Thursday, December 31, 2009

The Overcomers After Party

People used to really confuse me when they would say heaven sounded boring, but I think I'm beginning to understand what they mean. When we look back at our lives, the things most worth doing are the things of tremendous difficulty. And we typically associate hardship with wrongdoing. As though only things that are unjust or wrong need to be overcome.

I don't think things are going to be easy in heaven, and I don't think we'll instantly know everything. We'll have a new perspective, but, I think we'll still learn in heaven, like Adam learned in the garden before he sinned. I think we'll have hard, satisfying work. No one wants a heaven that's just playing World 1-1 of Mario Bros. over and over again. It's fun, but not forever.

So I guess my new years resolution is to keep doing hard things (There's a book about that for young people, btdubs), cause it's the hard that makes it great. Here comes more seminary, starting ministry at my church, and of course, army stuff. That'll be the hardest, but that's good, right? It's time to overcome. So let's be great in 2010.

DFTBA!

Thursday, December 24, 2009

The Worst Movie I Have Ever Seen

The worst movie I have ever seen is the movie Eragon. Not only is it pathetic in it's style, with amateur CG, little to no character development, and worse acting than cardboard (despite a killer ensemble including John Malkovich, Ndijiman Hansou, & Jeremy Irons, my guess is they had less than stellar direction, cause they all suck in this movie), but it is actually a complete rip off of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.

The opening scene features a princess that is in trouble, and sends a parting message for help before her capture. This message is found by a scrawny, whiney blonde-haired boy who lives in his uncles farm. Shortly there after the boy is befriended by an elderly british actor who reveals the hidden meaning of the message and helps the boy discover that he is different from others and has special powers, which he will learn to use as the movie goes on. He and the boy must flee from the henchman of the evil ruler who's powerful right hand enforcer inspires fear and also has special powers. In their flight they are aided by a mysterious character who's allegiance is questionable. Rather than fleeing the ruler, they make a direct insurrection on the rulers layer in order to free the princess, and then after doing so, they are united with the group of rebels who opposes the ruler. The final battle determines whether the rebellion will continue.

I didn't read the book, so I don't know if that teenager who wrote the Eragon trilogy basically stole every single idea (The idea of magic, and naming items is similarly unoriginal, appearing in the Earthsea series by Ersela Le Guin, and the concept of dragons and riders, and a bond between them is a special feature of the Pern series by Anne McCaffrey) or if there are some original thoughts that didn't get translated to film.

I've had this in my head since 2006 when it came out, but I finally wanted to write it out. A weird entry for Christmas Eve, but whatever.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Pursuit of...

Just read an interesting article and also saw several different tweets about happiness, so, in light of seeing and hearing tragedies all around me right now, I thought I'd blog a little about happiness. Because we all talk about happiness the way we talk about love. We want it, in every possible way, and only usually pair it with terms of softness. Some (like John Piper) would consider it the ultimate motivator. I think there is something to that, we as humans do primarily, if not only what we believe will bring us the most happiness. Sometimes we believe that happiness will result from a long term investment (This is a common approach to religion with a strong emphasis on the afterlife) and sometimes we believe that what we do right now should result in our happiness. Even infants decide which toy to play with by this simple formula.

I guess I would say that I believe we are not made to find happiness in ourselves. We're not meant to be the rockstars of life, and inevitably those who do live like rockstars (or literally are rockstars) find nothing at the end of the rainbow, and are left drained and lonely. Others find fulfillment because of one thing, and one thing alone: Connection. Whether it's in a marriage, a friend/community, a higher power, an identity within society, we all want connection. If you watch enough movies (and I really watch a lot of movies) you find that that is what drives almost every hero to the end of his story: his will to connect to something. And we all want to be the heroes of stories, don't we? (sidenote; read Don Miller's new book!)

So what are you doing? I inevitably get caught up in myself. I think that doing what I want to do will lead to my happiness, yet that is the precise inclination of human flesh that Jesus corrects. If you strive to save your life, you will lose everything. Only by seeking something greater than yourself, realizing the nature of reality around you and participating in the divine mission, can you truly find life, and live to the full.

