinking thing is different. I am only 23 and I, like a good law abiding citizen, had my first drink at 21. I think. Okay, maybe I just took a sip at 21. Well, now that I think about it, I was 22. I mean, I was 22 when I bought my first drink.

And before all of you church people freak out and label me, let me just state that I am not a fan of alcohol. Although I do plan to have a glass of wine over dinner this evening.

But anyway, back to the syrup thing. I like syrup now. But I had to get to a point where I was basically pushed to trying it and had to make myself like it. Now syrup is just second nature to my pancake craving.

And I think this all ties in to what I have to say about 2012.

Don't be so over analytical that you miss out on truly enjoyable things. Don't try and imagine the end of your story before it begins. If you do, you will live through it looking for the chapter on comfort, and once you come to it, it won't last as long as you want it to. Once you pass that chapter, you will spend the rest of the time wishing you could go back and re-read it.

Just embrace the material as it comes. Don't be the person who later tries something and then kicks themselves for not trying it sooner. Allow yourself to live. Don't let your over analytical mind make all of your decisions for you, because it will talk you out of many opportunities.

At the same time, be discerning. Don't cast out all reason just for the sake of "living".

I did mention alcohol earlier in this post, but you will notice that I did not put it on my pancakes.

Be logical. Just don't over analyze the outcome of your story before you can see the details.

Young Love by Mat Kearney

2011-12-26T10:13:00.002-06:00

An Album Overview

Today I am listening to Mat Kearney's new cd, Young Love. This was one of my Christmas presents and I am thoroughly enjoying it. Mat is one of the reasons I started writing, so I thought I would share my thoughts on his latest album.

Rochester is my favorite song on this album

This is his most energetic and eclectic project yet, and is unlike anything he has done so far. Kearney has always been a favorite artist of mine, and he is definitely my favorite song writer.

I love Kearney's style because he stays very true to his projects. For instance, on the cover of Young Love, he is wearing his striped shirt and newsie cap. When you go to his website and watch his videos, he wears the same outfit in most of them.

Love the song, Fire & Rain

He did the same thing with City of Black and White. Even when he performed, he wore the same outfit. I like this because it keeps the spirit of the album alive. It's fulfilling to see an artist do this, because it's almost expected when you go and see them perform.

If he wasn't doing this, it would almost be like him not playing the one song you came to hear. You'd feel disappointed and let down, like it wasn't the same artist whose cd you bought.

Good album, but I HATE the song Trainwreck. Sorry Mat.

I also love the fact that on Young Love, he goes back to the spoken word style that he originally used in his debut album, Bullet.

So, if you are a Mat Kearney fan and don't yet own Young Love, you should. It's a must.

I would buy this album solely for the song All I Need.
By far his best song ever written and on my all time favorites list.

If you are not familiar with Mat Kearney, it is a good cd to get; however I would actually suggest starting with Nothing Left to Lose and going from there. He is a great singer and artist, but I don't think you can really appreciate Mat's lyrical writing style as much if you don't start with that album first.

It's the best he has ever done, and I don't think he will top it anytime soon.

It's Moments Like This......

2011-12-24T23:38:00.000-06:00

Remembering the Little Things

I try my best to remember the special moments in life. Some people count the certain occasions or abnormal occurrences as what make up the special moments.

For instance, couples spend hours recording their infant child in hopes of capturing that first word, or families plan big parties or extravagant vacations in hopes of creating lasting memories.

But I think we humans overlook the everyday moments that we take for granted.

Right now, I'm in a hotel room in OKC with my mother, waiting for my brothers to arrive. Mom and I are watching Meet Me In St. Louis. I have never seen this movie all the way through, and mom has not seen it ever before.

We are just past the part where Mr. Smith announces that they are all moving to New York. Everybody flips out and now Mr. and Mrs. are alone in the dining room, conversing in dramatic Hollywood dialogue.

My brother Daniel just now walked in our room, carrying 3 large pizzas from Stars and Stripes. He's followed closely by my dad. As soon as Joseph gets here, we are going to open our presents.

Back on the T.V., Mrs. Smith has moved to the piano and is now playing softly. Mr. Smith has joined her and started singing. The song fills our small atmosphere and sets the backdrop for our little holiday party.

We have started eating our pizza. I don't think there is any other place I would rather be at this moment than right here on this hotel bed watching a classic and spending quality time with the most important people in my life.

This is not an unusual moment. We have spent many hours together with pizza and a movie. But these are the moments that I like to soak in, these are the calming times when there is no rush and everything is relaxed. The world is a peace and I am at home, even if real home is about 75 - 80 miles away.

These are the moments that I don't want to forget. Even now, I am documenting the play by play seconds - my brother reaching for another slice of hamburger pizza; my mom with her feet up on the bed, leaning back against the headboard, legs crossed. Dad is sitting in the corner in a red easy chair, drinking a coke and eating with the rest of us. And Judy Garland is on the silver screen, singing Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.

And soon, little Tootie will be outside in the front yard destroying the snowmen and crying hysterically.

Take advantage of your time, especially this Christmas. This is the last Christmas you will have like this one. Next year could be completely different.

Enjoy it. Remember it. Cherish it.

Thanks for reading!

And The Winner Is....

2011-12-22T13:58:00.000-06:00

And now, announcing this years Christmas Sweater Contest Winner...

Last Years Winner

CONGRATULATIONS #3 - COLLEEN!

This Years Winner - #3 Colleen Zelenski

Colleen has won a stocking stuffed with Donald Millers book, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, a $15 Itunes Gift Card, and a $15 Starbucks Gift Card!

Thank you Mandy, Amber and Sierra for competing in this years contest, and thank you to everyone who voted and helped make this contest possible!

Now go blast Colleens Facebook wall and tell her how awesome she is! Or how awesome her friends are who voted for her!

Christmas Sweater Contest - Vote Now!

2011-12-17T12:20:00.000-06:00

The submissions are in, and now it's time to select a winner!

Vote for the sweater you think is the best by posting a comment with the number of your choice, or emailing your vote to benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com..

If your sweater is one of the final selections, tell all of your friends to come and vote for you!

It's a Winter Wonderland

Blue Bunny and Friends

# 2

Frosty the Snowman

# 3

Gingerbread Man, Christmas Trees and Candy Canes

# 4

The sweater with the most votes wins the stocking prize pack!

Voting lasts until December 21st, so cast your vote now!

The Christmas Sweater Picture Countdown

2011-12-16T21:24:00.001-06:00

Today is the last day to e-mail your pictures for the Christmas Sweater contest, and so far, the submissions have been pretty good!

E-mail your picture to benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com, or send them to me on Facebook (be my friend!).

I will be accepting pictures until 11:59 pm. After that, the pictures will be posted tomorrow (17th) and the voting begins!

If you plan to send in a picture, be sure and read the rules in red on the previous blog post.

If your picture is one that is posted tomorrow, then invite all of your friends to come and vote for you!

The picture with the most votes wins the prize pack!

Just a couple of hours left to send in your pictures, so do it now!

Christmas Sweater Contest Begins Now!

2011-12-10T14:28:00.000-06:00

Alright, it's time to kick -off this years Christmas Sweater Contest!

Please read the Rules in Red and then email your pictures to the email address below!

Rules in Red

All pictures must be submitted by 11:59p.m., December 16th, 2011.

Voting begins on the 17th and lasts until the 21st.

In order to be eligable to win, you must EMAIL your pictures to:

benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com

The best pictures submitted will be posted on the blog and readers will have a chance to vote for who they think has the BEST (meaning tackiest/festive/crazy) Christmas sweater!

The person with the most votes will receive a Christmas stocking containing the following prizes:

1. A $15 Starbucks Gift Card

2. A $15 itunes Gift Card

3. "A Million Miles in A Thousand Years" by Donald Miller (paperback)

When voting is complete and the winning picture announced, the winner will be contacted by email and asked for their mailing address. The stocking prize pack will be personally mailed to them by me.

If you are not familiar with the Christmas Sweater Contest, checkout the contest from last year.

The contest begins now, so go ahead and email in your pictures!

Another Tacky Christmas

2011-12-07T21:19:00.000-06:00

After much thought, debate and inner conflict, a decision has been reached.

This Holiday Season, I am bringing back what has been the most fun (and most popular) BTL post to date.

The Tacky Christmas Sweater Contest!

This year's tacky sweater contest will be even better than last, with a much larger prize pack! (Details to be announced soon!)

But, the only way this contest can REALLY be a success is if you, the reader, spread the word and help participate.

The contest will be as before:

1. Readers will submit their pictures of their tackiest Christmas Sweater

2. The top 3 tackiest sweaters will be selected and posted on the blog

3. The readers will vote on who they think has the TACKIEST Christmas sweater.

4. The submission with the most votes wins!

The winner will receive a stocking stuffed with goodies, personally mailed to them by me.

Now you might be thinking, "Why do a contest like this?"

I can think of several reasons:

1.Because it allows readers to be actively involved with BTL

2. It is fun to see how creative people can be

3. It's fun to give away stuff

4. It's fun to win free stuff

5. It's exciting to have all of your friends vote for you

6. It it helps spread the word about BTL to others who wouldn't know the blog existed otherwise.

So start preparing now!

More details will be announced shortly, including when submissions can be... uh, submitted.

This Year's Christmas Contest

2011-11-28T00:31:00.000-06:00

Last year, I hosted a Christmas contest on BTL that was pretty successful.

Last year's winner for the Tacky Christmas Sweater contest

This year, I plan to do it again, but with a little more coordination and a bigger prize pack (one that is feasible for an online contest).

In order to do this, I would like to hear from you, the reader, as to how you think last years' contest went.

Of course, last year we were judging the Tackiest Christmas sweater, and the winner received a $25 gift card to the store of their choice. I considered doing the same thing this year, in hopes that there will be a better turnout (I think there were only about 6 pictures submitted for the contest.)

However, in light of the latest BTL post about Christmas stockings, I have also contemplated on changing the contest from awarding the most voted Tackiest Christmas Sweater to awarding the largest Christmas Stocking.

Readers could email in pictures of Christmas stockings and the largest one would win the grand prize. It would be really fun to see people try to find (or make) the largest stocking. However, it would also eliminate the need for reader voting, which I think was part of the fun for the Christmas sweater contest.

So, in order to insure that the contest is as exciting and fun as last year, I would like some feedback from you in order to determine what needs to happen this year.

Please comment or send me an email on what you think would be more fun - to vote on tacky Christmas Sweaters, or to submit pictures of Christmas stockings and have the LARGEST stocking win?

Baby in a Stocking
Picture taken from Stuckihouse and can be found at:
http://stuckihouse.blogspot.com/2008/11/nanas-christmas-stocking.html

I think both would be fun, but I want to hear from you.

So tell me what you think, and as always, thanks for reading!

Things That Never Change

2011-11-23T13:59:00.000-06:00

...Like Stockings

I'm not a huge fan of change.

I don't like when people move away; I don't like friendships to change like they sometimes do for whatever reason; I don't like when family traditions cease to exist like memory particles blown away by the winds of changing thought.

I like to look forward to things that have always been.

I was discussing this just the other day with a friend over coffee.

We talked about childhood and how fun it was to go outside for hours and be creative, making up our own worlds (isn't it amazing what useful things a stick can be turned into?) We talked about how some things never change, even though we grow older and familiarity evolves into a less interesting atmosphere that replaces everything we once knew.

For both of us, we discovered that there is one thing that has never changed throughout the course of our lives...

Our Christmas stockings.

I have had the same Christmas stocking going on about 20 + years and I love it.

Yes it is worn and deteriorating at the toe, and yes it does have a glittery Santa riding a train sewn on the front. And yes, I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Presents are awesome, but there is just something about upending a stocking and dumping out the contents. So what if it only contains some gum, chapstick and a new toothbrush? It is familiar and exciting all at the same time.

Our stockings contained those things along with candy bars (and I'm not talking fun size), small toys, and back in the day, cassette tapes. That's right - our mom use to put Adventures in Odyssey cassete tapes in our stockings.

And it was awesome.

Everyone in our family has had the same stockings for as long as I can remember.

I always felt sorry for my cousins whenever we visited their house at Christmas time. All of their stockings looked the same and they were all the same size. And they all hung in the same direction. The only reason you could tell them apart was because their names were written in puff paint on the white cotton folds. I would be sad if I had a stocking like that.

But even still, I'm sure my cousins feel the same about their stockings as I do my own.

Stockings never change, and I am glad for that. I am also glad that our house is always decorated the same way every year, and our Christmas tree ornaments are still the cheesy looking home made ornaments that we made throughout grade school. I would go over to friends houses around Christmas time and their trees would be decked out with shiny gold balls and tinsel. I used to think that was so boring! (Ok, I still do!)

Our Christmas tree had my handy work all over it and my face was in 27 different places.

And there were tons of unusual things on our tree that were not on anyone elses...

Like that giant poodle ornament that was made out of a styrofoam ball, toothpicks and cotton balls. I still have no idea where that came from.

It's true, I am not a fan of change, which is why I am all the more grateful for the things in my life that are consistent.

I am one of those people that likes to hold on to the innocent things for as long as I can.

And I sometimes miss the experiences and the memories that I had as a child - things like spending the night at my cousins house and sleeping outside in a tent, or in the fort in their backyard.

Those are the things I sometimes wished didn't have to change.

But it's okay, because as time goes on, innocence sort of recycles itself. A lot of my extended family are getting married and having babies, meaning that at some point, they will get to re-live a lot of familiar events that we experienced as kids together. And eventually, I'm sure I will get married and have my own kids, allowing me to re-live a lot of my own familiar memories. Only, when that happens, I and my family will get to experience and re-live the memories as our parents did.

It is kind of exciting to think about, and those are the kinds of changes I don't mind.

Still, I am thankful for my stocking.

Brian "Head" Welch on November 19th

2011-11-09T13:42:00.001-06:00

In a little over a week, there is going to be an event in Fairview Oklahoma unlike any other.

Well, at least unlike any that Fairview has ever seen.

Brian "Head" Welch

Brian "Head" Welch, previously lead guitarist for Korn, now solo artist, is coming to the Fairview Community Center on November 19th, 2011. The event is free, but seating is limited. Doors open at 7:15 and the event kicks off at 8pm.

If you are not familiar with Brian or his story, please watch the video below.

If you are familiar with Korn and you know who Head is, then you will understand why this is such a big deal.

Korn is a multi-platinum selling band known the world over. Head was one of the co-founders to the band and helped develop it's unique, ground breaking sound.

After reaching the pinnacle of fame, Head's life was spinning out of control due to his addiction to methamphetamine. He had lost his wife to drugs and now his own life, along with the life of his daughter, Jeanea, was hanging in the balance.

But that all changed after Brian attended a church service with some friends and was introduced to Jesus through the Gospel message. He then had an incredible encounter with God a few weeks later.

Check out Brian's interview from www.iamsecond.com:

Please know that this event in Fairview is not going to be a "Christian" event.

What?! You mean it's not about Jesus?

No, it's completely about Jesus. But it is not going to be the churchified, Jesus is my homeboy, kumbaya polished service with which we have all grown accustomed.

The people that Brian is ministering to now are the same people that he tried to entertain through hard rock music before he had his encounter with God.

Everyone is looking for something that they can trust and believe in. The crowd that Head is trying to reach is skeptical, cynical, and some even downright opposed to the Gospel message due to the way that the church may have failed to present it to them.

They would not necessarily believe the pastor or evangelist that got up and told them that Jesus loved them or that yelled at them to "...be saved or suffer the consequences!"

But they will trust someone like Brian "Head" Welch, the dude who has already been to hell and back.

Brian "Head" Welch

I like to think of Head as a modern day Paul - someone who was completely sold out and stood for everything against who God is.

He was someone who had an encounter with God through supernatural circumstances, and now he is someone who glorifies Christ with the same sold out passion as before, even more so.

If you would like to hear some of his music, click here and here. If you would like to know more about Head, find out about his latest project or see his upcoming events, you can visit his website: www.brianheadwelch.net.

If you would like to get directions to the event in Fairview, click here.

If you know someone who is into heavy metal and needs to experience the Love of God, you will want to get them to this event.

Also, please help spread the word about this event and invite your friends by posting this blog on their Facebook page, and on twitter.

I believe in what God has done in Brian's life, and I believe in what Brian is doing now because of it. Please help us spread the word.

In the end, it's not about the show and it's not about the music; it's about the one person who would not have otherwise excepted the message of hope had they not heard it from someone they would actually believe.

Brian with his daughter, Jeanea

Coffee Memo

2011-10-31T13:34:00.000-05:00

Note to Self - Stop for coffee on way into town.

Pulled into parking lot.

Stopped between two white lines providing limited space for vehicle.

Opened driver side door with loud squeak.

Stepped out onto oil stained cement and slammed car door shut.

Looked up at green goddess smiling down from building front.

Walked into building; met by wave of espresso and music.

Girl behind counter smiled.

Girl in line ordered something skinny w/ chai.

Baristas behind counter made drinks w/ hands and music w/ cups, tapping them on counter top.

Slow day.

Girl behind counter ready for order.

Iced coffee drink jumped off menu, grabbing attention.

Told cashier desired drink, then pulled cash from pocket.

Thanked cashier, then picked up cd from sales rack and read back cover while waiting.

Barista called out drink name.

Picked up drink, headed outside to write.

Sun too hot, moved back inside.

Finished drink, but not even started writing

Waiting for friends to show up.

Going to movie tonight.

Not sure which show yet.

Still having trouble writing.

Maybe content will flow by time movie is chosen.

Too late, decision made.

Puss in Boots.

Lame.

So much for writing.

Maybe tomorrow.

Hotdogs, Grape Juice and Feathers

2011-10-22T12:59:00.001-05:00

A Flavorful Friday Night

Last night I hung out downtown with my friend Eric.

We went to the grand opening of Dogtown, the newest happening place in town.

They had live music and a hot dog eating contest in which Eric competed, eating 9 dogs in 5 minutes. That may not sound like much, but in reality that is 3 days worth of hot dogs if you eat a hot dog a meal. It was a noble attempt, but in the end he was beaten by a dog and a half.

