You May Want To Listen To These!

Here's a link to few messages I recently preached at our home church here in Wichita Falls, enjoy and be blessed!

http://apostoliclive.com/play_audio.php?audio=2479 - this is called "The Miracle Is In The Go Again." - If you've ever been in situation where you've tried your best and it just didn't seem good enough, then this message is for you, it will be of great encouragement!

http://apostoliclive.com/play_audio.php?audio=2480 - and this is "The Faith and Destiny of God's Church, must here message on the subject of taking the necessary steps of faith in our walks with God.

LIFESTYLE EVANGELISM - LESSON 1 – “LIFESTYLE”

Christianity is far more than a religion, and even far more than a simple mental acceptance of something, as many portray it to be – Christianity at its Biblical core is living your life, day to day, moment to moment, by our actions, according to and in harmony with the Word of God and with the Spirit of God.

My goal in this first lesson is to do two things: help us gain an understanding of what a “lifestyle” really is, according to definition, and to persuade you and I that God Himself is not only interested and concerned with how we live our lives, but that it is of His highest interest what our “lifestyle” is.

The overall purpose of these lessons is to give us some helpful scriptural and spiritual principles for "lifestyle evangelism." Most of us have a basic idea of what evangelism means, but when we attach an adjective like "lifestyle" to the front of that, it will take on a whole new meaning for some. So for the purposes of understanding, my goal in this first lesson is to help us understand what a lifestyle is, and its vital importance in the kingdom of God and in your walk with God personally.

Now, to start us off, to lay a foundation of understanding if you will, this is the definition of lifestyle according to our friends at Wikipedia.org.

"Lifestyle is a term to describe the way a person lives, which was originally coined by Austrian psychologist Alfred Adler in 1929. The current broader sense of the word dates from 1961.^[1] A set of behaviors, and the senses of self and belonging which these behaviors represent, are collectively used to define a given lifestyle. The term is defined more broadly when used in politics, marketing, and publishing.

A lifestyle is a characteristic bundle of behaviors that makes sense to both others and oneself in a given time and place, including social relations, consumption, entertainment, and dress. The behaviors and practices within lifestyles are a mixture of habits, conventional ways of doing things, and reasoned actions.

Now there's a lot of preach in that definition alone. Notice some things with me. Look at the basic. "The way a person lives." The way you live is not just how you act on Sunday, its the way you live each and every day of the week that contributes to a lifestyle. It is therefore possible to label oneself a Christian, go to church, but not actually live like a Christian. Not you guys, but people I know.

A set of behaviors, a sense of self, a sense of belonging. It goes on to say that a lifestyle is going to affect youtr social relationships, who you hang with and are influenced by, consumption; which is what you spend your money on, entertainment; well, should I say it or do I not have to? And dress. This is wikipedia. That's not even the Bible. But even the people at wikipedia had enough sense to recognize that a lifestyle carries with it distinctions in all areas of life - may I ask a what DISTINGUISHES the Christian lifestyle? The answer is in the definition - there should be a difference in all four of those areas mentioned. We are "called out from among them..." Any way, I'm not preaching, I'm just laying the foundation. Behaviors. Practices. Habits. Conventional ways of doing things. Lifestyle. Getting it yet?

You have heard the term "lifestyle" probably more than you realize. Here are some everyday examples of how the term is used.

How about "alternative lifestyle." Certain people float that term around to justify behaviors and ways of living that are not generally accepted as normal by the general public.

There used to be this show called "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous." It was hosted by this guy named Robin Leach. The whole concept of the show was that Mr. Leach would go to rich and famous people's houses, mansions usually, to see HOW THEY LIVED comparative to the rest of the world, the nine to fivers like you and me. People watched because there is this innate attraction to people that live different lifestyles than the conventional.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, there was this song that used to come on the radio called "Lifestyles of the NOT So Rich and Famous." It was a country song. Not that I am endorsing country music, but just for the sake of an example - the song was about a certain way that certain people lived. People that don't have a lot of money to throw around. People that would not be unrecognized in the general public. Here's a lyric:

"Our idea of high class livin'

is sittin' on the porch on a cool night....

Our champagne and caviar

is an RC Cola and a moonpie..."

What was the song saying? Our subculture lives a certain way, has different habits and customs than you do, and here's what they are. On both ends of the spectrum there are no apologies made. Hello world, this is what we are, and this is what we do. If you don't like it you can change the station but that's not going to effect us or change us. Totally unashamed of their LIFESTYLE.

