Shijajuang

I spent the last 24 hours of my life in a place called Shijajuang, China watching my friend, Peter, get taped for a TV show where he sang a song called "Da Zhong Guo (Big China)" and performed with dozens of other foreign (non-Chinese) singers, dancers, and actors. He's actually a teacher in Northern Hebei Province, China, but he fit the role weell for this weekend. It remindeed me of "The UN" meets "The Super Happy Fun" Hour...complete with a set of African contortionists, flashing lights, a director going crazy to finish his show, and a Pakistani pop-star.

The first picture is of Peter, dressed in his traditional Chinese red-and-yellow attire, and I, dressed in my famous Chinese "The North Face" knock-off jacket, after his show.

The second is from the bus I rode on at 6:30 AM passing a tractor-trailer pulled over on the shoulder, which caught fire and had dozens of people streaming to pilfer the contents of the vehicle, which appeared to be mostly ramen noodles and dried food-stuffs.

its late

its late. I cannot sleep. I have to be at work early in the morning and I am not happy about this. This happens to me about once a month or so. Tonight is special though. i seriously think the spirit is not letting me sleep. almost like a man quietly, simply, unappologeticly shaking me every so often. I am wrestling with real contentment in the Lord. There is also a girl that I want to leave my head but wont. so i am praying that God have his way with these paths. my mom showed me a picture of a girl she wants me to meet and it stirred something deep inside me, and in typical fashion for me, it will be a slow mulling over process until i can even identify the emotion I feel. I thank God sometimes that even though my mind may be a different story, my emotions and my heart move very slowly, but quite forcefully. I began to worry about having money to have a family one day. worrying about teaching offspring about the creator. worrying about screwing it all up. amazing how one pretty face can stir these thoughts. i know yall have these. 2 corin 4 18 says to not worry about the seen, for it is the unseen that is eternal. God please drill this into my head. heart too. i dont want many things. I dont want to be attached to this world. I want to be happy with a bed, some food, freinds and family. good work to do. its funny. I dont feel christmas anymore. except in a sudden wave of emotion that might be set off by some trigger. like 'a charlie brown christmas' special. I think that brought me to God way back in the day when Linus says humbly..."I can tell you what christmas is all about Charlie brown." (Bettwy, bury me in blue grass just came on my computer radio...no kidding... and dave matthews Christmas song came on earlier) those songs we used to listen to in bed in whoppahouse late at night when bettwy slept under my bed. There is a lot going on right now in the unseen world.

to me yall are more than just people

Wheeler

easy way to pick up babydolls

I found a singles Christian group that meats every sunday night at a church near my house. I'm gonna go scout for quarterbacks.

Kevin's engagement

My fellows,

I feel inspired to ask if anyone is interested in setting apart some time next week together to be Going Before the Father together for Kevin and Whitney, in light of their recent decision to be wed. I'm aware of the fact that we'll be together on that weekend, so if it's gonna happen then, let me know when during the weekend.


Ryan

"Receiving Grace Fully"

My today:

8 woke up with a spirit of hate writhing against me.

8-830 battled with a spirit of hate that was writhing against me

830-845 got onto the couch and jumped around, rebuking spirit of hate writhing against me. received grace fully.

845-905 walked to classroom. packed up fake Christmas tree from last year and brought it back to apartment. Saw Sunshine and chatted for a few seconds. Thought about when I used to see him walking toward me on campus last year, how I'd always start singing "You are my Sunshine, my only Sunshine!..." to him. I haven't done that lately...which is something I must remedy

905-10 researched for message I was planning for on ps 37, to our congregation (six people, myself included). saw that one of my fantasy football teams was kicking tail, as Miles Austin had 79 yards and a TD before 10 minutes were gone in the first quarter. Received grace fully (no pun intended...)
Listened to John "Smokin' the Pipe"-r talk about envy.

10-1030 rebuked spirit of fear in my living room. jumped around on my couch some more, dreaming of our time together. Wore: blue jeans, maroon VT rugby t-shirt, and oversized Hokie slippers. Perfect uniform for rebuking spirits, I do believe.

1030-11 Made/ drank coffee. Sat with friends in sanctuary/ breakfast table/ movie theater/ study area/ dining room/ newly-christened "rebuking zone"...aka, the living room. Spoke of our time with Canadians who Are Like Us who we met with to exhalt the day before.

11-1 Danced...we danced a pure dance of freedom and left no stone unturned, searching for the Truth inside eight sentences printed in a book made from letters written to friends, poems written to brothers about the One, and stories written about true things in life. We read ps 37, v. 1-11 together.

"What sticks out to you here?" I asked.
"Delight yourself in Him," Kerry answered.
"The part that talks about not fretting," Amelia noted. "I like that."

I noted the action verbs: "Trust" (v. 3), "do good" (3), "dwell" (3), "enjoy" (3), "Delight" (4), "Commit your way" (5), "trust in him" (5), "Be still" (7), "wait patiently" (7), "do not fret" (1, 7, 8), "turn from wrath" (8), "hope" (9).

