So it is now official, I will be continuing to play basketball... as a profession (HAHA!!). Mannn, I love saying that. That just feels good to say right now. I'll be playing in Iceland (Greenland is ICE, and Iceland is NICE) for my rookie season. For those of you who want to know, the team name is the same as the city. It's called Keflavik. They are a part of the top league in Iceland known as Express L. where there are 11 other teams. The team had a lot of success last year, losing to the eventual champions of the league in the semi-finals. I'll be there with one other American, so I'm guessing the English language will be scarce around there. Just one of those culture shocks that I'm gonna have to get used to. Hopefully pick up a little bit of the language while I'm there. Other than that, I'm crazy excited about this whole thing!
Honestly, I can't imagine a better feeling than doing something that I absolutely love as a career. Those of you out there who love your job, I can definitely relate to you on this level. Just knowing that I have the opportunity to do this is a huge blessing in itself. Freshman year (at Iowa), I thought my dream of playing professional was snatched away from me. The fact that God's plan has since then aligned up with mine gives me all the strength I need to continue.
I'm looking forward to pretty much every aspect of this adventure, except for the dark winters. In the months of December and January, there is roughly four hours of sunlight (avg) a day. What in the world is that gonna be like... 10AM rolling around and the sun is just coming up... that's gotta be insane. However, I hear they have this nice hot spring called the Blue Lagoon that's a nice little chill spot. Best believe I'll be seeing what that's all about.
I'll be just a little ways away from the capitol, Reykjavik, which also holds the previous seasons conference championship. Needless to say, that will be a great trip.
I'll be leaving around September 1st and I'll be back between late March or mid April, depending on our post season success. As the season goes, I'll be posting on here regularly, so be sure to check back in with me. I'm sure I'll have plenty to talk about!
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
First Video
What up!
This is gonna be the first video that I upload to my Blog (obviously). Just wanted to add a new dimension to what I can use this for. I think It will be fun to have yall listen to my stuff. Unfortunately, this video doesn't contain any footage of me, rather its a video of one of my most recent poems I wrote, in song form.
You will probably recognize the beat if you're familiar with Mike Posner. If you're not familiar with him, I can almost, sorta, not guarantee you'll like the beat. Well I do, and thats what matters, right?? Right.
For those of you who wont be able to understand me with just the audio, I took it upon myself to add the lyrics to the video lol. I've been told I don't enunciate well, so my friends, that is for you.
Hope you enjoy. Subscribe or leave a comment!
Friday, July 29, 2011
Religious Conditioning (Part 1)
Image
Have you ever wondered what God looks like? If He exposed Himself to you today, what form do you think He would come to you in? If He was walking down the street, do you think you would recognize that it was Him? Or what if it was Jesus? What does your vision of Jesus look like? Is it the middle aged, well toned, blonde haired white man that is shown in paintings baptizing John? Or is He the average looking middle eastern man, than scholars say He is?
I remember when I was a kid, my parents were given this white sheet of paper that had various black shapes grouped together that looked like a deformed portrait of Jesus' face (if you used your imagination). My parents were told that if you focused on the center of this picture for about 30 seconds without blinking, then look up at a bright light, a perfect picture of Jesus will form behind your eyelids. They decided to wait till after dinner to try this out one night, and sure enough, there was Jesus kicking it right there behind my eyelids. I thought it was weird at the time and even tho I've seen that same picture that showed up a million times before in different places, I still wondered, 'What does the real Jesus,' or "What does the real God look like?'
The truth is, we'll never know. Trying to figure out what They look like is a waste of time and essentially doesn't matter. Controversy envelops the topic whether or not Jesus is a white man or a middle eastern man or even a black man. Some people even portray God as a woman.
First off, God never claims to be any gender. The fact that most, including me, refer to Him as male, seems to be just a tag that we use to refrain from calling the being that created all things an 'It'. Leave it to us humans to be the ones to care about something like that. Both genders, male and female, are derived from God's nature. The only thing that allows us to slap a gender on God is our religious conditioning. We were taught (by human minds) that He is male, thus it not only becomes natural, but common knowledge as well. I think that when God is revealed to people, He knows not to do so as a very large grandfather type figure with a flowing white beard, because it would simply fuel our religious stereotypes and that becomes an oxymoron in itself. To think that God is predictable is a sure sign of lack of knowledge.