Now before you think this an essay piece on sociology or some such nonsense, let me make my point. There is, I believe, according the Bible that I read and study and pray over, a certain specified LIFESTYLE that is attached to being a Christian.

Here is the most damaging myth or false doctrine in Christendom today - its the attitude that says

it doesn’t matter how I live my life, God doesn’t care about how I live.

This is the most damaging doctrine in modern Christianity – that you can simply mentally accept that Jesus is your Savior, and be permanently saved, and never change the way you live – it’s the most unscriptural form of Christianity there is - Jesus is all about TOTAL LIFESTYLE CHANGE, watch:

John 10:10 - "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

What does that mean? It means that God cares about how you live; read it again, Christ is exposing his entire purpose in coming to the earth: “I am come…” why? That they might have life – what do you mean life? We’re breathing aren’t we? That’s not what he means, what He is really saying is that there is more to life than just existing, just breathing, just eating, just sleeping. He wants us have LIFE, and that MORE ABUNDANTLY. A more abundant life does not sound like he planu like He found you....well, somebody just said amens to leave yo. - -

Now that I've put myself out there, let's look at Christian Lifestyle in the light of the definition of lifestyle. Here's another definition, this is from the dictionary.

"Lifestyle – manner of living, the way of life characteristic of a particular person, group, or culture" – there’s that word again, culture.

-So here’s the question: is Christianity just a set of beliefs that we accept and agree with mentally, or is there a LIFE-STYLE that represents what REAL Christianity is all about? Does it really matter, and does God really care about how I live my life? The answer, with any surface knowledge of scripture is YES. I aim to persuade you that not only does it matter, but it is of HIGHEST importance to God how you live your life.

-There is a certain way, biblically, that a confessing and professing Christian is supposed to live, by definition. – Guess what – it’s the whole Bible, and it takes a lifetime to master this lifestyle – but, we should at least start with some basics, some scriptural framework if you will.

Romans 6:4 - KJV

"Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."

1 – Death – the true Christian lifestyle really doesn’t start with life, it starts with death. A physical death? No – a spiritual death – that’s what repentance is – death to the old lifestyle – here is a great definition of repentance: a Biblical definition:

Luke 13:3 - Amplified Bible

These are the words of Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh - this whole thing is about Him:

"I tell you, No; but unless you repent ([a]change your mind for the better and heartily amend your ways, with abhorrence of your past sins), you will all likewise perish and be lost [b]eternally."

Let's break that down. There's no real Christianity without repentance, no real salvation without repentance. First he said 'change your mind for the better.' So what is repentance, what is this command from God Himself - CHANGE the way you think.

Then He said 'amend your ways.' AMEND. Here's a synonym. CHANGE. What ways? They 'ways' that you live - your LIFESTYLE...now your catching on.

The way I think, the way I act, and my attitude, all must go through a death and renewal process for the repentance to be lasting and complete. Right, even on down to the way I think.

Now back to Romans 6:4.

-“we should walk in newness of life” – Our new life should be new, different from the old one – this change is a process called sanctification. A lot of churches don't ever preach about sanctification anymore. Just believe. Just accept. Just sign here. Just shake the preachers hand, put in a few dollars in the offering every now in then, but DON'T GO DO ANYTHING THAT REQUIRES SOMETHING CRAZY AND FANATICAL LIKE ACTUALLY CHANGING. People will think you've lost touch with reality.

Here's some more Bible about lifestyle. II Corinthians 5:17.

“If any man be in Christ he is a new creature, old things are passed away, behold, all things have become new.”

1.) "In Christ." We are baptized (in Jesus' name) into Christ.

Romans 6:3

"Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?"

Its a watery grave, its a death. DEATH to the old ways of living - LIFE to the new way, GOD'S WAY for my life...Burial is what you do to something that's already dead. Something dies, you bury it. Somebody repents, you baptize them in Jesus' name.

2.) Old things are passed away. My old habits. My old pet sins. My old places and people I used to hang out with and be influenced by. The old things I used to watch and listen to.

Romans 12:1-2

"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service."

A living sacrifice – a sacrifice is something that its purpose is to die out to a higher purpose – look at II Corinthians 4:10

"Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.

11For we which live are always delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.