Listened to a 'teaching' from the Pipe-smoking Johnnie himself. Challenged to fight envy with faith. Intentionally Came before Him together.

1-230 Ate food with these precious people. Asked again, after planning English Night (aka, club) for our lives, for logistical concerns, and for Truth to be Seen.

230-4 Fought more spirits of hatred. Sent e-mails. Burried head in the couch in a position of desperation. Asked and received grace fully.

4-7 heard knock on the door. Answered and carried chairs to my next-door-neighbor and teammate, Bethany's, apartment. Commensed "The MSA Christmas party" with 20 Chinese girls, three dudes (Wang Ja Jun, myself, and John), and our British neighbor, James. Played Yankee swap, charades, 20 questions, and a strange chinese game where everyone pretends to be confused about everything that's going on around them (I often don't have to pretend). Strove toward glad heart, even in the tired moments. favorite moments were during 20 questions, wherein I held a tiny turtle in my hands for about 20 minutes and tried to tickle his belly until he started running away.

7-8 Ate supper...I had "Tang su Li Gi Gai Fan (ten yuan to whoever translates that first!)

8-830 Helped our neighbor get her head wrapped around her thesis for English class. She greeted us at the door with dough all over her hands from making jiaotzi (dumplings).

830-930 Planned English Night. Listened to Jon, my roommate, speak about the date he had in Beijing this weekend. Prepared for club and understood that, indeed, not all days are the same. Received Grace Fully.

930-1111 Listened to Jon play the guitar and talk to his friends on Skype. G-chatted with Robert Ramsey, a young guy who I used to walk alongside, mutually pursuing the King, and challenged him to question if "how you receive is just as important as how you give." Wrote a blog entry about my day and entitled it "Receiving Grace Fully". Received Grace Fully.

1122 Pressed "Publish Post," planning to and (inevitably) executing the full reception of Grace.

questions

I need ideas... how can i gather troops in greensboro together to break bread? 22-27 ish. not college bible studies. going over stuff in this phase... thoughts?

picture blog for my travels

hokieatremington.blogspot.com

excerpt

excerpt from 'Discovery'...

"He determined your sex, how tall you would be, the color of your eyes, and your skills. There is no one else like you. You are a special, unique creation, and you were created for a good purpose. You can trust that His purpose for you is good because God is good, and He can do nothing but good. .... when we wake up in the morning... 'Let's walk and talk together today. Let's live this day together because there are special things I want to share just with you'..."

get some.

Brothers,

I enjoy encountering the searing-hot coals inside of your hearts. Thank you each for the gift that it is to encounter Life in these true ways.

I long to be exposed before the cross for the fraud that I am. That is truly my joy, to be completely bear before Him. I'm tempted even as I write this to make it sound good so that you will think that I am spiritual or have a good heart or something. I rebuke that and simply invite us, as brothers, to come before the throne entirely. I'm asking today for Truth at whatever cost: my pride, my goals, my comfort, my family. There are no laurels to rest on and that is truly where I want to live my life: completely bare before the cross.

No, I don't mean bare like one might be if he was, say, sitting around with a bunch of dudes near a fire in the woods sipping brews with no one around for miles... although I can imagine how excited you just got, Wheels.

My Father has been getting up underneath me lately through ps 37, convicting me and showing me the face of Glory himself. I offer it to each of you in hopes that it can and will do the same for you.

Sincerely,

Brother Bettwy

we few

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xg2OajyeZUE

Brothers

I've also been learning that there are a lot of dudes out there who want to know how to be a true friend, brother, father, whatever. And the world is in desperate need of them... Men who value faith and character over everything else. It takes courage to be a man, kind of like this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VizQ__xzU1M

and I'm thankful that I've got true brothers on the road ahead.

We’ve all been made in God’s image, brothers. I’ve been thinking about what it means to be in his image and what this image truly looks like, because together we are the body. As for relating this to life practically, I’ve been learning a lot about relationships. Being much more intentional, and loving people effectively. To do this it’s pretty durn helpful to know each other’s love languages, and get also get over the sappiness of the term “love languages”. I started thinking of events in my life where Christ has shown me his love in various ways and learned a valuable lesson about people.

We have an incredible God. He is the Truth, and the Truth is dynamic- as dynamic as a person (which He is) and He sets us free. Not only does Truth set us free, but He loves. On top of loving, he loves each person specifically and that is why he is dynamic. He meets us where we are and uses words of affirmation, quality time, gifts, acts of service, and touch. How? You tell me.

I’ve been blessed to see a myriad of ways that people love Christ back, and that has been the best part. I value being a Whoppahead and worshipping the God King alongside men
who worship well.

Be on the lookout for love that makes no sense but blows through us like the wind... the only thing we know is that it is driven by the Son.

Dang

Yes. That is all I have to say about Wheeler's post. In reality I thought "damn." Continue on Warrior Poets.

