I'm Here. I'm Now. I'm Ready

But then Jesus.

2009-04-01T21:24:00.003-04:00

Sorry for the delay. This week has been crazy and it's only gonna get worse (or better, however you look at it.)

I've tried to comprise some of my favorite memories from the ten days I spent in Poland with the Roma people group and I'll be posting them here in the days to come.

While in Poland we spent every night in worship with one another, both the Roma and the Americans. One of my favorite things about those times were listening to the testimonies of the Roma people. They are a broken people who have a tattered past.

Most of the men's testimonies included stories of drunkenness and beating their wives. They spent there days searching for work and falling into a hurtful reality. But then Jesus.

Most of the women's testimonies included loneliness. Stories of searching for peace and significance in other religions and philosophies. Pain and hurt from lives lived in desperation. But then Jesus.

The Roma's stories are more than sad stories and more than hopelessness, because Jesus showed up and turned their world upside down. Now men are leaders, women are caretakers. Men support their families both financially and more importantly spirtually. Women smile and laugh and build families based on kinship and love.

The Roma people have a long ways to go. Jerry Goss (the missionary to the Roma people) spent every morning of the camp in Bible study with them. They are learning what it means to live as a Christian and what they can do to reach others for Christ.

That is simply an introduction into their lives. I'll be sharing more specific stories and the days to come. I ask that you continue to pray for the Roma and pray the revival amongst them continue.

I also ask that you pray for me. It is still unclear where and what I am going to be doing after the summer.

Thanks.

A.T.

I'm back, but up front...

2009-03-18T09:07:00.003-04:00

HELLO AMERICA!

Sorry I haven't blogged yet about Poland. I've been back in the states since Sunday night, and I haven't stopped. I had some test and a paper due yesterday and I have been trying unpack and get things back in gear. I promise I will write when I have time. I have some great stories to share.

But for now I want to leave you with this thought:

If we know the Christ died for the sins of the world and rose again on the third day, and that unless people know that and know Him they will go to Hell; then why do we neglect to say anything to our unbelieving friends, or even the person in the coffee shop, or the person on the other side of the world. Why are we sitting on our hands Church?

Adam T.

TODAY IS THE DAY!

2009-03-06T10:17:00.002-05:00

Today I'm leaving for Poland and I just wanted to thank everyone and ask for continued prayer while I'm gone. It can go a whole lot further than any money you could give.

I look forward to sharing all my experiences when I get back.

May God keep you until I see you again!

Adam

Below is a blog for our team, so you can keep up to date on what we are doing:

http://fugepolandmissionteam.blogspot.com/

TOMORROW IS A BIG DAY!

2009-02-28T20:05:00.003-05:00

Hey friends,

I know I haven't posted since the beginning of the month and tomorrow is the first day of March. February has flown by and I have been so busy, I haven't really had time to write. Which is sad because I love it so much.

Over this month I have been working on a couple of things. First I have decided to go to Southeastern Seminary in Wake Forest, NC! Which means I'll be staying close to home and won't have to leave any of my friends here. I have decided to get my masters in Church Planting and God has called me to eventually start a church, where I don't know and how is up to Him as well.

With that said, I am writing to ask for your prayers. Tomorrow I'll be preaching at my home church Day 3, to start the new series, Myspace/Yourspace. It's aimed at making every avenue of our lives God's. I am uber excited to get to share God's words with the people I share life with, even though I have to do it twice, both at 8:30 and 10:30!!! So, please pray for me tomorrow, that God's words will flow from my lips and I won't fall off the stage!

And lastly, I leave for Poland next Friday for ten days with Fuge. Pray for that, as I prepare and get all the warm clothes I can find.

I promise I'll be posting again soon!

Adam T.

Singing in the REIGN!

2009-02-05T13:00:00.003-05:00

Howdy friends!

So, leading worship this semester for Baptist Campus Ministry has been really fun and I feel like the group is really starting to mesh and find our niche with one another as we lead others in worship. This week we are going old school and singing hymns from the good ol days, i.e. I saw the light, Joyful joyful, Solid Rock, It is well, and Come Thou Fount. We wanted to do Have a Little Talk with Jesus, but the girls couldn't carry the bass line. Last night as we were wrapping our minds around these songs and putting them together, there were a couple lines from Joyful Joyful that jumped off the page and punched me in the Adam's apple. You know how there are those central Biblical truths you know, but sometimes you need to be reminded and God does an awesome job at doing that! Well this is one of those times. The lines are:

Father love is reigning o’er us,
Brother love binds man to man.

