Good Life

About a year and two months ago, I went with the Vacation Club of Greater Oklahoma to Las Vegas for a 4th of July getaway. Chet, Lindsey, Malori and I headed west to enjoy some pool time, eating, and just getting away from Tulsa. But the real reason we went was to see One Republic in concert at the Mandalay Bay. Honestly, at the time, I couldn't name a song they sang. I was going for the company. Chet gave me a CD a few months before we went so I could hear and learn some of their songs. The only one I managed to get through was one I actually knew- "Too Late to Compromise", or "Apoligize". So....I didn't really know what to expect other than a great time with friends. We didn't even really go to gamble, although I budgeted (for you Malori) 75 dollars in which I played roulette with. I lost the money, and I think Malori's eyes about fell out of her sockets at the pace that I did lose said money. But other than that, it was strictly a leisurly trip. On Saturday night, we headed over to Mandalay Bay, and told the taxi driver how big of fans the other 3 were. We got settled on the artificial beach....and when they started playing, it felt like a combination of Dave Matthews and Maroon Five combined. The band was incredibly talented. One song that they sang stuck out to me- "Good Life". Now, remember, this was July of 2010. When we got back to Tulsa, I kept the CD Chet let me borrow for several more months, and I kept playing that song over and over. I kind felt like it was mine, and few others knew or heard of it other than the die-hard One Republic fans. Ironically, about 6 months later in March, I stopped by Choctaw Casino (just to use the bathroom and get a free DP). I went out to their pool area and they have these big comfy chairs you can sit and relax in. It was a gorgeous 70 degrees, and as I was sitting there with my eyes closed enjoying the nice break from being in the car, "Good Life" came on. It turns out they released it as a single, and became one of I Tunes most downloaded songs, and its played all the time on the radio now. Almost too much. I'm kind of being selfish, as it was my song before the rest of the world had to discover it. However, the lyrics and music....I can't put my finger on it, but it lures you in. I dedicate this as Jeff's 2011 song. I've had some great times being 30, as well as disappointments. There are some areas of my life I feel are stalled out. In other areas I have grown. Sometimes I feel closer in my relationship with Chirst, while other times I feel like I'm still a child in my faith in areas. I've made some new, dear friends in 2011 in whichI am so thankful. Some friendships have changed dramatically, despite my efforts to hold them together. Others I might have let go without intention. There are days I feel I do very well at my job, and other days, I'm frustrated that I am not moving up faster. However, I need to remember that its going to be a good life. I don't know if One Republics' members are believers, but I'm certain God has my life in control, and with that, I can rest assured He will be with me on the journey.

What a Thursday!

Last Thursday, I met my Uncle Scott at Shades of Brown for a coffee around 5:30 after work. It was nice to catch up with him and see how things were going, and to enjoy a grasshopper. I have two great aunts and uncles. Being by Scott and Vicky has been such a blessing, as they invite me over to eat, go to their lakehouse, etc. Its nice having that family connection so close when the rest of my family is in Texas. Anyway, after grasshoppers, I headed south for Blake's birthday at Los Cabos on the Jenks Riverwalk. When I arrived, I noticed an entorage sitting next to our two tables. It turns out Marie Osmond was sitting behind us. She looked like she had some work done but she definetely had lost some weight. I ended up sitting back-to-back with her, and I laughed to myself, since I have had my share of celebrity run-ins lately. It was so random to see her there, but she had a show at the casino the next night. After dinner, Chet, Linds, Natalie and I headed over to Yolatti by the riverwalk. At 9:30, we drove over for some bowling. It had been about 4 years since I had last bowled, and it could not have been more fun. For some reason, I had the best scores in my life. I bowled a 124 the first round, then a 143, then a 150 on my final round. My friends were giving me a hard time because of my "windup" and follow-through but it obviously worked well. It was such a blast hanging out with them and just having a good time. I took Chet back to his car after bowling, and several girls had tagged it with random messages. Ok, headed to bed, as I am going to Little Rock tomorrow for the day....goodnight!

Ready for football!

