Workout- Rest Day
Bible Reading- Luke 20:20 - John 5
Jesus asks the disciples, "Who do people say that I am?". They respond with words like, "Prophet and Messiah". Then Jesus digs a little deeper and asks them "Who do YOU say that I am?". It's a tough question sometimes. Reading the books of the gospels in a concentrated format forces you to answer this same question. Is he truly the son of God or was he simply a nice man. Did he truly perform miracles or were all of these events overblown stories of good deeds. What do you believe of these stories to be true?
Personally, I believe that Jesus truly is the son of God, empowered to do the miracles described in the books of the Gospels. I can't say that I always understand it, but I believe it. I believe that he healed the sick and the hurting. I believe that he brought the dead back to life. The tricky part is, is that I don't feel that you are allowed to believe some and discount others. I can't say that Jesus gave the blind man his vision but didn't really feed the five thousand. If I am going to accept some of them, then I have to accept all of them.
Of course the biggest miracle of all is that He would forgive our sins, allowing us to have eternal life. Do you believe this? I guess the necessity of believing this hinges on whether or not you believe there is more to life than just what we are doing day to day. If you think that what we are living right now is all that we have, then I suppose the idea of grace and forgiveness is null and void. However, if you place your hope in a better life to come, then the need to believe that Jesus came to redeem us is infinitely greater. In my opinion, the need to believe this exponentially increases our ability to believe that this is true to begin with.
So... If we can get to the point that we believe the most difficult miracle of all, (Jesus dieing for our sins so that we may have eternal life), how can we even begin to discredit all the other miracles described in the gospels? So I guess this brings me full circle to the original question. Who do you say that He is? Is he a living eternal God capable of performing miracles in your life or is he simply a nice guy in the history books?
-Michael
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Day 76
Workout- Kenpo X
Bible Reading- Luke 10 - 20:19
Going into this challenge, I think I was most excited about the blogging portion. I feel like I am a fairly thoughtful, well spoken, and funny guy when I want to be. The down side is that the obligation to write mixed with the lack of time have forced this part of the challenge to be the biggest drudgery ever. I think it has been motivating in that I know there are people that check this on a daily basis to see what I am up to. So I complete my blog as a means of proving that I am not slacking off. It is also demotivating as I don't feel that I have really said anything of any substance. I'm not looking the change the world here, just hoping to produce something that is not merely a recap of what I did for the day.
And I feel that I have failed. I'm really not trying to be a downer here. I'm just realizing that this blog is fulfilling a more utilitarian purpose. I'm having to rethink what my goals for this are. It is serving the purpose of keeping me on track and for now, I am ok with that. I can be creative later.
-Michael
Bible Reading- Luke 10 - 20:19
Going into this challenge, I think I was most excited about the blogging portion. I feel like I am a fairly thoughtful, well spoken, and funny guy when I want to be. The down side is that the obligation to write mixed with the lack of time have forced this part of the challenge to be the biggest drudgery ever. I think it has been motivating in that I know there are people that check this on a daily basis to see what I am up to. So I complete my blog as a means of proving that I am not slacking off. It is also demotivating as I don't feel that I have really said anything of any substance. I'm not looking the change the world here, just hoping to produce something that is not merely a recap of what I did for the day.
And I feel that I have failed. I'm really not trying to be a downer here. I'm just realizing that this blog is fulfilling a more utilitarian purpose. I'm having to rethink what my goals for this are. It is serving the purpose of keeping me on track and for now, I am ok with that. I can be creative later.
-Michael
Monday, July 5, 2010
Day 75
Workout- Legs and Back
Bible Reading- Luke 2 - 9
I'm exhausted! It was such a good weekend, but now I am laying here in bed barely able to keep my eyes open. I'm also sunburned from swimming today, but that is beside the point.
I'm very proud of myself for keeping up with my program over the course of this weekend. I could have very easily decided not to do it as there were many other things that I would have rather been doing. But I stuck to it and even put a really good effort into it. Yay me. Only 15 days left!
