People Actually READ my blog!

So I just found out that everyone in Bowling Green read my blog recently. And no doubt, they all noticed the posting I made about a particular concert that I recently attended. Now, I want to tell you all first off that I’m not going to do any walking on egg shells. An uproar of sorts has come to my ears about the content of that post.

This blog is a realm for me to pour out my thoughts, perhaps I should have thought longer and harder about what I was writing, but it was 4 in the morning, and I was just channelling my feelings and thoughts onto a keyboard in a frenzy because I needed to get to bed. That is not an excuse for how my post was worded, though.

What I want to explain is this: perhaps some of the folks who read what I had to say weren’t too thrilled to read such things. If you are one of those people, this post is primarily for you. I went to the concert in question mainly to see my good buddy Mike play the drums for Modern Soviet Enemies. I did not go to “find out” what is “wrong” with the people attending the concert.

I know that my post was one big long paragraph. However I would to separate two elements of it: my reflections on the concert and my musings on the kind of lifestyle I see exhibited by a great many people in Bowling Green. I thoroughly enjoyed the concert in fact, if you were wondering, I was actually bouncing up and down physically because I was into it. My thoughts sprialled off towards the end of the post on the spiritual nature of music. But that is not the point. The point is that I still regard every one of the people at that concert who knows me and I know them to be cool people. In no way do I intend to come off as a “you’re all damned to hell!” Christian. That is not who I am. I enjoy the company of all sorts of people, and I enjoyed hanging out and seeing people I haven’t seen recently who were also at the concert. I won’t hide the way I feel about spritual issues. I know that I named people and came off rather strongly in my post, and I apologize if people feel personally violated by my post. So, to the people I named:

Eric: You know I love you man. I still count you among one of the best friends I have (though I don’t see you very often anymore) I’ll always take your movie advice.

Joel: I admire you for your creativity and your penchant to go out there and be yourself. You are never afraid to say what you think… neither will I be.

Steve: I always enjoy talking to you and I’ll probably get to hear all sorts of wonderful things from you about my post when I see you at lunchtime the Monday school starts up again.

“Everybody else”: You know who you are, and I am impressed to know that so many of you have actually read my blog now. I understand you must be upset with me, but I just want to clarify that what I wrote is what I observe about a lifestyle that I am exposed to periodically downtown. I don’t hold with that lifestyle, and I don’t enjoy seeing people I know live that way, but I am not out to attack anyone who lives that way, nor am I about to tell them how to live their lives. I shouldn’t expect anyone to respect me if I don’t repect them.

In the end, I wish to echo the conclusion to Mike’s blog: What I believe about Jesus being the “deadliest ammunition against emptiness” cannot become anyone else’s beliefs by me trying to shove it down anybody’s throat. I believe in the love of Christ, and Christ hung out with EVERYONE. So I intend to not alienate the people that I know. If you feel strongly that would like to say something to me, feel free to Email me.

Peace and love to all of you guys,

~Joel