Look at the key points. What are we doing? "Bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus." What is that? Its taking up OUR cross, dying daily to the flesh, doing what the Holy Ghost wants us to do, not what our carnal, sinful impulses tell us to do. What was the dying of the Lord Jesus? - a sacrifice, or I should do it more grammatical justice, THE sacrifice. He was the lamb slain "from the foundation of the world." When He was living, he had one ultimate purpose: Calvary - to die out to the higher purpose of redeeming sinful man back to a holy God...let it sink in...the purpose is the same; redeeming sinful man back to a holy God, but the body is different, now its the church: a living sacrifice. Hallelujah.

When we die out to the flesh, the Spirit is manifested, the Spirit of Jesus Christ the living God! He is manifest to a lost world when we die out to our flesh...when we DIE, HE LIVES, and that is what our lifestyle is, HIM living through us. Only a fool would submit that it requires no change and no effort.

Here’s another one, watch, remember, the whole point is: LIFESTYLE, how do we define it:

Galatians 2:20 - Amplified Bible (AMP)

"I have been crucified with Christ [in Him I have shared His crucifixion]; it is no longer I who live, but Christ (the Messiah) lives in me; and the life I now live in the body I live by faith in (by adherence to and reliance on and complete trust in) the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself up for me."

Christ had a purpose to the sacrifice, the purpose was that all men might be drawn unto Him, that the gap between God and men could be mended, that by faith in Him people could escape being lost.

Now, that same Christ is alive in me, by way of the baptism of the Holy Ghost, and dictating my life – the PURPOSE has not changed, the vessel has changed.

Purpose – to seek and to save that which was lost…

Galatians 5:24-26 - Amplified Bible (AMP)

"And those who belong to Christ Jesus (the Messiah) have crucified the flesh (the godless human nature) with its passions and appetites and desires.

25If we live by the [Holy] Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. [If by the Holy Spirit [a]we have our life in God, let us go forward [b]walking in line, our conduct controlled by the Spirit.]"

I know you're thinking 'well he didn't say too much about evangelism.' If we will endeavor to live according to the will of the Spirit of Chirst and His holy written word, evangelism and soul winning will become natural byproducts of our LIFESTYLE. Live it!

Bro. Mike Easter recently preached a powerful message at our church on the very subject of dying out to the flesh, if you have yet to hear it, here is the link - as Lavar Burton used to say - "don't take my word for it." http://lifetab.org/media.php?pageID=21 - it is the message entitled "He Set Me Free."

I will do my best to have lesson two up in blog format in a week or so! Thanks for reading, feel free to comment.

Treasures In My Storehouse

^{Matthew 13:52 - Amplified Bible}

⁵²He said to them, Therefore every ^[a]teacher and interpreter of the Sacred Writings who has been instructed about and trained for the kingdom of heaven and has ^[b]become a disciple is like a householder who brings forth out of his storehouse treasure that is new and [treasure that is] old [the fresh as well as the familiar].

Jesus, as we know, was very adept at teaching through parables, basic stories comparing the deeply spiritual truths of the Kingdom of God with everyday situations already familiar. This is one of my favorites. This one is for preachers.

The KJV reads "every scribe." The word scribe often has a negative connotation because usually Jesus was rebuking them right along with the Pharisees of his day. In this case, the Amplified translation brings a lot to the surface. Scribe: "every teacher and interpreter of the Sacred Writings (Scripture)..." Here Jesus is speaking not only to the twelve preachers that stood before him that day, but to us. Apostles, prophets, pastors, evangelists, and teachers; Christ looked down through the portal of time and saw this generation standing behind the pulpit on the platform of the world's stage, carrying with it the same sacred writings...Now that we are here, Christ asks us this question: do we have the treasure necessary to reach our generation?

Preachers, there is a process we must go through as it concerns the Kingdom of Heaven, or the Kingdom of God, if you will. Its lifelong. First, we must be taught, secondly, we must be trained, finally, we must become disciples...All this in the area of the Kingdom of God...

We must LEARN the Word of God. We must know what it says. We must become familiar, nay, intimate with its doctrines. We must LEARN the Oneness of God, we must LEARN baptism in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins...on down the line to holiness, healing, and wonderful gift and works of the Holy Spirit - In short, we must "study to show ourselves approved..." I may be a bit old fashioned, but I don't think there's a better place we can go, when we have been called on to preach, than this most sacred of books we call the Bible...

