My Incredible Revelation

I really hope this blog will encourage you. My suggestion for reading this blog is first watch the first 2 minutes of the 30 min clip from. Mark Cahill clip below, then play Keith Green’s song as you read the blog.

 

My life story is simple. I grew up in church, never did anything “bad,” and still in the same church 19 years later. I went through the motions, heard the preaching, and at age 13 I dedicated my life to Christ. But four months ago my life changed dramatically. I was now 19 and in college. I was doing well. I had aspired to go into Public Relations, and eventually go into politics, despite KNOWING God wanted me to become a preacher.

Something crazy happened in January. I can’t remember when but, I remember going to sleep one night and recalling a Christian video I had seen many times. The video is called “Late one Night.” The gist of the movie is a young man known as Larry, walks into a restaurant with his friends. He meets another man there, who Larry calls “Jesus” in mockery. Larry is a troubled man, who has a lot questions. (to see the movie online free go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZt23sdtjQI  there are 4 parts)  

The line that caught me was when he says “If Christian’s really believed in Hell, they would keep everyone from going there.” (part 2 on youtube 6:55-7:10) I woke up with that one line for nearly a week.  I knew God wanted me to tell witness at my college. “But God, EVERYONE here knows me,” I argued. “Okay, okay I know about 300+ of the 13,000 students here at NVC.” I was sitting outside a coffee shop on campus. I got this weird revelation as I sat outside, looking as the students went by me.

“There are 13,000 students on campus; more than 8,000 are headed to Hell. Brent, what are you doing about it?”

That revelation felt like a punch in the stomach. I immediately decided I was going to change that. After three days of praying about it, I felt God wanted me to witness to people at the bus stops.

In the six weeks I have been doing this outreach, I have been able to help lead seven people to Christ. After my second week on doing this outreach, I got inspired and purchased a megaphone from Ebay. I then took it across street from a local high school and exercised my freedom of speech. (In case you’re wondering, police have come, but just watched us, saying nothing). There, we have the opportunity to reach more than 100 students that are sitting in front of school.

I write this not to boast, rather I write this to encourage you to look beyond yourself and witness! There is a world out there that is dying without Christ. What are YOU doing to keep people from going to Hell?

NOTE: According to US Census 1.8 people die per second = 108 per min= 155,060 per day.

I plan to continue to write a series of post for the next few weeks on the subject of witnessing including some “starting ideas for beginners,” “overcoming fear,” “what the laws are” and anything else I think that can help my readers.

I encourage your ideas, comments, and questions. For questions and ideas, please email me goforgod2@live.com .

My new Blog!

This is my first post in nearly two months. After January, I nearly lost my passion for writing. I had a hard time thinking and more importantly developing ideas for my blog.

I couldn’t figure it out. I have spent nearly the last five years writing my opinions out. In those five years the only struggle I had was, figuring which story I was NOT going to write. I prayed about it for the past two months and got the simple explanation.

When I began writing my freshman year I promised God “If You will make me a great writer, I will do it for You.”  For four years I kept that promise and God in turn helped develop me into a good writer.

My confession: I started this blog, and although I believe I have had some good topics, I was not doing for Him.

From now on, mreditor’s blog will have a “Christian” theme in every story I write. At the top of the page it now reads “your Independent Conservative Christian blog.”  I am excited about this new direction I am taking. I hope you will enjoy it too.

Don’t sweat the small stuff!!

First HAPPY NEW YEAR. I decided to take a small break from writing, and focus on relaxing before school started up again.

Two months ago I began really relaxing. I became really happy, and less irritated. “Don’t Sweat the Small stuff!” began jumping out of my mouth when giving advice.

I read the book “Don’t sweat the small stuff” by Richard Carlson about five years ago. I honestly don’t remember any of it except the title which speaks for itself. The book is about not letting the small problems in your life cause you stress.

I really got that revelation last year after facing some tough times in my life. Life seemed to be getting hard for me. I then got the revelation “Brent you’ve lived for 19 years, you don’t have a disease, you live in a nice house, have attended great school, and couldn’t ask for better friends. Brent, compared to most people your SPOILED. So why are you stressing over the SMALL STUFF; or things that can be fixed.

So many times we can let the small things “get to us.” We want to get angry, and upset over the small things.  We blow our temper, our testimony, lashing out at people for making simple mistakes.

Let me offer some balance… Yes it IS OKAY to get angry. We are all humans and have emotions. I believe we just have to learn to control them.

