Another Interesting Article... Again, no comment for now...

In response to my last post, another friend sent me this article. Again, I graduate on May 9th, so will refrain from commenting until May 10th. :-)

Click here for Mark Driscoll's response.
Click here for Mark Driscoll's response to his response.

No Comment... for now...

A friend sent me a link to this article today. As many of you know, I will be graduating from SWBTS on Saturday, May 9th. So, I won't be commenting until May 10th...

I Am Her Guitar Hero...

A Convicting Reminder to Myself

Song by Derek Webb
Video by The Work of the People

When the One You Love is ADHD and/or Depressed

One of the toughest things for those who love and support someone struggling with ADHD and/or depression, but have not endured it themselves, is the inability to truly comprehend what it’s like. With ADHD a common question is, “Can’t you just make yourself focus?” This often leads to, “He can focus on things he likes: music, movies, video games, etc.” --> Which inevitably leads to some pretty acute feelings of bitterness if you are not careful.

However, once you realize that as annoying as it is for you, it is torturous for him. You may notice in the next few weeks (while in the beginning stages of taking his meds) that he may be irritable and quite a ‘jerk’, which unfortunately is one of the consequences of taking a stimulant to help you concentrate. I had a friend almost dump his girlfriend (who is now his wife), because he started taking medicine and “didn’t care”... It may not have that affect on him, but just something to be mindful of. This also doesn’t mean that you just let him treat you poorly, but hopefully it will help you take it a little less personally.

When a person is struggling with depression, I think it prudent to encourage them towards activity and help them to identify the positive things going on. If their life is just totally in the dumps, then I encourage them that it really can’t get any worse! ;-) However, you have to treat it like a marathon and not a sprint. Baby-steps are sometimes best when walking with someone with depression. Hopefully it passes in the matter of a week or two.

The issue of becoming overwhelmed by school is one I remember very well. Especially when I wasn’t totally certain about what I wanted to do. It seemed pointless and tiresome, especially the courses that ‘didn’t apply’ to what I wanted to do. Compound that with the struggle of paying attention, then it becomes quite normal to start feeling ‘stupid’ or just want to quit. For me, I had to get to the point where I began to learn to love to learn, and realized that college was a means to an end for me, not the end of it all. Some re-thinking and other times just pushing ahead (when I didn’t feel like it) helped me to get through my undergrad program and Lord-willing through with my masters this May.

So, what are you to do?

1. Encourage him to make good choices when it comes to diet and sleep. The reality is, he needs to take better care of himself. I believe if he would take better care of himself, back off the caffeine and alcohol, eat healthier, and get plenty of sleep that he will see an improvement with his ADHD, Depression, and health in general.
   
   
2. Don’t mother him. That is an improper role for you to take as a girlfriend or a wife. This doesn’t mean you’re a cold, mean woman, but it does mean that you don’t just stand by and let him stay where he is. However, there is that balance of girlfriend / boyfriend encouragement. It’s a little easier if you were his wife, but you are not, so that’s tough.
   
   
3. Help him to set more realistic goals. I.E. - instead of thinking about a PhD or even graduation (if it is far off), help him set an academic goal for the week. If he can start experiencing some small victories, it will boost his confidence and help him to become more proactive.
   
   
4. Help him learn how to become more organized. Rod Brace helped me a lot with that, it might be worth visiting his website and reading some of his articles. It really reduces stress.
   
   
5. Remember, feeling overwhelmed and thus shutting down likely brings about most of his depression. One can only sustain high levels of stress for so long. So, like they say about how to eat an elephant, you need to remind him it is one bite at a time. Therefore, you need to help him identify the bites that he needs to take and empower/encourage him to take those ‘bites’.

**DISCLAIMER: I am not a licensed professional in dealing with these issues. These are some tips based upon my experiences with these struggles.**

Photoshop Fun - Christ Church - 021509

Original Pic

Rise Up Weekend - Official Promo

www.riseupweekend.com

* we changed out the songs as to not violate copyright laws *

Who are antagonists?

"Antagonists are individuals who on the basis of nonsubstantive evidence, go out of their way to make insatiable demands, usually attacking the person or performance of others. These attacks are selfish in nature, tearing down rather than building up, and are frequently directed against those in a leadership capacity."

-Kenneth C.Haugk
Antagonists in the Church

Rise Up - Unofficial Video

A Refreshing Drink

My soul has a been a bit dry lately. While I know that the Living Water has been given to me, and I'll never be thirsty again (see John 4), I believe that all followers of Christ have seasons when they are busy pouring out more than they are 'taking in'. I take full responsibility. It isn't as if God is running short of Himself. Afterall, he is eternal and infinite. The honest truth is, the last few months I had been far too busy and far too over-committed. It's my fault, and by God's grace He has placed people in my life (especially my wonderful bride) to wave the red flag and encourage me to slow down.

Over the break I had some good down-time and I'm feeling ready to take on the last semester of seminary. Also, over the last few weeks my 'tanks' have been refilled and I'm once again ready to charge Hell with a water pistol, as it were. However, there are times when we need a little encouragement, and it comes in many different shapes in forms. One of these great encouragements to me is the album Cannons by Phil Wickham. I just purchased it the other day, but God has been using it in a great way to stir my passions once again for Him. I thank God, and I thank Mr. Wickham.

Just a friendly reminder (to myself included) that our hope isn't in music, speakers, preachers, books, friends, pastors, etc. Our hope is in Jesus Christ. When discerning the benefit of a 'resource' we must always answer the question, "Does this stir my passions for God?" and/or "Does this encourage me towards Christ?" If we just feel 'spiritual' with no specific direction, then we are setting ourselves up for great disappointment at best, and idolatry at worst.

So, if you have $7.99 laying around you can go to Amazon.com and download the MP3 album and enjoy. His first self-titled album Phil Wickham is also great.