When he was done with the contest, we went back inside where I proceeded to eat a Philly cheese steak hot dog in front of him. I don't think he will touch another hot dog for at least a month.

As we were leaving Dogtown and crossing the street to my car, a giant white limo went cruising by. Some lady wearing a tiara and pink feathers had her hand out the window, and she was waving as if she was the Queen of England or something. We could hear laughter and squeals coming from inside.

Eric and I stood in the street with dumb looks on our faces. When they passed, we just looked at each other.

"Must be ladies night at Scooters," I said.

He nodded and we continued across the street to my car.

He put his backpack in the back seat and I grabbed my jacket from the front. Then we set out around the square so that Eric could walk of the 3 pounds of meat trimmings and fat he had consumed earlier.

We passed a couple of sidewalk cafe's before we heard music that seemed to be coming from the sky. We looked around and then realized it was coming from the window of a second story loft apartment.

I have always wanted a loft apartment. I can't imagine how awesome that would be to have a group of friends come over on a Friday night and just jam together.

We stood on the sidewalk below and listened for a little bit, then we headed back to our cars. We decided that we would go back to Eric's and watch some t.v.

On the way over to his place, I stopped by my apartment to pick up my laptop. While I was there, I got a call from my mom, asking if I could pick her up from Braums. Apparently some of her girlfriends and her were out eating icecream and celebrating her birthday.

No, I did not forget my mom's birthday. It is not until Monday. They were just celebrating because it was Friday night and everyone had a free evening.

I left my place and went to Braums to pick up my mother.

When I arrived, I was met with a surprise. Mom and two of her friends, Brenda and Sherry (Sheri? Sherrie?) were there, and they had just finished eating their cold treats.

That wasn't the surprise.

The surprise was the fact that all three of them were decked out in tiara's and pink feathers.

"And what have you girls been up to?" I asked inquisitively.

"Oh we just had the greatest time!" mom said. "We rented a limo and drove all over town, drinking sparkling grape juice and taking pictures!"

Brenda piped in, "Yeah you should have seen your momma with her head out the window waving to everybody like she was the queen."

"Tell him about the driver," Sheri said.

"Oh! We had this guy named Mr. Webster, and it was all he could do to keep up with us, trying to open our door and get our balloons out of the trunk before they blew away!"

"You had balloons?" I asked.

"Yeah we had a whole trunk full," Brenda said. "Web would pop the trunk and then he had to race back there before they all flew out. Of course, we didn't tell him that they all had weights attached to 'em," she said with a mischievous smile.

Brenda is crazy by the way. Here she was with my mom adorned in a plastic tiara and pink feathers, and for some reason she kept referring to herself as the Pink Ninja. I had to know the story behind that one, so I asked.

Apparently the driver got out of the car at one point and made the dire mistake of leaving the keys in the ignition. As soon as he got out, Brenda locked all of the doors. The poor man was left outside trying to coax 8 partying women into letting him back in his own limo.

Mom said it was all they could do to keep Brenda from jumping through that dividing window and driving off.

Awesome. Not only was it my mother's party on wheels that had driven past us at Dogtown, but it was my mother herself who had her head out the window accepting homage from everyone that she passed by.

I'm just glad that they were only drinking Welch's Sparkling Grape juice.

In Good Company

2011-10-15T09:30:00.003-05:00

Right now I am on the road, traveling to the raging metropolis of Fritch Texas. I'm with my friends Ryan, Megan and Shantel, and we are going to a youth rally tonight.

I always enjoy road tripping with some good friends, and today I am in the best of company. We are looking for interesting things to do and see along the way, and hopefully we will be able to stop on the way back and check out some cool places. If there are any, that is.

Speaking of road trips, you should check out what my friend Eric is doing today. He takes the term road trip to a whole new level!

Tonight I will be speaking at Celebration Family Church, and we are hoping for a good turnout. We all feel that God has opened up a unique opportunity for us to love and encourage the youth here, and we are all sensing something big is going to take place this evening.

If you are reading this and you are in the Fritch area, come and join us! Things kick -off at 6pm, and I would love to hangout with you afterwards!

Hopefully I will have some photos to share with you all after this thing is done, and there will be post service updates to follow once this weekend is over.

Thanks for reading, and also be sure and check out www.followeric.com today!

Some Life Updates

2011-10-13T23:32:00.002-05:00

Hi guys, I just wanted to take a second and share some life updates with you all.

Life update # 1:

I have really enjoyed the opportunity to teach the 5th - 7th grade group at FCF on Sunday mornings alongside my friend Ryan.

I got asked by the youth pastor several weeks back if I wanted to help out and teach every other Sunday, since Ryan was doing it by himself every week. I jumped at the chance, and although it has been a challenge, I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

Life Update # 2:

Ryan and I, along with our friends Shantel and Megan, will be traveling down to Fritch Texas this Saturday to speak at Celebration Family Church. We will be hosting a Saturday night service/youth rally, and we are hoping for about 60+ kids to be there. The church has a great group of leaders and we are excited to see some old friends and to make some new ones. We plan to spend time loving the kids and encouraging them in their walk with the Lord.

Life Update # 3:

Once we are done in Fritch, we will head back to Oklahoma on Sunday. The following Wednesday I will be speaking to the junior high and high school students of The Edge youth group at FCF. I am always excited for the opportunity to pour into the youth at my current home church, and I am praying for the word of God to penetrate some hearts and wreck some lives (in a positive way, or course).

It's an amazing thing to step into something and then see how God opens up doors for other opportunities too. I am finding myself constantly drawn more and more towards the junior high age group especially, as I feel it is critical that we reach this group and help them grow in their walk with the Lord now. I believe that if we can show them the truth through the Word in a relatable and enlightening way, then they can take that to heart and hopefully apply it as they move on into high school.

This has been my life for the last several weeks, and I am continuously thankful for the grace that God shows me by allowing me to be apart of what He is doing in this generation. I will be honest and say that the writing has suffered a little bit because of all that is going on. However, I do hope to have more material up soon (hopefully more on the creative side).

I will try and keep you all up to date on the latest events that I am involved in through God's grace.

If you would like to know more about what I am doing, or if you are interested in me coming to your church to speak to your youth group, I would love to connect with you!

Please feel free to email me: benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com

Find me on Facebook.

This is currently the best way to contact me, but hopefully there will be some changes made to the blog page soon.

Thanks for reading, and be sure to share BTL with your friends!

You be the Judge

2011-09-29T20:01:00.000-05:00

...of Yourself

I watched this movie recently called The Chase, with Marlon Brando, Robert Redford and Jane Fonda

Robert Redford plays an escaped convict, Brando is the small town sheriff trying to catch Redford, and Fonda plays Redford's adulteress wife.

I won't going to go into the plot or anything like that. It's simplistically complicated (if that's possible), with a crooked town, despicable characters and very misguided worldviews. And also one very yellow Robert Duvall.

I left this movie feeling angry. I hated the characters: nothing but a bunch of adulterous alcoholics with tempers, guns, and time to kill.

At one point in the movie, some of the guys in town gang up on Brando, who is the only decent character in the story. Brando is trying to help Redford by sending his wife to him in hopes of persuading him to turn himself in. If he turns himself in, he will get a lesser sentence and Brando can protect him from the townspeople who want to catch and kill him.

These local guys come into Brando's office and are holding him there while the town bigwig (the guys who owns everything and everyone) is down in the jail cell talking to a man that Brando has in custody. He is talking to this guy to find out where Redford is hiding. Incidentally, Brando put the man in jail for his own protection, as the townspeople ganged up on him in the street and were trying to kill him.

While bigwig is "interrogating", the other guys are in Brando's office beating him to a pulp.

I was so mad. I hated these people. They really didn't have a reason to beat him up, other than the fact that they hated Redfords' character. I kept waiting for Brando to get a second wind and lay into the guys. But that second wind never came. They beat him and left him lying in the floor.

At the end of the movie, Brando catches Redford and is bringing him in to custody with the rest of the town looking on. Redford's mother is crying and asks him for forgiveness. He ignores her and walks on. The church lady is singing some song in the background and praying for Redford . As Brando and Redford make their way up the courthouse steps, the same guys that beat up Brando are at the top of the stairs waiting for them. One of them opens fire on Redford, shooting him about six times. Brando is so livid that he lights into the shooter and goes to town on his face. Three other men come to help pull Brando off the guy, but he breaks free of their grasp and goes back to beating the shooters face in again.

This was the one moment that I had been waiting for: the part of the movie where the good guy finally has his opportunity for justification; the moment of sweet, satisfying revenge.

I watched as Brando pounded the guys head in with his fists, again and again. Each blow felt relieving; each blow felt satisfying; each one felt right.

I hated that man he was beating. I hated that mans friends. I hated that town. I hated them all just about as much as Brando's character did.

That's about when the little voice inside of me decided it was time to tell me something. He always picks the worst times to say anything. For some reason, He always decides I need to learn a lesson of some kind whenever I am in the middle of something that I find satisfying to my flesh.

So you hate them, huh?

Yep.

You want them to die?

Yep.

You want them to pay for what they have done?

Yep.

Well, I already took care of that. Does that mean you hate me too?

Dead silence......

Man, that little voice sure does have a big mouth.

After the movie, Jesus brought my attention to Romans 2, where Paul is chastising the readers about judging others...

Romans 2: God’s Righteous Judgment

¹Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. ²We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things.³Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? ⁴Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? ⁵But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.

⁶ He will render to each one according to his works: ⁷to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; ⁸but for those who are self-seeking^[a] and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. ⁹There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jewfirst and also the Greek, ¹⁰but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. ¹¹For God shows no partiality.

And that is just the beginning of the chapter!

You ever found yourself casting judgement on others?

Those of us who judge are among the most condemned of men, for we scream death and justice for those who break the law, and yet we break the law ourselves. How much more guilty are we?

Christ is not about casting stones, He is about forgiving the accused.

He is not about slashing the guilty, he is about taking the lashes and still loving the one holding the whip.

He is not about justifying the sin; He is about purifying the sinner.

God is a God of righteousness. He can not tolerate the sin, because he is Holy. He is a God of justice. He is also a God of love. This is why he made it possible for us to be holy in Christ, so that we can be justified through Him.

Don't worrying about condemning others' sin. Worry about walking in the footsteps of Jesus.

You won't get trampled by Justice if you are following in footsteps of Humility.

My Chains Are Gone

2011-09-18T15:36:00.000-05:00

"Amazing Grace- How Sweet the sound- That Saved a wretch like me"

The congregation began to sing. As the melody began to rise, so did the emotion:

"I once was lost- but now I'm found- Was Blind but now I see"

As every church members voice lifted in Sunday morning harmony, one lone voice wavered. As I stood in the back of the auditorium, it was all I could do to get the words out.

To me, Amazing Grace is the ultimate death song. I say this because I have yet to go to a funeral where it was not sung, played or used in a slideshow. And the funeral I remember the most was for my friend Joe.

Joe died of a cancerous brain tumor. He was maybe 21.

As the song continued that morning, my thoughts drifted to the last time I ever saw Joe. His ability to coordinate was almost gone, and the tumor was just eating away at his brain. I walked into his bed room and was greeted by his motionless body lying on a queen size bed. His dad led me into the room, looked down at Joe and half shouted, "Do you know who this is?!"

Joe, half blind, with 90% of his hearing gone and his body as limp as a rag, just looked at me. After a few seconds, he realized who I was and the left corner of his mouth moved up his swollen face as he said my name- "Bhhnn!"

This made my day and broke my heart at the same time.

That was the last time I ever saw my friend alive. I will never forget the look on his face when he realized who I was. His smile was pitiable, and yet it was the brightest I've ever seen.

I have this picture of him that I keep in a photo album on the mantle. It was taken at a youth group car wash. In it, Joe is holding up this poster board sign that he made to draw the attention of passersby. It says DONATIONS in bright blue letters.

I thought of that picture and then I thought of the last time I saw him. What a change. And yet, I could tell when I walked in his room that day, that he was still the same old Joe. I will never forget the way he said my name.

That's probably what I will always remember whenever I hear that song. That is not how I will remember him, though.

As the church sang out, "My chains are gone- I've been set free- My God my Savior has ransomed me", I thought of the picture of Joe at the carwash again. Only this time, in my mind he was holding a sign with giant blue letters that read, FREE.

Life is hard. That doesn't mean we stop living. Joe was a fighter until the end. The cancer may have claimed Joe's body, but that doesn't mean that he lost the battle...

He simply gained a greater victory.

Grace

2011-09-17T20:36:00.000-05:00

I am continually thankful for God's grace on my life.

Without such a gift, I would be no better than a forgotten soul awaiting eminent demise on death row. I am, in my own human nature, guilty of sin and deserving of it's punishment - death.

With the gift of grace, however, I sit not on death's door as a convicted criminal, but in the house of a King - the Highest King - as an innocent and blameless child.

I often have to remind myself of this gift of grace, for when I do commit sin or allow thoughts of ungodliness to influence my life and my actions, I feel completely unworthy and undeserving of Love. And rightly so.

The truth is I AM unworthy and completely undeserving of Love.

This reality is the beginning of brokenness; this brokenness is the beginning of repentence, and this repentence is the beginning of rebirth- being made new in my mind and my heart. And the more that I am reborn, the more I have need for brokenness, which leads to more repentence, which in turn leads to new life, new revelation, and ultimately, more brokenness.

I do not believe you "get saved" and then never have another bad thought, or never again even think about things of the past. If this were the case, then I have never met a person who is truly saved, and neither have you. Yes, there are some who get completely delivered from sin - addictions, wrong desires, etc. - but this is not always the case for everyone.

Some give their lives to Christ and then wake up the next day craving what they had the day before they acknowledged Jesus as their Savior. Instead, I believe that a life of purity it is a continual metamorphosis - the shedding of mindsets, the dawning of new revelation and the continual growth through trial and triumph. Paul instructed to work out your salvation with fear and trembling (Phil 2:12).

Of course, we have no power or ability to save ourselves by any means. There is only one way through which Salvation can occur (see John 14:6).

All we can do is to continually move forward in pursuit of Christ and a life of Holiness. When you mess up, don't sit there and linger; don't dwell on the sin; run to Christ. Run to Him in humility and brokenness, and allow him to put you back together. Pursue Him in worship.

I am grateful for the gift of Grace because I do not know where I would be, or even who I would be, without it.

Well, yes I do actually. I would be the condemned criminal waiting on death row. But in Christ, I am a pure and blameless child sitting innocently at the feet of my Father.

When Bad Things Happen...

2011-09-16T20:25:00.000-05:00

...to selfish people

What are you supposed to do when bad things happen? Why do they happen? And where is God through it all?

These are the questions that scream out from inside of us. These are the questions that turn Followers into Haters. These are the questions that stir up unbelief and bitterness. These are the questions that will either make or break one's own faith in something more powerful and more incomprehensible than themselves.

And these are the questions that are produced in the hearts of selfish human beings.

Voddie Baucham exclaims, "The question we should be asking is not 'Why does a good God let bad things happen?' but instead we should ask 'How can a holy and righteous God, who is a God of Justice, know what I did last night and still allow me to live?'"

The reality is that these questions are completely self centered.

What am I supposed to do when bad things happen?

Why do these things happen to me / us?

Where is God when this is happening me / us?

Doesn't he care about me / us?

When you're focus is centered around you, you will only ever see yourself as a victim, no matter what the circumstances.

In his second letter to the Corinthian Church, Paul wrote, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." (2Cor 1:3-4)

This is how he opened the letter.

God does not always give us answers as to why things happen. He doesn't have to. Yet we, as selfish creatures with our thoughts revolving around us, see ourselves as rulers of our own little worlds and we demand explanations as to why these worlds are sometimes shaken up.

If we could just take our focus off of ourselves and turn it to the cause of Christ, then we wouldn't need answers as to why things happen. We would simply endure through the comfort of a loving Father.

When bad things happen, don't just sit there and question God - run to Him. Allow yourself to submit to Him and be comforted. When you do this, you will find that not only can you make it through whatever is happening, but you will be able to help comfort others through hard times later on.

When you adjust your thinking to this mindset, trials are no longer feared, they are welcome. This way of thinking seems to bring in new meaning to life.

Endure now; receive comfort; comfort others later on.

You can continue to question an all knowing Being whose answers you are not even worthy to receive, or you can trust Him and submit to Him fully.

The choice is yours. At least He gives us that much.

When Coming Home...

2011-09-01T19:08:00.000-05:00

....Doesn't Feel Like Coming Home

I'm not a big fan of change. It's very hard for me to adapt to new things sometimes, especially if the things that are changing are things I have grown up with or have lived with for the last several years.

As I was leaving work today, I decided I would stop by my parents house before heading back to my apartment.

Now, my parents have lived in their house for about 18+ years. My brother Daniel and I both grew up there, and we have memories for just about every inch of ground on the property, Daniel even more so than I.

One of our most hallowed memorials was a large Pine tree that stood in our front yard. This tree served so many crucial purposes in both of our lives -

It was a fortress of protection when engaged in war games
It was a lookout point when exploring and searching for the unknown
It served as a getaway when one needed a place to escape and be alone with his thoughts
And it was a place of safety and Sanctuary, impossible for mom to climb and get you.

With sentimental value beyond literary description, this tree was a landmark in my journey from childhood to manhood.

So you can imagine my feelings when I drove up to our house this afternoon to find the tree was completely gone.

I sat in my vehicle for several moments after pulling into the driveway, just staring into what now appeared to be a gaping hole in my childhood. My heart began to grow as lonely and bare as our front yard now seemed to be.

It's gone, I thought to myself in utter disbelief. It's gone and I didn't even get to say goodbye!

I was suddenly overcome with this urge to run over and jump into those piney branches once again; to make my way up the sappy and sticky trunk, past the limb that Daniel had broken off after swinging on it, up to the wooden 2 x 4 that served as a seat - a captains chair - nailed between two branches.