- Michael
Bible Reading- Luke 2 - 9
I'm exhausted! It was such a good weekend, but now I am laying here in bed barely able to keep my eyes open. I'm also sunburned from swimming today, but that is beside the point.
I'm very proud of myself for keeping up with my program over the course of this weekend. I could have very easily decided not to do it as there were many other things that I would have rather been doing. But I stuck to it and even put a really good effort into it. Yay me. Only 15 days left!
- Michael
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Day 74
Workout- Cardio X
Bible Reading- Mark 9:14 - Luke 1
Happy 4th of July! I love this holiday for two main reasons. One, I enjoy watching the fireworks, eating watermelon, and all the other various activities that come along with it. Two, I get a day off of work! Tomorrow I don't have to go in and I am extremely excited about that.
Now I know these are shallow reasons to enjoy this day. It just comes down to the fact that I am not all that patriotic. I am extremely grateful to live in the country that I do and that I have soldiers that are willing to risk their lives to protect the freedoms that I have. (Big thanks to my brother Thomas for all that he is currently sacrificing in order for us to live the way that we do.) So please don't think that I am ungrateful. I just don't feel the need to sing "God Bless America" while holding a sparkler.
I suppose a lot of my unpatriotic sentiment stems from the fact that people can't separate their religion from being American. Jesus didn't come to redeem only America, so I don't understand why we make such a big deal of it. People get very bent out of shape with our church because we don't march down the center isle with the American flag and sing "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" on this day. I for one am grateful of this. As Ed Stetzer said today on his twitter account, "Today Christians will worship God and celebrate being Americans-- please be sure to not confuse the two in worship". I cannot agree more.
It's the confusion of these two principles that irritates me to no end and kind of steals any last bit of patriotism right out me.
With that said, I will stop. This is treading dangerously close to getting me starting on my God and politics soap box and I don't think you guys are ready for that.
-Michael
Bible Reading- Mark 9:14 - Luke 1
Happy 4th of July! I love this holiday for two main reasons. One, I enjoy watching the fireworks, eating watermelon, and all the other various activities that come along with it. Two, I get a day off of work! Tomorrow I don't have to go in and I am extremely excited about that.
Now I know these are shallow reasons to enjoy this day. It just comes down to the fact that I am not all that patriotic. I am extremely grateful to live in the country that I do and that I have soldiers that are willing to risk their lives to protect the freedoms that I have. (Big thanks to my brother Thomas for all that he is currently sacrificing in order for us to live the way that we do.) So please don't think that I am ungrateful. I just don't feel the need to sing "God Bless America" while holding a sparkler.
I suppose a lot of my unpatriotic sentiment stems from the fact that people can't separate their religion from being American. Jesus didn't come to redeem only America, so I don't understand why we make such a big deal of it. People get very bent out of shape with our church because we don't march down the center isle with the American flag and sing "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" on this day. I for one am grateful of this. As Ed Stetzer said today on his twitter account, "Today Christians will worship God and celebrate being Americans-- please be sure to not confuse the two in worship". I cannot agree more.
It's the confusion of these two principles that irritates me to no end and kind of steals any last bit of patriotism right out me.
With that said, I will stop. This is treading dangerously close to getting me starting on my God and politics soap box and I don't think you guys are ready for that.
-Michael
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Day 73
Workout- Shoulders and Back
Bible Reading- Matthew 26:57 - Mark 9:13
It's been another one of those days where one activity leads right into another and there is very little downtime. I did happen to get in my required workout and bible reading so that is good. Seeing that it is now nearly midnight, I will have to leave my thoughts at that and head to bed. Sorry.
-Michael
Bible Reading- Matthew 26:57 - Mark 9:13
It's been another one of those days where one activity leads right into another and there is very little downtime. I did happen to get in my required workout and bible reading so that is good. Seeing that it is now nearly midnight, I will have to leave my thoughts at that and head to bed. Sorry.