Many people have made New Years resolution. I urge you to make this your resolution; To try to stop sweating the small stuff. You will feel so much better. I guarantee it.

NOTE: THIS ADVICE IS FROM A 19 YEAR OLD. I DO NOT HAVE A PhD. I UNDERSTAND I HAVE LIVED FOR ONLY A SHORT TIME, AND THEREFORE HAVE LITTLE EXPERIENCE. Hopefully I have made some valid points people can take from.

Many thanks

On July 21, I wrote a thanks to my readers for reaching the 100 views mark. As of now, I have been viewed 1,020 times, which surpassed my goal of 1,000 views by Dec. 12 (my birthday).

Some facts- I written 27 post, 10 pages, and had 48 comments by my readers. Also if you Google search “mr editor blog,” my blog will appear at the top!

My blog has been read around the world, from India, to USA to the troops serving with my father in Afghanistan.

Thanks for your support.

Brent Harris

Senior Editor & writer of www.mreditor.wordpress.com

Recycle is my Business

Over the past three weeks, I have been asked what I do for my job? To make it simple, I clean out the big green outdoor recycle bins around Northwest Vista College. I wish my job was as easy as it sounds. Here is what a typical day for me:

I clean 35 of these three times a week

I first walk around to all 35 recycle bins to see how full they currently are.  After that I clean out the bins that are halfway and completely full.

We do NOT recycle trash. Trash for us includes styrofoam, Whataburger bags, and other junk. The average bin is 30% full of trash, which I clean out while using gloves. We also DO NOT recycle liquids. If a coke bottle still has some coke in it, I must dump it into the grass.

After I clean out the bin, I replace the bag if I need to,  then I take it to a green toter station where Vista Fibers comes and picks those up once a week.

This bag is halfway full

After I have finished that, I usually take a break. I then usually see if the indoor bins need to be cleaned out. We have two guys that do indoor recycle, and I do the outdoor.

It’s a great job. I really enjoy doing it. I must say, my favorite part of my job is telling people to put out their cigarets because its illegal to smoke on campus. Last week I had to call Campus Police because two guys weren’t taking me seriously. I walk around with a big walkie-talkie, looking like Very Important Person.

My boss is great, she sets my schedule that really works for me. Hopefully you now understand what I do for a living: that is, while I’m still in college.

Trash mixed with recycle. I have to hand-pick it out.

This is where I bring the full recycle bags

College vs High School

When I first started this blog, I asked for topic ideas. My good friend Robert asked me to compare high school and college. I decided I would wait until I had a little experience before writing it.

First I must thank God. He blessed me with great professors, all of which I would take their class at any moment.

I am now one final exam short of completing my first semester. So here are the differences:

First I only went to college 13 hours a week compared to 35 hours in high school (excluding lunch). I also only went Mon-Thurs, 8 am-10:45 am everyday instead of Mon-Fri 8:50 am-4:05 pm.

I spent a lot of my studying time at the NVC (Northwest Vista College) library. Speaking of the library, they have very few picture books here. I needed a simple book on planets, and everything they had was like Astrology or “Is Pluto really a planet?” I ended up borrowing a high school book from a friend. Thanks Bethany

I think I wrote more papers in high school (journalism) but it would be close. i finished this semester writing  about 25 pages on about 8 assignments. i enjoy writing so it was no big deal.

Something that was completely different was for two days i was up for 36 hours most of the time writing a paper. At one point during that time, i started at 9 pm, went to sleep at 5:30 am, woke up at 7:30 am, showed up at NVC at 7:55 in time for my 8 am class. I NEVER STAYED up past 12 am studying in High School. I must admit, I enjoyed every second. I felt like an official college kid.

I also went on 3 times the field trips in one semester at NVC than all my years at Stevens High combined! I finished this semester attending about 18 field trips.

A thing that is hard for me to comprehend right now is the friendships. NVC encourages professors to allow their students to work in groups. Saying that, I built good friendships with students these past 16 weeks. It was hard saying goodbye to them. Almost like my last day of high school. 

I NEVER thought I’d say this, but i actually enjoyed my first semester. I start the spring semester with 25 hours. i am looking forward to the 15 hours I plan on taking.

Thank you Veterans

I have written a thank you post. Please read the above page or click http://mreditor.wordpress.com/veterans-thank-you

Saying yes to LIFE

This summer on a flight to California, the movie “Yes Man” was shown. The movie stars Jim Carrey as Carl Allen, a man who is always saying NO to to trying new things. Carl ends up going to a seminar where the director teaches about saying yes to life. ” You say no to life, therefore you aren’t living,” he tells Carl during the seminar. For the rest of the movie, Carl says YES to EVERYTHING. The list includes bungee jumping, hosting a bridal shower, learning Korean, learning guitar and much more.