I was overcome, but I could not act, because the tree was no longer there. I got out of my vehicle and made my way over to the porch. Never before had the sky looked so big and intimidating. I felt like a lonely soldier visiting a graveyard full of fallen comrades, and all the memories were rushing to his head as he viewed the traditionally simple white crosses that had replaced their lives on earth. Only, all I had to remember my friend by was a large round stump.

You see, the tree had been on its last limb (pardon the pun), and for the last few months my parents had been watching it slowly wither and die. Well apparently today they decided it was time to move on and they had the city come out and cut the tree down. It's not a bad thing to be rid of honestly. It was becoming quite an eyesore. I just wish I would have had some fair warning.

I'm not a fan of change. That is why I find great joy in knowing that there is something constant in my life, something that will never change or fade away.

Isaiah 40:8

⁸ The grass withers, the flower fades,

but the word of our God will stand forever.

Have you ever lost something valuable or precious to you? How did you handle the feeling? Are you still dealing with it?

Email me and share your stories - benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com

How is Your Heart?

2011-08-08T20:20:00.000-05:00

Hearing and Accepting the Word of God

This last Sunday, our church had a guest speaker come and minister. I was not able to make the Sunday morning or evening services, but my friend filled me in after the evening service was over. This particular speaker had a special gift of prophecy, and during the Sunday evening service he moved throughout the congregation and prophesied over different people.

I always find it interesting how people respond to prophetic ministry. I sometimes like to just watch and see who all is in the service before things actually start. Sometimes I will try and guess in my head who I think is going to receive a "word" or who will get ministered to before it's all over. There are so many different types of people in attandence and it always makes for a very interesting evening.

Here are a couple of people that you might witness at one of these events:

#1. The Shy Receiver - You always have those people who are very hesitant to receive anything from the preacher. They don't want to be called out during the service or have any attention drawn to them, and when they do receive a word, they wrestle with it because it either frightens them or makes them really nervous. However, it's exactly what they needed to hear because deep down they know they should be doing whatever it is the guy said in the first place.

#2. The Prodigy Child - You also have those people who are really talented or gifted at something (or everything), and the preacher tells them that they are anointed and are going to use their talents to reach tons of people or touch nations or something (which He usually tells them what their talent is without knowing before hand). Everyone else in the church gets all excited because they all know that it's true, and before you know it, that person is up leading worship the next Sunday or gets discovered by someone in the industry a month later and signs a record deal or something.

#3. The SDB - Another popular person at these gatherings is the Saved but Doubtful Believer. This is the guy who says that he loves Jesus but he just doesn't think that speaking in tongues stuff is real or that God still talks to and through people today. He's the dude who stands during worship with his arms folded or sits during the message with an "Okay pastor, impress me," expression on his face. He is also the guy that the Holy Spirit will take any opportunity he can to mess with during the service. The preacher could look his direction, wave his hand and the H.S. won't waste any time in knocking this dude to the ground. Then He will keep dude down while He fills him with joy and makes him laugh, or fills him with conviction and makes him cry, or better still - fills him with His fire and makes him start speaking the very language he claimed he didn't believe in in the first place.

#4. The Spiritually Selfish Suck Up - Next you've got the person who comes and he knows he will get a word from God because he has been relentlessly and legalistically pursuing "time" with God everyday since he heard this prophetic preacher was coming - three Sundays ago. He decided then that he wanted to hear from God, so he went about doing everything he could to look good spiritually in an attempt to get Gods attention so He will decide to bless him. In the end, there is nothing holy about this sort of pursuit, as the person has chosen to clothe himself in robes of selfishness instead of righteousness. It is not unnatural that this person will leave the service more humbly than he arrived.

#5. The Spiritual Optimist - I'm sure you know this guy. He is the one who is always greeting people, always happy and always expectant. He wants to receive a word from God, but if he doesn't, that's okay. He listens to the words the other members get and will loudly exclaim "Amen!", or "Praise God!" However, he will find himself at times struggling with an issue of pride, being tempted to think that he deserves a word from God for his faithfulness. However, he drowns these thoughts out by focusing on others and choosing to worship God for what He is speaking to those around him. Because of this, the optimist will always come away with something. It may not be a prophetic word, it may not be an anointing of some kind, but he always sees God in everything and if nothing else, that is enough.

#6. The Expectant Watcher- Then of course you have the person who is very expectant to receive something, and they have come specifically for the purpose of hearing God's voice relay to them the next step in their life. This is not out of a desire for selfish gain, but out of sincerity to know what God has for them and what they should be focusing on. This person spends most of the service watching others receive something and then wrestling with comparing themselves to those that are receiving. If the Watcher doesn't get a word, they can easily become envious of others and begin to question God, asking Him why he did not speak to them? If they do get a word, they sometimes are not satisfied with it, depending on it's seeming size or importance. They constantly have to fight the thoughts of envy and rely on God to be content and appreciative.

I have found myself in the position of all six types at one time or another, with the most resent one being #6.

The last time I was in a service like this, the preacher had everyone line up at the front of the church and he would move down the line relaying what he felt God was showing him or was saying about each individual person. It seemed that many people were receiving great words of "importance" or "significance". Most of the people I was lined up next to or close to were younger than I, still in high school and not even sure what they wanted to do with their lives yet.

The preacher would come to one and say something like, "God has given you a voice to speak to your generation. You will minister to your peers in great numbers, and you will make known the truth of the gospel to them." To another he would say something personal like, "there is something deep inside of you that wants to come out. There is a gift or a talent that you know you have and you desire to develop, but you are too afraid. God says come out! I have made you for a purpose, and it is time for you to shine!" Something like that ( you get the idea, right?).

Then the preacher came to me.

That's always an awkward moment. You never know if you are supposed to look them in the eyes, close your eyes and raise your hands, look at the ground, or look up at the ceiling. Still, they are there in front of you and now is your time to hear from God.

This preacher didn't really even look at me. He placed his hand on my head, stared off into the distance and said, "The hand of God is on your life." Then he quickly moved on down the line to the next person.

What? Is that it? That's all I get? No mountain moving speech? No changing-the-face-of-this-nation-through-evangelism prophecy? Just, "The Hand of God is on Your Life?" Seriously?!

I made my way back to my seat, plopped down and then began fuming.

Duh! I already knew that! Look at what He has done in me up until now! Look at what I have accomplished for Him! Look at what He has brought me through! Is that all this guy sees?! Is that all I get?

IS THAT ALL GOD HAS FOR ME?!!

That's right about the time that God decided to actually say something.

Is that not enough for you?

.......silence.

Dang.

As I sat there and pondered what He just said, He began to show me a picture in my head. (Sorry, that rhyme was unintentional.)

He showed me a chess board, and I was one of the pieces stuck in a little space restricting square. I knew it was me, even though I couldn't really see a face, only an outline.

As I stood there, waiting for the next move, I noticed that there was a hand holding on to me, poised, as if the player was making a decision about where he was going to move me next.

I then heard the word again that the prophet had just spoken over me not 5 minutes before -

The Hand of God is on Your Life.

That's when I realized that this was God's way of telling me that I was right where I was supposed to be. I was right where he wanted me. He did intend to move me forward, but not yet. There were still things that had to be done - decisions to be made, life happenings to be played out. A good general does not send his troops into battle with out a plan. A good Father does not send His son out into the world ill-equipped. And a Good God does not move a person ahead of his time.

I heard the words again - The Hand of God is on Your Life.

And that's when I suddenly became satisfied, knowing that was exactly what I needed to hear.

God does not look at personalities. He does not look at works. He does not look at accomplishments or features or abilities. He looks at the heart.

Many of us have found ourselves in one of if not all of the positions listed above. I know I have. And there are many, many other positions that we could label and create for us to relate ourselves.

But God is not looking to label you. He is not looking to categorize you or put you in ranks with the other members of your church. He is looking at your heart.

How is your heart today? Are you seeking God for some sort of gain, whether spiritual or fleshly? Are you ignoring Him or running from Him to pursue what you want and avoid the responsibility and obedience of being a follower? Are you sitting there, doing nothing? Just waiting on something crazy spiritual to happen to you and to change your life in an instant?

Or are you pursuing Him? Are you relentless? Are you restless? Are you hungry?

Ask yourself. Ask God. Allow Him to answer. If you get real with Him and ask the question, I promise He will tell you.

"How is my heart?"

Have you ever been in a similar service? Can you relate to a catagory listed above? Comment and tell me about your experience, or email me!

I'd love to hear your story.

benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com

Doing What's Right in Others Eyes

2011-08-04T19:05:00.001-05:00

...And Overcoming the Debt of Bitterness

I recently had a very interesting conversation with my friend, Sophie, over coffee.

Sophie was telling me how her last boyfriend had cheated on her and then started dating someone else. Every time that she saw this guy, she felt such pain and bitterness. Finally it got to the point where she decided it was time to get revenge.

She and another friend had devised a scheme that they hoped would make her ex-boyfriend extremely jealous. They were going to start acting like they were dating, holding hands everywhere they went, sitting in each others' laps, and making sure that everyone saw them so that word would get back to her ex. I was a little concerned when I first heard her plan. I grew even more concerned after I learned that the friend she was going to do this with was another girl.

I asked Sophie if she had thought about the other people around her who would see her actions and start thinking she was a lesbian.

Her reply was, "Why should I care what others think? I shouldn't be held back by their opinions of me. We will both know that it is just a joke and that we are not really together. That's enough."

"Is it?" I asked.

"Yes, it is."

"Well, you have fun with that then. Let me know how it all works out for you."

I thought about her plan long after our conversation ended. I love Sophie and I knew that she was not a lesbian, but other people that saw her acting that way wouldn't know that. All they would see is two girls together, and they wouldn't know the real reason behind what they were doing. That is how rumors get started and peoples reputations get ruined.

Now, in a general sense, there is some truth in what Sophie said about not letting other peoples' opinions dictate how she lives her life. However, it's not a smart idea to try and deceive someone just to get even with them, and it is especially not a smart idea to mislead everyone around you in an attempt to deceive one person. And I'm not even going to go into the whole girl on girl thing.

This situation is exactly what Paul said NOT to do.

^"17 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all." - Rom 12:17

The decisions that you make affect the way others see you, which in turn affects the way that they respond to you.

If we truly understood the amount of influence that we have on the people around us, I think we would all be amazed. You never know just who is really watching you. You never know who is actually reading what you post on Facebook, or who is sitting three tables over from you in the restaurant, or who is behind you at the movie theater. People are constantly watching and evaluating, whether they know you or not.

I believe that as followers of Christ, ones actions should draw people closer to Christ, not drive them away.

Also, I don't agree with Sophie's motive, because revenge is never the answer for fixing bitterness.

1. Revenge does not make bitterness go away, it only covers it and encases it in a hard cast shell that, after time, becomes impossible to penetrate from the outside.

2. Revenge only gives that person a feeling of justification towards their bitterness. It will never bring about freedom from it.

True freedom from bitterness can only be received through forgiveness.

Bitterness is like debt. Whether you ignore the feelings or dwell on them, they build up over time until they weigh down on you and are almost impossible to overcome. Forgiveness is simply making a choice on a daily basis. Just as a person overcomes debt by paying off a little bit at a time, one must make a choice to constantly forgive each time the feelings of bitterness or anger rise up inside. Eventually, with God's grace, you will come out from under the pressure and the weight of bitterness, and God will have replaced it with love.

I talked to Sophie a couple weeks later and I asked her how the little scheme went. She told me that they ended up not going through with it. She said the reason they did not was because the guy wasn't worth all that trouble, but in reality I think that she got convicted by the Holy Spirit and it caused her to change her mind.

Either way, she made the right choice in the end, and I hope and pray that she is continuing to overcome her debt to bitterness by forgiving the person that hurt her, even if it is one day at a time.

How about you? Are you currently struggling with feelings of bitterness towards another person?

Or

What do you think other people see when they watch you handle your life in everyday situations? Are you conscious to do what is right in the sight of all men?

I'd love to hear from you! Email me at benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com or leave a comment

Thanks for reading!

Give Me Your Babies

2011-07-31T18:40:00.000-05:00

Giving Up the Things That Hold You Back

When I was originally asked to be a part of the first ever Edge Youth Camp, I was floored.

Here I am, a 23 year old who has grown up in this church and has attended just about every activity that they have ever put on, and now I am getting asked to not only be a part of this camp, but also to help lead and be on the leadership team. That just blew me away. I spent the next week or so just thanking God for the opportunity to lead.

When the decision became final, I tried to prepare and wrap my brain around what was being asked of me. That's when fear began to creep its way in.

It's a funny thing, fear. It can make the smallest of ant hills seem like the tallest of mountains. I have always felt that fear is just a little gremlin who casts a huge shadow. From far away he looks huge and terrifying, but up close it is hard not to laugh and exclaim, "That's what I was afraid of this whole time?"

Nonetheless, fear began to make its way into my mind.

Now, you have to understand that growing up I dealt with a lot of insecurity. I was always conscious of myself and how I "ranked" against the other people around me. I constantly put myself down in my mind so that I could justify my own actions as an introverted, shy person. I would keep myself from doing things that looked fun or seemed new and exciting, because I was afraid that I might mess up and look like an idiot, therefore dropping down even farther in my own ranked mind.

God has really worked on me over the last few years and he has given me many opportunities to step up and overcome my fears and insecurities. Many times I did step up and give myself to the challenge. Other times I backed out and gave up without even trying.

Overcoming fear is a process, but I know that I have overcome much of the insecurities that once held me down.

Well, when I stepped in to fulfill the role as Camp Directer at a summer camp that was new and had never been done before, the familiar feelings of fear and insecurity naturally began to make their way back in.

About one week before camp began, I was really starting to feel the pressure, and I found myself crying out and asking God to give me strength. The Saturday night before, I drove out to the church and spent about an hour by myself in worship, just trying to find strength and comfort to move forward and step up to the task that God had given me for the next week.

While I was out there, God began to speak and to show me things. What he showed me was very strange and awkward, but I want to share it with you all because I feel that it is not just a message for me to keep to myself.

As I was in worship, He began to show me a figure or a silhouette of a person. It was actually kind of disturbing because the person appeared to be giving birth. What made it even more strange and disturbing was that I realized the person giving birth was me! Once the baby was born, another figure walked into the picture, and I handed the baby off to them.

Well, as you can imagine, I was like, "God, what's up with that?! What on earth could this possibly mean?!"

His reply was simple, but stunning.

Give me your babies, He said.

I sat there for a minute, dumbstruck.

"Uh - Okay God, I don't get it."

You have things deep inside of you, insecurity and fear that has been developing and growing for a long time. These must go. You must get them out and give them up. It is a very painful process, because these feelings have become a part of you and they are familiar to you, even comforting. But it is time for you to let them go. Give me your babies.

Of course, this response sent me to my knees in worship again, and I decided right then and there that no matter what, I would give God all that was holding me back from doing my best and operating with excellence. I believe that because of this transition in my thinking and actions, it allowed me to operate in a much larger capacity than I could have before.

How about you? What is holding you back or hindering you from stepping up and stepping out? Have you given your fears and insecurities over to God? Have you allowed yourself to be honest with Him? Have you asked Him the deep tough questions like, "What is hindering me from knowing You more? What is between us that is keeping me back from encountering You?"

I guarantee you that if you get real with God and ask Him these questions, He will show you exactly what needs to go.

Don't hold back.

Be real with Him.

Give Him your babies.

Edge Youth Camp

2011-07-30T15:57:00.001-05:00

The Beginning of a Violent Awakening

This week our church hosted its first ever youth camp, and it could not have been more successful. From the very beginning, everything flowed like a fine tuned machine, and it was obvious that the entire event was God orchestrated.

I talked to just about every youth leader that came, many of whom have been to some of the top youth camps in the nation, and every single one of them said that the Edge Youth Camp is the best camp they have ever attended.

We had at least 30+ people decide to follow Christ and give Him their lives; we had several young people receive the Holy Spirit, and we had many respond to the call to ministry whether in a church setting, business setting, etc.

The Schedule

Every morning, specific groups of campers woke up early to go on a mountain hike. This was a great physical challenge for them, since it was early and everyone was tired from the previous days' activities. However it was also a great spiritual challenge, as they were not allowed to talk once they arrived at the mountain and started their climb. While they were hiking, each camper was also instructed to pick up a small rock to take with them. This rock represented something in their life - an issue or struggle, sin, a spiritual block or an idol- something that was hindering them in their walk with Christ. As they moved up the mountain side, every campers' thoughts were reflecting on the issues that their rock represented, how they have affected them and have kept them from going deeper with God.

Once they reached their destination, they had the opportunity to cast their rock as a spiritual sign of letting go of whatever has been holding them back. This was probably the favorite event of most campers, as they experienced feelings of freedom and relief by giving God their burdens and allowing Him to replace them with His everlasting love and mercy.

Now I did not get the opportunity to actually go on the mountain hikes, so I am not 100% sure if that is how everything went down. However, I do know that this was the idea in mind when the hikes were originally put together.

After the mountain climbs, the campers went throughout the day attending sessions, participating in tribe games, ice breakers and discussions, and diving into a deep worship experience which left them refreshed and invigorated, refueling them with a passion and desire to know more of Christ.

For their free time, they had big inflatable games to play on, a huge water slide to help them cool off and relax, and a carnival to attend at night. You can see videos of almost all of these activities by going to my Facebook page.

The Vision

The vision and the goal behind this camp was to awaken a generation of young people to the righteousness of Christ, and to empower them with a vision for their life. Many campers came away with a much better understanding of what it means to actually have a vision for where they are going and how to pursue God in a way where the vision will be made plain enough for them to follow.

All of the ice breakers and discussions that they participated in were geared towards seeking God for a vision and discovering the calling that He has on their lives. It was such an awesome thing to walk around campus and see groups of young people all interacting with each other and learning about committing to the tasks that God gives them, pursuing more intimate relationships with Him, and learning to hear His voice.

This camp has probably been the most enlightening thing that I have participated in since coming back home from Texas over two years ago. The exciting thing is that it does not stop here. We are totally anticipating next year and I know the leadership is prayerfully seeking direction and guidance as to where to take EYC in the future.

