Finally . . . A Use for K'Nex!

Yes, I know . . . some of you may be upset that I knocked K'Nex. But to me, they are inferior to LEGOs in every respect except one: creating strong frames. Of course, I never really figured out a good use for this, so my K'Nex sat in the attic . . . UNTIL this morning!

I suddenly had an inspiration, so I dragged out my box of K'Nex and got to work.

Behold the results!

A suhweet holster for my LEGO Glock! :-) It fits in the thigh pocket of a pair of cargo pants ^

Or clips to a belt or the top of your pants ^

Using this clipping piece here ^

It draws very quickly and smoothly, and reholsters well too! I'm feeling very happy that I kept my K'Nex! :-) It was a good morning . . . and a good break from school! Now I'm ready for LEGO combat and law enforcement action!

~Mac

Only Trust Him

I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach as I read about the government's latest attack on free speech and its frantic desire to cover itself in the face of the November elections: the DISCLOSE Act, which would force ads to reveal the sponsor's top five donors several times in each ad. In effect, this is attempting to prevent conservative groups from protesting the government's current agenda.

As I sat there, I thought, "What can we do?" I've contacted our representative and Senators, but they are conservative and will probably vote against it anyway. Which is good and bad - good because our reps are voting with their constituents, but bad because we feel like we don't have an influence - helpless in the face of a government that has no respect for God or His truth. I find it hard to trust God is these circumstances, knowing how much our country has angered Him and is deserving of His wrath. But nevertheless He commands us to rest in His good and perfect will, and He will give us the peace that passes all understanding.

And then I was reminded that there is one thing that all of us can do, a thing that is easy to overlook and trivialize: PRAY! Pray for our leaders; pray for our country; pray for revival to sweep across this land and make America what it once was: "One nation under God." And finally, pray that whatever may come our way, that God will give us grace and peace to stand firm.

Only trust Him, only trust Him,

Only trust Him now!

He will save you, He will save you,

He will save you now!

Only Trust Him, John H. Stockton, 1874

That is my prayer for us, our country, and the world.

~Mac

First Classes!

Last week, I enrolled in my first online college class and will probably enroll in a second one sometime this week!

Needless to say, I'm excited and nervous at the same time.

For the first few days, I have been navigating the system, figuring it out. Now I just need to get on with the lessons!

Prayers would be appreciated as I start this next phase of my college education.

~Mac

Lights, Camera, Action!

Recently, I've had the opportunity to help some friends with a movie that they are shooting this month. I drove several actors to the set, and then I got a cameo role as an undercover policeman :-D Unfortunately I don't have any pictures from the shoot, but it was very fun! We filmed a scene where an FBI team raids a suspected safehouse - so we had five people in FBI shirts with airsoft guns repeatedly blasting into a nice house in a (mostly) peaceful subdivision shouting "FBI!"! Needless to say, we got some strange looks from drivers and passersby. Only one neighbor called though! They're all probably used to this movie filming by now :-D Once filming and editing is completed, I'm going to take a shot at composing the score for it, so that should be really fun and will hopefully give me some material to add to my composer's demo reel :-)

~Mac

Hearts of Darkness - Redeemed

What do Blind Bartimaeus and Heart of Darkness have in common?

This past Sunday, the sermon was on Mark 10:46-52, the passage containing the healing of Bartimaeus. For the first point, the pastor used a comparison with Alcoholics Anonymous to demonstrate that in order to be freed from something that has its hold on you, you must first truly recognize your condition for what it is. As he continued, for some reason I immediately thought of the Joseph Conrad novel Heart of Darkness, which I read in literature class in high school. In that class, we determined that Conrad's view of salvation is to look the darkness in the face and recognize it and proclaim it as evil. What a similarity!

Sadly, however, Conrad stops there. But fortunately, Bartimaeus' (and the Gospel's) story doesn't end there!

Bartimaeus recognized his helplessness. But he responded by turning to the one Person able to help him - Jesus! Trusting in faith that Jesus could and would do what he asked, he received his sight.

I don't know about you, but I am so glad that we don't have to stop where Heart of Darkness does. We have a Savior who we can run to, and who can and will free us from bondage to the darkness within each of our hearts.

~Mac

Initial Thoughts

Well, here it is . . . for all of you who have been waiting with bated breath (as well as for those of you who couldn't care less), let it be known I have finally started a blog.

What's it about?

I have no idea (at this point).

It will probably end up being a place where I can post random (and not so random) thoughts, keep you all up to date on various hobbies and projects of mine, and proclaim other things that I haven't thought of yet.

Most of all, I pray that this little corner of cyberspace will be a place where God is glorified through all that is said and done.

I shall return! (I do not know when as of yet)

~Mac