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im never comfortable being comfortable

– March 16, 2011Posted in: journal

i felt for quite a while that things are slowly becoming bland in my life

i am slowly falling into routine and getting used to a set schedule

things make sense

and that is exactly why i want to disrupt them

i do not like standing still or being predictable

i like it best when i don’t even know what i am going to do next

as in the video I posted a couple days ago, i believe that we have a ton more control of our own destiny and stories than people realize.  as much as i “let God be God” i also have to be aware of how free will plays out in my everyday life.

this leads me to this coming year and the three main changes coming to brad atkin

1. i will be in the best shape of my life on my 30th birthday

i keep on hearing that men peak at 30 and then their health slowly deteriorates.  i hear that from my little brother and i have decided that i am not ready to start the down-cycle in my current state.

prior to busy season i started working with a trainer and weight lifting again.  it was going really well and i was getting pretty excited with some of the results.  then busy season came and workout opportunities slowly declined into none at all.  i have 13 more sessions prepaid with the trainer and i am going to come out of busy season like a spider monkey.  my body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and i am ready to treat it that way.

 

 

2. i might have decided to co-lead my first bible study without my wife in three years.

my co-leader is kind of up in the air as of now. there is a good chance it will be corey effing grunewald.  if not corey, i heard some pretty awesome names being thrown around by RJ. i am very excited at the prospect of growing not only with him, but with the group God places before us.  i look at the life long friends that came from the last time i led a group for Faith and it excites me.  Corey was one of the guys in the high school study i inherited back in the day and it will be so cool to join forces with him and help bring up a new group of young men.  whether my co-leader is corey or another leader from faith, i am very excited.

 

 

3. i have set some time-lines to record again

A good friend, jon accord, has been giving me just the right pushes to get back behind a microphone and let my stories come out.  there have been some tough issues i have struggled with in the past two years and i am slowly getting myself ready to put them to melodies.  this project is slowly taking shape and i will slowly reveal the people i will surround myself with on these recordings.  i have two projects in mind and do not yet know if i will just combine them into one release.

i anticipate that a few unrecorded fhoo songs i wrote will make their way to jon’s computer, but in a completely different light.  i also anticipate three or four worship songs being mixed in, along with some original songs that may fit in this mess.  i may or may not let the public hear these since this process is very personal to me.

 

 

 

This blog is not typically used as a gateway into specific things about my life.  This might actually be incredibly boring to read.  The purpose of sharing isn’t much of a “look at my decisions” but more of a reminder that we have the choice to make decisions that are going to positively impact our years here on earth.  I encourage all of you to pray, read, dig down deep, and come up with game-plans for how you are going to understand who God is, spread His name, and increase your talents.  In the midst of these, find something you want to do and set a time-line for it.

 

I am interested to hear what your main goals for the next couple years are.

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an open note to jon acuff

– March 15, 2011Posted in: journal

jonacuff.com

please stop putting irresponsible thoughts in my head.  your latest blog did NOT need to mention a CPA that needs to quit his job.

 

i heart your blogs, but not the one today

 

but i am in the middle of a horrible tax season and would appreciate if you wrote a book about how being a responsible husband with a steady job and no risk of losing my house is a good thing.

or maybe a book about how accountants save lives and are pretty awesome.  either one will do.

love,

BA, CPA

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now streaming – YRLK

– March 11, 2011Posted in: now streaming

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was might ducks 2 awesome?

– March 10, 2011Posted in: journal

(Source: ilovecharts)

i really can’t image anyone not liking this movie.

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A Million Miles

– March 8, 2011Posted in: ministry


What story are you telling? from Rhetorik Creative on Vimeo.

 

As someone who is constantly trying to figure out what my story is, this book intrigues me.  I spent many hours fighting through Don's book "Blue Like Jazz" and am excited for what this book has to offer up.  Don has a way of taking people that over-think on a journey that makes life seem much more romantic.

This week I am taking the time to write out what I am hoping my story will be so that I can act on it and I encourage you to do the same.

what story are you hoping to tell?

 

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love

– March 3, 2011Posted in: photo

image taken by Kendra Dew

Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot wash it away.

 

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Now Streaming – Breath and Dirt

– February 24, 2011Posted in: now streaming

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ask not what your church can do for you…

– February 24, 2011Posted in: journal, ministry

On January 20, 1961, JFK coined the infamous “And so my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country”.  This address has been quoted time and time again as a rally for patriotism and giving back to the country you love.  A great idea that as citizens we hold a responsibility of defending the freedoms of man. An idea that is opposite of the entitlement generation that is coming through the ranks asking where their share of the pie is.  It was more of a call to see what Americans can do together if they join up and put their talents and time together as one large force.

In 2010 I feel that the rally cry is sometimes completely the opposite within our churches.  I have friends, family, and aquantainces spouting out the following:

“This church is doing nothing for my spiritual growth.”

“The church services do nothing for me”

“This church is not relevant enough for me”

“This place is stuck in its old ways and does not do anything for my age group”

“This style just doesn’t reach me”

etc…

And so we have a lot my generation constantly looking for greener pastures or places that spark their interest.  The places that do the most for them.  The places that already have the most talented people on staff so they can sit back and enjoy the ride.  The places that do not need their help because they are already a well oiled machine.

I have news for you.  “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men… The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ.” (See 1 Cor 12).  We have the ears of the church saying the eyes just are not blue enough and they are trying to dismember themselves from the body instead of being the best eyes the body could have.

If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

Follow me now.  What if members of a church asked themselves what they could do for their church?  What if they stood up and saw opportunity in weakness?  What if they realized that God might have put them there to step up and fill the gaps?  Maybe, even in their weakness, they are the missing link.  They have been called by God to step up and jump in and be used in the greatest of ways.  Their stuttering speech could be used to help lead thousands of people from death to life through the power of the holy spirit.  What if they could get their minds around the fact that they aren’t just “takers” from the body of Christ

Obviously there are tons of disclaimers I would put with this idea.  Obviously there are great reasons to switch churches or to still be looking for the perfect fit.  Obviously certain “styles” can help reach you more.

I am just getting to the point where I am discouraged that the “style that fits us” has become far more important for selecting a church than praying about where God wants to use us.  try to find out where you are called to, not which service is easier to sit through.

“It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” (See Eph 4)

Start that study you have always dreamed of.  Write that worship that is missing.  Be that person of authentic passion that people cannot help but notice.  be a teacher.  be a lover.  be a giver.  you are needed.  you are blessed.  you can do anything with the power of Christ