twirl a squirrel

I will take two. How many do you want?

Arranged Marriage Anyone?

So my buddy Dave is working for this online magazine and showed me this article on Arranged Marriage. It is interesting and sparks some thoughts. Go and check it out. I will inform you all later what I think about it.

Mysterious Starbucks Cup

So recently I have gotten a Starbucks cup with Spanish writing on it. I believe the size was grande. I had it written down but I have seemed to misplace it (actually I deleted it accidentally from my mac). So if you happen to get this said cup and are able to read it please inform me of what it says I am really curious. Or if you get the cup and cannot read it write it down and I will attempt to find someone to translate. Thanks for your time. Oh yes it was not just once it was twice. Brent was witness to the first one. Can you tell how exciting my life has been lately.

P.S. I have a job interview of sorts on Sunday, yippee. Keep it in prayer and I will update you as the process continues.

Planet Earth

So I am currently watching Planet Earth. And they just did a segment on the arctic wolf and caribou. They happened to film a hunt in progress and talked about the tactics of the wolf. The wolf uses a method that causes the weak to be separated from the rest of the group. I watched a young caribou being chased down by the adult wolf. So I was thinking about Peter's reference to the devil being like a prowling lion. We are meant to live in community as we go through life. If we don't we can be caught alone and we are done for. It is only when we live in community that we will know how we need to grow to become more like Christ. While Peter does not use this example specifically in this way it is important that we realize it does apply. When we are cut off from the body of Christ we are lone wolfs. We do not have others to encourage us, build us up and challenge us to change. We need all these things in our lives. It is these things that help us to become more Christlike. So in light of this episode of Planet Earth here is to community despite all the stuff that goes along with it. Just remember we are called to bear with one another despite our short comings.

Discipleship

Recently I have been immersing my self in multiple books on discipleship. And as I am working on the most current book, Transforming Discipleship by Greg Ogden, I came across something I wanted to share. Here is a quote from the book discussing discipleship from Jesus perspective. As you read this I want you to remember that discipleship is not optional from Jesus perspective. When we acknowledge Jesus as Lord that is not simply as word. But it is filled with meaning. Lord means that he has control over all of who we are. We must be whole devoted to him and his ways. We cannot be on the fence "for what does light have to do with darkness." There should be no such thing as a Christian who does not participate in discipleship. This is not only for the super-Christian, it is for the average Joe. Peter, James and John all were mere fisherman. They were average Joe of their world. And look what Jesus helped them to become.

"Everything centers on him, his person. Discipleship means knowing him, loving him, believing in him, being committed to him.' The message was enfleshed and inseparable from who he was. 'Jesus' leadership development of his under-shepherds was not so much a course or a curriculum as it was a shared life.'"

Out of Courtesy

So out of courtesy to all of you out there I decided to go back to the full feed for RSS readers. So yeah enjoy it blog world. And you won't believe how many different spellings I tried for Courtesy, but I finally got it.

Kingship

"I will tell His Majesty what a king is. A king does not abide within his tent while his men bleed and die upon the field. A king does not dine while his men go hungry, nor sleep when they stand at watch upon the wall. A king does not command his men's loyalty through fear nor purchase it with gold; he earns their love by the sweat of his own back and the pains he endures for their sake. That which comprises the harshest burden, a king lifts first and sets down last. A king does not require service of those he leads but provides it to them. He serves them, not they him." - Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield. Describing Leonidas from the view of one of the characters in the book.

The question is "What kind of king are you serving, one that requires it or earns it?" It is often said that this is how a man is to love his wife and there by earn her respect and following. He must first sacrifice then she can aptly follow as seen in Ephesians 5.

The Big Chipotle Question:

Is Chipotle owned by McDonalds? Over the years I have heard many a answer to this question. But today I found out the real answer while wandering around Chipotlefan.com. Here is the skinny.

Short Answer: No, Chipotle is not owned by McDonald's.

Long Answer:
Chipotle became a susidiary of McDonald's in 1999 when McDonald's acquired the controlling stake of the company. At one point, McDonald's owned shares accounting for approximately 87% of the voting power of Chipotle's common stock. In Chipotle's earlier stages, McDonald's helped Chipotle's operations by sharing its own distribution networks.

Currently, Mcdonald's no longer has anything to do with Chipotle Mexican Grill. They have divested completely from Chipotle.

Source: Joe Stupp, General Manager, Chipotle.com

It is found on this page at Chipotlefan.com. Needless to say I am happy to finally have an answer, especially this one.

New Sheriff Town

That is the town known as the NFL. The new commissioner is laying down the law big time. ESPN has a great article on the new way things are going to go around the town. Its about time, in my opinion.

Oh Those Greeks

Here is a great article on a well known theater in Greece that has amazing acoustics. I thought some of you might be interested (Hayley and Andrew).

Link Failure Unknown

The only reason I can think that it no longer works is that they took it down for some reason. Sorry about that. Weird considering it worked yesterday.

Link to the Link

Ok since that link didn't work earlier go to here and the link is at the bottom.

Save Hockey Playoff Coverage

Go Here and fill it out so that people will still be able to watch Hockey playoffs.

Yeah Im From The Hood

So I went Gangsta on Buzz today and kicked Andrew's butt in my Gangsta Out Fit. But Andrew beat me the first time around. Check out my fly ride as I busted a cap in Zerg Man.

Pictures

So I didn't take these. I found them here. Thought you all might like to look at some beautiful landscapes.

It's about time.

  PERTH, Scotland, March 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In a formal invitation
sent to former Vice-President Al Gore's Tennessee address and
released to the public, Lord Monckton has thrown down the gauntlet
to challenge Gore to what he terms "the Second Great Debate," an internationally
televised, head-to-head, nation-unto-nation confrontation on the question,
"That our effect on climate is not dangerous."
(http://ff.org/centers/csspp/docs/20070316_monckton.html)

Monckton, a former policy adviser to Margaret Thatcher during her years as
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, said, "A careful study of the
substantial corpus of peer-reviewed science reveals that Mr. Gore's film,
An Inconvenient Truth, is a foofaraw of pseudo-science, exaggerations, and errors,
now being peddled to innocent schoolchildren worldwide."

Actions and Dreams

It is by acts and not by ideas that people live.

- Anatole France

To accomplish great things, we must dream as well as act.
- Anatole France

Freedom

The young man stood staring at his cell door. He has finally received his once sought freedom. But now the thought of such freedom begins to cripple him. These walls once felt stifling, he remembers his first night in the joint. It was horrifying. The walls seemed to crush his lungs, he couldn't breath. But now he as he looks out the door he gets that similar feeling. The open door he faces seems unreal, but this is not a dream this time. It is reality, he has his freedom.

He cannot seem to accept his freedom. These walls that once were a prison have become his friends. He has grown accustom to them. He has spent a many a night with them speaking with his friends in his mind. He knows them like the back of his hand, every nook and cranny he has explored. They are more than walls to a prison. This room has become his home. He does not wish to leave.