Friday night Baylor plays TCU down in Waco on ESPN to start their college football season and I'm getting pumped. Sic'em Bears!!! I am having some people over to watch it and eat some fajitas early in the evening. I've loved Baylor my whole life, and especially football. Wes Cash had invited me to join him in Waco, but can't make it this weekend. We made a bowl game last year and went to the game. Hoping for a 7-5 season so we can make another bowl. I'll be there for Homecoming to see them play Missouri. I remember listening to the games on WBAP 820 growing up, and even remember crying when they lost a close game to A&M- I was that invested. Anyway, not much else to say tonight. Ready for the weekend.

FB Detox, Friends and my plans for next week...

3 Things on the top of my mind tonight....
1) This summer, JD, one of my friends from church, has been leading us on a Wednesday night study on "Spiritual Disciplines." Its been really a great study. One of the nights was on simplicity. He challenged us to simplify our lives. Another week was on fasting- deciding to give up something and instead spend time in prayer or scripture. I chose facebook, an almost necessary evil. I deactivated my account on 8.22 and its been quite a difference. I haven't missed it as much as I thought I would. Its odd though, as sometimes I will subliminally start typing facebook.com before I even realize it. Each time, I try to spend time in prayer. I think really decided to follow through with it to seek out God's direction for my life. So many times, I've gotten caught up in others' lives virtually, with envy and/or jealousy. I see my friends at different life stages and I want this or that. Anyway, I'm doing well with being of FB. I have been reading some of my close friends' blogs, and its been nice to see into their hearts. I plan on re-activating my account a month from now, but until then, ignorance is bliss, and I didn't realize how much time I spent on facebook.
2) God has brought some stellar people into my life in Tulsa. One of those friends is my buddy Chet Wilson. We meet for iced tea at McAlisters at least twice a week. I really admire Chet for his authencity,frankness, and his loyalty. I met him through some church friends a while back at the good ole' Caravan (country-western dance place), and I thought at first he really didn't care for me as a friend. We laugh about this now, but he agrees with that statement. We talk about girl situations, our faith, and tons of random things. Chet doesn't let you throw a pity-party. He usually offers advice, and tells you to grow up and get your butt in gear. He's also a man of his word. When he says he is going to do something, he does it. He is a good road-trip buddy, as I've been on group trips with him to Sam and Ellas (pizza place in Talequah) countless times, as well as Pops, a Route 66 gas station where you can eat and get all kinds of great sodas. He's been there for me this year through lots of laughs, spin classes with Trina, runs around La Fortune, and even some tough times where I just needed someone to talk with. I am headed to London, Paris and Italy with him and Kyle Young, another friend, in October. They haven't been to Europe before, so it should be a blast! Chet is wise beyond his years, and am very thankful for this friendship.
3) Next week, I am going to do a bunch of random things for friends...I won't elaborate but should be fun!

This past weekend

I can't believe May is already here. It doesn't feel like it. Its been in the 40s and 50s for the past couple of days. I had a really nice weekend. Friday, I went with Chet, Bobbi, Amanda Willie and a new friend Kyle down to Pop's on Route 66 near OKC. It was really a great time. If you haven't been, I would highly encourage it. Its a gas station with about 500 kinds of sodas, and it also serves food as well. It was built by the CEO of Chesapeake a few years ago. Its kind of a throwback to the old Route 66 days, but also looks modern if that's possible. I drove the group down there and we enjoyed some nice cherry-limeade slushes as we waited for a table to open up. We hung out on the grass and got to know one another better. Kyle played on the TU basketball team, and seems to be a really cool guy. I knew Bobbi and Chet well, but we played "speed friendship" during the night, and always learn more each time. I had a buffalo burger along with whole fried okra. The burger was great, but I prefer the cut fried okra. After dinner, I bought some Cheerwines and a few orange sodas and we came back home. It was nice to get away from Tulsa for a little bit. Saturday was pretty relaxing. I woke up about 11 am. That evening, I celebrated the fact that I paid off my car and and now debt free! You don't know how good it feels to have no debt (except the house). I will never buy a car with credit again.   Sunday, I went to church, then ate dinner with a new friend from church who just moved to Tulsa. I took him to Fuddruckers and we had some good conversation. Sunday night, I went over to Lindsey's house and had pizza with her, Chet, Kevin, and Natalie. I like it over there because it brings back some great memories of when I first became friends with all of the LifeChurch people. We went over there after a Valentine's dinner. There are many times I wish everything was just like it was then, but that's not how life works. People move on. I headed home afterwards, got some coffee at Cherry st, and headed home to get ready for the week. I'll try to blog more often. Its a good outlet!

