Desert Trekker.

The past couple days have been rough. I am not going to lie. In the past month, month and a half or so I have been praying that God would bend me, that He would make me into the man that I am made to be. I have just recently realized the danger in praying that. The risk.

Everything has been turned inside out in my life. I have been placed in the desert. To face everything that I am scared of.

I feel that God is teaching me something big.

I am not writing this for pity. I am not writing this to show you that I am a "spiritual guy." I am so not there.

I am writing this to tell you, that I am not afraid of the desert. That if you find yourself in the desert that you should not give up and think life is a constant oasis. Because that is far from the truth. Oasis' exist in the midst of the desert to give you rest for the next trek through the desert. 2nd Corinthians 1:6 says, "If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer." This is why i write this.

I was sitting in class on Monday, not paying attention, there was a lot on my mind. I pulled out my computer and typed this up. I hope it gives you hope as well as it did for me. maybe a bit of encouragement that though you are in the desert that you may have hope in that which God has called you to. That you might be a desert trekker.

When a man walks out of the desert.
He comes out a better
Stronger
More dangerous
Noble
Loving
Man.

For he has faced trouble.
For he has faced himself.
For he has faced discouragement.
For he has faced loneliness.
For he has faced sleepless nights.
For he has faced hunger.
For he has faced the enemy.
For he has faced doubt.

And came out on top of these things.

Its in the desert where what he believes
Is tested.
Its in the desert where he finds out
Who he believes in.
Himself?
Or Him?

He does not trust in his bow.
Not that he doesn’t use his bow.
His sword does not bring him victory.
But it is in God that His victory is found.
He boasts in God alone
For He is with him in the desert.

He does not confuse Desert
with desertion
He knows that God is with Him.

So, you the desert trekker. May you continue. Have hope that God has counted you worthy to make this trek through the desert. You will come out stronger. Continue.

Do not give up.

Do not.

Keep trekking.

Travel the World.

So, in a little more than twelve hours I will be on my way to probably one of the biggest adventures I have taken so far in my life. I am extremely stoked for this and cannot wait to see what happens. I will be going to Liberia, which is in the armpit of Africa. West Coast for all of you that are geographically challenged.

I dont know how I feel about it right now. I was explaining to Julisa (shes my girlfriend, I like her. :)) That I kinda feel like a soldier might feel flying into combat before (maybe on a different scale) they land. You know like when theyre in the helicopter or in the bomber about to drop out like in band of brothers. You have all this training that you go through and then its drop time. Its time to actually get your boots muddy, and go.

I am all about that. I mean boots were meant to get muddy, really. I mean if you see a guy wearing shiny boots, you know he either A.) just bought them. B.) Is afraid of the mud.

Catch my drift?

I think through this whole thing God has been teaching me how to not be afraid of the mud. Which is kind of weird because fear has never really been a huge issue for me. I have always been the risk taking one. The balls to the wall guy (girls its okay if you dont get it). The "oops shouldnt have done that one, but it was fun!" kinda guy, The "hey watch this..." guy, The guy who's life could be modeled after, "pain follows stupid.", and so on and so on.

I am all about risk, I really am. Sometimes i look at the mud and jump right in! Well... most of the time... And when I heard about the trip to Liberia, the risk involved, the mud involved, I jumped right on in!

But there is something about this trip that captured right from the start. I can honestly say that there were times when I believed that I was not supposed to go, that we had 2 months to go and yet I still only had 250 out of the 3500 i needed. There were times that I was sitting in the hospital because I reacted to a vaccination and had difficulty breathing. I look at it now and think,"Man, someone really did not want me to go on this trip."

On the flip side, i can also honestly say that it was utterly dumb of me to think I wasnt supposed to go on the trip. I mean how else can someone describe raising $3000 in 2 weeks? You cant. How can someone describe the phone call I got that went something like this:
Them:"Hey Collin, I just want to let you know that I just got a bonus from my job and am going to pay for the rest of your trip."
Me: silence...
Me: silence...
Them: "Collin?"
Me: "Are you serious?"
Them: "Yes"

Well there was a little bit more meat to that but that was the jist of it. I got that call the day before Christmas. Which was 4 days before I had to leave. insane.

INSANE.

I really wasnt planning on writing a blog tonight. But I think that sometimes I just sit down to write and it just flows out. You know like a... yea I got nothing. Think of something that flows a lot and smoothly too, and then just pretend I said it.

So I leave you with this. I leave tomorrow at 1 PM to go to Liberia. This is a risk. I love risk. Liberia is in the armpit of Africa. I am a little anxious. Pain follows stupid. I am bad with analogies. God works in mysterious ways. Dont be afraid of the mud. Probably shouldn't put "balls to the wall" in a blog ever again. I have a neat girlfriend. She is cute. She got me a hammock for Christmas, and its awesome.