-Michael
Friday, July 2, 2010
Day 72
Workout- Plyometrics
Bible Reading- Matthew 16 - 26:56
I need to vent a little frustration. As most everybody knows, I work for an insurance agency. On a typical day, I sell policies and also service existing ones. I also spend a lot of time on the phone talking to people. There is one particular conversation that I have with people on a daily basis. It involves their premium. I have to listen to people complain all the time about how much they pay and it's getting a little annoying. Now I know that no likes to pay for their insurance. Mainly, this is because it is intangible. You can't hold on to it or display it in your home. You end up feeling like you are paying for nothing and I get that. So here are some bullet points that I wish I could share with people when they yell at me, but I can't because that would be unprofessional. So I am sharing it with all of you.
- Insurance premiums increase. It's called inflation people. It just happens and you need to deal with it! Everything else in this world is increasing so why shouldn't your insurance? You honestly can't expect to pay the same premium that you were paying 10 years ago.
- If you replace your 2003 civic with a 2009 Silverado 1500, your premium will increase. Don't be an idiot and expect it to stay the same. You just put us on the hook for a possible extra $10,000 to replace your vehicle. This isn't rocket science.
- You're not just protecting your car against physical damage. That is not the only purpose of auto insurance. When you rear end someone we are on the hook for a possible $50,000 lawsuit. That's why you have insurance. It's not meant to cover all the stupid little door dings on your vehicle!
- If you make a lot of claims, then we will cancel you. Don't act so surprised! Insurance is not a right. It's a privilege and if you are costing us too much money, then your privileges will be revoked.
- If you have a suspended license, don't waste my time and ask me for a quote. I can't give you one.
There are more frustrations and maybe I will add to this list later. For now, I think I feel a bit better. So the next time you have to talk to your insurance agent, be nice to them. They have people yell at them all the time.
-Michael
Bible Reading- Matthew 16 - 26:56
I need to vent a little frustration. As most everybody knows, I work for an insurance agency. On a typical day, I sell policies and also service existing ones. I also spend a lot of time on the phone talking to people. There is one particular conversation that I have with people on a daily basis. It involves their premium. I have to listen to people complain all the time about how much they pay and it's getting a little annoying. Now I know that no likes to pay for their insurance. Mainly, this is because it is intangible. You can't hold on to it or display it in your home. You end up feeling like you are paying for nothing and I get that. So here are some bullet points that I wish I could share with people when they yell at me, but I can't because that would be unprofessional. So I am sharing it with all of you.
- Insurance premiums increase. It's called inflation people. It just happens and you need to deal with it! Everything else in this world is increasing so why shouldn't your insurance? You honestly can't expect to pay the same premium that you were paying 10 years ago.
- If you replace your 2003 civic with a 2009 Silverado 1500, your premium will increase. Don't be an idiot and expect it to stay the same. You just put us on the hook for a possible extra $10,000 to replace your vehicle. This isn't rocket science.
- You're not just protecting your car against physical damage. That is not the only purpose of auto insurance. When you rear end someone we are on the hook for a possible $50,000 lawsuit. That's why you have insurance. It's not meant to cover all the stupid little door dings on your vehicle!
- If you make a lot of claims, then we will cancel you. Don't act so surprised! Insurance is not a right. It's a privilege and if you are costing us too much money, then your privileges will be revoked.
- If you have a suspended license, don't waste my time and ask me for a quote. I can't give you one.
There are more frustrations and maybe I will add to this list later. For now, I think I feel a bit better. So the next time you have to talk to your insurance agent, be nice to them. They have people yell at them all the time.
-Michael
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Day 71
Workout- Chest and Back
Bible Reading- Matthew 5-15
I just can't think of anything interesting to say tonight. It's hard work to write a blog every day. It's even harder to write something that is at least fun, if not worth while to read. So in the interest of not wasting your time, I think I will leave it at this for the evening, rather than jabber on about nothing in particular. Have great night everyone.
-Michael
Bible Reading- Matthew 5-15
I just can't think of anything interesting to say tonight. It's hard work to write a blog every day. It's even harder to write something that is at least fun, if not worth while to read. So in the interest of not wasting your time, I think I will leave it at this for the evening, rather than jabber on about nothing in particular. Have great night everyone.
-Michael
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