tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-152303752024-03-07T13:02:07.874-06:00go brain, go!J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.comBlogger268125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-65288773160056928202014-02-10T12:00:00.000-06:002014-02-19T17:41:04.000-06:00The Cool Factor<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Early this year, Pastor Emmanuel announced that there would be a Wednesday Bible Study called <i>"The Cool Factor: How To Get Your Teenager Excited About Faith"</i>. THEN - he asked me to teach it (HA!) What follows is my attempt to interpret that theme in my own way, while also completely undermining it. The actual Bible study was poorly attended, so I figured there was no harm in giving it to you again here, at your convenience. Enjoy!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Phone booth stuffing. Flagpole sitting. Goldfish swallowing. Bellbottoms. Pet Rocks. Cabbage Patch Kids. More recently - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planking_(fad)">Planking</a>. <a href="http://www.foxsportsflorida.com/10/27/11/Tebowing-becoming-the-latest-Internet-fa/landing_gators.html?blockID=590800">Tebow-ing</a>. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owling_(internet_meme)#Owling">Owling</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At some point or another, all of the above listed things were considered "cool." They were the in-thing; the thing to do or have.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But, as illustrated by those silly fads, "cool" is fleeting. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Cool" is transient. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Cool" is a moving target. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Cool" is not necessarily something you want to hitch your wagon to, if you know what I mean. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not for the long-haul (see what I did there?) Not when it comes to matters of faith.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Cool" is the house Jesus describes in <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%207:24-27&version=NIV&interface=print">Matthew 7:24-27</a> as being built upon sand instead of rock.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Which is why, as far as I am concerned:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.2;">When it comes to the discipleship and spiritual direction of our students:</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 1.2;">COOL is not a FACTOR.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Consider the prophet Samuel and his relationship with young (and future king) David.<br />Samuel was not cool. <br />Samuel did not run with the same crowd of friends as David.<br />Samuel did not listen to the same kind of music as David ("You kids and your harps!")<br />Samuel did not wear the same clothes as David.<br />But in <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Samuel%2016:1-13&version=NIV&interface=print">I Samuel 16:1-13</a>, Samuel saw something in David that God saw- something David could not see- and he cultivated it. He put David in a situation where he couldn't help but live into the image of who God wanted him to be. <br />Samuel was not cool. And neither are you. And neither am I. And it's silly for us to try to be.<br />What our students need is not more "cool." What they need is a little "Samuel School" from the adults in their lives who can see in them what God sees that they can't.<br /><br /><b>I personally had an experience like this that shaped me.</b><br />One day during the summer after 8th grade, at the height of my teenage rebellion and the lowest depth of my depravity, I was hanging out in my Youth Minister's office waiting for my mom to finish up some work at the church (an ongoing theme of my childhood). After multiple attempts to call me to the car (to which I responded not at all) she came to the door of his office, exasperated, and mentioned how annoying and delinquent a kid I was, not just that day, but every day.<br />My youth guy responded with a smile, a twinkle in his eye, and a statement to this effect: "Don't worry about this one - he's going into the ministry."<br />My mother and I responded with the kind of laughter that makes you spit out whatever you're drinking. Neither of us could imagine such a far-fetched notion!<br />Yet here I am today, 22 years later, with a college degree in Religion, Seminary education and 13 years of experience in Student Ministry.<br /><br /><b>"Okay, genius, well what about the part where my kid gets excited about faith?"</b><br />I'm glad you asked! I have 2 things to say about that. And I'm not trying to be snarky about it - I honestly think it's time we get real about the harsh realities of discipleship. So let's be frank:</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1.</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Your kid will be about as excited about faith as you are.</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That is to say - your kid will likely never be excited about faith if you're not. Your kid will likely never make faith a priority in his/her life if they don't see you doing it. Your kid will never think theologically about life, or see the world through the lens of the Kingdom of God if you don't.<br />30 years of research tells us that a child’s mom, dad, grandma and grandpa are the FOUR people who influence his/her faith life the most. In order to have faithful kids, we have to pay attention to BEING faithful adults. Youth ministry is about intentionally passing on faith from generation to generation!<br /><br />Here's that famous "Gumballs" video you've probably seen before. It's worth another look.</span><br />
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Behold, this very idea, outlined early on in Scripture:<br /><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%204:9&version=NIV&interface=print">Deuteronomy 4:9</a><br />"Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them."<br /><br /><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%206:4-9&version=NIV&interface=print">Deuteronomy 6:4-9</a><br />"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates."<br /><br /><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2011:18-20&version=NIV&interface=print">Deuteronomy 11:18-20</a><br />"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates,"<br /><br />Finally, a warning about what may happen if we fail to teach them...<br /><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2028:15,%2032,%2041&version=NIV&interface=print">Deuteronomy 28:15, 32, 41</a><br />"However, if you do not obey the Lord your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come on you and overtake you:<br />"Your sons and daughters will be given to another nation, and you will wear out your eyes watching for them day after day, powerless to lift a hand.<br />"You will have sons and daughters but you will not keep them, because they will go into captivity."<br /><br />Is there a better description of the weariness that can come with being a parent (especially of teenagers) than, "you will wear out your eyes watching for them... powerless to lift a hand"?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>2. We have to write better stories with our lives.</b><br />By way of example, consider this story from Donald Miller's book A Million Miles In A Thousand Years, chapter nine about <a href="http://goo.gl/iutfi">"How Jason Saved His Family" (pages 49-51).</a> <br />(Go ahead and click through to that link and read it. It will be your favorite part of this blog post, I promise.)<br /><br /><i><b>"Well, what in the world do I need YOU for, baldy?"</b></i><br />Well, to begin with - I'm not sure I like your tone. But I'm glad you asked!<br />The truth is, in an ideal world - you wouldn't. For thousands of years professional student ministers didn't exist.<br />But we don't live in ideal world. We live in the real world.<br />And I hope my role will become one of coach, or equipment manager. I'm the guy who puts tools in your toolbox to help you be the Youth Pastor in your own home. The goal of our FamilyFaithLife website (<a href="http://www.familyfaithlife.org/">www.familyfaithlife.org</a>) is to begin collecting and curating resources for parents to use in discipling their students. Some of those resources will be in the form of books or articles. Others will be online resources developed by others that we link to. Others will be live offline events like the Faith Together Workshops, or JOURNEY Bible Study, that you and the students in your house can attend. Anything we can think of or find to help each other out, we want to collect and disseminate to each other. <br />Truth be told - I ought to be spending more of my time and energy with YOU, rather than with the students. After all, it's YOU that they are taking their spiritual cues from. And this stuff is better caught than taught.<br />Let's partner together! And let me help you do what it takes to be your kid's spiritual hero.</span><br />
