Why Are People Catagorical?

I am beginning to feel a distinct amount of frustration over a certain issue. Why is the people insist on putting everything in a category? This has begun to especially puzzle an frustrate me on areligious level and on a personal conduct level( how we live our lives). Why is it that we must all seclude ourselves ina different denomination. I must tell people that I am Baptist because that is all they will understand. I can nto explain to them that not all people who claim to be "Baptist" are the same. The same goes for Catholics. Notall Catholics believe the same way. In fact there are probably people out there who call themselves Catholic who share almost the same if not the same beliefs as me who call myself a Baptist. Yet each of us it bound by the judgemental and restraining aspects of being placed in a category. What has been frustrating me lately most is on a conduct level though. It sometimes seems to me that peoepl have this set list of things they think are wrong, but when it comes down to it they don't know why they are wrong. There is no scripture verse or law of man that deems them to be wrong, they are not deemed unacceptable to our human society, but yet they are deemed as wrong. They are wrong, because when the person was young their parents would not allow them to do it or because" it has always been that way. And they are small things, insignificant things that people must turn into a big deal. I used to kind of think this way. Oh it is wrong or a bad thing, because I had trained my mind to think it was. Here is an example, I recently recieved my dog tags from the Army and I choiose to wear them all the time. I wear it under my shirt and it looks liek a necklace to most people. Some people I know would be like" oh you are wearing a necklace, your faith in God must be slipping"This is rediculous. Even if it was a necklace why is it wrong to wear it? I have not seena good reason, and yet it is interesting that some people I know seem to be staring at it or making comments about it. I do not proclaim to them that it is really military issue dog tags, because I find these re-actions amusing in many ways. Personally I don't like jewelry, because I associate it with being feminine, but that is the only reason I don't wear it. There is no religious or Biblical reason. What bothers me so much is the fact that if Christians are looking down their noses at every one or appear to be atlest, how can they relate to a scoiety that they are trying to reach? They can't !!!!! I do not intend to change my morals or my doctrine, most certainly not. But I realized, that I need to look at all things from a Biblical point of view, and not froma traditionalist view, a view of " that is the way it has always been. I respect what I have been taught growing up, by my various teachers and Pastor, adn especially my parents. But once oyu are an adult, you need to be able to think for yourself, to know what is right and wrong, and in my case this will be based soley on scripture and not upon the judgements of others. Liek I said it is the minor things that people make a big deal about. Somethings are soley up to your own personal convictions and you can not place those upon another person without scripture in atleast some convincing form. Why must we all be placed ina category by the people we live with, when all we want to do is live our lives in the best way we know how bound by our own convictions.

Thought you might find this interesting. It is a shot that appeared in a newspaper of me in our Spring demonstrationa few weeks ago.

Congrats are in order

This is just a quick post to say congratulations to all my friends who are graduating. Especially to my brother who recently graduated from Maine Maritime Academy and comissioned as an officer in the US Navy. Also to sveral peoepl who I know from Norwich who will be walking the isle to recieve their diploma today and many who recieved their comissions yesterday in all four respective branches. You all deserve it after working so hard, and especially after attending the best school ever. Some of you have been friends and mentores to me, and several of you remember screaming at me freshman year. SO heres to you, best of luck with all your future plans and aspirations.

Ray and I at his graduation

Every New Day

I have recently been reminded of something. Every new day brings with a new hope and a new idea, that anything can happen. You can not shake the problems that have carried over from the previous day, but now there is new hope fro the future. I have recently been facing somethings that I never dreamed Iwould have to. I found myself worrying so much about what to do, how to conduct myself, what to say and not say. I found myself saying" Why does life have to be so complicated?" I thank God that he is gracious and good to me. I came so close to falling, and yet in all that he has taught me so much. In fact things seem to have worked out for the best, and we will see. I am tired of running things around my own schedule. I try to plan my own future. I get passionate about things, and it does not help my better judgement. Then when it doesn't go the way i planed, I gain some sort of depression. Every thing will work out, and the best things in life are the ones we don't expect. The greatest friend we make are the ones we never expected to. Life is a trial adn error process, we learn from our mistakes. While I wasn't write in this particular situation, I have learned a lot about myself, and about what I believe. I can nto rely on anothers convictions, I must have my own. Besides who knows what will now come from what has passed, perhaps something greater than I had even originally imagined.

Life In A Box

I was thinking the other day how sometimes it seems so much easier if we could live our lives in some form of seclusion. Often I only feel this way when I am faced with some sort of human delemma or problem. Feeling, vexed in search of an answer I call out in disgust for life in a box. To be able to sit in a sort of solitude, unburdened by the problems of dealing with others. of course. These thoughts only last for a short time. I weigh in my mind and measure the good with the bad and find out that the good heavily prevails. I am often concerned with peoepl who share my beliefs, but choose to seclude themselves from people and places who disagree. I have chosen to go in the opposite direction. I will hold fast to my convictions and yet I will be with friends who do not always share them. I would have missed so much. After all we are all people, why should I give an impression that I am betterthan anyone else. If they are true convictions then you will not stray from them, and if they aren't then why pretend they are. It is up to each man to see the truth. I know what I believe is true, because I have yet to see it be disproved. And so I hold fast feeling their conviction upon my shoulders. I will push no man to see it my way, but if he wishes to know what i think I will share it with him, in the hope that he will share the same feeling and sentiment. If not I will still call him my friend. You can not seperate yourself from your fellow man. While I often call out in agony trying to solve problems that vex me on both a religious and personal level, I would never trade them for anything in the world. It is possible feel conviction when those around you don't and yet enjoy oyur time with them. Heaven forbid I should ever live my life ina box.