People of the Week: President and Mrs. Whitaker

Yes I know I was not happy with P-Whit last week but this week he has just made my day.
Every year at exam time Mrs. Whitaker bakes thousands of cookies in her kitchen and they hand deliver them to the students in their dorm rooms!  I personally believe this is pretty awesome.  This is one of the reasons I am a huge fan of the small campus feel of Anderson and cookies never hurt my feelings either.  So here is to you President and Mrs. Whitaker!  I appreciate the cookies in my time of stress and sadness.
-H.M. Mathis

Your life in 6 words...

Ernest Hemingway once wrote a story in 6 words.  This was considered his best work even though it was clearly his shortest. He wrote:
"For sale:
baby shoes, never worn."
He said these words described his life in just 6 small words. 

We studied this is our chapel service yesterday here at the great Anderson University. (Yes she is seriously great even though I am not happy with her at the moment--see previous post)  I was then challenged to try to describe my Christian life in only 6 small words.  This is what I came up with:
"Blood bought,
Willing Submission,
Continuous Service!"

My continuous goal to live this way every day.  Each 2 word phrase is a portion of the Christian life and something that I am learning to try to realize daily.

"Blood bought":
Jesus Christ bought me with the blood that He shed on the cross.  He gave a willing sacrifice so that my soul  could be saved!  I am saved because of what He did for me and nothing of what I can do.  I deserve eternity from Him but because of His love and mercy willingly gave up His life for mine.

"Willing Submission"
I strive everyday to willingly submit to the will of God on my life.  I must continue to give up my own desires and be willing to accept God's desire for my life.  John 3: 30 says, "John 3:30 He must increase, but I must decrease."  I must get out of the way daily so that Christ can show me HIS way.  I must be willing to go wherever he leads, whatever the cost, whenever He tells me to!

"Continuous Service"
I cannot become complacent as a child of God.  I must continue daily to find a way to impact others the way that Christ has impacted me.  I cannot just say that I am a Christian and not serve those around me.  James 2:18-20 says, "Yea, a man may say, You have faith, and I have works: show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one God; you do well: the demons also believe, and tremble. But will you know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?"  I must put action to my beliefs and try to impact people around me as much as possible.

I challenge you to come up with your own 6 word story and post it as a comment.  See if you can describe your intentions and goals of your daily life in just 6 words.

-H.M. Mathis

Aight Thanks...

At this current moment I should be driving down good ol' highway 28 on my way home to Aiken, SC.  HOWEVER, I am not due to the fact that Anderson University has given us class tomorrow on Good Friday.  For those of you who do not know this is the day that Christians remember as Christ being sacrificed for the sins of the world.  Anyways, Anderson felt the need to give us class on this day due to the fact that we had 3 days of snow that cancelled class at the beginning of the semester.  So yes, I am upset that our Christian University has scheduled class on this Christian holiday. 
Any nay-Sayers who have not stopped reading to this point will surely be mad over this post or then comment and say how selfish it is of me to 'complain' about this fact.  I know your argument though.  You are saying that all I am, and the other 2,500 students that share my opinion, doing is wanting another day out of class and we are lazy.  You even call us selfish because we just want this day that is meant to remember the sacrifice that was meant to save you and I as just a day off.  This is not the case however.  Good Friday is used to remember what Jesus Christ has done for us and how no matter what we do without Him there is no way we could enter into heaven as Christians.  This is a day to celebrate, yes celebrate, and give thanks that God would have such love, mercy and grace to save a bunch of unworthy sinners such as myself.  So yes I do see this day as a day to celebrate and spend with my family as well as other Christians to commemorate what Jesus Christ did because He desired to spend eternity with you and me. 
So yes I am highly upset that my Christian University will be having class tomorrow while my friends from secular universities will be spending time at home on this Christian holiday.  I just feel that this is a bad job of setting an example by one university to another.  So I am quite sorry Anderson University right now we are not friends.
Aight Thanks.
-H.M. Mathis

Person of the Week: G-Baby

So, I feel like taking a break from studying and the only blog topic that I have not done in awhile is a person of the week.  So today this person will be, yes I know I am suprised as well, G-Baby!  Good Ol' Grayson Alan Mathis.

O G-Baby where to begin o sweet and loving brother!  I congratulate you on your win this past week in the BFL on Santee, way to do work.  I know we all give you a hard time bout your ability out there on the water but just as Aguilar did, I always knew you could when even Teresa and Mark doubted you.  So congratulations.  Thank you for being a good big brother even though at times we wanted to kill each other or mom wanted to kill us both.  So here are your 15 minutes my friend and I am sure that I may lose some followers for selecting such a bad topic but I will stand up to them, cause I stand for a lot of things! I Love you Buddy!  DT4L!

"Somebody just back of you while you are fishing is as bad as someone looking over your shoulder while you write a letter to your lady."  ~Ernest Hemingway

"Bragging may not bring happiness, but no man having caught a large fish goes home through an alley."