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J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-31886040362075479342014-01-17T12:00:00.000-06:002014-02-19T17:16:23.245-06:00Book Review: Lying by Sam Harris<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">In 2014, I have resolved to spend part of my Friday mornings reading - not only for my own pleasure and enlightenment, but so that I might be more prepared to share resources with those of you who are into that sort of thing.<br /><br />I have just this minute finished reading Lying by author Sam Harris. I wanted to write and publish this quickly because I enjoyed it so thoroughly, and felt others would benefit from the recommendation.<br /><br />Hardly any of us agrees in theory that Lying is a good thing. But too often, our practice undermines that particular ethic during the course of life. We tell little white lies, or polite lies all the time to avoid disharmony and discomfort. Harris proposes that there really isn't any good reason to lie, and he takes on all the little exceptions we try to make. More than just making a condemnation of lying - he extols the virtues of an honest life over and above the kind of life we arrive at through dishonesty.<br /><br />The text of the book is exceptional and captivating, but one other thing interests me - it's brevity. Really a hardback booklet, the text itself is only 42 pages. I was able to finish it in approximately 2 hours, and in one sitting. In truth, I consider myself a pretty efficient reader, but I don't imagine it would be a long undertaking for anyone. This is a really refreshing thought. How many of us have started book after book, waded a couple of chapters in, but then started to feel like the author was trying to artificially expand the word or page count? (Of course there are plenty of great authors who don't do this.) In Lying, the author has something important, interesting and useful to say, but doesn't insist on lingering after he says it. I wish more authors would do this. I would read more books, be much better informed, and not feel guilty about leaving books half-finished.<br /><br />Finally:<br />I am vaguely aware of Sam Harris reputation of being antagonistic of faith (all religious faith, not just Christian), and his being identified with some in the latest movement of new atheism. I want to be clear: I found nothing here that is not entirely consistent with a Christian ethic of honesty, integrity, wholeness. What I found is the clearest, most concise and convicting explanation why a life lived in deceit is fruitless, and a life of honesty to be pursued at all times. I might go so far to say that Lying does a better job than most churches I have encountered at articulating the kind of honesty and integrity that I believe should be a hallmark of Jesus-followers. Not once in this book did I find his supposed antagonism toward faith on display. <br /><br />As people of faith, if we want to love the truth, we must follow that truth wherever it leads. We must also acknowledge it and celebrate it wherever we find it, even (especially?) in the mouths of atheists . A former pastor friend used to say, "God can hit a straight lick with a crooked stick." And that is as true of you and me as it is of atheists, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Wiccans, Democrats, and Republicans. As a Christian, I am confident in saying that when it comes to Lying, I agree with Sam Harris. In fact, I would welcome his take on the subjects of Murder, Adultery, Stealing, Coveting, and other such commandments.<br /><br />Many thanks to my good friend Alex Flick who insisted that I read it, and loaned me his pristine copy.<br />I must admit that the Rob Bell Tumblr posts I asked him to read as part of this deal amounted to more than 42 short pages - although they were significantly less dense. ;-)</span>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-58230432652367861712013-08-30T14:32:00.000-05:002013-08-30T14:34:25.868-05:00Random Thoughts #2: I probably shouldn't write booksI'm sitting here at the Lanier Theological Library studying for that sermon I have to give on Sunday. One of the books I'm reading is a favorite of mine - <i>Searching for God Knows What</i> by Donald Miller. It occurred to me that he draws a lot of theological conclusions based on his life circumstances and experiences. Conclusions I really like. He also uses some awkward language sometimes that sounds like it was written by somebody trying to write books. As I was reading, I wondered if he would write the same things today. This book was written in 2004, before he was really very well-known, and I bet some things have changed for him. He's probably matured as a writer, and as a theologian, and as a man. I wonder if he'd cringe if he re-read some of his older stuff.<br />
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I'm probably just projecting myself onto him, because I'm pretty sure that's what would happen to me. I have changed so much in the last 10 years, I can't imagine agreeing with anything I wrote back then. It happens routinely when I go back to old posts on this blog. Anyway - the conclusion I came here to put down on virtual paper is twofold:<br />
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1. Maybe young people shouldn't write books because their ideas are probably evolving pretty quickly, and they can't be trusted to articulate something concrete and lasting while that is occurring. (Please don't send me a list of great things that were written or created by young people. I know it's possible, but as a general rule, maybe younger folks shouldn't draw CONCLUSIONS about things.)<br />
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2. Maybe older folks shouldn't write books either because I don't know if I trust somebody who hasn't changed their mind about anything in years and years. Once people have enough experience to reach good conclusions, I bet they tend to stop letting new ideas and information in. I don't know if I'm interested in that kind of thinking, either.<br />
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In summary - at the occasion of this writing, I am 36 years old. It's up to you, dear reader, to decide for which of those 2 reasons you will completely disregard what i am posting right now.J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-70719514910261796602013-08-30T14:12:00.001-05:002013-08-30T14:12:16.907-05:00Random Thoughts #1: Bringing my lunchToday is Friday, and I went to the Lanier Theological Library to study for the sermon I have to give on Sunday. It's payday, and I really wanted to eat lunch out. Like,<i> really</i> wanted to. There is a Potbelly Sandwichworks over here, and a Pei Wei, and a Chick-Fil-A.<br />
Instead I ate the lunch I brought with me from home, and now I am as full and satisfied as I would have been if I had eaten out. Plus, I don't have the desire to do it anymore. Plus, I saved myself like 10 or 15 bucks.<br /><br />I know it sounds like a simple thing, but no matter how many times it happens, I still want to eat out and spend the money. Therefore, it's worth reminding myself that it really doesn't matter in the end, as long as you eat something.<br />
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These things go here because they are too long for Twitter, and because the people on Facebook are pretty jerky sometimes.J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-27053140069857218912013-08-28T12:00:00.000-05:002014-02-19T17:14:14.403-06:00Remembering MLK: Kid Logic<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There is no greater radio program than <i>This American Life</i>. I'd rather listen to <i>This American Life</i> than watch any program on TV or any movie in a theater. On June 22, 2001, they did a show called "Kid Logic". It was described as"Stories of kids using perfectly logical arguments, and arriving at perfectly wrong conclusions." In this, my favorite clip from my favorite show - we hear the opposite of that. A father tells the story of his young daughter reaching a heartbreaking, but perfectly logical conclusion about Jesus and MLK.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This link will take you straight to Act 1 of the show, give you some background on the subject, and a couple of other examples of Kid Logic. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scroll across to 13:11-16:55 for the specific story I'm talking about.</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/188/kid-logic?act=1" style="color: rgb(153, 153, 153) !important; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title=""><span style="color: #a82e2e;">This American Life #188: Kid Logic</span></a></h2>