Until then, it is our duty to pursue God with everything that we have; it is our mandate to worship Him and to glorify and honor Him with our lives; and it is our calling to reflect the light of Christ, shining it into the darkest places that surround us by living lives of sacrifice and servant-hood.

If you are interested in finding out more information about the Edge Youth Camps, please feel free to contact me!

You can email me at benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com, or you can contact me on Facebook. I would love to hear from you and to provide you with more information.

LIFE UPDATES or SOMETHING NEW

2011-07-19T18:23:00.000-05:00

Alright, it's time for a life update.

It is crazy hot here in Enid. I can't even remember the last day that it wasn't over 100 degrees. And even if it has not been that many days over 100, it just proves how hot it's been because I can't remember that last time it wasn't this hot. Heat will do that to you - mess with your memory.

I was driving late one night with a friend (I say late one night, it was really like 3 am) and we passed a building that had a sign out front indicating the outside temperature. Are you ready for this?

It was 97 degrees! At three o'clock in the morning! By the time the sun comes up it will already be over 100.

Lately, it feels like there is no place to go to escape the heat. My second story apartment is like an oven because there is only one window unit and it basically covers the living and dining room area. This is easy to escape during the day; night time however, is a completely different story.

I have been sleeping on my couch for about the last four weeks because there is no airflow into the back bedroom. I have one of those pretend leather couches. So it's really a pleather couch. Do you know what happens when it is 89 degrees in your apartment and your try to sleep on a pleather couch? Your skin sticks to it like saran wrap. Try waking up from sleeping on that baby after about 7 hours straight. You stand up and look down to see half of your skin still laying there.

Thank God for cold showers. At least then I can offset my body temperature for a few minutes. You ever take a cold shower, and then get out only to start sweating again? Seriously! What was the point of standing under that nice, cool, refreshing waterfall for the last hour if the atmosphere is going to start trying to melt me again the second I get out?

And wearing clothes is almost torture. You can feel your body temperature begin to rise as you get dressed, and each article of clothing seems to get heavier and heavier, compressing body heat until you feel some kind of internal combustion about to take place.

This summer has not only been hot, it has also been busy. Now it's only going to get busier. A church that I am involved with is putting on a youth camp this summer, and I will be working as a camp director. This is exciting because I have been asked to be in charge of several activities, including emceeing for all of the sessions.

It's exciting to be part of something new. This is the first ever youth camp hosted by this church, and they already have camps lined up for next year as well.

Camp begins this next Monday, so this may be the last blog post before then. However, there are plans to dive into some deeper issues later on down the road, plus you can also expect more poetry, stories, thoughts and perspectives.

If you have a topic or something you think would make for an interesting or enlightening discussion, email me. I would love to hear from you!

I hope to have some exciting things to write about when we get back from camp.

Until then - Go Hard or Go Home.

Rubik's Cubes, Coloring Books and Making Out: Part II

2011-07-04T13:26:00.000-05:00

The Answer

Since posting Part 1, I have received some very thought provoking and interesting responses to the the question that was asked. It has been very enlightening to hear so many different opinions on the subject, and I have thoroughly enjoyed reading through the emails, facebook posts and comments sent to me by BTL readers.

In this post, I will be sharing my thoughts on the question posed and my reasoning for why I believe what I do regarding the subject. I do not want you to read this and just inadvertently decide what you believe based off of any emotional stimulation that this post might create or off of the emotions created by responses posted in the comments. It is very easy for someone to present a case on a blog page like this and make it sound good and appealing when there does not appear to be any sort of rebuttal close at hand to challenge the belief.

I would rather you take what is posted here and roll it around in your brain for awhile. Compare it to what you may have experienced yourself if you have ever been in that kind of a position - the feelings that you may have had or the issues that you faced from something like that. Most people hear something that may sound right and automatically proclaim they agree with it. However, the beliefs that we are passionate about are spawned from what we can relate to based off of what we ourselves have experienced personally.

My Response

When asked what I thought about the whole "making out" scenario, my first initial response was, "Why?"

"Why what?" came the reply.

"Why do it? I mean, why put yourself in such a risky position?"

The room began to die down at the thought.

"Why put yourself in a position that is not going to yield any meaningful results? You said yourself that you don't really like the guy like that and you couldn't be together anyway because you will be moving to different locations. So...why do it?"

It's a fair question. When you engage in some sort of action like this, you are not merely stimulating a physical feeling; you are opening your soul up to emotional attachments. It is possible for you to not be attracted to someone in that way, and still feel heartache at the thought of not being with them after going along and letting them in to see a deeper side of you. I'm not talking about a sexual intimacy where you give yourself to someone completely, although this is a step in that direction. I am merely talking about making a connection with someone who you know will not be able to maintain it properly. Heart ties are most painful to cut.

Plus, you have no idea how the actions you are engaging in will actually affect the other person. You might think in your head, "I'm good, I'm just going to have a good time and not think about it." But you have no idea what is really going through the other persons mind. As you allow yourself to engage in an act, you are suddenly being opened up to different, deeper side of that person.

So let's say that you are thinking as I mentioned above - "I'm good, I'm just going to enjoy the ride." And let's say that the other person claims that they feel the same way. If he is "just along for the ride" as you claim you are, do you expect him to simply unbuckle the seat belt and get off the roller coaster after it's all over? What do you think he is going to do the next time he has the urge to experience the thrill of the ride? He is just going to come back in hopes of getting another ticket to fulfill his desire for adrenaline. Who wants that? Is that what you want to be? His adrenaline rush every time he feels the urge?

Is that fair to you? No, that's a creek so shallow you could walk across it without getting your shoes wet.

Now, let's be honest ladies: you cannot really know what he feels when in that situation, because even if he has no interest in you whatsoever, he is still drawn to that sort of physical activity. It is much easier for him to say something that sounds good and that you will be okay with just so he can engage in what naturally draws him. This does not necessarily mean that he is a pervert or a horn-dog (yes I typed that). It merely means that he, being a hungry man, is naturally attracted to good food (check out blog post How to Be An Attractive Cook to understand more on this.)

Or let's say that he is attracted to you, but he knows that you are just along for the ride and not looking for an emotional attachment. It is still possible (and likely) that he will naturally proclaim similar feelings in order to go to a deeper level with you. However, how do you expect he will feel when, after allowing himself to become even more attached to you, you act like it was not a big deal and just a good time, then you move on with your life?

Is that fair to him? No, because you have opened him up even more to the idea that you might eventually become available. After all, if you were easy enough for him to kiss, you could eventually be won over, right?

Either way, you can never really know what he is thinking or how he really feels in that whole situation. If you are going to justify the situation just so you can engage in something pleasurable, then you also have to recognize the fact that you are being completely selfish and that you care more about your own needs than you do this other person. If you didn't, you would not put them in that kind of a situation. You also have to realize that this person does not care about you the way that they should, otherwise they would not put you in that scenario either. You are both being selfish, and selfishness will never fulfill the desire to be loved or to even enjoy the feeling of being loved, however real it seems at the time.

Now please understand that this response addresses someone who is not out for commitment or a relationship; this is just for someone who is looking for a good time. This would not necessarily apply to the person who is interested in someone and gives themselves in an attempt to make them think they are "good enough" to pursue. Giving yourself to someone to make them love you does not work.

Also, you cannot assume that because he is making out with you, he is interested in pursuing you. This is a huge misconception that many girls constantly fall into. He is a guy. When offered, his instincts are to engage. I think I would put it like this: A guy may watch porn, but that doesn't mean he wants to marry the porn star.

Yes this sounds harsh and up front. It sounds vulgar and hardcore. But it is a reality, and it is an idea that women need to keep in mind. Not because all guys watch porn, or that the girl is being likened to a porn star - that is not what I am saying- but because as part of their nature, guys are attracted to the opposite sex. Sexual intimacy is a specific need that they have been created with. (Someone may try and argue that sentence about guys being attracted to the opposite sex by addressing the subject of Homosexuality and whether they were born with it or not. We are not getting into that discussion here, but don't worry, that post is coming soon.)

It takes a man of strong will to stand up and say, "Listen, you are a good friend and I care about you. I don't want to risk our friendship over something that is not going to be meaningful. I don't want to hurt you or this relationship, and I definitely want you in my life as a friend." Of course, a man of strong will would not allow you or him to be put in the pathway of temptation in the first place.

If you want to see how strong he really is, do not make it easy for him to be put in any sort of situation with you. You are not testing his will power at this point, you are simply setting him, and yourself, up for an emotional failure. Instead, make it difficult for him. You will see how strong he really is by how willing he will be to pursue you and work for you.

Do not lower your standards in order to get someone else to fall for you or feel the same way about you that you do them. If you have to lower your standards, it is obviously not a good thing to pursue. If your standards are meeting requirements, it still may not even be the best thing. Wouldn't you rather be pursued by someone who brings you up to higher standards? Someone who brings out the better side of you?

I think we would all agree that this is what we are all searching for in the first place.

Rubik's Cubes, Coloring Books and Making Out

2011-06-25T12:15:00.000-05:00

This post is going to be in 2 parts. Part one is the stage setting for open discussion. Part two is going to be my response to the question posed regarding the topic at hand. I am inviting readers to take part in the discussion by either posting comments or emailing me their thoughts and opinions.

THE QUESTION

Have you ever been hanging out with friends and having a good time when someone asks a question or tells a story and then changes the course of conversation by asking for everyone's opinions? Suddenly the mood becomes somewhat serious and everyone relishes in the fact that they can all morph from immature party people back into mature adults for a brief moment.

This happens just about every time I go to a party or hangout with people that I know. And it is usually always girls who start questioning the guys.

Girls always want to know things like: guys views on dating, or what guys think about certain situations, or what guys find attractive in a girl. It's not like they don't already know guys though. I mean, let's face it: it's not like we're Rubik's Cubes that have to be solved. To them, we are more like coloring books that just need to be filled in. The details are all there, we are just lacking the color. As you can imagine, it's not that much of a challenge. Plus they know that they are what brings the color into our lives anyway.

Still, I find it interesting when they ask questions specifically about relationships. I usually sit back and listen to everyone else give their answers and opinions before I even open my mouth.

At some point, somebody notices that I haven't said a word the entire time and they ask me what my opinion is on the subject. I'm sure you've all been here before. The room goes silent and everyone turns their attention on you, waiting to hear your response.

The last time this happened to me, I had to wait for all the girls to pull up chairs and sit down so that they could be entirely focused on whatever it was that I was about to say.

I do not really know why this always happens. I am simply giving my opinion, the same as everybody else. I know what I believe about dating and sex and stuff like that, and I merely say what I believe is right and true. And yet, for some reason everyone always seems astonished at what I have to say. Either that or somebody get's really offended. I'd like to think it's just conviction rubbing them the wrong way.

One topic discussed at a get-together was about "making out". The question was something to the effect of, "If you are friends, and you both understand that it (the relationship) is not going anywhere, do you think it's still okay to do?"

It's just two friend having fun together right? It's not like they are having sex or anything. It's not that big of a deal because they don't really like each other and they know there is no potential for a relationship. It's just kissing... right?

These were the questions that were posed to me that evening.

Before I give you the same response that I gave to them, I want to give BTL readers a chance to offer their own thoughts and opinions on the subject first.

The Question: Do you think it is okay for a guy and a girl to make-out if they both have an "understanding" that they are just friends and it's not going to go anywhere?

I'd love to hear your perspective.

If you would like to send an email with your thoughts, send it to benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com. Nothing that I receive is going to be posted on the blog page unless consent is given by the sender. If you would like to leave a comment with your thoughts, please do so .

As I have said before, BTL is not about imposing beliefs on others. It is merely about invoking thought by presenting ideas. And I would love to hear your ideas on the topic, and why you believe what you do. I think it will be most enlightening.

You can also visit the Between The Lines Facebook page and post thoughts or comments there if you'd like.

You can expect Part 2, "The Answer" to be up within the next couple of days. Until then, I am very interested to here from you!

The Sunrise is Coming

2011-06-18T15:04:00.000-05:00

A Testimony of Purpose

I was born on June 18th, 1988.

When my mother was in the hospital ready to have me, the nurses who were monitoring everything noticed that every time she had a contraction, my heart rate would drop significantly.

Her doctor was not exactly sure what was causing this decrease in heart rate, and he asked for some assistance from a doctor that my parents did not even know. This new doctor walked in and said that they needed to move her to a different room, and fast.

They rushed my mother out into the hallway and towards another room as one of the nurses grabbed a pair of scrubs for my dad to put on.

"Dad, if you want to be a part of this, you better get into these and fast!" she said as she half handed-half tossed them in his direction.

My dad took the clothes and went to go change. I can only imagine the thoughts that must have been racing through his mind. I can't believe this is finally happening! I've got to hurry and get in there. I sure hope this new guy know's what he's doing. Lord Jesus, please give this doctor wisdom, and please protect my wife and child. Oh God, protect my wife and child!

The Delivery

When in the delivery room, the contractions grew stronger and my heart rate continued to drop lower and lower every time.

"Alright, we need to move this woman to a different table," the new doctor exclaimed. The nurses went around the started getting the table ready, while he looked back at my mother in some sort of annoyed disbelief and said, "What are you doing? Get over here on to this table!"

Mother, in her own mind, exclaimed "What do you want me to do? Jump off of this table and onto that one by myself?!"

The doctor came over as she tried to sit up, and he grabbed her hand somewhat pulling her off of the stretcher and toward the actual table where she was to have me. Assisted by the nurses, she made her way over and onto the table, and not a moment to soon.

Scrubs

Meanwhile, my dad was struggling to get all ready and dressed in his scrubs. It can be difficult to move effectively when you are as nervous as you have ever been in your life, and somehow all ability to coordinate and function properly goes out the window. Once he was all prepared, he rushed down the hall to the delivery room where mom was. By the time he arrived, he found my mother still on the table, but I was already out into open air. When he asked the doctor why my heart rate had been decreasing, he was filled in on the rest of the story.

Entangled

When it was time for me to be delivered, I began making my way out. Just as my head became visible, the doctor realized what had been causing my heart rate to drop with each contraction.

"The umbilical cord is wrapped around the baby's neck!" he exclaimed.

In one quick motion, he reached down and pushing on my head, forced my body back up inside of my mother. This, as you can imagine, was excruciating. Once I was back inside of her, the doctor then reached his hand up inside and somehow untangled that cord from around my neck.

"It's free!" he exclaimed. "Now we've got to get this baby out of her."

"You two," he pointed at two of the nurses, "Get on each side of her and push. "

Both nurses took positions on either side of my mother, and on command began pushing down on her abdomen. My mother began screaming out in agony, "JEESUUS! JEEESUUUS!!!" Quite frankly, both the nurse and the doctor all thought she was swearing. But if you know my mother at all, you know that she was simply crying out for help from her Savior.

As they pushed, I began to make my way out. My mother's cervical opening went from about 4 centimeters to 10 in just a matter of seconds. The doctor continued shouting commands to push, like a row team captain gives rhythmic orders to row, and my mother continued to cry out in pain as she was now beyond 10 centimeters and had not had time for an episiotomy. With the last few heaves, she was ripped open beyond about 15 centimeters. The orders grew louder and the screaming grew more intense as the last heave forced me out of her body.

And then, silence. My mother lay there, exhausted and in extreme pain, breathing heavily. The nurses on either side of her now slowly moved around in front of her. The doctor, who had quit giving the commands to push, slowly raised up and stood over my mother, holding me in his arms.

And in the silence, a faint cry broke the serenity of the moment and began increasing in volume until it filled the operating room with an angelic simpleness.

After Birth

From there I was rushed into neo-natal ICU. My mother was given a shot so she could be sewn back up, and there was talk about possibly having to give me a complete blood transfusion. They later discovered that this would not be necessary.

Later that day, my parents were reading in Psalms. My dad turned to the Psalm of the day, which was Psalm 18. This is what it said:

Ps. 18:1-7, 16-19

¹ I love you, LORD, my strength.

² The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
   my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
   my shield^[b] and the horn^[c] of my salvation, my stronghold.

³ I called to the LORD, who is worthy of praise,
   and I have been saved from my enemies.

⁴ The cords of death entangled me;
the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.

⁵ The cords of the grave coiled around me;
the snares of death confronted me.

⁶ In my distress I called to the LORD;
I cried to my God for help.
From his temple he heard my voice;
my cry came before him, into his ears.

⁷ The earth trembled and quaked,
and the foundations of the mountains shook;
they trembled because he was angry...

¹⁶ He reached down from on high and took hold of me;

he drew me out of deep waters.

¹⁷ He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from my foes, who were too strong for me.

¹⁸ They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
but the LORD was my support.

¹⁹ He brought me out into a spacious place;
he rescued me because he delighted in me.

I know for a fact that God has a purpose and a plan for my life. I'm living proof of this.
Maybe you are struggling with thoughts that your life is worthless and you have no purpose on this earth.

Well let me tell you what I know from experience:

God does not make mistakes. He does not create worthlessness. He does not make junk. Everything that He does has meaning and is for a purpose. He is in control even when we may not realize it. And He does not give up on his creation.

Don't give up on yourself.

You can't see it yet, but there is a plan and a specific purpose for your life. Maybe it is nothing as great or significant as preaching to 1,000 people or writing a book or running a corporation or anything like that. Maybe it's to simply have a family and raise up children who love and follow Jesus.

We can all do that.

If you don't see a purpose for your life at this moment in time, that doesn't mean you give up hope on there being one. Would you give up hope on there ever being another sunrise just because the sun has set and has disappeared from sight for a time? No. The sunrise is inevitable every morning. Instead, pursue God during the time of darkness and trust that he has everything in control.

Keep you eyes on the horizon. Your sunrise is coming.

If Life Were a Movie...

2011-06-17T13:36:00.000-05:00

...Armstrong Would Be in the Sound Track

The other night I was cruising around downtown Oklahoma City in my new Chevy Trailblazer that I just purchased the previous day.

While flipping through radio stations and setting stereo preference controls, the dial landed on 105.3 - The Martini. This was a radio station that I had yet to discover so I just left it there.

