http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org Matt Snyder the spirit of a vagabond - The World Race 2008 en-us Fri, 5 Sep 2008 21:49:37 GMT 30 http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=broken-in-five-minutes http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=broken-in-five-minutes Sometimes I get overwhelmed by the overload that my senses go through in a given amount of time.  Yesterday I think it all happened in the span of about maybe five minutes.  I'm not even sure that I can still grasp what really went on, let alone put it into words with a lot of grace. I went to the leper colony somewhere in Delhi with the group that normally goes.  I hadn't gone yet because I decided that I wanted to dedicate a week at a time to a particular ministry.  I have no idea.  I think I just can't keep my attention on something for too long these days.  Perhaps it's the heat.  But on our way we drove under a freeway and just like in the States, the nobody's were camped underneath.  My mind raced back to those times in college that I went to Houston, even back in Wichita, and gravitated towards these people.  Now I just stare like any other 'Joe' with a look of vacancy.  I almost feel helpless again. The lepe Tue, 26 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=malawian-adventures-preaching http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=malawian-adventures-preaching I miss Africa.  I can't seem to get over it.  Just last week I was watching this t.v. show with some of the other Racers where these two guys ride their motorcycles from England all of the way down to Cape Town.  They went through Malawi... and South Africa. It made me miss it... a lot. It also got me to thinking about Malawi and how much I loved it there, how my spirit just seemed to be ignited to life when we crossed the border.  Even when I think about Malawi I feel my spirit being stirred to new life once again.  I'm not saying that India's a drag... just saying that the "land of fire" definitely does something to you. We did a lot of preaching in Malawi, in fact, I think it would be safe to say that it was the bulk of our ministry while we were there.  We left the house about nine o'clock in the morning and travelled to various churches throughout the day, encouraging believers, and making new ones.  We'd return home after dark, Tue, 26 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=one-step-behind http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=one-step-behind There are so many times that I just think I could be doing better. I always feel like I could be doing that much more than what I already am. It's easy to walk these streets and feel like I'm a Christian who has it all together, that just because I've answered this call to travel the world and follow Jesus, I'm somehow above reproach, that I'm somehow better off than all of those others who still work their 9-5 jobs back in the States, miserable as hell. Sometimes I can't stand the things people say to me. A lot of times I want to turn and run when some of the people in these countries treat me like I'm a saint, like I'm some high and mighty guy whose riding into their Sunday morning service on a white stallion, ready to recuse them from their impending spiritual death. Most days I don't feel like a saint. In fact, most days I wonder if I really even have it as together as I think I do. Just a few days ago we were in some marketplace, called the "Bazar" market or Tue, 19 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=santa-claus-is-coming-to-india http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=santa-claus-is-coming-to-india   the tree is up, the fireplace lit and the countdown is on! get ready for the best christmas ever!     Wed, 13 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=shout-out-from-india http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=shout-out-from-india Yeah, I know I've been here almost two weeks and you haven't heard much but a peep out of me.  For that I apologize.  I just wanted to send a quick update letting you all know that I'm alive.  Here's a few things in a neatly numbered list that I want you all to know:   1. Mom - I love you.  2. Dad - I love you too. 3. Jessica - as you say sometimes, "I love you, but don't always like you." (I say this because I'm 10 1/2 hours away and you can't hit me...) 4. Brenna - gosh dangit I'm sorry. 5. I've been sick and it sucks. 6. Not sure if it was herpes, worms, or a fungus on my arm, but it's going away. 7. Indian food is good, though spicy, though good. 8. The peanut butter and milk here is funky. 9. Pizza Hut - still good. 10. Pray that sickness leaves our squad. 11. Loadshedding more than five times in six hours sucks. 12. Standing on the roof and shouting praises and prayer in a Hindu nation is fun. 13. Standing on the roof and watching Thu, 7 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=tears-of-expression http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=tears-of-expression I guess I just don't know where to really begin.  I'm not sure where things have started and where things have ended anymore.  It's such a vague reality that I find myself living in that, sometimes, it's too hard to really let gravity pull me down to face what I'm really staring at. I'm not in denial or anything else equally absurd; just numb to what I find around me.  I can't even get words on a page that express my feelings.  I can't even release what I need to release because I can't even find it within myself. For once the wordsmith is stumped.  And it's yet another harsh reality for myself to face.  The pages of my journal are riddled with empty lines that are hungering for ink to quench their thirst, but my spirit cannot satisfy what they crave.  It longs for the same thing.  