THAT'S DEBATEABLE

Yep I'm back. Just got a rocking cool app to write my posts on my phone (trying to go semi computer less in life) and this is my first post from my phone. So today, I'm writing about debate (someone asked for it not sure who. :P) and basically what it is. From winning, to losing. I have done plenty of both, but unfortunately more of the later... Then again, without lose how can I expect to make myself better at debate? Loses tell us where we need to change, be that in debate, sports, or just life in general. Sometimes God isn't looking to put you on the #1 position. And it's not a bad thing. I have to tread lightly here, and not go too far down this rabbit trail. Basically, God will turn our loses into victories. It's promised in His word.
Romans 8:28
King James Version (KJV)
"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose."

Your responsibility is to trust in HIM though. Not in what other people say.

Back to debate. I kinda have to give a shout out to a buddy here he deserves it as he just won a tournament CJ! Go my man! Woot woot! Funny guy. :)

Yeah so debate (for people who have not been to a tournament) consists of two main types. LD (Lincon Douglas) and TP (Team policy). LD is a one on one debate that mainly has topics or resolutions based in philosophy. For example, one year in LD you may have a resolution that is "Freedom is more valuable then justice" and each speaker must take a position. The affirmative speaker is to affirm the resolution and prove why it's true, and the negative speaker is to negate the resolution and whatever the affirmative speaker may say. TP is much the same except it consists of two teams of two speakers and the resolutions tend to have action. Example "The US federal government should reform its justice policy" this resolution calls for action by the affirmative team, meaning they must try to change the status quo through a plan, and the negative team is to show the judge why it's bad to cot affirmative. You get the idea.




The challenging part is knowing how to win the round without compromising your values. Lets say the affirmative team in a TP round had the above resolution and the plan they made based off the resolution was to revoke Row VS Wade? O.O snap! Try telling a Christian, homeschooling, conservative mom or dad that abortion is good. It won't work. But! Tell them that by revoking it, they are removing our freedom of choice and to do what we want with our bodies, and that as a result of the affirmative plan we have set a president for a future leader to say "Hmmm... Christianity is bad lets ban it!" and stop all Bibles from being printed or distributed and you may just win the round. Why? Because its an angle most people wouldn't think to look at. As a debater our job is too look at the best possible case that is most likely to win the round and figure out the flaws in that perfect plan. It's challenging, but the reward is worth it.


Comment with what you want to see me blog about next!

Revelations

As many of you know, I took the past “week” off from everything (most everything) and just listened, prayed and worshiped God. And a LOT of cool revelations came out.

Saturday, October 8^th, 2011. Time: 6:30 am. As I lied there half asleep, I looked at the clock... IT COULDNT BE 6am!! I was supposed to be in Waco (2-3 hour drive) at 7:45!!!! I staggered out of bed like a drunkard. “Mom! Mom!” I shouted, “Its 6:30!!”. Mom got up and called my Model UN coach to see if it was okay to be an hour or two late. Fortunately it was, however God had other plans. As I ran out of the shower to put on my new suit, I found it was tailored wrong. (it was used and custom tailored). The suit pants went down too far, meaning I couldn't sit down without splitting them. I raced to get my other suit on, as soon as possible. It was 6:50! Half dressed I raced for my shirt (in the other room....) and mom said “Kyle, have you prayed if we should go?” No mother I hadn't, it was a little late for that... “No” was all I replied. “Pray and come talk to your father and I” was her reply. I did, and was surprised to get a strong NO(!) as my answer. I told my mom, and my parents replied that they too had gotten no's. “Well I'm going back to bed then! SEE YA!” I said as I raced to my bed. Several hours later... I got up out of bed, because it was a little past the time I should have gotten up. My parents were still in bed, but they were talking. Mom called me in and we had a little “chat”. Mom had been up after dad and I went back to bed, she had been praying. She asked me if I wanted to hear what she got. I said sure I guess... she had three pages written down, on both sides of each piece of paper. O.O

