Finally

Ladies and Gentlemen, let me introduce you to a new link on my blog. If I could make arrows, I would point them to the right-hand side of this page toward the link entitled Mike's myspace. There you shall go for wisdom and wit, humor and hum-drum . . . and lots of other things.

Gunner's post last week was very piercing and thought-provoking. Take a few minutes to read it.

Football

If you know me, you know that sports are very important to me. I like playing them, I like talking about them, I like watching them, I like taking stats for them, and I even like reading about them! Today was week 3 of the NFL season, and I finally watched an entire football game. Pretty sad, but it is only bearable because last year I missed the entire season while I was in Israel. And see, THAT is the very problem I've been mulling over recently. How important is too important?

I went over to my roommate Nick Foy's house to watch the game and about five other guys from the college came over to watch. Talk came around to the Super Bowl. Now, I have only watched one Super Bowl all the way through. Some guys were talking about the Super Bowl as if it were the greatest thing that God ever gave to mankind. And, to some extent, I find my own thinking drifting in that direction a lot of the time. How important is too important?

I've heard a few stories from people I know saying that their churches just cancel their Sunday night service or maneuver it around the Super Bowl. That's pretty sad. Amy's church in New Hampshire either cancels their night service or makes it earlier to accomodate. She said that no one would show up and the pastor would be preaching to an empty church. That's very sad. What's at stake here, really?

What about, "Oh c'mon Happy, it's only one church service that you're missing." Sure, you're right! But does that mean God and fellowship with our church families gets to take second place once a year because a football game is on?! I think that's what is happening. Somehow, we have bought into the lie of the world's thinking, that we can place God on the shelf whenever we feel like it; whenever it's most convenient.

Now, I've never attended another church in my entire life, but if this is a widespread norm, I think perhaps we should rethink our earthly passions and desires. If we don't desire God enough, it will show in our church attendance/participation.

Stepping on toes is not my focus here, but making us think is. Please contribute by commenting if you can. I'd like to get others' opinions on this to round out my thinking.

Me and my mom. . . and apparently I'm sprouting antennae!!

Here's a slightly blurry picture of me after our win 

Writer's block

Well, I'm supposed to be writing a short story that's due tomorrow, but I haven't been getting anywhere, so I decided to ramble on about something or other here. At least I'm getting words out of my head and onto the screen.

Yesterday was our first intramural football game. Our team name is very original: A Few Good Men. Actually we stole it from a team from Biola, but that's another story. We had practiced on Friday, but the first game is always so much different than practice. It is eight-man flag football and there are seven teams this season. Anyway, we ended up just dominating the other team, winning 34-2. Their first offensive plays resulted in interceptions, so we were up 20-0 before they ever gained a yard on offense. I dropped two passes, including one potential touchdown pass that would have been very pretty. On defense, not too much happened on my side of the field. Our next game is on Tuesday afternoon and should be much more of a challenge.

So the story that I'm trying to write is set in Jerusalem and I'm trying to take a real-life experience from my time in Israel and make it the center of my short story. However, I can't even decide if I want it to be first-person or third-person, and everytime I try to start I just get a bad taste in my mouth from how bad the story is.

OK, let me wind this down and get back to work and dinner. I'm going to skip church tonight, because of the desperate straits that this story has led me to. I like writing, but I don't like writing fiction (by myself, Mike). Pictures to follow.

Naps R Me

Sleep has been somewhat of a hard-to-catch halfback the last few days. He (if I may be so bold as to label sleep a male) has eluded me and seems to be running behind the best offensive line anyone has ever seen.

OK, I apologize for that lame analogy, but it does hold true this week. I've been up late with homework and studying and small groups. The life of an RA seems, at times, to be dominated by meetings and more meetings. Today I have team meeting (the four Hotchkiss RAs and Siona, the RD) from seven to nine, followed by lounge duty from ten to two. Yeah, two in the morning.

This weekend is going to be a long weekend as well. Saturday morning is my team's first football game! One of the biggest things I missed last year in Israel was intramural football. This year, our team is pretty stacked, so we have a good shot at making the playoffs and going all the way. After football, I will continue work on a short story (fiction) that is due on Monday. I'm not especially good at writing fiction, so it ought to be an interesting story. I'm thinking that I will set the story in the Old City in Jerusalem. Lastly, I have to read Hemingway's For Whom the Bell Tolls and write a book report about it by Wednesday. The book is 471 pages! Yeah, so lots of sustained hours of reading ahead. That's one of the interesting things about school. This past week I've had NO time to read C. S. Lewis' The Problem of Pain. There is so much reading, that sometimes it becomes too much of a chore. That is part of the reason why I chose For Whom the Bell Tolls, because: 1) I already own it. 2) I've been wanting to read it for some time now. 3) We just read Hemingway's short stories in my Creative Writing class. 4) It is a culturally relevant novel. Actually, it's Hemingway's masterpiece. 5) I know that I will enjoy reading it, even if I have to fly through it.

Well, off to homework and responsibility land.

Rescue the Perishing

I don't have too much to add to our Skid Row experience on Friday night, so click here for the details!

Library

Today was library day. Yep, I spent more time in that haven of rest than I did my entire freshman year. Which is probably why my GPA is only 3.2ish. Yeah. Um. . . so I studied and read and watched the A's game. That's about it. Nothing spectacular.

Oh, my car won't start. Yeah, that's not good. So Mr. Pedrick, a man from my church, is coming to look at it tomorrow. It can't be the battery, since that's only nine months old. I mean, it could be, but that's highly unlikely. OK, more reading and hopefully early bedtime.

Amy and I 

Missing Out?

Last night I talked to an English major on my wing and made a trip down to the library. Pretty exciting, huh? The books in the guy's room made me realize how much I don't know, mostly in the area of philosophy. He has Nietzsche, Hume, Camus, and more. I don't even know the bare essentials about these influential guys! How can I reason with and begin to understand my pagan culture without digging deeper? Then, going through some periodicals made me realize how weak I am in some areas in regards to my level of knowledge in those areas. I know next to nothing about something so near and dear to the beating heart of this campus (and my girlfriend's major!): Biblical Counseling vs. Psychology. I hope to take Introduction to Biblical Counseling next semester to give myself at least a basic understanding of the views.

I've always felt that there are way too many books and such precious little time in which to read them, but last night really brought that point home for me. I need to choose books not just for personal pleasure reading. I need to read culturally and historically relevant books that help me gain more knowledge not for the sake of gathering knowledge in my head. I must "always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed" (I Peter 3:15b-16).

In other news, Small Groups are starting up next week on my wing (Hotchkiss Upper Front), and all three groups are going to be going through James. This book, written by the brother of Jesus, is such a rich overview of several practical passages dealing with godly living and behavior. I chose it because it touches on so many topics, and I wanted to focus on one book to dig through.

I went running this morning with Amy at 6:30. Yeah, that's early. It was a good run and I pushed myself a little harder than I did last Thursday. Intramural football begins a week from Saturday, and I am in the worst shape of my life. OK, gotta go.

My roommate's schedule for the day. Ask if you don't get it

Wow! I was in charge! What's going on around here?! 

Lousy

That word justly describes my performance tonight. That's right, it's that time of year again. Basketball in the gym. Although I'm not sure what I did tonight could be called "playing basketball. I was just downright awful and to make matters worse, my left index finger is already swelling up, making it hard to type with. I guess that shows what happens when a person hasn't played basketball for a significant amount of time for about four months. I mean, I feel like I should repent in sackloth and ashes for the offensive display I put on tonight. On the other hand, maybe all the newbies think I'm just downright awful and out of shape. Now, they'd be right about the second part and if I don't get my act together, the first part may come true.

Today was Labor Day. I labored on it. . . after sleeping in until 10:00am though! A day off so soon in the semester is not necessarily a good thing, depending on how you use it. I did get a lot of reading done and even got ahead in one class. Oh yeah, and I did extra credit for one class, too.

Has anyone ever read Ernest Hemingway? His short stories are much more involved than I remember them being in high school. I don't know how anyone can cram so much meaning (or my suspicion of meaning) into such small stories. The longest one I've read so far is only five pages long. However, I do recommend reading him. This past summer I read The Sun Also Rises and it was an enjoyable read. When I came to end of it, I realized that it was about nothing. That's right, nothing. His existential philosophy pervades his writing and the meaninglessness of life is everywhere. Of course, he did live and go through the First World War, a time in which nearly everyone's beliefs and outlooks on life changed.

Anyway, I smell like dying fish (not dead, dying) and need to go take a shower. I'm out like the A's in the ninth inning.

Was Katrina Intelligent Design?

John Piper's scathing (and challenging) remarks!Was Katrina Intelligent Design?

I mean, if that doesn't say "bad dancer" I don't know what does. But that's OK. . . I'm not allowed to at TMC anyway! 

I put a lot more effort into than Cody did, but he definitely killed me in every round. 

This me and Cody (a guy on my wing) playing Dance Dance Revolution Extreme! I was horrible at it!! 

One Week Down. . . Fifteen to Go!

10:00am! Isn't sleeping in a wonderful thing? Nothing leaves you feeling so refreshed like wasting your morning away underneath your warm covers with A/C blowing freezing cold air all throughout your room. The only improvement could be going to brunch with your girlfriend. Alas, this too did occur this morning!

Although I'm forever grateful for my job at Santa Clarita Baptist Church for the past five-and-a-half years, sleeping in on Saturdays and going to brunch consistently is one of my biggest blessings this year. I got more than nine hours of sleep for the first time in a long time!

Today was our fantasy football draft. Last week we had one but it didn't work thanks to an over-zealous campus-wide firewall on the server. We went to a classroom and wrote down all 220 picks for the ten teams. I must say it was a lot of fun and I enjoyed being with the guys (that's right dad, you're one of the "guys" now) and talking football and having the pressure of picking better players than nine other guys.

My first week of school was pretty hectic. Now, that sounds kind of discouraging, but it was a good kind of hectic. I am much more organized this year than I have ever been. Also, I have a planner for the first time in my life and I'm actually using it. By God's grace, and great diligence on my part, maybe my grades will reflect my adjustments.

Lastly, please make full use of the several links I have on the side. I'm beginning to check out Gunner's blog and Foolishblog everyday for their practical and theoretical wisdom. If anyone wants to suggest blogs for me to add, feel free (Mike, I can't add yours because myspace requires registration. Sorry man, your blog is definitely the best humor I get all week).