<br />J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-51764484988623681552013-08-27T16:59:00.000-05:002014-02-19T17:05:10.941-06:00Miley is Me<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Much has already been said about Miley Cyrus' performance at MTV's Video Music Awards - not all of it valuable. If you missed the much-talked-about performance, you can view it </span><a href="http://www.mtv.com/videos/misc/942064/we-cant-stop-blurred-lines-give-it-2-u-medley.jhtml#id=1712039" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">HERE</a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. It's a pretty good bet your kids have seen it. Watching it will help you understand the rest of this post.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Did you know that Miley Cyrus had a goal for her VMA performance? Her goal was to be even more shocking than previous performances by Madonna and Britney Spears – music role models to this young star. Miley Cyrus’ performance on MTV’s Video Music Awards definitely captured the world’s attention. Whether or not she achieved her goal is probably up for debate. However, I just can’t help but wonder how a person with so much potential wound up setting such low standards for herself. The reality is that Miley didn’t just wake up one morning and decide her goal was to shock the world. Where she is right now is a result of a slow progression of life circumstances and choices.</span></div>
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What was your reaction after watching the video?</div>
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Here was mine:</div>
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In truth, I had several reactions to Miley’s performance, but the ones that still stick are these: </div>
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- Who is speaking into her life right now? </div>
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- What if her goals involved helping – instead of shocking – people? How would her life be different today? </div>
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- How is this image going to impact children (Hannah Montana fans!) and our students?</div>
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Parents and Youth Ministers have a really important calling to connect teenagers to Christ in the midst of living in a very confusing world. I always have to remind myself that my job as youth guy is not simply behavior modification, even though I and others are quick to reduce it to that. Rather, my role, OUR role, in their lives is to help them view this world, with all it's junk, with kingdom lenses. It's to point them TOWARD the love and beauty of Christ, rather than just away from ugly things. I believe our responses to the actions of others and to performances like Miley’s can effect the way our teens are impacted by them. This is a teachable moment! </div>
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I hope that you will take some time this week to watch the video with your youth, share responses, thoughts, and then talk about the topics this video helps you talk about. I also hope that you will help them set goals and standards for living that help draw them closer to Christ. </div>
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It's also important to remember this:</div>
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If I just condemn Miley for being slutty or shocking, then I become part of the problem. I become a pawn in the same game she seems to be caught in. That is, I turn her into a commodity submitted for me to accept or reject. I do this all the time. I draw lines to delineate what is good, and what is bad; what I support and what I do not. What is me (good), and what is not me (bad).</div>
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Instead, why don't I try to recognize her flawed humanity and mine.</div>
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Instead, why don't I stop and ask if there's anyway her journey can inform my own.</div>
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Here are a couple of questions you might consider asking and answering with the students in your house:</div>
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1. Who are your role models? Where/who do you get advice from when you need it?</div>
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2. Does media ever influence your decisions, self-image, views of others?</div>
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3. Do you consider others when making decisions?</div>
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4. What role does your faith play when you give advice to others?</div>
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5. What are your life goals? What about your immediate goals?</div>
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6. How are you guarding your life against sin? Who helps you with that?</div>
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7. Do you think the negative comments about Miley's performance are hurtful to her?</div>
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8. What would you say to her, if she were sitting in the room with us right now?</div>
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(Or, to phrase this a better way, "What would you say to a close friend of yours who had performed the way Miley did?")</div>
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It wouldn't hurt to read the lyrics to her song, <a href="http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/mileycyrus/wecantstop.html">We Can't Stop</a> with your student(s). Okay, actually, it might hurt a little bit. These things have a tendency to take on a different feeling in the cold light of day. A discussion of what these lyrics imply, and how they compare to the way Christ calls us to live, would not be inappropriate.</div>
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Some passages of scripture to encourage and inform this discussion:</div>
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<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%201&version=NLT;CEB">Psalm 1</a><a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%2010:23-24,%2031-33%20&version=NLT;MSG">1 Corinthians 10:23-24, 31-33</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs%204:18-27&version=NLT;MSG">Proverbs 4:18-27</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20John%202:3-6,%2015-17%20&version=NLT;MSG">1 John 2:3-6, 15-17</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%2012%3A1-3%20&version=MSG">Romans 12:1-3</a></div>
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Media suggestion:</div>
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Along with Miley’s video, you could also show the music video for Casting Crown’s song <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QASREBVDsLk">Slow Fade</a>. Casting Crowns lead singer, Mark Hall, explains that a slow fade marks the regression that happens when Christians aren’t living intentionally. </div>
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He explains: </div>
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“People don’t crumble in a day. You don’t fall, you fade. In your mind, there’s that pride that says ‘I’d never do that’… but you don’t just do it, it’s a slow, series of compromises, little ones that go there eventually, until you’re sitting in a place you’d never go, doing something you’d never do… and yet the way you’re living totally makes sense to you somehow because you’re so numb.” Maybe that's what happened in Miley’s life. It has certainly happened in mine.</div>
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Finally, remind teenagers how deeply they are loved and valued by God and the people in our faith community, and that nothing can separate us from the love of God. Lead them in a time of reflection and prayer to ask God to help them live lives committed to Him.</div>
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So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet. James 4:7-10 </div>
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(This post has been adapted from a <a href="http://inumcconnect.org/2013/08/26/oh-miley-a-youth-ministry-response/">blog post by Helene Foust</a> and a Facebook post by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/mark.riddle1">Mark Riddle</a>, two very insightful and interesting youth ministry veterans, who submitted their thoughts as resources for folks dealing with this very event, and edited/amended by me.)</div>
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Thank you for all you do to be parents to your children, and partners with me.</div>
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Grace + Peace,</div>