Henry J. van Dyke smacked the ball out of the park in my opinion. (The guy who wrote the song) It was first published in 1911 and still to this day is relevant and true. But out of any lines in the song, those two rang the truest in my head and heart. Our Father God is reigning/raining his love down on us, and he does not give us love to squander, but instead to bind us together as brothers and sisters, every human being. We are called to embrace one another in love. To learn from each other. Sometimes we just want to fix all the problems and we get so focused on repairing that we forget the person involved. But instead I think God calls us not to solve all the probelms, but to sit with one another in those probelms and to experience it with one another, so we may know we are not alone in this. SO let us embrace the truth of these words.

Put down your busy-umbrella and feel God's love raining down on us and then go splash in some puddles with your brothers and sisters!

A.T.

YOU are potentially a BIG DEAL!

2009-01-27T15:17:00.002-05:00

Hello gents and misses!

I have only about 15 minutes before my final class for the day starts and I wanted to spend this little bit of time to post something that I have been chewing for a few days - potential.

As I am preparing to leave for Poland, work camp again, and go to seminary in the fall I have start to ask God for guidance, I mean true guidance, not hindered by my own likes and dislikes. I feel so often that I never truly know God's plan for me. I know it is wrong to question the authority of God and his will, but I have come to understand that it is not wrong to ask God how things are going to happen and ask Him for a glimpse of why.

As some of you know, I will be preaching at my home church, Day 3, on March 1. I'll post more on that later, but as I am preparing for that I am praying, 'God how do I say your words, and give me a glimpse of why.' God answers the how often times but he sometimes doesn't answer the why. But for me in this situation and in situations to come he has given me a glimpse of why, more specifically why does he want me to stand up in front of people and open my mouth.

I am the guy who often talks to much, about nothing of any importance, and often sticks my foot in my mouth, so I ask, why me?

And in not specifically God has responded, 'adam, you have no idea of your potential in me and all I have in store for you.' See I am always looking at MY potential, not my potential IN GOD.

So this week I pray that you and I will find our potential in God and all that he has for us, because His plans far outreach our own.

Adam

Beef-a-roni and Barack Obama

2009-01-20T12:15:00.002-05:00

Hello all.

So sorry that I haven't posted in so long. I was gone after Christmas and then had my wisdom teeth removed and have been busy ever since. I no, excuses do not get me far, so hopefully this post will make up for it!

I got lucky with the snow today and got out of class to watch the inauguration of President Obama.

As some of you know, and I'm not ashamed to say, I did not vote. Now, many have told me that was wrong and that it was an abuse of a privilege I was given. Realizing this, I simply tell them I have a thankful heart for that privilege but I simply chose to bypass it for a bigger reason.

That reason is because I do not want to have a heart and mindset that depends on the government to fulfill the purposes given to the Church and for Christians to accomplish.

With all that said, the reason I write this blog is to give props to the new president and a hopeful suggestion to my fellow believers.

First, props to President Obama for having big ambitions for our country and for embarking on a peaceful mission. I love that he talked about feeding others in other countries as well as ending poverty here in America. I also look forward to seeing him push the ploticians in DC to do the same. I know that he has big hopes, but if we take on this mindset, then change will take place.

That brings me to the suggestion, rather a proposition. May we as Christians be on the forefront of the peaceful efforts. May we as Christian step up and shine light, shine hope, and shine a bright future for others who sit in hopelessness. I believe that we as Christians should be the ones whom the government simply follows, as we all follow Christ. Hopefully we can be that change in America that Barack keeps talking about.

May Barack Obama lead our country well, but may Jesus Christ lead our lives and let us abandon all else.

Adam

Did somebody say 'ALCOHOL'?

2009-01-05T16:27:00.002-05:00

I just got through watching this amazing sermon on alcohol from Perry Noble. He's the pastor of a fantastic community in Anderson, SC called NewSpring Church. I encourage you to visit their site and check them out. Below I have placed the link to the sermon on alcohol. I encourage you all to take and hour and a half out of your day and watch it. Perry does a fantastic job ironing out some wrinkles and questions I think a lot of young adults struggle with when it comes to the bottle.

http://www.newspring.cc/series/you-asked-for-it-week-4

Let me close with this. Christ has created us to proclaim Him in all we do, so in whatever you do, whether it be big or small, DO IT FOR CHRIST and ask yourself this, are my actions and the picture I am showing bringing others to Christ? And for those of you who are not Christians, just know that Christians don't always do what is right, but by trusting in Christ for salvation we are made righteous. It is Him alone who makes us beautiful.