Our Mini "Vay-cay"

Steph and I are currently sitting in one of our favorite coffee shops in the country, Brasil, down on Westheimer in Houston. We have taken a 2-night 'vay-cay' to spend sometime investing in our relationship, celebrating our anniversary, and re-charging our batteries before my final semester in seminary. Our goals are: shop with Christmas money, eat well, sleep, eat, sleep, drink coffee, read, blog, shop, shop, eat, etc.

Since I travel quite a bit, I have learned that you can find great deals on Priceline.com and in the past we have gotten some sweet deals. So, as we were planning our little escape I went on Priceline and I put in $75/night for the Galleria area. To my pleasant surprise, we got a room at the InterContinental Hotel near the Galleria!!! Too good to be true?


I was amazed! Feeling proud (borderline arrogant) I boasted to my bride of our win and I shared my victory with my friends. It's a beautiful, high-end, 4-star hotel, and we got it for $75/night!!! How in the world could an expensive, plush, hotel afford to put commoners like us in its beautiful rooms for $75/night. However, when we got into our room, we figured it out.

We are on the 5th floor at the end of the building, right next to the workout room. The room itself is beautiful, but once you open the curtains, here is what you see:


It quickly became apparent why they were able to give us the room for $75/night. I was a little bitter about it, but I did ask the guy at the desk to, "give us the best we can get for what we paid for." He was probably thinking, "He he heh, I have a room for you, cheapskate!" However, we are grateful for our time, and don't care about the view. We'll enjoy living like royaltly on a paupers budget for a few days!

More to come, I'm sure.

Happy 8th Anniversary, My Love!

My Soul Mate

---

My Best Friend

---

My Lover
(Don't worry kids, it makes God happy!)

Worth Checking Out: YouVersion.com

Friends, I know I commend a lot of things on this blog to you, but I would strongly encourage you to check out YouVersion.com It is a great way to study the Scriptures both individually and in community (not to take the place of real life community). I hope to start posting on there soon.

My user name on YouVersion.com is: caseycease

Hope to see you on there!

Christ Church's New Building - Renovations pt. 1

Rise Up - Better than an old school Kung Fu movie...

Recent Reviews:

"Follow the road of devastation left by an exiled Jewish Shogun warrior seeking to avenge the death of his local deli owner/sensei in this non stop action packed thrill ride!"

I couldn't help myself...

Rise Up Weekend - Promo

"Florida Woman Says Former Church Plans to Make Her Sins Public"

I saw this article yesterday and was curious to see what you all thought about the situation. Essentially, this woman was a member of a church in Florida and was actively in an immoral relationship. She was confronted by one person, then a group of ladies, and now the Elders have sent her a letter calling her to repent or have her sin taken before the church (all in accordance with Mt. 18:15-17). Before I write about my opinions, what do you all think?

You can read the article for yourself here.

Top of the Morning to You!

I am currently sitting at a Starbucks on Post Oak Blvd and 610 awaiting a 7:30 meeting at a nearby office building. The meeting was organized by my good friend and former board member, Jody Johnston. He asked me if he could arrange this breakfast so that he could invite some colleagues to come and learn more about Transform Ministries and give them the opportunity to support the ministry. I agreed to come and share with the group what God has been doing and how we have seen and experienced the Gospel transform lives through the ministry over the years. More than gaining financial supporters, my prayer is to make some new friends that will faithfully pray for us. If the Lord compels them to give, I wouldn't deny them that joy, however. ;-)

In other news, I have been greatly enjoying my time off from school. Don't get me wrong, I love learning and I love the fellowship I have with my fellow students and the professors, but I needed a break. In hindsight I am glad that I took 12 hours. While my grades may not have been as high as they would have been with 6 hours, I ended up doing pretty well. Plus, Steph and I are both at a place where I need to be done with this (6 year) season of our lives. This revelation (of my impending graduation) often illicits the following question, "What are you going to do next?"

My first response to this question is, "Geez, let a brother catch his breath!" Then I start asking internal questions like, "Do these people think that I haven't been doing anything 'grown-up' over the past 6 years?" This question isn't meant to reflect any sense of discouragement, but more curiosity. Perhaps my being in grad school causes people to think that I can't really do anything serious until after I receive my masters. Or, some people, because of their faith background, are used to 'pastors' not being able to 'pastor' until they get the credentials. Regardless, I understand that most of the time the question, "What's next?" is a natural question, which I don't mind answering.

This, however, begs the question, "What is next?" As of right now, nothing really new, but more time to invest into what I am currently doing; traveling & preaching, running Transform Ministries, Community Pastoring at Christ Church, building websites, helping out at Faith Mission, and leading a discipleship class at Brenham Christian Academy. For now there isn't any desire to look for a 'real job', i.e. a higher paying ministry position at a large church. Instead, I'd rather take the energy currently being budgeted towards my education and poor it into ministry endeavors. The rest is still yet to be revealed (further education, future ministry opps, etc.).

Well, I need to head out to the meeting. Thanks for taking the time to read.

Done At Last!

Well, for the semester anyway. By God's grace I now only have one iTerm (week long intensive course) and the spring semester and then I will have completed my Master of Divinity (Lord Willing)! I've enjoyed my time at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary's J. Dalton Havard School of Theology in Houston, TX. While my degree is technically 'No Concentration', all of my electives (with the exception of one or two) have been Bible. So, I guess my specialization is Bible, which is good, no?

Now that the semester is over, I hope to be blogging again far more frequently. There has been a lot going on that I would like to share, so stay tuned.

For those of you who don't know, I now build websites in partnership with Gutensite. My latest site is for Calvary Baptist of Brenham. Check it out and let me know what you think! Let me know if you would like for me to build you a site!