He cannot remember when the change occurred. These once hated walls became close personal friends. The bed once felt lumpy and cold, but now it feels soft and warm. This change now plagues him. He stands before an open door, a door to freedom, but his feet will not move. They are weighted down beyond his strength. His leg muscles have turned to mush as the blood in his lower veins has turned to iron.

He knows but one cure to this disease. He must remember what this freedom cost. That is what must move his legs now. It cannot be by sheer will power, for that will not help him in this moment. He must remember his dearly bought freedom which he had once before. He now has that same freedom again. He must take advantage of it. He must not remain, it is unnatural for him to remain. His freedom has been bought. Freedom is something that should not be denied, while some choose to do so, this man will not. He has seen others who have had their freedom paid for by the judge. But he didn't meet them as a free man, he met them in here. They were set free but they could not leave. It was unthinkable, so much so that it scared them. They could not walk out of the cell door. There doors continued to stay open, waiting for the day they chose to walk out as free men. For some it will take days, others months, some years and still others will never know that freedom.

This man experienced the freedom for a period of time. But his freedom seemed burdensome. So he choose his cell yet again. But it has finally come. He is choosing the burden of freedom. He will not remain in this cell. Never again will he choose to live in it. To prevent his return he has inscribed the wall. All whose cells are open and all free men know this saying. But some cannot remember it because they have allowed it to slip from their minds. The inscription reads "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him!"

If he ever returns he will see the inscription. This inscription will not allow him to stay. So as he reads this again he begins to walk. He exits the door to his former prison and never looks back.

Mark 4:35-41

So I'm working on this thing for the College Group at Church which has made me go back over information concerning Mark 4:35-41. Mark, actually John Mark, you know the guy who ditched Paul and Barnabas which actually caused the two to split ways is the writer of the Gospel of Mark. Well so Mark is writing his Gospel to be told to the church in Rome which has undergone extreme persecution and lost a lot of people due to Nero's crazy persecution where he would light Christians on fire and let them burn in his garden for lanterns. There was also a mass killing of a group of slaves, something like 400, where the church most likely lost brothers and sisters. So needless to say these people know what it is like to endure persecution. Also along this time it seems like some people might be faltering because of what is going on. So as Mark writes his Gospel he has this whole idea in his head that he needs to affirm the Christians to endure what they are going through each and every day. He is telling them to endure. So he takes an actual story, Mark 4:35-41, and emphasising his point of enduring. In Mark 4:38 we see that a great storm has come up and Jesus is chillin in the back of the boat where he is suppose to be steering the boat. As the storm gets worse they, the disciples, come to find out Jesus is asleep in at the helm. At this moment the disciples are thinking to themselves "what the heck is this guy doing" (most likely they used words that were worse or at least I would have). So they wake Jesus up and he gets peeved at them for waking him up, they obviously don't know who this guy in the boat is. He rebukes the storm using language a person would use to cast out a demon in their day and then gets in their faces for waking him up. He asks why they have so little faith and then they think to themselves "Who is this guy?" To which we should respond "He is the Son of God." But thats not the point. The point is that even when we are undergoing the worst storm of our lives we should have faith. We don't need to wake Jesus up because if Jesus is with us nothing else matters. If Jesus is in your boat you know its not going to sink. So the next time you think your boat is going down I encourage you to trust that Jesus is with you. Now may you have the faith to trust Jesus when persecution is going on around you.

"It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man." - Psalm 118:8

Tracking

Yesterday at Disneyland Andrew mentioned taking more accurate readings of his blog concerning how many people actually read it. I thought this was a good idea. So if you use another program to read my blog you will notice that you can only read a paragraph or so of the blog. That is actually not all there is, there is more. So please stop by the site to read the entire blog. Although I'm not sure if this will effect Facebook. If it does I'm sorry.

Take that Mr.

I am now the proud owner of a Disneyland Pass. So my first act as a new pass holder was to challenge Brent to a good old game of Buzz Light Year Astro Blasters. I figured Brent would be much better competition than Andrew or Lauren. Andrew because he is really good and Lauren because she thought she sucked. Also because Brent had only played once and I figured it would be a far battle, we did have equal information. So as you can see from the picture below I kicked Brent's but. But here is the thing that picture is actually Lauren and Andrew's score, Andrew being the #2 man. My score was actually higher, 229,700, and Brent's was lower, 44,000 (or something like that). So I figure for my first time I did very good. I will let you know if my score improves or plummets next time, there will be many more times come to think of it. Supposedly there was some guns that need calibration, but I'm not buying it.


P.S. I have no clue why I felt the need to link you each time I put a person's name. I started it and figured why stop now.

Leonidas Party of 300...

Your table is ready. Your server tonight in Hell will be Satan himself.

On Friday Brent, Josh from Small Group (neither of the blogs to the left) went and saw 300. Overall a very good movie. I especially liked the Cinematography. The film was very visually appealing. There have been very few movies that have impressed me with the visuals and this was one of them. The visuals were very artistic which impressed me a lot. I knew it was going to be good, but did not expect it to be this good.

I also watched something on the actual battle the movie was based on today from The History Channel. For a movie based on a 2500 year old event that was intending to be completely accurate I felt it did a good job considering what I learned from the show. While one should not dictate their understanding of the actual event based on the movie it does seem to get somethings right.

This movie earned an A if not an A+ in my book and I suggest every man go see it. And if your a girl and can stomach the violence of body parts and blood flying you too should see it.

18% Nerd

I finished...

...The Count of Monte Cristo. I finished it on Wednesday. It is an amazing book. If you ever have a chance to read it you should and I suggest the full unabridged version, which makes it really long but well worth it.

Official Big Wheel Race Info

Who is going with me?

7 TH ANNUAL BYOBW
EASTER SUNDAY, 2007
4 PM
TOP OF LOMBARD, SF
BRING YOUR OWN BIG WHEEL
FREE EVENT!
PRIZES!
FUN!
NO RUBBER WHEELS!
PARKING IS AWFUL - COME EARLY TO PARK
NO PUBLIC RESTROOMS!
PLEASE INVITE YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILIES!

Now You Know...

What I do when I'm up late. Watch this as well.

Big Wheel Anyone?

So I was going to post this video, but it would not let me. So go watch it. Do It Now. Another amazing idea. Who wants to participate?

Got Milk? Aaron Burr

Amazing got Milk commercial from back in the day. Felt the need to share it again.

Will Farrell and Jack Black Introduce the Best Song

Unlike Josh I found this really funny. As for other Will Farrell news Stranger Than Fiction on DVD tomorrow and Blades of Glory at the end of March.

PS3 Song

Oh the brilliance of this song.

I want my money.

For those of you in the dark concerning the system wars going on right now, Sony is loosing badly with its new PS3 with the PS2 selling better than the new system. At the moment the Nintendo Wii leads sales in the US for 2007. In response to this the Sony President said he would give $1200 to anyone who could find a PS3 that sat on the shelf for more that 5 minutes, typical Japanese pride. So today I went to Target in Irvine to buy the Daughtry album and decided to see if they had any Wii's for friends who are looking for them. I couldn't find any Wii's but I found 2 PS3. That's 2400 bucks right there, Brent I think I found our new job. So yeah Sony Prez if you read this contact me and I will tell you where to transfer funds. Also here is a funny comic strip on this very issue.

