How He Loves Us

As i post this, i am moved to repent.
I do not love him the way i should.
I love other things more.
Like a child i play in the mud of wordliness and stain the beautiful raiment he has clothed me in.
I trivialize his affections.
Let me be candid, i take his love for granted.
I'm comfortable with the immense weight of all eternity hidden in the recesses of my heart.
Yet every time i desire to wet my tongue with his grace, he unleashes a torrential stream of love from his eternal storehouses.
His love is amazing.
AND
I still have little faith.
I try to do his will for him.
I am content for him to have his way as long as i am on the committee that makes the decisions.
I am obsessed with 'making up' for his 'mistakes'
Oh, God, wait a second... you forgot something here. Let me fix it for you.
As if i could hold the burning stars in place with my right hand,
or even hold my loose teeth in my fleshly gums with my designs.
I repent.
Renew my affections for your ways.
Break this heart in me.
Take me to your temple.
Let your praises echo in your sanctuary.
I will be spent in your service.
Then, you will no longer be jealous for me.

Jacksonville

I have a lot of ideas i should write about Jacksonville. Since i lived there for 6 weeks interning for a non-profit ministry called 2nd Mile Ministries, i have quite a few things i need to debrief still... i'm not sure if i will ever get to all of them, but for the sake of clearing out a couple of the good ones before i talk them to death, here's a few.

Reasons i loved Jacksonville/2nd Mile

~Church planing in the 'hood
~Andrae's (The Big Boss) laugh
~Swami... Garrett's (Intern) guitar playing
~The question game ("Hey, why are you wearing that shirt?")
~Jambo!!!
~My favorite day camper, Akilah. So cute.
~Ruth's ruthless Eyebrow and in a unrelated matter, her 4pm coffee runs.
~Heron saying... "Do you smell that?"
~Trying to do the 'jerk'
~I lived with 6 amazing interns.
~H. B. & Shilo Metropolitan Baptist Church
~Taking a large group of white people to Shilo
~Yo Fam!
~Jamison working the kids into an excited frenzy just to run around a circle screaming, "You Ain't Hype"
~Running in the monsoon rain
~Going for a Rita's Gelato or Brewster's Ice Cream run at 9pm
~Hardee's with Amp
~Having a house full of people and no car to leave--being brought face to face with the stark realization that you must walk in the the spirit or sin publicly.
~Mama B's breakfast
~Park nights
~Kobe Bryant On 'Em
~Stupid Dumb Idiot
~The upstairs. affectionately dubbed "Sheol" by virtue of the lack of AC. Coincidentally, i slept there most nights.
~A woman who sells herself (don't get the wrong idea. I get convicted every time i think about it because i have no idea how to love them the way Jesus would)
~Luna's (i have no idea how to really spell Mrs. Robinson's name) gentle spirit.
~St. Augustine, and yes, slapping pigeons.
~Knowing that i'd slap pigeons if i had to do it all over again.
~Meeting the Highschoolers and going to the beach the first day.
~Being the token white guy
~Our volunteer groups, Middleburg, Eastside, and especially the 'Bama crew.
~"The ocean is not endless"
~The old firehouse we transformed into a Safari!
~STAY LEFT!!!!!
~Pastor Rick Borque's Sermons on Isaiah

There are so many things i love about Jacksonville. it was such a blessing to go. My burden for the gospel to be carried there compels me to ask you to pray for God's hand to change the hearts of men to love Him in the hood.