I got a speeding ticket in November. I admit that I was speeding, but not maliciously. That isn't relevant in the story except the fact that I was guilty.
I wrote down the court date in my calendar as January 9th. I wouldn't be able to make it, so I was going to send my payment on Monday, January 8th. Today, I looked on my ticket to see what form of payment was accepted, and saw in horror the date the officer had written for my court date: January 5th, 2012. Noon.
I had missed my court date by 28 hours. Frantically, I searched the ticket for what penalty I had just brought on myself: a $300 penalty or 30 days. I immediately head to the bank, take out the amount the officer had reduced it to- and went to Municipal Court.
When I got to the counter to pay and explained my mistake, the worker behind the counter said that I now owed the original amount, not the reduced amount. Not a huge deal, but not fun. And they were adding on 2 more points to the ticket, so it would add 4 points to my license. My heart sank. I went back to the bank and got some more cash.
When I returned to the counter, the clerk commented that the computer was slow, and I joked that it was having mercy on me. The computer finally fired up, and he took my ticket to put in my information.
"Josh Williams? 1753FS?"
"Josh Williams? That's me. Do you need my license?"
"It says here that you paid yesterday. You are free to go."
I stood there for a second, and then asked, "What do you mean?"
He repeated himself, "The debt has been paid. You don't owe us anything."
This happened 20 minutes ago, and I am still blown away. To whoever paid this for me: thank you. You went above and beyond any relationship we have, and I owe you so much.
But on my way home, I started thinking- this is the Gospel. We all have a debt that we planned on paying ourselves. We planned on taking care of it, eventually. Christ paid our penalty, so that we would be free men and women.
And when we come before Him to receive Him as our Savior, our Lord, we realize the debt he paid, and the penalty we would have received.
This is the Gospel- that our debt that we sinful humans could not pay, was paid for by a sinless God, that we might live and abide in Him.
You looked at me with deep compassion,
not the kind of compassion commonly showed through veils of judgement, but in the way it was meant.
What the dictionary calls a deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it.
You looked at me with compassion.
You didn't blink. Didn't turn away.
You didn't change the channel because there were pictures of me paired with a Sarah Mclachlan song.
You didn't simply say, "That's a shame"
You came for me.
You broke open the door that I had locked myself in, picked me up, treated my wounds.
You were hurt for me.
You set me free.
You took apart my jail cell brick by brick.
Nail by nail.
You destroyed its foundation so that it could not be built again.
You traded my bruises for Your righteousness.
My life for Yours.
You showed compassion for me.
The rain outside created a gentle melody that accompanied the laughter we shared. Staring out the window, deciding whether to wait out the rain, or to embrace life. You always did that- brought out the adventurer in me.
With a deep breath and a grip on your hand, I followed you out onto the damp street. You turned and smiled, rain falling on your head, making your skin glisten.
And as I stood there, with rain soaking my body, I felt complete. With you.
love.
more than a four letter word
more than a feeling
more than a genre
love.
the reason i took this breath
and this one
and this one too
love.
yours shines like a lighthouse
the spinach to my popeye
the rhythm of my heart
love.
more than i know
more than research shows
beyond all humanity.
love.
She didn't see it coming. She knew it would happen eventually, but the precise moment in time was lost to her. It was a cold night on December 30, 2009, and they were on their way to see Wizard of Oz on stage. But the play was the least important event of the night. The least life changing.
He picked her up and opened her door for her. When he got in, she complained about it being cold, and reached for his coat in the backseat. "No!" He grabbed the jacket from her. "It's mine."
He put the coat back in the backseat, and smiled at her with a small laugh. "I'm sorry- but I might need it later."
They had dinner at Red Lobster. She ordered shrimp, and he nervously choked down some biscuits.
They arrived at the parking garage, and walked across the Reedy River to the Peace Center. As they walked they held hands. Beside the fountain, over the bridge. She noticed his eyes were more focused on the surroundings than on her.
"I'm still cold." She said, smiling up at him, her eyes saying so much more than her voice.
He put his arm around her, holding her close. They made their way into the Peace Center, and up to the ticket counter.
There was an old, kind woman behind the counter. "There are twenty minutes until the doors open, dear."
She smiled at the couple, studied their faces, and said, "But you can walk around for a while."
The couple went upstairs and to a hallway overlooking downtown Greenville and the Reedy River.
He wrapped his arms around her, like a bear, as they stared out over the city.
And everything seemed perfect.
But then the fire alarm went off, and the couple was evacuated to the outside patio along with the other patrons waiting to watch the play.
"I'm cold," she said, looking up at him with eyes he could not deny.
He looked around for a second, and took off his coat. She noticed there were several people staring at him as he gave her his coat.
The play began, and ended, in what seemed like a second. And before they knew it, they were walking back to their car across the river.