P.S. The Daughtry Album is good so far. Only on song number 3. And the reason I am in Irvine is because one of the few remaining Diedrich's is located here and for a long time I hear.

(Note: When I firsted posted I was under the impression it was the Sony President in Japan. But it was acutally the President for Sony America, or what ever he is. So strike the Japanese comment, but doesn't mean they are not prideful, just that American's are as well. If you disagree go watch Letters of Iwo Jima).

The Lawn Definitely Lost

Jared Photo
Originally uploaded by Fun with Tom.

I was there and it was a second round knock out. Found this picture of a buddy of mine on another friend's flickr page and felt the need to share with the blog world. And to forever immortalize the handlebars.

The iPod effect

So I was actually looking for a photo I had take of Jenny H. but I can't seem to find it. She had her iPod headphones on and was looking at the camera. But alas I cannot find it. But anyways I have been processing through this for a while. Our current culture loves to have music every where. With the invention of the iPod this has made it very easy, if not the cause. But I was reading on the internet how the headphones make people seem unapproachable. Which is totally true (Oh I thought of another photo that will be at the end of the blog). I have toying with the idea if we (Christians) should use iPod's when we are out in public. This was a thought a long time ago and was spurred by Dallas Willard recently (he's brilliant by the way). As Christians we are suppose to be present to the world to share the Good News and bring about the restoration of the world till Christ returns. In fewer words: We are suppose to change the world around us for the better. But when we listen to iPod's we tend to seclude ourselves from the world and in turn cannot be present to the world. The world at this time is an extremely independent place, a least in the West. People are very lonely in this day and age. And to top it all off there are few people who actually care about those around them any more. It is very clear from Jesus' teachings that we (Christians) are suppose to care about those around us (Don't believe me, go read the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5-7, and you will get the picture). When we turn on and tune out we prevent ourselves from become a significant blessing to those around us. Its time we Christians stop tuning out the world and become present to it so that we can change it. Thats what Paul did, he was present, and look at what he did. But all this is just a thought. Chew on that for a while and present it to the Lord and ask his opinion.

P.S. N don't kill me for posting this. I know we photographers hate our being photographed.

Psalm 23

So I have been reading Psalm 23 lately. Going through it and reflecting on it within my own soul. It has been something that has truly begun to help me find my place in life and relationship with God. I was driving home on Saturday after going to a play with the tag being "A Post Valentine's Day Look at Love." And I a specific part of Psalm 23 came to my mind. It can be found at the beginning of verse 3 "He restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake."

The part that my soul keyed in on at that moment was "He restores my soul." I know I believe that it my head, but in my heart is another thing. I have just begun to learn to believe that in my heart. Dallas Willard in The Renovation of the Heart tells us that the soul is the deepest part of us. The soul is the core of who we are and that is what God restores (thats my combining Dallas and this verse). God does not just restore your life, he does not just restore you heart or you mind. While he does do those things he does more than that. He restores our entire being. There is nothing that God leaves out when he is restoring us, its all going through the process.

I tell you this not so you think "wow Jon is spiritual" or something else. But so that you will begin here on this day to allow God to begin restoring your soul. Much like when you start with an old rusted car. You have to take the metal down so that there is nothing left but pure metal, all the rust must be gone. We are left with a car ready for restoration. And that is part of what God does in his restoring process. He takes us down to pure metal.

John Mayer - Belief

Simply amazing guitar work. If I played guitar I would want a guitar that looked like that.

The Count of Monte Cristo

Many of you know I am in the middle of The Count of Monte Cristo. Well actually middle is not so accuarate now considering I am on page 912, it is 1095 in the version Lisa is letting me barrow. I am almost done with this amazing book. I don't want it to stop, it is so good. It just might tie The Hobbit for my favorite book or pass it. I encourage you all to read it if you have a chance in life. Nothing feels like finishing a 1100 page book.

P.S. Listening to "Don't Take Your Guns To Town" by Johnny Cash, so good.

Switchfoot Concert

Saw Switchfoot, at House of Blues Anaheim, tonight with Brent, Brian F., Lisa, Hayley, Casandra, Steph, and 3 high schoolers. I also saw a bunch of Vanguard people, good times. Great show, great music, great company. Here are two pics from my camera phone. I will post video later if it works out. Fav. song: To many. I did like the one that is preformed by Mandy in A Walk to Remember. But I like that more for the song than the show. There was a really cool one where they all stood still for a good 30 seconds at the end, looked awesome.

Darkest Before The Dawn Part: 2

So about a week ago I suggested you guys read Matthew 27, Mark 15 and Psalm 22. So here is the follow up to that post.

Psalm 22 begins with the same exact phrase Jesus utters on the cross just before he is about to die. What is interesting about Psalm 22 is that it is a classic lament Psalm. Which can be seen in the progression of the writer, David. David begins by expressing to God that he feels like he has left him and travels to the conclusion that God is still in control regardless of David's perspective of God.

30 Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord.

31 They will proclaim his righteousness
to a people yet unborn—
for he has done it.

David at the end of the Psalm proclaims that God is righteous and all will know him. David realizes that God is still in control. He also realizes that regardless of what seems to be going on around him he knows God wins in the end.

Now what I find interesting is that Jesus quotes this Psalm and the reason behind it. Jesus quotes just a small portion of this Psalm which would have lead the people there to be reminded of Psalm 22. No most would think Jesus is down and out when he says this statement, but he is not. By quoting this Psalm Jesus is actively saying I have hope. There is more going on here than what we can all see. Jesus is essentially saying "God I know you are going to come through" just as David did. Jesus is in a way predicting his resurrection by saying God is going to come through yet again and God does.

Like David and Jesus we too can have hope that God will come through. We have an entire documented history of God coming through for all different kinds of people. The Bible ends with God winning the final battle. We can live in hope. Hope which at times may seem far off because we cannot see it. But according to Paul if we could see it, it would not be hope at all.

The reason I write this is not for your sake. While I do hope that you get something out of it. I write this for my sake. Sometimes we need to hear something and the only way we hear it is when we speak it. We often serve as prophets in our own lives when we speak to others. So I write this for me. Right now it seems that I'm as low as I can go and I do not see where God is leading. I am in a thick fog so to speak. It would seem that it is time to give up hope, but it is not. God is going to come through. It might be in the last day, last hour or last minute but God is going to come through. I can trust in this. Psalm 22 stands as hope for all of us. God comes through.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Jon Varner

P.S. For an amazing out look on this read David Crowder's newest book Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven, but Nobody Wants to Die: Or the Eschatology of Bluegrass. Or listen to A Collision and/or B Collision.

