Trail Dreams

Hey guys. Here's the support video for my next trip. I really would appreciatye some prayereful considerration on the matter of my food budget for the Appalachian trail. My plan is not only to, Seek God in the wilderness, but also to tell hungry searching people about Jesus. This mission has been on my heart since July of 2013. The video is a little over 8 minutes, but trust me when I say it's worth the wait! 

Thanks again guys for the Love, support, and consideration! If you would like to reach out to me you can do so via:

•  e-mail  Bigbuff55@gmail.com 
• Or Twitter @Barefootcrony

Be blessed,

Steven Buffington

Under the Bridge

        It's the night before the Super Bowl, and as I lye in my bed I can't but think about the experience I had in Gainesville, GA the other week. You would think going to 11 countries in 11 months The culture shock would be huge. For me there were certain things I noticed about cultures. Some cultural norms were a little overwhelming or frustrating at times, but nothing that absolutley wrecked me.  That is, until I came home.

        

        Now, I'm not talking about the initial world racer shock here. The other week my buddy Colby and I went under a bridge to visit some of the homeless there. Out of all of my traveling and everything I had seen, heard, and experienced, nothing was quite the reality check like this was. The temperatures in Georgia have been in the single digits lately and the wind this particular night was relentless. As I stood buy the fire in the oil drum to keep warm I thought to my self, "This, every night? I cannot believe they are staying out here and I have a warm home to go to." The fact that I was riding home in my buddy's truck even seemed like a luxury.

        

        This is where I get dumb-founded. I have four insulated walls with a king size bed and warm covers to keep me warm at night. I don't have to will myself to sleep everynight fighting the bitter cold. My heart goes out to those guys. Not only do they fight awful temps everynight. They also fight so many things internally. I tried to go to sleep tonight but the thought of them just kept me up. So please as this winter season finishes up. Keep the homeless in mind and say a prayer for them, and if you have the opportunity I encourage you to find a way to bless the homeless near you. 

        That was something else that was shocking. I live in the middle of suburban U.S.A. I wouldn't expect to find any homeless near me, but the fact is they're right up interstate 985. I think to myself, "This is actually a thing here." So please when you go to bed tonight say a prayer and really appreciate where God has you. We've all been so blessed no matter how bad we think we might have it.

Be blessed,

Steven Buffington

Enough is enough

Enough is enough. Ever since I got homethere's  been possibility after possibility, and that's all well and good, but the fact is it's been distrracting me from what I really want to be doing with my life. I'm not going to be distracted anymore. Weather I have 2 dimes or or $2,000.00 in my pocket I'm going to go on the Appalachian Trail.. And if II go and run out of food along  the way than so be it. And if my Heavenly Father  wants me to finish it then He will provide entirely. I learned a lot about God's providence through my buddy Jan on the World Race.

        This, "I don't know what to do!" mentallity in my head ends today. I have had plenty of opportunities come my way and they are all things that I'm super interested in, but the honest truth is that they have, been stressing me out. All the questions in mmy head have been, "how will this affect the trail?" or "Will this prevent me from finishing the trail?" All I know is that God has given me a desire to be in tthe wilderness with Him, and to Evangelize to some  folks along the way. 

        My chest literally hurts even thinking how to handle something else or getting prepared for something else. I'm doing the trail. My mind will either be totally empty or totally fillled with The LORD. That's it.  Nothing else. I'm done trying to "braccket read" my life. If any of you are march madnes fans or have wrestled for high school or college in the past you know what I'm talkking about. My Myjers-Briggs iis ENFP for crrying out loud!!

        Bracket reading is when a wrestler (or basketball fan i guess) trys to come up with different scenarios of how the bracket will play out. Why is this so deadly? Because, as a wrestler, it takes you focus off your next opponent entirely. You haven't even won the next match. What the heck are you doing trying to predict how everything else is going to go? My wrestling coach taught me to forget  the rest off the matches and just think about thee next match. In fact it wasn't even that. He told to always be thinking about the next two moves. Not even the match. Just the next two moves that I'm going to be doing on the opponent. Why would life be any different?

"Your word  is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path" -NASV

My mom would always ask me how  far I thought those lamp and light would shine back in those days. Not very far. Now, I have total confidence that God can show me what the rest of my life is supposed to look like, but for right now He has shown me one thing. That's it. Nothing else. Just because the opportunities come by doessn't mean I'm supposed to do them. Is it a leap of faith going on something like this without any game plan for when I get back? Yeah, I think so, but it also frees me up my mind and time to be totally comittted to The Lord and what I'm doing at the time.

There lol. That's my shpeel. Hope y'all enjoyed. :)

I'll see you on the trail!

Be blessed,

Steven Buffington

Lacking Compassion: My Confession

        

       Want to know something crazy? I've been lacking compassion lately. Lacking grace entirely. The Holy Spirit does the work of convicting, and when we try to preach our own agenda instead of the Gospel we can hinder and scar people.