Being Unloved
Unfortunately, there are many people who suffer from depression. Depression occurs when a person receives a lack of something that they feel is needed to fill a void. Instead of turning to the one Being that created us who obviously LOVES us, we turn to other things like sex, drugs, and alcohol. All of which have the ability to stimulate your mind and body for a given period, but ultimately fail at the act of saving you.
Consider this; most birds were created to fly. When they are grounded, it becomes a limitation within their ability to fly, not the other way around. Relating this back to us, people were created to be loved. So for anyone to live as if they are unloved becomes a limitation, not the other way around. In essence, living unloved is like clipping a bird's wings and removing its ability to fly. This is not something that God wants for us. When thinking about it like that, turning to something other than God not only seems wrong, but it seems out right ridiculous.
The problem that we have is that we usually have a lack of understanding of what God is. Some view God as evil rather than kind. Most people try to grasp some sense of who God is by the taking the best version of themselves, multiplying that by some level, factoring all the goodness they can perceive (which often isn't much) and then have the nerve to call that God. Not to knock those people, it seems like a pretty decent effort, right? But the truth is that it falls pitifully short of who God really is. God is not merely the best version of me, or you, or anyone else that you can think of. God is far more than that, above and beyond all that anyone can ask or think.
God's Nature
In the Bible, God seems to have many different sides. The God that created and loved the first man in the most perfect environment is the same God that destroyed an undeserving people with a flood, all except one family. The same God that asked for burnt sacrifices. The same God that took sides in battle and struck down many people so the favored people could take that land. The same God that favored a man named David that committed nearly every sin that could have possibly been committed. The same God that allowed Satan to test one of his most faithful followers, Job. The same God that allowed the Chosen Son, Jesus, to be the ultimate sacrifice for all sin in order to save a world of people the wreaked with selfishness, adultery, greed, envy, and lust. The beautiful thing of it all is that it was all done out of Love. God is Love.
By nature, God is completely unlimited, without bounds or barriers and has always known fullness. God lives in a state of perpetual satisfaction as His normal state of existence. Remember, humans are defined not by their limitations, but by the intentions that God has for us, not by what we seem to be, but by everything it means to be created in God's image.
Relationships
Relationships are the the interactions between people that make the world what it is today. We learn about relationships from the time we are able to comprehend any kind of meaning and from then on, for the rest of our lives. There are relationships between husband and wife, parents and children, people and animals. Relationships in the work force and in sports. Relationships are everywhere. However, the most misunderstood aspect of relationships is that people have become accustomed to the establishment of power. Relationships are NEVER about power, and one way to avoid the will to hold power over another is to choose to limit oneself to serve.
In all relationships, even with God, TRUST is the fruit of the relationship in which you know you are loved. People have a hard time with trust because we are imperfect beings. We make mistakes and we choose to do things that will cause feelings of hurt and pain to others. Unfortunately, this also affects the relationship that we allow ourselves to have with God. If you want someone to trust, trust in God who is a very perfect being. A being that is just and righteous in all that He does. However, if you don't know that God loves you, then it is impossible for you to trust in Him. The difference between God and people is that He does not waver. As long as one holds up their end of the relationship, it will continue to last. The best part about that is God doesn't expect you to be perfect. He knows that you won't be, so don't even fool yourself. It's the pursuit that He wants. It's not about being perfect, but it is the constant repentance and the constant thrive for living like Christ.
Good vs Evil
By being human, we have a great capacity for declaring something good or evil, without truly knowing. On a basic level, the world is full of poisonous plants. If a person gets infected by a poisonous plant, then it becomes something that is seen as evil. What we tend to look past is that the same plant, when mixed with something else could possibly turn into a remedy for healing or could contain properties necessary for some of the most amazing wonders. Plants aren't the only thing we are quick to judge, but also, other humans fall in that category, the clothes people wear, the things they possess, the way someone acts, the way someone looks. All of that (and more) are what people judge and they subconsciously label them good or bad.
Our view of good and evil got separated from God's view of it as soon as the first man sinned back in the Garden. Since then, the independence that we declared, with that one action, has created this natural distance from God that we are all born into. We feel comfortable in that independence and in it, we tend to lash out judgment on everything we possibly can. In doing that it allows us to play God, thus pushing us further and further from Him. We are so enveloped in our independence that we don't think we need God to create our list of good and evil, because clearly we know best (sarcasm). But we don't realize that we DO need God if we have any desire to stop such an intense lust for independence.
