Self-Pity

I am reading this great book right now (The Dangerous Duty of Delight...by John Piper) and one part I read this morning was about self-pity. It was talking about how both boasting and self-pity are simply manifestations of pride in our lives. One comes from our successes (boasting) and the other from our suffering (self-pity). It says -

"The reason self-pity does not look like pride is that it appears to be needy. But the need arises from a wounded ego. It doesn't come from a sense of unworthiness, but from a sense of unrecognized worthiness. It is the response of unapplauded pride."

I just needed to hear the idea that even at my most pitiful, self-centered and pathetic moments, it is still just pride coming to the surface when I feel as though I am not getting the respect and appreciation I deserve.

Just thought that was interesting.

- j(w)s

Happy Birthday Ben!

It's Ben Harmon's birthday today, so Jeremiah and I thought he deserved the gift of the greatest facebook graffiti to ever be created. So... here it is:





If you're thinking "Thats a tall graffiti." You're right. It took three graffiti boxes to complete. It's pretty much a masterpiece.

Because you never know what could be hiding under your birthday cake,
Robby

The Beach

I have kind of disappeared for awhile and the main reason is that it's family vacation time at the beach. We are back at our usual spot on St George Island and it's incredible. Besides being really hot, it's been good to slow down a bit and catch up with the family. That can be kind of tough since there are 6 of us and it's nice to have time dedicated just to that...and reading a lot of books.

Also, I tried to skim board yesterday for about 9 seconds. It was a disaster. I hate being old. I'm fairly confident that I would have broken some random bone if I hadn't quit after 9 seconds.

Oh yeah, and I just finished the book Kite Runner. It was really good and really intense. Read it sometime if you like to read and don't mind being sad.

- j(w)s

Hmm... do you really want to hear my story?

So, I'm working at Rainbow Elementary School in Madison, AL this week with Booster Enterprises. Today was our first day in the classrooms and right when we walked into one teacher's room I looked on the board and saw something interesting. Hand-written on a giant flip notepad were the words "The bed begins to shake and creak. Tell a story about what's happening." I just don't know how the teacher could not see how hilarious this is, but I'm so glad she did it. I was trying so hard to not laugh in the classroom during Josh's little talk, and I couldn't hold it in once we got out the door. Ahh... what teachers try to get away with these days.

Discovering what people are really teaching our youth,
Robby

Garden Snakes

Gardens are good. Snakes are bad. But where do garden snakes fall? This question is one which many individuals have pondered for centuries.

Leery of venomous gardens,
Robby

So...

I'm a loser. I'm ok with that, though. The whole American Idol process is so hilarious. It's a ton of luck and a little talent. I had a MAJOR lack of luck yesterday, but I honestly know it was for the best. I love how many of our friends (and strangers) kept up with our little adventure through this blog! I really do have the greatest friends in the world. The angry comments at the results of my audition were probably the funniest things I've seen in a while! Bryan Johnson's comment (which is now deleted) was by far the best. Oh, I know what it said, Bryan. Hilarious.
I'm the type of person that continues to run things through my head and figure out how the results might have turned out if I had done things different, but I've got to stop and realize that my steps were ordered by God, and it happened exactly like He planned it. What incredible assurance! The whole process has been a really great motivator for me and my plans for the future. I really do feel like music will play a huge part in my life, but I'm fairly confident that American Idol is not the right route to take in getting there. If I were to sing, I would want to sing about Christ and His impact on my life, and American Idol might not have allowed me that freedom. Yes, it's a great way to propel yourself to the top, but at what cost? There were moments while sitting in the arena that I simply wanted to get up and go home because I felt like I didn't belong. I'm glad I stayed and got to audition, though, because it showed me how much I love to perform and really increased my confidence. I really feel like God has blessed me with a gift, and I'm not going to waste it, but I'm also not going to allow glory to be placed on me. Glory belongs to God alone. I'm excited to see where He leads me in the coming months, and I'm confident that I'm in His grasp. He'll light my way as I draw near to Him.

Letting you know that 14 hours in the Georgia Dome is longer than 14 hours anywhere else in the world,
Robby

recovering...

yesterday was quite a day. for any of you who followed us throughout the day, thanks for keeping up with our adventure. it added a new element to have so many friends and family along for the ride. it wasn't the ending we hoped for, but it was quite a learning experience on many different levels. our 'blog' had almost 1100 pageviews yesterday, beating our previous high of about 50...far more people kept up with us than we were expecting.

just like my battery was dying all day yesterday, my computer battery is about to die right now so i am going to have to cut this one short. here is one more video from our strange week which i don't think i have posted yet...it was also taken on my cell phone so the quality is pretty terrible.



that was Robby and his two cousins at the Chick-fil-a corporate headquarters singing Amazing Grace to the entire cafeteria. you can't make this stuff up...plus, why would you want to?

- j(w)s

sad

Well, the song was incredible and the guy asked him to sing a second one. But he had just sent two through in the last groups and needed to cut the next 288 to stay on track. So he did. What a shame...and it would have to be the one table with one judge who's a guy in his 20's and is by himself.

I just hope robby won't have to be a doctor now...

unbelievable

The judge just sent another person through right in front of robby and then went on break.

I'm not even kidding...

Robby's judge

Just let a guy through in the group before robby's...not a good sign.