SUMMARIZING what it said, we were to stay home, not go out, not talk to anyone and we were to get back with God. In the last year or so, we have been less then a “perfect christian family” and we needed to get back to God. We also had things we needed to fast. Things we put ABOVE God without realizing it. My 3 things (I did have the most. Gee, wonder why... :P ) were Xbox, Texting, and my computer. I sent a mass text to the people I talk to most telling them I wasn’t going to talk for about a week. Little did I know, just how big of an impact this would have. That day I went fully without the items mentioned above. I was reading my bible, a fiction book I had been meaning to read, and a book called Love and Respect. I had made a list of things to research and meditate on. Basic stuff, Job, The One, life, etc. And I read outside for 4 hours strait reading various books. I had to take a break because words were losing their focus, and I was going cross eyed. XP So I sat outside listening to worship music, and just watching the weather. It was dark, high winds, and it looked like rain. I was praying asking God questions, getting answers. And at one point I asked Him why He stopped replying. He said “You stopped listening” “Alright, (turned off music) I’m listening!” several moments passed. “...Well?” He then told me about how sometimes we need to listen to His love. Its kind of hard to explain how nothing can be God's love, much less how you can listen too it. I took a deep breath and just listened, blocking out all sounds, and thoughts, and just watched the tree sway... then I heard something... The love of God. I cant tell you what it sounds like, but you will know it when you hear it. Peace like you never knew before will come upon you. I was resting with my legs on a folding chair, and my behind in one as well. But it felt like God Himself was holding me up. Like I was floating in His hands. I encourage you sometime, take 10-30 minutes, to just block everything, and listen to His love. You will know it when you hear it.

Today is Sunday, Oct 9^th 2011. Obviously my fasting is not over, yet I'm writing this on a laptop. Well that revelation, and several others I will post about later on.

What IF?

What if I was rich? What if I was handsome? What if I had a girlfriend? What if my truck had AC? What if it was cold outside? What if?

Probably everyone has said “What IF?” several times in their life, if not daily. Some of my favorite “What IF?”s are “What if I was handsome, or had a lot of money, or had a girlfriend?” Though if I had the last one, I wouldn't need the first one. Or would I? But didn't Jesus say something about this kind of behavior and thought?

Mathew 6:34 “Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”

Gen 1:26 “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”

Phil 4:19 “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus”

Kinda sounds like God wants us to rely on Him. Although a lot of people who read this will think “Well God isn't going to make me build muscle, or get fit, or this or that.” and that could very well be true. God isn't in control of what you put into your mouth, or how much you exercise. You have to make yourself do these things. But here is what I am saying. Don't go out and get plastic surgery, or start stealing, or not trusting in God for what you need, just so you can be good looking, or rich, or have what you want. It's not worth it at all. Jesus will supply our needs, and He will take care of tomorrow, and you are handsome/pretty. You were made in His image, and we shouldn't let the world tell us that we are ugly. If you don't like that your fat, or lazy, or this or that, fix it. Exercise, have some self discipline, etc. But don't go over board, starving yourself, plastic surgery, etc.

God loves YOU for YOU! He doesn't care if your thin and lean or big and strong. As long as you are serving Him. As for the money end of this, God will supply ALL of your needs according to HIS riches. Remember if your following God, He will put the desires on your heart and He will fulfill them. Trust in God,and do whats right, because its right, and do it right.

Patience can be a rough road

This is my first blog post ever. My name is Kyle T. Call me what you will, I don't mind as long as its not too vulgar. I'm a 17 year old boy who is VERY busy with debate, possible college prep, speech, working on cars, guitar, and writing on the blog. I have earned a prospective on life through so much research, experience, and of course, book work. Academia was never my strong suit though, in fact, I do a big part of my learning online, and through experience. One of the best things that could have happened to me was having the parents, and the imagination that God has blessed me with. In life there is only one thing I have ever wanted, that God has not seen fit to bless me with yet, not including the 1967 Ford Shelby mustang. But I know its coming.

Psalms 37:4 “Delight thyself also in the LORD and He shall give you the desires of your heart.”

There are several bible verse like this, and I attribute all of what I have, to God. Am I saying I’m perfect, or that I never sin? Absolutely not! Those of you who know me well enough on your own time will know some of the sins and temptations that I fight on a regular basis. What I am saying is that I put my trust in God, I work for Him to get what I desire. He has to lead my life in all I do or it is all for not.