ABC Time (Like from 1st Grade, not the Station)

Fill in your own ABCs:

A-Animated TV Show: G.I. Joe
B-Bible Passage: Philippians 2:5-11 (One of many, but top one)
C-Considerably Different From High School: My clothing style (I dressed like Fred Durst from LB).
D-Dallas Willard Book:Renovation of the Heart
E-Electronic Device of Choice: MacBook Pro
F-Foreign Film: Love Me If You Dare
G-Garth Brooks Song: Fit For a King
H-Habits that Die Hard: Biting My nails (I just can't stop)
I-Inspiring Preacher: Rob Bell
J-J.R.R. Tolkien: The Hobbit
K-Killer Hand: Royal Flush
L-Least Favorite NFL Player: T.O.
M-Motorcycle: 2006-2007 Yamaha R1
N-Nickname: Wolverine
O-Obnoxious Sitcom Character: Michael (The Office)
P-Place I'd Live Next: Portland, OR
Q-Quite Moments: Not Enough
R-Robot: Johnny 5
S-Significant Other: Lacking One at the Moment
T-Team: Anaheim Ducks
U-University: Vanguard
V-Villain of Choice:Ra's al Ghul
W-Wild Animal: Grey Wolf
X-Xtreme Sport: Broomball
Y-Youthful Ambition: Professional Hockey Player or Rally Car Driver
Z-Zero Desire:Have A Job Simply For Having A Jobs Sake

Tagged By Brent
I now Tag....Sara P., Corri, and if Sophie still reads this go ahead and go for it (cap pas cap).
By the way all the regulars where taken already. Oh wait I think Josh P. is untagged, so yeah you too Josh if you read this anymore.

Bruise

So I just noticed a really big bruise on my left forearm and I have no clue where it came from. Honestly how often do we look there? Can I die from a bruise? Or is there something that could have caused my bruise that could lead to my death? I'm not really serious, but does anyone know?

On a lighter note I'm going to the Ducks game tonight and get to play broomball afterwards on the Pond (No it is not the Honda center, just the Pond). This will be my third time doing this. It is amazing.

Orange Chicken 24/7

Since south Orange County is lacking places open past 9 someone needs to make a 24/7 Chinese place. Then we could have orange chicken 24/7 and have a place to hang out past 9. Or we could just open a coffee shop.

R.I.P. The Fray

So I know there are many fans of the band called The Fray out there, I myself am included. But The Fray was found dead sometime on Saturday night around 9:30. We are not sure when exactly the time of death was but we do know the cause of death. Being played on a Christian Radio Station known as The Fish 95.9. This has only been known to happen when bands who have Christian members but not a Christian Band is played on a Christian Radio station as lame as The Fish. Rest In Peace Fray.

The Man Segment #1

Many of you know that one of my deepest desires is to be a men's pastor. It is something I have long felt called to do with my life. This "calling" has given birth to my looking at different men that I come across in life, both real and fictitious. One of those men is Tim "The Tool Man" Taylor.


One of the many reasons I admire Tim is that he is a man's man but he can be emotionally available for his wife Jill and the kids. Tim is a man that despite the fact he can be dense at times is willing to learn and is always striving to be a better man at the end of the day. Something I think all men (and women) need to do. Another reason I love Tim is because of his grunt. I am still working on perfecting this grunt. This will continue to be a segment we cover on a regular basis.

Forget the Little Gold Man

There is something way better out there for all you bloggers. Check out the WebBlog Awards. Hopefully you will find a new blog to waste time at work looking at.

Darkest before the Dawn

Go read Matthew 27, Mark 15 and then Psalm 22. In that order. More will follow later. Be prepared.

Sarcasm

I've determined I like it very much, much more than I thought. And that it is lost on most Christians. There was an article on it in Relevant last year, but I can't find it. The article was about how sarcasm is lost on most Christians and that's basically where I got my opinion on this matter from.

Brent Wrong Jon Right

The title thingy was not just there. Apparently it had to be turned on. So Brent wasn't right that I am blind because it wasn't there. So we turned it on. All is well now in blogging world.

Ok seriously I don't know how to title blogs. I can't find the little place that allows you to title. Brent where is it? That's it I'm bringing it my mac to lunch so you can show me and I can feel stupid.

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

I just started reading it today. I have long wanted to purchase this book and read it despite being in the middle of The Count of Monte Cristo (which I fear I will never finish). So far it is holding my attention and I want to keep reading. But I wanted to share a sentence with you all which got me thinking as usual. This comes just after Santiago, the Shepard has just woken. He states to himself "They are so used to me that they know my schedule." This instantly made me think about Jesus and how he is the Good Shepard and we are his sheep who are suppose to know his voice. If we know Jesus voice we will know when he speaks which seems so seldom in these days. It is so hard to hear his voice with all the noise, curse you iPod. I have lately been longing to hear his voice which I cannot seem to find. So as I search his voice out I encourage you all to do the same. Now may you go and search for your Shepard's voice and learn to follow it.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Jon

P.S. Brent I'm not sure if the title option shows up on firefox for mac. I still cannot find it. I might be blind.

So I have been thinking lately, actually since the USC vs UCLA game I went to back in November, about how growing up I was a UCLA fan and now that I am an adult I am a USC fan. Now I know most of you are wondering how could such a change take place. And this is precisely the same question I have been asking myself. I came to a conclusion a while back but never felt like blogging about it. This actually has to do with growing up. As we grow up we are taught by our parents and we learn specific things from them, some good others bad. While I grew up I did not have my father in my life for a good portion at least. The next best man for the job was my uncle, my mom's brother. He is a great man and taught me much. I would not be the man I am without him. He taught me how to drive stick-shift and shave among other things, all the important stuff. One of the things he taught me was to root for UCLA because it was a better overall school. But for some reason I started rooting for SC a few years back, maybe it was because they are much better now or maybe something else. I personally think it is the something else. When we get to the age of college we start trying differentiate ourselves and find who "we" are. And this honestly got me thinking about how we do this with things other such as faith. There is no bigger demographic that drops of the church attendance list than the 18-24 list. But there is probably no bigger group that goes and cheers for their college team. Well that honestly makes sense. But it shouldn't. We in this new period in our lives need to step up and make that choice for Christ. We need to no longer be wishy washy about our Savior and Lord. It is time we decide once and for all where we stand. You are either for or against him. Where do you stand?

Soli Deo Gloria,
Jon

So first off this has to deal with 24 (and with that the crowd gasps). No spoiling going on. I only want to say one thing about it and it contains nothing of the plot line (but Brent if you fear still you can stop reading).



Ok so I have never been a watcher of 24, but I thought to myself last night (I was home sick, yippee for awesome fever that went to 102.something) I will give it a go this season see if it catches my attention. Well last night it did not. I thought to myself "if this is what the hype is about I am going to shoot some people, just like Jack. A little retribution so to speak for all the hoopla over nothing." So not wanting to jump to conclusions I decided to give tonights episodes a whirl. And all I have to say is "Holy Crap, I now know why everyone is addicted." The two epsiode night left me wanting oh so much more. Now if you all don't think it is as good as before let me remind you it is my first time watching. Now I am going to have to eventually go catch up. I used to think to myself "I will just wait till they kill the guy and then watch." But now I'm hooked. That's all.