Saturday's Thoughts

Ahh... today I woke up at 12:30. It had been a while since the last time I did that, but it felt really nice to sleep in. I went up to the mall to get some new shirts as well as look for a few new hats. It's been a while since I bought anything for myself, and found some clothes at Banana Republic, J Crew and Fossil. At 6, I headed up to El Tequila for a birthday party for a friend in my small group named Lindsay. Afterwards, we went over to Brookside for a swing dance that they have every Saturday. It was fun, and got to see many friends there who I hadn't seen in a while, notably Sarah Spelth, Suz Winnie, Laura Bower, Zach Vincent and others. I stayed there til 10, then headed over to Cheesecake Factory where I met up with some other friends for dessert. I had Dulce de Leche cheesecake. It was awesome. Afterwards, I headed back home where I am now.
As a side note, I'm not sure anyone actually reads my blog, as its not published on my facebook, and been forever since I started really writing again. However, its been nice to have an outlet to talk about things going on, so I will continue to write even if no one is reading it. I don't care if anyone knows who I am, and I am certainly not writing this blog for some eloquent thought-provoking reading. Its just me being open with what's going on in the life of Jeff. All I really want to do is live my life to please and honor the Father, that should be enough. I don't care about new cars, big houses, trendy churches, what friend group or how many friends I have. Are those things nice and make you feel "good"? Yes, of course, but I've learned it doesn't satisfy. Too many times I have put my hope and faith in others, but we humans are going to fail, disappoint, and deceive one another with words and actions, as hard as that is to accept. People say one thing and do another. I've done it to others in the past. Or maybe its just putting too high of expectations on relationships. The only truly sustaining thing we have is Christ. I've been reading in Romans the past week. Actually, Jay and I challenged each other to read a chapter of Romans and a chapter of Psalms each day as a way to stay in God's word. I'd love to be able to talk about how God spoke through each daily reading, but its been difficult to get together with that frequency. The one verse that stood out to me today was one that I actually learned in Bible Drill- Romans 5:8. "And God demonstrated his own love to us, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." When I read that verse again, the words "own love" stood out to me. God loves us with more abounding love than anyone can have for us. He loved me so much to die for ME- Jeffrey Edward Moss. That's a humbling thought.I think keeping a journal of what God is speaking to me each day may be the best option. Romans has so much meat. It seems each time I read a chapter again, I get something else out of it. Anyway, that's enough for tonight. Its been a very quiet weekend. I think i'll head to bed before midnight again. I plan to make it a great night.

A Side trip

"Wanna get away?" I love those Snickers commercials from a couple of years ago, especially one where a guy painting "Chiefs" in the end zone realized he wrote "Chefs" instead. I used to not mind at all being alone. In fact, I was overly independent and didn't need to be around people all the time. Maybe I was just fooling myself into believing that. Over the past couple of years, I have loved being around people, and feel like God has blessed me with some incredible friends in Tulsa, as well as maintaining those in Texas. There are times, however, when I feel like I need to escape from the daily grind and spend some time alone. Its a refuge to get away from the stress and frustrations as well as to listen to how God wants to speak to me. Most times, I head west. I think its the idea of open praries, rugged terrains, and adventure. Recently on a trip back from Enid, I decided to be random and exit Highway 9, which goes north right by Lake Keystone into Osage County. After driving through Cleveland, I took some roads with a point to get somewhat lost. I drove past several miles hilly terrain and it quickly felt like I was all alone in the Oklahoma wilderness. I turned off again to a windy road and parked the car. We had been blessed with some very mild late January weather, and it was sunny and in the 60s. I stayed out there for about an hour praying, thinking, and just letting God speak to me. Its sometimes difficult for me to focus when I'm in my comfort zone of home and familiarity. Being away from it all, though only 31 miles from Tulsa, let me recharge my batteries and just relax and renew in the midst of the Father's creation. I should remember to take some time every once in a while to be proactive in being alone- a retreat to learn, grow and listen to how the Father wants to direct and speak to me.