Seven Of Hearts

Whether you realize it or not, your heart defines you. What you say, what you do, what your passions are, and what you care about, make up a large portion of who you are. And just like personality, the type of heart changes from person to person. Here are some examples of hearts that I've come across:

• Tender Heart

These people are rather emotional, but really feel for others. They like to be connected to people and are passionate about the issues of anyone who cares to share. These people "wear their heart on their sleeve."

• Braveheart

It's hard to find something these people aren't passionate about. When these people get into something, they get really, really into it. They also stand firm on what they believe in, and fight for what is right. 

• Warm Heart

These people are an all-around joy to be with. They make everyone feel welcomed and enjoy doing so. Everyone loves being in their company.

• Sweetheart

While most are shy at first, they are all super-nice people once you get to know them. They also know a lot more than they let on because they tend to observe people more than they talk to. None of these people would ever harm a fly. 

• Wise Heart

These people take all issues to heart and carefully calculate all options before going through with something. They seek the council of others and do everything they can to be sure they are on-point with whatever they are doing. While all hearts mentioned so far can be good friends, these people are  especially invaluable because they are so practical with problem solving. 

• Bursting Heart

These people have more love than their hearts can contain, so they pass it out to everyone else. They are positive, energetic, and are always looking to put a smile on a face.

So these are most of the hearts I have encountered in my life. I probably didn't mention every single heart that there is, so if you don't see yourself on this list, then I apologize. But I made this list for a reason; to show that everyone has a unique heart for something. When we start to see these hearts, that's when we make connections with people. That is how you can tell when people are real and true. As great as these hearts are, there is one that you want to avoid having:

• Stone Heart

Also sometimes referred to as "Calloused heart", these people are withdrawn, stubborn, and impenetrable to emotion or feeling. They avoid interaction with others and aren't shaken by any event, good or bad. If this type of heart is ever broken, it is usually because of divine intervention, or a wake-up call.

Value of X

16x-8=5x+3

Don't worry, you don't have to solve this equation in order to continue with the blog post. But I put this here as an example: I feel like every person struggles to find value in something, just like our friend X in the math problem. X in algebra always represents an unknown number, and you usually don't know what that number is until you solve the equation. And X can represent just about anything.

So why do you care about some math problem? Because I think it relates more to real-life than you might know. (And they say that you'll never use this stuff in real life). Lets start by filling in the blank: what do you find value in? For me personally, I find value in those who love me: namely my family and friends. These people are always willing to step up and support me when I ask for it. I find value in these people because of how much they all love me. When I am not with these people (which is very rare) I become significantly more depressed. For each person, X might be different. I know a lot of people who are sports enthusiasts, who live for the game and the competition. For these people, they might find their value in sports. Feeling that their role is important. Making good plays. Performing well. If they can't do any/all of these tasks, they are going to suffer. Big time. Because that's where they place their value. I remember hearing recently that a significant number of professional football players commit suicide after their career ends. Because that's where they funnel all their value. Once the fame and fortune is gone they no longer know what to do with their lives.

So I'll ask this again: What do you find value in? Really take time to think about that. Once you figure that out, think about this next question: What would you do if that thing was gone? If you couldn't solve for X? It's hard to imagine isn't it? I'll be honest: If I didn't have the people in my life that I do, I'm not entirely sure what I would do. Probably just stoop down low and drag my feet through life like a zombie. I certainly would not be the same person.

So let me give you this: As amazing as X is in your life, it should not be the center of your life. Think about this; once something becomes your "center" it becomes what your life revolves around, as if it were a planet. When you make a good thing your "ultimate thing" it becomes a bad thing. Relationships comes to mind when I think about this. When someone is "head over heels" for someone else, they start setting an expectation for the relationship, that will eventually become unreal; something no one can fulfil. Then the relationship suffers because of that. 

I think you get the idea by now. We have one bit of unfinished business left; solving that math problem at the beginning. Let's go ahead and solve the equation.

16x-8=5x+3

16x-8+8=5x+3+8

16x=5x+11

16x-5x=5x-5x+11

11x=11

x=1

I made the answer 1 on purpose. Because there's only one thing that we can truly find our value in. I could just go and say what I'm thinking of, but that would be no fun. I'll leave this open to interpretation. ;)

We Are Not Alone

I know this ambiguous title might make you think I'm about to talk about aliens in outer space. I'm not. What I am here to talk about is a song, that a friend of mine recently sent me. It really hit me hard after I stopped to think about the lyrics. I wanted to take a few minutes to share it and discuss it.

Not Alone - RED

This song is an awesome reminder that we are never alone in this life. There will always be someone there to pick you up when you fall. Since this is a Christian band, the message of the song is referring to God/Jesus being there for you when you fall. Never ever underestimate that power. It's too easy to do when things aren't going your way.

However, sometimes it takes time to find that path when you do wander, and you rarely find your own way back. There are other people in this life to help you find that path.

I went through a rough patch in my life. I'm assuming most people have. When I couldn't see God in those times, there were people who took the time to help me wash the mud out of my eyes. Who took my arm around their shoulder when I was walking with a limp. Who took the time to learn my struggles and talk me through it. I thank God every day for these incredible friends. You know who you are.

