Rocks into Rivers

I'm in a triple.

And at this moment you're like "what?".

Well today I found out my dorm. Room number. Dorm mates. Suite mates.

Oh and the fact that my room is a triple. Aka, three people sleeping in a room the same size as a double.

Great.

But, the one dorm mate that I can find on facebook is definately cool.

We're going to get along quite well.

His name is David. He likes volleyball. sports. music. xbox 360.

Yeah its goin to be good.

The other guy is from Alaska. So that should be fun.

I also just got off skyping with Tara. again.

So fun! I definately know that if I were having a terrible day, all I'd need to do is skype her, and I'd be happy.

Also. Tomorrow (or maybe sometime in the next few days),

I'm going to start making my "what I need/what to pack" list for college.

I haven't even thought of it yet. I still have three weeks though.

Which is crazy. Three weeks left in a place I've been for 18 years.

I'll definately have a blog about how crazy that is.

I don't know what to write right now, so I'll leave you with this.

Something I wrote a while back.

Thank You Jesus

I grasp the hammer, that drove the nail.

Covered in sin, in death, in darkness.

I drove it deeper, deeper within

Your frail and tired wrists.

I watch the blood, the sweat,

Drip down your ragged cheek.

The crown of thorns my hand pushed down

Into such an innocent head.

On that tree you hang so limp

Death, murder, lust and hate as well.

You try and pull your wounded self up

With every last gasp and strain.

My actions. My words. My thoughts

Contribute to such agony.

Yet, I continue on with them.

Without apathy.

But here I stand.

Because of you I am free.

No longer bound in chains of sin.

Free from the world and its temptation.

For my continuous part in your suffering.

I thank you for your grace.

I am nothing, yet you bid me.

Thank you Jesus.

Tree of Life

As a seed, you did not know

That soon you would become

The tree that gives me life.

Such a grand tree you grew into.

Flourishing with green,

Tall enough to touch the sky.

Though soon you were cut down.

No longer an admirable beauty.

You became wood.

Hacked, hammered, nailed.

You were put together to create

Death.

Carried up the mountain,

On the back of a half-dead bloody man.

Who struggled with every step.

Men pulled you up,

Where once again you could

touch the sky.

You felt the clash of a hammer.

Nails pierced through you.

You felt the weight of a man.

This man bled and struggled.

Oh, on you He was pained

With every shortened breath He took.

You felt Him cease movement.

There he died. Hung so limp.

On the tree that gives me life.

Around you the ground shook.

People hollered, fell to their knees.

It is finished.

Suddenly the weight was pulled off you.

The man no longer attached.

An empty cross.

Forever you are remembered.

You held the perfect man.

Who died for nothing.

On you hung the Savior.

You held a sinless man.

Who died for everyone.

Love yall!

Dannnny boy

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Catastrophe and the Cure

So today, and tonight were both really good.

Made $120 in tips, so that's always wonderful.
Bought new speakers, spent an hour cutting and trimming some wire so I can plug them into my sub.
I'm slowly prepping myself for college packing.
Yeah its all good :)

So today during my break at McLintocks, I started thinking.
For people that don't believe in God, Jesus, etc.
What is the point of life?

That somehow, we randomly were brought to life.
And then somewhere down the road we die.
And then there's nothing.
So everything we've done. Lived for.

Evaporates to nothing. We cease to exist.

Therefore, there's no point to life.

I don't get what the point of that is.

Life seems so utterly pathetic and pointless if so.

And this is what makes me so excited.

Because it seems like such a ridiculous idea that life is nothing.

There is definately something.

God.

And we have a life to live for Him.

"For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline." 2 Timothy 1:7

and

"And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. ²⁵Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, ²⁶and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will." 2 Timothy 2:24-26

Why live for nothing when you can live for this?

Without fear. Full of love. For Christ.

And why? Because living for nothing, leads you to nothing.

Living for Christ leads you to. Well, Heaven.

"And there shall no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His bond-servants shall serve Him; and they shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. And there shall no longer be any night; and they shall not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God shall illumine them; and they shall reign forever and ever." Revelation 22:3-5

It is so upsetting to know millions of people live for nothing.

That people believe they were some random existence.

And life ceases to be anything.

Why, what a saddening thought, people accepting that life just stops, and you become nothing.

Me? I'm proud to tell you, I'm a citizen of Heaven.

"For our citizenship is in Heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our humble state into confromity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to himself" Philippians 3:20-21

Life is not lived as something insignificant.

Yet, we ourselves are not significant compared to the glory of Christ.

Life is meant to live for something greater than ourselves.

Not for ourselves.

For God.

Look into your heart. mind. soul.

What are they focused on?

You? I hope not.

Live for Christ.

Something far far greater than you.

That leads to something wonderful.

