Nathanhcooper's Blog

Well so much for keeping up…

nathanhcooper — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 00:26:14 +0000

I figure if i don’t try as hard in one post, then i will be more likely to post. So with that said, i have a few thoughts.

1. I hate drama

2. if you want a real friend, be a real friend. (in reality this isn’t foolproof)

3. Look for friends who are as consistent as you are.

Oops, i kind of forgot….

nathanhcooper — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 11:56:51 +0000

Well this wouldn’t be the first time i took a huge hiatus from my blog, but that doesn’t make it OK. i apologize to the 2 fans who came and viewed my blog yesterday just to find nothing updated since last year. Time really flies, doesn’t it?

Anyways, i have been through a lot in the past 6 months, whether it be with friends, my self esteem, romance or God. However, the most radical has been forging a relationship through the modern conveniences such as texting, Facebook and Skype. My life won’t be the same because of knowing this person. Our relationship has been great since it started last September, at least until I realized that I had absolutely no idea where they stood in terms of their faith. Now, mind you they are my absolute best friend in the whole world. I couldn’t live without them. However, faith is such an important part of my life that I had to reconsider the relationship. I’m not saying that we aren’t still best friends, but it’s important to me where my best friend in the whole world stands on the most important cornerstone of my life.
To be quite honest, I haven’t been keeping up with reading my bible and I haven’t done enough to spread the word, but I see a future with this person. Therefore, it is necessary to know where they stand. At this point, I think the only way we could get any closer is by having fellowship in God. Frankly, I want to know her from the inside out, and this is the only murky part. oops, I said it. “I was a boy, she was a girl, can i be anymore obvious.” wow. i didn’t think i would end up quoting Sk8r boi by various artists in my blog, ever. but here you go. enjoy it while it’s there.

The Friend Thing….

nathanhcooper — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 22:04:00 +0000

Many of you, if not all of you have friends. There are your best friends, your friends you see at school or work, the friends on your sports team or at your church, or your neighbor, or someone you meet just randomly. There are different types of friends. Some friends will want to have fun all the time. Other friends may only hang out with you because they want something from you. But most importantly, there are the friends who try to make you a better person, and keep nudging you towards being the best you can be. Those friends are the ones that you want to hang around. It seems obvious though, doesn’t it? Yet we all find ourselves at some point in a situation where we have to choose between the “good friends” or the other friends.
I would love to tell you that choosing the right group of people is easy, and there is nothing to it, but I would be lying. Choosing the best people to hang out with can be hit and miss. One could be invited to a party by someone who seems nice, but instead of a chill time, one goes to a dehumanizing, malevolent party where people are drinking alcoholic beverages, doing drugs, and being intimate in a strictly physical way. Life is so much easier when you stay away from things that will bring you down like that.

What group of friends would you say you’re in?
Do you feel like you’re not going to give up some relationships just to get away from evil?
Do you see some of your friends going down that path where they are hanging with the wrong crowd?

Being Thankful

nathanhcooper — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 17:17:48 +0000

Today is thanksgiving, and I thought it would be a good chance to talk about thankfulness. We usually think of being thankful as comparing one’s situation to others in different circumstances. Personally, I don’t really give thanks to anyone. I mean, besides the things that I’m supposed to be thankful for, such as when I get a new “toy” or some material thing. The things i don’t give thanks for are the less obvious ones. There are many people in my life that I may or may not know of that have put me in the situation that I’m in right now. No matter how childish I can be, they always keep me moving forward. Another way I neglect the gifts I’ve been given is by simply not keeping my eyes open wide enough to see it.
I always hear about the people who have gone through college and are so thankful for all their parents did for them and how they didn’t quite understand how much did until they got older. I think that the first key to a thankful heart is doing one’s best to realize this. When you realize just how hard you made it for everyone but they still put up with it, that’s what love is. I know that you might not have the picture-perfect life that we all dream of, but that’s what makes life interesting. But the biggest thing we should all be thankful is an opportunity to have a relationship with the all powerful, all good, all love, champion of the universe, weighing in at infinity pounds…. (drum roll) GOD ALMIGHTY!
What are you thankful for?
What ways do you ignore all the gifts you have been given?
James 1:2-7 NIV
2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 6 But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.