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J.T.</div>
</span>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-18126391607356640672013-03-02T18:49:00.002-06:002013-03-02T18:50:32.179-06:00DSC Review Part 2 - Forget everything I said before...<b><u>STOP THE PRESSES!</u></b><br />
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In the words of the immortal poet "Weird" Al Yankovic - Everything you know is wrong!<br />
As I mentioned in the <a href="http://boy1der.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-dsc-conspiracy.html" target="_blank">first part</a> of my Dollar Shave Club Review, I decided to go ahead and upgrade my subscription from the 4X to the Executive model (6 blades!) before I fully renounced my membership in the Club. The Executive bills at 3 blades/month for $9. To my surprise, I received my new blades (complete with a new handle) in the mail yesterday. At first glance, 6 blades on a single cartridge looks ridiculous. It's a wall of blades. I wondered if I should have a paramedic on standby when I decided to use it. If you cut your head with this baby, forget it - you <i>are</i> going to bleed out. Better invest in a 6-pointed styptic pencil, my friend, and pay your insurance premiums.<br />
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Rather than experiment with a new blade on a Sunday Morning, which could be disastrous, I took a late shower today and decided to take it for a test run.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlzCiXXS7QiLzOaztwn5sRD9_bjAuSgQSv_jq8jjg4mvggUXxZ7Lhw8iAFu3LlPO_-6IR3Xv6aVU8kkFsAFsgie3rwWWIuZ0jApILQD0GeWPLwINCN5TU3EuTSwKRGZdGzEpKXzw/s1600/The+Executive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIhfU94oEdC1Txze0h66QTuR04FWQzsLgfSPq7JJpe_GcYP2tgpmyVPkN8XtcMMu7eOxhEnaBH74cV6Ucr2Kp2jzLpaNoW-e0SxhZU679J9z5GxJ8FIg4TWWJnchm2GQQUXU2-aQ/s1600/The+Executive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIhfU94oEdC1Txze0h66QTuR04FWQzsLgfSPq7JJpe_GcYP2tgpmyVPkN8XtcMMu7eOxhEnaBH74cV6Ucr2Kp2jzLpaNoW-e0SxhZU679J9z5GxJ8FIg4TWWJnchm2GQQUXU2-aQ/s200/The+Executive.jpg" width="186" /></a></div>
<u><b>RESULTS:</b></u><br />
WOW. This is THE blade, right here. Forget any disparaging remarks I ever made about Dollar Shave Club. I have never had a shaving experience like this. This blade moves so smoothly and quickly, and accomplishes so much more in a single stroke that I was actually done shaving before the hot water ran out (quite a feat at my house). My head looks great, feels great to the touch and doesn't burn in the slightest. Not a single nick or cut, either. When I was using it, it didn't feel like the wall of blades I expected it to. It actually felt like my old Gillette Fusion, only better - more substantial. This blade was doing WORK! I know I said this about the HEB brand in my last review - but THIS is the best shave I've ever had. I seriously considered shaving the beard so I could use it on my face.<br />
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<u><b>CONCLUSIONS:</b></u><br />
You should get this blade. Period.<br />
The only concern I have here is cost. At $9/month for 3 blades, we're talking $3 per blade!<br />
The Gillette Fusion runs about $15 for a refill of 4 blades - around $3.75 per blade. The Gillette Mach 3 costs about $15.50 at Walgreens for a refill of 5 blades - around $3.10. In both cases, you still shave with Dollar Shave Club. If you can stretch it out and make your 3 blades last 2 months, you can go to an every-other-month subscription, and get your cost down to $1.50 per. If you think about it - these blades ought to last twice as long as a 3-blade cartridge, because twice as many blades do half the work each time! That's my story and I'm sticking to it.<br />
Not to mention the fact that you never have to drive to the store to get them - and you never have to remember to put them on your wife's all-important master grocery list, and then make an extra trip because, "I've told you a thousand times, if it ain't on the list, we ain't gettin' it." But maybe that's just me.<br />
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SO, to recap - The best whisker-removal options out there, in order:<br />
1. Dollar Shave Club - the Executive<br />
2. HEB Hill Country Fare disposable 5-blade for ladies<br />
3. Gillette Fusion<br />
4. Gillette Mach 3<br />
5. A piece of broken glass<br />
6. A warm butter knife<br />
7. A homeless guy's pocket knife<br />
8. Wax<br />
9. Literally any other blade out there.<br />
10. Dollar Shave Club - The 4X<br />
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If - after these glowing reviews - you are curious and frugal enough to give Dollar Shave Club a try, please <a href="http://www.dollarshaveclub.com/ref/du2/B6129CDF0265EE/s/tx/cx/1" target="_blank">USE THIS LINK</a>, which will also serve to hook your buddy J.T. up with some credits toward free months. J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-57440399726843969462013-02-28T15:02:00.004-06:002013-02-28T15:05:24.183-06:00The DSC ConspiracyObligatory inclusion of the brilliant Dollar Shave Club commercial:<br />
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<object height="275" width="475"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ZUG9qYTJMsI?hl=en_US&version=3"></param>
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<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ZUG9qYTJMsI?hl=en_US&version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="475" height="275" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object> </div>
LOVE that. Aside from the old Ortho Orthene Fire Ant Killer radio spots - it's probably the only commercial I have enjoyed over and over again. All commercials should be like that.<br />
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You can go to <a href="http://www.dollarshaveclub.com/" target="_blank">their site</a> and look up all the details for yourself. See the different blades they offer, their ridiculously low prices, and their process of shipping it right to your mailbox.<br />
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<u><b>About me:</b></u><br />
I'm a beard guy. I like to keep the beard nice and thick. Sometimes long and crazy-looking.<br />
I am a head-shaver. I usually shave my head 2-3 times a week depending upon how lazy I am, and how many special occasions there are. Also - my head is round is most spots, while faces are often flatter in a lot of ways. I hope I don't need to explain that. I shave in the shower, a really hot one, not in front of the sink. I don't know why everyone doesn't. I used Edge shave gel. Anyway - those factors might mean that I'll be looking for something different in a blade than you are.<br />
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With Dollar Shave Club I went with the 4X (see right). I thought the 6-blade seemed a little excessive, and since I went from the Mach 3 (3 blades) to the Fusion (5 blades), it wouldn't be that big of a deal. They sent me a handle and 4 heads for $6. Since I got it, I've used the same blade 3 times. I wanted to give it a couple of runs before I drew any conclusions.<br />
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<u><b>Results:</b></u><br />
All I drew was blood.<br />
Seriously - OW. I'll admit that I probably have some sensitive skin, but my head's been shaved HUNDREDS of times. It hasn't hurt that bad since some friends shaved my head in college with a disposable. I suffered from the classic "Shaver's Paradox" - that is, a shave that looks good, but feels AWFUL. The first shave felt great to the touch, but burned like hell. The second was uneventful except for a little nick, which I hadn't had in a while, and burned a little less. I thought - "Ok, cool, I'm getting used to the new blades". The third was on a Sunday and was probably the worst shave I've ever had. Tore me up, and left me bloody in places I hadn't bled before. <br />
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This 4X is not going to work. For a couple of reasons.<br />
The head on it pivots too much. It was difficult to find the angle and keep it against the skin. Upon comparison to the Fusion blade, it seems to have the same range of motion- but the 4X wants to bend, and the Fusion doesn't. As a result, the Fusion kind of sticks to your head, and with the 4X I had to choke way up on it, and put a finger behind the blade to make it flush.<br />
Also - there actually ISN'T an aloe strip. The marketing says it has one. After 3 uses, nothing on this blade has changed color or faded one bit. It feels like rubber or hard plastic. No wonder it hurt so bad.<br />
It might actually be great for shaving faces, but it just doesn't do the trick for heads.<br />
I admit to having been overly optimistic about this. Because of the
great marketing, I wanted to like it more than it deserved to be liked.
