Random Thoughts for the Bye Week

Since Clemson doesn't play this weekend, I thought I'd spend a little of this free time by throwing out some random thoughts I've been having lately. Some of them are serious, some are not, and none of them match. But since I have some time and thought you'd all get a kick out of this, here it goes.

First of all, I hate politics. I know that as a citizen, I have the responsibility to care about my government. I should vote and make my voice heard. The government is supposed to be by and for the people. I know all that stuff. But these past elections came and went without me even noticing. It's not because I'm overseas either. I didn't vote in the last presidential election when I was living in the States. Why? Because I am not impressed with the canidates that get nominated and honestly, I don't know enough or care enough to make an educated decision. When I get back to the States, I will do my part, I will learn what I can to make a good decision, and come the time, I will vote. But I refuse to "get into" politics. It's just too stressful for me.

Which brings me to my second thought. As Christians, we should be able to live together, work together, and love one another, despite political and even theological differences. I love theology as much as anyone, and think it's a vital part of any Christians life. We should know what we believe and what we don't believe. As a Christian, everyone has a theology, it's just that some are more thought out and fuller than others. And I love having theological discussions, even though they can be just as, if not more, heated than political discussions. But here's the kicker. When it all boils down to it, we're all on the same team. We're all fighting the same fight. Whether you believe in predestination or free will, the angelic languages or known languages, hymns or modern praise music, I don't care. As long as we're preaching Jesus as Lord, let's work it out. I know there are some essentials that we must agree upon, but we must be able to live with the fact that people will not always agree with us on the non-essentials. And you know what, they're not supposed to! When Paul was faced with this question, of what to do with people who have come to different convictions on an issue, he responded with, "One person regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. LET EACH ONE BE CONVINCED IN HIS OWN MIND." If you believe something is wrong, it is wrong for you. But that may not mean that it is wrong for someone else. Have convictions, know what you believe, but don't try to pressure others into believing the same thing if they have come to a different conclusion. And for those of you being pressured, forgive your brothers and sisters and let us all live in peace. We are to prove we are His disciples by the love we have for one another. Let's get to it.

If I was going to form my own country, I would throw Dickey Betts, John Fogerty, and the Marshall Tucker Band in a studio together to write my national anthem. I love the Allman Brothers Band sound. Dickey's guitar work is amazing. He is credited as the main writer for "Jessica," "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed," and "Blue Sky," which are some of the sweetest sounding songs your ears will ever hear. Fogerty, though harsher sounding, is just as good. His lyrics really speak about life in the South. And the Marshal Tucker Band is most assuredly the greatest band to have come out of South Carolina (sorry Hootie). It takes real guts to try and make it in the South with a flute in the band, but they pulled it off. "Can't You See" is one of the saddest songs I know of and "Heard it in a Love Song" is one of the nicest. Whenever I hear that flute rise up sharply, I am taken back to memories of riding through Kershaw County with their greatest hits in the cassette player, the radio up as loud as it would go, and every window in the Blazer rolled down. That's home.

And last but not least. I am tired of talking about girls (nothing personal to all my girl SPACE friends out there). To watch the guys around here drool over every attractive girl that walks by is very frustrating. I promise you that half of every conversation I have with a guy here has something to do with a girl. It's really getting old. Like I have said many times, we are not promised wives, we are not commanded to marry. Let us focus on the things we have been commanded to do and hope for the things we have been promised. Then, if God does bring a woman into your life, you can be truly thankful for the BLESSING you've been given, instead of feeling like you have finally found meaning in your life. There is more to this life than getting married guys! I will praise my Father and thank him endlessly if I am blessed to marry a wonderful Christian wife, but I do not think I deserve it, and I do not think I NEED it in order to live a happy and fulfilling life. Get over it guys.

There's supposed to be a really nice meteor shower tonight, so if the city lights and smog doesn't block your view like it probably will mine, I hope you will venture outside and enjoy the show. I am a nerd when it comes to stuff like this, but I really enjoy laying out and watching meteor showers. God's natural fireworks display. Have a great weekend!