"I Tried...?"

Just a quick run through on how the past months have been. Spent the summer in Panama City, Fl with 50 great people growing in our walks. We weren't there to be turned into "supersaints", but we were there to get an understanding and a heart for people who do not know the Lord, and we were given practical ways to share the Word of Christ to people. All the while growing and understanding God on a personal level.

Back to Troy for the semester. What a change of heart since last semester. I could go on for hours just how God has worked in my heart. What I'm most thankful for that God- Creator of everything we see around us loves us? WHAT!?!? That is amazing. He would love little ole Darin. Can't understand, but am thankful for that. I'm going into way too much, and if you've read the title of this post "I Tired" you're probably thinking that I have not mentioned anything about trying. But it sets the stage to what I'm about to write. Here we go..

Tonight, we had Crossroads. It's through Campus Outreach here at Troy. We discuss spiritual issues that college students face and the reality that our years in college will set the stage to what will come forth later on in life i.e decisions we make, what path we choose etc... But in other words, it's a laid back place to come in; listen and talk with "normal" people about life. Great time all around. Love the leaders and the students who are involved. Tonight really rocked my world. We had a man by the name of Tim come in and talk to us. He has been endowed with a gift of evangelism. And he is mighty good at it. God has blessed us with his gift here at Troy. He brought the message home tonight and hit me to the core. He gave a powerful word and as he stood up there, within the first 30 seconds he stood there and said, "What I am about to tell you, will be offensive to some of you and I'm sorry for that." Powerful words, his boldness in saying that was intense. As he worked his way through his talk he said:

• If you were to die and stand in front of God and He asked you, " Why should I allow you in My Kingdom"? What would you respond with.
• On a scale from 1-10, what is your assurance that you will be allowed to enter the gates of Heaven.

Here's where the "I tired" part comes in. I answered the first question with Lord, I tried my best and gave it my all, I slipped up a lot and dropped the ball many times so to say.

Tim went on to say that you can keep saying I'll do better and keep getting better. Eventually there will be a point where you gave it your best.

"All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags."
-Isaiah 64:6

I Sat there and it hit me like a brick, If I say God I tired my hardest and labored for you till I could not anymore, that is all but filthy rags. My perspective of what I was doing was wrong. Trying to work for God's love and his favor doesn't work.

• "For it is by grace you have been saved- and this is not from yourselves, it is a gift of God- not by works, so that no one can boast"- Ephesians 2:9

There is only one way to become clean in God's eyes. This way was stretched out on a cross, beaten by the fits of man, sheared by whips and nailed through His hands and feet. The blood of Christ is the only way to be seen clean in God's eyes. Wow! What a great thing God showed me while sitting in that chair hearing this.

I will try and continue you to keep up with this blog, as with every college student in the world, we just get caught up doing other things and are busy.

You stay classy world
-Darin Chancellor

Trying to figure out Life.. Key word Trying

Great night with a crazy event that happened that made me think big time. Got to spend some time with 3 great people. Adam, Evan and Brendon. Great time.. sitting around a fire on the deck chatting about life. But before we got to that point, we went cruising in the jeep. We passed what looked like a gravel road then decided to bust a U-Turn and check out what was down there- thinking it was a road. Here's where the story gets crazy. We pulled down this "road" and saw a pond that was fenced off and we sat in the jeep for about 15 seconds and then pulled a 3-point turn and got outta there. Alright next thing we see when we get to the main road is a dude running down the side of the road with a shotgun in his hand telling us to get the "F" off his property. We were like whoa whoa we are getting off of it.

We got out of there and just pondering what just happened and going through the "What If's

• What if we parked?


• What if he slipped and pulled the trigger?

This lead me to start to think about death.. Tough subject to start with, but at the point that it becomes a possibility kinda crazy. The truth about it is that we will face it... Rich, poor, black, white, male, female, famous not famous.. It's one thing that everyone will have to face one day. Could be tomorrow... next week, who knows it's in God's hands and not ours. This brought us on the topic of, what am I doing with my life:

• What do I want my life to develop into?


• What do I want to see done in these short years I have on this earth?


• Do I want to pursue my Political Science degree... or I want to do ministry?

It's hard not letting your emotions get in the way of what God has planned for us to do. I thought I had it all figured out. Air Force ROTC at Troy for 2 years and then Air Force after that and possibly make a career out of it. Nope didn't happen that way. "That's what I thought I wanted to do, how and why didn't it happen?" If I wanted it to happen, surely God wanted it too.

It was a great night in setting my mind right and to start really praying about what God has planned for me instead of thinking that I can figure it out myself. Time for me to start walking the walk instead of talking the talk."To fully understand what it means to be a man of God."

-Darin Chancellor

"The Road Not Taken"

"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth."

-Robert Frost

So this is my first blog. If you would have told me if I would have been "blogging" a year ago, My response would have been, You're crazy I will not become one of those bloggers." And if you're reading this... I'm eating my words because here I am typing away giving it a whirl.

Robert Frosts quote fits perfectly with my life right now. As a recent born again Christian (October 2008), I look back at my old lifestyle and wonder why I did the things I did and catch myself thinking of the times I had ... I went for a walk in the woods down from my house -what a walk it was! There's something about being surrounded by nature and getting away from the craziness of life that is unexplainable. As I was walking, I talked to God, asking him to keep his promise of never letting his children walk astray and to start opening doors for my future and a few other things that I can't tackle on my own.

Back to the quote from the poem. On my walk, I came to a Y in the path. I stopped and I looked to the right, then to the left. To the right I saw a fairly easy path with no sticks laying on the ground or shrub overhead, this path would also lead me back to the way that I came. Then I looked to my left and saw that there were sticks blocking the path, this path would lead me to some place new. As I stood there, Frosts poem came to mind, but also another thought came to mind.
I saw that path as the life I am in right now.. Do I want the easy way with no sticks to jump over or brush to duck under... Or do I want to challenge myself and walk down the path where I have to jump, duck and fight my way through... I let out a little laugh, said Thank you Lord and choose the left path.

As I took the left path, I looked back at that path to the right (Cleared and easy) and saw that as my old lifestyle. Easy living, (milking mom and dad for money, going through life thinking I knew how to solve all the problems, living for drinking and partying).. Here I am 7 months later, satisfied that I don't walk down that path anymore and that I've chosen a path that brings me closer to my Creator and Savior.

There are times when I look back and say man "those days we're fun and wild." That was me looking back to the path that lead right... Here I am and that path is behind me and now. The path I am trecking on will bring challenges of unknown-- challeneges that I am ready to jump duck and fight for!

-Darin Chancellor