Holding hands, they made their way down the stairs, as he looked at her, and nervously said, "You know that I love you, right?"
She laughed, "of course, silly."
"Good." He said, staring straight ahead. She could tell he was nervous about something.
They made their way over the bridge. He stopped her mid-way.
"You know that your my best friend, right?"
She laughed less this time, but still smiled, "Yes."
Again, he looked straight ahead, looking for words.
"Good."
They started walking past the fountain, and could see their car up ahead. His hands were sweaty in hers.
"Let's sit down here for a minute." He said, voice shaking. "It's pretty tonight."
He took a deep breath.
Her heart pounded.
He stared at her in a way he had never stared at her before.
In what seemed like a nanosecond, he moved from sitting on the bench, to down on his knee in front of her.
She laughed, "What are you doing?"
He looked up at her, hands shaking as he reached into his coat pocket, and pulled out a small red box.
He had words he wanted to say- a speech, a sonnet. But all he could muster up was, "Dorothy Lee Nowak, will you marry me?"
"Of course I will!" She smiled brighter than she ever had before, as she watched the ring slide onto her finger.
Just then, a little girl and her grandmother walked by.
"Look Grandma! Their kissing. Ewww!"
"Honey, be quiet, this is a sweet moment, not a gross moment."
He looked into his new fiancées eyes. "I'm sorry I couldn't give you my coat earlier. I didn't want you to find it. A couple of people did see it when I had to move it into my pants pocket. I was scared you'd notice that."
Their lives changed that night. Nothing was the same as it was when they arrived. And she never saw it coming.
Let Your name be lifted up
Let all others fall and shatter like ice
Let Your glory fill our space
And Your goodness fill our lungs
For You are the Lord
And deserving of praise
Let me sing Your praise from the highest mountain
For it is by Your will I sing at all
Let me proclaim Your grace for the world to hear
For it is by Your love that I can speak
Let Your glory rise above us
Let our selfish pride die
Let Your glory shine like the sun
And let us rest.
Let us rest in You.
foreign soil.
we were on foreign soil.
we had made it this far, on so little time
but now we were here.
looking around, i expected to see things that were different
but never like this
we were on foreign soil.
Hi. My Name is Josh Williams, and I have a problem. I want things. I am aware of this. Most of the time the want is more of a "in the future, I would really like to have one of these." But every once and a while I get a "I want this now" feeling.
I got it today.
I was at Guitar Center with some equipment I was looking at trading. I had the guitar I wanted to trade for in mind: an Epiphone Les Paul Traditional Pro. Well, I wanted a Les Paul. The salesman told me he was going to go test my equipment I brought it (he was pretty excited about doing so), and that while he was gone, I should play some of the guitars I wanted. He handed me the Trad Pro.
I fell in love. The cherry sunburst color was beautiful, the back and neck had a satin finish that let your hand glide like... well... it was insanely smooth.
The humbucker pickups sounded amazing, and then the salesman told me the two volume knobs could be pulled up, converting the 2 humbuckers into 4 single coils (for those who don't understand this- just know, it makes different sounds, basically).
The action was low on the neck, and the sound was versatile and beautiful. Using the rhythm switch, I could make that guitar sound clean and full, and immediately sound bright and 'treble-y' with the treble pickup.
It was a guitar perfect for someone like me. If I wanted to lead worship, it would be perfect, because I could use clean sounds on it, instead of having to always switch to an acoustic.
The salesman came back and told me my trade would only be worth about $100. I had figured so, but was willing to try.
But I had played this guitar now. The warmth of it was still on my hands. I wanted it. So badly I could not get it out of my head. I could only think of what other gear I had that I could part with, and how much I could get for it to trade for this guitar. It actually gave me a headache.
My name is Josh Williams, and I have a problem. I am aware of this. The problem is that I am aware of this. I know that I will want, I know that it is in my nature. It is human nature to want. This went beyond want. This was lust. Guitar lust. I took my focus off of God and His glory, and put it on me owning this guitar.
Who knows, maybe someday in the near future, the time will be right for me to have it. But I have to accept that now isn't that time. I have to accept that there are more important things that buying a new guitar. Yes, my electric guitar is not in the best shape, and has a warped neck- but you know what- it still plays. It still makes a decent sound.
I just thought I should share this with you. My struggles. Staying focused on God isn't easy, we all have those things that draw our attention away. For some of us, those things are numerous just because of our personalities. For others, there seem to be less things in the way. But we all do have something that many times stands in the way of God's glory and us.
the poster hung for the world to see.
a man, wanted by those who wrote the laws, for crimes against their taste.
most people never noticed the poster, just walking nonchalantly by. but others based their entire perception of the world on them. if a neighbor or friend found themselves on the wall of wanted men, these people would be cast from normal society by those who deem the wall judge and executioner.
but the wall is no judge, no jury. no executioner. the wall is no parole officer. the wall is a wall.
the wall of wanted men.