Adam

Feelin' Fine In 2009!

2009-01-04T20:08:00.003-05:00

Here we are, another year older, kids!

How exciting it is when a new year begins and there is the sense of a fresh beginning and a chance to start anew.

But for any of us that feeling is just that, a feeling. It is brief and passes like a summer wind in the tree tops. Then we are reminded of the treachery of our past and the failure of previous endeavors.

Yesterday I was with an old friend and we were talking about past times and all the fun we used to have. As we reminisced I mentioned how much I missed hanging out with him. Then last night I was thinking about our time together and it brought to mind a song we sang this summer at Fuge and the idea of fleeting hope in the new year.

The song was called Hosanna by Paul Baloche and the lyric that kept coming to mind is,
"Hear the sound of hearts returning to You, we turn to You"

The word that jumps out there is "return". To return to something you have to already been there. Just like returning to hang out with my friend, people have the choice to return to God. All this because God knows us and has known us, He knew our hearts and our souls even before we were born, and He is waiting for our return to Him so He can dwell in our lives.

So, if you are like me, and often lose sight of the new year and new chances only to spend most of your time screwing up and recalling your tainted past, then I pray this week that you dwell on this-

God, our Abba Father, knows you, has known you, and knows what this year holds, and He is like the old friend who knows you full well and enjoys spending time with you, no matter how much you have screwed up. He forgives and reaches across that sin and pulls us into His arms, if we simply look to Him for our future.

Take hope in this year, for, no matter what, it is there

"O Lord, you have searched me and known me!
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.
Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.
You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is high; I cannot attain it.

Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.

If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light about me be night,”
even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is bright as the day,
for darkness is as light with you.

For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.

How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
If I would count them, they are more than the sand.
I awake, and I am still with you.

Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God!
O men of blood, depart from me!
They speak against you with malicious intent;
your enemies take your name in vain!
Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?
I hate them with complete hatred;
I count them my enemies.

Search me, O God, and know my heart!
Try me and know my thoughts!
And see if there be any grievous way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting!"

-Psalm 139

Adam T.

Yule Shoot Your Eye Out!

2008-12-24T19:45:00.004-05:00

FELIZ NAVIDAD Amigos!

Here we are another year over and at the most wonderful time of the year!

ok, seriously, I'll stop singing!

I just wanted to share a few thoughts that have been bouncing around my head with the sugar plums.

This year I have really begun to embrace the idea of Jesus being born for us, to save us, to rescue us. Now God could have simply said, "This is a waste of time", and wiped out the whole human race and started over, but instead he had a different plan and a different future. He wanted to show the Universe He was God and He could save His creation and bring them back to Him. But that required a sacrifice, the death of someone so innocent and pure that it would cover all the sins of the world. Now that is pure and that is a lot of iniquity.

But God cared that much, to give a living sacrifice, to bring us back to Him. PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE!!!

The other idea I've come to better understand is the idea of Jesus being brought into the world the way he was. His mom was young and scared, unprepared and single. He was born in a town known for its nastiness and crude citizens. He was born in a place where animals used the bathroom and in a box animals ate out of. Now that is a low birth, but it was part of God's plan. It symbolized how Jesus could go to the lowest places and still bring hope. How God was not required to be big and flashy to bring salvation. Even in the heart of darkness, God can still bring light.

It blows my mind at how creative God is and how awesome His plan was and it only gets me fired up to see his plan for us and our generation. Amazing things are done in those who desire and pursue God's plan above all else.

There will definitely be more blogs about this as we celebrate the great amazing birth and the beginning of a life that was ultimately meant for death!

Now, what is your favorite part of Christmas?

Adam T.

VIVA LA VIDA/The Coolest Kids Ever

2008-12-10T17:37:00.002-05:00

Jamie Tworkoski from To Write Love On Her Arms just posted this video on his blog and it is absolutely amazing! It seriously made me tear up. It is from Coldplay's latest Album, Viva La Vida, and the song itself is Viva La Vida, (which means Live the Life in Spanish). I'll post the lyrics below the video and the link. PLEASE GO WATCH IT!

