Oh Snap! Let's be like Christ

Discipline sucks. I know. I always say I will run/workout, but I never do. I end up not running and eating chips. I know, I know. I am terrible and should run. You are correct, but my discipline sucks, as stated before. I have recently begun thinking about discipline, and how it relates to our daily lives and walk. How would our lives look if we actually practiced a Christlike discipline? What I mean by this is how would our lives look if we really lived like Christ. Think about it for a second. Take it in and actually think about it. Convicting stuff isn't it? It is tough stuff to look ourselves in the mirror and come to terms with us not living a life that reflects Christ. I would say about 30% of our daily lives (I'm talking conversation, speech, actions, lifestyle, personality even) are spent living like Christ. I mean that isn't exactly an accurate figure, but I would say it is a close estimate of most Christians. That means 70% of our lives are exuding an attitude not of Jesus. Eesh. Look at Christ. He expelled love, grace, mercy, compassion, patience, etc. in the toughest of situations all the time, so should we. Our Savior got beaten, torn, broken, crucified, cursed. For what? Of course for our sins, but He did nothing wrong accordingly to the law. He could have been angry, yelling, cursing, any terrible thing you can think of. I mean if anyone had a right to be mad, it would be Him. We get cut off in traffic, and we flip people off. We have a problem with someone so we call them some sort of obscenity. Is that actions that a holy Christ would have done? Absolutely not! He was set apart, therefore we also should be. What kind of Christlike attitude are we showing with that kind of behavior. None. Again I say...convicting. This all applies to myself as well. It is something I have been focusing on for about a month now, and it hurts to look at yourself in a bad light. To say "I have not been living like Christ" stings. I also believe things like this take practice and patience. You must work on one thing at a time. For me and my girlfriend, we have been watching our mouthes. What I mean by this is anything unpleasant, gossip, any kind of language that exudes malice (check out James 3). Trust me it is tough, but we are working on it and it's getting better. That is just one example. If you have trouble loving people, practice complimenting strangers, giving people that extra smile. Trust me, it helps. Also, I believe if we do not practice things like this and are not being like Christ, hypocrisy creeps in. I hate nothing more than hypocrisy among believers. It is disgusting. Makes me sad to say it, but I would guess that there are more hypocritical believers than actual Christlike believers. Yikes. That is not a good thing. How do we attract unbelievers when we act like them? Why would they want what we have when we are no different than them? I see hypocrisy all the time and it is a problem. No, it is not ok to get drunk and then think it is fine to go to church the next day and "repent". No, it is not fine to have sex with a boyfriend/girlfriend then "get right" at church. Lame. Let us live a life free of hypocrisy and full of a Christlike behavior. Sorry for the hypocrisy rant. I just hate it...a lot. Anyway, this thing called "discipline" is tough. Living like Christ is tougher. Let us be disciplined to live a life that is actually like Christ. Not sometimes, all the time. Discipline in running is a mental thing, discipline in a Christlike attitude all the time is a heart thing. We can do it believers!

LOVE: unparalleled greatness

What exactly is this thing called love? I am not so sure the smartest people in the world really grasp what true love entails. It is tricky. I am curious as to whether different people have different capacities for love. By that, I mean can people give or receive love to a limit. Can my parents love for me be more than another parents' love for their children? Love is a topic that baffles me. I believe people, Christians in particular, have a certain "trait" that they relate to more so than another. For example, I know my sister relates well to the subject of forgiveness. That is something that speaks to her more than any other thing. I don't know what other peoples' may be...faith, hope, grace. All of those are fantastic to me in different reasons and on different levels, but nothing speaks to me more than love. It might be the sappy song musician in me, but I think otherwise. As much as I love a sappy love song or one that even breaks your heart, I think I am so intrigued by love because so many people can't seem to find it or have never really felt it. That kills me that some people may have never had this feeling of love. People search for it in so many ways, that their view of love is tainted sometimes (sex, porn, etc). They want to relate to others on this particular subject. That's why people love music. Music is a release to feel that someone else feels like you do. My sister makes fun of me, but I truly believe the reason I love sad songs is that it speaks to a certain human condition which is love or lack of it. I say it again, but when people listen to a song about heartbreak or loss and love, they understand. They feel like they have company on the same boat.