Furthermore, we must never stop learning, we must continue to be taught and to teach ourselves throughout our days here. God's Word is so immense, and there is so much material, even in just a single verse, a single pearl if you will, that is so multi functional and so multi-dimensional that no matter how old we get, we will still need to be taught. We must learn of this place called the Kingdom...Every time I learn something, or every time something I already "know" is affirmed in a new way, its a treasure to put in my storehouse...

Secondly we must be TRAINED. We cannot be mavericks. We cannot go it alone, we must be trained by the generation that has proceeded us. We must lock arms with and sit at the feet of the men who have gone before us to plant and pastor churches, evangelize communities and nations. We must gain from the prophets that still walk among us like Lee Stoneking and Jeff Arnold - we must look at the greatest churches among us that have had continual revival and not be so ignorant to think we can just do it on our own... I don't think we need to discount those old preaching tapes we have in our garages either...I think we need to take the time, when we have opportunity, to listen to what CM Becton, and GA Mangun had to say - it mattered then, it still matters now.

We need to submit to the men of God in our lives - we need to build God's Kingdom, not our own little kingdoms. We need to serve in our local churches. Every time we are trained, and we are trained how to do, if you will, ministry in this kingdom, we gain great, priceless treasure to place in our storehouse.

Thirdly, we must become disciples...We must, ourselves, live out in our daily lives the things pertaining to the kingdom that we have been taught and trained for. If we have been taught to pray, and we have been trained to pray, now we simply must pray. If we have learned to preach, and we have been trained to preach, NOW we must preach...If we have learned how to reach out to the lost, and we have been trained how to reach out to the lost, now we must, actively, actually reach out to them. The gifts of the Spirit are a great example of this principle: we must learn of them, we must be trained by those that have mastered them, and then we must operate in these gifts...our churches and our world needs them. Oh yes we do, we need healing, miracles, prophecy, tongues and interpretation of tongues, and the words of knowledge and wisdom in our churches...For there is a generation coming up behind us that will need these as well, and if we don't have it in the storehouse to give to them, they will go without - GET IT IN YOUR STOREHOUSE!

So, what do you have in your storehouse? What do we have in our arsenal when we go to spiritual war? We have treasure. We have so much treasure. We have both old and new.

I've got some OLD treasures in my storehouse, and let this generation hear this one preacher's voice: I WILL NOT GET RID OF THEM JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE OLD! The preaching of the Cross is old. The preaching of the gospel to old. The baptism of the Holy Ghost dates much further back than 1901 Topeka, Kansas. No my friend, its old, but its a TREASURE, and it still works just as well as it always did - the Cross still cries out to the sinner, the blood still washes away my sins, there is STILL POWER IN THAT NAME OF JESUS, the Holy Ghost still fills, and empowers, and sanctifies, and leads and guides into all truth...

I've still got preaching tapes and mp3's dating back to the seventies...yeah they're old, but they still uplift my soul...They are treasure.

But we have some NEW things in the storehouse...We have some new methods. We don't always do things the exact same way, or say things the same way we've always said them. We still say them, but we find NEW ways to relate it to this generation. If revival is a new thing to you, preach the new thing! If reaching out into your community is a new thing to you, let it be new! If you've sat on the pew for twenty five years and INVOLVEMENT is a new thing to you, live the new thing - its a treasure. A revelation is just the light switch coming on revealing what's been in the room the whole time, but if I've never seen it before, it NEW to me, and its a treasure...

New is a good thing.

II Corinthians 5:17

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Romans 12:2

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Titus 3:4-6

⁴But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,

⁵Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

⁶Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;

Romans 6:4

We were buried therefore with Him by the baptism into death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious [power] of the Father, so we too might [habitually] live and behave in newness of life.

Bring forth your treasure, preach them, old and new preacher; the OLD rugged cross that causes a NEW and abundant life! What do you have in your storehouse?

The Example of the Rechabites

Ran across what I feel to very interesting and eye opening passage from the Old Testament the other day during my lunch/study time at work. Jeremiah chapter 35 highlights an interesting clan or family of people known as the Rechabites...apparently the decendents of Jonadab, and members of the larger Kenite clan - all the background information on them is neither here nor their... Really, there's not even a whole lot of detail about them in history, though Wikipedia does have a brief article on them and their possible decendants. I said all that to say this: I would like to highlight a few brief points that we can all benefit from in Jeremiah's thirty fifth chapter regarding this otherwise mysterious group of people known as the Rechabites.