Head Sways and Hands to Chest Galore from Behind the Scenes on Vimeo.

http://vimeo.com/2430744

VIVA LA VIDA
by Coldplay

I used to rule the world
Seas would rise when I gave the word
Now in the morning I sweep alone
Sweep the streets I used to own
I used to roll the dice
Feel the fear in my enemy's eyes
Listen as the crowd would sing:
"Now the old king is dead! Long live the king!"
One minute I held the key
Next the walls were closed on me
And I discovered that my castles stand
Upon pillars of salt, pillars of sand

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can't explain
Once you know there was never, never an honest word
That was when I ruled the world
(Ohhh)

It was the wicked and wild wind
Blew down the doors to let me in.
Shattered windows and the sound of drums
People couldn't believe what I'd become
Revolutionaries Wait
For my head on a silver plate
Just a puppet on a lonely string
Oh who would ever want to be king?

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can not explain
I know Saint Peter will call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world
(Ohhhhh Ohhh Ohhh)

Hear Jerusalem bells are ringings
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can not explain
I know Saint Peter will call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world
(Oooooh Oooooh Oooooh)

Forget About It...

2008-12-09T16:56:00.004-05:00

Hello everyone,

I have no fancy introductions today, or any funny stories to tell. Its a gloom day, a cloud day. You know, one of those days where you wake up late and feel like something's missing. Today I feel breakable, and perhaps already broken.

Lately this feeling has swept over me, and maybe it is the winter blues or the idea of not knowing what the future holds anymore. But I felt like I should write about it.

Loss. We all have experienced it, losing a friend, family member, moving to a new town, or just losing a fight for something. But loss is painful and scary.

This past week that pain and fear took me over more than ever when I was driving to work. I realized with loss comes a time when we forget, and that is even more scarier.

My grandmother died my senior year of high school, when I was 17. 4 years ago. I miss her a lot these days, because, although a simple woman, she was a woman of God and she experienced a lot and I feel like she would have some good advice for these days.

I realized while driving to work that I have forgotten her and our time together. I forgot how she loved us and how she took care of us. I forgot her laugh and all the things we did together, like watching Green Acres and I Love Lucy all day and driving to the mall and listening to Oldies on the radio and singing along. I forgot.

I guess what I'm getting at is that we all experience that loss in life, whatever it may be, but one thing we can not do is forget.

We can't forget to live and still embrace the loss. We can't forget to love and still reserve a place in our heart. We can't forget to laugh and only laugh more when we remember their laugh.

I watched Elizabethtown a couple nights ago, and the whole movie is about loss and losing the people who are the most important, and I noticed a line from the movie for the first time that really hit home.

Kirsten Dunst character said, "Sadness is easy because it's surrender, I say, make time to dance alone!"

Let us dance! Let us love! Let us embrace the loss and make much of the time we have!

So in light of that, I am gonna go crank up The Temptations and dance for MawMaw.

-AT

Hope

2008-12-06T01:37:00.002-05:00

I hear HOPE whispering in the darkness, but it is only a spark.
That spark ignites into a flame only when the HOPE found is shared with another.

http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/living/2008/12/05/dcl.ypwr.tworkowski.cnn.html

The Song of a Beggar (A Poem)

2008-12-02T12:49:00.004-05:00

Is this an upbeat song, or a slow melodic waltz.
Is my life nothing more than what I see-
where is the symphony, where is the harmony of heart.

I feel like a toddler trying to play a tuba.
I feel like a bottle floating in the sea-
only that bottle is filled with an uncertain note
'do I want to be rescued, do I want peace, do I want freedom?'

I see pieces of peace, like stained glass, shattered about.
I feel properties of peace, sometimes there, sometimes not.

You, my Father, my Abba, are a mystery to me.
Sometimes You wrap me like a coat of Kashmir.
Sometimes that coat is coarse wool, painful and convicting.

So what is my song?
I often forget how close You are,
Whether Kashmir or wool, you are still a coat that wraps me up.
Giving me a song to sing.

You are my coat of many forms, and in many ways.

You are colorful.
You are steel.
You are warm.
You are new.
You never wear out, and I can't wear you in.
You are a strong fiber, staying close to the skin.
You keep out the cold.

You are my coat and you are my song.

You are putting the pieces of peace together.
You are singing in me.
I am singing to you.

My song is You.
To sing to You and about You, and through You, and not without You.

So I sing.
loud and soft.
clear and muffled.
fast and slow.
happy and painful.
open and closed.
new and old.
but to You.

My song is You.
It is broken, with no rhythm.
I often hit the wrong notes and sing off key, but You love my song still.