Love is a tough thing to practice on a continual basis. As much as I want to love people, it just sometimes does not happen because I am human and I am flawed. To be honest, a lot of people out there are annoying and tough to love a lot of the times, but those are the ones who need it the most. About a year and a half ago, I got a tattoo on my right wrist that says "mathetes" which in Greek means "disciple". I got this tattoo for one reason only, and that is to remind me as Christ's disciple (which we all as Christians are) I must love. I got this tattoo based off of John 13:34-35 which says "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." Do you see a pattern in these verses? I think Jesus was trying to get something across to these fellows. He reiterated the importance of love in these 2 verses. He repeats himself so that the disciples got the picture. He paints a pretty blunt picture by saying unless you love people, people will not know you are a follower of mine. It is a great practical statement, but heavy at the same time. Without love, people will be completely oblivious to the fact that we are Christ's disciples. I think Jesus thought loving all people was pretty important for the cause of the Gospel.

I read a book recently called "The Road" (if you have not read it, do read it). It was a great book. The book paints a picture of a world that has gone to nothing. It has been demolished, destroyed, and any other catastrophic term you could use. The world is bad. But...in all of this, it follows a man and his son. They fight for life, food, and each other. The book, pretty wrenching at times, shows that throughout all of this, the only thing keeping these two together is love. They are the only thing each other has in the world worth anything. The book was a great reminder of love and a world that is devastated. Our world is devastated to a point that the only thing that can save it is love...Christ's love.

I do not understand love or claim to. I do love the idea of love, if that makes sense. It holds things together. It is a sort of glue in a world falling to pieces. I am not perfect, I wish I were. I do not always love like I should, but I try. We are to strive to be Christlike. That does not necessarily mean I will match up perfectly with Christ, but I do strive to match up with his standards of loving others. In a world where true love is rare and hard to find, what's so hard about me asking a total stranger about their day with a smile? If people can see a little glimpse of Christ's love through my love for them, I have succeeded.

So I did it...

Well....I have been thinking about it for awhile. Many friends have a blog so I determined that I should as well. I wish I could tell you it will be special and full of insightful things, but I cannot promise that. I will probably just write whatever intrigues me (movies, music, etc.). I am not sure yet how much I will keep up with it; maybe once a month (to keep people wanting more of course) or maybe even twice (dangerous territory). Whatever it is, I hope y'all enjoy it.

Favorite Movies of 2009

Maybe you do not care. I am not a movie critic, so you probably shouldn't care. I am in fact a movie buff. As much as I love books, and have picked up a sick fascination with reading, movies are still my first love. Disclaimer: this is a list of movies that I have seen. I'm sure you are saying, "Wait, but Josh, I thought you said you are a movie buff." Do not be mistaken, I am, but my lack of funds have caused me to miss certain movies that would probably top the list. Therefore, I have suffered and waited for them to hit the dollar theatre (for you lynchburgers). I am sure my list would be different tomorrow, but as of today, this is what it is. Also, please let me know your favorite movie of 2009 and if I left off a crucial one. I would not dare mean to.

10. Zombieland- This could actually be higher on other lists. The lack of appeal and audience may have hurt this one, but if you were privileged to see....awesome. It does not lack a lot. Good pieces in place for good acting and dialogue. Jesse Eisenberg is the poor man's Michael Cera. He reminds me of Cera a lot. Harrelson was actually a bright spot for this movie. I was not sure about him in this movie at first, but he played the role well. The cameo of Bill Murray was a great addition. A great, witty, and disgustingly funny movie.

9. Sherlock Holmes- Even though this one just came out, It came out and I saw it in 2009. At first glance, I thought this might be a guilty pleasure movie. I thought it had potential, but overall, would disappoint to be quality cinema even with Downey Jr. I was mistaken. The trailers do not give it justice. The plot is outstanding I thought. Downey is becoming one the few actors I want to see every movie he comes out with. He and Jude Law have some of the best chemistry I have seen on screen in a long time. They were outstanding together. Ritchie directed it in a manner where I saw some similarities with Snatch, and that is a good thing. Good filming, dialogue, chemistry, and cool action. Check it out.

8. (500) Days of Summer- Usually, the "romantic comedy" genre would not interest me, but this one did (i.e. Zooey). It was a witty movie with tons of artistic qualities. Very whimsical. It is not the typical love story which I appreciate. Spoiler alert: he doesn't get "the girl". I like that. It speaks to true reality and humanity and the hurt we all can go through, and also, how much fun love is.