²Go to the house of the Rechabites and speak to them and bring them into the house of the Lord, into one of the chambers; then give them [who are pledged to drink no wine] some wine to drink.

First thing we should go ahead and make note of here is that God is using the Rechabites as an example, or more so a contrast to the Israelites, who at the time were of course backslid and headed into the Babylonian captivity. Now I find the setting here interesting. I think it would be easy at first glance just to think that God and Jeremiah are setting up to tempt the Rechabites to sin, but I think we would be too cautious to negate God's obvious sense of humor and irony; He's really saying to Jeremiah: "hey, watch this. I'm going to give you a good example of obedience and loyalty." Much like when he told the devil "Have you considered my servant Job..." Sometimes what may be a tempting situation is just putting you in a better position to be God's example (will you pass the test?) I digress...

Main point: more than two hundred years previously, the patriarch of the Rechabites had basically established for his family a principle or standard of living that they had been completly loyal to. They did not drink wine, namely. (They had established a few other traditions as well, of which we will mention momentarily.)

⁵And I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites pitchers full of wine, and cups, and I said to them, Drink wine.

⁶But they said, We will drink no wine, for Jonadab son of Rechab, our father, commanded us: You shall not drink wine, neither you nor your sons, forever.

Here is a people, with an opportunity, at the invite of the man of God, to basically forsake all they had ever stood for for two hundred plus years: but notate, please highlight this in your Bible, their response - WE WILL DRINK NO WINE. It was a flat, curt, maybe even rude response - but it was immediate, and their was no wavering; we just don't do that, we havn't done it yet, we're not going to do it now...why? Because "our father commanded us..."

So where are the Christians? And what traditions shall we hold to and not compromise? What commands has our Father passed on to us that we, as His children, should loyally obey? The Rechabites, even though they were not technically considered Jews, were exactly by the example given what God was looking for from His people.

Christ spoke to us so clearly in John 14:15, the Father robed in flesh stated, almost in the form of a challenge: "If you love me, keep my commandments..."

Compromise them? Throw them away? Discard them as outdated and non relevant traditions? Put them on a display shelf to speak of, but not actually pull down off the shelf and apply to the daily living part of our lives, much less our hearts? KEEP THEM! LIVE THEM!

Read how the chapter ends: (taken from the Amplified translation)

¹³Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Go and say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will you not receive instruction and listen to My words and obey them? says the Lord.

¹⁴The command which Jonadab son of Rechab gave to his sons not to drink wine, has been carried out and established [as a custom for more than two hundred years]. To this day they drink no wine, but they have obeyed their father's command. But I, even I, have persistently spoken to you, but you have not listened to and obeyed Me.

¹⁵I have sent also to you all My servants the prophets earnestly and persistently, saying, Return now every man from his evil way and amend your doings and go not after other gods to serve them; and then you shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers. But you did not submit and consent to Me or listen to and obey Me.

¹⁶Since the sons of Jonadab son of Rechab have fulfilled and established the command of their father which he commanded them, but these people have not listened to and obeyed Me,

¹⁷Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing upon Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them, because I have spoken to them, but they have not listened, and I have called to them, but they have not answered.

¹⁸And Jeremiah said to the house of the Rechabites, Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Because you have obeyed the command of Jonadab your father and have kept all his precepts and have done according to all that he commanded you,

¹⁹Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Jonadab son of Rechab shall never fail [to have] a man [descendant] to stand before Me.

Look at the reward for those that were obedient. God promised them a place - a place of right standing with Him, a place of ministry - and that too can be ours if we will simply KEEP the commandments already given; as Jude put it "THE FAITH that was ONCE delivered unto the saints..."

Let it not be said of us, God's true church:

I have spoken to them, but they have not listened, and I have called to them, but they have not answered.

Are we listening? Are we answering the call? I'm not just referring to alcohol usage, although that would not be out of context. I'm not just referring to NOT doing the things that God hates, but what about DOING the things He has commanded we do?

To Be Continued....

UPDATE!!! I AM ALIVE!

Well, I just wrote a great blog, but I accidently erased it. Sorry, we'll try it again tomorrow when I am not INCREDIBLY upset with this computer. I love all of you. Friends, family, fellowmembers of the church, I had a lot of great stuff to say about all of you. But I erased it. I had a lot of great stuff to say about all the neat stuff going on in my life right now, but I erased it. I waxed philosophically eloquent about time and not having enough of it, but, that has also been erased. Woops. I also gave a sneak peak at an upcoming Blog Series I am going to do about Shepherd and sheep relations in the Bible, but you guessed it, gone. Like Gone With The Wind. Frankly my dear, I am going to sleep, and I will attempt to do it again soon...I tried.