I think that is something that strikes me most about my friend Justin who recently passed away. I shared some of the biggest triumphs and joys with him, and I also endured some uncomfortable silences and heated words that only pass between old friends, and some things drew us closer together as friends, and some things we agreed to disagree. But I would bet the farm that Justin was happy. Because Justin knew the one true God, and knew that he couldn't do anything apart from that connection sustaining him, and giving him life. Over the 14 years that I knew Justin, that is something I saw happen to him. Being friends with someone who truly knows Jesus is amazing, because you can actually watch them become more humble as they grow in grace. To paraphrase Justin, grace happens when we realize we won't ever be happy if we keep trying to win the game by ourselves, even if God himself is on the sideline cheering us on. Happiness is when we bench our own desires to cheer on God, and our participation in the kingdom is a further means of grace. To glorify God by enjoying Him, forever


"Happy is a yuppy word; I am blessed." - Johnny Cash

When I Shall Die

When I shall die, I think there are many common practices which i wish that were not to be observed.

First and foremost of these is a lack of burial. I shall be cremated and scattered, and no memorial or place holder shall be retained. Neither a grave nor a plaque nor any mark or notation shall commemorate my earthly residence. If any event is held in my remembrance, it will be a wake where people will drink, tell stories and laugh. The people will refrain from romanticizing or grandizing or idealizing my accomplishments on earth. If we were not on good terms, they are not to act as though we were. The only professional oration, or particular remarks made by a member of the clergy will chiefly concern my incredible frailty as a human being and my absolute and enduring need and utter dependence on God. I would not like to be remembered for things which were not true when I was alive. I simply want people to know that I am a failure, but Jesus changed my life and made me worthwhile. His sacrifice alone is the crowning glory of my life. Any who experienced me as good merely saw a shade of Jesus, and anyone who saw me at my worst knew the real me. I am not good, great, wonderful, thoughtful, considerate, or any other word that you may try to use to describe and flatter the memory of me in my fortunate absence. I am poor, weak, selfish, disgusting. I did not live up to my potential. I am a failure. The success of my life, the victory of my life, the thing which all the living can celebrate when I am gone is Jesus. Jesus won me on the Cross, and called me to follow him in his ressurection. I responded, however inadequately. I NEEDED Jesus. I felt this acutely every morning. That is something you can remember me for. That is all. I spent as much time as anyone wishing for things that never came true. I was not a very good friend. I experienced the joy of the LORD, and that is what gave my life purpose and meaning. Nothing of myself ever profited me, or anybody, it was God alone acting through me that may have benefited any person.

Matt O'Brien, Age 27

Thursday, December 03, 2009

Take a Ride On The eBus

I recently finished a 2-month exploration of digital communities, and did some research and made a video. I'm not going to post it to youtube, cause it's using some copyrighted stuff, but it's not 4 profit, so, meh. I'm uploading it to vimeo as I type this.

The main thing that I came away with is something I learned learned from a Frontline Special about kids that grow up with the internet. For me, The INternet came out when I was in 7th grade. It was a brand new thing, a new tool. And many people my age and older view it this way, but what I experienced in the last 2 months is that there is definitely more to the internet than a utility. When I presented this to a group of people, one person got really heated, because he felt that the nature of anonymity on the web makes the whole thing contrived. It's a performance, a mere use of a utility, not a place of true personal extension and expression. This is actually hinted at in the matrix where the digital self is a projection of the way the user sees themself, rather than as they are.

The question however is where is the truth and where is the act? many people express themselves in ways they never would in real life, and experience deep connections through online communities, and one of the highest personal values in an online community such as YouTube is authenticity.

This transition in thinking makes the internet not a utility, but a community, where the media facilitate human connections. This changes users into inhabitants. While this sounds bizarre, take the example of another common utility in most cities, the public bus.

Many people use the bus everday, generally for less than 2 hours, and consider a means to an end, it is a transportation utility. There are bus users and bus operators, as well as a host of things which the user never sees that keeps the busses running including mechanics, administrators and city officials.

But look at what happens over time. People who ride the same route begin to recognize one another, begin to know one another, as well as the operators that drive those routes. You might even be a first time bus user but be able to enter this environment and strike up a comversation with someone. The bus, which is a utility, features a small, temporary gathering of people. The bus is not simply full of users, it's become a community over time, full of inhabitants, however transient.

This is the shift in thinking with the internet, like many other tools and utilities, it has taken on a sense of habitation, and gives rise to a diverse set of tribes and sub-cultures.

Digital Communities (And Mission) from Matt O'Brien on Vimeo.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Contemporary Authors

After years of reading philosophical, spiritual, religious and theological writings, I have observed one pattern that troubles me. Most every contemporary author I've read at some point will present a concept that is clearly derived from specific bible verses and not make any reference, making the idea seem as though it is their own. THey will, often in the same book, if not the same chapter and paragraph, propose an idea that could actually be quite good, but isn't really found in scripture. Then they'll reference a bible verse as their proof text. Tell me your ideas, but don't act like the bible has said it all along. and if the bible has said it all along, don't pretend to be innovative, Shane Claiborne.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Serving your country is harder to do than they make it sound

I have recently been accepted as a Chaplain Candidate for the Army. What this means is that pending my successful completion of the Master of Divinity, I will be eligible to be a chaplain for a reserve unit. While I'm in school I will go to training every summer, including the chaplain version of basic, and throughout the year I will be assigned to assist a current chaplain in a reserve unit. In order to participate in all of this, I still need to be commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant, which I have orders for, I just need to execute them.

The army was my third choice, really. not that I had a solid reason for holding preference, but it was just the 3rd branch of the armed forces I attempted to join. I've had funny experiences with both the Navy and Air Force, so essentially, horrible people skills of recruiters is what led me to reject them.

The Navy was first, because I like idea of seafaring, and there's a LOT of diversity in naval units, from Marines to CB's to Ship's crews to Pilots and Carrier crews. The Navy is really cool. I tried calling them and leaving messages, and emailing and asking for more information and got no response whatsoever. I forgot all about it. About 8 months later, a man from the navy with shiny shoes and crisp white hat shows up unannounced on my doorstep. I had forgotten about my attempts to get more information from them. The whole thing was weird.

The Air Force was next, and I called them off of an informational brochure I had obtained from a display. I spoke to a nice rep who said he would forward all my info to a recruiter who would contact me shortly. After a month all I had recieved was an envelope from the Air Force containing the same brochure which I had used to contact them in the first place. I talked to a friend of mine who is in the same program I was trying to get into, and he gave me the contact info of his recruiter. I called her every day for two weeks and got no connection and no response. She finally did contact me after a phone tag session and acted like she didn't know the procedure for signing up a person for this program (when she had just done it for my friend). Months go by with no progress. Finally I complete the initial application and await further instruction, and I am contacted by another guy who seems to actually know what he's talking about and that he will be very helpful, except he tells me that I won't be eligible to apply until a certain requirement is fulfilled which I won't be able to do for a month. In that month, my first recruiter leaves me a message that she hasn't heard from me in a while, is wondering if I'm still interested, but she is dropping my file from the system, and I can call her and start over if I want to. I call her to inform her that I was told not to apply right now, and get no response. I call and email her when I am eligible and get no response whatsoever.

I contact the army. They respond immediately. They explain everything to me over the phone and in 2 waves of information, I fill out all the necesarry paperwork and get scheduled for processing. Within 6 weeks, everything I need for my application is completed, a month ahead of the due date.

It's amazing how common sense this is. go army.

Saturday, October 24, 2009

"Not unless you can take me on!!!"

-The words of a Bellevue junior football coach after I told him to shut up, as he yelled at me and the other officials (mostly at me) during the 4th quarter of todays game. Awesome. It only took 6 weekends of refereeing to be threatened with physical violence. I'm kind of surprised actually, that it took that long.

This post is about football.
I'm kind of saturated by it in life. I make game films of High School football games on friday nights, I run around on saturdays refereeing little kids games, and then I watch college football with my dad. Though I can't always tune in on Sundays, I'm in a fantasy football league for pro football.
Maybe it's a guy thing, but I really like it. I played growing up, so it's great.

Back on the subject of Jr. Football, which was really fun when I was a youth, I am sometimes actually horrified at the coaches. Now my dad was a coach, so I am a little biased, cause he was one of the greats. But the coaching these days sucks, to put it bluntly. Not that kids don't learn the game of football, or even that they aren't good at teaching fundamentals. The coaching staffs are just all populated by jerks. Really really loud jerks. (feel free to imagine I used a much more colorful and less flattering word)

Now, as a referee, I've come to accept that I will be maligned. And while I'm clearly the only objective person in the entire stadium (besides the other refs), that doesn't mean I don't make mistakes. All referees miss calls, and that's just the way it goes, and the game happens how they call it, and that's that. This is less apparent in pro football with the advent of video replay, but in other sports, like Baseball, human error is a longstanding tradition of the game. You'd think people would learn to live with it.

But I've never been treated worse in my entire life as a human being than at the hands of coaches in the peewee football system, particularly by coaches from either Bellevue or Mercer Island (rich and spoiled, big sense of entitlement, i can say it cause I'm from Bellevue). And this actually leads to my second point. First, MOST coaches are jerks. Second, ALL coaches are full of crap, even the ones that act nice; the day I hear a coach call a penalty on his own team is the day I will repent of that assertion, not before. I really can't believe some of their arguments, and I always consider the responses I could make but wisely attempt to keep quiet. Imagine if you will, a coach is in my face arguing, and here's what goes through my mind:

"What is the point of this conversation? I don't want to talk to this jerk. He either wants me to A) Reverse the call, which I'm not going to do. B) Feel bad, which I'm also not going to do C) admit that I am somehow biased against his team, which is the opposite of truth, I am in fact the only unbiased person in this stadium." At that point I usually employ one of my favorite self-quotes: "Why'd you even talk?"

Now just pretend it's not an in your face argument, but he just makes offhand remarks about MY lack of judgment in officiating the game. He either A) Thinks I'm hard of hearing, false B) Thinks that treating me like a piece of crap is going to sway me over to his side, false or C) Thinks that this could be considered 'helpful' in any way, false.

And the biggest temptation in all this isn't to yell back (oops, guilty), or give them penalties for their ridiculous and embarrassing behavior. The temptation is to scorn them when they make a bad call as a coach. In the same game in which I was threatened, the coach of the winning team was up by 10 with 3 minutes remaining. Rather than run the clock out, he calls a pass play, resulting in an interception. "COACH!! What were you THINKING? Only a complete MORON would call that kind of play." I stifle this thought in my brain before my mouth gets any crazy ideas.

Now there's no way around it, I'm basically getting paid to absorb the abuse of these men acting out their psychological disorders on the children's playing field, which is a shame for 2 reasons, 1) I think it has a horrible affect on the kids, and 2) because all of them are fabulously successful off the field, and I'm nothing compared to them in normal life. But here, and here alone where I have been given a modicum of responsiblity and authority, these men act like spoiled children, whining like mules for what is one of the least significant accomplishments with regard to eternity. To be thought of as a winner by a bunch of 8-year-olds. Wow. And the way some of them talk to the kids, it's painful. It actually reminds me of Pete Holmes impersonating an adult talking to a child Check him out on CH Live. Some of these coaches sound exactly like that.

Anyways, anyways. I also go to high school football games. These are a whole new world of fun and stupidity. It's hilarious how people get so worked up about it all. The Band, the food, the cheerleaders and drill team, the lights. The ridiculous fans, parents and high school students. It's all so funny, but the game itself is so fun to watch.

So, I guess that is all the reasons I shouldn't be into this game, but I am, cause it's a great game.

SAN DIMAS HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL RULES!

Monday, August 10, 2009

Christian is a noun, not an adjective.

There are a few opportunities that I have noticed recently where "acting christian" restricts my ability to be like Christ. I feel like there is an image of christian behavior that has little too do with the image of God's Son, or a biblical understanding of purity, and which I am forced to live up to as a part of the church, particularly as a paid/volunteer staff person at a local church.

and yet, the call and appeal of vocational ministry is very strong...hopefully I am learning balance in all this.

Friday, July 31, 2009

Impulsive can be so Repulsive

But we all do it. Even the most process-oriented, thoughtful and patient individuals are at their very center, impulsive creatures. As clever as I have always thought I was, and as thoughtful as I try to be, and as great as I am at planning something I really care about, I generally do what I feel like doing, to my own detriment. Particularly when it comes to relationships.

"The creative impulses of man are always at war with the possessive impulses." - Van Wyck Brooks. This is a great summary of my life of chasing after girls. I think that's why I turn into an even bigger idiot when I like a girl, because I just get overwhelmed by my possessive urges and want so badly to be the center of someone else's attention.

So this is what I am working on. I think the creative impulses are geared towards doing what is right. Doing something nice for someone else requires this creative impulse. This is yet another area of life where we are called to take every thought captive. To identify the source of our whims and to conduct that which is worthwhile under the control of the Holy Spirit. It's not easy, because these impulses are as close to second-nature as it gets, as fluid as our cultural origins and responses.

In the Matrix, Mouse very pointedly remarks that "To deny our impulses is to deny the very thing which makes us human." And he makes a very excellent point, that we ARE our impulses. You ARE your decisions. But I am not my own, I am not me, anymore. Galatians 2:20 summarizes what happened to me. Now this jumbled bag of impulses and fears is God's, and so...it's all got to be changed. Hopefully this will help me in future endeavours. Distant future...

Monday, June 29, 2009

Habits = Ruts

I've had a few interesting conversations with a friend of mine, and we both agree that we felt more on top of it, more disciplined, more capable of making necessary changes in our lives and of modeling obedience to the Lord when we were in college than afterward. Almost inexplicably so. Like, College life, that was basically on lockdown, we had chosen solid churches, made time for God's word, were involved in ministry, and excelled at our school work, and always had time for a late night Wendy's run or a Saturday pickup game of Ultimate Frisbee.

I feel like there's a number of changes, disciplines, rhythms I would like to establish now, and it is very very difficult, even things I have been consistent at in the past. Why?

Hopefully I will find both the answer and victory this summer. So far, I am faring alright. better than 50%, but there is always so much work to be done on my life.

Saturday, June 27, 2009

MJ

So, the last 20 years of bizarre crap not withstanding, Michael Jackson did something very profound, more deliberately in his early 90's work with songs like Black or White, but even in his breakthrough in the 80's.

In the 1980s, MTV was NEW. the music video was NEW. And there were many bands in the 40's through 70's that wouldn't have been promoted if the music video had been around back then. Why? because they were non-whites. Racism doesn't work as well over the radio. Fitting that MTV's first music video was "Video Killed the Radio Star". For the first 2 years of it's programming, MTV didn't show a single non-white artist's music video. That was the biggest criticism they ever got, was basically as the most racist channel on cable TV.

In 1983, Thriller came out. Michael Jackson pressured MTV to put a black artist on their video rotation, and not just once in a while. The Thriller music video demanded heavy rotation. Michael Jackson was a civil rights face. He was the Jackie Robinson of Music Videos.

After Bad came out in 1987, it was all downhill, and I don't justify any of his issues or problems in the 22 years since then. Guy was a mess. but, he did something really important beyond having a bunch of hit singles.

Sunday, June 14, 2009

sweet sweet idolatry

So, I'm sitting here watching the NBA finals as the Lakers close in on yet ANOTHER championship. I hate the Lakers. I hate everything about them, except Jack Nicholson. He's a gentleman and a scholar.

But I think it's pretty interesting to note that since I was born, only been 8 teams have won this championship. Which is a time period closing in on 3 decades.

When i was a kid it was all Michael Jordan. Now it's all Kobe and Lebron. I think about all the time I've wasted memorizing sports facts, knowing players, sitting in front of the tube, or in the arena, watching sports recap shows, sports discussion shows, arguing about sports with friends, pretending to play sports via video games and listening to sports radio.

And then you hear people from other countries look at the west and they see the clearest form of idolatry available to fresh eyes. I think I've been spending too much time at the coliseum, and I think the I'm setting a goal this summer to detox from sports. Other than playing them myself with real people.

Boom.

...also, I love the Red Wings, but the Pens definitely earned the Stanley Cup this year. What a great series.

Friday, June 12, 2009

Must Check Out

I highly highly recommend the band Explosions in the Sky, if you're a fan of epic instrumental music.

Love it.

Saturday, May 16, 2009

All Aboard the Scholarship

In the past six years I've probably heard about or studied about every fallacy and false claim regarding the bible and academia (going through bible college and then leading a college ministry), especially since most fraudulent views and beliefs are recycled from various 1st century heresies, and nothing is new under the sun. There's a number of people I have heard teach and preach and have drawn from to put together my worldview and understanding of the "big picture" of scripture, and how the bible itself "fits together". A popular and appropriate word for these people is scholars. I consider myself an aspiring scholar. Very transitional :)

But every once in a while, you read something in the Bible that is problematic, or requires exploration, and the scholarly beliefs are pretty unsatisfactory, or downright ridiculous. In my latest Old Testament class studying Job, I came across one such example that has little significance, but is still interesting to me.

In Job 40-41, God describes two of his greatest creatures: Behemoth and Leviathan. Now, don't get me wrong, this is a poem, so it's possible that these are overwhelming examples of hyperbole, but the "scholarly" tradition states that these creatures described correspond to a hippopotamus and an alligator. That sounds absolutely ridiculous to me.

Behemoth is described as eating grass. So far so good. It also describes his strength as being in his loins, or abdomen, and the muscles of his belly, and the manner in which he "bends his tail like a cedar." That is NOT a hippopotamus. Hippos have whispy little tails like eeyore, and their strength is in their jaws. Even if you were embellishing how mighty a hippo is, you'd talk about how fast it is, and how sharp it's teeth are, not it's tail.

The rest talks about how Behemoth is comfortable in just about any climate, again not a hippo. Hippos need water, and are intensly territorial around bodies of water. Sorry folks, I've been 10 feet from a Hippo in a game reserve, but I've never dreamed of a Behemoth. Sounds a bit like those creatures the orcs are riding in Return of the King in the big battle scene.

Leviathan is an even more impressive description, and couldn't possibly be an alligator, not for all the tea in china. It describes the Leviathan's skin as an "outer armor" of "double mail", and the seals which cannot be broken. It also describes it's breath as flashing fire and billowing smoky coals. Some writers envision an alligator spewing forth mist from underwater like a whale's blowhole and the poet interpreting that as smoke. It's a poem, so I guess you can read it that way, but it sounds to me exactly like Smogg from The Hobbit. You can kill an alligator with a hunting knife if she doesn't get you first, but the sword or spear does not avail against Leviathan.

I've never seen anything like what the bible describes, but it doesn't describe anything like what scholars claim, and it seems really weird that they stand by those interpretations. I don't think it's significant at all, but if I can get comfortable enough with Hebrew, I think this would make a fun topic for my ThM thesis in a few years, mostly because of it's lack of significance, and just the thought of writing my graduate thesis on "dragons in the bible". lol.

I can't freaking believe it's May already.

Time is going by so fast. So I'm cooking, drinking energy drinks and contemplating not sleeping. I wish I had started tabulating in college how many 24+ periods I've gone sleepless. It's still one of my most favorite experiences of being. especially right at the 7 in the morning mark. It's like you're seeing the world in a totally different way.

All that to say, I'm feeling a little introspective...mathematically. The last two years has been a roller coaster by the numbers - from May '07 to May '09, I've (deep breath) completed 38 units of seminary, made a fool of myself to not less than (<) 3 girls, gone to Mexico 2wice to build houses, gone to LA 5 times, Spent 28 days in India, completed 1 week visits to New Orleans, Dallas, Little Rock, Akron, Chicago, San Francisco 2wice, lived in 3 different places with 7 different roommates, had 5 different jobs (2 at a time concurrently), applied for 3 different government programs, went to staff 4 summer camps (3 in a row spanning 24 days while living out of a single backpack), been to 9 state parks, 2 national parks, read 2 Jane Austin novels, sustained 1 injury, spent 9 months carless, cried 2 times, went to green festival 2wice, 3 days at bumbershoot, collected 13 tattoos, hiked above 12,000 feet for the second time in my life and been to 3 weddings, 1 funeral & skipped 5 weddings. I think I also had 4 cavities and consequently started flossing more. (all in no particular order).

My life is simply great, and I don't deserve any of it, and am enjoying all of it, even the tough stuff, which really isn't that tough by comparison to pretty much anyone. It's crazy to think about how long and yet how short and fast 2 years has been and can be. Thanks be to God and my prayer for the next two years of hopefully more consistency, and focused progress in seminary.

James 4:14.

Saturday, May 09, 2009

A New Direction

Well, I have decided a number of things in one day.

1) I'll be working at a church in Yakima this summer as a pastoral ministries intern. Essentially I will be taking on a number of responsibilities for the summer ministry of the church, and generally functioning as the head Pastor's right hand man. I think I will learn a lot, and there is a strong emphasis not only on service, but professional development. I'm stoked. I also stumbled across a new insight on my last post regarding me personally.

RE: Ink - Tattoos are personal. they are for the bearer, and no one else really. as such, they are something that you can't look into in a job interview, the same way you can't ask questions about a persons family, race, or hobbies. The textbook answer is "I don't let my personal life effect my performance at work." But in applying for this job at a church, I realize that a church is hiring you FOR your personal life. We look at the paid staff as a necesarry example of living the Christian life. I'm not saying this is always so, or that it should even be the expectation. People are sinners, and I'm not above any sin. But, it is the expectation. And so even if I wore long sleeves to work, the people of the church would still see me at some point, and know that I have tattoos. This might clash with their cultural viewpoint, but is that fair? In any other industry, I would say it isn't fair, or even legal. And the assumption in that last statement is something else I disagree with. The Church isn't or ought not to be an industry, but the way the american church is set up, it looks an awful lot like one. This is an impetous for a completely different post, but a mere side note at present.

2) I'm staying in Washington. I was pretty stoked about Dallas out of the gate after I went to visit. But I believe God has placed a lot of the deciding elements in my life in Tacoma already, and many of the less significant advantages of Dallas have fallen through. So I am excited to continue at Northwest, and begin the core of my M.Div in the fall quarter as a full time seminoid.

3) In addition, the choice of summer employment marks my departure from Crossroads Bible Church (My last Sunday will be June 7th) my home church for the past 10 years and 7 months. Though to be fair I wasn't attending for the 9 months/year during the 4 years of college, and I also missed an entire year while living in Africa, and wasn't attending for the first 3 months of this year, so...that's still almost 6 years of loving my church and thinking of it as my home. It feels like a very appropriate time to move on, and for a very good reason. I hope that I am able to maintain my many friendships with the people there.

Thursday, May 07, 2009

On Ink

Tattoos are one of the more provocative subjects in society these days. Shows like Miami Ink and MTV's Real Life have chronicled the lives of the artists, the tattooed and the regretful. I myself have partaken under the needle, and as a part of the journey I have come to grips with the many varied opinions of the masses regarding tattoos and tattoo culture.

Why get a tattoo? This is often the first question many people have with the presupposition that it is somehow unappealing or shallow. There are many reasons people have for getting a tattoo, but the underlying motive is always for the benefit to the person getting the tattoo. In a non-egotistical way, a persons tattoos are for that person, and if no one else sees them, or appreciates them, they are still worthwhile to the person wearing them. There is a beautiful metaphor in the tattoo process. When you get something tattooed, there's a physical and meta-physical way in which that thing represented in the tattoo becomes a part of you. And even tattoos without as much significance at conception become significant as they become part of your life. It's also a great ice breaker, and fun to talk about (definitely not the primary reason for getting a tattoo). People are curious about the stories behind tattoos, or find it common ground.

People often say that tattoos are addictive, and there are many reasons that this is so. A tattoo is relatively inexpensive compared to some addictions, it's beautiful artwork, it lasts forever, and it's usually intensely personal. After you get a tattoo, you experience one of two sensations: 1) A massive endorphin rush and the feeling of being the coolest person in the world. 2) A slowly mounting wave of regret combined with a make-do attitude. I've never experienced the latter, though I know people who have.

There are 3 main objections people have regarding tattoos. 1) They are old school (or maybe just old) and consider a tattoo a sign of rebellion. For them, only sailors, bikers and convicts get tattoos, and not their little girl or boy. Culturally this just isn't the case and hasn't been for most of the past two decades. 2) They are religious and genuinely believe their religious text forbids it. For more on this, check out ReligiousTattoos.net. Essentially, the only verses forbidding tattoo-ish sounding practices are found in Leviticus, which is ancient Israel's national constitution, and not legally binding for Christians. There are also a lot of other practices in Leviticus that no one upholds. For example, if you get mold in your shower, you have to replace your shower. That doesn't negate some of the principles found in it, but it does negate any type of strict 1 to 1 correspondence with levitical law and the practice of the Christian life. 3) They simply look at the practice as culturally absurd, and unwise. And depending on what you are going to do in your life, it is. I wouldn't reccomend getting tattoos on an area of your body that can't be concealed by professional atire. Certain jobs are out of the question if you have tattoos on the neck, hands, or even arms if you're required to wear short sleeves as part of your uniform (depending on the season, you might not be very comfortable in long sleeves). but even this trend, apart from military or civil service, is starting to change as tattoos become more and more common in our culture.

A fourth objection is often voiced by the potential bearer of a tattoo before they get it. If you think this about a tattoo you are considering, I would strongly advise against it. 4) Won't it eventually look like those military veteran's tattoos, all shriveled and green, or do I really want a big dark tattoo on my back when I'm wearing my wedding dress? Questioning the aesthetic of a tattoo is probably a bad omen for your reception of such a tattoo.

I usually respond that if that's how you think of tattoos, I don't think you should get one, because eventually you will find reason to regret having it, but in answer to the question: A) When you're as old as those veterans, you probably won't look that great, tattoos or not. The reason theirs have faded is because of UV exposure and lack of care. If you wear sunscreen, get your tattoo touched up every few years, and generally maintain it, it should still look great after 30+ years. Colors will fade more than black as well. B) If you don't think it looks great enough to show to other people, and that concerns you, maybe you should reexamine your reason for getting one in the first place. It's a non-issue for me since I'll have the option of wearing long sleeves should I ever get married, but if I did have an informal wedding, I would love wearing short sleeves, cause I think my tattoos are beautiful, and I like them a lot. They are 100% enhancement as far as aesthetic goes.

Wednesday, May 06, 2009

Update

Okay, So with more free time then ever before, I still have had little motivation to start blogging, but I had an epiphany while sitting in class.

I have a list of subjects I want to blog/mini-essay about, and some good ideas for all of them, but I'm going to try to make it creativity^2 by Vlogging about things as well as Blogging, and to do that, I've decided to create some new "channels" for it

I've got a youtube channel, with a bunch of copyrighted stuff (mostly the music I choose for editing with) and so I started a new youtube channel where I'm going to endeavour to make it 100% original material.

And since I'm a Christian, I also started a tangle channel (tangle replaced Godtube)

So, coming attractions. Links once things are actually up, and I'll probably start posting these blogs to facebook in the vain hope of readership.

Despite being unemployed, I feel great and I'm really enjoying life, and I'll for sure be working this summer. yay. God is good all the time.

Sunday, January 04, 2009

Plans Change

Well, it's been a while, and I would like to get into this bloggin thing again, but am too busy living.

I withdrew from the peace corps. LOOOONG story, hilarious, unexpected, spiritual and beautiful, but I am very happy with the decision. It's been kind of a tailspin.

What's next, who knows? Only the Lord