Every time I turn to prayer I find myself mouthing words that I don't even understand or can't even get enough air behind to loft out of my soul.  Thu, 31 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=malawian-adventures-cribs http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=malawian-adventures-cribs Here's a blog that my teammate Becky Miller wrote.  I love this woman of God a lot.  I was pretty unfaithful in taking pictures this last month.  In fact, though I had my camera, I took none.  I didn't want to lug my hunkin' piece of awesome camera equipment around with me.  Plus, kids just want their pictures taken all of the time.  It gets tiring after awhile.  So I voided myself of that responsibility.  Therefore, all pictures of Malawi I attribute to my incredibly attractive and awesome girls.  The family that we stayed with was phenomenal!  We loved everything about them.  They live lives of love and ministry, and they were abnormally hospitable.  There's a lot we could learn from them.  So here's some pictures to give you an idea of where we were.  WE LOVED IT THERE and would NOT trade it for any other experience!  Enjoy...   This is our Home. We stayed with a local contact-Pastor Harvey, his Tue, 22 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=breathing-once-again http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=breathing-once-again I apologize for my slumber.  It's been over a month since I've updated you on the happenings of my ever-changing world.  I find my heart yearning to write again, longing to have itself poured out on to the page in a way to exhaust your imaginations from the creations my words flood it with, but in order to do so, that takes time which I'm finding is incredibly fleeting.  Just when I think I might have a few moments to really express myself, it turns into mere seconds and seems like a waste of my time.  I hate half-hearting blog posts because I know how incredibly powerful they can be.  It's potential energy waiting to be unleashed onto unsuspecting spirits gasping for air.   That's how I might would have described myself the last month or so, that is, gasping for air.  Day in and day out I was waiting for the Spirit of God to come and breath new life into me, a chanced opportunity to walk in a fresh anointing - daily.  It's a challenge to press Sun, 20 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=walking-on-water http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=walking-on-water So we are officially the best World Race team out there and perhaps the one with the greatest faith, enough that enables us to look like fools and walk on water.  We're a determined team who knows that this can be done.  This is the first of many attempts.  We see it as merely being practice.  May God have all the glory!  ** The giant of a kid with us is a dude named Austin.  He's a 16 year old from Kentucky that we adopted onto our team ** Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=being-a-witness http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=being-a-witness Let your light so shine before all men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is heaven. Matt 5.16 Ive been thinking a lot lately about letting our ministry flow out of our being.  Its easy to get caught up in trying to do things for Jesus to prove a point to people, to prove to them that were Christians or something else equally ridiculous.  Theres nothing to prove.  If we have to prove to people that were Christians, then maybe we should think about what were even reflecting in the first place.  Now Im not talking about it becoming a necessity that people identify us with those who go to church services every Sunday, read our Bibles, and stand on the street corners praying for the corrupt cities of America and comparing all of the corruption to their own holiness.  Those are Pharisees and our churches have done a good enough job in the past in raising those up.  Thank God that the younger generation (and olde Fri, 13 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=unofficial-element http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=unofficial-element I was gently reminded by the Lord today that I have this thing I like to call my element that I tend to gravitate towards, whether or not I want to recognize it as something official.  Im going to call it an unofficial element because I dont like to box myself in and claim that Im only good at one specific thing in life, plus, I often times find myself uncomfortable and stretched in places like it because in some ways, God likes to put me on the spot when I find myself in my unofficial element.  And by now youre probably curious as to what my unofficial element is.  I would be glad to tell you. Homeless people rock my face off. Thats not the element, but its centered around those kinds of people. We were introduced to this amazing ministry here in Nelspruit at this place called the Forum.  Its a homeless ministry that feeds guys both physically and spiritually.  It reminds me a lot of a ministry that I was a part of back home called Church on th Tue, 10 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=150-waiting-on-god http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=150-waiting-on-god In recent days I've taken a liking to the website Stuff Christians Like.  Basically, it's jam-packed with sarcastic humor and whit, critiquing Christian culture in the States in a fresh new way.  In fact yesterday I laughed my butt off.  The funny thing?  I'm so skinny I didn't realize I had one.  Anyway.  This particular post caught my eye and I thought I would share because it was kind of deep and somewhat shallowly heartfelt.  