Random Musings #2 - People I Love Part 2

When last we left our young, fearless preacher hero...

Just kidding. Kind of.

I feel it, as I stated before, vital that for you the reader to understand me better as a person, you must understand those that have had close and personal relationships with myself. We are shaped by, if nothing less, the relationships we hold in life. We have spoken at length of my immediate family; Candice my wife, and my two great boys, Isaiah and Jeremiah. I then spoke briefly about my parents. Perhaps at another point in time I will delve deeply into the personalities of my mother and father, but I do not feel to write about it at this time...

I thought I would take some time to mention a very special person in my life. God blessed me with a little brother growing up. When I was 2 1/2 years old, Shawn Casey Armey came into the world. The last of my parents children, and at the time, my worst enemy (according to the recollection of our mother.)

My earliest honest memories of him don't really begin until I was already close to four years old. I suppose, besides being blood related, our closest thread growing up, and really until this day has been that of professional wrestling. I know, I know. Just, suspend your disgust with me momentarily...although, I could quip on the few things positive about wrestling I will probably save that for another blog. Now that you all think less of me, I will continue on with the mainthought. In about mid-1990 I can remember watching wrestling with my brother as much as we could, only having an antenna you understand. We didn't get cable until 1994, and even then I think we only had 30 channels, but my brother and I would find wrestling.

Soon, we started wrestling. I know. Don't try this at home. Looking back at it retrospectively, and sometimes reviewing some of the surviving video tapes I realize how lucky we were to never be seriously injured. Ironically, my brother started to train to actually wrestle professionally this year and totally blew his knee out during training. Now don't get me wrong. There were plenty of bumps and bruises to go around, but we never wound up in the hospital or anything (though there were probably a few times we should have gone.)

I would be remiss not to mention the famous among us nuance of our mutually binding hobby called the FWF. Better known as the Figures Wrestling Federation. We would get all of our wrestling figures together and actually put on little shows with them, complete with ongoing storylines, champions, and predetemined outcomes for the matches. (I think so much to the point that I passed it on genetically to my youngest son Jeremiah...) I still vividly recall the first 4 inch Hasbro WWF figures we purchased when they first came out. We were going to buy Hulk Hogan, but the first week we went to the Wal Mart in Palatka they didn't have the Hulkster so we got Andre the Giant. Now, if I had any foresight at all, Iwould have kept at least a few of these in the package (some of them are now worth in the hundreds of dollars in the package!)But of course we didn't....we played with those things until the arms and legs fell off. Show after show.

I would say the bulk majority of our time spent together growing up was spent either watching wrestling, putting on wrestling shows with our action figures, or wrestling each other in the backyard in one of several homemade wrestling rings, or playing a wrestling based video game. When we got a video camera for Christmas of 1994 we began to tape our in ring exploits frequently...by spring of 1995 we had built our first off the ground ring complete with posts and ropes (though not well enough constructed that we could actually bounce off the ropes, mind you...) That summer we had a bunch of our friends over for a wrestling party that we called "Crash Carnival..." a tape that I just got through converting to DVD a few days ago...

I guess there is some pyschological warmth of feeling I have for the 'sport' despite some of the things about it that are not of redeemable value because it is hard for me to differentiate between memories of my brother and memories of wrestling. For the most part, they go hand in hand.

There is one major thing I do recall however, that involves me and my brother outside of the realm of professional wrestling. In the summer of 1995 mom and dad were dragging us to a home Bible study at one of my dad's friends' house...for most of these lessons we stayed in the back bedroom playing their Nintendo, you guessed it: 'Pro Wrestling.' However, when it came time for Bro. Finley (another person of whom I have much to say, though I will not at this point to be out of context) to teach the lesson on water baptism in Jesus' name mom and dad requested our presence at the dinner table.

