Note to Those Who Say They Can't

I don't know how to make this sound in a matter that is not boastful, because I honestly have no intentions of it sounding that way. This is truth that I know, and what has happened in my life.

To those Who Say They Can't,

“Don’t give up, don’t ever give up.” Jimmy Valvano

Growing up, literacy has always been a constant battle for me. From the time I was in sixth grade through my junior year in high school, my results on standardized tests left many people puzzled. When it came to math and science I was always able to achieve exceptional scores, to the point where excel programs would constantly be recommended for me to help challenge me. When it came to reading comprehension and writing skills, I scored so low that I qualified for special assistance annually. This differentiation in my scores led many teachers to a state of uncertainty of what to do with me. Most teachers thought I simply chose not to try on these sections of the tests, so I was often labeled as a smart student who never fully applied himself.

Little did my teachers know, I had ADD. It’s not that I wasn’t trying to apply myself, I simply was not able to sit down and read one book for an extended period of time. Math and science were always fun because I would never be doing the same thing for the whole class period, and science tended to be hands-on learning. When reading books, my mind would start to wander, and when it came time for teachers to check for understanding of the material I read, I often didn’t know the answers. It was frustrating not knowing the answer. I tried to focus, but when I was consistently ridiculed; I eventually I shut down, and quit reading and writing, because I struggled finding the purpose for reading or writing something when I was just going to get ridiculed on. Many teachers made me feel like I wasn’t important, and stupid.  I can remember three teachers pulling me aside after class and telling me I need to start paying attention, and that I deserved to struggle because of my lack of concentration.    My freshman year in High School I had a Spanish teacher tell me I was too stupid to move on to the next level of Spanish my sophomore year in front of the entire class. Even though this bothered me, I chose not to make a big deal out of it. I was used to teachers giving up on me, so how was this any different?

When it came time for my ACT test, I once again managed to put up bizarre results. I scored a 30 on the math section,and 28 on the science, but when it came to reading comprehension I got a disappointing 17, and a 15 on my writing, making my composite score 23, which looked close to average if you were to look at the composite score. Shortly after I took the ACT, I was officially diagnosed with ADD. I had finally started receiving medicine, and I was able to focus in the classroom better.

My senior year I started getting recruited by many schools around Iowa to play football. I can remember Wartburg made a good impression on me, so when one of my teachers asked me if I had decided on a college, I told him I was leaning towards Wartburg, and he was quick to let me know I should really consider community college, because he felt I wasn’t going to be able to handle a four-year college. He wasn't the first educator to tell me this, as I was advised after taking the PSAT to either go to community college or simply join the work force out of high school.

I didn’t let his words or the PSAT stop me, and decided to go to Wartburg thanks to the assurance and advice from a good family friend that had always been there for me, who honestly was one of the few people who believed in me from the start. Three weeks after I graduated high school, I got one of the worst phone calls of my life. I had found out that Bernie had died in an accident at work.

I really didn’t know how to respond to this situation. I was asked by Bernie’s son Tanner, who was my age and has been one of my closest friends, to tell my mom to call him, so he could tell her what happened. My mom was at work that night, and after I got a hold of her I let her know she needed to call Tanner. She called him and found out the news and quickly rushed to the hospital to be with Bambi (Bernie’s wife).

Bernie and Bambi were my brother’s Godparents, and he was a mess from this, while my sister was still too young to realize what was going on. I can remember my grandparents took my brother and sister to Minnesota for a week after the funeral, and during that week my parents wanted me to sleep on their floor for some reason.

When it came time for college to start up I really had no desire to go anymore. I had lost one of the few people who believed in me outside of my family, and I honestly quit believing in myself. After my freshman year, I had barely made it through, but still passed with roughly a 2.5 GPA. I looked into transferring to Hawkeye Community College, or working full-time at Fareway because I started believing that the advising I received in High School was probably right.

The summer after my Freshman year God blessed me a great pep talk from one of my best friends in High School dad.  I remember it clear as day, he asked me how my first year of college went.  I started listing off reasons left and right for my struggles.  It was at this moment when he told me something that stays with me still to this day.  He looked at me in the eye while cracking a smile and told me, " I can only blame myself for receiving the grades I got and that nothing was handed to him growing up, he worked for everything he recieved and I need to start realizing this as well."