I'm feeling the vibe that I'm going to post a lot more in the near future... #150. Waiting on God Waiting on God is a good thing, but it can quickly evolve into just another form of the excuse, "let me pray about it." And to tell you the truth, I've received some great emails in the last few weeks asking me to address this issue.Rather than going over the steps on how to run and how to wait, I thought I'd share the three stories that kind of punched my understanding of waiting on God in the face:1. The silent bush. Mon, 9 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=wr-diy-breaking-in http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=wr-diy-breaking-in Our accommodation at Backdoor, South Africa is quite lovely.  Don't worry, you won't find a Hilton or Holidy Inn Express here.  In fact, you won't even find Backdoor on a map because to this world, it doesn't exist, which creates problems when you're trying to find a locksmith.One day this past week the girls decided to get the key stuck in their bedroom door and lock themselves out... with precious commodities locked in the room (like drinking water).  Terri and Sarah spent quite a length of time with some of the neighborhood boys trying to bust the lock, but to no avail, they couldn't seem to break in.  That's what pastors are for.Here are the girls, rather sad to be locked out.Pastor Clifford being sweet with a screwdriver and hammer; prying ever so forcefully into the doorframe.Just another angle... makes it easier.In the meantime, the girls make it look good.I decide to join in... because I make it look even better.Twice (and with my muscley arm in the shot)Bec Sat, 7 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=save-the-squad-leader http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=save-the-squad-leader Watch this video and support my brother, Rusty! Sat, 31 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=maxi-taxi-joe http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=maxi-taxi-joe Eagerly looking for a cab to take us back, I walked up to a red beat up four-door to see a sleeping man inside.  He startled himself awake trying frantically to pull himself out of the land of dreams and back into this harsh reality in an attempt to have a conversation with me.  I saw his struggle and gave him a few seconds before asking him if he was able to give us a ride.  He grunted his reply, "where to and how many of you?" "Eight," I said, "but you'll have to call another cab for us." "Give me a minute and I'll go get one."  He took off in his red "Maxi Taxi" and returned with another car.  He knew of the Brown Sugar, the backpackers that we're staying at.  I was relieved because I didn't feel like explaining to him how to get there because, well, I'm lazy.  On our way we struck up a conversation.  Our driver's name was Joe, and he actually owned "Maxi Taxi" and had been driving for the last 18 years.  It was Fri, 30 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=imachangin http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=imachangin I thought it would be cool to post a blog kind of telling you random things.  Nothing profound and nothing of great insight; just a few things that have changed about me. Coffee I miss real coffee with a passionate passion.  I know that's redundant, but I don't really care.  If you didn't know already, when you're in foreign countries, REAL coffee is almost non-existent.  I say almost because there are certain places that you can find coffee dripping from a filter its succulence beaconing your very taste-buds, screaming at your addiction.  Well my point is, I've had to adapt my drinking habits.  Instant coffee is rather disgusting by itself so, yes, against my better judgment I've - daresay - added things to my not-so-regular cup o' joe.  The girls could tell you about this sin I've been repeatedly committing.   They say they're proud of me.  I merely hang my head in shame because I now drink my coffee with crea Sun, 18 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=only-dancing-allowed http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=only-dancing-allowed I was standing there talking with Terri and Becky like it was no big dea... I was busy not being Kingdom-oriented unlike two others.  We were waiting expectantly for the Pneumatix's performace of "facebook' to begin.  There were high schoolers running around everywhere, seeing as we were standing in their school about an hour outside of Gordon's Bay.  Some of the Pneumatix students were mingling with the high schoolers or setting things up for the performace.Then we hear a girly squeel.  It wasn't the kind that beaconed from the soul, "God help me!" but instead, the rare melody of "God healed me!"  Our attention was drawn to the back of the auditorium to Fissy, one of the Pneumatix students, running towards us while Caroline and Sarah stood in the same doorway she emerged from in unbelief... but delight.  I have to be honest: I couldn't believe it myself.  This was the same girl who I had talked to moments earlier limping around with a cane!  I g Sat, 10 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=religion-kills http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=religion-kills "He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant - not of the letter but of the Spirit, for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." -- 2 Corinthians 3.6Sometimes I want to make a shirt that says "religion kills.' and see what people's reactions are.  It's merely for the shock-value and it's a great proponent into conversation.  And it seems that this has been a hot topic the last several years - from what I can muster up anyway.  It's a truth that everybody knows but Christians continually deny out of fear or comfort or something else equally ridiculous.I have to be honest before I go any further though: I just want to bash the snot out of religion and I would love to write a book telling about the failings of the American Church because it's so full of the religious spirit, but that's merely judgment and condemnation, and deep down, I'm not like that anymore.  