I listened for awhile as Dean Martin crooned away on some love song. When he was done, Sinatra appeared on the scene and began belting out a song about his girl being the only one for him. After Sinatra finished, Rod Stewart, Sarah Vaughan, Natalie Cole, Nat King Cole, Ray Charles, Tony Bennett, Harry Connick, Jr., Michael Buble, Bobby Darin and Sammy Davis Jr. all made their appearances.

When they were done though, I listened intently as Louis Armstrong came on next. I love Armstrong because his music is so raw. It's as if he walked into the studio, sat down in a chair, opened up his music case and pulled out a trumpet, then began to play. I became mesmerized as his music made it's way from the studio through the antenna signal, down the the network channel, out the speakers and into my vehicle. Man, I could listen to him in just about any setting. Who couldn't?

If life were a movie, Louis Armstrong would definitely be in the sound track. If I had my way, I think I would play him during the downer scene in the picture - that portion of the film where the main guy whose life is falling apart is walking alone at midnight in pouring rain and contemplating how things could possibly get worse.

Yet I don't think I could typecast Armstrong in just one sense, as his music is versatile enough and yet recognizable enough to be whatever it needed to be for a soundtrack.

It could be the background for an opening scene, with it's upbeat and jive demeanor.

It could be the defining emotion behind a scene about an intimate encounter.

And yes, it could be the backdrop of the "I'm-at-the-lowest-point-in-my-life" scene.

But I don't think I could just pick one. I think I would have to succumb to the hypnotic and tantalizing sound. I would have to give in to it's demands and make it the only available source of emotional stimulation for the picture.

And whether the movie was that good or not, people would still enjoy it. Most of the time it's not the events that make the movie enjoyable, it's how they are sewn together.

I think I would let Louis be the thread connecting my sequence of life events.

For Those of Us Who Are Well Off

2011-06-15T12:08:00.000-05:00

...And Have Yet To Realize It

We want to be humans with tattered souls.
We want to be the problem child without a home.
We want to be independent but we require too much love.
There's nothing wrong with us, and that's what's wrong with us.

So we go about with our mundane lives.
We kick and scream and we waste our time.

When the world that we want doesn't do
what it should and the people we become
are not half as good as the people we envy
with tattered souls-

The problem child and his story of holes.

We make a big mess out of nothing at all and we
go from sitting down to causing Mans Great Fall.
The earth moves round in the right direction,
but we walk backwards like we're the exception.

And now here we sit a couple decades later,
a few cigarettes short and woman whose made her
way into our home and then transformed herself.
We don't recognize her from our mirrored self.

Our children have turned into unfamiliar faces.
Gone are the days of ribbons and braces.

We have become out of touch with everything around us

because the world that we knew did not do

what we wanted it to.

Now everything is wrong with us and that’s what’s wrong with us.

Do we just accept it, then go on and die?

Or do we pick ourselves up and give living a try?

The Most Powerful Weapon in the World

2011-06-13T23:28:00.000-05:00

A Lesson About the Words We Speak

About every few weeks, I get asked to teach or speak to the youth group at our church- usually the 8th -12th graders. However, yesterday I was given a new and exciting opportunity to teach the 5th - 7th graders in their Sunday morning class.

Whenever I teach younger students, I like to bring a message to them in a more visual way so that they will actually have something to reflect on and remember. And thats exactly what I did for this group.

This Sunday we talked about the most powerful weapon in the world:

The Tongue

How It Went Down

When the lesson was beginning, I asked the students what they thought the most powerful weapon in the world might be. As you can imagine, I received some interesting answers. Some said a gun; some said an A-bomb or another form of explosive devise. One cocky kid on the back row shouted out, "ME!". Of course I challenged him to a cage match and he quickly cowered at the thought.

I then asked for a volunteer. A young girl on the front row raised her hand unsuspectingly, and was selected for the task that I was about to give her. On the stage was a box, and inside that box was a cold, slimy, 12" cow tongue ( I had put it in a plastic bowl and covered it with soap to make it even slimier). Her job was to reach into the box and tell me what she thought it contained by feeling what was inside.

Naturally, I got quite a kick out of watching her reach her hand in and then squeal as her fingers felt the tongue's slimy exterior. After convincing her that it was not a snake and it was not alive, I pulled up the box and exposed the object underneath, and then we went into the rest of the lesson.

The Power of the Tongue

The words that we speak have the power to either build up or tear down. Our tongue can be a powerful tool of encouragement, or a powerful weapon of mass destruction. In Ephesians 4:29, Paul instructs us to not let any unwholesome word come out of our mouths, but only what is necessary for building others up according to their needs.

"Have you ever had someone say something hateful to you or about you? How did that make you feel about yourself?

"Have you ever said something hateful about someone else? How did that make you feel about yourself?"

When I asked them these questions, some doors for discussion were opened which allowed me to go into a full presentation of who we really are in Christ and how we can overcome lies and slanderous things that people tell us and try to make us believe. Through understanding and forgiveness, we can overcome any lie or anything hateful that we have been told about ourselves by others, and through repentance and an understanding of the Gospel, we can be forgiven for any hateful thing that we have ever said another person.

By focusing on the words that we speak to one another, we have new opportunities presented to us everyday to make new friends and encourage others, plus we build up our own esteem when we esteem others first. This is how we grow together as the body of Christ.

One Week Challenge

After talking about the power of the tongue and the words that we speak, along with who we are in Christ and how we can build one another up by focusing on what comes out of our mouth, the students were then presented with a challenge.

They are to find one person from this Sunday until next and they are to encourage them, building them up with their words and actions for the entire week.

And once the week is up, they are to come back and tell me about their experiences.

I can guarantee you that, if they take the challenge, they will find they have made either a new friend or they have made a good relationship either stronger, depending on who they choose to encourage. Plus, they will feel even better about themselves and who they are in Christ once the week is up.

When we are constantly focused on building each other up with our words, we will find that our number of friends continues to increase. You want to be the popular one in your environment? You want to be the one with influence wherever you are? Then make a conscious effort to lift others up and encourage them with the words that you speak.

Hopefully, these students will take the challenge seriously and actually put forth the effort to try it out and see for themselves. Needless to say, I am excited to hear their stories this next Sunday.

Back to Business

2011-06-10T13:36:00.000-05:00

Getting Back to the Focus of BTL

The 24 Hour Blogathon has come and gone, and I am pleased to say that it was quite a success.

We were able to spend some quality time with great people, be a part of some cool events going on in the Enid area, eat some amazing food, and also help spread the word about some great local businesses.

And now that this little venture is over, I feel that it is important to get back to the basics of what this blog is all about. So I want to take a moment and share kind of an outline with you of what really is the purpose and focus behind BTL.

BTL is designed as an avenue for expression.

This of course allows a lot of elbow room for content diversity - poetry, song lyrics, videos, essays, monologues, etc. But everything posted is simply human expression in one honest form or another.

Expression can be the open door to a deeper world of thought, and the focus of BTL is merely to stir up those thoughts inside the readers mind. Yes, there will be opinions posted, there will be some discussions of more hardcore issues, and there will be adamant personal beliefs exposed. However, there won't ever be a close minded article exclaiming some thing like "You must believe this way or you are wrong."

Because that's not the point.

The point is merely to encourage thinking outside of the small and intellectually suffocating cubicles that our minds fritter away in day after day. It is good for you to have a world view and to know what you believe. But it is also good for you to exercise your beliefs and continue to grow in them. Don't let you intellect get lazy and your "beliefs" merely collect like fat, forming love handles to your brain.

Belief without passion is nothing more than dead weight.

BTL is about recognizing the beauty of creativity and developing an appreciation for art.

I think this is one of the most misunderstood areas of BTL at times.

I refer to art here as simply one's own ability to create. My brother Joseph is a singer, song writer and somewhat self taught musician (see blog post Have You To Hold.) He is not merely a musician with a killer voice, he is an artist. My friend Heather is a photographer and videographer with a creative eye (just look at the BTL headliner photo! Also check out blog post Pleas of an Innocent Heart.) Both have completely different talents, and yet they are both artists in their own fashion.

I consider writing an art form. I'm not saying everything (or anything for that matter) that I write is a masterpiece, but I do take it seriously and I treat it as such. BTL is simply about creativity, appreciating the talents and abilities which I believe an All Significant Being injected into the souls of His own creation, His own work of art - humanity. I believe that anything you create that is not condoning of immorality or rebellion in any way, whether poetry, songs, videos, paintings, music, etc., can and is glorifying to the Original Artist.

BTL's material is designed with a desire to simply be relatable .

Life is hard. We all go through trials, we all have issues, we've all been around the track a few times on the emotional roller coaster. BTL has never been an attempt to tell you how to make your life better; it's merely and hopefully designed to be a reminder that you are not alone, that you are not the only one who has felt or been through what you have.

Pain, heartache, anger, joy, laughter - we have all felt them, we have all been there. One of my main desires is that you will read this blog and see something that you can connect with; something that you can relate to.

What to expect in the future

As we go on into the summer months, I will continue to post different pieces of poetry and such, along with the familiar articles and thoughts. However, I also plan to take BTL to a new level by diving into deeper discussions of more technical and hardcore issues.

Just to give you an idea of the direction that this blog is heading towards, here are two very important upcoming topics that will be addressed or discussed in one way or another at some point in the near future:

The Rapture - Theology or Mythology?

Homosexuality - The Sin of Sins or just another trait of a sinful nature?

Topics such as these will be chosen due to their significance to our culture and their urgency to be addressed at this day and age.

So as you can tell, there will be changes coming to BTL regarding content, and there will still be certain familiar aspects that have always been apart of the blog.

I hope that you will approach the content with an open mind, and instead of just taking the opinions offered at face value, form your own opinions based off of the evidence that is given and what you believe is right in your heart.

As I have said before, I believe it is important to analyze and to perceive. I believe it is important to read between the lines.

Final Updates

2011-06-04T16:10:00.000-05:00

We are at Davinci's Coffee House right now, and we are in our FINAL TWO HOURS!

If you are planning to send in your pictures for the REBORN ARTWEAR Gift Certificate, please do so as soon as possible.

If you would still like to get registered to win Craig Groeschels latest book, WEIRD, please contact us as soon as you can.

The deadline for both contests is 5PM!!!

After 5, we will no longer be able to accept submissions, so hurry and send yours in now!

You can send pictures or post you information - Name, email, phone# - on Eric's or my Facebook pages, or you can email us your pictures/registration information.

Eric's email - eric@followeric.com

My email - benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com

Hurry and send in your information now!

Northcutt Car Show

2011-06-04T12:51:00.001-05:00

Earlier this morning we went to the Northcutt Car Show, Wake Up and Rev Up!

Here are a few of the vehicles that we looked at:

(sorry I did not get vehicle information when we were there!)

Jaguar - sorry I did not get exact make/model/year

Ford Galaxy
(No make/model/year - sorry)

1950's Cadillac
(Once again, not able to get exact make/model/year)

2010 Camaro

Make sure you get registered to win in our give-a-ways! See previous post about Give-A-Ways to find out how to win!

Big Give-A-Ways

2011-06-04T10:51:00.001-05:00

See How You Can Win A Copy of Craig Groeschel's Latest Book - Weird

As you can imagine, we cannot do an event like this Blogathon without some sort of fun interaction with our followers.

That is why we are doing special give-a-ways throughout the course of this venture.

Eric and I will be giving away a copy of Craig Groeschel's latest book, WEIRD, and here is how you can have a chance to win.

Contact us with your information - Name, Email, Phone - and we will draw one lucky name out of the pile.

If your name is drawn, you win the book. Done deal.

We are also giving away a certificate for either one free T-Shirt or 2 pair of Earrings from REBORN ARTWEAR.

To win some REBORN ARTWEAR apparel, send us a picture of you drinking some sort of caffeine, and we will determine what we deem as the most out-of-the-box creative caffeine drinking picture.

Most creative picture wins. It's that simple.

You can post your pictures on Eric's Facebook page, or on my Facebook page, or you can email them to us.

Email Eric at eric@followeric.com, or me at benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com.

WE ARE ONLY ACCEPTING ENTRIES UNTIL 5PM, SO SEND THEM IN NOW!

Late Night Drunks, Police and the Brow Dance

2011-06-04T07:01:00.000-05:00

So we are going on 12 hours into the 24 Hour Blogathon and so far we have had some interesting things take place.

After we left Kaffee- Klatsch, we headed over to IHOP where we spent most of the night eating pancakes, drinking coffee, playing card games and watching all of the late night drunks come and go. At one point the police showed up because of some complaints about a specific customer, and we watched while the rest of the rowdy crowd cheered as this specific individual was swiftly escorted from the building.

From IHOP, we made our way over to Wenchells where we picked up a dozen donuts. From Wenchells, we made our way over to J's Donuts where we picked up another dozen. Now we are sitting at Schiebers Donuts, where we have picked up another dozen plus a few for ourselves.

Now I know what you are thinking - "What are these guys doing with all of these donuts?"

Well, we will be going to the Felt Bird at around 12pm today, and we will actually be giving out free donuts from each of the shops that we have visited. We would really like for you to come join us, eat a donut and hangout!

So far, we have had some great moments in our Blogathon Venture. Just check out the Brow Dance!

We are heading to the Rev Up and Wake Up Car Show at Northcutt Chevrolet at 7am, and you should expect some more videos coming soon!

If you want to get more up to the minute details, follow me on Twitter! Just search for benbtl and click follow!

Thanks for reading!

Some Poetry from Tonight

2011-06-03T23:09:00.000-05:00

Here is a piece that we did tonight at Scribners Art Gallery (sorry the video is not that great).

SENSELESS

Senseless

Letters array my mind like stars splatter the sky

I reach in, pull out a handful, then smear them across the page.

Next I take a fine pointed rubber chisel and begin stabbing and scraping, cutting off the unwanted chunks of sense and smoothing out the rough edges of reason.

Once all trace of sanity has been erased and discarded, I then begin to sort through the signs and symbols of a former comprehensible language.

I pull out single letters at a time, and put them together, like pieces in a puzzle.

The more pieces that get matched, the more foolishness begins to take the shape of reality, and images begin to form- a lightening bolt, a ring resting on the petal of a flower, a mushroom cloud mixed with a rainbow….

As time goes on, the images themselves begin to take shape, until they are no longer single images but instead are all one big picture, pieced together by the stubbornness of infatuation.

After all is said and done, I pull back the cover of the pages where my writing is to come alive, just like an artist unveils a masterpiece that he has been concealing for God knows how long…

And I watch as every image portrayed in my art is lively displayed across your face in a single moment.

Because every single symbol and scribble mark of this once rule-abiding text plays its part and fits together creating a single portrait of the one thing that brought me this senseless inspiration in the first place…

You.

First Official Blogathon Post

2011-06-03T22:42:00.000-05:00

So Scribners Art Gallery was as much as a success as it could have been, and we were able to stream the entire show live.

Eric and I performing and original piece
at Scribners Art Gallery

It was somewhat of a difficult atmosphere for poetry, and we found ourselves in competition with the noise of the outgoing art enthusiasts.Well, that and the Wizard across the room who was putting a magic show.

That was...interesting.

We are currently at Kaffee-Klatsch on Broadway and Grande, and we would love for any outgoing night owls to come and join us! After Kaffe-Klastch we will head over to IHOP for some late night food (and possibly a game or two!)

Tonight It Begins!

2011-06-03T17:31:00.000-05:00

The 24 Hour Blogathon!

Tonight we begin the 24 Hour Blogathon event!

We will be at Scribners Art Gallery at 7pm performing some original spoken word pieces put to live music, and we are streaming the show live on Ustream!

Click HERE for the Ustream link.

You will be able to watch the show live if you are not able to come and see it in person.

Also, stay tuned into the channel because we will be streaming live feed throughout the course of the next 24 hours.

To get the latest updates and locations of where we will be over the 24 hour period, go to Eric's Blog to see a detailed itinerary.

Also, you can follow me directly on twitter!

Search for benbtl and follow me so that you can see the latest updates!

Hope to see you there!

Hulu

2011-05-31T01:31:00.000-05:00

The Cinematic Sharp Shooter

Obviously my focus for the last several posts has been the upcoming 24 Hour Blogathon event, which my friend Eric and I will begin this next Friday night at the local art gallery in downtown Enid.

However, I want to take a break from the blogathon madness and just write.

Because this Monday was memorial day, I didn't have to go into work. Naturally this is nice because I had an extra day to relax and get rested. I had my Monday all planned out too. Not in any great detail mind you, but I did decide in my head what I wanted to do with my holiday.

I decided that I would wake up relatively early for a day off and go down to Davinci's Coffee House (the same coffee house that Eric and I performed at the Friday night before - see blog posts: Last Nights Success and Material from Last Nights' Warm Up). My plan was to go and get a frozen mocha and read a book that I recently started but have yet to continue reading after completing the first chapter. From there I would go back to my apartment, straighten up the place a bit and maybe do some writing or what not. After that, I would head over to Eric's place for a cookout.

Well, those ideas all got shot right out of the sky Sunday night - all except for the cookout that is. And do you want to know the culprit responsible for the shooting?

Hulu.

And how, you ask, is Hulu responsible for ruining your Monday with such pin-point accuracy?

Well I'll tell you:

I have often used the site as a resource for finding random/funny video clips that I can send to friends for various reasons - inside jokes, relatable material, that sort of thing.

However, I never really understood or realized the vast amount of "resources" that are at one's disposal when using Hulu. For instance, I never realized that by browsing through the various t.v. shows available, you could almost find every season of every t.v. show (with a few exceptions) that was ever aired, and view them by simply creating an account and password in which to log in.

Now, I know what you're thinking - "Duh! that's what Hulu is for!"

And you are right. And I know that you are right, because in the back of my mind I already knew that was what Hulu is for. The funny thing is that I never actually realized what was available through the site, and just how much you could actually access for free.

Let me give you a for-instance:

Growing up, my brothers and I would go and stay with our Grandparents in Oklahoma City for certain short periods of time. Grandma and Grandpa had this movie about Robin Hood entitled Quest for the Crown, starring Richard Greene. We loved that movie and watched it just about every time we went over to visit. My grandparents got so annoyed with us watching that movie that they eventually told us we couldn't watch it anymore. I think my Grandpa may have even hidden it from us once, because the last time we tried to watch it, it wasn't in it's usual space in the closet where they kept all of their cinema entertainment.