Going into my Sophmore year God blessed me with someone special to come into my life for a year and ultimately bring me closer to Him. She helped proof-read my many papers, and tutored me through my basic religion class. As time went on she would always freak out on me and eventually started calling me stupid, and such as she was proofing my papers. I don't believe she meant these words, but for myself it really killed any confidence I had.

A little more than a year ago I wanted to quit. I felt alone. No one understood what I was going through. Society had constantly told me that I was going nowhere, and the one person who truly did believe in me wasn't there anymore.

"But not so fast my friend!"- Lee Corso

In steps Jesus. In my darkest time, and in the darkest valley where it seemed like I had no where to go. I couldn't get enough of Him. I read at least six or seven books about Him and His love for me. I couldn't close my Bible, and slowly I started to realize that.. Yeah I am totally worthless........... Without Jesus! With Christ in your life, all things are possible for the glory of his name. I have a message for all the people who called me dumb, stupid, told me I couldn't handle a four-year college, etc.

I made the Dean's List this Winter/May Term!
Also in May 2012, I will be the first person to graduate Wartburg College with an All Social-Studies endorsement.  Once again, God granted me the strength to defy the odds.  Every professor I talked to told me it would be nearly impossible to accomplish this in four years, yet God has given me the strength, determination, and perseverance to achieve this degree in four-years when it should have taken me at least five years if not more.

But maybe I should reword this statement. Sure I got my name on the list of people who made it on Wartburg's website, sure my name is getting published in the newspaper. Sure I will go down in Wartburg's history book as the first graduate with an All Social-Studies endorsement, but I don't want the glory. You see I believe God has used me through this time for much bigger and better things. God put me in classes where my faith would be tested, where I would have to stand up for what I believe in, where classmates would become annoyed with the "Jesus Freak." And you know what?

Who gives a crap about what other people say. People of this earth don't know everything. People out there don't know you. You were uniquely and beautifully made by the God of the Universe! Wouldn't it make sense to think that He knows you better than the people of this world? I can promise you this much. God might let you win a football game when other people say you can't, but I can guarantee that He will guide you into that game, and in the end His name will be glorified because of it. Whether it is two minutes after the game or at a 50 year class reunion.

In my life right now, I have people who tell me that I can't, or I won't. Maybe they're right, all I know is that whatever the outcome I trust in all my heart that God's name will be glorified. I am so sick of all the negativity in this world. Why can't people shut up? But more importantly why can't people just listen to the true voice that knows them, cares about them, understands them, and loves them? If you don't know how to hear that voice the best way to get to recognize it is by opening up the 66-book love-letter He wrote you and soak it up!

So like the opening quote. Don't give up, don't ever give up! There is an eternal Father in Heaven that right now loves you and admirers you. Don't give up on Him, because He will never give up on you. Even though the darkness may last for the night, His joy comes with the morning!

Here are some Verses to check out to back up what I'm talking about,

Isaiah 40:31; Proverbs 25:14; Luke 11:23; Philippians 4:13; Matthew 19:26; Psalm 23:4; James 1:17; John 3:16; Job 1:21

In Christ,

Chris

The Land Before Time??? Where Dinosaurs Fit Into the Bible

As a young child I had a large obsession with dinosaurs. Land Before Time and Jurassic Park were two movies that would be on in the Arians' household on a regular basis. I always dreamed of digging up a T-Rex's head in my backyard. Sadly that dream never came true, and as I grew older my interests started to go into different areas. Recently one of the youth at Remix 316 asked the question did dinosaurs could exist before Jesus? The easy answer could have been a simple yes, but I took this question more as how can Christianity, or if you wanted to get technical Islam and Judaism explain dinosaurs if they believe in Genesis' creation description. Over the past week and a half I have been praying, reading Genesis, and researching, and I believe God has given me the answer to this question.

First things first. If one were to ask an evolutionist when the dinosaurs lived, they would tell you that they roamed the earth nearly 140 million years ago, and became extinct around 65 million years ago. The key to addressing this question is that these scientists are only able to make their best prediction doing scientific research that quite frankly is way over my head. The fact of the matter is that there is no way of knowing for sure that they roamed around the earth millions of years ago.

If Genesis 1:24-31 we learn that on the sixth day God created the animals of the land as well as Adam and Eve. Dinosaurs would have been a land animal, so they would have been created on the sixth day. With God, it is hard to determine how long one of these days were exactly. That's a question that quite frankly I feel will never be answered, but that is content for a different discussion. In verses 29-31 we learn that all animals, including humans were ordered to be vegetarians.

