98 year old dobri dobrev, a man who lost his hearing in the second world war, walks 10 kilometers from his village in his homemade clothes and leather shoes to the city of sofia, where he spends the day begging for money.
though a well recognized fixture around several of the city’s chruches, known for his prostrations of thanks to all donors, it was only recently discovered that he has donated every penny he has collected — over 40,000 euros — towards the restoration of decaying bulgarian monasteries and churches and the utility bills of orphanages, living entirely off his monthly state pension of 80 euros and the kindness of others.
I was in the process of cleaning out my desk when I noticed an unopened letter from an old bank of mine, buried underneath stacks of other junk on my desk. I don’t know what stayed my hand from tossing it into the junk pile, but I decided to open it anyway.
The letter said I had a savings account that hasn’t been touched in 12 years, and that if I don’t respond promptly, all the funds would be turned over to the state.
Curious, I called the bank, gave them my information, lo and behold… there was $xxx that had accrued in the account over the years.
Man… God is both blessing and testing me. I must not fail.
Jesus stood in stark distinction to both Islam and in the way the “Judiasers” were using the law. He never came to destroy the law, He came to establish it… What he reminded us is that by the keeping of the law, no flesh can be justified. This is the fundamental difference between Islam and Christianity.
They said, you shall not commit adultery, but I’m telling you if you look upon a woman with lust then you have already committed adultery in your heart. He has already established that now on a higher plane. He says, if you hate somebody you already committed murder. If anything, He establishes the law on a higher plane than either the Koranic law or the “Judiasers” would have used.
The Christian faith is not devoid of a moral law, it sets it on a higher plane and it reminds you and me that we cannot keep it in and of our selves. Jesus describes the moral law as a mirror. You can look at a mirror, and find out that your face is dirty but you don’t rub your face on it to clean it, you use something other than the mirror. It was only by the grace of God and the mercy of God that was able to grant us salvation…It doesn’t deny the law, it affirms it and ultimately shows us the impossibility of our ability to keep it.
He does not destroy the law but that He alone completely fills it, and no one else can.
This man’s eloquence and wit is mind boggling.
ryoo:
Last night, a friend spoke these words into my heart:
“The way we think…it’s different. You can’t expect people to understand.”
What a comfort, encouragement, and yet, a realization full of despair. It’s holy week, and I can’t help but wonder what Christ thought when he realized this. I do not…
This.
This brother has such a way with words. All glory to our Maker…
“Experience the bittersweet, to taste defeat then brush my teeth”
Relient K has such immensely deep lyrics.. they’re soo underrated.
I think I’m starting to see progress; a rhyme & reason for all that has happened.
There is still pain, but it feels oddly satisfying. I finally get to let go and breath a little bit lighter.
I’m growing exhausted by my fruitless attempts at finding a job. I used to be ashamed of telling people that I’m unemployed and afraid it’ll make people think I’m unmotivated and lazy. Truth be told I think I’m very concerned with what my peers think of me. Its not the biggest driving force in my pursuit of a career, but it’s certainly bigger than it should be.
At the moment, I couldn’t care less what other people think. My eyes have completely glazed over, I’ve grown a formidable 5 o’clock shadow on my upper lip and a sizable stubble on my chin. After spending 4 hours on several cover letters and applications I now reek of frustration and disappointment.
I’m not lazy or unmotivated. In fact I’m just the opposite, I’m rather lively, animated, passionate, energetic, etc. But spending almost 4 months in the face of rejection and uncertainty really does a number on you. My resolve has gone from “I’m going to pursue my dreams!” to “Beggars can’t be choosers”. My ventilation post this certainly is. Wahh Wahh Wahh Wahh Wahh
I love reading interesting articles and going through discussions online. One weird quirk I picked up along the way is that whenever I read a comment or a passage that I think is written cleverly, or has a vocabulary and syntax that stands out (in a good way) I copy and paste it into notepad!
Here is what I’ve got so far:
“…making you feel like the incompetent cook in an infomercial they show before demonstrating the gadget meant to solve the problem”
“… requiring manual dexterity and an uncanny immunity to the public scorn of fellow diners”
“Capri pants are not shorts, but they’re not as long as regular pants. The effect of this is a pair of pants that are apparently the wrong size for you.”
“The idea that “everything must have a reason” and that anything based on any other process is unacceptable is very narrow and belongs only to a very crude version of materialism.”
“In reality, there’s absolutely no requirement for me or anyone else to have to explain their pursuit of happiness, and I find the idea that we have to arm ourselves to the teeth with reasoning because it’s okay for us to be attacked and abused at any time toxic and revolting.”
“I don’t expect artists to come up with complex rationalisations of why they paint a particular way, or musicians to explain in detail why their music is composed like that. I don’t dismiss literature if the writer can’t justify himself to me in detail when I demand it, or a building as useless if the architect won’t satisfy whatever demands I may dream up with regards to their designs.”
“If everyone subscribed to your reasoning - and they don’t, thank God - every form of creativity, intuition, self expression and personal feeling would be denigrated and eventually crushed, because none can be described in materialistic detail. It’s an extremely dangerous idea and puts our entire society and culture at risk by opposing the very thing which it’s based on and designed to protect: the freedom to think what we like without justifying ourselves to violent, hostile opposition.”
“…eschewing such paltry concerns as safety rails, nets or harnesses, hikers traverse the cliffs via a system of precarious planks barely wide enough to shimmy across. This jury-rigged shop project is the only thing between you and a plunge into the yawning abyss.”
One of my all time heroes, alongside Batman of course, is James Bond. From Barry Nelson to Daniel Craig, each actor was given the daunting task of portraying a character with a personality as large as the screen he’s shown on. Every portrayal of Ian Fleming’s character had slightly different flairs and flavors depending on which actor was playing him at the time. But no matter what, throughout the decades, there were staple characteristics about 007 that I’ve come to admire and strive for in my pursuit of a better Hur, Julian Hur.
Apart from James’s sometimes misogynistic and cold attitude I’m a firm fan. First and foremost Bond is as cool, calculated, and decisive as a man can get. Even in the most frightening of situations he is at most a bit shaken, but never stirred. Pun most definitely intended.
He never complains about the hand dealt to him, he gets the job done and he does it well. 007, while a gentleman, isn’t afraid to be bold either. When push comes to shove, he selflessly jumps into action and isn’t afraid to get himself dirty risking his life for queen and country.
On a manliness scale from Liberace to Paul Bunyan, I’d put myself somewhere between Ryan Secrest and Angelina Jolie. (James Bond would be like a 9.5) But I guess if you strip away Bond’s fancy cars, expensive suits, his accent, his muscles, his watches…. ok well if you’re left with just his values you’d see a man of solid and silent integrity. There’s more to his personality that’s hard for me to put into words.. its more to do with his swagger and confidence that he sort of wears over his shoulders. In any case, I suppose I could start 2013 off with this as a resolution:
To be a gentleman of great integrity and silent diligence. To be decisive, cool-headed, and yet faithful to God as the man I already am! I want to be BOLD! Knowing when to keep my mouth shut and when to stand up and take action! No more whining or comparing but more action and determination!!
FOR ENGLAND JESUS!!!!!!!!
