Monday Messages: "Back To the Beginning Again"

This morning, I was sitting on the bus thinking about a few things. For one, I was on the way to my last day of my 3rd year of college. Then I thought "what album really resonates with this event?" I kept going back to Switchfoot's "Fading West" album. That album really tells the story of their band the past 20 years so I figured I could relate. As I am now finishing up the album front to back for probably the 20th time, I confirmed my original thought. I am writing this in my school's cafe for what's going to be the last time for a few months. I really can't help but get emotional. There have been many times college sucked and I just wanted to say "screw it!" I mean, Youth Pastors and Musicians don't need college degrees, so why keep going? But then I felt God tell me "What if those don't work out?" And He had a point. Which leads us right into today's Bible Verse.

Proverbs 2:1-5 says "My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God."

There were points in this semester even where I had a paper due the next day but I was working until like 9 PM. Its all just a test. At the beginning of 2016, I said this is going to be MY year. I'm going to focus on me and not let anyone get in my way. So far, that has proved pretty good. I started going to a new church (one different from my family although they switched too). I saw Underoath which was amazing. So far, it has been pretty successful. 

Of course I can't have a good year without God's help. I probably would have quit this semester and not accepted the offer for my job back if He didn't want me to. 

Now let's go back to my first year of college. Are there things that I would change? I want to say yes SO BAD but the answer is no. God has everything happen for a reason so, no I wouldn't change one bit. Even though I performed really poorly, it was a lesson for me to get my butt in check. And it really worked. I have done way better since then and am proud of it. So thanks God. 

Until Next Time, Alex

monday messages: "You can have my life. i'm sad." (100th post!!!)

have you ever been like just emotionally done with life? i know that i have been and it hurts. but you have to push through. when you're sad, you are more than likely missing something in your life. 9 times out of 10 that missing thing is God. you have to turn everything over to Him when you're feeling sad. think about the last time you were really happy and satisfied with life. that's when you last had God. so what happened? let's talk.

1 peter 5:7-11 says the following:
6 humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 7 cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 8 be alert and of sober mind. your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. 10 and the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 11 to him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.

what Peter is trying to tell us here is that even though suffering doesn't come from God, He allows us to suffer to get closer to Him. now you might think what I just said is a little controversial. but seriously, have you read the story of job? that guy is a freakin' beast! he lost everything except his wife. his house. his children. his crops. i wasn't kidding when i said everything besides his wife. one of my pre-monday messages posts when it was still kind of a one off message, explains this. but his wife told him to curse God. he just said "nope!"

there are a lot of us (me included) that get sad or depressed when we are just rejected by the person we liked. now just take a second and imagine you lost everything. what would you do then? it scares me to say this but a lot of us would follow job's wife. i don't know you personally but the way this world is headed, most of use would curse God. 

life gets better. i know from personal experience that it may suck but keep your eyes on God and don't lose sight of Him even in hard times. it has helped me so much. Trust me, it'll help you too.

until next time, alex

p.s. everything but God is lowercase to really emphasize God in this post. another reason is because the title is from relient k's newest song "bummin'." when they say You in that song, they are referring to God. 

p.p.s. this is post 100!!! thank you to the 10,200+ people who have taken a few minutes out of your day to read one (or several) of my posts. i thank God for everyone. love you all.

Monday Messages: Unashamed

These days, its hard to find someone, including pastors, that are "unashamed" about their faith. You will see them talk about it to their Christian friends but once they are outside of that circle of people. It's an even bigger issue for celebrities. There are a lot of celebrities that are Christians but know if they say something about it, they will get shunned for it. Its sad the world that we live in. We live in fear of sharing out our faith. That's what I'm going to talk to you about today. Lets go straight into the Bible verse.