I'm learning how NOT to point fingers but the subtlety of what I want to say is still going Sat, 10 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=an-apology http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=an-apology I really want to write whatever it is that's on my heart, but I'm having a hard time distinguishing between everything that's flitting through it.  I used to be able to write with such profoundness, with such an ability to discern what I needed to say or what I felt the Lord was prompting to say through me.  I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that I was in this system that I always saw as corrupt and failed that I was able to act very human towards it...  The Church in America.And I was able to bash it and criticize it and call out all of its faults; yet unconsciously I was calling forth everything in my own life that was a wrong, that clashed with the image I thought that the Church was supposed to be (or everything I thought that a Christian should be).  It's sad that I used to be that way and in some of the recesses of my heart, still am.  Now that I've been removed from that environment for several months, it's become harder and harder to trash-tal Mon, 5 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=luke-1039 http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=luke-1039 "She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said."-- Luke 10.39I have to admit that this verse intimidates me a little.  It's hard to want to just sit somewhere for however long someone is there, let alone at their feet, which probably smell bad or something.  But fortunately for me (says my Spirit man) and unfortunately for who I am (says my flesh-man), I get to do just that: sit at the Lord's feet.I know what you might be thinking - how long are you going to do that?  Well, I'm going to do it for however long the Lord tells me to, which at this point he hasn't told me to stop.  To be honest, I'm hating it right now.  I didn't want to come down here to Cape Town, South Africa in the first place but God called my entire team down here and we chose to remain obedient to that call.I decided to chart my journey with you, well, at least take advantage of the amazing internet connection here on the beach while I have it.  But Sun, 27 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=the-cereal-bowl http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=the-cereal-bowl "I just wanted to let you guys know, that I have a lot of respect for you doing this."-- Steve WrightWe're not always boring on the World Race. There's a lot that we do to have fun. One of them just happened to be a cereal bowl that we planned for the last several days. See, we don't have a lot of money, so we do what we can to adapt to the need. We decided to combine efforts and eat out of the same cereal bowl, so we grabbed a 7 Qt. bowl, two bags of milk, and an array of cereal and mixed it in the same pot. What do you get? The Cereal Bowl of course!We begin with adding the cereal and the milkAdd the spoonAnd dig in!Look at the hefty bite, Michelle...And of course you have to finish the milk off! Look at Becky chug (and chew)!Mark wanted in on that action tooAnd what's breakfast without coffee, right Caroline?Before you all comment and tell us how disgusting this was, you have NO idea how great the combination of cereal was. Michelle's thinking about marketing it to Kellogg's Mon, 14 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=the-crippled-church http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=the-crippled-church "Now a man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts."  -- Acts 3.2I realize that I write about beggars a lot.  It hopefully says something about how I feel about them; unfortunately, I wish my actions far more often reflected what was in my heart.  And perhaps they do because, well, a lot of times I'm good at being like the Church and doing nothing about what the Lord is whispering in my ear.  And I'm not saying that the Church doesn't have heart... okay... maybe in some way I am.I also recognize that I am not the standard for the Church and I can humbly praise God for that; however, I will speak of the awareness He has put on my heart.It's that we haven't changed much from the people going in and out of the temple courts in Acts.I find it interesting that they placed this crippled man at the gate of the Temple so he could beg from people going in and out, so Fri, 11 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=bring-rescue-to-swaziland http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=bring-rescue-to-swaziland Here's a little something that I pulled off of Jeff's blog, who pulled it off of Gary Black's blog.  I think it's really important to share.  I'll be in Swaziland in less than a week, so please read this and don't pass it off as another 'copy and paste' blog.  This is VERY IMPORTANT!  So take time to read it, please, thank you.This is from Gary Black's blog. He and his family are doing a lot to bring life to Swaziland, believing that this little country is a major key to bringing Africa out of poverty and raising up a generation of radical Christ-followers. Their resources are exhausted, and I think it's time that we as the Church stepped up to breathe life into this dying land. Let's figure out how we can all chip in to see this dream realized!Here is a list of what we need urgently and what will help us start educating the children and producing our self-sustainability projects... Most of Phase One is done - the church is planted, (see video), the commun Thu, 10 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=the-problem-with-love http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=the-problem-with-love Sometimes I feel this conviction that I stopped putting myself into the things that I write.  