So I just realized a new oxymoron in my life. I am cooking a microwavable dinner in the oven. Why do things taste better when they are cooked in the oven? We need a new method of quick cooking that keeps taste and texture.

So apparently Wii games help you do things in real life. Recently I have spent a good amount of time bowling on my Wii. My high score is a 232 or 236 (can't remember) and last night I bowled the best game of real bowling I have ever bowled, 186. Now I know this is not close but it is an improvement. Last time I bowled it was in the 120s and that is generally where I am at, 120-140. But occasionally I bowl better. Prior to this point my best was 176 and that was when I was bowling 1-2 times a week. I will keep you posted on if this is actually helping me in other sports. Golf will be the next try, I think and hope. Until then you will just have to test this theory for yourself.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Jon

Here is yet another reason to love Digg. They just turned me on to a amazing website which links you to free podcasts from many places. I know what your thinking "Podcasts are free Jon." Well yes this is true. But now with podcasts you can receive a free education as well. Berkley and other well know Universities are posting free podcasts of courses they offer. So if you go here you can download lots of different classes from different Universities. A disclaimer must be made. I do not agree with everything said (well I actually don't know that but I'm assuming). One course I am looking forward to is on Immanuel Kant and his epsitemology. The only thing you won't receive with these amazing courses is a degree, but who needs that right ;). There are some other classes on history that look good. So yeah check it out.

I have long held that the culture in which we place ourselves or find ourselves placed has an effect on how we act, while I believe this to be true. I also believe that one has the ability to overcome such situations and rise to greatness or even change said culture. I just read a very interesting article on espn.com It covered this topic which has seen to become taboo when speaking of certain groups. This article tackles the issue head on and addresses something that must be change.

On top of this I think something needs to happen with all this stuff like the Nugget fight and T.O. spitting in another player's face. Don't get me wrong I love fighting in Sports where it is accepted as a means of handling a situation, i.e. Hockey. But when this is not the accepted form of conduct the player needs to be dealt with harshly. If you act like that in Basketball you should be gone for the season and the team should have the right to terminate your contract without paying you the remainder. That will keep you from fighting. The same goes for spitting in someone's face. The leagues need to deal more harshly with people acting like this. If you act like an idiot anywhere else you can be fired, why not in professional sports as well?

So I had Diedrich for one of the last times last night. All over Southern California the amazing coffee houses that have been home to oh so many dreamers will be closing and have been closing. Starbucks bought this amazing company a few months back to the chagrin of many loyal customers. So as Andrew and I sat there we discussed whether it was the beginning of a new era or the ending of an era. In the end I guess the ending of an era is always the beginning of another era. When something dies something else begins. So here is to Diedrich coffee and all the amazing times you provided for us dreamers and people who love good coffee. It has been an amazing time and you will be missed. But I trust that as we move into this new era that there is hope out there for better coffee. Good night and Good luck all you Coffee Lovers.

Soli Deo GLoria,
Jon

So I haven't posted in a little while even though I have nothing to do, not because I do not want to but because I do not have a computer at the moment. Last weekend on the 23rd my cd drive on my Mac broke (Boooo!) and I have not gotten it back yet (Booooo!). I am currently on my mother's laptop (my old one) this is really the first chance I have had to get on a computer since then (good and bad) and I would use the Wii but it would take so bloody long to write a post. But I was wandering around on some friends blogs today and linked to another person's blog and found this fun game.

The Book Game.

Here are the rules

1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the next four sentences on your blog, along with these instructions.
5. Don’t you dare dig for that “cool” or “intellectual” book in your closet! I know you were thinking about it! Just pick up whatever is closest!

Here it Goes (And if you know me well you will know I didn't cheat because of the author and book, ugggg. Plus the quote is utterly boring).


"The Protestants protested many problems in the Roman Catholic Church, especially confusion about how people are saved.
Regarding the latter concern, as we discussed in previous chapters, the meaning of salvation wasn't questioned; the means of salvation was the issue. By what means do people get to heaven? Catholics often (not always) taught that Jesus was the Savior, but that Christians needed to merit the salvation Jesus offered."
Amended since Brent read the instructions completely where as I did not.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Jon

So I just checked my grades for my final semester of under graduate college. I got a B-, A-, A-, A, A. I noticed something as I looked at my grades. They progressively got better over my time at Vanguard even as classes got harder. The one bust is if I had done extra credit for the B- I would have gotten an A-. Now I just need to go find a job.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Jon

So I have recently decided to end my letters and emails and such Soli Deo Gloria. Which means "Glory to God alone" in Latin. Soli Deo Gloria came about during the Protestant Reformation along with 4 other Solas.
Sola Gratia - By Grace alone, salvation is not merited by the sinner. It is God's free gift. We can do nothing to earn our salvation.
Sola Fide - Salvation is by faith alone. By faith the believer is justified.
Sola scriptura - The Bible is the only inspired and authoritative Word of God and is accessible to all. It is also has authority above all else. Tradition and the Church do not outrank the Bible as authority for the Church.
Solus Christus - Christ is the only mediator between God and man, and there is salvation through no other. One does not need a priest to confess to. A person needs no other besides Christ to come to God.
Soli Deo Gloria - All glory is due to God alone, since salvation is accomplished solely through his will and action—not only the gift of the all-sufficient atonement of Jesus on the cross but also the gift of faith in that atonement, created in the heart of the believer by the Holy Spirit.

I have even heard that Bach ended his works with this. So I suppose I am following in his footsteps. But as I shared this with one of my professors from last semester he turned me to 1 Corinthians 10:31 "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." Not a bad motto I suppose. I encourage you all to remind yourselves of that each day as well as those around you, that includes me.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Jon

So I have a new Tech obsession. I am currently on the hunt to find people I know who video chat or use skype. If you know me and you use one of these two amazing tech abilities let me know. Or if you are random person who reads my blog, but is not creepy and uses one of these I might talk to you. Let me know.

God's Timing

So this morning I woke up to take malaria medicine but never got to it. As I looked for something to eat I felt sick to my stomach so I prepared for the worst and it came. Apparently I came down with the flu or some other horrid thing. So much to my distaste I did not go to India. I currently still feel sick and this is no fun. Just thought I should let you all know.

Jon

Off to India.

So I am going to be out of the United States for the next two weeks in India. I will attempt to publish from their and maybe a pic or two. If not there I will when I get back. The d50, 3 1 gig sd cards and an extra battery are ready to roll, digitally so to speak. Have a great Christmas everyone.

Jon

So I have been really busy lately with school stuff. I have a lot on my mind I would like to share with you. But not sure I will be able to just yet do to time constraints. But there is one thing I have learned lately about my own productivity that I feel the need to share. I find that if I sit down and spend even two minutes reading my Bible I am more productive and I allow Jesus to lead what I do. Give it a try before you go and do you next paper. Read a chapter in your Bible in the book you are currently going through. By doing so you make sure you get into the Word. It is essential to life. "For man does not live on bread alone, but every word of God."