Sadly, I recall no specifics of the lesson itself, only a terrible feeling in my gut: why didn't they teach us this at the Church of God? What am I going to do? These were thoughts, and I kept them to myself. It was just Shawn and myself standing outside on the small porch, together sharing no doubt the same feelings on the inside...it was my brother that spoke up. "I think we need to be baptized in Jesus' name..." Would I have had the courage to say anything at all had my brother not spoken up when he did? I honestly do not know. His resoluteness lead to our baptisms on October 1st 1995 in Gainesville, by Bro Finley, under the ministry of Jeff Arnold. When I came out of the water, God filled me with the Holy Ghost with the supernatural evidence of speaking with tongues, (of men or angels, I did not discern.) It was the greatest spiritual event of my life, but I really don't know if I would have had the courage to step in the water if Shawn had not vocalized what I was holding inside. I am forever indebted to him. I have always admired that part of him...

In high school we drifted apart to some degree. I was girl crazy. I had two or three 'serious' relationships that at the time I put above everything in my life, including God, and especially my brother. He began to hang out with kind of a gothic, punk rock crowd, and I just wasn't in to that scene. We still wrestled, but there was one year in high school that I remember going the whole year without stepping in the ring, or spending much time together at all. We had two separate lives. But it was my fault. I was neglecting him for my own selfish ambitions. I later apologized to him for this in a letter a few years ago. If I had it to do over again, I would have spent more time with my brother. For that matter, I would have spent more time with all of my family. But him especially.

Life happens so fast. After graduating I moved to Gainesville a year later, and a year after that I was in Texas, and a year after that I was married, and a year after that I was a father...And in that span of time I saw him only two or three times for the physical distance between us. He came to my wedding in 2003, along with my parents.

Now I'm 28. Still in Texas, clearly, trying to mow down the path that God wants for me. My childhood, I have realized, has come and gone. But my heart is still filled with years worth of memories, and it seems like Shawn is in all the good ones.

He has since married a wonderful girl named Amanda, and God has blessed him with twins, Kennedy and Alyssa - both of whom I got to hold the last time I was in Florida to visit. They are two now. They really were miracle babies. But do you see what I mean? How fast life goes by. I know that's not really the theme of this article, but it seems it could be.

Since moving away from Florida, Shawn and I have grown much closer. Via the magic of the telephone, we talk quite a bit. In fact, I talk to Shawn on the phone more than anyone else in my family. Something I should have spent time doing the last two years of high school. Anyway. I once told my brother in a letter, and I reiterate the point here, that the bulk majority of my favorite childhood memories involve the presence and relationship with my brother...and now that we are grown we spend time often reminiscing about those moments, but we talk about pretty much anything. I love and respect him, and he will always be my brother. Shawn, if you're reading this, I am very proud of you, and proud to call you brother.

Random Musings #1 "People I Love"

From time to time I am going to write a blog that is not really centrally focused on a single topic. A bit of freewrite if you will. Today is Mother's Day, and of course my thoughts went to mom on many occasions today during church and other goings on. Not sure if I have really put in print how I feel about my mother, or my father for that matter. I thought today a good Random Musings topic would be about people that are of great importance to me in my life, that way if I happen to mention them in a later blog, and you don't know who I am referring, perhaps you may be able to refer back to this page for some background info...

Now these are as they relate to me. These are not all encompassing bio-pics to be sure of these wonderful people, but I will give you a little window into who they are and why I love them...why don't we start when some family members.

FAMILY
Wife, companion, and best friend on earth: Candice.

There is not a more important soul to me than that of my lovely wife. We have been married for over six happy years, and every year it gets better. I become a better husband, she is continuing to be a great wife, and our marriage is as strong as ever. I look at Candice and see so many deep levels of real beauty that few people possess. Oh, yes, she is gorgeous to look it, but her value to me goes so much deeper than just what I see on the surface. Every look in her wistful brown eyes is soft reminder of how kind, and patient, forgiving, and self-sacrificing she has been to me, and those reminders of how lucky I am our like precious diamonds and jewels that I keep on a display, reminding of how valuable she really is. I will no doubt speak far more of my wife in future blogs, but I just thought you would like to know up front that without her, I would not be who I am.

Isaiah - My Oldest Son
When Candice told me we were going to have a baby just six short months into our marriage, I was more than a bit overwhelmed. I was making about $150 a week back then in a good week. I was not sure how I would afford him. I was still extremely childish myself; how was I going to teach him how to be a man? Nevertheless, Isaiah Omar arrived into our world on February 15th, 2005. We took him home a few days later and my life has never been the same since then. Marriage does not really change a person to a high degree. It can motivate you to change, but having a child really forces you to grow up.

