Thunderstorms at the Sea

I love the Sea. I am so blessed to be able to come and enjoy what God has made for us. I have had an awesome time with my family here at the Outer Banks, spending time on the beach, at the pool, watching the World Cup games, and traveling to a nearby town to see the sights. And today I experienced something amazing. We were sitting inside cheering for Portugal (and Ronaldo!) and eating sun chips (that's for you, dearest friend! =) during the hottest part of the day, when a storm came up outside. It was stunning. Huge clouds rolled in, thunder clashing and lighting flashing.. Our family sat outside on the porch and watched the show. Glory to God our Creator!
"The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they display knowledge.
There is no speech or language
where their voice is not heard.
Their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world." Psalm 19:1-4

Nights lit by Fireflies

Last night I had some friends over and we watched Anastasia (the creepiest Disney movie I have ever seen...) and ate donuts. Afterwords we went outside and kicked around the soccer ball and chased fireflies in our field... It was a beautiful night - the moon was shining, and the stars were out. Fireflies are one of the coolest creations.
It was somewhat of a goodbye party. My friend is leaving for camp for EVER and I might be leaving as well, so for me, it was kindof a sad little party. But I'll try not to dwell on the sad things, but on "whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if something is excellent or praiseworthy, think about these things." (Philippians 4:8b) That doesn't mean I'll ignore the sadness I feel, but I won't let it bring me down, or ruin the good things I do see.

Recently I've made it a goal to be more optimistic. Realistic, but to focus more on the bright side of things. I'm trying to limit the number of negative things I say each day. My words should be encouraging to people, not drag them down. "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen."
-Ephesians 4:29

To be grateful

Why is it so hard to be grateful?? I don't understand. That is my biggest pet peeve.
I know I am ungrateful too sometimes. There are so many unhappy people in this country, and it's because we have this outlook. People think that they deserve everything (L'Oriel - "because you're worth it." Burger King - "Have it your way." Etc etc..) "it's always about me." To be honest, I believe that's how most people think now, and it drives me crazy. We are brought up to be so self centered, and I hate it. We believe we deserve everything, and when we don't get it, we think it's unfair. And when something good does happen to us, we don't appreciate it enough, because we think we should have had it all along, and then we begin to covet something else. We are never satisfied.
I don't know how to battle greed and selfishness.. I have a fairly simple phone, I don't have an ipod, and I try not to go shopping too often... but this mindset is so deeply embedded in our culture it's hard to shake off. Maybe it's because of the knowledge that we don't, in fact, deserve anything but hell that it bothers me so much. Not to sound cliche, but it's only because of Jesus' grace that we have been put here on this beautiful earth with all His gifts and love. We just get distracted by all the unimportant things and, feeling empty and unhappy, we try to fill the hole with even more idols. As the Elder Zosima says in The Brothers Karamazov, "The world says: "You have needs - satisfy them. You have as much right as the rich and mighty. Don't hesitate to satisfy your needs; indeed expand your needs and demand more." This is the worldly doctrine of today. And they believe that this is freedom... To consider freedom as directly dependent on the number of man's requirements and the extent of their immediate satisfaction shows a twisted understanding of human nature, for such an interpretation only breeds in men a multitude of senseless, stupid desires and habits and endless preposterous inventions. People are more and more moved by envy now, by the desire to satisfy their material greed.. Do you really think that such men are free? It is not surprising that instead of freedom, they lapse into slavery, that, instead of promoting unity and brotherhood, they encourage division and isolation.. That is why the idea of service to mankind and brotherly love has been dying out in the world.. for what can a man do who has become the slave of innumerable needs and habits he has invented for himself? He lives in his separate little world and does not care about the great world outside. The result of all this is that, today, when more material goods have been accumulated than ever, there is less joy."

"Every blade of grass, every bug, every ant, every golden bee, knowing so amazingly what to do, without intelligence, reveals the existence of God's mystery and continuously demonstrates it to us." The Brothers Karamazov

This last weekend, I went with my family and a few friends to my family's lake house, and we had so much fun! I went running with my dad and sister, and then everyone went swimming. It started raining in the afternoon, but eventually we went outside and played airsoft in the storm anyways. It was the epitome of adventure, as the movies tell us, to run around in the forest, rain and thunder raging on, with guns in our hands pretending to fight for our very survival.. and it was quite thrilling, but I have the feeling, if I hadn't seen gorgeous people in attractive outfits who said cool lines doing the same thing, I doubt I would have felt the same way about it. Don't get me wrong, I had a blast, but I realized (once again) the impact movies and tv shows (LOST!) have on us mortals. Monkey see monkey do. I have re-resolved to be careful with what I watch.. Not to say that all violence in movies is bad.. I don't believe it is, I just want to keep it in moderation, because I know that what we see affects us, even if we don't always realize it.
Well, that's my semi deep thought for the weekend. Goodnight!