The other day, I threw in some points as to how to address my failure at the scale, that 2 lb drop stall. I was looking to inspire my spirit and I came with action. I soon ran across the sardine implementation which will have a bigger impact.

I am keeping these two:

• Return to Fat Focus Days. It's now on Sundays.
• Bring Back Small Victory Win Conditions. Defining challenges in-progress.

I am hauling these out to the curb:

• Restore This Site to Retrowave. I have it running on my test server and it IS a thing of beauty. It's somewhere between blacklight, a Tequila Sunrise drink, and K.I.T.T. racing across a desert sunset. That said, I don't feel like it's optimized as a theme. I prefer the bare minimum, typography-focus site.
• Maintain a Spotify Subscription. (See below.)
• Join Facebook on New Year's Eve. (See below.)

As to the last points, I fully intended to implement them. I even grabbed 1000+ marching band covers to slowly whittle down to my favorites to my playlist for The 40th. I even wanted to incorporate songs from each Expedition to commemorate everything that has happened before...

...well, until I ran across a question. It's from the class I'm teaching out of Grudem's Systematic Theology. In chapter 12, The Character of God: "Communicable" Attributes (Part 1), among the questions presented at the chapter's end was this:

Are there activities or relationships in your present pattern of life that are hindering your growth in holiness because they make it difficult for you to be separated from sin and devoted to seeking God's honor?

It got me to thinking about a passage of Scripture that also references the Old Testament, 2 Corinthians 6:17-7:1. All my life, I have just heard this to mean don't marry an unbeliever. But these 46-year-old eyes see more in the text. Remember, Jesus' yoke is light; whose yoke am I pulling on with this unbeliever then?

It is a minor thing I suppose, but in this "bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God," I am leaving behind music streaming services. For that matter, I am moving on from this site in the future from being so music-centric with blockquotes, post titles, and music links.

Furthermore, I won't be returning to Facebook. It breaks my heart every time I do. People have been revealed. In a few cases, it is for the better. In most, they're no longer pretending to fear the Lord and flailing around the lingo, but their shifting sands have rolled them down to dreams of being accepted at The Cool Kids' Table.

What I said about TV in November 2003, 21 years ago, I now apply to social media:

Why do I want to watch a depraved lifestyle, all the while the world subtly suggests that this is the way one should live? The utterly sad part is that people DO watch it! You dullards– at least go out and SIN– don't just sit on the sidelines! Since as a non-Christian, you're eternally damned anyway, GO, enjoy the pleasures of the world. Don't just sit back and passively watch it! Take the road to Hell in a blaze of glory! Life is not that of fence sitters. You're on either one side or the other.

Wartime Propaganda, 11/3/03

They need to stop pretending to be Christian. It's straight up Matthew 7:21–23.

I just can't get there—why are they celebrating sin? If they are like me, they fear the Lord. Yes, I have my seasons of life when I really miss the mark. I mean, I trip over my own feet before I throw the dart! And I am not happy in those times. And I certainly DO NOT APPLAUD SIN. The Holy Spirit persuades me to return and continue in my sanctification. I repent and go gratefully for I cannot be snatched out of God's hand.

But this post isn't about fools. It's about the changes I am undertaking to better align with reality and the world to come. Recently as I began to formulate my hopefully-soon-to-be-shared bucket list, I used the question: when am I the most happy? It's not a bad place to start when one wants to dream big and then divide-and-conquer the sequences needed to get from here to there.

Among them, I found studying about God and more importantly, picking up the living and active Bible, the very words of God, brings me joy. I feel what David expresses in Psalm 119. I come to the text and meditate on the words before me, looking deeply into the mirror. It's unlike anything else I have experienced in these past 46 years...it's authentic.

Make it a daily habit; feel that cozy feeling inside.

I want to be transformed by the renewal of my mind. I don't want to think like the world does for they live in such a meaningless existence.

Don't be like them; realize you too, can walk with your own two legs down the hallways of John 14:2-3 like I will—OK, I just might be running like a kid! I don't know much about my room, but I am looking forward to flinging back the curtains for the view! If you make it there, stop by and say hello!