        I was in the middle of my work shift when it hit me. Just the word. It was convicting but so comforting at the same time. Because the samething I was lacking toward other people was the very thing that God was having for me at the very moment of my conviction from the Holy Spirit. It's crazy because it was immediatly a full circle thing. It was God telling me and showing me what it feels like when you show it towards other people. Compassion is such a huge key. It was like laying down on a soft warm mattress in your favorite sheets. (and for me right now cuddled up next to my favorite four legged best friend lol) 

        It was a conviction and a rebuke like I've never felt before. Never have I felt so called out but at the same time so forgiven at the same time. Even now I can't tell you how comforted I was. 

        Now the challenge is to show that compassion in every moment. Even when I want to get angry at my mom or correct something, someone, or some behaviour. The love of Christ through compassion is so convicting and comforting at the same time. Forgiveness is felt so intensely as well as conviction. The thing about compassion is that it leads to the knowledge of being forgiven which leaves no room  for the enemy to interfere with lies or guilt or anything else he might have. 

        So I confess. I have lacked grace and compassion both in my life and in my blogs in 2013 and recently. I have been quite passionate in some things and though some feeling may be right, without grace, compassion, and love those feeling are virtually useless and ineffective. So please, forgive me.

Be blessed,

Steven Buffington

Summer Adventures!

These are just a few of my recent adventures from the past summer! Much more to come! Enjoy!

                                          

A Good Brew

Change, depending on the subject, can be a very good thing. Now before you even start to think this is about politics, trust me, it’s not! This is a place free from political b.s. What I’m talking about is the type of beer one drinks. Now, to me, trying new craft beers is similar to meeting a new person. Only with beer if you want to know more about it, all you have to do is read the lable or pop the top.
Now for some reason a lot of my friends are the type to only drink the light common beers that taste close to carbonated water. They aren’t too keen on expanding the pallet of the tongue or broadening they’re heady horizons; which, in any other situation, might sound kind of artsy fartsy, but dude, it’s beer!? Why not open your mind to what people can do to your favorite drink? In my personal opinion, I get bored of just drinking the same thing every other weekend. I want to experience different flavors, smells, and even textures of beer.
As I’ve ventured through the many different flavors and poisons, my taste buds have grown particularly bias to a brand fairly close to home. Sweetwater Brewery provides five year round brews, six seasonal brews, and two beers they call their, “Dank Tank Series.” Having tried all of their year rounds and about three or four of their seasonal beers; I can personally tell you that this company is doing beer the right way. Not only is their beer tasty, but they also have kick ass merchandise, brewery tours all the time, and promote a laid back lifestyle while managing to tie in some Chattahoochee river keeper activism. My favorite part about this beer is absolutely the fact that it’s brewed in my home town of Atlanta, GA.
       The beer to the right is one of there year round brews, "Georgia Brown Ale." This Beer is a good brew for those of you that like a more bitter and bold flavored beer. My Personal favorite is the 420 Extra Pale Ale.

First fly rod catch!

 Right now I'm sitting in my room and it's 4:40 a.m. April 5th, 2012. Yesterday I caught my first fish on a fly rod. Honestly, I thought it would never happen. I thought I was going to buy this fly rod, practice casting a few times, then have it sit in my room, and never get any use. When I caught this trout I was really just reeling in my line to call it a day. Who knew it would totally turn my day around.
  My buddy Taz and I went out to this rock that we always go to on the Chattahoochee river. The rock is probably the square footage of the bottom floor of your house. It's that big! It over looks a shallower part of the river with crystal clear water. About ten yards in front of it is a big drop off that goes down at least 15 feet with tons of logs for trout to hide under. So we head out there, rig up our ultralights (small fishing rod) with the usual Panther Martin spinner bait. (A black weight with yellow polka dots accompanied by a gold spinner and a treble hook under the weight.) In order to get to where the fish are really biting you have to suck it up and wade in 45 degree water until you reach two smaller rocks; these being the size of your two feet. From here we begin our day of angling. I catch two before I get snagged and Taz caught four. I have to venture back to the car because I left all my extra flys and spinners in the passenger seat. This is where the day start to take a decline. Somehow I manage to run to the van and back fairly quickly. I reload my rod, head back out, then get snagged again; this time Taz decided to involuntarily join in on the fun. We laugh at the fact that we both got screwed in the situation, and take one more trip back to the big rock. "Might as well practice my casting while I'm here i guess." I said to Taz. Got back out there and tried to look like I knew what I was doing.
 After several attempts at getting my line anywhere past 15 yards I decided to reel it in and call it a day, and as I was doing so something pulled on my line. My first thought was, "HUh?" then my second was, "HEY! THATS A TROUT ON MY LINE! OH, maybe reeling it in might be a good idea!" I pulled it in and relished in the moment that I became a fly fisherman. It was like an initiation into being a better sportsman. After that I imediatly thought of how jealous my other friends would be and let the little guy go. It's amzing how quick and at what magnitude your day can turn around due to one moment in life.