So, when you think "what if God doesnt pull through for me on this one..." Think, "What if God does pull me through this one..."

There is a world of a difference between the two, and the difference can change your life. Pursue that. Pursue it hard. Pursue it SO hard.

Its been fun friends. I love you all dearly, and I can not wait to tell you guys the stories that happen while I am over there. I will bring back a T-rex for you.

~Collin

OH.

Check out our daily blogs from when we are over there at:

www.weliberia.blogspot.com

www.servicetoservants.com
-To read this one you have to click on "Team of 14 heads for Liberia"

PEACE!

Describing Water...?

So, here I am. In Colorado. I love it here. The abundance of mountains, big water, bikes, chacos, and more mountains makes me feel right at home. Although, my house is 1589 miles east... Home is where you make it right? Thats what my grandpa told me this week.

My grandpa. Poppa. He is a trip. He's celebrating his 50th wedding anniversary this week with my grandma. Gommy.

Yep. Thats what we call her. Gommy.

Anyways... So Poppa and Gommy are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary. 50 years. Together. Wow. That is a long time. I asked him, "Poppa. How do you guys do it? I mean 50 years is a long time."

He replied, "The only way is to keep Christ in the center of your marriage, could not have done it without Christ. But Collin, you know what that means.Right?"

"Technically Poppa, I don't. Considering I have been married, oh, I don't know 0 times." Haha.

We both just laughed. You know, he is quite funny for being old. And he has some good advice. Even though, I poke fun at him quite frequently, he is very wise. I mean who wouldn't be, he is in his seventies, and has been through quite a bit! I love sitting down with him and talking about life. I know when its time to leave the conversation though when he starts asking questions about the iPod he just got. Like, "Hey Collin, how do I put different songs from different artists together?" Thats my cue to leave. I love him though. He is awesome.



So, on a completely different note. I love it here. I think I said that already, but thats ok. In the two days we have been here I have:

1. Swam with my cousin JJ for multiple hours. He loves to Jump off the side of the pool and splash me. He's four.
2. go down a river in a Hyde Drift Boat. Its kinda like a raft, but made out of fiberglass... pretty sweet. We went down the river close to sunset, so it was pretty much AMAZING!
3. Went Offroading today. We pretty much had the time of our life. We got to a river where we could not cross it, because of all the snowmelt rushing down the mountain made the rivers quite large! SO we got out of the jeep, and went for a hike.
4. I got postholed. What does that mean? Well, being postholed means when you are walking across a stretch of snow, since its so sunny out and kinda warm the snow softens, and well a posthole, is when you sink into the snow. I personally sunk all the way up past my knees. Pretty Rad right? I was up to my knees in snow wearing shorts and a tshirt in June. SWEET!
5. Tonight, we went to this Jazz concert thing in the park. It was pretty lame. im not gonna lie. The music was alright. Nothing awesome and spectacular.


Thats only the first two days! I have a whole other week! Plans include... rafting, climbing up Maroon Bells (look em up) biking, hiking, fishing, swimming, eating, celebrating, and vacationing.

I have a confession to make. I feel like a little school boy here. There is just so much stuff I want to do! If I tried explaining why or how much I love it here, it would be the equivalent of trying to describe the taste of water. You can not do it. You just know that water tastes like water. Just like I know that I love Colorado.

Everything is different here. I mean, not CRAZY different. I feel almost invulnerable to stress, because all I have to do is think, Man, I'm in Colorado. Or I just look at the mountains and think, "Wow... that sure is something, I am glad the guy who made that is on my side!"

Today on the way to the off roading place, my uncle (who has lived here for 15 years!) would stop the car and start taking pictures of the mountains and stuff. The sense of wonder is still there in him and he has been here for 15 years. I mean, its just that amazing out here. Colorado is a place where 15 years has no effect on your wonder and awe of the beauty of the wilderness. And thats just one of the few things I love about this place.

I truly think God spent a little extra time creating Colorado. I dont know I could be wrong.

I love you guys, and i truly hope you guys have an amazing week! May you live in awe of Christ this week.

Life.

St. Iranaeus of Lyons says, " The glory of God is man fully alive, and the life of man is the vision of God."

I LIKE that! Its what I have been pondering, its what I have been pouring over in this little head of mine lately. And you know what I have concluded from this? What I have seen? What i think?

I think as a follower of Christ. Life is supposed to be mind-boggling, its supposed to be excellent, amazing, stirring, jaw-dropping, inspiring, wondrous, and so much more.

Its pretty awesome to think that God takes pleasure when we are having the time of our life.

So, I am learning to make a little room in my schedule for life to happen.