The Need

nathanhcooper — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 16:35:19 +0000

Recently I have gone through some depressing and demoralizing things, from getting bad grades to losing the little drive in my life that allowed me to remain diligent about things I had to do. I think that one large aspect of my failure is the fact that I haven’t been submersing myself into God’s word enough. I might tell you that I don’t have any room in my day to have a quiet time but that’s simply not true. I could also tell you that I don’t need the Lord’s wisdom, but that’s clearly not the case.

I think it’s hard for anyone to keep seeking God when they feel like they don’t need Him. When I feel the need for Him, I get pissed at myself. I hate that I can’t maintain a relationship with my Creator. I hate that I keep going away from Him even though I see how it hurts. I want that long lasting relationship not a bonfire of leaves.
Where is your relationship with God at? Is it an “emergency only” relationship? Is it non-existent? Do you feel like you get farther and farther away from God with every day? Do you feel like you are too bad a person for God to care about? Or is your relationship with Him strong? Do you feel like you can take on anything because you have the most powerful person backing you up?

LIES! LIES! LIES!

nathanhcooper — Sat, 30 Oct 2010 02:59:17 +0000

Lying. It seems unavoidable. All 6.5 billion people do it, whether they admit it or not. Yet the bible tells us that lying is wrong and it’s blatantly warned against in one of the famous 10 commandments. Why is it so hard to tell the whole truth? things such as opinions and feelings can impede our ability to “tell it like it is.” I know too well that you don’t seem to hurt people when you “forget” to tell them something that you think can only hurt them. I know that you can feel scared to tell the truth because you are afraid of the reaction you will get. But this is not the answer.
A lot of times, people are confronted with the decision to be open and honest with someone, or to put on a mask to conceal the hurt and helplessness we all feel at points in life. Alas, I know for a fact that when you are open, your less stressed.
I think that people need to realize that for a healthy relationship to work, there needs to be trust. So if one person in the relationship, no matter what kind, can’t be honest, that relationship will not workout 90% of the time.
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Perspective on mahogany

nathanhcooper — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 22:04:52 +0000

so throughout the past few weeks, i’ve been thinking about perspective, particularly when you experience powerful feelings that cloud your judgement and your ability to see the big picture. i know this might be a cliché topic, but it’s repeated because it is important. When two people disagree, they frequently lack the ability to see the other side’s point of view. I know from personal experience that it’s extremely hard to see the situation from the “enemy’s” shoes. If people did that regularly, I believe that people could live happier lives. If you think about one argument you had with a friend that caused you to stop being friends, do you remember what it was about? there are exceptions, but for most people the answer is “No.” That loss of a relationship probably could have been stopped by just stepping back and taking a look around you. You could do awesome great things if you just learned to put yourself in other people’s shoes. I don’t mean to hype to many things, but Kutless, a Christian band, has a song called “Perspectives” that explains this idea. i think it’s important that we all just try to feel what other people might be feeling because in that way we are able to connect with people and build relationships with those in a malignant situation. “a friend in need is a friend indeed,” pretty much sums up the relationships growing more. I also feel that when i am broken, that’s when i feel closest to God. It’s weird, I know. But the fact is I feel as though God puts me back together when i fall apart. I hate to give TWO PLUGS for my fav bands but the band “RED” has a song called “Pieces” which talks about how we repeatedly come to God in pieces so that he can make us whole. I promise I will not make the next post more than 19 days from now because that is simply too long.