I urge you dear brethren, offer your bodies as living sacrifices. Holy and pleasing to God.

With love.

Dan

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They Move on Tracks of Never-Ending Light

Well hello. Smiles from me :)

Not really a smile. More like a growl. But...

Notice a difference?

Why yes. My teeth no longer have metal in them.

What a joy that is!

I got them off today. I've been waiting so long for this.

After a crazy expander. Crazy rubber bands. Jaw surgery. Etc. I am now braces free.

It feels weird. slimy. But so amazing.

Its crazy to think four years ago (January 6, 2006 to be exact) I first stepped into Dr. D's office.

With crazy teeth and an underbite. And now, I have neither.

It's so great.

The one thing I love about it most, is God's hand over all this.

I would not have been able to afford either, if God hadn't been watchin over me.

Dr. D took my case on for free. So did Dr. Bradley (the oral surgeon).

It always gets me to thinking about the sovereignty of God.

How majestic. How wonderful. How BIG He is.

It's so wonderful to trust in Him. I remember the days before jaw surgery.

Before orthodontics. Even today.

I worry about things to come. But if I just look in the mirror.

I can see He has, and will continue to do incredible things.

"Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls them each by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing" -Isaiah 40:26

I mean, the God who puts His hand on my life. Is the same God that calls each star by name. Who makes the sun rise, and fall.

So though I have so much on my mind right now.

So much I'm worrying about.

God is God. He knows what He is doing. When you can't trace His hand, trust His heart.

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Love is the Reversal

So as I continue to thoroughly enjoy my MacBook Pro.

There are new fun things that I've been able to do.

One of which was Skype.

So last night I skyped for the very first time.

It was actually really fun. Most likely due to the person I was talking to.

Tara!

I laughed so much last night. And made the stupidest funny faces and random noises.

It was one of the funnest conversations I've had in a while.

Most likely due to the fact, I haven't had much conversation in a while.

Life is so busy. Blah.

But it was nice to sit back and chat with someone.

Not to mention laugh. alot.

So thank you Tara for such a fun skype experience :)

Rabbit!

Tomorrow I'm going out to breakfast with Matt.

It will be the last time I see him for a while.

It's going to be awfully different not seeing him everyday.

Since he's been in my life since 8th grade.

I'm probably going to cry.

However, also tomorrow. I leave for Fall Forward.

Since I am the bassist for the band Flapjack and the Happy Campers.

So we are going to rock some worship and blow the roof off.

Yes. Be prepared!

Anyways goodnight.

Love always.

D

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Hold On To What You Believe

This feels as if its just a wonderful dream.

I awoke this morning to look at a MacBook Pro sitting on the floor of my bedroom.

Not as if it was a "surprise" because I've had it for a day.

But it still felt way too amazing to be real.

God is good! "For the Lord is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting and His faithfulness is to all generations." - Psalm 100.

And He really has shown it lately in the many blessings He's bestowed upon me.

Story time:

So, around four months ago, I applied for a scholarship that a family was giving to a student.

It was called the "Don Woodward Memorial Scholarship" and was worth $5000.

I had to write an essay, and all that jazz. After doing so, it turned out, that after becoming a "finalist" and having an interview, I was chosen as the recipient of the Scholarship.

I was so blessed. God chose me to receive the money because He knew I needed it.

So now, four months down the road, I call up Sandra Woodward (the mother of Don) (after receiving a letter from them about wanting to go to lunch.)

So I spent an hour and half at their home, talking, getting to know these people who were giving me $5000. I loved it. It was so wonderful just to listen and hear about their son and get to share about my personal life. After spending time at their home, we went to lunch at Firestone.

Again, after talking for a while and finishing up our lunch, they ask me to show them where the Apple Store is, and so I do.

Intermission: I have been working two jobs all summer to earn money for a computer so I can have one for college. I've been worrying lately because I haven't made as much as I had planned to. So I've been prayin' and, God already knew what was on my heart.

Story continuation:

We start to look around at the MacBooks. They asked me which one I liked. And I said, well the regular MacBook (as that was the cheapest, and one I was saving up for).

We continued to look at the MacBook Pro's (the more expensive ones)

One thing led to the next, and Sandra then said me "Me and Archie would like to buy you a computer for college." I was shocked. Amazed. Speechless. My mouth couldn't create full sentences for what seemed like minutes.

Here I am. With a wonderful older couple (who had been through such a hard time with their son who died from ALS), and who I had just met for the first time 3 hours before, telling me they wanted to buy me a Mac.

On top of that, they didn't want to buy me the "cheap" (aka $999 one), and instead, they bought me an $1800 MacBook Pro, a new printer, and a new iPod touch.

To this minute I cannot even fathom this. As I sit here, typing on my pro.