If I did have time I would be playing with one of these. Or at least try to make one.

Now I don't about you guys but these days I find my self saying "I wish I had that as a kid" a lot. With the little bro around the house I am encountering all the new toys. There are some really cool new toys that have come out lately. Such as the digital camera for kids, yes a digital camera, I can't remember who makes it but it is out there. I think fisher-price. But what it really cool that I just discovered is this new fruit roll-up that has tongue tattoos. All you have to do is stick it to your tongue for a few seconds and then take it off and presto you have a tattoo on your tongue for a few seconds. Well actually it depends how long you leave your tongue out. I don't know about you guys but I would have loved these as a child.

Before:
After:

Something else I have noticed is that cartoons just are not what they used to be. Which also means the cartoon toys are just not what they are used to be. G.I. Joes were my fav. If you guys could take back any toy to the past what would you or is there a toy from your childhood that you wish you still had? I remember I had this G.I. Joe named "Hit and Run" who was completely camo. I lost him one day, the down side to having a camo G.I. Joe. I would bring him back. Hit and Run if you are out there please find me. If any one would like to reunite me with Hit and Run he can be found on ebay.

Hey just a little awareness for you all. Go to https://www.lighttounite.org/ and Bristol-Myers Squibb will donate money to the HIV/AIDS cause. HIV/AIDS is something we can no longer be silent about. We all need to start doing something. Whether it is small or large. This is a good place to start.

It has been said that the new Bond flick, Casino Royale, is the best Bond film since Goldfinger, thats 42 years if anyone is currious. Most of the current generation has grown up with Pierce Brosnan as Double O and few have seen the good old stuff and actually remember what the film was about. I remember as a child watching Sean Connery and his deadly charm. But I can't remember much of what actually happened in those films. For example I remember one film where Bond rides an underwater man mover, you know a torpedo for to get you from here to there. Or I remember Odd Job with his hat that kills. But to be honest I cannot remember much more. Despite my inability to remember the Bond films I enjoined so much as a youth there are things I always new about James and came to expect when I went to see his latest escapades. When you are dealing with James you know there are certain things that you can expect to encounter while in the field with the man who wears that classic tux so well. That is actually a great example. You are guaranteed to see James wear that tux at least once, at least one intimate interaction with a beautiful woman, some gadgets, a nice car, an opening chase seen, a few dead bodies, and a martini (shaken not stirred). While this new Bond has almost all those it may lack lots of gadgets, it does have a few, and there is no "shaken not stirred" martini but there is a martini. The thing that got me about this film was that it was a flashback. It took us back to James' first assignment as a Double O. Walking into this film I knew that was the case, which made me wonder how they were going to adapt this film. Would they use new gadgets, like cell phones or current cars. Or would they go back in time and not give James all the new stuff. Since it has been the standard to give James all the new stuff it would seem out of place to not continue this tradition. This Bond delivers. It is amazing.

And now you are wondering why is Jon talking about all this? Well this new film got me thinking about the Church. It seems that one of the major questions that has plagued the Church since the beginning has been "How do we respond to the change around us? How do we respond to the changing culture?" This question seems even more prevalent in this day and age. The Church knew how to relate to the pre-modern culture, it could deal with modernism (how well it actually did I'm not sure), but does it know how to relate post-modernism? We keep asking ourselves are we going to far as the Church, are we accommodating, are we watering down the Gospel, are we doing justice to the Gospel, or are we harming it? I can't tell you the answer to that. In all honesty it depends where you are and what you feel about those statements (wow way post-modern). I can tell you that I think in some places we are. But what is the Church to do in this new post-modern time? I think the Church needs to be a little more like James Bond. The Church needs to adapt to its new situations. But that does not mean that the Church strays from its core truths. If you strip Bond of all the the norms it is no longer Bond. If you strip the Church of all the beliefs it has then it is no longer the Church. The Church in this age needs to stand up and say we believe in these things. Things like the Trinity, Jesus as the Son of God, Salvation through faith in Jesus Christ alone. There are many things we could say we need to affirm. But we need to remember that while these are essentials there are other things that are non-essentials. The non-essentials are things that will not effect ones salvation. If someone believes in a literal day creation, cool, if someone believes in a day age theory creation, thats good too. On this issue one must understand that Hebrew can allow for either and a question one must ask is Genesis 1 about science or theology. Where the Bible is specific we need to be, where it is not whats the point. We could all use a little adaptability and humility.

So if you haven't heard, which means you are in a few decade old bomb shelter not reading my blog because there is no internet where you live, you know that PS3 (Playstation 3) came out today. Well it comes out on 11/17/06 which is today, but no store is open so you cannot buy it. People have been lining up for about 30 hours or so to get this new system. But that is not what this is about, nor is the picture a picture of a PS3. The picture is of the Nintendo Wii, which this blog is also about. The Wii is Nintendo's new system which comes out on Sunday, the 19th. What does this system have you ask? Well it doesn't play dvd's (I already have a dvd player) and it doesn't sport hi-def. So what does it have? It has these two little controllers which sense movement and are quite possibly the coolest thing ever. For example if you are playing Madden Football you will have to make a throwing motion to throw the football with your Qb. The real reason I felt the need to tell you about this is I could not think of anything else to talk about and felt the need to blog because I haven't in a few days. So while everyone is out trying to get a PS3 tonight I am blogging. And while everyone is blogging on Sunday about not getting a PS3 I will be in line getting a Wii. If you want to come play after you are more than welcome to join the Wii fun. Wii will have lots of fun (Ha did you see that pun it was great. Its times like these I wish my buddy Dave Ortega had a blog. Dave if you are out there let me know).

Apathy is defined as
1. Lack of feeling or emotion. Impassiveness
2. Lack of interest or concern. Indifference

My current state finds me in the second category. Only 5 weeks left, 18 days with class. Enough said.

Got this from J Witt. It intrigued me.

You can only use one word...
Not as easy as you may think.

1. Yourself: exhausted
2. Your girlfriend/boyfriend: Nonexistent
3. Your hair?: Hawk
4. Your mother?: Amazing
5. Your Father?: Absent
6. Your Favorite Item: Laptop
7. Your dream last night: Forgot
8. Your Favorite drink: Mocha
9. Your Dream Car: Porsche
10. The Room You Are In: Diedrich
12. Your fear: solitude
13. What you want to be in 10 years: Changed
14. Who you hung out with last night?: Bros
15. What You're Not?: Complete
16. Muffins: Blueberry
17: One of Your Wish List Items: Ducati
18: Time: Night
19. The Last Thing You Did: Drove
20. What You Are Wearing: Pumas
21. Your Favorite Weather: Fall
22. Your Favorite Book: Willard
23. The Last Thing You Ate: Waffle
24. Your Life: Messy
25. Your Mood: Apathetic
26. Your body: Tired
27. Who are you thinking about right now? Friend

First off I must say that I love ketchup. My friends will attest to this fact. I have been known to use a whole lot of ketchup when eating a meal and I will even put it on things others will not, such as taquitos (which I did today for lunch, actually yesterday by now). I have also been known to think of even odder things to have the honor of adorning ketchup. Much like a purse or diamonds for a girl, ketchup is an essential accessory. One fun fact about ketchup is that it does not require refrigeration. And that is what this blog is about. It is time that we all stand up for ketchup around the world and free it from the cool prison it so often calls home by force. If you do not believe me go look at your ketchup bottles and you will see that this is not a request ketchup makes. By placing ketchup in an environment it does not wish we are asserting our power on ketchup and which is an act of injustice. We should all act in a Christ like manner and FREE THE KETCHUP! Please join me in the Free The Ketchup Campaign 2006. How can you help you ask? First, you can free your ketchup. Second, you can inform others of this vital issue and spread the word. Thank you for your help on this Campaign issue.