If you're reading this and you don't have a friend like this, get one. Being open and real with another human being is something that is hard, but ultimately one of the best possible things you can do. Admittedly, friends like this don't exactly come out of the woodwork. It does take time to build trust with one another. But in the end, both people will become wiser and more mature by helping one another grow. Both people can pick the other up in their time of need, and reassure them. Correct them when they go astray. Speak life and wisdom into them. You don't know what kind of impact you might have on someone.

Always remember that God will never leave you nor forsake you. But in case you forget, have someone remind you.


 "Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down, one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up."

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

Fifteen-Fifty-Six

You're probably wondering: What does the title mean? What about the numbers? Why is the sky blue? All of those questions and more will be answered in this post. (Okay maybe not the last one. But still, you get the idea.)

So let's start with the purpose of this blog. What do I hope to accomplish though writing? Well there's a few thing that I had in mind:

A): To post my stories, poems, and any other stray thoughts I might have.
B): To share my insight on a particular matter, either in my own life or from somewhere else in the world.
C): To discuss religion. Specifically Christianity, but also other beliefs if they meet criteria B) or E).
D): To indirectly help other people shape their own views on the topic of discussion for the blog.
E): To talk about something interesting in my life, as it occurs.

So while that seems like a lot, it really isn't. I don't know what will happen in my life, but I could end up posting about all of these things simultaneously because of a single discussion with someone, or perhaps just one of them. Time will tell.

Next, why the name? What purpose does "Operation 1556" serve for this blog? Allow me to elaborate: we'll start with the numbers. For those of you who know me, you should know that when I use numbers ambiguously, they generally refer to Bible verses. In this case, it's Romans 15:5-6, which reads the following:

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

So what does that mean for the blog? I'm going to break this down bit by bit, starting with the first line.

>May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had,

The most important part of this is "the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had". This is mind-blowing to think about in a lot of ways. First you have to ask yourself what kind of mindset Jesus might have had. Judging by his actions in the Bible, we can probably unanimously agree that Jesus was selfless, caring, forgiving, humble, wise, and loving, to name a few attributes. I could go on all day, but this is a good place to work off. I honestly think it's incredible that Paul prays that the Romans have the same mindset as Christ. Why? Because, if we (meaning people in general, but more likely Christians) had the same mindset as Christ, always putting others before ourselves, what would the world like? How would it be altered? Think about that. 

Lets tackle the first part of this now, why does Paul say "The God who gives endurance and encouragement"? God gives a lot of things, but this is not exactly the first thing I think of when I think of God. However I think we can get our answer as to why if we look back on the overall tone of Romans. In the 16 chapters of this book, Paul is constantly encouraging the Romans on how to live a healthier lifestyle. In Romans 1:8, Paul commends them for their faith, because it was being reported all over the world. How amazing is that? And if you continue to read Romans, it's pretty encouraging stuff. For that reason, it's probably one of my favorite books in the entire bible. So therefore, the word encouragement is included because of the encouraging nature of the Gospel message, which Paul brings to light in the book of Romans. We're encouraged to live a radical lifestyle, we're encouraged to press on toward the goal, we're encouraged to endure in suffering. Which leads us to our next word. 

Endurance. Interesting choice of word. But it's not really as complex as you think. To me, God is always giving us that endurance to get back up when we fall. Isaiah 40:31 comes to mind when someone mentions endurance: 

but those who hope in the Lord
    will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
    they will run and not grow weary,
    they will walk and not be faint.

God definitely gives endurance. There's no question about that. We just need to hope in him to find it. If we didn't have God when we fell, where would we place our hope? What would encourage us to keep going if there was no goal in sight? Would we even have the endurance to keep going? With that said, let's move on to second part of the verse:

>so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

One mind, one voice. Unity. Unity through Christ. Unity in Christ. Unity in praising God. It's so simple, and yet there's so much division in the modern day church over anything and everything. What seems like such a simple command is causing people to leave the church, because no one can completely agree on the message of the Bible. What two people might agree upon in one part of the Bible, they disagree in a different part. From the Jewish to the Christian to the Catholic, no one can seem to agree on anything. We've got the presbyterians, orthodox, baptists, methodist, etc., who all have something different to say about the Bible. "We should do this." "We shouldn't do this" "We should be more of this" "You should have these ideas about these topics" "Don't believe everything you read it's not all literal" Honestly: I don't care what anyone else thinks. But why do these differences in thought cause separations? Why can't we just come together in unity and praise God like we were made to do? Because in the end that's all that matters. Will determining what time of year Jesus was born get us into heaven? Will any differences in thought keep us out? As long as the basic core message is the same (Jesus lived and died and rose again and will come back one day and there is only salvation through him), then it shouldn't matter what we think about what. This verse calls us to be unified, and yet look at where we are today in American-Christianity. 

So finally, I can tell you what the name means. It's essentially saying "This blog is a mission to unify people through Jesus Christ". That's it. Do I expect everyone to change their minds by reading this blog? No. But I hope and pray that those differences can be put aside for the sake of Christ.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 

-Romans 1:16