7. District 9- Another movie that I had low expectations and was very skeptical about. This movie did not disappoint. Peter Jackson is a good director, and this was the equivalent of an indie movie for him to direct. No big name stars, not a ton of hype (see Lord of the Rings and King Kong...hyped). Never have I seen an alien/action movie be so emotional and soft. Throughout all the destruction and fighting, I couldn't help but hope the main character somehow got back with his wife and the matter was resolved. It also speaks to prejudice and segregation which is still prevalent. I loved the type of filming that was used. It had interview style filming, documentary style filming, and regular ole movie filming. I liked it a lot. You can also never go wrong with folks talking in South African accents. Overall, good concept and good movie.

6. The Hangover- This is raunchy comedy at it's best. I have very mixed feelings about the movie. Even though I felt dirty after watching it, and would probably not recommend it, it is what it is. It is undeniably hilarious. Great performances from all the cast. They played their characters right on. I have liked Bradley Cooper since Wedding Crashers, and he did not disappoint in this one. The best performance though came from Zach Galifianakis. He stole every scene he was in. Ed Helms was also a funny supporting role. They wanted this movie to be perverted, disgusting, and raunchy. They succeeded.

5. Star Trek- Some of you may disagree, but if you look at the piece of work from a "what it's supposed to be" perspective, you might agree. I was skeptical about this movie all along, but something grabbed my attention to where I thought this movie could surprise me. It surprised me. With no big time actors playing the roles, I thought it would be sketchy. Abrams is great though. He brought the franchise back to where it should be, and that is an exciting and adventurous place. Pine did great I thought. The action sequences were great and the filming was on point. The acting was also surprisingly good. This movie would be the dark horse of this list meaning I would never have thought it would make it. The one negative is Abrams' fascination with time travel (this movie and LOST). I do not like it that much. Oh well, still good movie.

4. Fantastic Mr. Fox- I loved this movie...a lot. This is one I can watch continuously and appreciate. Another director in Wes Anderson I am not greatly fond of. He is good in his own way, but really has not done anything for me to be excited about until now. A witty, funny, and emotionally intact movie. I am a fan of good dialogue, and this one was excellent. I rank it behind Inglorious for best dialogue. All the characters were great. George Clooney continues to bring it. I also love Meryl Streep. The movie has more of an adult audience (which I appreciate), and for that, it will get more of a fan base with time. The resurrection of stop motion was a great plus for me as well. Overall, an excellent film, and I believe, Anderson's best.

3. Avatar- truly fantastic movie just for the visually stunning effects. I believe that this movie is the Star Wars of this generation. Purely innovative in the way it is made and the imagination that comes behind it. James Cameron, to be honest, is not a favorite director of mine, but he did a splendid job on a movie that I had preconceived ideas of it being terrible. It has a lot of main key things movies should have: plot, good story, romance, action, and cinematography. The dialogue to me was suspect. Some of the lines were cheesy, yet well executed. Never have I thought a cheesy line could have such good delivery. But, this is one thing that held it from the top spot.

2. Up- never have I thought a cartoon could be this high on the list, but in reviewing all I have seen, Up stands alone atop the hill of cartoon movies this year. It makes for a great family movie as well as movie you can enjoy for the pure tenderness it brings to the screen. It speaks to all people: people dealing with loss, abandoned dreams, and people who will never give up on adventure. Just a spectacular movie all around. Pixar might have their best one yet.

1. Inglourious Basterds- some may not like it because of Tarantino's ability to make blood and gore funny. I thought the movie was absolutely brilliant. It had everything for me: comedy, great acting, good story, great dialogue, memorable characters, wittiness, and Brad Pitt (he's in my favorite movie of all time but thats a different topic). I do believe it is Quentin's best film as of yet and I am a big fan of Kill Bill. If you have not seen it, do yourself a favor and go see it immediately. It will not disappoint, unless of course you have no movie taste at all.

Honorable mentions: Away We Go, Where the Wild Things Are, Coraline

Movies I am sure would have made it if I had seen them: Up in the Air, Precious, Invictus

Movies that would probably not make a top 20 list or top 100 list, but were enjoyable to me: Blind Side (Wouldn't make top 20), New Moon (wouldn't make top 100)