Romans 1:16-17
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,[a] for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”[b]

Today, there are two very successful mainstream musicians that don't care what anyone says, they share their Christian faith enough that it can get into people's heads and help them. The first one is Tori Kelly. You may or may not know this about her, but if you listen to her or wear one of her tshirts, you likely see her faith every day without realizing it. Her leaf logo is based off of Psalm 91:4, which reads as follows: "He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler." One of her biggest songs, (and one of my personal favorites by her) "Hollow," is a worship song. She has said in interviews that it is her worship song that she wrote to honor God for giving her the gift of singing. And don't be surpised if Tori one day comes out with an entire worship record.

The second celebrity is Justin Bieber. You may bring up his past few years and question his faith. This following passage is from his song "Purpose": "I don't know if this is wrong/Because someone else is telling me that it's wrong/But I feel this so let me just like, try my best not to let this happen again/We weren't necessarily put in the best position to make the best decisions. /You can't be hard on yourself/For these were the cards that you were given so you have to understand that these, like.../That's not who you are/You're trying to be the best you can be but that's all you can do/If you don't give it all you got, you're only cheating yourself/Give it all you got/But if it ends up happening, it ends up happening./That's what it's....that's what's happening with me/It's like God I'm giving it all I got, sometimes/I'm weak and I'm gonna do it, and it's like I'm not giving myself grace/I'm just like understanding, that's just how it is." If you didn't catch it, he is talking to God.  We have all made mistakes. Some bigger than others. The thing is, though, is that it doesn't matter if you killed someone or stole a candy bar from a store. It's all the same thing to him. Bieber changed himself and is a new person. He is unashamed that he rediscovered his faith.

All of us Christians are here for a purpose. Each of us may have a different purpose but we were all put on this Earth to bring more people to Jesus (Matthew 28:19). That has been the mission for us from the beginning. Maybe yours looks like taking your friend to Starbucks and talking about Jesus or if they are going through a hard time, invite them to church. Once it happens, you will want to keep doing it and will give you a better addiction and high than any drug or alcohol ever could.

Until Next Time, Alex

Top 5 Albums For The First Quarter of 2016 (January, February, March)

It's that time again! Wait how are 4 months of the year almost over?

5.) ZAYN - Mind of Mine (Deluxe Edition)

4.) Lecrae - Church Clothes 3

3.) Anchor & Braille - Songs For the Late Night Drive Home

2.) Macklemore + Ryan Lewis - This Unruly Mess I've Made

1.) The 1975 - I Like It When You Sleep, For You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware of It

Why You Should(n't) Boycott Target

Unless you have been living in a hole the past week, you have definitely heard about the whole fiasco with Target. If you go on Facebook, you are going to see differing opinions. Not in my case. I have NOT seen a positive post about it on my personal Facebook. And several people, including me, are supporters of the LGBT lifestyle. But here is why people like me do not support this: Any grown man (like me) can walk into the women's restroom behind teenage girls and no one could question him. In fact, there have already been a couple arrests of men walking in a taping little girls. This is the part of the rule that the Target Board of Directors probably didn't consider. Believe me, if arrests like this keep happening, they are going to have to change the rule or consider the fact that they will lose most if not all their customers, no matter if they support the law or not.

As of the time of writing this, more than 700,000 people have pledged to boycott Target until they change the rule. I bet 90% of those people are still going to shop at Target. They are just trying to get them to stop. Now let me tell you why I, personally, will not be boycotting Target. For one, boycotts never work, have never worked, and will never work. Second of all, I'm a Christian. A couple months ago, before any of this, my friend told me "You can't let the dark rule the light. You have to be the light in a dark place." If you're boycotting Target, you're honestly just running away from the problem. If your daughter, wife, girlfriend, whatever girl in your life has to go to the restroom, just use the family one. My Target has two of them. 

One last thing. After reading this, you may think, "Oh, he is so stupid. He totally supports it." Let me tell you this, no way in HELL do I support this, nor will I ever. I can tell you that if I ever saw a grown man (who obviously isn't questioning his gender) walk in the women's restroom behind my sisters, mom, or best friend (who is a girl) I wouldn't beat him up, even though he deserves it. Instead, I would talk to him. Try to find out his true intentions. Give him some Biblical advice and send him on his way, but not before I tell him I will call the cops.