How it relates to my life

One of my biggest fears is failure. Therefore, I had the idea, do something your good at and you will have fewer mistakes. I have hindered myself from doing many things for the fact that I didn’t want to be embarrassed should I mess up.

After watching the movie, I decided I would say “Yes” to more opportunities. For example, I have now been playing bass guitar for a year. I only knew the chords on the first two strings. I was afraid to even attempt to learn the other two. Two weeks ago, I created my own bass chart, and made myself learn and practice using all four strings.

I now have many other ideas to try which inludes learning the basics of two languages other than english, go on a bke ride to another city and many more.

I write this to encourage people. Maybe your living in a same old routine. I encourage you, learn something new. Maybe its an instrument, or a sport, a hobby, or a language. If your older (like 99 years old) cast out the saying “you can’t teach an old dog tricks,” because you can do anything you set your mind to. It might not be easy but I guarantee with enough practice, you can do it.

Stick to gov’t

Rep Joe Barton, R- of Texas is doing what Obama has been doing recently- getting involved in non-governmental issues. Barton has said he is issuing a bill that would wipe out the BCS that is seen by many as unfair. Is college football REALLY that important now? If the government goes along with this bill, expect the government to take over the NBA, NFL, and probably even  the Little League World  Series.

Barton, you have way to much time on your hands. The nation is battling health care, in the middle of a war, and all you care about is College football. Maybe when you get out of office you can worry about this, but untill then, stick to government.

Cowboys vs. Texans- my debate

If you have not read Bob Richter column that appeared in Sunday’s paper, please do so prior to reading the rest of this post. You can read it at http://www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/Giving_Cowboys_their_due.html.

As Richter wrote in his story, I got in a nice debate with the Express News Sports Editors. Below you will find a transcript of our debate…

FYI: I did not change the font sizes to make more or less emphasis. Worrdpress.com does not has an editing tool that changes the font size. Sorry if some of it is hard to read.

It started out with this:

Sent: Monday, October 19, 2009 9:04 PM
To: Richter, Bob; Lehman, Bradley; Pils, Douglas F; Kosub, LeAnna
Subject: Test failed

I recall reading several weeks ago in the Letters the Editor section about the Texans not being as prominent in the E/N as the Dallas Cowboys. I recall how Houston Texan fans complained about the lack of coverage. 

I must admit I am a Texan fan. I have been since they moved to Houston. 

When I found out the Cowboys weren’t playing on Sunday OR Monday, and that the Texans had beaten the Bengals, I asked somebody “Do you think the Texans will be on the front page of the Sports section?” Of course I knew it was a rhetorical question. The Cowboys weren’t playing for a week, and the Texans had won.

 

When I looked at Mondays paper i was SHOCKED. Not only were the Texans NOT on the front page, but the COWBOYS had somehow made it to the front page AGAIN! 

 

I am not your average reader. I am a former Editor In Chief of my HS newspaper, a former member of the your Teen Team, and a college student pursuing Journalism. 

 

In my five years of studying journalism, I have been taught that the bigger stories; the stories that connect with the audience, go on the front page. I truly believe Cowboy fans could have cared less where Tom Osborn story showed up in the E/N, however i believe that in this case the Texan story was the bigger story, especially since the Texans were predicted to lose. 

 

I encourage you to STOP being so biased towards the Cowboys. Look at your other audience perspective, and stop practicing this kind of journalism. Be an example.

 

Thank you for reading this,

 

Brent Harris

He responded with:

Sent: Tue, October 20, 2009 2:35:18 PM
Subject: RE: Test failed

Dear Mr. Harris,

 

I can see why you’d consider Monday’s paper to be a “test failed.” However, I think there’s a difference between bias and prudent coverage.

 

We cover the Cowboys but not the Texans in part because we found out that the local TV ratings for Cowboys games are nearly three times as high as for Texans games. That’s also the reason why we give the Cowboys better story play.

 

Even so, on a week when the Texans defeated a good Bengals team and the Cowboys didn’t play, why would we still lean toward the Cowboys? Tom Orsborn, our Cowboys writer, addressed the central issues facing Dallas in a column that we think was unique on a day of plenty of game coverage. So we chose the Cowboys, again.

 

When the Saints played several of their games in San Antonio the year Hurricane Katrina rendered the Superdome unusable, we received complaints about our Saints coverage from people who said this city was Cowboys country. There is a strong fan base here.