Well, on Hulu last night, I discovered that there was actually a t.v. show called The Adventures of Robin Hood, starring all of the same actors, and it is also what inspired the movie Quest for the Crown. Naturally, I watched an episode. On watching the one episode, I then discovered that I could actually access any episode from any season of the t.v. shows' history!

This made me curious as to what other shows might be available, and so I started browsing and watching whatever it was that I found. I ended up watching episodes of Rocky and Bullwinkle (a personal childhood favorite), The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, and The Addams Family on top of Robin Hood.

I finally went to sleep at about 6 am.

I know - it was very irresponsible of me and I ended up not doing anything that I originally planned to do on Monday. I didn't even get out of bed until about 2:30 in the afternoon. I didn't even leave the house until about 4:30.

And yet, if you were to ask me how my day was, I would have to say that it....

Okay, it definitely could have been better. Like, the t.v. show thing was fun and all, but it did get old after awhile and I did wake up extremely late and extremely tired, and now I am typing this at 1:30 am on Tuesday morning because I am not tired now, even though I have to get up at 6 am and get ready for work, during which you know I will be tired because I didn't go to bed early enough tonight.

So, yes I am glad that Hulu is more awesome that I originally realized, but I am not so glad that I finally realized just how awesome it is.

Oh well, I guess my staying up late is just good preparation for the Blogathon that is coming up this weekend.

Speaking of which, don't forget that we will be streaming live video footage through the course of the 24 hour period so that those of you who are not able to attend in person can still be apart of all that we are doing. Plus we will also be doing some give-a-ways throughout the 24 hours, on which I should have more updated information for you soon.

Stayed tuned for more Blogathon info, and thanks for reading!

More Original Material From Last Night's Warm Up

2011-05-28T18:08:00.000-05:00

Here is another piece from last nights warm-up at Davinci's.

Sick

siCK.

My Heart is sick.

I can feel it churning inside, trying to hold down all of it's stifled emotions.
As you can imagine, this demands more control and will power than one might realize.

You see, what happens is the Mind plays the Hearts Antagonist and begins to taunt.
It starts off by taking little drops of memories and releasing them every five minutes, each one landing in the same exact spot, causing an irritation to the outer covering of this pumping organ.

This off course is frustrating, but not unbearable.

When the fun of mental Chinese torture wears off, the Mind begins to pour quantities in a rhythmic fashion, making sure to hit every dry spot.

Once there isn’t a single spot insight that has not been consummated, the Antagonist then begins to pour in a steady stream that covers the entire vessel, drenching it in a downpour of mental oppression.

Of course, the Antagonist can only play so long until his game gets old and his true intent becomes exposed.

Finally, in one cruel sweep he reaches down, grabs the Heart and, tilting it back violently, begins pouring the poison of sweet memories- memories that can no longer be relived- down the hearts throat.

It doesn’t take much…

Just a little bit of a starlit sky, mixed with a perfume scented pillow, or maybe a first sip of Davinci’s coffee mixed with the taste of a first kiss.

Before long, the Heart is screaming and flailing, begging for mercy, or a second chance, or revenge.

After awhile, the Mind lets up and lets go, taking a step back to enjoy the event that is about to take place due to the action that has been performed.

The Heart leans forward with the feeling of a hurricane in its belly, and after longs periods of moaning and wheezing, lets out the first dry heave.

And then the second.

And the third.

Each one forcing their way out like air shot out of billows; each one more painful than the last.

Finally, in one single gasp, the last heave forces open the invisible barrier caught between the windpipe and the jugular and out comes everything that the Heart has taken in over the last few years.

It spews out memories of laughter and excitement, exhilaration, electric guitars, nachos, two sets of earrings and a pair of gold shoes.

The Heart catches itself for a moment, only to be launched back in to a forward hurl of black dress shoes, pillows and blankets, chocolate Godiva cheesecake and a crazy patterned red dress.

It stops long enough to groan before another wave of items begins to make their way out of its train tunnel of a throat.

All the while the Heart is dying, the Mind is being vindicated.

Who knows why the Antagonist really needs this feeling of victory?

Who knows why it has to be the one to fuel a fire that can burn a bridge between a City and her friend?

Who knows?

All I know is -

my Heart is sick.

Material From Last Nights Warm-Up

2011-05-28T12:24:00.000-05:00

This is a video from our pre-show last night at Davinci's Coffee House.

DREAMER

Dreamer

Your song is playing in the other room, but I can’t listen because I haven’t warmed up to the thought of not having you.

It’s Midnight, and I can’t sleep because my eyes Burn Like Fire. It’s my desire for you to come home, because you know I really loved you.

If only I could interrupt your parking lot dance routine, just to steal another hour of your company. That would mean the world to me.

Just to meet up with you as I’m walking down this one way street. I wish you would walk back- bend the law- just to meet with me. Doesn’t God even break His own rules sometimes?

Is it wrong, or would I be a fool to approach God and ask why? To request to see you? To see if he would let us try and meet?

Well I can’t and you wouldn’t, even if you could; and I won’t ask or even question because I doubt He would.

I’m sure He would just reply, “Things are as they should”,

So I won’t press the subject further…. but that doesn’t mean my thinking isn’t good!

That doesn’t mean I’m not allowed to dream!

Shiny streets and parked cars; dancing in the night under a blanket of stars -

Diamonds in the air, just like the ones in Joe’s ears...

And now even he gets to see you; all I can see is a face full of tears!

I’m staring into this mirror- a reflection of my own fears. Everything I don’t want is all that’s inside.

And all that’s inside is now exposed, running out my eyes, past my nose. Its funny- I couldn't see that far before… until you showed me what was really out there.

Any fool can dream. But you showed me what a true dreamer does. He pursues. He pursues the things that seem to be just out of reach.

That’s what you were: a dreamer.

Only your dreams ended up chasing you. They just caught up with you faster than the rest of us would’ve liked.

So I won’t sit here and reminisce about what cannot be.

I won’t bury my self in my own heart wrenched iniquity.

I won’t ask myself about all of the things I didn’t do while we had you.

I won’t ask, I won’t linger, I won’t scheme. I won’t hate, I won’t wonder.

I’ll just dream.

In Memory of Isaac King and Joe Arita

Random facts -
Lines 2 & 3 reference either song titles or lines from songs on Isaac's bands' self titled debut CD After 3.
Line 10 mentions "Diamonds in the air, just like the ones in Joe's ears." Joe always wore a pair of glass stud earrings.

Last Night's Success

2011-05-28T11:28:00.000-05:00

Our Preview Show at Davinci's Coffee House

Last night was our Preview Show at Davinci's Coffee House where Eric and I did some original poetry put to music, and I must say that I am pleased with the results.

Eric and I opening at Davinci's Coffee House

We streamed the performance live on Ustream, and we will be doing the same thing this next Friday night at Scribners Art Gallery in downtown Enid at 7pm.

Then from Scribners, we will be heading straight into our 24 Hour Blogathon venture. We have several other bloggers who will be joining us throughout the course of our 24 hour period, and you will have a chance to meet them as well as read some of their material.

We will also be streaming live footage through the 24 hour time frame, and we would love for you to join us, either in person or by tuning in to watch us live.

Eric performing an instrumental set

I will be posting some video footage along with some of the material from last night, so be on the lookout for more posts today!

Updates on 24 Hour Blogathon and Davinci's Pre-Show

2011-05-18T02:04:00.000-05:00

As the time is winding down to the Blogathon, I am getting more and more excited about the opportunity to write and perform along side my friend Eric Castillo.

If you have not heard yet, Eric and I are doing a 24 hour Blogathon event, in which we will be traveling around the Enid area in an effort to promote local businesses and get our material out into the open.

We will be kicking off the event at Scribners Art Gallery in downtown Enid on June 3rd at 6:30pm. From there we will venture on to a plethora of coffee shops, cafe's and events where we will be meeting up with other readers and fellow bloggers from Enid and the surrounding areas. Also, several of the events will be streamed live via Ustream. If you are not be able to meet up with Eric and I at any of our stops, you can still follow us through the live video feed by clicking HERE.

Also, you can get a more detailed outline of our excursion by visiting Eric's blog .

It's will be a fun time of writing, with good food, great people and even some games along the way (after all, what else are you supposed to do when chilling at IHOP from midnight until 5am?)

But what I am most excited about is what will be taking place on Friday evening at the art gallery.

Eric and I will be providing the entertainment by introducing a unique blend of live music and poetry. This is something that I have always wanted to do, and we have been working for the past several weeks to put together a creative and expressive set of original material.

We want to make sure that this little performance will be as smooth as possible, and so we will actually be doing a pre-show the week before the blogathon kicks off at Davinci's Coffee House at 6:30pm.

This gives us an opportunity to give people a taste of what to expect the following week at the art gallery.

We hope to either see you at Davinci's at 6:30pm on 5/27/11 or Scribners Art Gallery the following week at 6:30pm on 6/3/11.

If you are not able to attend, don't forget that each event will be streamed live, and you can follow along at the link provided above.

Be sure and re-post this blog link to twitter or FaceBook to help us get the word out!

Thanks for reading!

Have You To Hold

2011-05-10T13:46:00.001-05:00

The Song That Broke My Heart and Healed my Soul at the Same Time

Sorrow. Tragedy. Heartbreak.

Everyone knows them. Some of us all too well. And yet, we have never grown accustomed to their presence. For many of us, they are like little flames that ignite for a brief period of time, and then are distinguished as life goes on. For others, they are haunting figures that stalk us, lurking in the shadows and lingering behind us staying just in sight.

Yet through their presence in our lives, we are somehow drawn to their stories, captivated by the marks that they leave behind on the hearts of those they visit.

Every heart has a wound.

Some wounds are more fresh than others, and some through time have become nothing more than scars. Yet we all have them.

As human beings, we are related through our pain and sorrow. You need not speak the same language in order to relate to another hurting individual, for we all know what pain feels like. And even though pain can be ugly, it is the expression of the individuals pain that becomes something beautiful - something healing.

I found my heart hurting as I listened to this song, and at the same time, I found the emotion to be comforting to my own fragile soul.

Tragedy is devastating.

However, genuine sorrow is a companion who introduces us to other broken human beings that, in turn, help rebuild us and we them.

The Ignorance of Audacity

2011-04-30T15:24:00.000-05:00

As I sat at my desk one banausic afternoon
attempting to pour out the contents of my brain
onto blue lines and a white background,
I suddenly found my thoughts being harassed
by the banging of offbeat drums, the shrill squeal of flutes
and the out of step feet of marching bodies.

The junior high chapter of this section of the city
was outside practicing for some upcoming competition
and they had the audacity to march down my street
and around the square of real estate
on which my apartment complex happens to rest.

I got up from my desk and squinted my eyes as my fingers
twisted the rod on my Venetian blinds and the sunlight
slowly seeped into the room.
I peered through the window but was unable to locate
the source of all the ruckus.
It seemed to be coming from everywhere
and at the same time, nowhere.

I walked to the window on the other side of the room
and slowly started twisting those blinds open.
Just as I began squinting out,
a whistle sounded and the noise stopped.

I looked around and saw nothing but the empty back yards
of the surrounding houses (my bedroom is at the back of the apartment).
I could see the street on the other side of the block - empty.

Content with the sudden silence,
I made my way back to my desk and sat down.
I had hardly landed in my chair when I heard
a loud TWEET!, followed by a BUH BUH, BUH BUH,
Click - Clack, Ratatat, BUH BUH!

The marching had commenced again.

I sat there for a moment trying to pinpoint the direction
from which this heinous racket seemed to be wafting,
then jumped up from my seat and made my way
briskly to the window once again.

Would you believe it if I told you
that the second my vision pierced through
the window glass, the stupid whistle sounded again
and the music stopped?

Well it did.

I still couldn’t see anything that resembled
a marching body of students playing shiny instruments,
nor could I tell where they were located.
I figured they must all be hiding in various areas
of the neighborhood.

I could just imagine the Whistle Blower
perched in a tree somewhere so that they could see me
from my window and could give the signal
for the other students to start playing the second I sat down.

I envisioned clarinets and tubas popping out of the bushes
and blasting away into the atmosphere,
then scurrying back to their hiding places
just before my face appeared at the window again.

I made my way out of the bedroom
and into the kitchen, where I opened the fridge
and began surveying my options for lunch.

Just then, the whistle sounded AGAIN
and the drums started up once more.
I poked my head up from behind the refrigerator
door and listened carefully.
This time, I could hear the music more clearly and
could tell that it was actually coming from the front
of the building.

I went into the living room,
opened the balcony door and surveyed the landscape -
still no sign of the musical culprits.

As I turned to go back into my apartment,
I heard the drums drawing closer,
and the marching footsteps growing louder.
I turned back around just in time to see a small army
of junior high students rounding the corner and making their way
down my street.

It’s funny - now that I could actually see them,
they didn't sound half bad.

I watched for awhile as they made their way
past parked cars and down the street back towards their school.
The neighbors were now poking their heads
out of their front doors to watch as
the teen troops paraded past.

When they had passed by completely,
I went back inside and sat down at my desk,
hoping to finish composing a piece which
I was sure that others would read
and think to themselves,

“Who is this guy that he has the audacity
to call himself a writer?”

I'd Rather Be Dying Than Fake

2011-04-26T13:18:00.000-05:00

  A few weeks ago, I ran into a friend at church whom I hadn’t seen in awhile. I knew that she had been through a lot over the last year, so I asked her how she was doing. She smiled and artificially replied, “I’m great! How are you?”

“No you’re not,” I said smiling. She smiled too, looked at the floor, and then back at me.
“And why do you say that?” she asked.
“Because of the way you said it. It’s just obvious.”

Of course she had no idea that I knew what she had recently been through, but even if I hadn't known, I still would have noticed evidence of stress in her voice.

  She laughed nervously, and then changed directions conversationally. We talked about life, friends and fun memories. Finally the conversation reached its peak, and we sat in a silence similar to that of someone standing on a look-out point in the mountains, taking in the view of where their trail led them. As I pondered the “view” of our conversation, I looked down at the fake green plant that was sitting between the chairs we now occupied in our church hallway.

  My friend had to go, so I said goodbye and watched her walk away. After that, my gaze returned to the plant. It looked alive, fresh and healthy, yet it was a fake. If I were to break off a branch, I would’ve found the inside empty and hollow.

That's when it occurred to me that my friend was the exact same way.

On the outside she looked happy, healthy and alive; but on the inside she was empty. There was something missing, a void that she was longing to fill.

  A real plant will tell you how its doing based on its physical condition. You can tell just by looking whether it is healthy and alive, or if it is dying and in need of water. My friend needed nourishment, but at a glance you couldn't tell. She had put on a façade and wasn’t allowing herself to be open and vulnerable, even to someone who knew she was in bad shape and cared enough to ask how she was doing.

   If only we were as honest and vulnerable as a dying plant. How much more could we care for and build one another up? Instead, we try running around as little fake plants, appearing healthy and alive, while deep down, we are as empty and dry as a desert.

I would much rather have a plant that is real and dying, instead of fake, neutral and lifeless. At least then I would have a shot at helping nurture it back to life.

   The Apostle Paul instructed the Galatians to carry each others burdens (see Gal 6:2), and the Ephesians to put off falsehood and speak truthfully to one another (see Eph. 4:25.) James said to confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed (see Jas 5:16).

  I encourage you to find someone that you know is going through or has come through a hard time. Find ways to show them you care by going to visit them, fixing them meals, taking them out to lunch, or simply calling or emailing them.

   I have several friends who send me random texts messages with encouraging words or scriptures, and they help serve as reminders that I’m not alone.

When you get right down to it, it doesn’t really matter what you do, just do something.

Since that Sunday, I have kept in touch with my friend, and even though she still has had some hard times, she knows there is someone there who is willing to listen and who genuinely cares.

The most important thing that people need is to know that they are not alone and that someone cares. Make the most of every opportunity that comes your way.

You just might bring a dying plant back to life.

© Ben Burleigh 2010

Blog Updates

2011-04-25T20:19:00.000-05:00

Changes For BTL -

Today has been relatively refreshing.

My friend Heather flew in from California last night, and she has been helping me prepare for the upcoming changes that are in the works for Between The Lines.

We did a photo shoot earlier today for the BTL page header, and we attempted a photo shoot later this afternoon for the 24 hour blogathon, but unfortunately the sun decided not to cooperate and we were forced to reschedule.

We will try again tomorrow to get some pictures that will help us promote the blogathon.

24 Hour Blogathon Update -

Everything is starting to come together for the 24 Hour Blogathon Challenge.

Eric and I have several local businesses, coffee shops and cafes that we will be making stops at, and we will even be serving coffee to people at one of our stops. We have also been working on some original material that we will be doing at 7 p.m. on Friday, June 3rd, at Scribners Art Gallery in downtown Enid .

The Blogathon will officially begin at Scribners, and from there readers will be able to follow us through blog posts and live video feed, or they could even follow us to a coffee shop of their choice and join us for a cup of joe. Who knows - they might even get featured in a video update.

Stay on the lookout for more updates and a Blogathon Schedule / Itinerary.

The Ending To a Satirical Saturday

2011-04-17T03:39:00.000-05:00

PART III

Even though downtown festivities like live music, exotic animals and funnel cake have their own aspects of intrigue, nothing sounds more intriguing or more desirable than an evening spent with good friends, good food and good entertainment.

Tonight was no exception.

The day ended with steak, salads and homemade dessert, all of which was provided by my friends Lyndsay and Shantel (pronounced shawn - tell). Okay well, they provided everything but the salad - I brought that. Eric threw in his lot by attempting to cook garlic bread, which turned out to be really burnt garlic bread. And since Eric is not one to let anything go to waste, he enjoyed some extra crispy and extra dry croutons on his salad.

The steak was tender and juicy, the salad was - salad. And the desserts were crazy awesome, especially the So-papilla Cheesecake.