So I sing.
So I sing.
Sing unto You.

Adam Triplett

Thanks, but NO THANKS! (or, the longest blog ever)

2008-11-29T00:46:00.002-05:00

(Disclaimer: This blog is not intended to offend your beliefs, it is just me voicing the world from my point of view.)

Hello Amigos!

I am blessed and thankful to say I made it through another Thanksgiving without choking on some turkey, and enjoyed a delightful spread including my favorite, CORN! and a deviled egg or two.

(Quick side note: there was a screw up in communication with my family, and my mom and both my aunts each made a tray of deviled eggs, like 30 apiece. I laughed a lot at this and then challenged my whole family to see if we could eat them all. We didn't. A blessing in disguise? You be the judge.)

Anyway. The past few days I have been thinking about all the things I have to be thankful for and all the blessings in my life. Examples being: Life, Health, Family, Safety, Shelter, and Toast (my dog). Then I started thinking about whether I was really thankful for other aspects of my life. Here's two that kept coming up-

1. Love:
Really? Am I thankful for Love? Do I cherish it. I have a lot of people in my life that I love and some who love me back. But do I cherish this love. In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul writes this:

Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
Love doesn't strut,
Doesn't have a swelled head,
Doesn't force itself on others,
Isn't always "me first,"
Doesn't fly off the handle,
Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn't revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.
- 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 (The Message paraphrase)

Do I really cherish that? Do I embrace what love is and what it looks like?

The answer to all of those questions is a 'hard to swallow' no.

I don't take pleasure in flowering truth, I don't always look for the best, I give up, I think only about me, and I sometimes look back. So, as far as me being thankful for Love and its very presence in my life, I could do better.

2. America/Being an American:

Now those who know me very well may start squirming a bit because you know my distaste for certain things about this country. I guess this is where the NO THANKS comes from in the title. Now don't get me wrong, I am very thankful for the people here, for soldiers, school teachers, nurses, doctors, and pastors. I love being in a country with the freedoms we have and the ability to be creative. I am thankful for sacrifices made and courage shown throughout our history. I am thankful for those things.

But I also despise what goes on within these borders. I despise this culture and sometimes want to just move away from it all, knowing God will provide.

The other day I was driving home from Greensboro, listening to Christmas music, which I've been doing for sometime now, and a song I've heard a lot before came on, but this time one line from the song stung my heart and made me turn red from anger. Here it is:

Do They Know Its Christmas?, by BandAid (talking about Africa)

Where the only water flowing is the bitter sting of tears
And the Christmas bells that ring there
are the clanging chimes of doom
Well tonight thank God it's them instead of you

WHAT?!?!?!?! Tonight THANK God it's them instead of you? When did we start being thankful that we are not experiencing the pain of others? Is this a Christian mindset or Western-world?

Ok, just typing this is getting me worked up. And I don't even want to get into the fact that the person singing this line is Bono, from U2 and an open Christian.

This song was recorded back in the 70's or 80's, and if this was the mindset then, I do not want to know what it is now. I think the reason I am so angry is because this lyric explains the American ideology so well.

"Well, thank God I don't have to go through that, I don't know what I'd do with out my text messaging and Sperries. If everything is OK here where I live then I'm not gonna worry about them over there."

Now like I said, I love America and all it offers, but I am tired of being force-fed all of the consumerism and amenities that I do not really need. And then I start thinking I can't live without all the stuff after I get it. People have forgotten it is not about stuff and accumulation of goods. Life is about community and relationships, risking your life for you brother and sister.

Jesus tells a parable in Luke 12:13 -21 about a rich young fool (sounds like America's 13- 25 year olds). Here this man has acquired some wealth through farming, and decides to build bigger barns for his stuff and take life easy. Big mistake. God strikes him down dead.

Then Jesus says this in verse 22 and 23- "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes."

God still strikes people down, maybe not with death, but with other things. Example; those addicted to drugs find only pain. Those addicted to spending find only bankruptcy and unhappiness the more they buy. God still strikes us down when we deny Him. It is true, God loves us, but he also loves Himself. God is jealous, and wants all of our attention. But we spend it on other things.

We worry about our lives instead of giving them away (Philippians 3: 7-11)

We focus on me, Me, ME, instead of reaching out to those who need US most (I Corinthian 9:19-23)

We find ourselves wallowing in self-pity and sin, instead of finding accountability in one another, and building the Church that Christ intended us to be. (Romans 6 and 7)

We THANK God it's them and not us, instead of going and making sure it's NOBODY. (the entire book of Acts)

See, I don't hate America. I just hate what we have created ourselves to be. I hate that we have let Satan be our guide when it comes to our time, money, and efforts. I despise that always pretty gleam in the devil's eye that says, "buy me, you can't live without me!"

