Blogelemy

It took 26 years but I finally did it!

I finally accomplished something that I began 26 years ago.  I beat the original Super Mario Bros that orignally came out in 1985 on the Nintendo Entertainment System.  When I lived in St. Petersburg, I used to play this game for hours on my neighbors Nintendo.

Three years ago, when my wife and I first got our Wii we purchased the classic game through the Wii Marketplace online store.  When we started playing it, I quickly realized that my wife was far more skilled at the game than I was (which was a blow to my ego).  She in fact showed me what it looked like to complete the game at level 8-4!  I didn't come close to finishing the game.  I gave up hope as I continued to die at the same parts and typically my wife and son would laugh at my ineptness.

This past winter as we were holed up in our house I decided that I was going to save the princess in the year 2011.  So, a few nights a week after I had shared in the duties of tucking my kids in to bed, I would go down and play the game to see how far I could get.  My skills increased and tonight at approximately 8:37 CST the princess was saved!

I can only imagine how proud my parents, Vic and Bonnie are right now.

So glad that this is finally crossed off my list!

 

"Human Planet" Trailer

I don't seem to ever get tired of watching videos like this one:

 

Google Goggles does Sudoku

I can't get enough of this.  It's fun to watch firsthand.  I love imagining what Google's creative planning meetings are like.  Did someone get tasked with the job of allowing Google Goggles to do this?

Some thoughts about Free Stuff

I have observed that most of the time people jump at the opportunity to get free stuff.  And I am definitely one of those people.  This morning we had an email from the Divine Grind Café saying that there were free specialty coffees available to staff from 10:30 -11:15.  I’m pretty sure that everyone in the building (which at this time of the year is pretty sparse) was present to receive their free coffee.

Other times, free things aren't as attractive to people.  Take for instance an event.  I have found myself on event planning teams where we have found ways to completely fund a big outreach event. Our thinking was if we take away the cost obstacle, people will flock to the event like they flock to get their free cup of coffee or free Grand Slam at Denny’s.  My best guess is that people equate the quality of the experience with the amount that they are paying – you get what you pay for.

As Christmas is getting closer, I can’t help but think about those who don’t understand why we are really celebrating this Holiday.  God sent his Son Jesus Christ to pay the ultimate sacrifice so that we can be forgiven for our sins.  Not only do they recognize or understand it but they are walking away from the best free gift that has ever been made available.  Perhaps people view God’s grace as too good to be true.  Or perhaps they have bought the lie that they have to make up for their own mistakes (“you get what you pay for”).  Unfortunately, turning this gift down has eternal consequences.

Oh by the way, the ESV Bible is currently available for free on the Kindle.

 

And you can find some great free stuff here, here and here.

 

What communicating might look like in the near future

I just ran across this video by Hans Rosling.  What he shares in this video about wealth and health in 200 countries over the last 200 years in and of itself is fascinating.  Also fascinating is how he communicates it.  Makes me wonder how long it will be until this is how we will be communicating to students.

 

Unmixed, Mixed and Remixed

A few weeks ago I heard a sermon delivered by Pastor Clark Crebar, Young Adults Pastor at Grace Church.  I recommend that you listen for yourself.  It gives an excellent exposition of how we are to pray for one another.  There were a number of great things about his sermon.  One thing that he said, that wasn't at all the main point was when he defined the word 'pure'.  In simple form he said that the original word means to be 'unmixed'.  Ever since this sermon, I have been thinking about what being 'unmixed' means for me personally and how I look at ministry.

There are a number of ways that unmixed could be applied to life.  Or, maybe I should say that there a number of ways that I find myself mixed.  My diet, iTunes collection, television watching, family leadership, the weed content of my yard (when its alive), my preference for PC's or Macs...  When I take a hard took at my physical, emotional, spiritual, mental and social balance, I see things being mixed.

I think a great tension that I deal with is how to teach and model to students how to be unmixed in some situations and mixed in others.  There are areas where students (and adults for that matter) should strive to be unmixed with the things of this world (sexual immorality, idolatry, gossip, slander...).  And then I feel that there are areas where we should be mixed or to borrow Eugene Peterson's word 'remixed'.  In order to be salt and light, it is of ultimate importance for us to engage in the people and culture of this world.  I think that youthworkers need to teach and model the tension between areas of life that need to be unmixed and areas where a mixture is necessary.  We tend to go to far one way or the other!  This gets us into the whole "being in the world but not of it" discussion.  Jesus' words shed some light:

14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. - John 17:14,15 (NIV)

I currently find myself reading two books talking about this very thing.  The first is Pop Goes the Church: Should the Church Engage Pop Culture and The Fine Line: Reinvisioning the Gap Between Christ and Culture. I haven't finished either book, and I plan on having a 'part 2' to this posting once I do.

"Wicked" and the power of story

This past Sunday my wife and I celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary (which was in June) by going out to eat and going to the Broadway play "Wicked" that was playing at the Orpheum in downtown Minneapolis.  One of the things we did while we were on our date was discuss baby names for the new addition to our family.  It has been our tradition to do have this discussion while we are alone at a restaraunt.  We got our list narrowed down to three names.  Much to the chagrin of  our family, we don't share the name with anyone until we announce the birth even though this video seems to say otherwise.

Ever since experiencing the play "Wicked" for the first time (which we saw from the fifth row!), I have been thinking about how amazing the story was performed, told and put together.  I was engaged throughout the story.  I was at lunch today discussing this with our Senior Pastor (Troy), Worship Pastor (Brian) and Junior High Pastor (Travis).  As I was describing our experience, Troy shared, "that just shows you the power of the story".  He nailed it.  That is what made the play so dynamic.  I had never seen any part of "Wicked" before that night, I didn't know any of the songs (read below).  I did however know the "other" story that it was complimenting.  I think that is what helps this production.  Almost everyone has seen the movie "The Wizard of Oz" more times than they really want to admit.  I probably haven't seen it in over ten years but I was familiar with it enough to really understand what was going on in "Wicked".  I definitely recommend going to see this if you get the chance. 

In light of my job as a youth pastor, communicating God's Truth and grace to the next generation, this experience left me wondering how God's Word might be communicated in an engaging way (without adding or taking anything away from it)?  I don't have any answers to this question except to never abandon the power of story.
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Another side note that is worth adding: In trying to prepare myself for this show I purchased the "Wicked" soundtrack.  I remember thinking I paid so much for these tickets I really want to get the most out of this experience.  As I tried to listen to the soundtrack beforehand none of it made sense and I remember thinking that I was not going to enjoy this play as much as I had hoped.  Now that we have seen the performance and I understand how the songs work into the story, it is far more enjoyable to listen to!

Taco Town

A favorite video of mine:

Return of Nigel Tufnel from Spinal Tap!

The National Geographic Channel is doing a special on Stonehenge this month.  To promote this scientific presentation, they have brought back Nigel Tufnel from Spinal Tap.  There are five videos altogether.  They are all very funny.  You can view the other four here.

U23D at the Imax!

On my list of things that I would like to do sometime in my life is attend a U2 concert. Last night Jed and I did the next closest thing. We went to see the U23D movie at the Imax Theater. It was a sensory overload to watch the band perform 15 of their songs from a concert in Buenos Aires in 3D. Bono was about 6 feet tall on the screen! There were many times when it seemed that Bono was leading worship as thousands were singing along with EVERYTHING they had. I have always been impressed with the way that Bono takes the platform of the stage where millions will watch, listen and be called to action and speaks out against atrocities present in our world. There are so many rockstars who have placed themselves in the center of the universe and allows everything to orbit them. Bono illuminates the darkness with the lights.