Take a look at the heart

I am often reminded by people that certain behaviors are not "Christian" behaviors. I, like many other Christians, enjoy drinking a few cold ones every now and then. I feel there is nothing wrong with doing so, but some people will argue that there is. Some say that anything you do is highly watched and scrutinized by others. My response is that if everything I did was watched by others they would not be worried one bit, by the relatively minuscule amount of I consume and probably congratulate me on being a "good" person.

I drink, on average, about four drinks every two weeks. I drink because I like a good beer. Sure, I go out to bars with friends occasionally and have a few cold ones, but is that really hurting anyone? Well, this is where some will argue I fail as a good Christian role model or something along those lines. I argue that I can be a Christian role model and still do things that are not looked so highly upon Southern Baptist. Yes, I went there. Yes, I am Southern Baptist...I guess. I feel that my life is validated when I am making a difference in peoples lives. I am not in anyway taking away from the job I'm doing at work, home, or anywhere else by having a couple drinks.

I wish that people who judge others for certain behaviors would take a moment and look at the heart of the individual. All walks of life drink alcohol from murderers to ministers so I don't think it is right for anyone to assume anything from a fairly harmless activity. So, getting drunk is a sin. Well, we are all sinners and last time I checked my Bible Jesus used prostitutes and murderers of Christians do Gods' work and spread the word of Jesus throughout the Earth. I know some really cool Christians who actually have a bible study at a bar.

Food for thought. Peace
- Cap

Great Pacific Garbage Patch

A few things on the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Why? Where? WHAT?!

There is a huge garbage patch in the Pacific Ocean that floats about midway between Hawaii and San Francisco. I recently discovered this through treehugger.com. Scientists say it is roughly the size of Texas. It is estimated to contain 150 tons of plastic. It has much more than just plastic though. According to greatgarbagepatch.org it contains approximately 3.5 million tons of trash. This trash includes shoes, toys, bags, pacifiers, wrappers, toothbrushes, and bottles.

You should care about this for several reasons. One reason is because this is not the only one. There are several. This is just the largest. With trash and pollutants so heavily occupying the ocean, the surrounding oceanlife suffers dramatically. There is much to be said about this topic, but if you care at all I encourage you to google it and find out some information for yourself. One of my main concerns is that so few people know about this. I have even asked people who consider themselves green warriors and environmentalist who have not heard of this. So, help spread the word.

-Peace-

Learn from the past ; make a brighter future.

The way we think about things is all wrong. The idea of war solving our problems is as ridiculous as eating more to loose weight. It simply cannot do what needs to be done justice.

Let us share some love and leave the hostility. The money our government uses to kill could be buying starving kids food, or providing them clean drinking water. We could really do some good. We could show a little light to this dark world.

Instead we choose to police and spread our troops all around. Maybe if we just helped them instead of trying to tell them what to do they would no longer hate us.

If we could just look at things differently...

We have the potential, but cannot do any good if we are not willing to change. Let's look at what can be done to make the world a better place.

What if the world had an abundance of food, but was starving for missiles?
Plenty of love with less hate.
More Peace with less hostility.
Less Hunger/More Hugs
More Flowers/ Less Drugs
Less Corruption/ More Trees
Less Pollution/ More Please
Less Cancer/ More Years
Less Selfish/ More Volunteers
Better Work/ Less Tears
Better Health/ Less Fears

Sacrifice a little to help a lot.
Seek peace. Give it a shot.

What can we do to make the world a better place. #1

Here is a small list of things everyone can do to make the world a better place.

1. Be open to new things. Just because you learned or grew up with things being a certain way, does not mean there is not a better way of doing it.

2. Exercise. It is not only good for you, but it does no harm to the environment like other activities.

3. Smile. A smile can go a long way and they are contagious. You never know when you might need a smile. So, give one when you can.

4. Lend a hand when you can. What goes around comes around. You never know when you might need a little help.

5. Be a good friend. Good friends are hard to come by, so if you have one don't screw things up.

A Day Without Shoes

Today, April 16th is a day without shoes. This is in order to let people know about the company and also to raise awareness. Toms shoes, an organization that sells shoes, gives a pair of shoes to a child in need with every pair you purchase. It is a really cool organization. Check it out at -www.tomshoes.com

I think it is wonderful that people have the heart to create something such as this. Not only do they give shoes to children who need them, but they also raise awareness. There are many people who are not as lucky as we are. So, if you want to don some Toms and help out. They have many different colors and styles to choose from. Some people really like the style (me), but others say they are too girly(whatever that mean). I like when people tell me that. I kindly reply, "Well, for every pair you purchase, they donate a pair to a child in need. " That usually quiets any haters. Have a wonderful day and if you have time please check out their website. Peace ~ Michael

Nascar Gas

I have long wondered why Nascar is such a popular entertainment activity. I have nothing against those who enjoy watching cars go in circles around the track. There are millions of people who love it. That is not my primary concern. My biggest concern is with the amount of gas that is being wasted. Nascar argues that they use much less in a race than the rest of the world uses in an average day. They show statistics, but what they don't show is how many people travel to the races in their oversized RV's. There are fans who trek cross country in a gigantic vehicle that gets probably between 5 and 15 mpg. In addition, you cannot forget about the huge semi trucks that they use to get their race cars from one place to another.

In my curiosity I looked to see how much Nascar spends on gas per year. I was shocked when I found out that the answer to that question is absolutely nothing. They let Sunoco be there only fuel sponsor in exchange for free gas. Let me put this into perspective for you. We hear so much about the shortage of oil and how we depend so much on other countries for it, but nascar uses thousands of gallons for free to drive cars for entertainment.

I have no doubt that Nascar brings in a lot of money for a lot of different companies. However, is it worth polluting the environment to watch cars drive around in circles. Many people argue that the gas Nascar uses does not cost us anything becuase it is a different kind of gas. The truth is that they even use unleaded gasoline. I wish more people could realize how crazy this is. There will be more to come on this topic in the future, but for now I would like to know how you feel.