I'm tired of living in the wealthy bubble and I just want people to see what else God has to offer besides a new pair of jeans and the latest Blackberry (two things I've had to ask forgiveness for coveting)

I guess in the end, the thing I am not always thankful for is Jesus and his sacrifice. If I could only embrace that love and that mindset, I would be able to break free from the Chains of Consumerism and the Locks of Addiction.

The reason I decided to through all this out on a time to be thankful, is because I want people to see that there are bigger things to be thankful for than your TV or car.

This season let's be thankful for LIFE - by giving it to missions.
Let's be thankful for LOVE - by giving it to everyone, no matter who they are.
Let's be thankful for TIME - by spending it with those who don't have much left.
Let's be thankful for OUR MONEY - by giving it to those who have none.
Let's be thankful for FOOD - by feeding the empty.
And let's be thankful for JESUS - by doing what he did.

After all...it is ThanksGIVING!

Adam T.

You Found Me

2008-11-22T23:31:00.002-05:00

Good day mates!

A few years ago a sweet little four-man band popped out of Denver, Colorado and changed a lot of peoples lives through their music and message of love and hope. That band, appropriately called The Fray has seemingly been in hiding for almost two years now.

Some people may have heard their previous hits, Cable Car and How to Save a Life, or my personal favorite, She Is...

Well after being overplayed tremendously on the radio and every primetime TV show from One Tree Hill to Grey's Anatomy to even CSI (I thought they solved crimes?), I began to wonder if they could overcome the fame and produce a decent sophomore album.

Well my good friends, it seems the time is upon us and The Fray has finished their new album which is self-titled and for pre-sale on their website: The Fray

The first release off the album is entitled, "You Found Me." It's written about hard times and loss and being found. Here are the lyrics:

You Found Me
By Isaac Slade/Joe King/The Fray

//Verse 1//
I found God
On the corner of First and Amistad
Where the west
Was all but won
All alone
Smoking his last cigarette
I said, “Where you been?”
He said, “Ask anything.”

//Verse 2//
Where were you
When everything was falling apart?
All my days
Were spent by the telephone
That never rang
And all I needed was a call
It never came
To the corner of First and Amistad

//Chorus 1//
Lost and insecure
You found me, you found me
Lying on the floor
Surrounded, surrounded
Why’d you have to wait?
Where were you, where were you?
Just a little late
You found me, You found me

//Verse 3//
In the end
Everyone ends up alone
Losing her
The only one who’s ever known
Who I am
Who I’m not, and who I want to be
No way to know
How long she will be next to me

//Chorus 2//
Lost and insecure
You found me, you found me
Lying on the floor
Surrounded, surrounded
Why’d you have to wait?
Where were you, where were you?
Just a little late
You found me, You found me

//Bridge//
Early morning
The city breaks
I’ve been calling
For years and years and years and years
And you never left me no messages
You never sent me no letters
You got some kind of nerve
Taking all I want

//Chorus 3 and outro//
Lost and insecure
You found me, you found me
Lying on the floor
Where were you, where were you?

Lost and insecure
You found me, you found me
Lying on the floor
Surrounded, surrounded
Why’d you have to wait?
Where were you, where were you?
Just a little late
You found me, You found me

Why’d you have to wait
To find me, to find me?

It's an amazing song, seriously go listen!

This song speaks volumes to me, because it is kind of in tune with how I have been feeling lately about life and all that comes with it. I guess the more I listen to it, the more I begin to understand that people find us a lot of times and we don't realize how important the FINDING can actually be.

I'll continue to ponder this until the full album is released!

Adam

Oh, yeah, here's the link to the video:
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=46878924

Arms High and Heart Abandoned

2008-11-20T10:58:00.003-05:00

Hello ladies and gents!

I'm sitting in class right now preparing to not listen and make note cards for a 10 page paper I am writing on Sex Trafficking of children...more to come on that later this week or next week.

I just wanted to send out a quick post and ask for something: PRAYER!

I know a lot of you guys are uber-prayer warriors and can throw some up, and I am asking for em now, in case you have a lack of things to pray for these days (which I can't imagine being true).