 

We do regularly pick up Texans stories from our sister paper, the Houston Chronicle. And we will have a difficult decision about story play if the Texans make a playoff push but the Cowboys don’t.

 

But we have considered the perspective of our audience, and that’s exactly why we focus on the Cowboys.

 

Brad Lehman

 

So then I wrote back a little bit harsher

  

To: Lehman, Bradley; Richter, Bob; Pils, Douglas F; Kosub, LeAnna
Subject: Re: Test failed

  

And that was it. Brad Lehman I think was professional in the way he responded. I DID sent him another small e-mail asking about maybe the Texans getting the back page when it is available. He has yet to respond.

 

My goal was as a friend said “was to stir up the water.” To make people think. Also to encourage to watch how the Express News covers topics, and to keep them in “check.”

First, thank you for quick response.

 

Can I be honest, I read the metro and Section A (world, national, news) in more detail than the sports page. So as I read your answer I am reminded of a story Bob Richter wrote nearly a year ago. It was a story on the news coverage of Obama, and McCain. In his story if I recall correctly he wrote how many times each candidate appeared on the front page, how many times they received a color picture ect. As I recall, the Express News did a very good job of balancing the coverage.

 

So how does that relate to Cowboys vs. Texans? Obama had the higher numbers not only in the US but also in San Antonio. However that did not stop your News editors from balancing the coverage right? In Austin Obama won by nearly 30 percent and in Dallas by 16 percent, both stats according to the NY Times. I assume each city newspaper did their job at providing balanced coverage and if they didn’t, shame on them.

 

So if a newspaper can provide balanced coverage of a president candidate, how much easier than can it be to do it for two NFL teams that play in the same state?

 

I think about if I was in YOUR position. What would I do? I want to be bi-partisan correct? Yet I still know I need to make money and sell the paper, and give my audience what they want.

 

So for your examples. The Saints deserved the coverage they got, they were local. It related to San Antonio. I agree the Cowboys deserve the MOST of the coverage they get. HOWEVER, as a sports editor I would be reminded Texas has two teams.

 

Texas longhorns have a much larger following in SA, than Texas A&M or Texas Tech, yet you can still see the latter two teams on the front page at least 3-4 times a season each.

I think about your quote “…we will have a difficult decision about story play if the Texans make a playoff push but the Cowboys don’t. ”

 

Can I be honest, that was very dumb to say to a journalist. I may not be a professional yet, but I guarantee I will quote you on that… maybe on my blog. It shows your biasedness or as you call it “ prudent coverage.” I am going to take that quote and expose you for who yall really are… a bunch of Cowboy fans who can’t practice the ethics of journalism.

 

Any REASONABLE newspaper would put the States playoff team on the front page, IF that city didn’t have a football team.

 

I also disagree with your statement ” Tom Orsborn, our Cowboys writer, addressed the central issues facing Dallas in a column that we think was unique on a day of plenty of game coverage. So we chose the Cowboys, again.”  You could have waited until Tuesday OR he could have published Sunday, which would have been better.

 

I am NOT asking for the Texans to be on the front page EVERY week. I am just asking top give credit, where credit is due, and most importantly, STOP, as you call it “prudent coverage” of the Dallas Cowboys

 

Thank you

 

Brent Harris

  

Then he responded again

  

Sent: Wed, October 21, 2009 2:21:32 PM
Subject: RE: Test failed

Mr. Harris,

 

The difference between our political coverage and our sports coverage is significant. In politics, people want to make a wise decision and don’t want the newspaper to taint it. In sports, people have already made up their minds and want their local Sports section to reflect their interest.

 

Also, there’s a difference in my mind between a “playoff push” — the last few games of a conference race in December — and the actual playoffs. I think you interpreted what I wrote as ignoring the Texans during the playoffs, which obviously would be silly.

 

As to our choice about when to run Tom’s column, you’re welcome to disagree with us.

 

But the Texans have been playing since 2002 and haven’t been to the playoffs. The Cowboys haven’t won a playoff game since 1996, but they have won five Super Bowls since they started playing in 1960 and they hold their training camp here. There’s a deep fan base here for the Cowboys, built over nearly a half-century.

 

It might take awhile for those fan allegiances to change. Or it could happen overnight, if the Texans make the playoffs and do well.

 

If that quick change happens, you’ll see a quick change in the way we handle Texans stories.

 

 

Brad Lehman

Sports Editor

San Antonio Express-News