Let's Get Real

I'm in the process right now of "taking ownership" of my faith/my religion/my walk with God/however you want to phrase it. Or maybe I should say that I'm letting God take ownership of it. Whatever the case, I'm certain that in the past, neither of us have owned it. You know who has? The preachers, the pastors, the authors, the mentors, the peers--pretty much everyone but God and me.

I'm by no means "rebelling" against the godly people in my life or anyone else. I thank God so much for the people that have reached out to me, befriended me, and discipled me. I'm just realizing that for the past few years, I've been doing a lot of assuming, accepting, believing and not enough questioning, rejecting, and doubting. I've been trying to fit into other people's moulds instead of creating one for myself.

I want to know who God is. Really, who is he? How much of what I think about God has simply been transmitted to me by others? How much have I discovered and known myself, by reading the Bible and really experiencing Him?

I know that God loves me. Or do I? Do I really? I know the that Bible says it's true, and that I've experienced his love, but I also know that this is what I've been taught for the last 6 1/2 years. So what's the real reason that I believe God loves me? Have I truly discovered it for myself? Or have I only accepted what I've been taught?

I've always thought these verses were cheesy:
Jesus loves me, this I know
Because the Bible tells me so.
But they're actually starting to mean something to me now.

When I first heard and read that "God so loved the world," it wasn't very surprising to me. It just seemed like a confirmation of what I had already figured was true. But I'm trying to "un-assume" things like that now. I want to let God teach me his love instead of presuming to have known it already.

~Born of Fire

Friends XIII: Kelsey Tomes

Kelsey Tomes, aka the Tomesinator. Her last name means "Voluminous Books," which is entirely fitting because if I could describe Ms. Tomes in one word, it would be "fun." I've never experienced a dull moment reading a big book, and I've never experienced a dull moment around Kelsey.

I think I've discovered one of the sources of her fun-ness: it's simply that she just jumps right in to whatever is going on at the moment. Let me explain with some examples:

A few years ago I got on this kick where I would just randomly tell someone, "Hey, do you remember that time when you punched me in the stomach and told me I was ugly and I can't read good?" Most people would just laugh, or say something like, "No, when did I do that!" Kelsey, on the other hand, would retort with something like, "Yeah, I remember that. And do you remember that time when you kicked me in the shins and told me I had dandruff and I smell funny."

Example 2: Another thing I had started doing recently was approaching friends when they were talking to someone else or a group of people and say something to the effect of, "Hey, So-and-So, I found that lice shampoo that you were looking for at Wal-Mart the other day. It's on aisle 5." Most people didn't quite know how to react to it, but the Tomesinator did. It eventually became a game of one-up-manship. The game culminated with Kelsey besting me, announcing on a microphone in a conference room in a hotel, in front of tons of people, that she had found my Preparation-H on the floor and needed to return it to me.

There are many other great things about this young lady; this is just the one I wanted to highlight. Kelsey Tomes truly lives in the moment, and seems to enjoy life in a way that makes everyone around enjoy it more, too. Thanks Kels.

~Ken, Born of Fire