It wasn't until Adam's sin, that death came into the world. There are multiple spots throughout the Bible that prove this point. Here is an example of one.
"Sin came into the world because of what one man did, and with sin came death. This is why everyone must die- because everyone sinned."- Romans 5:12

Now we know that Jesus came to die for that sin so ultimately death will be overcome, but this is why animals, humans, plants, etc die here on earth. If you want more scripture to read about Adam's sin leading to death check out; Romans 8:20-22, Acts 3:21, Hebrews 9:22, Revelation 21:1-4, Revelation 22:3. (If you need more ask me)

It was at Adam's sin when the big bad T-Rex started terrorizing its victims for food!

As time goes on, Man and dinosaurs do live together, and in Genesis 6:12, we learn that all flesh, (meaning man and animals) became evil. Dinosaurs tended to be violent creatures like many evolutionists have pointed out, and I personally believe that dinosaurs were killing one another, as well as humans who God created in His own image. This is the part in the Bible where God sends the flood and Noah builds the ark.

In Genesis 7:2-9 we learn that God is sending two (seven for clean animals) of every animal to the ark. I believe that this included dinosaurs. Dinosaurs are often thought of as very large, but in reality most really weren't, and there wouldn't have been that many different kinds of dinosaurs. If you asked most dinosaur experts, most dinosaurs were the same kind of dinosaur, they just received a different name because of their geographical region their fossils were discovered in.

For the many dinosaurs that did not get on the ark, they died quickly by drowning when God flooded the world. This quick death, along with the large amounts of sand and water would explain why so many fossils have been found. Their bones would have been preserved quite well. This is why archeologists are able to find many bones of animals preserved in rock around the world in my opinion, not just the dinosaurs. This flood is often believed to have happened roughly 4500 years ago (Big difference from millions of years ago).

I will continue this blog by predicting that dinosaurs were alive around the time of Job (who lived after the flood). In Job 40:15 God is telling Job to look at the behemoth. In verses 15-24 God describes many of the characteristics of the "behemoth." A "behemoth" is described as a huge animal that God made and only He could control. When you read through the characteristics used to describe the "behemoth," one will find many similarities to the descriptions we have of dinosaurs. Here are some of the descriptions strength (v.16), tail like a cedar tree (v.17), bones like tubes of bronze (v.18), the list goes on and on.. Check it out!!

So if dinosaurs existed after the flood what ultimately happened to them? I believe that if you look this question without thinking of any evolutionist theory you will find your answer. At the time of the Flood, many of the sea creatures died, but some survived. In addition, all of the land creatures outside the Ark died, but the representatives of all the kinds that survived on the Ark lived in the new world after the Flood. Those land animals (including dinosaurs) found the new world to be much different than the one before the Flood. Due to (1) competition for food that was no longer in abundance, (2) other catastrophes, (3) man killing for food (and perhaps for fun), and (4) the destruction of habitats, etc., many species of animals eventually died out. The group of animals we now call dinosaurs just happened to die out too. In fact, quite a number of animals become extinct each year. Extinction seems to be the rule in Earth history (not the formation of new types of animals as you would expect from evolution).

The lesson we can learn from dinosaurs is relatively simple. When Adam sinned, death was brought into the world. We all have sinned (check out Romans 3:23), and we all will end up like the dinosaurs someday, if we do not accept the treasure that we have in Jesus Christ. God showed that He was all-powerful by destroying the dinosaurs, and millions of other wicked creatures with water in the flood. It also leads us to realize that God is coming again. He is going to have Jesus come and save His followers, and after being like a thief in the night, the earth will burn up (Check out 2 Peter 3:12 and book of Revelation).

After looking into this topic, I am thankful that God sent His only Son to die for our sins. Without Jesus our lives are worthless, and the human race would be even more worthless than we already are, much like the dinosaurs. It is important to go out and spread disciples of all nations like Jesus tells His disciples to do in the end of Matthew (Matthew 28:19-20). By spreading that love, people will start to see God for what He truly is, Love. It is God's love that was pored out to us as His son hung on the cross. It is God's love and mercy that sets us free from sin, and it is His Son Jesus, which leads us to Him.

In Christ,
Chris