The Needing

nathanhcooper — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 20:28:31 +0000

It has been a very long time since I’ve been written on my blog. I have to be honest, I may have forgotten about my blog for a little while.
I know that might seem a bit weird that I’m trying to start my blog back again, especially after leaving it for so long. But I assure you that this time I will work harder to keep my blog updated regularly.
One thing that God has reminded me of recently is how much harder life is without Him. I was never the hardest worker in school or someone who would turn in any of their assignments in on time. As much as I can say this without being too prideful, I am extremely smart. I believe that God is giving me the ability to figure things out rather easily. However, I constantly struggle with doing what’s been asked of me. A lot of times I feel as though I know what’s best for me, and many times my pride gets in the way of just accepting that what I have to do must be done. If I had a penny for every time that I didn’t do something when I was asked such as a homework assignment or a chore, I would be the richest person in the world. When I feel that I know what’s best for me, I don’t feel like I should ask other people for their opinion. As the culture today and teaches us, everyone should be able to do it all on their own. Every person is independent and as they become more mature they should be learning to make good decisions for themselves. There are too many times when people think they know what’s right. God is giving us a book of answers called the bible yet so many people choose to ignore it or to use it only in emergencies. It’s amazing how many people neglect to read the bible yet claimed that they are Christian. The point of Christianity is that Jesus Christ came from heaven to earth to die on the cross so that we can have a relationship with God. In a relationship, it’s important that there are two people involved. The way that we speak to God is through prayer. Most of the time, we receive what God is telling us through the bible. So when people slack on reading the bible, they are ignoring what God wants to tell them and the direction that He provides. If this sounds pretty bad to you, that’s because it is. To bring it back to the point, there is only so much you can control before you snap under the stress or go crazy by continuing to push. I have been exempt of stress for most of my life because it was someone else’s problem. So when I say that this school year has been stressful that is really important. I can’t do it without God. I try to handle everything and juggle all the different things going on and it just doesn’t happen. I am a castle made of sand and I am being swiftly washed away by the wind and the rain. If you have never realized that you can’t do everything on your own and you can’t control your life, you are due for an awakening. Some of us have this rude awakening when we reach a mid-life crisis. God has been at my side all along no matter what trials I face or embarrassments I suffer. He makes me whole. I will leave you with a passage from Philippians 4:4
“ 4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Letting Go

nathanhcooper — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 21:54:57 +0000

There are many things to argue about. there is the quality of the food that we eat, global issues such as global warming, and the little tedious things that occour in our lives. We get so worked up when in reality they are just little things that just limit us in so many ways. the best way to avoid this is to simply ignore whatever it is. for me, i love to argue. i will pick up on almost anything and turn it into an argument. My parents wonder why i want to become a Musician instead of a lawyer. so when it comes to letting go of an argument, that is one of the most chalenging things for me. i recently was in a bad situation with a couple of people and i couldn’t stop getting into arguments with them. many of the arguments were about little things. i think that if i could just let go of my pride then i wouldn’t be so explosive. if you have read my earlier blogs, you might be wondering wether i am going to connect this to a song. The song that i think relates to this most is called Empty Me by Chris Sligh. The chorus is “empty me, of the selfishness inside, every vain ambition and the poison of my pride, and any foolish thing, my heart holds to, lord empty me of me so I can be filled with you.” The poison of my pride i think is saying that the belief that we are always right is deadly to one’s self and the people around them. I have hurt a few people by carrying that poisonus pride around with me. I want you to know that it will affect people around you. it might even make you push the ones that you love away. Don’t let it.

Taking chances

nathanhcooper — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 01:32:18 +0000

as a continuation of my last post, i think that taking chances is the best way to live. if you were to die tomorrow what would you do today? this is how everyone should live their life. Do what scares you the most and do the things youve allways dreamed of doing. personally, im trying to live out my dream to become a professional musician. whatever your dream is, you should pursue it too. if its to be the best athlete in the world, than pursue it with all your might. if your criticizing my way of thinking because i should keep my focus on going to heaven, thats still there. the only thing you have to be carfull about is puting your wants before gods. whatever you need to do to make your dream come true, do it because you arnt getting any younger. plus not to be depressing or anything, but you could leave this world in the blink of an eye so take every chance cuz u never know where your going to end up