God has blessed this couple with such loving hearts. They knew my life struggle.

They knew how tough it's been for me. And they graciously did this for me.

I am still speechless. I'm trying to conjure up words to write the best Thank You card I will ever write, but words seem so utterly small compared to the gratitude my heart feels towards them.

I am so thankful of them. But most importantly, God. He knew my heart. My situation. My every need. And He fulfills it, constantly. Romans 8:28 says it all.

I sit here. And try to write.

But the most I can do is tell you a story.

My heart is overwhelmed with thankfulness. joy. adoration. love.

And my mind cannot pull the words from my heart.

I do wish I could find the words to tell you how I feel.

But I am lacking them.

It feels like a dream.

Thanks to the Woodwards.

Thanks be to God.

His love endures forever.

I can now say I'm ready for college.

With love and a speechless tongue.

Danual Lee

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Thank the Watchmaker

So something I can't believe I forgot to write about last night.

I went to the orthodontist yesterday.

Same old routine. Sit in the chair. Wait for Dr. Garret.

Oh but wait, this time, he told me.

I have ___ week(s) till my braces come off.

(I'm not going to tell you when, you'll just have to wait and see)

And I am now absolutely excited.

I wonder what life is going to be like without braces.

How cool!

But. For the next blank week(s). I have to wear these intense rubber bands.

Since I have no wire on the top.

The rubber bands like go up and down like six of my teeth on each side.

So I can't even open my mouth...like at all.

The thing with that, is I love to constantly eat.

I will eat. And ten minutes later, eat more.

I can't be taking off and putting on the rubber band everytime I wanna eat.

Ridiculous!

But... I guess I have to. BLAH.

Anyways. I'm really excited. Waiting for the days to pass!

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Let Love Explode and Bring the Dead to Life!

So I've wanted to write this for a while.

I don't even know why it took me as long as it did.

Just some rambling thoughts of mine.

So the day I was heading home from my surgery, we stopped at Del Taco. I was just sitting in the car, and a guy walks out of DT and tries and throws away his lid. He misses. Ha! But onward... He knows he misses it, starts to walk away, but turns, walks back, picks it up. Conscience conscience conscience. For the rest of the 3 hour drive, it got me thinking about CS Lewis' awesome proof of God through morality in Mere Christianity. I totally recommend reading it, it's amazing!

Here's a snippet of the proof.

"My argument against God was that the universe seems so cruel and unjust. But how had I got this idea of just and unjust? A man does not call a line crooked unless he has some idea of a straight line. What was I comparing this universe with when I called it unjust? If the whole show was bad and senseless from A to Z, so to speak, why did I, who was supposed to be part of the show, find myself in such a violent reaction against it?...Of course, I could have given up my idea of justice by saying it was nothing but a private idea of my own. But if I did that, then my argument against God collapsed too--for the argument depend on saying the world was really unjust, not simply that it did not happen to please my fancies. Thus, in the very act of trying to prove that God did not exist - in other words, that the whole of reality was senseless - I found I was forced to assume that one part of reality - namely my idea of justice - was full of sense. If the whole universe has no meaning, we should never have found out that it has no meaning: just as, if there were no light in the universe and therefore no creatures with eyes, woe should never have known it was dark. Dark would be without meaning."

So that whole ride home I thought of this crazy argument that CS Lewis brought forth. Without God, how would we know when someone wrongs us? How do we know what is wrong and right? Government created laws based off of some sort of "justice" they felt people deserved. But how can they compare shaking a friends hand, to hitting them in the face, without a Moral Standard? They can't. A line isn't crooked unless you know of a straight line.

Therefore, sin isn't sin, wrong isn't wrong, unless there is a Good God to show us what is right.

So. What most people believe is that there was a huge explosion, brought the world into existence, life evolved from monkeys, which evolved from specs in space, and then, somehow, people figured out right and wrong? Right? WRONG!

"Goodness is, so to speak, itself: badness is only spoiled goodness. And there must be something good first before it can be spoiled." - CS Lewis

There could never be something bad, without something good first. God is good. His perfectness was handed down to Adam and Eve. They then ruined that good, and created the bad. Therefore, the right and wrong principle was brought forth to the minds of men.

I absolutely love thinking about this. About God. There are so many things that absolutely prove that God exists. That God is real, alive, and loves us. But there are also so many people that turn away, and decide not to believe.

But news for those that turn and decide to chase their own follies:

"God exists whether or not men may choose to believe in Him. The reason why many people do not believe in God is not so much that is is intellectually impossible to believe in God, but because belief in God forces that thoughtful person to face the fact that he is accountable to such a God."

-Robert A. Laidlaw

So let those of us that know this wonderful loving God, continue to run the race He's prepared for us. Allowing His glory to overtake any earthly desire of ours. Our God is full of mercy and full of love. Let's let love explode and bring the dead to life.

