Perfect Comes, Partial Fades

Sometimes we go through seasons where things in our lives seem like they are incomplete or lacking. These seasons can last a few days, a few weeks, or even a few months if you're really lucky.

Maybe you're kind of satisfied with where you are in life. Maybe you are kind of blessed by God, but not really. Maybe you are just sort of getting by in life. Maybe you have been healed a little bit by the Lord, but not completely restored. Maybe you do have some dreams, but they are a blur and you don't really have the vision to see them come about. Maybe you sort of have an idea of what love is, but you feel like no one sees you.

God's nature is wholesome, not partial. In 1 Corinthians, it says, "when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away." Wow, what hope we have! Partial happiness, partial healing, partial finances, and partial living will be done away with and the perfect blessing God intended will be upon you. It's a promise. Hold on to it.

-Justin

What's New?

I'm trying to esatablish a habit of reading daily. I am currently reading two books. One of 'em is The Heavenly Man, which is the biography of a man named Lui Zhenying. This guy was nuts; he lead over 2,000 people to Jesus in his first year of being a Christian. Oh, and he was only 16. Convicting, eh?

And it's wedding season! Last weekend was Robby's wedding, which was a blast. And this weekend Howie and I are going to Zach's wedding up in Sacramento. It's crazy to see guys you've lived with getting married already; it kinda puts the pressure on.

Work's been pretty kick back the past few weeks. For the most part my days have consisted of foosball, reading, youtube, and rock-n-roll. It can get little boring hanging out by yourself all day, but it really gives the Lord an opportunity to grab a hold of you and spend extra time with you; time that normally would not have been penciled in. And I love spending time in the presence of God because as I hang with Him, He changes my nature to be more and more like Him. Yeah baby!

Rock-N-Roll,
~Justin

Center

My friend showed me this song that I've been listening to all day at work for that last week and a half or so. The song is called Center by Charlie Hall, and is his prayer for Christ to be the center of his existence. Though the words are simple, this song has become my greatest prayer this last week and a half:

You’re the center of the universe
Everything was made in You Jesus
Breath of every living thing
Everyone was made for You

You hold everything together
You hold everything together

Christ be the center of our lives
Be the place we fix our eyes
Be the center of our lives

We lift our eyes to heaven
We wrap our lives around your life
We lift our eyes to heaven, to You


~Justin

Kissin' The Sky

I'm a little bored at work, so I've decided to jot down some notable things that have happened this week.

Sunday night, I hung out at Jon's house. He's been bugging me for a month to watch Gatticus, which I'd never heard of, but apparently needed to see. I fell asleep though, so I guess I still need to see it.

Monday a government agent named Ron came to my job looking for me, sat me down and asked me some questions. He was from the NSA, or some other acronym, and couldn't disclose any other information. He asked me about some people I know. I just I hope I didn't get anyone in trouble. Anywho, that night we hung out on the roof to watch the meteor shower until 2 AM. Unfortunately, we didn't see anything past the clouds, which begs the question why we hung out up there until 2 in the morning. But whatever, we had a blast and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Tuesday night, we had cell group at my house and the Holy Spirit came and did something real in us. Pentacost is how I roll, dawg.

Yesterday, I received an endorsement from Fiddlebax, an instrument company that my friend Brian started. It's kinda cool to be able to say I'm an endorsed artist now, even though they've never heard me play anything. But hey, I'll take it; sign me up! Later last night I went to the lake and hung out on the docks for a bit. On my way back home, I ran into some stray cows and decided to play with them for a while. I don't know what I was thinking.

As for tonight, we'll see what adventures await. ..

-Justin

Everything is grace

I have a new favorite phrase that I have been saying for the past few weeks: "Keep on keepin' on!" I believe with all my heart that God is going to restore every broken heart in San Luis Obispo and heal every sickness. I also believe that God is going to use his people to bring the healing about.

At times, it can be hard to hold on to this promise. It's easy to get depressed when you try and bring Jesus to someone, and in turn they hate you for it. It's easy to get discouraged from this promise when you turn on the TV or radio and hear the voice of godless liberalism louder than the voice of God's people. It's easy to quit when you're oppressed by people around you who you hold close to your heart.

I find myself often in a place of questioning the Lord as to why I am doing what I do for Him, and how "realistic" the promise is. When I find myself in this position, I've come to realize that I am missing the heart of what it truly means to live for Christ and to bring Jesus to people.

I've found that the very essence and nature of God's heart is love. That's it. Jesus wasn't about philosophies or religion; He was about people. He healed the sick and the brokenhearted, restored families, and blessed people. He gave hope to the hopeless and comforted those who had no one else to fight for them. He loved people so much they killed Him for it.