Of course, no Saturday night spent with friends is ever complete without a good movie to watch. We couldn't all agree on anything in particular, and when Eric texted me saying "Don't worry. Got it covered", I have to admit that I was a little nervous on the cinematic selection that had been made without any opportunity for a majority ruling.

He came through however, and we were all thoroughly entertained:

Along with SNL's The Best of Will Ferrel, Eric had also selected SNL's The Best of Jimmy Fallon -

- which actually was a little more humorous than I expected, since usually the only person in the world who seems to think Jimmy Fallon is funny is Jimmy Falon himself. I think I laughed twice.

After stopping Jimmy's' video halfway due to boredom, we ended the night on a much higher note.

Yes, no Saturday movie night could be complete without this bit of cinematic brilliance:

And so, as the evening drew to a close and weariness began setting in, we all began bidding our farewells and making our ways to the front door.

All of us except Eric of course. He kind of like... lived there.

I like Saturdays.

They have happy endings.

HAPPY SATURDAY!

A Fabricated Friday Night

2011-04-16T20:08:00.000-05:00

And the Beginning of a Satirical Saturday

PART II

The beauty of Saturday is that there is no rush.

You can wake up when you please, eat what you please, go where you please and do as you please.

And today, I was pleased to do all of the above.

After chowing down on some leftover pizza and watching an old classic, I got up and started getting ready for the day. There was a festival going on down town, and I was going to meet up with some friends and go watch the bands perform.

When all the "as I pleased" was done, I left my place and walked the six blocks or so to the downtown area where the festival was being held.

I met up with my friend Eric, and we watched our friends of SGB perform for awhile.

The Sean Gallagher Band

When they were done, we walked around the block and surveyed all of the "attractions". We walked by the bounce house, which was more like a children's house of torture.

Kids were jumping and screaming, seeming to have a good time, when in reality they were getting bounced around by eachother, stepped on, smushed, bruised and beaten mercilessly. And there's always that one bigger kid who gets in the bounce house and feels that it is his house and it would be fun to play bumber body with all the other little children.

Of course, all of the mothers were standing around the outside peering in through the netted windows and trying to figure out which screaming child is theirs. The fathers on the other hand, were peering in and placing bets on whose kid can beat up whose.

It turned out to be a very entertaining few moments. I would have placed a bet, but I only had a credit card on me. This was unfortunate because not only could I not place a bet, but I also couldn't buy anything as festival vendors don't have credit card machines. I don't usually carry cash, so when I saw the funnel cake stand, I had to bum a couple bucks off of Eric just so I could buy one. The funnel cake, by the way, turned out to be the favorite attraction of the day - at least for me anyway. Eric kept commenting on how he could feel his arteries clogging up with each bite he took. I swear, he is the only person in the world who could ruin the experience of eating a funnel cake.

After all of the outside festivities, we made our way into a nearby building which was housing different tables, all of which were displaying a handmade product or artwork of some sort. As we were browsing from one room to another, I spotted a sign that read "EXOTIC ANIMAL EXHIBIT". Earlier I had heard Eric mentioning something about snakes and alligators, and even a giant tortouise, so I started to get a little bit excited as I realized that this was what he must have been talking about.

However, when I walked into the room and saw the one medium sized turtle shell that seem to be housing a very shy turtle, I let all my anticipation go free with a sigh. It was as if Monday had crept into the room, reached inside of me and pulled out my expectations, and then blasted them with a shotgun shell of reality.

Alright, so there was also an alligator too, but it was also on the medium size scale, and was being kept in a plastic cage with it's jaws clamped shut. I will admit though, the yellow python was pretty cool. Sorry that I didn't get pictures.

To be continued...

A Fabricated Friday Night

2011-04-16T18:13:00.000-05:00

And The Beginning of a Satirical Saturday

PART I

I woke up this morning to a spinning room.

I looked up at the ceiling and observed the white fan blades resting seven feet above me, motionless. They appeared to be the only things not spinning this morning.

I sat up and tried to focus my gaze on a single spot on my bedroom wall. The room began winding down and the spinning pieces of furniture started making their way back around to their original positions.

My head started to throb as I slowly tossed back the covers and tried to find the floor with my feet. I sat on the edge of the bed for a moment, trying to regain a sense of balance. I hadn't even stood up yet and I was already trying not to fall over. It's funny - every time I sit on the edge of my bed, I think of that scene in Die Hard where Bruce Willis makes fists with his toes on the carpet after a some guy on a plane told him it will help calm him down after a flight.

I have never tried it myself, but I wonder...

I mean, I hadn't just got off a flight or anything, but I guess it couldn't hurt, right? So I curled up my toes and tried to grab the carpet with my feet. Suddenly, the muscles in my feet clenched onto the tendons in my ankles and my calves cramped up. So much for that idea. Thanks random airplane guy.

I gently opened up my curled toes and spread them out on the carpet, then I extended my legs and raised my toes up towards the ceiling with only my heels touching the ground. After my calves loosened up, I relaxed and just sat there. My stomach was tied up in knots and I felt somewhat bloated.

What happened last night?

I stood up and steadied myself by resting my left hand against the wall. I took a step towards the door and stepped on something plastic - crack!

I looked down and saw the DVD case that I had just flattened into the carpet, and then it all started coming back to me- slowly.

I had invited some friends over last night to watch a movie (which now, after watching for the first time, I would not really recommend). I made my way out of the bedroom and down the hall.

As I walked into the kitchen, I was greeted by an array of plastic cups, empty bottles and cans, and even an empty jug, all residing on my kitchen table.

Oh, and also a couple of empty pizza boxes. No wonder I was feeling bloated and my head was spinning. The amount of calories and sugar intake and last night must have been staggering.

After observing the kitchen mess, and that there was still some left over pizza in the fridge, I did the only sensible thing that there is to do on a Saturday morning....

I ate the left over pizza for breakfast, and sat down on the couch to watch a movie.

To Be Continued.....

Pleas of an Innocent Heart

2011-04-12T21:18:00.000-05:00

This Side of Me

December 20th, 2010 §

To Remind Myself

The things we do
The things we say
The things we regret

Its all a part of life
They are all things that we can’t change
So stop moping about the past
And move on with your life

And if you can’t move on in life
Then ask God to cleanse you
Ask him to break those ties that are holding you down
Because life is still out there
And you need to strive towards all things good
In order to survive the bad

We all go through something
Good or bad
The point is how we handle these things
Where do we end up at the end of the day
How do we choose to take every moment of our life

Its sometimes hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel
We have to squint to even catch the smallest sparkle
We have to drag ourselves forward
Even if every piece of you is screaming out in pain
One step at a time is the only way
The lights there
Don’t worry darling
Its there

Just keep moving
Take one moment at a time and stop looking too far into the future
It will only stress you out more
Don’t worry precious
You’ll be there before you know it
Keep striving forward my dear
Even when life is rushing by faster than you can take it
Stay strong
Don’t back down
You’ll make it

This content was posted with the consent of Heather Shroyer and Tiny HMS Multimedia.

To view more of Heather's work, you can visit her blog page at http://heathershroyer.wordpress.com/

Something Exciting is Brewing

2011-04-09T12:40:00.000-05:00

The 24 Hour Blogathon Challenge

Every now and then as a writer/blogger, it becomes necessary to take more creative measures in promoting yourself and getting your material out there into the endless abyss of cyberspace.

Please note that I am referring to CREATIVE MEASURES, not DESPERATE MEASURES.

Big difference.

Anyway, self promotion is the one thing that most people dread because it feels as if there should be boundary lines, and at the same time, it feels like the boundary lines are invisible and even if they were there we wouldn't be able to see them anyway. The big question is:

HOW FAR SHOULD I GO?

After all, isn't self promotion somewhat prideful?

I use to look at other existing artists, writers, speakers or ministers and see how they had created an entire organization or ministry under their own name, and I would think to myself, I would never do that. I don't want my name to be the focus because that seems prideful or arrogant.

Needless to say, I have discovered that
it must be done because how else are people going to have the opportunity to read your stuff or listen to your material or see your videos if they don't even know you exist, or don't know how to find you?

It's not that you are promoting yourself because you think you are awesome and everyone else needs to recognize it; it is because you have something important to say and you want to make your material as recognizable, as easy and as accessible as possible for others to find.

(Still don't agree? Try googling the phrase Between The Lines and see how many hundreds of options come up before you even come close to finding this page again. Then google Ben Burleigh and see how much easier it is to find the page.)

Anyway, having said all of that, I would now like to tell you about an exciting venture that I will be partaking in this summer, along with fellow blogger Eric Castillo.

~ cue intense, dramatic music

Can you imagine what it would look like if a blogger posted his writing every hour, on the hour for 24 hours straight?

Neither could we, so we decided we would try it.

Of course, we won't just be sitting cooped up in the same location drinking energy drinks and banging our heads against the wall trying to think of what to write about next.

No, this venture will involve more interactive and exciting methods of writing and blogging. It will also involve some traveling.

And coffee...lots and lots of coffee.

And possibly even some live music blended with some spoken word poetry.

And of course, you can expect video footage - maybe even streaming live. At this point, anything is possible.

So, having said all of that, keep looking for more updates on the 24 Hour Blogathon Challenge.

It's going to be....interesting.

Music Stirs Forgotten Emotion

2011-03-31T19:25:00.000-05:00

It's funny how music can stir up emotion inside of us that we didn't even realize was there.

My friend Eric and I were at my apartment earlier today, he with his guitar and me with my laptop. I was reading some of my more poetic pieces that I've written (poems, not songs), and he was following along with me.

Some of the pieces were written out of inspirational viewpoints, while others were penned out of deep emotional valleys. I would start reading a piece to him so that he could get the flow, and then he would chime in with his acoustic guitar.

As he began to play, I found myself reading with added emotion that seemed to be coming from some place deep within me, probably a place that I had long forgotten about. And as I read, I remembered.

I remembered the words as I first saw them in my head before ever capturing them on paper. I remembered the feelings I experienced and what it was like to try and make sense of them by lining up letters in a comprehensible and literate format. I remembered the emotions that those feelings invoked and how they spoke through the words that were scribbled down.

At some points, I even found myself smiling as I read.

And I'm not just talking curved lips, I mean from ear to ear, flashing-teeth and wrinkled-cheeks kind of smiling. Eric kept on playing like he didn't notice, but I'm sure he could hear my smile.

It sounded pretty good and now we are kicking around the idea of putting more pieces together with music, and then possibly performing them at local events in our area.

I've always found that music is what triggers my emotions the most.

I'm hoping that as we work on these pieces more and more, it will do the same for others.

Sinus Infection, Rebecca Black, and a Make Shift Satellite Dish

2011-03-29T17:38:00.001-05:00

Symptons of Sinus Infection = Reaction to Rebecca Black Song...

It's days like this that I wish I had TV.

Why, you ask? Because today, due to some unnecessary internal roughness that my body sunstained over the weekend, my throat has decided to take on the texture of sandpaper and my head has destined itself to inflate and become a balloon of stagnant oxygen. This of course is causing me to post-pone daily activities such as (but not limited to): swallowing, breathing, talking, any form of fast pace activity, working, thinking, problem solving, creative thinking, and logical ingenuity.

These are all of the symptons that one obtains after a sinus malfunction.

These are also all of the symptons that I obtained after listening to Rebecca Blacks' song FRIDAY, but that's beside the point.

Who's idea was that anyway? Who decided that all of the other weekdays were not already bad enough, and that Friday needed it's own black spot on the calendar? That's like giving Aishwarya Rai Bachchan a giant wart on the tip of her nose. Talk about ruining a truly beautiful and world renown masterpiece.

I propose that the name of the song be changed to Black Friday.

That way it can actually carry some merit as to belonging on the calendar. Of course, Black Friday is also the day that most normal people take pleasure in avoiding. I'm sure that most music lovers would take the same pleasure in avoiding such nasal execution of the worlds most beloved week day.

Anyway,as I said it's days like today that I wish I had TV. I have a physical TV, I just don't have cable, which is unfortunate because about the only activity that a brain can handle while under sinus dysfunction is - watching.

Escaping to the Familiar...

It's funny how, when we are healthy and alive, we go about our daily routine doing all of our big grown-up things without thinking about it. However, when we are sick, or when we are lonely or feel depressed, and especially when we feel dirty or impure, we resort back to the things that are familiar to us; the things that we remember doing out of innocence.

For me it's watching movies or listening to things that I listened to as a kid.

I cannot tell you the countless times that I, out of feelings of guilt and impurity, have resorted to watching things like Disneys Robin Hood, or listening to a radio drama like Adventures in Odyssey, all for the sake of familiarity, and all for the sake of avoiding the issues that are staining my soul. This may sound silly or immature, but how many of us find security in the things that are familiar to us? How many of us return to the innocent things that we remember in our lives instead of facing the big, dark, ugly monsters that keep rearing their heads and reminding us of who we are and what we've done?

I recently had a short conversation with a very dear friend of mine a few nights ago.

This person had gone through a heartbreaking relationship, and instead of dealing with the emotions and the feelings, they were trying to cover them up or ignore them all together.

I asked my friend if she thought this was wise. She responded that she just does not know how to handle emotions like this.

This is a very common place that many of us find ourselves in continuously, some of us almost regularly. We don't know how to handle the emotions, or we don't like the feelings that we are experiencing for whatever reason, and so instead of turning around and facing them, we either try to avoid them all together, ignore them, or bury them as far down as we can.

The truth of the matter is that if we don't handle these emotions now, eventually they will come back to handle us.

The conversation with my friend ended well that night, and she went home to write in her journal and process the feelings that she was experiencing. I believe that through time and prayer, healing will eventually take place and she will be able to move on.

If Escaping to the Familiar Sounds All Too Familiar...

If you are in a similar situation and are not able to move on, it may be because issues are being avoided instead of being confronted, or they are being ignored all together. Some of us even like to wallow in our issues. We somewhat enjoy the feeling, even though it is painful, and we get some sort of pleasure out of staying in those moments of self awareness or self pity, whatever the issue may be.

If that's you, I would encourage you to open up and allow yourself to be honest. I'd also recommend that you go to someone that you know and trust - maybe a family member, a teacher, a counselor, a youth pastor or pastor.

The only way to overcome the feelings and emotions buried inside is to dig them up and expose them. Once exposed, they can be properly disposed of. This does not mean that you will never experience these same emotions or feelings again, but is does mean that when you do experience them, you will be able to move on and not let them suck you back into feeling lonely, depressed, guilty, condemned or impure.

Just some thoughts to ponder while I go and try to rig a make shift satellite out of a frying pan, aluminum foil, some jumper cables and the soundwaves that exhibit from Rebecca Black's nose.

Airport Goodbyes, Insignificance and The God of Comfort

2011-03-27T14:59:00.001-05:00

I hate airports.

I think it's mainly because the goodbyes are so immediate.

One second you are with someone, or they are with you; the next second, they are gone - around that corner, through that security line and off into another realm it seems.

I saw a TV show episode once where a character went on a trip to LA. While he was there he fell in love with this girl. They experienced some exciting things together (it was one of those action/mystery TV shows) and towards the end, our main man asked this girl to marry him.

She said yes.

The very last scene of that particular episode was our main man at the airport, waiting. While waiting, he got a phone call.
Of course, you know it's the girl calling him with some reason or excuse as to why she can't go with him or can't get married at the moment.

The very last camera shot was our main man walking off into the distance of the airport terminal and disappearing into the crowd.

Maybe that's the reason why I hate airports - it's that feeling of insignificance.

You have hundreds of thousands of people running around, all with their own problems or worries or fears, and yet every one of them is just another insignificant stranger to everyone else.

I heard an old preacher give a sermon once on insignificance and being alone.

He said there was a time where he was at a low point in his life - things had fallen apart and he felt that he had no one. He was at a park, sitting on a bench all alone and he found himself crying out to God.

God, where are you? Don't you care? Please don't leave me alone this way!

As he sat there, tears began to blaze their way down his face.

Suddenly, he said he felt a presence surround him. He described it as a presence of peace, but at the same time a presence of sorrow. He said it felt ok to let go, to release all of the feelings inside. He didn’t feel that he needed to hold it together any longer and be strong in that moment. It was as if God himself had joined him on that park bench, wrapped his arms around him, and began to cry with him.

After sharing the story, the preacher then exclaimed that there is nothing more comforting than the tears shared by a friend, especially one who knows you and understands what you are going through.

Later that Sunday afternoon, I found myself alone in my dorm room with nothing but a pencil, paper, and the old preachers lingering words…..

When He Wept

The day was done

And so was I

The sun had gone

From my empty sky

The pain inside

I can’t surpress

What else to do?

My life’s’ a mess

Then you walked by - saw me sitting there

I started to cry - as your presence filled the air

You didn’t say a word

As you looked at me

And in the silence you heard

My desperate plea

And that’s when you wept

You wept with me

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our afflictions, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Seeing Stars....

2011-03-22T19:44:00.001-05:00

Midnight Mind Gazing

I get lost in space thinking of you.
I decide to check out the stars
but I always get distracted by the moon

I can't tear my gaze away
and it makes me want to stay outside myself
because that's where you are.

I want to desert.
But no one told me that everything inside
will have to come along for the ride.
I can't leave anything behind...

...which makes me wish I had asked before I took
all the things that I wanted from those with looks

Now wherever I go
they go too.
You cannot abandon the things that make up You.

I'm told stars don't lie
but I've yet to find one that will tell me the truth.
I've found that they are fond of deception
but not even they can hide the moon.

So I'll go back to find
a familiar sky with an open mind

I'm searching for it -
the place where I find my own.
If I can find you then I know
I'll have a home

There's no rain in space
so tears can't run free.
Still it's raining inside of me.

Air can't pollute where it doesn't exist.
If I shut it out then only my inhaling desires persist.

So I'll resist.

I don't want a star that taunts me in the middle of the night.
I want a beacon that will guide me with it's light.

The Importance of Communication

2011-02-28T22:52:00.001-06:00

And the Significance of a Miss Placed Letter

I work in a call center.