So, lately I have been praying a lot lately for God to reveal what happens next, once the summer end (2009 Summer). I have flirted with a few ideas, some of those being going to seminary in New Orleans or going to seminary in Wake Forest at Southeastern. But I don't really have a peace about either of those, and I don't know why.

But I know God is doing something, just not sure what it is yet. I can say its big. I can say its not what I thought. and I can say, hold on folks!

Again, if you have time, through out some prayers for me, and better yet for my friends and family who may have to see me leave or go away for a while to follow God.

Thanks.

ADAM

PS- below I have posted a link that has been heavy on my heart and God has continually been putting in my mind. Maybe its here I should be?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4bNnuLcB-4

Excuse Me for all the Excuses!

2008-11-15T00:07:00.002-05:00

Hola friends!

So here's the dealio. This Sunday I am briefly speaking at my home church, Day 3, on the topic of excuses, Moses, and my story. It's only for 10 minutes, but hey, they chose me, so I'm not passing it up. The problem I find is me speaking only ten minutes . So to flesh out what I wanted to say I went through a process:

1. I began writing my story.
2. Listened to Hillsong the whole time
3. Lifted my hands during the songs Devotion and The Stand
4. Wrote some more story.
5. Thought about all my excuses, and wrote down everyone.
6. Got really scared at how messed up I am.
7. Ate an Oatmeal Creampie- for comfort!
8. Decided God is bigger than my excuses.
9. Wrote about Grace.
10. Found my favorite John Piper quote.
11. Thought about my friend, George Carter, and his horrible sunburn from this summer, and how he still lead bible study everyday and gave his all for Christ.
12. Felt secure.

Like I said, it was a process.

So now I have read, and reread, and reread what I am gonna say, and have begin cutting it down. There was some stuff I wrote and cute out, so it won't get said Sunday and I feel like it needs to be said, so I figured I would say it here.

First--- I AM SCREWED UP!
I mess up way too much, and I know I do, and I still do it. I feel guilty about a lot of things and I carry that guilt and it shows in my actions and words. Most people don't know its guilt speaking, but I do. I've learned that overcoming our own guilt and failure is one of the hardest things we face. Whether you are a Christian or not, guilt is still something we deal with as humans. Its like a wall we stand against. We lean on it. We punch it. We climb it. And often we get one leg over and pull a humpty dumpty.

If you feel guilty about your past, you aren't alone. Alot of us feel the same way. But please know that God is big enough to forgive you and allow yourself to forgive your own past.

Second-- I NEED RISK!
For too long I have abandoned the Cause of Christ and chosen the cause of i. Have you ever forgotten to call someone important because you got tied up doing something not so important. Like this week, I was supposed to call my sister and I never did. What did I do instead? Well I took a nap, I watched tv, I ate some Chex Mix, and drank a Strawberry Limeade.

We are the same way with the mission God has given us. We spend our time wallowing like pigs in our own pity, guilt, complacency, and fear -- all useless! Think about it. Holding on to all those things gets you know where, they hold you back. When have you ever heard someone say, "Wow, I sure am glad I was too scared to follow God! Who knows what great stuff He would have done. Glad I wasn't a part of that!" I need to take the risk, I need to stop starving Jesus with my own excuses and allow myself to be used---now, where I am!

So last week I wrote about being patient and this week I write about not having excuses and taking risk. I just confused myself. I think a lot of times we need balance, wait on the Lord and cling to him, not our own excuses, understanding, or fears.

what are your excuses?

I have no one I can trust.
I messed up way too many times.
I don't know what to say.
I have scars people can see.
I had sex, and we weren't married.
I took drugs.
My mom doesn't love me.
My dad hits me.
I am fat.
I am too old.
I am too young.
My money is gone.
I am a hypocrite.
My friends will laugh.
I don't know that much about Jesus.
I think I am ugly.
I can't stop looking at pornography.
I am self-centered
I am lustful.
I'm not bold in my walk.
I am fearful of God's call.
I am consumed with pain
I feel worthless.
My past haunts me.
I am selfish.
I am confused.
I am scared.

It's ok to let go, I promise. It is scary, it does hurts, and it makes you question everything. But don't excuse yourself from this Story because of your excuses. Don't let your own guilt control you.

Pray for a release. Pray to overcome. Pray to find peace. And He will give it.

Exodus 3:21
"...And when you go, you shall not go empty!"

Any thoughts?

Adam T.

Time...(or my bipolar spirituality)

2008-11-05T16:02:00.002-05:00

Hello hello!