And here is where I come back to the question: why am I doing what I do for Jesus, especially when I'm not seeing any lives changed, when it seems the world is against me?

The answer: love.

I love people because Jesus loves people. I gotta love people so much that it hurts. It's gotta hurt bad. When I see that my friends are living in death, depression, and sickness, it has to hurt from the depths of my soul. It must hurt because it hurts God.

It is my duty as a son and as an ambassador of the living God to speak life where there is death and light where there is darkness, even if my words aren't received. Because I love. Because I know that God's word over a person never ever fails. Because I know that when God speaks to a person through me, that the works of hell are completely broken off their life. Love endures all, hopes for all, and never fails.

Keep on keepin on, in faith and love.

~Justin

Bubbles...

My little sis and I got to see John Mayer and Colbie Caillat at the fair the other night. It was a good show, John in my opinion is one of the greatest jazz/blues guitarists in the world.

And that Colbie's got it going on! She's got a very soothing voice that I could listen to day in and day out. I imagine that's what the music is going to sound like in Heaven. I think I'm going to go blow some bubbles.

Love seat confessionals....

This was fun. We were both very sleepy and delirious.

Chris looks better without a mask

This here's a fun pic I found of me, Chris and Damon. And ladies, the three of us are still single...

Keepin it real

    I don't consider myself to be very philosophical or theological person, but I do know that things always go better with Jesus. It's a guarantee, a promise, a hope that never, ever fails. 

   Well, I've had some free time over the summer outside of work and ministry.  I'm refreshed, as though I've been on some vacation at a tropical island somewhere.  It was nice to set aside some time to just pray and think about how far I've come and where I'm going.  Thinking can be a dangerous thing sometimes, as many times your desires or dreams do not reflect reality.  This can be pretty depressing because it forces you to answer for the reality of your life, and often times we just don't have an answer. 

    But this time has been good though.  I've had a lot of time to think and talk with the Lord about everything that is going on and what not.  There's a lot of things I'm doing pretty good in, and there's a lot I could be doing way better in.  But I know I'm on the right track, and I think I'm on to something good here.  

       

-Justin

Yup

Well, its that season again. Moved out of my old place about two weeks ago. It was a great two-year run, and loved every moment I had at that place. It was an honor to be part of the Wilson Lodge, a group of 7 of the greatest, most honorable men to ever walk the streets of San Luis Obispo. Anywho, got to sleep at my new house for the first time last night after two weeks of crashing on different friends' couches. Our new house is pretty sweet, everyone's going to always wanna come over. I'm really looking forward to seeing what the Lord has in store for this year.

This last weekend I got to celebrate my friends Steve and Anne at their wedding. It's such an amazing thing when the Holy Spirit is the center of a marriage, even the center of the wedding ceremony.

The reception was a blast, the most fun I'd had in a long time. Me, along with the former Wilson Lodge members were once again in the same room and celebrating like old times. It was epic. We got our groove on for hours on the dancefloor, and I learned that Pulf and Tommy have some pretty fly moves. Its amazing how much fun you can have when you're not all self concious and aren't afraid to look ridiculous in front of people. Thorpe had some fun too, but I'm not going to go there.

Four more weddings to go to over the summer (and I even get to be in one of em!) With everyone graduating, getting married, moving and what not, its seems as though its the end of one chapter and the beginning of a new. Let's rock.

-Justin

That Guy

I was reading in James today and it says "But the brother of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position." Pretty sweet, heh? Jesus talked a lot about the oppressed, the poor in spirit, and about those who lay their lives down for others. If you want your life to be more than mediocre, give all you've got inside you when the world takes. If you want to be remembered as someone who made history, learn how to love people. If you want to change the world, live for others. God's word does not return void, and you will receive everything God has in store for you.

Much Love,

- Justin

Livin the Dream

On Friday night, my friend Estevan and I were invited to play some songs for some people. Neither of us could really sing or play the guitar, but we went for it anyways. By the end of the night, "Ruckafield" picked up a record deal and a manager. Not bad huh?

Anywho, I went to the bay area to visit some family. It was great. My family is nuts, and things got pretty wild this weekend. We are all out of our minds when we are together, but I love it and wouldn't have it any other way. We all got together to honor the newest addition to the Rucker family: Lil' Tony- may God bless you all the days of your life and use you to change the world.


-Justin

Intro

This is my first blog.  I have never blogged before, but I'm sure I'll get better as time goes on. Catch you on the flip-side.