I talk to many people from all walks of life - some prominent business people, some over zealous consumers, most are average american shoppers - all of which are trying to find something that fits a certain need or desire in their life.

Obviously, communication is important in my line. And yet, I find that even the smallest miscommunication can lead to the LARGEST misunderstanding.

For instance - My name is Ben.

And I answer the phone accordingly, "...this is BEN, how can I help you?"

Now, of course there are certain words, vowels, sounds that can easily be misinterpreted over the phone which can cause
mistakes to be made thus resulting in either embarrassment for the party that is misinterpreting, or the misinterpreted party conforming to the mistake and saving the individual that's mistaken the misfortune of realizing that they have just made a mistake.

The latter is usually my lot in life.

I answer the phone "...this is Ben. How may I can I help you?"

And I am usually greeted by, "Hi Dan, I have a question for you..." or "Hey Stan, are you able to check on this for me?"

For some reason, unbeknown to me, I have always been misunderstood when it comes to the pronunciation of my name over the telephone.

"Dan" is the most common one. I have also been mistaken for Brent, Brian, Stan, Darren, and my personal favorite, Vern.

What is even more hilarious is when I answer with "Ben" and receive back something that does not even sound remotely similar to what I have just told the customer.

"This is Ben, how can I help you?"
"Yeah, Hi Jake. How are you doing today?"

At first, I tried to correct the errors and vindicate myself. After awhile though, I realized that it is a lost cause, and after about the 4,000th time of someone asking, "Hi, can I speak to Dan please?" or trying to explain to someone that my name is really Ben, I finally just respond, "Yes, yes this is Dan. What can I do for you?"

This is actually quite useful when someone calls in saying something like, "Hey, I talked to Dan and he said this was supposed to happen and it never did. I'm upset and need to have this taken care." To which I may reply, "Oh that Dan. I apologize ma'am if he misinformed you. Let me get you that information, and it will be just a moment while I do that."

The other ladies that I work with get a kick out of my many aliases, and if something goes wrong, we all know that it's really Dan whose to blame.

Another area where communication is extremely important is email.

Did you know that if you miss place a single letter in certain words, that you can actually send a message that is worthy of a lawsuit?

It's true.

Observe the following message:

"Hello Maggie,

I received your message and just wanted to inform you that we appreciate your business."

Now, let me break it down like a fraction for you.

Take the word "message" for instance.

If you were to accidently type an A where there should be an E, you can have a pretty embarrassing situation on your hands.

An even better one is the word "business." If you mistakenly type the letter T in just the right place, this can be a deadly disaster.

Now just leave the O off of the word Hello, and you now have a message that reads:

"Hell Maggie,

I received your massage and just wanted to inform you that we appreciate your bustiness."

All of a sudden, your formal business greeting has now become an inappropriate sexual remark.

Thankfully, if this were to ever happen to me, I could always just sign the email as Dan and let him take the heat for it.

Snow, Poker and Schizophrenia

2011-02-09T11:10:00.002-06:00

So with all of the exciting things that have been taking place lately - blizzards, me getting a new apartment, the Super Bowl - you would think I would have more to say or write about the last two weeks than most in the past.

And you'd be right, were it not for the small fact that since moving, I have entered a realm of cyberspace Schizophrenia!

You see, I live in this fourplex apartment building, which means that in order to get connected to the internet, I usually have to piggy back off one of the other three tenants wi-fi. This would not be that big of an issue mind you, if I didn't have to spend half of the night trying to guess security network codes and "hack" into an account just so I can get on Hulu and catch up on Lie To Me.

When Einstein referred to the definition of insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, he HAD to be talking about the endless guessing of security network codes.

Lately however, I have not had an issue with wi-fi connection. For the last several days, I have entered my humble abode, revived my laptop from cyber slumber, and logged right on to the internet with no hassle whatsoever. This is humorous because when I first moved in, I had no problem logging on. However, shortly after moving in, wi-fi and I did not get a long and I was deemed a technical outcast, forbidden from the use of necessities, such as Facebook, SKYPE, and of course, BTL.

I spent that lonely time in virtual seclusion, banned from the security of social networking and labeled as "unclean" by the somewhat eminent (and invisible) priests of cyberspace....

Actually, I just had some guys come over and play poker on my new table.

This piece of fun furniture also serves as my dining table, since it is felt on one side and finished wood on the other, making it the ultimate addition to my pad of bachelor awesomeness.

Now it looks like wi-fi and I are back on speaking terms again....sort of.

This is especially nice at the moment, because the entire state of Oklahoma is in a tizzy due to the fact that there is snow on the ground and no one knows how to drive on it and we are all shut up in our homes with space heaters and hot chocolate, watching re-runs of Little House On The Praire and Magnum P.I.

I actually spent the night at my parents house because it is closer to my work. However, when my boss called me this morning and informed me that we had the day off because the parking lot was under 4 feet of snow, I decided that I did not want to stay at their house since all of my stuff (laptop, phone charger, movies, books, groceries I purchased last night, etc..) is naturally over at my place.

I went outside, cleared the 7 inches of snow off of Lexy, and hopped in for a test run. We got stuck backing out of the driveway, but only for about half a second. Then I put her in drive and we took off for the unknown.

We made it out of the neighborhood, down the street to the stop light, flipped a U-ie, then headed back to my parents. Having successfully made it through the snow, I went inside their house, grabbed the stuff that I did have with me, and Lexy and I set off again, this time for my place.

We made it past the stop light, down the highway, across the over-pass, and into my neighborhood.

I had to make a few rounds in order to actually get onto my street. As I was making my way around the block, I passed and elderly gentleman shoveling snow in his driveway. When he looked up and saw a Lexus sedan plowing it's way through a foot of snow, his eyes grew wide and I believe that his heart was filled with inspiration. It was as if he was witnessing a miracle, like Jesus walking on water.

He gawked as I plowed past, dropping his jaw and his shovel.

I smiled back as I threw up my Rawk Fist.

When I finally made it onto my street, I pulled in curbside, and - you guessed it - got stuck.

She looks fast even when she's standing still

So even though the snow gods are frowning on the state of Oklahoma, the eminent priests of cyber space are smiling on me today, once again deeming me worthy of socializing with the outside world through means of inside use.

Are you snowed in today? What is it like in your area?

Leave a comment or send me a picture! (It's not like you have anything else to do.)

benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com

You just might get featured in the next post.

Thanks for reading!

Self Deflation

2011-01-28T21:09:00.000-06:00

I stare up into the starry skies.

My reflection in your eyes stares back at me.

I know you're smiling
because once again your ominence has reminded me
how insignificant I really am.

And you love that I realize this.

Because this revelation becomes a needle
that punctures my over-inflated human pride.

This is a good thing
since pride is nothing more than an obstacle
that blocks my view of you.

My view, and everyone else who stands behind me.

I am grateful that you give me the opportunity
to deflate my own pride.

That's better than someone else deflating it for me.

Immortality

2011-01-24T20:55:00.001-06:00

And it's curse....

Great works of art never die.

They can, however, fall from their lofty pedestals as ordained masterpieces.

Let me give you an example....

In a certian restroom of a certain store in a certain town, there is a certain print of a particularly famous piece of art work. The piece is none other than Van Goghs' masterpiece "Starry Night".

This, for some reason, is probably the most popular painting adorning the walls of public restrooms (don't ask me why), and that in and of itself may explain exactly what I mean by art falling from it's lofty position as revered and respected to mundane and typical.

However, this particular store takes the demoralizing of a masterpiece to a whole new level.....

The piece itself, as you can see below, is carelessly and crookedly hoisted on a plain eggshell white wall, and is mounted in the tackiest, cheapest frame that could be found.

Such treatment could be compared to royalty being shelted in a cardboard box on skid row.

But wait, it gets better.

Or worse, depending on how you look at it.

If you look closely, there appears to be a small tiny speck on the plexi-glass sheet that sheilds this immortal creation.

If you were to look even closer, you would find that this is not merely a speck of dirt or a tiny smudge, this is in fact a dead insect completely smashed and fossilized BETWEEN the plexi-glass covering and the actual picture itself.

Now, I'm no expert mind you on the metaphysics of flies and their ability to escape such a perilous fate. But lets face it, you have either got to be lightening fast to put a picture together and catch a fly in the process, or you have some twisted, demented personality. I mean, who kills a fly and then inserts it's dead remains into a picture frame that is "home" to one of the greatest pieces of work the world has ever known?

Yes, flies are stupid. However, I don't think I can credit the ability to end up smashed between a picture and it's frame to the stubborness of a fly.

Then again, perhaps only stupidity could be capable of accomplishing such a feat.

Van Gogh was twisted enough.

I can just imagine him walking into the restroom and, after seeing the horrific state that is piece is kept in, beginning to bang his head up against the wall and screaming. Of course, he was probably not satisfied with the piece after he created it in the first place.

Oh, the weeping and gnashing of teeth!

The foaming at the mouth!

The rolling of the eyes back into the head!

He would probably pull out a used razor blade, cut off the lower part of his right earlobe to match his left, wrap the lobe in toilet paper and walk out of the bathroom to the closest cashiers counter. He'd hand the cashier the wrapped lobe and say in a whispered tone, "Hold on to this for safe keeping", after which he would start laughing hysterically, and run out the door and into the street flailing his arms and screaming "I'M A MUFFIN!! IM A MUFFIIIINN!!!"

And that's about the point where he'd get runover by an eighteen wheeler.

If Van Gogh had not already shot himself due to his mental illnesses, I'm sure the pure hostility with which his masterpiece has been treated in this certian restroom, at this certain store in this certain town, would be enough to do him in....even though he would be like a bajillion years by old now...but anyway...

Great works of art never die.

And yet, I wonder how many of them wish that they could?

How many great works of art, if given the choice, would prefer a forgotten death to shameful immortality?

Dreams - Man Eaten by Chinese Octopus

2011-01-15T10:56:00.001-06:00

The other night, my dad was telling me about a crazy dream that he had.

He was underwater watching another man trying to walk on the ocean floor. The man was struggling to walk, and after a few very slow and unstable steps, he fell face down and just laid there. As soon as he fell, a giant octopus came out from behind a large rock and ate him.

Well, you know how dreams are - my dad (as the dreamer) could see the man sitting inside the octopus, looking around and wondering why he was not dead, let alone being digested.

Dad said it made him think about Jonah and the Whale.

He was telling me about the dream over dinner at a chinese buffet.

A few minutes after the conversation, I looked over at the decorated glass partician that separated the booths we were sitting in and I noticed something very interesting, something that made me start to wonder if dads' dream was not just an absurd and meaningless situation, but more of a purposeful analogy...

On the glass panel, there was a stained figure of a large purple octopus.

Now, we all know how meaningless and absurd dreams can be. Sometimes they're spawned from personal events or experiences, feelings and emotions, or just really bad pizza. However, I couldn't help but feel that there might be more to this one in particular.

I mean, sure dreams have carried the reputation of being ridiculous at times and carrying no significant meaning whatsoever. However, they have also been known to provide insight, give warnings, speak truth and revelation, give hints to or even tell of future events, and so much more.

Just look in the Bible -

In Genesis 28:10-15, Jacob had a significant dream of angels going up and down a ladder in which God promised him blessings and an endless line of descendants

In Genesis 37:5, Joseph had a dream where his brothers all bowed down to him.

In Genesis 37:9-10, he had another dream in which his brothers and his father and mother all bowed down to him.

Of course his family was not too thrilled about the fact that the second to youngest child was having naive and over zealous thoughts of being regarded as royalty. His brothers even attacked, abandoned and later disowned and sold him into slavery for this.

Joseph ended up in Egygt, where after numerous other events got thrown in prison under false charges and accusations of attempted rape.

While he was in prison, he interpreted the dreams of prisoners and got recognized as The Man Who Interpreted Dreams. Later, after the prisoners dreams had come true, and one of the prisoners had been released from prison as joseph predicted, Pharoah began having strange and troubling dreams about cannibalistic cows and vegetables.

The ex-con remembered Joseph and his ability to interpret the mysteries of slumber, and informed the Pharoah. The ruler called for Joseph, who then interpreted all of pharoahs dreams.

Pharoah made Joseph a man of great power and authority, and gave him the keys to the kingdom. Later, after famine hit the land (as joseph predicted it would), Josephs family came to Egypt where they had to go and ask Joseph for food. In order to do this - you guessed it- they honored and reverred Joseph by bowing down.

After a series of events and added family drama, Joseph made his identity known and his entire family bowed and submitted to his rule.

The Old Testament prophets were consistently having dreams and visions regarding the future of the nation of Israel, or of spiritual analogies pertaining to the people.

In Daniel chapter 2, there is a fascinating story about King Nebuchanezzar having dreams, and Daniel interpreting the dreams without the king even telling him what the dreams were.

Daniel also had dreams and visions from the Lord.

In the New Testament Gospels, Joseph had numerous dreams in which an angel appeared to him and gave him a message regarding the birth of Jesus and Mary's being pregnant through the Holy Spirit, along with the safety of Jesus and how to escape the wrath of Herod. (Matt. 1:20, 2:13, 2:19)

In Matthew 2:12, the wise men who came to worship Jesus when he was a child also had a dream about avoiding King Herod by traveling a different way than they had come.

Now, obviously dad's dream was nothing as profound as any of the above, or probably as any dream given account of in the Bible.

However, I still coudn't help but feel that it was more purposeful than what dad made it out to be.

And yes, maybe I was reading too much into it.

Who knows.

All I know is that the last time my dad and I ate at that particular buffet, my dad had not been feeling well earlier that day and had been having a hard time eating. We went and practically gorged ourselves (dad especially). This was obviously a very unwise idea that came back to bite us later that night.

Is it possible that dad's dream was maybe a forwarning of what might happen if we tried to do the same thing this time?

It would make sense - a person who has not been feeling well should not try and gorge himself on food, kind of like a person who is having trouble walking should not try and do so in an unstable environment- like underwater for instance. I could see the challenge ending badly for both scenarios if discretion was not used.The chinese food would aobviously come back and do us in later, just like the octopus came out and ate the unsteady guy.

I do admit that sometimes dreams make no sense whatsoever.

However, I will also admit that I sincerely believe they can be far more meaningful and even God ordained or inspired, and I believe this is and will continue to become more popular and prominent with our generation as time goes on and we approach Christs' coming.

Have you ever had a dream that had a more significant meaning behind it, and was maybe from a more substantial source than just bad sushi?

Leave a comment or email me and tell me about it!

Thanks for reading!

benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com

Christmas Day - A day of Food, Snow gods and Love

2010-12-26T01:47:00.000-06:00

A Blog for My Family

A day full of food-

of cold meat sandwiches, hot homemade mac n' cheese, salads, veggies and dips, among other things.

A day of pies and four layer deserts, and a first sampling of Plumb Pudding (which isn't really a pudding at all.)

A day full of giving-

of gift cards, gift bags, and gift certificates.

A day of hats, scarves, pocket knives, books, bird seed, antlers and wine, and a pair of Dress Blues.

A day of added members-

of new arrivals like Samuel and Brookes’ 3 week old Kylie, Pete’s’ fiancé Ashley and Amanda’s’ puppy, Arthur.

A day at the movies-

of standing in a line of endurance against the frozen breath of the snow gods.

A day with celebrities like Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, and Josh Brolin.

A day with time to kill before the show, and spending that time on Michael Buble, multi-colored trees and houses, and gasoline.

A day of Love -

of generations young, old and in between.

A day of sentiment and speeches, hugs and kisses, high fives and compliments, Christmas stories and inspirational memories re-lived.

A day of Hope -

Of a reminder that no matter how entangled humanity is in the depths of its flaws, it has a way provided by an intimate and ultimate Being to be seen as a holy and righteous body through the denial of self and the individual personifications of an infant prodigy, a sinless martyr and a returning King.

The Results Are In!!!!!!!!!!

2010-12-24T16:28:00.000-06:00

Ladies and Gentleman......

It is with great pleasure.......

That I introduce to you-

Our Tacky Christmas Sweater Contest Winner!

Congratulations MS. COLITA MURRAY!!!

Sweater # 1

Colita has won a $25 gift certificate to the online store of her choice!

Big thanks to Colleen from Oklahoma (Sweater #2) and Sean from New Jersy (Sweater #3) for submitting their pictures and participating in the Tacky Christmas Sweater Contest. It was a fierce competition, guys!

Also, thanks to everyone who voted for their favorite sweater!

If you have an idea or a suggestion for future contests to be held on BTL, don't be shy!

I would love to hear your thoughts, suggestions, and ideas!

Be sure and email them to benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com.

Thanks again everyone who participated. It was a BLAST!

Have a Merry Christmas Everyone!

Time's Up!

2010-12-23T20:05:00.000-06:00

Alright everyone!

The time for voting has passed!

All votes will be tallied and the winner will be announced tomorrow - Friday, 24th.

It's been exciting to watch all of the votes pour in, and it will be even more exciting to tally them up and discover who the Tacky Christmas Sweater Champion will be!

Stay Tuned!

Winner will be announced tomorrow, and will receive a $25 gift certificate to an online store of their choice!

Christmas Sweater Contest

2010-12-19T14:04:00.001-06:00

VOTING BEGINS NOW!

All right- the submissions are in!

Now begins the fun part -

Check out the Sweaters below and vote for which one you think is the BEST Christmas sweater, however tacky, Christmassy, or non-traditional it may be.

If your picture is posted as one of the top three, invite your friends to come and vote for you.

The sweater with most votes wins the $25 gift certificate to an online store of the winners choice.

# 1

That's about as Wintery-Wonderlandy as it gets!

# 2

Ok, so it's more of a sweater VEST, but hey, it's festive!

# 3

Although it may not be the most Christmassy, I think the word TACKY definately fits here.
I think that sweater was meant for someone about 15 years younger and 10 sizes smaller, dude.

Vote by posting a comment with the # of the sweater you like best!

Voting will go until Thursday, December 23rd.

You can also email your votes if you would prefer, or if you are not able to leave a comment - benbetweenthelines@yahoo.com

The votes will be tallied and the winner will be announced on Friday, December 24th.

Aaaand GO!