We must give up our right to decide what is good and evil on our own terms. And I say 'our right', because we surely do have the right to have our own decisions. But it is in our own decisions that we fail and are continually unhappy. Choosing to live only in God isn't an easy thing to do, but it is the right way and a much more satisfying way. In order to do it, we have to know Him enough to trust Him and learn to rest in His inherent goodness.
Evil is a word we use to describe the absence of good, just as we use the word darkness to describe the absence of light or death to describe the absence of life. Both evil and darkness can be understood only in relation to light and good, they do not have any actual existence of their own. God is light and God is good. He is love and there is NO darkness in Him. Light and Good actually exist, so removing ourselves from Him will plunge us into darkness. Declaring independence will result in evil because apart from Him, we can draw only upon ourselves. This is death because we have separated ourselves from Him, which is Life.
Have you ever wondered what God looks like? If He exposed Himself to you today, what form do you think He would come to you in? If He was walking down the street, do you think you would recognize that it was Him? Or what if it was Jesus? What does your vision of Jesus look like? Is it the middle aged, well toned, blonde haired white man that is shown in paintings baptizing John? Or is He the average looking middle eastern man, than scholars say He is?
I remember when I was a kid, my parents were given this white sheet of paper that had various black shapes grouped together that looked like a deformed portrait of Jesus' face (if you used your imagination). My parents were told that if you focused on the center of this picture for about 30 seconds without blinking, then look up at a bright light, a perfect picture of Jesus will form behind your eyelids. They decided to wait till after dinner to try this out one night, and sure enough, there was Jesus kicking it right there behind my eyelids. I thought it was weird at the time and even tho I've seen that same picture that showed up a million times before in different places, I still wondered, 'What does the real Jesus,' or "What does the real God look like?'
The truth is, we'll never know. Trying to figure out what They look like is a waste of time and essentially doesn't matter. Controversy envelops the topic whether or not Jesus is a white man or a middle eastern man or even a black man. Some people even portray God as a woman.
First off, God never claims to be any gender. The fact that most, including me, refer to Him as male, seems to be just a tag that we use to refrain from calling the being that created all things an 'It'. Leave it to us humans to be the ones to care about something like that. Both genders, male and female, are derived from God's nature. The only thing that allows us to slap a gender on God is our religious conditioning. We were taught (by human minds) that He is male, thus it not only becomes natural, but common knowledge as well. I think that when God is revealed to people, He knows not to do so as a very large grandfather type figure with a flowing white beard, because it would simply fuel our religious stereotypes and that becomes an oxymoron in itself. To think that God is predictable is a sure sign of lack of knowledge.
Being Unloved
Unfortunately, there are many people who suffer from depression. Depression occurs when a person receives a lack of something that they feel is needed to fill a void. Instead of turning to the one Being that created us who obviously LOVES us, we turn to other things like sex, drugs, and alcohol. All of which have the ability to stimulate your mind and body for a given period, but ultimately fail at the act of saving you.
Consider this; most birds were created to fly. When they are grounded, it becomes a limitation within their ability to fly, not the other way around. Relating this back to us, people were created to be loved. So for anyone to live as if they are unloved becomes a limitation, not the other way around. In essence, living unloved is like clipping a bird's wings and removing its ability to fly. This is not something that God wants for us. When thinking about it like that, turning to something other than God not only seems wrong, but it seems out right ridiculous.
The problem that we have is that we usually have a lack of understanding of what God is. Some view God as evil rather than kind. Most people try to grasp some sense of who God is by the taking the best version of themselves, multiplying that by some level, factoring all the goodness they can perceive (which often isn't much) and then have the nerve to call that God. Not to knock those people, it seems like a pretty decent effort, right? But the truth is that it falls pitifully short of who God really is. God is not merely the best version of me, or you, or anyone else that you can think of. God is far more than that, above and beyond all that anyone can ask or think.
God's Nature
In the Bible, God seems to have many different sides. The God that created and loved the first man in the most perfect environment is the same God that destroyed an undeserving people with a flood, all except one family. The same God that asked for burnt sacrifices. The same God that took sides in battle and struck down many people so the favored people could take that land. The same God that favored a man named David that committed nearly every sin that could have possibly been committed. The same God that allowed Satan to test one of his most faithful followers, Job. The same God that allowed the Chosen Son, Jesus, to be the ultimate sacrifice for all sin in order to save a world of people the wreaked with selfishness, adultery, greed, envy, and lust. The beautiful thing of it all is that it was all done out of Love. God is Love.