It was all sizzle and no steak.<br />
Before I completely give up on DSC, I decided to upgrade. I have changed my settings to receive the Executive, their 6-blade version, and give it a try. It might actually be a closer match to the Gillette Fusion. I'll let you know how that turns out.<br />
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<u><b>Conclusions:</b></u><br />
Here's my conspiracy theory:<br />
Dollar Shave Club is actually a creation of Bic/Schick/Gillette to teach us a lesson. You think razor blades work pretty okay, but cost WAY too much? Well, here, then! Here's a discount version using cheaper material and lower quality! What's that you say - it doesn't do the trick like the leading commercial brands? DUH. Come on back to our newest 10-blade battery-powered model with a flashlight, GPS and nose-hair trimmer.<br />
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This morning, I actually used my wife's disposable HEB brand razor that she shaves her legs with. It's big and clunky and pink - and ended up being the EASIEST, BEST SHAVE I'VE EVER HAD. I see another change in my future.J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-65920546374857165462012-10-17T16:29:00.002-05:002012-10-17T16:29:29.524-05:00Devil's AdvocateOne thing I learned in college that has stuck with me -<br />
I mean, become an instinctive part of my brain/heart wiring - is this: <br />If there is an unrepresented side, take it.<br />
<br />Call it antagonism, or devil's advocate. Call it justice, or balancing the scales. Or just call it contrarianism (i made up a word). Things are rarely cut and dried, black and white, without nuance. It's important to me to side with those who have nobody on their side. That's why conservative people sometimes get the idea that I'm liberal (or a heretic), and liberal people pretty much ignore me because they don't like to fight as much as conservatives.<br /><br />For better or worse (I think better), that part of me flows out of my faith, and what I believe God is like. I don't really think he's all that concerned with how correct we are on issues. I don't think there's going to be a test on that stuff. We simply <i>can't be right enough</i> for God's taste, so he has decided to cease grading that way. Does it mean I don't have opinions? Of course not. There are some things we can know for sure - but that is a very short list. (Maybe that will be my next post (in 6 months or so).)<br />
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When it comes to politics, I have had a long slow evolution from one extreme to the middle. I actually think that it's very important for Christians to be involved in politics. The Bible is political. Jesus was political. Just count how many references there are to the poor, the sick, the imprisoned, and aliens. How we treat or punish these people is still part of our political discussion TODAY. If you don't think the gospel writers and Paul had a stance on Rome, or an agenda in their writing, I'd love to sit down with you for a couple of hours.<br />That being said - what stance should followers of Christ take today? With the right? With the left? As with most things in life, my faith forces me to ask - is there a "third way"? Is it possible not to be red or blue but... yellow, I guess? (Yes, I know it is a synonym for cowardly)<br />
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A friend linked me to an article today that i think perfectly articulates where I currently stand. And since it agrees with me - I am going to post it here, so that you can agree with me too. See what I did there ;-)<br />I don't know who Jen Hatmaker is. I've never read any of her stuff. I haven't seen he blog before. But I know that she has put into words exactly what is wrong with me, and what an increasing number of people of faith have been thinking:<br />
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<a href="http://jenhatmaker.com/blog/2012/10/16/the-election-thoughts-from-a-christian-independent" target="_blank">Jen Hatmaker: Thoughts From A Christian Independent</a><br />
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I'd love to hear your thoughts.J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-19206218271937619612012-07-18T23:14:00.001-05:002013-01-30T14:59:41.009-06:00ELCA Youth Gathering - Day 1Whew! Rough day today. After an early start and a long bus ride, we arrived at the Ritz Carlton at around 5pm. After clearing some things up with the hotel and getting settled into our rooms, we realized 2 things - we were super hungry, and we still needed to check-in/register our group at the Gathering office! After walking the world's longest mile to the Morial Convention Center, we arrived at 6:45 to find that registration had ended early, instead of at 8pm as had been widely publicized. So, with no small amount of frustration, we set out in search of something nearby to eat. We finally landed in an empty little Italian place that Tandie remembered from last time. The place was great- and we ended up stuck there while it rained like the End Of Days outside. <br />
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It finally slacked up a little and we were able to make a break for it in the rain for about half a mile back to our hotel, where we decided to stay in for the night.<br />
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Keywords for today include: Bus, Ritz-Carlton, walking, sweat, pizza, rain, zzzz.<br />
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Internet access is turning out to be tough to come by at this hotel- so I apologize in advance if these posts aren't as elaborate as we had both hoped. I'm posting from an iPhone app.<br />
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Tomorrow: We take another crack at registration, celebrate our Practice Peacemaking Day at the Convention Center, have Johnnie's Poboys, and get our worship on in the Luther-dome!<br />
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Grace + Peace, <br />
<br />
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J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-88136109355573772492012-07-15T18:50:00.001-05:002012-07-16T14:07:06.498-05:00ELCA Youth Gathering 2012 - The Vow<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Welcome parents!<br />I hope you'll watch this space in the next week for updates on our time in New Orleans. I'll post pictures, videos, and commentary on our time there so that you can experience it with us!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'll admit, I'm pretty excited, and I don't know exactly what to expect. I don't know what's going to happen in our group while we are there.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">But I will make this vow:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">EVERYBODY GETS A STUPID NICKNAME!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">That's right. Nobody is safe from my superior nicknaming skills. As a person who has gone by a nickname nearly all their life, I can tell you this - nobody chooses their own nickname, and hardly anybody ever likes the one they get stuck with!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />Just another service we offer at Living Word!</span><br />
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<br />J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-62231243274159895532011-04-25T16:05:00.004-05:002012-07-16T14:23:53.138-05:00The Curse<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
(Pardon these rambles, please. I'm not really interested in polished essays. My whole objective is to barf my thoughts out of my head and onto this blog before they disappear forever.) </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Cheerwine: Born in <b>the South</b>. Raised in <b>a glass.</b></span></div>
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Yesterday was Easter. Resurrection Sunday. In a fit of seasonal mirth, I tweeted:</div>
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THE TOMB IS EMPTY! So today we go from darkness to light; from mourning to laughing; from fasting to feasting! Jesus lifted the curse!</blockquote>
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Never have I felt more involved and engaged in the celebration of Resurrection as I did this year.</div>
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We spent the morning celebrating with Ecclesia at Jones Plaza in downtown Houston. It was a huge celebration where people filled the air with their voices, shared amazing food, listened to teaching, made art for worship, and celebrated communion and baptism together. Like families do. All at an outdoor pavilion under a partly cloudy sky and an amazing breeze. It was one of the best Easter Sunday experiences of my life. But I don't think it was the reason I understood Easter better this year.</div>
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I think the real reason is Lent.</div>
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This year for Lent Abby and I gave up drinking anything but water and brewed coffee. I wanted to give up something that would hurt. Since I really hate drinking water, but know I need more of it, I decided that eliminating all my other choices would be both beneficial and sacrificial for me. The coffee thing was because - COME ON! (It's not like it's a competitor with water. You want them at separate times to accomplish separate things.)</div>