I remember many a night I spent in the small bathroom in our two bedroom apartment with the shower turned on to provide some soothing background noise while I rocked our little Zaybo and sang to him to get him to go to sleep night after night. I remember vividly when he was about four months holding him one night and seeing how big he got so quick and just weeping, knowing one day I would miss him being this small, and that the growing wasn't going to stop anytime soon. Children have a unique way of teaching us to live in the moment, for it will soon pass into the realm of memories. I have so many memories of Isaiah, and he adds new ones every day. He is now at the pivotal age of five. Out of that toddler stage for the most park, talking in full sentences, having a very defined personality already. I see so much of me in him, and Candice, but I see so much in him that is unique, hard to identify exactly who he got it from. I know he is going to be able to be and do whatever he applies himself to one day. Its going to be hard to watch him grow into young man, but at the same time I can think of no greater accomplishment than to see that he succeeds in becoming that godly young man. No matter how old he gets, he'll always be my first child, I will always call him "Bobi," and I will always have precious memories to replay of sleepless nights, wobbly first steps, and Christmas's no longer about what I was getting, but about what I was giving. Thank you Isaiah, for all you have done for me as a person...

PS: He LOVES Thomas The Train...first it was Blues Clues, but Thomas has pretty effectively taken that title away for a few years now. I am so proud of him!

Jeremiah - My Youngest Boy
Oh Lord, where do I even start? The truth of the matter is, though I love him, Isaiah was Candice's idea. When Isaiah turned three, this time it was me that wanted another baby. We got Jeremiah. I was not all that helpful in the early going with Isaiah because I really didn't know what I was doing. But when JJ came along, I did my best to get up with him, rock him back to sleep, change diapers...I remember holding him in my arms one service at the altar just weeping over him. I asked for it, I got it. Now I've got to raise it, and raise it right. Daddy grew up a little bit more in that moment.

I remember the panic we felt not knowing what that bump on his skull was. Of course, it turned out to be just a calcific hematoma, nothing to worry about, common with c-sectioned babies. But I now know what its like to sit in the neourosurgeon's office and wait for news that could be not just bad news, but sometimes the worst just runs through you're mind. What if? What if he needs surgery? Am I really prepared to loose the child I prayed for? How do you handle that degree of loss? If I ever lost JJ, I would never be the same.

He likes to be held a certain way. He always has to lay his head in the nape of my neck. He won't let me hold him any other way. 'He feels safe' I think to myself. He trusts me. My prayer is: Lord don't ever let me make a mistake that would damage that trust, no matter how old he gets.

He likes hot dogs, professional wrestling ('wammo' in baby language), and crawling in bed with mommy and daddy in the middle of the night...

He's the perfect little brother for Isaiah. I love watching there relationship unfold right before my eyes. God has blessed with me with the two best boys a father could ever want.

MY PARENTS: Jack and Linda

My parents are, if nothing else, unique. They parented four of us, Melanie, then Mary, then Me, and then my little brother Shawn. Dad was born in Fort Wayne Indiana to a church of God preacher and wife; Willard and Glenna Armey. My father served in Vietnam in 1968 and saw some very heavy combat (which I didn't really know until a few years ago, he never talked about it when were kids...) Shortly after coming home from the war and moving to Florida he met my mother. Mom was the baby of her family, the youngest of five children. In 1972 they were married. I love my parents very much. Were they perfect? No. But they both did their best to see to it that we were well taken care of, happy children. I had a great childhood. As a matter of fact, I will devoting some blog space later on hopefully to a memoir of my childhood. They still live in Florida...in the same house my mom grew up in. Dad still likes guns and fixing things...Mom is still mom, doing her best to make everyone happy, making every dollar stretch as far as it will go. I'll say this much, I think my parents were very giving growing up. I don't remember them buying much for themselves. Seems they were always giving in to the whimsical fancies of us boys...plus necessities. I guess there just never was much left for them to do much fun stuff. I don't recall them going shopping, or going on date nights or anything like that. They both lived for us kids. Dad worked for us...Mom did everything she could to see that we were well adjusted children. She never let on that we were poor, though they themselves to this day are low maintenance, easy to please people...So if I'm not impressed your fancy clothes, house, car, food, you know where I got it from...

Think I'll stop there for the night...on the next random musings I will talk more about my siblings, and some very close friends and highly influential people on my life...until next time!