By nature, God is completely unlimited, without bounds or barriers and has always known fullness. God lives in a state of perpetual satisfaction as His normal state of existence. Remember, humans are defined not by their limitations, but by the intentions that God has for us, not by what we seem to be, but by everything it means to be created in God's image.
Relationships
Relationships are the the interactions between people that make the world what it is today. We learn about relationships from the time we are able to comprehend any kind of meaning and from then on, for the rest of our lives. There are relationships between husband and wife, parents and children, people and animals. Relationships in the work force and in sports. Relationships are everywhere. However, the most misunderstood aspect of relationships is that people have become accustomed to the establishment of power. Relationships are NEVER about power, and one way to avoid the will to hold power over another is to choose to limit oneself to serve.
In all relationships, even with God, TRUST is the fruit of the relationship in which you know you are loved. People have a hard time with trust because we are imperfect beings. We make mistakes and we choose to do things that will cause feelings of hurt and pain to others. Unfortunately, this also affects the relationship that we allow ourselves to have with God. If you want someone to trust, trust in God who is a very perfect being. A being that is just and righteous in all that He does. However, if you don't know that God loves you, then it is impossible for you to trust in Him. The difference between God and people is that He does not waver. As long as one holds up their end of the relationship, it will continue to last. The best part about that is God doesn't expect you to be perfect. He knows that you won't be, so don't even fool yourself. It's the pursuit that He wants. It's not about being perfect, but it is the constant repentance and the constant thrive for living like Christ.
Good vs Evil
By being human, we have a great capacity for declaring something good or evil, without truly knowing. On a basic level, the world is full of poisonous plants. If a person gets infected by a poisonous plant, then it becomes something that is seen as evil. What we tend to look past is that the same plant, when mixed with something else could possibly turn into a remedy for healing or could contain properties necessary for some of the most amazing wonders. Plants aren't the only thing we are quick to judge, but also, other humans fall in that category, the clothes people wear, the things they possess, the way someone acts, the way someone looks. All of that (and more) are what people judge and they subconsciously label them good or bad.
Our view of good and evil got separated from God's view of it as soon as the first man sinned back in the Garden. Since then, the independence that we declared, with that one action, has created this natural distance from God that we are all born into. We feel comfortable in that independence and in it, we tend to lash out judgment on everything we possibly can. In doing that it allows us to play God, thus pushing us further and further from Him. We are so enveloped in our independence that we don't think we need God to create our list of good and evil, because clearly we know best (sarcasm). But we don't realize that we DO need God if we have any desire to stop such an intense lust for independence.
We must give up our right to decide what is good and evil on our own terms. And I say 'our right', because we surely do have the right to have our own decisions. But it is in our own decisions that we fail and are continually unhappy. Choosing to live only in God isn't an easy thing to do, but it is the right way and a much more satisfying way. In order to do it, we have to know Him enough to trust Him and learn to rest in His inherent goodness.
Evil is a word we use to describe the absence of good, just as we use the word darkness to describe the absence of light or death to describe the absence of life. Both evil and darkness can be understood only in relation to light and good, they do not have any actual existence of their own. God is light and God is good. He is love and there is NO darkness in Him. Light and Good actually exist, so removing ourselves from Him will plunge us into darkness. Declaring independence will result in evil because apart from Him, we can draw only upon ourselves. This is death because we have separated ourselves from Him, which is Life.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
"Dear Mama"
Ok, lets get this all out from the start. I've been a "mama's boy" since day 1. *phew* There, i said it. But trust me, it's all for good reason.
First off, I am currently 6 feet 7 inches tall and I weigh about 250lbs. I've always been the tallest kid in school when I was growing up. I never asked how big of a baby I was, but I'm certain I couldn't have been a small one, so she's definitely a trooper for giving birth to me. However, it's not the giving birth to this self proclaimed Monster that intrigues me the most about my mother.
When I was in middle school, I was in the middle of my basketball career. I was content with playing in local leagues and tournaments, being MVP, and bringing home the gold after a nice weekend of what felt like 50 games or so (it was probably closer to about 8 games tho). I loved playing basketball and it was where most of my time was spent. One day, my mom comes to me about a guy that talked to her at one of my games about joining his AAU program. She ran the details by me and it sounded like a lot of work. I'd have to practice every night far from my house with a gang of other boys that I hardly knew. I knew it was going to be a different type of ball than what I was used to seeing and I hated that. I was afraid of the change.