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If you're unfamiliar with Lent, it's the 40 day season of fasting that Begins on Ash Wednesday and leads up to Resurrection Sunday. Christians give up doing or eating something they love.You're smart if you realize that between Ash Wednesday and Easter there were (are) actually about 46 days. That's because Sundays (technically speaking, <i>Sabbath </i>days) are considered celebration days, feast days, or mini-Easters. You break your fast on those days. (By the way -if you're the type of person who brags about how they don't observe the celebration days during Lent, then I don't want to know you. You are clearly missing the point, and probably the thing you're giving up clearly doesn't hurt badly enough.)</div>
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In the past, I had always played fast and loose with celebration days. I would make bargains like, "Well, I have a friend in from out of town on Friday and we're going out to eat. So I'll make Friday my Sabbath, and use my "celebration day" to have a Dr. Pepper at Chili's/ Sweet Tea at Cracker Barrel/ Bellini Peach Tea at Olive Garden. Then I will fast on Sunday while everyone else is celebrating."</div>
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What a loser thing to do. It's completely self-serving, and is probably worse than not celebrating the feast days at all. So this year - I decided to actually employ some self-discipline and sacrifice (a novel idea) and play by the rules. And THAT has made all the difference.</div>
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Drinking water at a restaurant SUCKS. Not because their water is bad, but because Dr. Pepper and Sweet Tea are SO GOOD. If they weren't, free refills wouldn't be so expensive. Some things you eat are just meant to be paired with something specific to drink. My wife says that for me, this is all-too-often chocolate milk. (My inappropriate use of chocolate milk is another blog post altogether.) But this year, there were days when I would sit drinking a nice tall glass of water and think - "Man, Jesus, I love you so much!" with a really sour, crappy look on my face. Which, I guess is kind of the point - to allow me to participate with Christ in suffering and death, so that I can more fully participate in his resurrection!</div>
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But what struck me yesterday was this:</div>
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For 40 days I lived under a law. A (if you ask me) <i>needlessly oppressive </i>law. A law that I was pretty sure was actually good for me to follow. A law that I was sure would draw me closer to God. Well, guess what? Life under the law SUCKED. Meals became mundane. Thirsty was a feeling I actually came to dread because of the resulting anti-climax. But I kept telling myself that I was pleasing God because of all the things I <i>didn't do. </i>But I felt like I was under a curse. I was suffering. And suffering for righteousness is good, right? It builds character. Makes you a better person than you were before. Right? RIGHT?</div>
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I don't know, but I do know this: Suffering is the mother of hope. What suffering did for me was cause me to look forward to Sundays in a way I never ever ever had before (Yes, I realize I am a Christian, a minister, a pastor. Just never a very good one.) I couldn't wait for those little glimpses of freedom that rolled around every 144 hours (but who's counting?) Not only that - it created an ABSOLUTE LONGING for the day when I was rid of the law once and for all. When yesterday finally arrived, and the celebration of the Resurrection of Christ threw open the doors to a freedom I had been hoping for and expecting - I got absolutely staggering, stumble around, take my car-keys drunk on NOT-WATER.</div>
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(<b>Disclaimer: </b>No, I didn't actually get drunk on anything that could get you drunk. Seriously - you have GOT to know me better than that. Also, it kind of pisses me off a little that I have to write something like that, or that I <i>think </i>I have to write something like that. NEUROSES!)</div>
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In 46 days I lived a little microcosm of all of human history. I lived a life that was under a curse (that I, directly or indirectly, was responsible for), and bound by a law because of it. I longed for someone who could come and take it away. I saw occasional glimpses of an impending hope that it would one day be removed. And finally, miraculously, gloriously, through no work of my own -one day the law no longer applied, and I went from accursed to completely free forever.</div>
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The final, interesting thought about it is how I instinctively responded to this freedom. In addition to drinking freely from it in huge, choking draughts, I felt compelled to share it. For the Ecclesia Easter Celebration, Abby and I loaded a cooler full of all kinds of soft drinks and gave them away to anybody that walked by. Now that we were free to drink all the soda we wanted, we resolved that nobody who crossed our path would ever have to be deprived of it either. And now every time I drink it - It's a celebration, and a remembrance of exactly what it took to win that freedom for me.</div>
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And that, my friends, will preach.</div>
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.</div>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-13798674905518073382011-04-21T11:51:00.003-05:002011-04-25T17:01:18.236-05:00Regrets<div class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-nfFK905cOpd-_VUXCj8Ch8rMcrIpwmezU-27wesBC3abuFWi5uRY1oTG8-7FPXRmdpeat1CbyxatmLczkDtE9IZV1cHLZRVBrIa4f0XZVi6dGy69f0CGXaYREfq2RzxixnFoOg/s1600/scaled-768010.jpeg"><img alt="" border="0" height="266" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5598080426561366834" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-nfFK905cOpd-_VUXCj8Ch8rMcrIpwmezU-27wesBC3abuFWi5uRY1oTG8-7FPXRmdpeat1CbyxatmLczkDtE9IZV1cHLZRVBrIa4f0XZVi6dGy69f0CGXaYREfq2RzxixnFoOg/s400/scaled-768010.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-52029832511630015252011-04-16T02:39:00.001-05:002012-07-16T14:24:32.840-05:00Talent Show<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
Went to a talent show tonight to see the daughter of a friend of ours perform. This girl LOVES Abby and we love to support her. She goes to a little charter school near our house that is really quite cool. Here she is singing a song by Bruno Mars.</div>
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As you can see, she's quite sassy. She actually took 2nd place for this performance.</div>
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Which means BOY OH BOY do you want to see the video of the first place kid. You are definitely NOT going to be disappointed with this:</div>
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Right? RIGHT!?</div>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-53768899476683131952011-04-15T13:27:00.000-05:002012-07-16T14:16:13.187-05:00New Leaf<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<i>Go brain, go!</i> is back. No more layout changes for a while, I promise. Unless, of course, I find out that some famous pedophile or politician has the same one. Then maybe. Maybe.</div>
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The truth is, I need to start keeping track of my thoughts again. I would really love to do it in pencil in a cool leather-and-hemp-bound journal, but i think faster than I can write, so typing is more honest. And that's the direction in which I want this thing to head. I want to live life with more transparency. I want to integrate my two selves. I'm not saying there's a version of me that has been keeping disgusting secrets from all my friends and family for years. But there are little things that I think we all need to be more honest about. Little ways in which we all need to stop pretending. For example - it's a little suspect for a 33 year old man who is unemployed and keeps a blog to call himself "theboy1der". Yet there it is in my blog address, my Twitter ID, and my email address. Anyway - it's not like I'm about to change all those things, I just need to be honest about it. I need to talk about the things that sometimes people are reluctant to talk to people about. Confession being good for the soul, and all. Sunlight being the best disinfectant, you know.</div>
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I realize that being honest and vulnerable opens you up to being taken advantage of by less scrupulous people. It's happened to me before. It will likely happen to me again. I don't consider that a reason to be less honest. The fact is, every time we lie (to ourselves or others) we create an alternate reality. We add another reality to actual reality, and we have to live in all those other realities with their troubles, too. Frankly, I'm too lazy for that. I have enough trouble with the world that's <i>actually</i> real to worry about the troubles in all the worlds I made up. Actual J.T. doesn't want to have to be bothered with the problems that fake J.T. presents.</div>
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What that means is that I'll probably say some things here that you probably didn't know about me. Maybe even some things you don't agree with. But sometimes putting them on the record is my way of seeing whether I actually believe them or not. I pick up ideas. I play around with them. I put them back down. Sometimes I keep them. This is annoying to some people. But I want to "be ready to die today for what I know to be true - and be ready tomorrow to call it falsehood." And to do that, I need to start working through what I think is true about me, and the world.</div>