What are your thoughts on Target's new law? Comment below and let me know.

Until Next Time, Alex

Monday Messages: "Wait"

Happy Monday! I hope everyone is doing well and had a good day! I went to school and came home so been pretty laid back.

Today's message is on waiting. Not sexually. But on God's plan. Specifically on relationships, though. The world puts such a pressure on being single. Like it is almost a bad thing to be single. Yes, it may suck, (believe me I would know), but its part of His plan. Did you go through a horrible breakup or rejection recently with someone you thought loved you? Well that person wasn't meant to be with you. God has someone for you. He has someone for me. Just gotta wait.

In the upcoming Psalm 27, David may have been going through a breakup or something similar. I can relate to this passage for sure.

The Lord is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?
When the wicked came against me
To eat up my flesh,
My enemies and foes,
They stumbled and fell.
Though an army may encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear;
Though war may rise against me,
In this I will be confident.
One thing I have desired of the Lord,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the Lord,
And to inquire in His temple.
For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock.
And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me;
Therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord. 
Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice!
Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
When You said, “Seek My face,”
My heart said to You, “Your face, Lord, I will seek.”
Do not hide Your face from me;
Do not turn Your servant away in anger;
You have been my help
Do not leave me nor forsake me,
O God of my salvation.
When my father and my mother forsake me,
Then the Lord will take care of me.
Teach me Your way, O Lord,
And lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies.
Do not deliver me to the will of my adversaries.
For false witnesses have risen against me,
And such as breathe out violence.
I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the Lord
In the land of the living.
Wait on the Lord;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the Lord!

Thats all I have for today!

Until Next Time, Alex

Monday Messages: Be Someone Worth Remembering (In A Good Way)

Happy Monday Everyone! Sorry that I kind of skipped out last week. Hopefully that All Time Low inspired mid week post made up for it! Have you ever thought of what people will think of you when you die? I know I want to be remembered by being a famous musician that was a youth pastor as well who saved animals in Africa. Let's be honest only part of my fantasy will become reality. I just want to die as a good person. Everyone will be remembered by someone. but why make it a bad reason? God gave us choices for a reason.

Today's passage is rather short but I hope it helps you.
Matthew 5:13-16

13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.14 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

You can relate this to yourself even if you aren't a Christian. Everyone wants to die a good person. I honestly do not think any of those shooters wanted to die a bad person. They just had mental problems that weren't getting fixed when they should have. All we can do is pray for them. Maybe they will turn to God's side. Those shooters are remembered for a very bad thing. You can be different.

It isn't that hard to be a quote unquote good person. Do you have a job? I know at my job (and my previous job), I can get some pretty crappy customers. Like I have literally been cussed out more than once at both jobs! You know what i did to those customers? No I didn't cuss back (although I wanted to)! No, I showed them love. I acted like they were a customer that was nice even though I was fuming and ticked off on my inside. Just showing people kindness can change them.

One last thing, I believe my journey into wanting to be a youth pastor started about a year ago. I was at school for a Christian group I go to on Fridays here. I was there a little early as usual so I did what I do and went into the library to surf the web. Outside the library, there was a girl crying. I felt a call to go pray with her but I ignored that call and just went up to the library. As I was in the library, the call got stronger. Kinda can relate this to Jonah, right? Well, eventually, I went down and had to chase her to her car and I was hesitating a little bit but I knocked on her car door. She allowed me to pray with her so I did. I don't know what happened past that, but maybe I saved her life. I just know it was of the Lord. In the next few weeks, I will be telling stories of my past year (besides the Disneyland one bc that's overdone I think lol) of how my relationship with God has gotten stronger and my call to be a youth pastor.

Until Next Time, Alex