I hope everyone is having a great day and no one is going through withdrawals from the lack of political ads on TV! First, thank everyone who has subscribed to this, its gonna be fun, and if it ever gets boring, just let me know! or if you want to be taken off the list!

I had to get some things out, because I have had a huge burden lately about time and patience. I have been battling a lot lately with waiting on the Lord. I know His timing is always right and He will make clear His path, but when you are called to plant churches and minister to those who are hurting, its really hard to wait for Him to say 'GO!'

It's kind of like when you are a kid and you know your family is gonna go on vacation sometime during the summer but you have to wait forever. Of course its summertime and everything is great- no school, hanging out with friends, and of course, Popsicles, but you know there is something better coming up. The closer it gets the more you want to go. You want to be doing something way cooler than watching re-runs of Growing Pains and eating grilled cheese everyday.

That's what life has been like for me lately. I know God has all this amazing stuff He wants to do in my life, and I am all in- lets go, don't look back! But He is saying wait, sit, and absorb. Maybe some of you have had this state of spirituality. You want so bad to be somewhere else doing something that matters, but you know you are not ready.

I remember back a few years ago when my church, Day 3, first started. The worship band used to sing a song that, at the time, I didn't like. It was called 'There is a Joy in the Journey.' Now, I never liked the melody of the song, and therefore never really took time to know the words. But now, looking back, I realize that song was speaking so loud and I seemingly had cottons balls in my ears. The words went something like this: 'There is a joy in the journey. There's a light we can love on the way. There is a wonder and wildness to life. And freedom for those who obey'

Where in the world did that come from? And why did I never listen?

I'm learning- there is a joy in this journey to becoming the man God has created me to be, its found in Him.

I'm learning- there is a light I can look to when things seem dark, when my path is unclear, and when I have no idea what to do.

I'm learning- life is wild and wonderful...can I get an AMEN!?

I'm learning- that freedom from sin, from doubt, from fear, and from all my weakness comes when I simply obey God, whether it means waiting or going.

My walk with God is bipolar, it changes everyday. I would love to say I wake up every morning with a smile and an attitude of worship and love, but that is hardly the case. Some days I wake up tangled in self and sin. I wake up yearning for more than this. I wake up wanting the world instead of the Way. But I'm learning. I'm waiting. I'm giving my time to God and letting His timing direct my path, instead of my bipolar heart.

John Archibald Wheeler once wrote that, 'Time is what prevents everything from happening at once.'

So I'll give it time, because if I knew everything God has in store, I would miss everything that is happening to get me there.

Adam

PS- Jon always seems to hit the spot!

CHANGING the World, One Smile at a Time.

2008-11-02T16:32:00.003-05:00

Post 1. It begins. Thoughts become words. As I begin this first post at 3:46 AM on a Sunday morning, I am listening to Christmas music. Quite out of the ordinary for November 2! But I love this stuff, I'll get to that more in a minute.

I am so excited to start putting some of my ideas out into writing. Now I have never proclaimed to be any good at this, but I think that God gives us all gifts and passions, and one of mine is sharing with people, whether it be my own story or a story I have heard that changed me. Change. Now this is something that has been on my mind a lot the past month or so, especially since I graduate in May. But the central truth I have come to understand is I can't change anyone myself. I may have people in my life who are going through things and I want so bad to change their situation or to change their mindset, but I can't. The only thing I can do is change myself and change my own surroundings. I have learned that change is good and bad. Good, because it forces us to examine what really matters, what we can lose and what we can't live without. Bad, because its painful. To purify gold, it must be past through fire multiple times. This is done to make gold into its purest form possible. Humans are the same.

We must pass through fire (experiences) that burn us at our core, cause us to sweat a little, and we change, hopefully from bad to better. But it's the change and the process that we look back on and realize all that pain had a purpose.

It's amazing that a God who never changes is constantly pushing His children to change. Change their mindset, their location, and their lifestyle, just so He can show how much He doesn't change and His love is never faltering.

So I guess that is why I love Christmas music so much, because it reminds me of a God who is always there, amidst all those shops and Santas that will be coming our way soon, at its core, Christmas is still a celebration of a God who has always loved and over 2000 years ago said, 'Enough is enough!' and sent His son to show us Purity and Sacrifice in its highest form.

For a first blog, this may be long, but I can think of no better way to start this than with the idea that God doesn't change, we must change, and God will use our changing to change the world...hopefully one smile at a time!

Let the Change begin!