I have been faced with the fact that there is a calling on every day, that God does not wake me up to help me try and figure out my calling; he has already placed His calling in me when he put his presence in my life. His presence is a calling...to be in the presence of love is to be called. And my calling is to ask, seek, and knock for my joy and for the satisfaction and joy of others because we are the ones guaranteed, by the sealing favor of His blood, to receive, find, and eat at the banquet table.

"But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. ¹²Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. ¹³In the sight of God, who gives life to everything, and of Christ Jesus, who while testifying before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you ¹⁴to keep this command without spot or blame until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁵which God will bring about in his own time—God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, ¹⁶who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen." 1 Timothy 6:11-16

Wheels, continue to raise up that militia.

It Is an Honor,
Murden

Venting Part 2

Ok. So I'll admit it. I was reading Wheelers post yesterday in the early hours of a Monday morning workday and started to well up a bit. (that means starting to cry) and conveniently enough, at the same, time my co-worker - a nice lady about 35-40 years old peers over our adjoining cube wall and asks me a question about work...and then stops what she was saying and asks me, "are you feeling ok? It looks like your eyes are really red."
(Women are smart)

Well Dammit wheels.

"Yeah... I'm good," I replied. I wanted to explain that old friends, good letters, and TRUTH were the best things I could ask for, but I concentrated on maintaining what composure I had left. Yeah theres been some hard days whoppas. I love you guys. Whoppahead Ministries International. We're just getting started.. under what wheeler said best:

I see guys everywhere who need whoppaheads, and need to know that they are one.

Yeah we're all whoppaheads. In need of grace, and mercy from our Father made available by the blood of Jesus Christ. Let us not try to live a day without it.

Heres to tears, longing for fullness here, and knowing that we will be with HIM forever.

Dont give up. Strength and Honor..

Actions and Truth.


OH AND DO THIS: (SO PEOPLE CHECK THE BLOG WHEN YOU POST)
1. sign in.
2. click customize at the top of the screen
3. click on the settings tab
4. click on the "Email & Mobile" Section
5. Enter up to ten emails to notify when you post...that way we actually use the blog.

-Nicoletti

I need to vent

Vent

One thing that kinda comes naturally to me is that I don’t miss being places. Ive always been good at moving on from one phase into another without really looking back at the old one and wanting to go back. I moved to Blacksburg without ever a look back. I left Africa knowing it was time to return home. I moved out of my house in kville after one year at tech never regretting giving my room up. There is, however, this new phase of life. I miss Whoppahouse. The house, the dudes, the atmosphere, the brotherhood, and everything. The funny thing is, I knew the time had come over a year ago. Pat and I had returned to Blacksburg and things just were not the same. I am a believer in its not where or what you are doinig but its who you are with. We have the blessing of knowing we are with the Bigman at all times but upon returning to Blacksburg I knew the times were a changing. I knew it was time to get out because the men who had cemented my love affair with the burg were mostly gone. Life began to change. So I do miss it a lot. But I also believe what bettwy writes in his book. College was awesome but its not the best time we will ever have, that’s bullshit, because we have a life of freedom that will get better everyday walking with the King. The thing is, Im still adjusting to the shock waves. The ripples of my pool have not calmed. I do hope that one day we can all be near. Live close, work, raise kids who play together, laugh, fight, help eachother learn how to be married the right way, support eachother’s spouses as good friends. In my dreams we have like 300 acres of land and we all build a house on it in different areas. Maybe 20 minutes outside Richmond where business guys, engineers, ministers, and pilots can work and play. That’s my dream, and if I ever figure out a way I will be calling! In the meantime I know that our brotherhood is born of rock and steel that will not only be great in spirit but accomplish things in this world. Nico made up “whoppahead ministries international” to publish the book under and I think I might start a bible study in Greensboro. I see a need that should be filled. One that I think I can fill, and we all can fill. I see guys everywhere who need whoppaheads, and need to know that they are one. A goofball guy, trustworthy and hardheaded, but needs to be told he can kick some ass and take names in this world as part of the only real army in the universe the one that cant be defeated. We are not in control of our lives. Our lives are governed by the laws and codes and principles that God has designed. Like the rules of the ball game. And if you focus on Him, His laws, and His codes of character, manhood, and freedom, then you are, infact, in control . I think that one day we can surround ourselves with eachother again and play as a team. But for now we gotta play as a team geologically separate. But never forget that its only miles that separate our team.

There is that little pause. That little gap. That little moment that seperates stimulus from reaction. That gap, however small, is where your soul resides. That gap is what seperates you from the beast. That gap, between stimulus and response, is God. That moment if your freedom to use the law, no matter the stimulus.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pD0YMb-7hlY&feature=PlayList&p=0C1010ABCF60D80E&index=21

Thanks for listening.

Wheeler

arms dealer

Never been shot. Selling them to get them off inventory.

visitor check in part two

Ok, ive added email notifications to people so hopefully we look at this more.

J.

Let me know if you got one via comment below. (theres a chance this will only happen when I Post and not when say bettwy posts...so we will just have to keep an eye on it.

Visitor check-in

This post is just to check if anyone is reading the posts here. Please comment to this message with "Pony dates a Yankee" if you read this.

Ryan