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This should be fun! Either that, or it could be Sheen-style self-destruction. I guess we'll have to see!</div>
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Grace + Peace</div>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-26447594329663008532010-12-24T20:58:00.001-06:002012-07-16T14:25:02.367-05:00The Great Christmas Caper 2010 - Eve<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
Part the 6th:</div>
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Abby made a video - Christmas Eve Errands.</div>
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Part the 5th:</div>
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Our date night, and first-impression reviews of <i>True Grit</i></div>
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Part the 4th:</div>
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Part the 3rd: </div>
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My favorite video so far.</div>
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Take 1:</div>
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Take 2:</div>
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Man, I love me some Buc-ees!</div>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-18622534554037364372010-12-23T10:21:00.006-06:002012-07-16T14:26:49.516-05:00The Great Christmas Caper 2010!!<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
Part the 1st - Departure!</div>
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Brought to you by Flip! </div>
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(brought to me by Mom and Dad Thomas!)</div>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-87201494632200016372010-08-24T01:37:00.000-05:002012-07-16T14:28:14.508-05:00Guatemala, Day 1 - Vista Real Nice<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
9:15 p.m. - Landed in Guatemala City, Guatemala with a great group of folks from Lead 222 and Compassion International. Flight was pretty bad, for the same reason I hate roller coasters. Turbulence, some zero gravity moments - no kidding.</div>
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Man, if you ever get a chance to take a trip with Compassion International - DO IT.</div>
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They really do things right! You should see this hotel they've put us up in!</div>
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<a href="http://www.vistareal.com/">In fact, take a look.</a></div>
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Seriously. I don't think I've ever set foot in a place this nice - EVER.</div>
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I don't think I've seen a place this nice on TV or in movies, either.</div>
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This is my room:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiX3-LhyphenhyphentPUhI56dNzfyplWgEE32J3-3psT9ZQXT7mbx28jumMeQkAokXfT5jFdC0YrJX7ihnCr9dYYBXX8xu-VxKWWAXczLluJ_cW798ecvSF3haQA_BI0aEsMfBl7yJ9Qp5UIQ/s1600/IMAG0112.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiX3-LhyphenhyphentPUhI56dNzfyplWgEE32J3-3psT9ZQXT7mbx28jumMeQkAokXfT5jFdC0YrJX7ihnCr9dYYBXX8xu-VxKWWAXczLluJ_cW798ecvSF3haQA_BI0aEsMfBl7yJ9Qp5UIQ/s400/IMAG0112.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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20 foot ceilings. Hundreds of pillows.</div>
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That guy over there? That's my roommate, Taco. Yes, TACO.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLDdbakOep3aA1cbyzCty3FGniBn4Jq1lDRhN6akmDGjnB8UjPR2miGYq6aHQk2PM3rq0QVfY8VUIFY4OahEgFwa2TXt5tB0yKUiN7zalzBHMJGdWVJy-rk_ET0z-dHQvWu-okaQ/s1600/IMAG0114.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLDdbakOep3aA1cbyzCty3FGniBn4Jq1lDRhN6akmDGjnB8UjPR2miGYq6aHQk2PM3rq0QVfY8VUIFY4OahEgFwa2TXt5tB0yKUiN7zalzBHMJGdWVJy-rk_ET0z-dHQvWu-okaQ/s400/IMAG0114.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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He's a youth guy in Magnolia, TX. We're just about the only 2 guys from the Houston Area. Some folks are from as far away as Traverse City, Michigan and Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.</div>
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Here's some schwag that Compassion had left for us in our rooms when we checked in:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid_y6EZ4F0EGtmxhCs_5gaoijiBwSle6OD4b4m6GbuqOfbEVp083gQ8h67rVH1J8a7o2oxFwLrgKAIasIFqmnu2Y6yZcIz9KAqrdpoJ1g_X16rqs1HiL47tTgV75RoP7wT48ZUxw/s1600/IMAG0113.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid_y6EZ4F0EGtmxhCs_5gaoijiBwSle6OD4b4m6GbuqOfbEVp083gQ8h67rVH1J8a7o2oxFwLrgKAIasIFqmnu2Y6yZcIz9KAqrdpoJ1g_X16rqs1HiL47tTgV75RoP7wT48ZUxw/s400/IMAG0113.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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That's a sweet handmade journal, a weird cloth lady, and some kind of candy. Oh, and some bottled water (not pictured) because, you know.</div>
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They also had all our room keys ready for us, with a sticker right on it that had our pre-paid wireless internet username and password! Thanks Compassion!</div>
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I wish I could get Compassion to plan and book my next vacation! Get right on that, guys...</div>
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Well, I imagine tomorrow's visit to a Compassion Project will be in stark contrast to the luxury we are enjoying tonight. Here's hoping there's some joy to be had with the arrival of 20 gringos.</div>
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More to come...</div>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-3810642695704898142010-05-21T11:09:00.000-05:002012-07-16T14:18:08.134-05:00*slurrrrp* Ahhhhh!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip4tqR-DlOGLYbepQMsfq549GnOIGmiFG4dbuOqBatoMaAHhCTVG5zW933u1XhfVWM0_oCCaHxlrlmG_IIUaJgUeqcJE0R0pluQIb9o6wQk9OE33FLze3nT8Lv2PS4X2flbyc1ag/s1600/IMAG0036.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip4tqR-DlOGLYbepQMsfq549GnOIGmiFG4dbuOqBatoMaAHhCTVG5zW933u1XhfVWM0_oCCaHxlrlmG_IIUaJgUeqcJE0R0pluQIb9o6wQk9OE33FLze3nT8Lv2PS4X2flbyc1ag/s320/IMAG0036.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is my coffee cup. </div>
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Ain't she a beauty?</div>
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As you can see - it's a Batman coffee cup.</div>
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I wouldn't have it any other way.</div>
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It lives on my desk at work, and helps me get through the hours by providing a more-than-average-amount of hot, black, sweet coffee a couple of times a day.</div>
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Sometimes I don't finish all my coffee, and I leave it sitting on the desk overnight with cold coffee inside of it.</div>
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Sometimes that leaves a ring of coffee around the bottom part of my cup, but I don't care.</div>
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I rinse it out with cold - yes COLD - water. I don't even use dish soap.</div>
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It's like how when you get a new cast-iron skillet, it's not really good for cooking until it's been seasoned - until it's gotten the crusted crud of a hundred meals burned into its bottom and sides.</div>
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It gives the coffee a flavor all its own.</div>
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A flavor that can't be reproduced in a stupid styrofoam cup. (PLEASE.)</div>
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I'm convinced that's why my grandmother's coffee tastes better than any coffee I've ever had.</div>
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It's not the coffee - it's the cup.</div>
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I've had this cup for quite a long time now.</div>
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Almost 10 years, I'd say.</div>
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If I remember correctly, Abby bought this cup for me after we had broken up the first time, and we were just friends. I think she got it at Astroworld in Houston which doesn't exist anymore. </div>
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This coffee cup is a freakin' one-of-a-kind unique collectors item, man! </div>
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In it's 10-year tour of duty with me, this coffee cup has seen some stuff, man.</div>
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If this coffee cup could talk.... well, I'd probably be a rich man, because hey- a talking coffee cup!</div>
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But seriously, it'd probably have some really great stories.</div>
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Sure, I've used other coffee cups from time to time.</div>
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At other people's houses, and at my own.</div>
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But no coffee cup has ever been so singularly <i>mine</i> as ol' Batman.</div>
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Since I'm clumsy and tend to knock stuff over and drop stuff - I rarely keep breakable things for very long.</div>