It takes too much out of me some days to sit down and pour my heart onto paper.  I know that people tell me time and time again that I need to let my heart flow through my pen, but sometimes it's just so hard to do because it truly is the yielding of the self to the page, much like it is yielding ourselves to love.This is something that God has been teaching me a great deal of lately: love.  And I suppose it is a good thing seeing as He is Love itself.  So not only am I learning how to walk in love, but I'm learning more about the character of my heavenly Father.  I suppose that's more important than anything else.  I think too many times our relationship with the Lord becomes really one-sided.  We focus so much on the 'me, me, me' of it that we forget about Him.  If you think about it, that's kind of unfair.  I came to this realization last week wh Wed, 9 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=family-love http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=family-love Tue, 8 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=clarifying-kims-words http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=clarifying-kims-words "But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christthe righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead."Phil. 3.7-11You MUST read this blog that my friend Kim wrote.  I think that there has been a lot of confusion as to what she meant by what she wrote.  So I wanted to take a minute and 'clear the air'.  This is for all of my blog readers and hers.  Here we go.  This is what she meant:Christ is better than her fam Sat, 5 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=april-5th-update http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=april-5th-update There's been a lot that's happened the last several weeks.  I wish that I was able to write every day just so you could keep up with what's going on.  In some ways, I rely on the other racers and pray that in some way, you're reading their blogs as well as mine so you know what's happening.  It's just difficult to find the time to sit down and really put a lot of energy into a blog.  So, once again, I'm going to give you a random update of what we've been doing and what has been happening here in Bolivia.Five other guys and I returned from our adventures in Chapare and Puerto, Bolivia.  We went down to the jungle to do some ministry that involved a lot of physical labor, which I was completely fine with.  We were with the rest of the squad in Chapare until yesterday.  I'll get to that in a minute.As a squad, we were putting the finishing touches on the orphanage in Chapare.  In all honesty, I'm not sure how we're supposed to spell the name of thi Sat, 5 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=love-in-a-pub http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=love-in-a-pub A haze of smoke blankets the dimly lit room of this unsuspecting basement.  On one side of it sits the church, gathered around one of its own who's desperate for release from bondage, who's hungering for something more than slavery that they long to be freed from.  So the church wraps its arms around them doing what it knows best in showing compassion and kindness.  Prayer fills the room.  Redemption takes over.  The haze of smoke merely becomes symbolic of the Lord's presence in this pub that's been caught off guard by something holy, something pure, by something that it's probably never experienced.  And as the body begins to surround each member in encouragement, love, and warm embrace, God's name is quietly exalted until it finally manifests itself into a song that travels up the stairs and into the dark corners of the bar.  His name fills more than voids of darkness, but also the empty chasm within hearts parched to know more, wh Wed, 19 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=theres-a-beauty-to-the-lord http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=theres-a-beauty-to-the-lord I like to try to write poetry, so I thought I'd share something I wrote in the Amazon: There's a beauty to the LORD, words cannot craft themselves into single thought to reflect. There's a joy His light radiates, joy that pierces darkness deep within me, cleansing me like white. There's movement within His breath, movement that sets me into motion, evoking a dance from weary feet. There's peace in the grip of His hand, peace that commands the fiercest of storm to slow and fade. O the goodness of my King, my Father, my Friend! May praise pour forth from my step; may my life be an imitation of that which I can't describe. You are strong and loving, Lord. Blessed be Your name. Wed, 19 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=world-race-morning http://matthewsnyder.theworldrace.org/?filename=world-race-morning Just to give you an idea Mornings usually tend to be pretty relaxed around here. They start softly because everyone is still sleeping when I wake up, but as life rises with dawn so does all of the sounds that accompany everyone's movements. It's your typical morning on the World Race. I'm one of those people that don't want to be bothered in the morning. Just, please, leave me alone for awhile so I have the chance to wake up before you start being "chipper". I have to have a cup of coffee and a bare minimum of fifteen minutes to pull myself out of the slumber' state or I might explode on you. Unfortunately for myself, I've had to adapt because that kind of luxury cannot be found on the World Race. This is why I attempt to rise before most everyone else - it gives me the opportunity to spare them from early morning attitude. And while I would love to escape anything that resembles human life when I wake up, I can't. Living with 26 other people voids each o Thu, 13 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT