So, right now I am suffering from a severe canker sore(s). I bit my lip, and it was all downhill from there. Please pray that I don't harm my mouth out of painful frustration. I would post a picture, but that might be too graphic for blogspot and I don't even know if my blog would get published.

I love Aerosmith with all of my heart. In fact, I kinda love them the same way that God loves them. I know that they are pretty much the poster children for sex, drugs, and rock and roll, but I love them anyway. There's really nothing they could do to seperate them from the love of Jesus Christ or Justin Giglio. In fact, I am in the middle of collecting every album they have released. I believe it is around 27 in all. Anywho, its safe to say that I've been on a bit of an Aerosmith binge. Consequently, I've been doing some research and poking around their website(s) checking out stuff. I ran across an article on Steven Tyler the other day that made me think. The title of the article is: "Aerosmith's Steve Tyler has Quit Drugs, but not Sex or Rock ‘N’ Roll". In the article, Tyler is quoted saying, "Here's to hell. May we have as much fun there as we did getting there." I work with a guy that has the same outlook. It's almost as if these guys take pride (well, they do) in their lostness. They kinda have this "too late to turn back now, and I wouldn't even if it wasn't" kind of mentality. For some reason, I feel like that is a cheap-shot to my masculinity. It's almost like they're saying "we're man enough to handle hell, and you're taking the easy way out". That bothers me.

My feelings were SO summed up in a passage from 1 Kings. King David is dying. He is on his death bed and he calls for his son Solomon. He wants to talk to his son one last time, and he gave him this charge:

"I am about to go the way of all the earth. So be strong,

show yourself a man,

and observe what the Lord your God requires:

Walk in His ways, and keep his decrees and commands,

His laws and requirements, as written in the law of Moses,

so that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go."

1 Kings 2:2-3

I love that David equated being a man with obeying God. It takes a real man to die to himself and take up his cross. It takes a real man to love deeply. This passage makes Steven Tyler seem very foolish. Any man can make love while he's drunk and high to a woman he has never met. But a it takes a real man to commit himself to one woman and for her to stand alone in his heart and in his thoughts. So, here's to heaven, and not only the fun we had- but the strength it took to get there.

I still love Aerosmith though...