One of the challenges I personally face is Patience. I can't stand to wait for anything. I hate just sitting still when there is something I want to do, or that I just want and that I know I can achieve. However, God's timing is always ALWAYS right, no matter what. I don't think I would have been ready for the blessing of my truck when I was 5 years old, and apparently God didn't either. I may not always agree with God, but I do still listen to Him. The two biggest things I have absolutely no patience for are stupid people, and waiting for the right girl to come along. I normally don't go broadcasting this, but to kind of give you a feel for what I say, and when I talk about the “relationship” stuff , you kind of need to know this. I have never in my life had an official relationship with any girl, other then friend. I came kind of close once, but it wasn't meant to be, and I was not ready for it at all. However, for some strange reason, people come to me for relationship advice, and (not to brag) I have actually helped 5 guys get girls they liked, and I have predicted several relationships, even when people swore up and down it wasn't going to happen. I have basically come to the conclusion that, I'm not going to force it, obviously I can't, and that it will happen when it is time. Though sometimes it feels like it will never happen.

Patience comes into play again in my guitar playing/learning. In April of this year I sold my moms old acoustic guitar from when she tried to learn to play (she sold mine a few years ago and told me I could buy a guitar using that money because the one she had was a walmart guitar.), and in May or June I got an electric guitar! I.Was.Pumped. I loved playing my guitar. I took/take lessons from a good friend of mine, he and I are working on some stuff to play for people/youtube etc. But I am learned patience inside of learning! You can't just pick up a guitar and shred like a pro. It takes hours and hours of playing and practicing to become really really good, which I'm not yet. I was fortunate enough to take on to it pretty quick though, and I gained a passion for it. But I wanted to play songs, and write songs. And I did that, but I soon found out again, it takes LOTS of practice to be able to play.

A friend of mine (We will call him Tom) found out about patience too. His learning was stepped up by, a few hundred feet. He's my age, never had a girlfriend or anything either, but was always comfortable around girls, talked to them a lot and stuff. He has normal teenager stuff going on, school, work, cars. But his family was going through a financially rough time, and an emotional one too. One day he was driving to work with his dad and his dad looked at him and said “Things aren't going well at home. Your mothers yelling a lot, and its just not good. How would you cope if your mother and I split up.” This almost threw Tom into a state of shock. He had kinda seen it coming, but had hopped it wouldn't happen, and didn't believe it would. But it did for a while. Tom and his mom spent two weeks explaining, begging and praying that his dad would stay. A couple of times at the end, Tom got so mad he just looked at his dad and said “If your not even willing to try, then just leave just get away from here, GO AWAY!”

And he did... For about a month he said the marriage was over. Tom's mom stood her ground and she prayed daily that he would come back. Their financial situation didn’t improve, in fact it got worse. Tom started looking into full time jobs, as did his mom. Nothing would work though. In that time, Tom got thrown into the position of “man of the house” and did his best, but he failed. He was unable to do everything his father could. He became a man for a month you could say, because on his birthday, his dad came home. Since then his dad promised to stay and never leave. Through all the pain, and the tears, all the anger, and the rage, Tom trusted in God and was patient. He knew God would take care of them, and that he needed to trust in God.

A lot has happened since that day. Tom didn't stop being a man when his dad came home, he just moved into being a man stating into a good life. Tom has a LOT on his plate and I pray for him daily. All of his friends do. He still fights the pain, and anger, and sometimes his dad too, but learning takes time as does healing. That entire fiasco taught him three main things. One, NEVER leave your family for any reason. Once you're in a marriage stick with it. Two, trust in God no matter what. After all, the darkest part of the night, is just before the dawn. Three, its time to make your own shoes. In trying to be the man, or a better man then his father was, he found that he needed to make his own shoes, especially since his dad is home. It's his time to step up, and out and become a man for God, and less of a boy for himself.

As we can see, patience is in all part of life. Our job, is to trust in God and wait on Him. His timing is perfect. Thanks for reading, and I will try to update a new blog soon.