Sleep in a little
go for a run
drink from the stream instead of the bottle
cross through the creek, not over it
sing a little louder
sake up early for the sunrise, and take it in
feel the release of a frisbee from my hand as it glides through the air
climb a mountain
hug the girl a little longer
grab coffee with an old friend
teach someone something new
take a day off of work, just because its nice out
listen to Jack Johnson
eat an extra piece of cake

"But the person in right standing before God through loyal and steady believing is fully alive, really alive"
-Habakkuk 2:4 (MSG)

So, friend, go enjoy life. God intended it that way

Broken down car

Have you ever wondered why school is such a long process?
I mean, I am 20 years old and have two years left of school. My whole life has revolved around one thing. School.
School is such a buzzkill. Although I am in my fifteenth year of school, these upcoming two years seem like they are going to take forever to be done with.
I want to be done.

It is almost like I have been sitting on the side of the road with a broken down car this entire time. Although it only takes a couple hours to get towed... it seems like eternity. So, here I am sitting on the ground with my back leaning against my car. waiting.

But, what am I waiting for?

I want to get out of school so I can do things that I cant do while in school. Yet, when I get out of school there are things I want to do that are going to prevent me from doing the things that I want to do when I get out of school. Make sense?

All I am trying to say is that I am standing at the crossroads of several paths. Knowing that when I start walking down one of those paths, its going to be close to impossible to walk another one of those paths. Maybe I could walk to the end of one of the paths and start another one...? That would be nice.

I do know one thing. I am going to choose. I am going to choose a path and when I do, I am going to stick to it. The curse of our generation is standing at the crossroads wondering what each path is like. Then if lucky when we choose a path, and it becomes mundane so to speak, we turn around and head back to the infamous crossroads that we know all too well.

In the Old Testament in the book of Jeremiah, Jeremiah says, " stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it..." (6:16)

Notice two things.
1. He says "ask". Meaning pray. And pray dangerously. One thing I have been noticing about when the disciples prayed in the New testament is that they never beat around the bush. They prayed with authority, knowing God was with them. Read the book of Acts, and you will know what I am talkin about.

2. He says "walk in it." Walking requires movement, just in case you did not know that. He never says, "stand at the crossroads and stare, and wonder"

Getting back to the broken down car... Maybe instead of waiting for the tow truck, I should stand up and start walking. Maybe the fix to my "car" is my walking instead of wondering.

I dont want to be known as the guy with huge dreams. I want to be a man known by action.

Soldier

So this afternoon I was watching a pretty rad movie. We Were Soldiers. It is definitely worth seeing if you have not. There is a part in it that leveled me. I have seen the movie 5-6 times and have never noticed this scene, because it is very quick.

In the movie there is a guy that asks to go to the battle. He is a photographer and he wanted to take some pictures. Now he gets in the middle of the battle and realizes that that was a crazy idea. He is in the middle of a big firefight and an explosion goes off and puts him on the ground. Then a lieutenant comes up to him, grabs him and throws him to safety. He grabs a rifle off a dead soldier throws it in his lap then throws a couple rounds of ammo at him. The guys replies, " Sir! I am not a combatant!"

To which the Lieutenant replies, " There is no such thing today."

I heard that and I was leveled by what the lieutenant replies to the photographer turned soldier. You see, from there on out the guy was a soldier. He entered a civilian and left a soldier. He entered fearing battle, he left fighting.

Yes, he still took pictures, yet during the battle his occupation so to speak was soldier.

Then I began to wonder... Where am I taking pictures when God has called me to fight.

You see as a photographer you watch everything pass by. As a soldier you are immersed into the heat of the battle, it progresses as a result of your actions.

Matthew 11 talks about how the Kingdom of God is forcefully advancing and forceful men lay hold of it.

How is the Kingdom supposed to advance if we are a bunch of photographers...?

Its not.

I think when this was written, I think God is saying, " There is no such thing as a non combatant in the Kingdom of God."

You see to be in the Kingdom we have to be soldiers, there is no room for people who just want to take pictures as cool stuff happens.

So,

You a photographer?
or... Soldier?

Little Boy

I was at work the other day and I saw something that reminded me of when I was a kid.
A dad and his two kids.
The Dad said he only gets to see them every other weekend.
The little boy, 11
The little girl, 5
At least I think
Still too young to understand, they were happy
Who wouldn’t be?
The Dad had given them each thirty dollars to spend
I wonder if the Dad was trying to buy their love…
It may work when they’re young
It gets old at 16
I wish I could tell the kids
That divorce is not normal
I wish I could tell them
At times they may make it seem like it is their fault,
Yet the weak will blame the strong.
The weak will blame the young and innocent.
I wish I could tell that little boy
That a family sticks together
It doesn’t divide in two.
I wish I could tell that little girl
That she is beautiful
And always will be
I wish I could tell them to not let their parent’s failures
Set them up for failure
Yet, success.
Maybe I am wrong
Maybe their family works best when divided
But what works best out of its original intent?
What works best when operated the complete opposite of the original design?
So little boy
Little girl
Be strong