I can't contain my anticipation. It comes out tomorrow by the way.

So I currently should be going to bed seeing that it is 2:23AM. Which is probably why almost all of which I write seems to be incoherent. I have written multiple sentences over and can't seem to spell words right, thank God for spell check. At the moment I am also not feeling very original either, which is never good when one is blogging. Ok, Im giving in, Im going to bed. Night blogging world.

body tackle

And people wonder what we do at Vanguard with our free time. This is the first time we have used the new MBP (macbook pro) for editing. Thanks to Josh (The DBoy) for showing us this amazing trick.
Note dont try this at home.

The Most random thought from Halloween: How do mermaids reproduce? Do they lay eggs or do the do the deed in some other way? If we take Futurama's stand perspective they lay eggs. This occurred in the episode where Fry marries a mermaid, the episode entitled The Deep South. So yeah random thought, if you have any insight feel free to inform us all.

Have you ever wondered what you would do if you came across suck a situation? Can you do anything more than pass by and wonder? I was put in just this situation last week when I went to the Getty Villa with friends. The sad thing is all I could do and honestly wanted to do was take the picture. As a photographer I am not suppose to get involved with what is happening, I am simply suppose to document the event. But as a Christian can I just document the event when people are involved? Am I not called to help them? Or am I helping them by not doing anything other pushing the button and hearing that sound which I have grow so fond of? Does documenting events move others to action? Or must I take a greater part in the change that needs to occur? This leads to too many questions and not enough answers. This requires more reflection.

The light of your eyes

Jake's Eye
Originally uploaded by throughmylenses.

So I was reading in Luke 11 today. And I came across the verses 34-36 which say: "Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are bad, your body also is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness. Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be completely lighted, as when the light of a lamp shines on you."
At times like this it seems like Jesus is very serious about what we allow ourselves to be involved in. I am reminded of Paul's saying "All is permissible, but not all is beneficial." This life is about our whole body, not just parts of it. We need to take this serious when we consider doing something that might be borderline or even against what we know is not right, but we justify it by saying "But everyone else does it." Basically what I am saying here is that we need to take a step up. We need to do things that are good for us, not bad. Jesus is advocating us to constantly be on the look out for bad things that might ruin our whole body. Sin in one area can easily become sin in another area. Now may you be on the look out for such things.

So I felt the need to inform everyone that I now have a Mohawk. Which according to some is the most amazing hair style ever. Other than that I need to apologize for my shotty blogging because I cannot figure out how to get rid of the double post from yesterday (actually this morning). I also wanted to point out that, thanks to Jared H, Merriam-Webster Online's word of the day for yesterday was Hobbit. If you do not know what one of these is they are a member of a fictitious peaceful and genial race of small humanlike creatures that dwell underground. We must thank J.R.R. Tolkien for these wonderful little creatures. On a similar not The Hobbit is possibly my favorite book ever. If you have not read it you should pick up a copy and join the adventure.

Yet again I am reminded that I have a lot of logs in my eyes. I am by far not perfect. Just thought I should add that in light of the previous post.

So this past weekend Pastor Tom spoke on Matthew 7:1-5 which reads

1"Judge not, that you be not judged. 2For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. 3Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when there is the log in your own eye? 5You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye. (Sorry for it not being the red letter addition).

And I just want to let you all know that I am by no means trying to ignore the log in my own eye. Much of what I say on here is for me too. So yeah thats about all I wanted to say. Know that I am searching out my own flaws and trying to change those as well. If you feel that we have the kind of relationship that you could point out my logs, feel free to do so. I give you full permission. Just know that I am trying to change us all for the better.

The month of October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

4 women everyday will die as a result of domestic violence.
43% of males report being the victim of domestic violence.

This needs to change, we need to start praying and start changing the world around us.

Father we pray that you will begin to intervene in situations were domestic violence is taking place. Let your Spirit bring peace into these places. Help us to be people that pray and act to change this situation. Bring awareness to this cause.

Man Shoots 11, Killing 5 Girls, in Amish School

Mike Mergen/Bloomberg News Amish men standing near Pennsylvania State Police outside the scene of a school shooting today in Bart Township, Pa.

Warning: This may be a theme that seems familiar, while it is I assure you it is different from what I have posted before. Just think about it.

So if you haven't heard, two days ago a man armed with a handgun walked into an Amish school and performed an event of tragic proportions (For more info you can read about it at http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/03/us/03amish.html). I heard news of this event sometime in the past 24 hours without having much information on the actual situation. To be honest I just let it blow over, you know how we can just read over things and not even think about it. Even events such as these. Then tonight in class Ed, one of my Theology profs, was talking about freedom and how that is part of the concept of the Image of God, he actually brought up this event so its not all my own thoughts but in part some are my own. When God created humans he gave us the ability to choose whether it be good or bad. I continued to think about this concept after class due to a conversation I had with a female friend. She commented about something that happened to me over the past year. My response to this was “Well that’s life.” To which she responded that it was part of life but she still didn’t think it was right.

All this got me thinking about a concept of immense proportions. Now this is directed to my Christian brothers and sisters, but it can apply to the whole of humanity as well. Life here in America we find ourselves bombarded with choices; school, job, spouse, movies, music, food, all aspects of life are available for us to choose from. Some of these choices do not matter. Others do. But the type of choice I really want to talk about applies to interpersonal relationships. When we are in relationship (not only romantic, but interaction with any other human being) with others we have two choices we can make concerning that individual. We can decide to be one of two kinds of people in that person’s life.

We can

A: Be a person who brings life into the situation. When we spend time with this person we can breathe life into them and they will be better when we leave them. We can leave an orchard behind us as we walk through life.

Or

B: Be a person who brings death into the situation. When we spend time with this person we leave them destroyed. What follows us is a path of destruction. We can leave a burnt field that is worse off than when we encountered.

As we go through life we can leave others positively influenced or negatively influenced. The truth about it is we can be life givers or life takers. What will you choose?

Father I pray for the families of those victims of this man’s choice to be a life taker. I pray that you will bring healing to the community which now must deal with the loss of precious life. God help them to express their pain to you in a real way. Father this makes me angry that this happens, but Lord I trust that you are in control even when it doesn’t seem like you are here. God you are present to this situation. Let those families who have lost or been hurt be surrounded by life givers. Allow this event to remind us that we have the choice to do good or bad in every situation. Father, enable us to lament this loss, but also learn from it. Father gives us the strength to bring life. Amen

May you be a life giver in your life and plant an orchard as you walk.