So after a couple days of weighing my options aka letting my mom get the details of where and when things would be, I ended up being forced into the gym. The first practice was about 3 hours long and I can tell you I've never had a more fun time. It was exactly what I wanted to get out of the experience and it propelled me to be the basketball player that I am today. If it wasn't for my mom instilling the confidence in me that she knew I had, I wouldn't have had the opportunity to pursue a 4year basketball scholarship and education at the University of Iowa and I definitely wouldn't have the opportunity that I have now of taking my talents over seas to play in the Euro-League. However, its not my mother's uncanny ability to make the hard decisions in life seem easy for me that intrigues me the most about her.
My mom was diagnosed with diabetes my early years in middle school. And in my senior year in high school, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. I remember being so angry at her for not telling me for so long. It's a shame I didn't know until I was getting my physical for that year's basketball season and my doctor asked, "By the way Jarryd, how's your mom doing?" I had no idea what he was talking about. Unfortunately, I didn't have to go much further to get the answer. He continued, "She did decide to go through with the chemo didn't she?" At that point I didn't even know what Chemotherapy was. It turned out that she did start the chemo. It wasn't long before she lost her hair and to stop the cancer from spreading, they cut off her left breast.
I remember her being on medication that had her wailing and moaning in agony in bed for hours and hours. There was nothing I could do but lay with her and hold her hand. Maybe rub her back and tell her that, "It's ok mama. God has this. It'll be over soon." Those times I spent with her were minuscule minutes and seconds before I'd have to be back at the high school for practice. I hated leaving her. It made me sick. Not even basketball, the game I love and cherish, could ease the pain I shared with my mother. I'd leave there and go right back home and she'd be sleeping. Seeming to be in comfort, but I knew it was only temporary.
To keep the story semi short, she battled and battled and became cancer free. She was healthy enough by my freshman year in college to make trips back and forth from Kansas City to Iowa City to watch her boy do his thing. There she was, front row rockin' her new bald headed hair doo, stuffed left breast, and ready and willing to cheer me on. During that year and a half to two year stint, my mother showed amazing faith and perseverance. However, it's not my mother's striking ability to survive above all circumstances that intrigue me about her the most.
Just last summer, my mother and father got a divorce. Things weren't always the best at home, but I didn't think that they were on the verge of not being together. They were strong in their faith and devout Christians, I didn't even think they believed in divorce.
I guess I was wrong.
Just three months later, my father was remarried (SURPRISE!!). Nobody in my immediate family knew about it. We got wind of it by a distant cousin that called to check on us. My father was gone for a while and when he came back, we had some news for him.
I hated him for what he did. I couldn't believe that his intentions were to go away, get married, come back, then live the life in Kansas City that he always had and not tell anybody what he just did. It sickens me to think about. All my life I just wanted him to be a role model for me. I loved him growing up, but he was just never doing the right things. He would randomly say, "Do as I say, not as I do", when I would foolishly try things that he would do when I was a child. It wasn't until later in life that I realized he wasn't just saying that for the moment, he meant it for a life lesson.
You see, humans are creatures of habit. My father had a shady past with families and relationships (6 kids with 3 different women) and it's silly to think he wouldn't be the same. Proverbs 26:11 says, "As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his foolishness."
It is in this situation that I am the most intrigued by my mother. To this day she is the most happy and most loyal and most respectful and most humble person I know. I'm currently living in Ames, Iowa right now, training for Europe and living at my good friend's, the Nesbitt's house, and my mom came to visit me with my grandma this week. I've seen her more in the past 2 weeks than I've seen her in the last 4 years due to athletics. Every time I see her, a piece of me is restored. She's been here cooking up a storm and helping with cleaning and enjoying herself as she always does. I just found out that she had to let our house in Kansas City go due to the fact that she couldn't keep up the expenses by herself without the help of my father. She is currently living with my grandma with my sister and my 1 year old niece, Xaria.
If I could be half the person that my mom is, I'd be doing better than a majority of this world. I have yet to meet anybody else more praiseworthy than her. If she ever gets to see this, I just want to encourage her to keep being who she is. She hasn't changed or folded under any circumstance and I doubt that she ever will.
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