-H.M. Mathis

Gratitude List: 41-50

41.  Beautiful weather
42.  Good Preaching
43.  Movie nights
44.  Gift Cards
45.  Seeing old friends
46. Weekends
47.  Phone calls with Granny
48.  Braves wins
49.  Good Music
50.  Studying on the Front Lawn

I also want to wish my Granny, Margaret Mathis, a happy birthday today!  We love you!

-H.M. Mathis

Studying the late Adrian Rogers for my biographical paper.  Just some of his greatest quotes.

"We ought to be living as if Jesus died yesterday, rose this morning, and is coming back this afternoon." 

"Has it ever occurred to you that nothing occurs to God?"

"It’s what you sow that multiplies, not what you keep in the barn."


"If you have a Bible that’s falling apart, you’ll have a life that’s not."

"I wouldn’t trust the best fifteen minutes I ever lived to get me into heaven."

"God grades on the Cross, not on the curve."

The Christian Commitment

The following quote was found on the wall of an anonymous preacher in Africa.

The Christian Commitment
 

"I'm part of the fellowship of the unashamed.  I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made.  I'm a disciple of Jesus Christ.
 

I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.  My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure.
 

I'm finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.  I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity.  I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded.
 

I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.  My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear.  I cannot be bought, deluded, or delayed.
 

I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.  I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the cause of Christ.
 

I am a disciple of Jesus.
 

I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me.  And when He comes for His own, He will have no problem recognizing me - my banner will be clear!"

We should use this to challenge and check ourselves daily to make sure that we are achieving our full potential for Christ.

-H.M. Mathis

Gratitude List: 31-40

31.  Mommy and Daddy coming to visit me
32.  Trying on Jeans (Your welcome Lauren)
33.  Flat Rock Baptist Church
34.  Lunch with the Bishops
35.  Electricity
36.  Giving class devotions
37.  A brand new tray of biscuits in the caf
38.  Late night NBA Jam.
39.  Basketball Season  (Good Season Osprey!)
40.  A supportive Girlfriend

Baseball Season is finally here!

 Now that Baseball season has finally arrived after a cold and boring winter here are some of H.M. Mathis' favorite Baseball quotes to get you into the mood for the season.

"You can only milk a cow so long, then you're left holding the pail." -Hank Aaron

"I don't know if he throws a spitball but he sure spits on the ball." -Casey Stengal

"Most ball games are lost, not won." -Casey Stengal

"The key to winning baseball games is pitching, fundamentals, and three run homers." -Earl Weaver

"I am dead set against free agency. It can ruin baseball." -George Steinbrenner

"Hell, if KY jelly went off the market, the whole California Angels pitching staff would be out of baseball." -Spaceman Bill Lee

"I went through baseball as "a player to be named later." -Joe Garagiola

"All I can tell them is pick a good one and sock it. I get back to the dugout and they ask me what it was I hit and I tell them I don't know except it looked good." -Babe Ruth

"I'd walk through hell in a gasoline suit to play baseball." -Pete Rose

"I led the league in "Go get 'em next time." -Bob Uecker

“You win some, you lose some, and some get rained out”  -Bob Polewski

“One of the beautiful things about baseball is that every once in a while you come into a situation where you want to, and where you have to, reach down and prove something.”  -Nolan Ryan

"Bob Gibson is the luckiest pitcher I ever saw. He always pitches when the other team doesn't score any runs." -Tim McCarver

"Trying to sneak a pitch past Hank Aaron is like trying to sneak the sunrise past a rooster." -Joe Adcock

“It ain’t the arrow, it’s the Indian.”  -Bob Polewski

"Never root for a team whose uniforms have elastic stretch waistbands." -Susan Sarandon

"There ain't much to being a ballplayer, if you're a ballplayer." -Honus Wagner

"There are two theories on hitting the knuckleball. Unfortunately, neither one of them works." -Charlie Lau

"The way to catch a knuckleball is to wait until the ball stops rolling and then to pick it up." -Bob Uecker

"Baseball is the only field of endeavor where a man can succeed three times out of ten and be considered a good performer."  ~Ted Williams

"Let's play two." -Ernie Banks

"Yogi (Berra), I came up here to hit, not to read."  -Hank Aaron, 1958 World Series answer to Berra after being told to turn his bat around so he could 'read' the label and not break the bat.

"I'd be willing to bet you, if I was a betting man, that I have never bet on baseball." -Pete Rose

"The baseball mania has run its course. It has no future as a professional endeavor." -Cincinnati Gazette editorial, 1879

The all-time greatest quote master of all time:  Yogi Berra

“The other teams could make trouble for us if they win.”

“You observe a lot by watching.”

"A nickel ain't worth a dime anymore."

"Baseball is ninety percent mental. The other half is physical."

 “Third ain't so bad if nothin' is hit to you.”

“Slump? I ain't in no slump. I just ain't hitting.”

"Nobody goes there anymore because it's too crowded."

"I'm not going to buy my kids an encyclopedia. Let them walk to school like I did."

"All pitchers are liars or crybabies."

“Little League baseball is a very good thing because it keeps the parents off the streets.”

-H.M. Mathis