The sound of the weights colliding with each other. Clang clang clang.
The breaths of repetition could be felt as you entered the room.
Each person beating their body into submission.
Each person defying the limits of their body.
New start. Fresh.
This isn't some over-hyped day with parties and empty resolutions. There's no half-hearted solutions to life's problems.
Just a chance. And if you miss it- no worries- there's another chance next month.
So make it a new day. and make the old one leave with the intensity of tigers.
Keep looking forward and let go of the weights that pull you back. They're not making you stronger, just slowing you down.
Its a new day, a chance to make a new start. No need to tell the world via the facebook or the twitter or the myspace if you are in 2004. Just do.
'your cheap' she said, glancing over her shoulder in the store.
'excuse me? you don't know me.' he said looking over his glasses.
'you just seem like that type of person, i didn't mean any offense. hi' and stuck out her hand.
www.oneword.com is an online writing exercise that you can try for free.
Tables.
Topped with flowers.
Across the entire room.
People were eating off of them, leaning against them, and sitting on them.
But no one noticed the tables.
No one could pick the tables out of a lineup.
I had been to the bench only once before. When I first met you. You wore blue while the rest of the world wore green.
I sat next to you and said hello, you looked at me and took my hand.
visit oneword to test your writing skills. you have 60 seconds and one prompt word, and an empty text box- you do the rest.
Check out this site: www.oneword.com. Its an awesome writing tool. They give you a word, and you have 60 seconds to write.
My first word: Mango. here is what I wrote:
He looked at her, for a bit longer than is considered normal and appropriate, while not falling into the category of creepy. Nothing was said, he just stared as she slept soundly.
She was his. Not in an ownership kind of way, but in the kind of way where one gives everything up for something wonderful. Love. Marriage. Life.
He was a fan of ‘what if’ scenarios, and wondered what life would be like if he had never married her, never taken the chance six years ago with his best friend. If he had stayed simply friends. He saw a life void of creativity, void of a muse. Void of meaningful relationships with other people, as she had brought him out of his shell. What he was most shocked at was not what he saw missing, but what he did see. Nothing.
He realized that no scenario could be built without his life being brought together with this muse, this companion in life. He was created for it, there wasn’t a piece of him that he didn’t owe to her.
Though he never learned anything specifically for her, she was his inspiration for it all. He learned music as an escape, and she provided a path to that freedom.
He smiled, and for a second laughed quietly to himself, hoping it would not wake her.
He wouldn’t change anything.
Our God has brought life into our reach
Victory into our hands
For His love knows no boundaries
His grace knows no fear
He has rescued us, He has set us free
He has taken down our enemy
He has chosen to bring us into His family
So rejoice, all those of the Most High
Proclaim His goodness for the world to hear
Sound your trumpets, and lift your voice, O Chosen People
For today we have been called by the King.
Friends can make you do some awesome things. They can bring you up to a new level. Sometimes, when they aren't true friends, they bring you down. But the best thing about friends is that they are always there. In good and bad.
I always had friends growing up, but few that I would classify as 'best friend'. I remember the day I realized I had that in one friend. Even though that title sounds lame, I realized I had a friend that wouldn't just hang out when its convenient, but be there in thick and thin.
It was my sophomore year, and I was puking my guts out in my dorm room. My roommate, who I got along with about as well as Jesus and the Pharisees, was telling me to get up because he didn't want me to puke on his couch. I couldn't move. I managed to crawl to the bathroom, and when I returned, I found him 'asleep' on the couch (I could see his eyes open up to watch me). My bed was on top bunk, and there was no way I could get up there. So I had to lay on the floor. The gross dorm room floor.
I texted my friend, Charlie, and told him I felt like crap and could really use a Gatorade. I got no response, and wasn't too surprised. I didn't expect him to do anything about it but say something to the effect of 'that sucks man.'
Five minutes later my phone rings. It is Charlie, and when I pick up with a pathetic 'hello?' he answers with 'hey- I'm at Ingles, what kind of Gatorade do you want? And do you want some crackers?'
I was blown away by this. The only people I knew who would do that were my parents and my then girlfriend, now wife. But they kinda had to, it comes with the title.
Well, I did survive that sickness. My dad had to finally come get me and take me home. But I went home knowing I had someone at Anderson University I could count on. That kind of friendship gives you a strength you didn't know you had. A confidence you could only dream of.
This was a year of adventure. Like Tom Sawyer, I have been on a journey worthy of storytelling. The lights of this year are quickly dimming, and the bulbs for the new year are ready for changing.
2010 was for discovery.
2011 will be for perfecting.
2010 was for waiting.
2011 will be for doing.
2010 was for change.
2010 was for new steps.
2011 will be for walking tall.
2010 was for the books.
2011 will be
It will.
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