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Which is why I'm proud to extol the virtues of Batman - the miracle cup.</div>
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Here's to 10 more caffeinated years old chum!</div>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-32643888397379917432010-05-20T14:49:00.000-05:002012-07-16T14:18:35.243-05:00Jonah - Parable, Myth, Allegory or Truth?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'm not saying it couldn't happen.</div>
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I'm not saying it didn't happen.</div>
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Alls I'm saying is - there's no way to prove it happened or didn't happen.</div>
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And all things being equal - isn't the simplest explanation the best one? (Thank you, Mr. Occam)</div>
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It seems more likely that a man was NOT swallowed for 3 days by a big Mediterranean fish and subsequently vomited up onto dry land.</div>
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The only defense ever offered by my Seminary professors is that Jesus mentions Jonah - rather the Sign of Jonah - in Matthew 12:38-41.</div>
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Since Jesus mentions it, he says, it must have happened.</div>
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He says that if Jesus had compared his resurrection to a fable, or a fictional event, it could be argued that the resurrection itself was a fictional event.</div>
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(Surprise! This is what some people say anyway.)</div>
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Well, I'm not buying it.</div>
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Jesus could just have easily cited a fictional situation with which his audience was already familiar.</div>
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What if I say - "Man, seminary is tough for me! I feel like Sisyphus, who every day pushed the boulder up the steep hill, only to have it roll back down again every night. Every semester I do all this work and finally finish, only to have it start all over again the next semester."</div>
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If I say that seminary is like Sisyphus - who is clearly mythological, does that my work at seminary is mythological? Of course not. To say so would be ridiculous.</div>
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Jesus could just have easily have said, "I'm going to be like Rocky! I'm gonna take such a beating that you'll think it's all over - but you're not going to believe my comeback after that!"</div>
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Rocky is fictional. Does that mean that Jesus took fictional beating? Of course not. To say so would be ridiculous.</div>
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Likewise, if Jesus compares himself to Rocky, it doesn't make Rocky an actual guy, or his story a true story.</div>
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It seems more likely that Jonah was an actual prophet, who likely prophesied to the people of Nineveh, possibly even leading to their repentance. But around the actual prophet Jonah - there sprung up a legend that through the oral tradition (that we KNOW existed) became bigger than the man himself. Like Paul Revere. Or Johnny Appleseed. Or maybe like George Washington chopping down the cherry tree.</div>
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Did it happen, or didn't it?</div>
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Does it really matter? Don't you kind of get the point either way?</div>
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From Jonah's perspective - Don't try and ignore what God's asking you to do. Also - go out of your way to love the people you ought to hate the most.</div>
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From Jesus' perspective - Things are going to go from bad to worse - and then your mind will be absolutely blown. Also - go out of your way to love the people you ought to hate the most.</div>
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It's things like this that drive me crazy. It's insisting on sticking to a literal interpretation of stories like this that make us look ridiculous to perfectly intelligent people, and encourage them not to engage with Christ-followers.</div>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15230375.post-75756447845755400852010-05-20T14:14:00.005-05:002012-07-16T14:28:44.302-05:00Thirsty<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv52rEPL-z9EzCCrwhkaTIPmKEL3w-C7f70wj1yl2xmyYGF2rtWiqI8UritfNCVCIVjEzG5hj1QuV5lssm3n8DG5-ndPe9SsMCA3u0KjCJYsZX4t32GcsXBsuUTvgSbqz5SOk6KA/s1600/Glass+of+Water.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv52rEPL-z9EzCCrwhkaTIPmKEL3w-C7f70wj1yl2xmyYGF2rtWiqI8UritfNCVCIVjEzG5hj1QuV5lssm3n8DG5-ndPe9SsMCA3u0KjCJYsZX4t32GcsXBsuUTvgSbqz5SOk6KA/s200/Glass+of+Water.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;">I hate water. Drinking it, I mean. I would rather drink coffee, or Dr. Pepper, or Drano. If I absolutely HAVE to drink water, I'll mix it with some of that powder flavoring or something, so that it's like drinking water without actually drinking it. Recently, for Lent, I gave up drinking anything but water for 40 days.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">I hated it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Rather than bring me closer to God, or cause me to contemplate my lack, or give me a sense of sacrifice, or that I was identifying with Christ in his sufferings, it mostly just pissed me off every time I sat down to a meal. After 40 days of fasting (and on those blessed 6 celebration days during Lent), I immediately went back to drinking other stuff. Much to my surprise, in the days following Lent, I have often had cravings for water. Serious ones. So bad that I've actually had entire glasses or bottles of plain water (the HORROR!) to drink.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">They (whoever THEY are) say that most people walk around functionally dehydrated.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">None of us is drinking enough water. Sure, we get some in our coffee and our juices and stuff like that, but there's no substitute for clean, clear, pure water. And sometimes we don't know how thirsty we have been <i>until</i> we start to drink.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">-------</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">I hate the Bible. Reading it, I mean. I would rather read websites, magazines or shampoo bottles. If I absolutely HAVE to read the Bible, sometimes I'll read what Max Lucado, Rob Bell, or Donald Miller wrote about it, so that it's like reading the Bible without actually reading it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Most of us walk around functionally deprived of this, too. Oh, we might get a little bit of it in church or small group or something on TV, but there's no substitute for sitting and reading the wild, raw, naked words of God.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">So yesterday I committed myself to a new system for reading the Bible through.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">It calls for me to read 10 chapters a day by reading 1 chapter from a series of 10 "lists"</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">List 1 is the gospels. List 2 is the Torah. List 3 Romans, the Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Hebrews. List 4 is the Thessalonians,the Timothys, Titus, Philemon, James, the Peters, the Johns, Jude and Revelation. List 5 is Job, Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon. List 6 is Psalms. List 7 is Proverbs. List 8 is Joshua - Esther. List 9 is the rest of the prophets. List 10 is Acts.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: small;">When I reach the end of a list (Acts, for example, only has 28 chapters), I just start it over, because I'll still be reading through the others (List 9, the Prophets will take 250 days).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">In the end, I'll read through all the gospels 4 times, the Torah twice, Paul's letters 4-5 times each, the OT Wisdom Literature 6 times, the Psalms at least twice, the Proverbs and Acts a dozen times, and all the way through the OT Historical and Prophetic books about 1 1/2 times.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">10 chapters might sound like a lot, but it never takes me more than about 30 or 45 minutes. When reading about the Creation story, Job's trials, Christ's birth, the Day of Pentecost, and Paul's introduction to Romans all at the same time, you start to really get a holistic sense of scripture. Scripture commenting on and interpreting itself. I used to marvel at guys I knew who taught from the Lectionary. A schedule that assigns to each Sunday a series of Scriptures that often seem completely unrelated? An OT reading. A Psalm. A Gospel reading. An Epistle. I thought, "How do they write one homily or sermon on 4 unrelated texts?" But in just two days I can see harmonies developing between one or two or three or more of these lists that are just beautiful.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">I didn't know how thirsty I was until I started to drink again.</span></div>J.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/02993110984126381040noreply@blogger.com3