To the girls. To my sisters. 
Don't settle for less. Don't let guys check you out or treat you like you are less than what you actually are. You are a daughter of the Most High King. You are royalty. 
Don't settle. If anything set your standards higher. You're worth it. 


To my troopers. To my men. To all the fellas. 
STOP treating girls like they are objects just to be had. Since getting back into school, work, and just life again, I see it literally all the time. It makes me so mad. So STOP. 
You are called to be different. You are called to lead. You are royalty. You sons of God. Stand up for your sisters in Christ, don't let other guys use them. 
And guys, don't settle for a girls who aren't worth your time. Girls aren't the only ones who need to set the standard higher. Just as we are called by Christ to high standards, they are too. Don't settle.

Bonhoeffer once said, "Death is hell and night and cold, if it is not transformed by our faith. But that is just what is so marvelous, that we can transform death."

Guys, it's not just death that is hell and night and cold. Life is hell, night, and cold unless we let Christ transform us.

We all want to be known. It’s simply just a matter of how or to what extent. I am sitting outside my class waiting for it to start, my first day at college. This is not how I thought it would be when I was a kid. I always imagined going off to college.

Right now I am about 15 minutes from home. I drove here with my mom.

We have the same schedule on Mondays.

I trust people who have had cavities.

I don't care if you disagree or not. It's just truth. If you have had a cavity I subconsciously like you more. This probably isn't right of me to judge people based on their oral hygiene, but sometimes we just have to be honest with ourselves and others.

Why? Why Michael, why do you trust people more or like them more if they have had a cavity?

Valid question my reader, valid question.

It makes them real. It makes them not this perfect character in a book. It is a flaw. Cavities are bad, it's like a speeding ticket in your mouth. But it makes you real. It makes you human.

I remember awhile back I had this crush on a girl and I found out she was going to the dentist to get a cavity filled, I honestly can say I was more attracted to her after that. I even think I told my friend Jeremy.

If you have been reading my blog for awhile now you will know that being genuine is something that is important to me. It's something that matters. Everyone, including me, is living life with this facade, this character that we are trying to portray. It's as though we are trying to win the part, the main role in a play, and everyone else is the director. We taylor what we say, how we dress, who we are, what we believe all around what the people around us want.

No one wants to have cavities.

I love that people get cavities.

I've had my fair share.

We are flawed.

My brother wrote this once, "Beauty, in all aspects, is harder to maintain the closer it is inspected. You cannot disagree that we are all flawed if not even ugly at times." He then goes on to say how beauty is not based on a scale of lessening imperfections. You are beautiful. Even with your flaws.


I mean it.

You are beautiful.
You are loved.
Even with all your cavities and flaws, you are beautiful and loved.

I want to have friends who are open about their struggles, their hardships, their flaws, their failures. It's how the church was suppose to be. It's how the Body is suppose to work. Otherwise Satan can come in and try to get us to keep it a secret, then he tries to add on shame.

The way to fix the pain you feel, the way to get rid of the shame isn't to keep hiding it, although often that feels like it is what we are suppose to do, it is actually to share it, to be open and vulnerable.

I have to tell you something.

It is going to sound really simple. And when you read it you are going to say, "I know."

But I need to tell you this, because I don't think we get it. I don't think we are living lives that show we know this.


You don't need to defend God's reputation.

I think that a lot of times the reason we are afraid to step out in faith when God asks us to is that we are afraid His power isn't going to show up. We then rationalize it with, "well if God doesn't move then they will think God is powerless."

You don't have to defend God's reputation. You aren't His protector. He is yours.

Cindy Jacobs puts it like this, "You don't need to defend a lion, just open the cage."

We live our lives trying to be politically correct and protect God's power and reputation to those around us. What we really should be doing is just letting them know who He really is, He'll take care of the rest. We just need to be faithful.

I have never regretted going up to someone asking them if they need prayer for anything. I have regretted not going to people. What if God wanted to use me to move in their live and I was too afraid God wasn't going to show up?

God give us the boldness to move when you say move. I don't want to live a life that isn't fully honoring to you. I don't want to waste any more of my time. I love you Lord.

Can I tell you something.

I am scared.

I'm scared I will be alone.