The Chipotle Experience

Ash & Jon (Chipotle Hallowenn 05')
Originally uploaded by throughmylenses.

This one is for Tom.
So last week I went to the new Chipotle off of Bristol and MacArthur. Quick side note before we go any farther. No that is not how I was dressed. This is actually a picture from last Halloween with some friends. If you dress up like one of their foods you get a free burrito or what ever. So any who back to the story. A few friends and I headed to this new Chipotle, we heard there was free food, but this was just a nasty rumor. While this is where I wish the story got better, unfortunately it does not. It only goes down hill. As we proceeded through the line, yes we stayed in spite of the fact that there was not free food, I got to the cash register and asked for the usual free student drink. At this point the lady working the counter told me "we are not doing that for college students." And honestly at that point I was pretty upset and bewildered. That is the first time I have ever paid for a drink at Chipotle, as far as I can remember. So we sit down and I borderline irate, telling my friends walking in the door to leave now and go to our typical Chipotle. Once again I wish it got better from here on out, but it does not. As I took the top part of my foil off, unwrapping like the napkin tells you to, one of the great things about Chipotle, they tell you how to eat the food on the napkin. So I unwrap my burrito and in the top portion of the burrito there is a tear in the tortilla. If any of you have eaten at Chipotle you know what a horror this is. So I take my first bite and to my disapproval the steak is room temp. and appears to be rare, seriously there was still blood coming out, it was juicy. I was not happy.
Now those of you that know me know I love Chipotle, I mean for heaven sake I dressed up like a burrito. There are few people who I know who appreciate Chipotle more than myself. One of the reasons I have come to love Chipotle is that when you walk into a Chipotle you know that you will be getting a quality meal for a good price. This pains me to say, but this Chipotle experience was not filled with quality, it was anything but. So as we were leaving I began to tell the guy how this had made me think about something I have been processing through for a while about the Church. I find that today that a lot of what Christians produce is not the best that they can do. For example the movies we make for the most part go straight to rental. Our music is often carbon copies or attempts to be of secular bands. Most of you I hope are nodding your head in agreement at this point. The bible says that we should do everything as it is unto the Lord. In other words if you are doing something pretend like you are giving it directly to Jesus when it is done. We should be giving Jesus our best. While as of late it appears that this lack of quality is coming to an end within the Christian circles. We have great music coming out, the movies are getting better, and I have come across some amazing artists. I have hope for the future of Christian art and other things we do. The future is looking brighter as we converse. Now this conversation goes beyond art, it is about every thing we do. Our whole lives as an offering to the Lord. So as you continue to go about your lives may you be able to give it your best and do it as unto the Lord. May he give you discernment in your life where you need to give your work or anything more effort and when you have done your best. And may you have the courage to step up to the challenge of doing everything as unto the Lord.

So no photo for this one. I am on my mom's pc and I dont have any photos to put on to the web to blog with. Recently I have been thinking about the community of God. The Body of Christ, as Paul would say. There have been many events that have influenced my thought on the Body. How is the Body of Christ suppose to act when one person hurts another or does something that seems unforgivable? How should we respond to such situation? I think the best answer to this question is found in Philippians. Paul tells us in Philippians 2:5-11 that "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father."

When it comes down to it we are suppose to act like Christ at all times, even if we get hurt. I think Christ was hurt when Peter denied him and when Thomas didn't believe. Yet how do we see Christ respond to these situations? Christ restored these relationships. For Peter he gave him three opportunities to say "Yes, Lord." One for every time he denied. For Thomas he was gracious enough to allow him to see his hand and side. Now not every relationship can be restored to its oringinal, but we can restore it. It may not be as good as it was before, but it can be better than nothing. So let us act in a way that brings glory to the King. For we are his hand and his feet. A Body should not fight against itself. May you do all that the Spirit enables you to do in restoring broken relationships in the body.

Writing on The Rock

Writing on The Rock
Originally uploaded by throughmylenses.

I took this picture a while back with some friends in Laguna Beach. It is actually published in a lit. journal, I know it's kinda exciting. So as I look at this picture it reminds me of when a group of religious leaders back in Jesus day brought a women caught in adultery to him (found in John 8). These religious leaders were really good at the rules, or so they thought. When they bring this women to him they are trying to trap him into breaking the law or going back on other things they think he has said. They say to him "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" They want Jesus to say something that they can use against him. But Jesus doesn't have it.
He doesn't say anything, he just starts writing on the ground. We don't know what he is writing on the ground, John leaves this out. It was common for a rabbi to teach while sitting down on the ground. Some believe he was doodling, others believe he was writing out their sins and others passages from scripture. What he is writing is irrelevant to the issue. They continue to bug him and he responds to the with an interesting proposal. "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her."
At this one by one the people walk away. Starting with the oldest, they have the most sin, and right on down till only Jesus and the women are left. For the first time in this story the women is addressed by Jesus and they have a conversation that will change her life. ""Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"
"No one, sir," she said.
"Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin."
The only person who has the right to condemn this women to death is the one who is standing before her and he does not. This text brings up some interesting thoughts in my head. Some questions for reflection. How often do we hold on to sins of the past? Either others or our own. How often do we allow our accusers to bring us down?
The truth of the matter is that we who have entered into right relationship with Christ have been forgiven. We simply need to walk in this truth. Walking in this truth means that we go on in light of our forgiveness. We who have been forgiven need to forgive. We also need to walk away from our sin, like she did that day. May we all have the strength to walk away from our sins.

Hear, See and Speak No Evil

Hear, see and speak No Evil
Originally uploaded by throughmylenses.

So I was looking through photos, while in class and I found this photo. It made me think about community and what it is capable of. It is capable of either great good or great evil. The primary question is what will your community be known for, good or evil. Now as a Christian I believe our community is to be known for good. And many times in history it has not been so. This is something I will challenge you all with: To make your community known for the good they do and not evil. (When I say community I mean the group you belong to, whether it is Christian, Muslim, Jewish or anyother community, maybe even a Sports community).


P.S. This photo was not taken by me or my camera.

Flight Sequence

Flight Sequence
Originally uploaded by throughmylenses.

Hey everyone,
So I have been really overloaded with class and life. So I haven't been able to go out and take pictures as of late. I hope to get out soon. This picture is my favorite picture I have taken. I love how all the pelicans are flying together and that they are flying parallel with the wave. Reminds me of what a community of believers of Christ can look like when it is moving together. They are all moving in the same direction, with the same goal in mind. What would it be like if communities of believers moved together like this. The body of Christ would be a great force that would do great things for Christ. As Christians we should move together with the Christian community that we belong to. At times think to individually, we need to start thining in community. If you do not have a community that cares for your soul I encourage you find one. Now may you look to the community that you belong to find the direction in which you are moving.