You are Zero

      "You are a zero." My dad used to say this all the time when he would preach. What he meant when he said it is that you are a zero, and God is One. Part of God's love for us is that He allows us to make our own choices and decisions. We all make decisions, and we all decide how important we think we are. So if you are zero, and you put yourself as more important than God, than God, shown in your life, will only be 01. But if you submit to Christ and follow Him, than God, shown in your life, will be 10.

     I will be entirely honest with you, my ego is one of my biggest flaws. I can think, God has blessed me with the ability to be able to look at a situation and find a solution, or be able to determine different philosophies, but I take that, and I use my God-given talents for my own good, and often to the detriment of others. In my mind I can justify a lot of my actions, but I've done so many stupid things that I can never undo. Adrenaline is intoxicating, and in the moment I find myself saying stupid things I don't mean, but can't admit, and coming to regret it later. But when I think about it I'm so self absorbed that I can't admit to doing something wrong, so I try to justify my action in my mind. And it kills me. It kills my faith. It kills my friendships. It kills my representation of Christ. I can't keep living like this, people. I really can't. But I need your help.

John 12:24 says (NIV)

"Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it ides, it produces many seeds"

I need to die. But I can't do it on my own, only through God I can conquer the devil. So moving forward, if I say something arrogant, selfish, or think of myself before God, or before others, don't think less of me, but rebuke me. Pray for me, that I will become selfless, and strive live selflessly, to glorify God, and so also to be an example for others, and for myself.

Friends

What is a friend? 

This is something I've been pondering for quite some time. 

     Friendship is something very unique and very special. I know this really well from personal experience.

I've seen the devastation that you can cause, the pain and hurt you can instill by not being a good friend; I've also been blessed with amazing friends, and know what it's like to have them there to encourage you. 

     Most of my life I've been a pretty horrible friend. Recently I've changed my ways, or at least I'd like to think so. One day I wrote down everything I thought a friend should be, and this is what I came up with...

     A Friend is someone who...

Is always there, no matter what, 

Cheers for you when you succeed,

Sympathizes when you don't, 

Helps you through the hard times,

Listens when you need someone to talk to,

Encourages you when you're down,

Finds the person who caused you pain and kills them... (maybe not quite)

Is someone who knows the song of your heart, and sings it when you forget the words,

Can put a smile on your face just by existing,

Gives you the best memories of your life,

Corrects you when correction is needed,

Tells you the truth,

Hides the truth when it shouldn't be told,

Is a great example,

Makes you want to be a better person,

But most importantly, Draws you closer to God

These are a few of the things I think a friend should be. Friends are more influential than we often realize. 

Think about it, I bet you'll notice that you've picked up quite a few of the mannerisms that your friend have. 

It's natural to become more like the people you look up to, who are the best examples to you, and who are closest to you. This means, you'd better pick your friends well. And don't get me wrong, nobody's perfect, but a good friend is the one who overlooks your flaws, and praises and looks up to your strengths. 

For most of my life I haven't been this kind of friend. But I've been trying to be there, to encourage, to help, and most importantly to try to help you draw closer to God. Even though I may stumble about it in my own awkward way just know I'll always be there, no matter what you need. As cheesy as it may sound it's kind of like that one song "You've got a friend in me" Cause really, you do. 

But probably the biggest thing I've noticed, is that we often don't tell people how much they mean to us. When was the last time you told someone how much they meant to you? 

Being a home-schooled guy I especially struggle with this part, but there's a lot of people out there who don't know exactly how much they mean to me, or to you, cause sometimes we take our friends for granted. 

So here's my challenge for you. Tell somebody how much they mean to you. And when I say this I don't mean just send someone a text or something just because I asked you to, tell someone because they are awesome, and because they should know.

Friendship, it's a big deal folks it means a heck of a lot more to others than you'll ever know

So looking towards the future, I will strive to be a better friend, Won't you join me?

I'm Josh Hoover, and that's my 2 cents 

A Pilgrim

   Last week I was wanting to order some dog tags. I went through the standard protocol for ordering something, got the details,checked with my parents etc. However, the standard military format is to list your name, blood type, social security number, and religion. My dad (for obvious reasons) Did not want me to put my social security number on my tags which left me with a dilemma. I had to decide what I wanted to put on that blank line. For awhile I pondered this, and reached the conclusion that I would add the line, A Pilgrim. 

Yesterday this came in the mail.

   I added that I was a pilgrim because it would remind me that I am a foreigner in this world. This is not my home, it is only temporary. My permanent home is in Heaven, here I am but a pilgrim.

   Pilgrimage is something I have really taken to heart these past few weeks. I tend to be extremely competitive, and very disappointed when I don't succeed. But a few days ago I read this verse.

"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." -Mathew 6:21 

This verse really put life in perspective for me. No longer should I worry about earthly success, or earthly treasures because moth and rust will destroy, and thieves will break in and steal. Moving forward with my life I am going to strive to treasure things eternal, rather than temporary fame. 

A pilgrim, foreigner, not of this world. These words best describe what we are. We are not of this world, Heaven is our home. 

I am a pilgrim. My treasure is in Heaven. Where's yours?

I'm Josh Hoover, and that's my 2 cents