Titus 3:4-7:

"But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life."

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Roll Away Your Stone.

So I'm back to regular life now.
"Regular" as in no more sitting around due to my stupid nose.
Back to work, which is definately a good thing.
I was missing McLintock's. Not to mention, I'm now working more hours at Wayne's tire.

So this past week or so, I haven't really done much. Until now.
But I've got to say, that without my guitars, I would not have survived.
My Luna. My Yamaha. My Cort. I absolutely love them!
I play them so much, its almost as if my fingers are vigorously drawn to them.
The funny thing is though. I'm no "crazy" guitar player who plays crazy riffs and licks.
I love chords. I love the beautiful sound that comes as I strum one.
I don't think I want to be a crazy riff playing guitar player either.

Something else.
I haven't played soccer.
Or volleyball in quite a while.
And I dearly miss them both. I want to get out and play them.
I just can't find time. I want to put on my boots, and hit the upper V.
Or take a nice sandy approach, and swing into the back corner.
But where is the time! Soon, I promise myself. Soon.

Thirdly.
I don't know what it's been. But I've felt very lonely lately (well, most of summer).
And the only thing that's been keeping my mind off that is
Working. My guitars. And my music.
But in the few hours (or days) when I don't work.
I feel like no one is around to call. Or at least, I don't know who.
I don't know what I'm suppose to think. Say. Do.
I guess now is the time to anxiously wait for college.
New friends. People to call and hang out with.
I'm so utterly out of words when it comes to this.
I don't know how to accurately describe this. Loneliness.
But when I turn my gaze upward.
My heart heavenward.
And my mind outward.
I know I'm not alone.
Oh, I'm running to your arms. I'm running to your arms.

However. For some reason, unbenounced to me.
This doesn't fill my earthly heart's longing of feeling wanted.
I continually pray, and find refuge in the Lord.
But I do want to do other things with my summer, then work.

With love,
Danual.

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Oh Glory!

I'll fly away!

Just because I'm so obsessed with the song at the moment.
Enjoy it with me :)
Turn it up and SING!

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Oh Hallelujah.

So, Sing Unto His Name has made its way into the world.
If you are wondering, what? Who?
It is the second blog of mine.

The second blog that talks all about worship.
Songs. Sets. Meaning. Thoughts.

So enjoy it, when you're not reading these ramblings.
Maybe you can read those.

http://followingthebrightandmorningstar.blogspot.com/

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Every man is afraid of something.

That's how you know he's in love with you. When's he's afraid of losing you.

Thought that that was a nice quote about love.
Fits the occasion. Just finished the movie Valentine's Day
What a sappy love movie.
Fits a sappy boy like me. I loved it.

It brought me back to two posts I wrote many many years ago.

The first: Hopeless Romance

The second: There Exists a Melody

Love Love Love.

One of my most favorite words.

Write the word on everything that I would write on.

One of the things I've thought about most.

What is love? Probably the most asked question.

Answer? I have none.

Oh how I would enjoy writing about all my brilliant knowledge of love.

What door to open, what corner to turn, what alley to look down...

But I know nothing about it.

Yet. There is something in me that longs dearly for it.

That is reflected in my eighth grade mind in Hopeless Romance.

And is once again reflected here, and probably here many more times.

But this time, I'm patient. I know one day it will come.

I want to know why I yearn for it. But, truthfully, only God knows.

I have an idea though.

I believe we feel the longing, because God feels the longing.

He loves. and loves. And loves some more.

Never-ending. Never-failing.

God is love.

We want it. We crave it. We need it.

He gives it and He wants it back.

However, our love is based on feelings and emotion.

His. Unconditional.

He doesn't love us because we're lovable or because we make Him feel good;

He loves us because He is love.

Going back to what ours is based on.

I feel in my case my love is a girl.

The emotion I receive.

As is everyone's love.

It hurts us. It draws us into stuff.

And most of the time makes us feel good.

But, I want to really know what LOVE really is.

The only way to do that is to draw closer to LOVE.

And God is love.

A thousand times I've failed. His mercy remains.

Should I stumble again. I'm caught in His grace.

That is love.

I know, wholeheartedly, that if I draw near.

I will shine this love.

That is what I want more than anything.

To shine Him. Glorify Him in all I do.

I do not abandon my want for earthly love.

A love that will bring life.

A love that starts a family.

A love that reflects Christ and the church.

But instead, keep my focus on True Love.

And reflect that upon those around me.

Loving my savior. And my neighbor.

The most overused verse. But bound with so much meaning.

John 3:16. You know it, I don't have to say it.

That is what love is. I want to radiate it.

Encouraging you. From now until forever.

Put on love.

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