A Long Obedience

Reflections on Olympic Joy

2008-08-26T20:20:00.005-05:00

I love the Olympics! I don't know what it is about them - maybe it's the competition or the national pride. It doesn't matter what the sport is, I'll stay up into the late hours to watch Flatwater Canoing or Badminton. Kathi and I probably watched at least 4 hours of Olympics every day the past two weeks, and we loved it!

Beijing 2008 was particularly exciting. Michael Phelps is amazing. China is going to take over the world. American track and field is overrated. It was all here. The drama, the heartache, the triumph. It was sweet. I hate to say it, but when the competition closed on Sunday, I was actually a little depressed. I'm already looking forward to 2010.

Reflections on Bad Blogging

2008-07-19T16:28:00.002-05:00

I'm a bad, bad blogger. I've been getting kind of tired of keeping this blog up. I'm thankful to all of you who have continued to come by. I don't want to really shut completely down. But, I think I'm going to focus my blogging now at our Missio Colonia blog. I'll still post here when I get inspired to do so, but I'm not going to force it.

Anyway, Kathi and I were working at a youth camp this past week. Afterwards, on our way to the IKEA in Pittsburgh, we came across this sign off of U.S. 30.

Reflections on Our 3rd Anniversary

2008-06-11T23:35:00.002-05:00

Today my bride and I celebrate 3 years! We think this is the first anniversary that we've actually where we weren't doing something. I say we think because we can't remember for the life of us what we did last year. So, to make sure that doesn't happen again, I decided to chronicle this 3rd anniversary.

We had a wonderful day today. We actually did have to do a little "work" at first - we met with a pastor in the area for lunch. But, this evening I took Kathi to one of our favorite restaurants in the city called Yats, which is cajun and creole food. Yum. The time also served as an opportunity to play with the Garmin that my dad got us. After that we took a lengthy bike ride on a path through the city. Then, we came home and watched Juno, had brownies and ice cream, and looked at wedding pictures.

I love my wife. Tonight as we looked a pictures, she asked me if I thought she looked beautiful on our wedding day. I told that naturally I thought so, but I can say beyond a doubt that she's more beautiful to me after three years. Happy Anniversary, Kathi.

(Incidentally, the picture I included in this post is one of our favorite wedding pictures. For one, we look great together, and also because Randy is giving us the greatest look! We love it!)

Reflections on Politics and Beer

2008-06-10T14:07:00.002-05:00

Ugh, politics. Well, it's down to two candidates. I think both are good people, but they each have some unpleasant ideological baggage. I would totally vote for McCain if it wasn't for the beer issue.

Reflection on My 30th Birthday

2008-05-14T23:35:00.000-05:00

Well, it was my 30th birthday today. I'm not sure how to feel about it all. In the grand scheme of things, it's just a number. I don't feel any different, and this day is just like the last one. But, there is something weird thinking that I'm entering my 4th decade alive! Yikes. I'm not one for mid-life crises, so I'm not really freaking out. I'm just a little sad that I'm no longer in my 20s. Everyone tells me though that 30 is the new 20. I don't know.

Despite all of this stuff, it was a pretty sweet day. The past couple of days we've been hanging out in Indianapolis doing some support raising. Today we spent most of our time with Brian and Karin. I got to eat steak, and I won at both Bohnanza and Settlers of Catan! So, all in all it was not bad.

On a side note, it was around this time 9 years ago that I accepted Christ. I remember that it was shortly after my 21st birthday. It's fun having my physical birth and my spiritual birth around the same time. Anyway, I'm 30 now. Society says that I should be an adult now. We'll see about that.

Reflections on the Kingdom

2008-05-06T16:10:00.003-05:00

Last week, I was asked to fill the pulpit at our church in Dellroy. Even though I've done messages for youth groups and such, this was the first time I've ever done a sermon at a "grown up" church. The work and prep was pretty much the same, but some how it was different - it was more weighty. Anyway, I spoke on the Kingdom of God - what does it mean? What difference does it make for our lives? It was a good experience.

One of the sources that I used was George Eldon Ladd's The Gospel of the Kingdom, which is classic on Kingdom theology (and a great book to boot). Here's a great quote:

The Kingdom of God is a miracle. It is the act of God. It is supernatural. Men cannot build the Kingdom, they cannot erect it. The Kingdom is the Kingdom of God; it is God's reign, God's rule. God has entrusted the Gospel of the Kingdom to men. It is our responsibility to proclaim the Good News about the Kingdom. But the actual work of the Kingdom is God's working. The fruitage is produced not by human effort or skill but by the life of the Kingdom itself. It is God's deed.

Reflection on Voting the Image

2008-04-29T14:07:00.004-05:00

So, I got a couple of stern comments a while back when I posted about my disillusionment in the election process in America. Basically, I have a hard time voting not because I think my vote doesn't count, but because I think that one votes not for a candidate but an image concocted by a political machine. Well, an interesting article in this weekend's Parade (yes, we read Parade, give me a break) verified my skepticism.

The most striking quote comes from an Nixon administration internal memo dated around the time of the 1968 Presidential Election. Nixon's image advisor wrote:

The response is to the image, not to the man...It's not what's there that counts, it's what's projected. [The selection of a President] has to be an act of faith...This faith isn't achieved by reason; it's achieved by charisma, by a feeling of trust that can't be argued or reasoned.

At the end of the article, the author cites statistics showing that campaign ad budgets no longer reflect who wins elections, which suggests, according to him, that Americans are beginning to move away from voting based on image. I think this trend reflects more a distrust in political advertisements, and I definitely believe that the image machine is still full functioning giving us nicely manufactured products that bear little resemblance to what kind of President the person will actually be. This is why I have a hard time voting.

What Can I Say?

2008-04-11T23:13:00.002-05:00

Is that not awesome?

Reflections on Stickin' It to Skybus

2008-04-11T05:19:00.003-05:00

Take that, Port Columbus International Airport! It's 6 a.m. and we're sitting in Concourse B of said airport waiting for our flight to Kansas City via Chicago O'Hare. Both Kathi and I haven't slept for almost 24 hours, and we are rockin' it out! We're on our way to visit our friends, Meryl and Neal in Kansas for the weekend.

Let me weave for you the tale of our struggle to actually get to Kansas City. About a month ago, using the financial windfall from our recent tax return, we purchased tickets to fly out to KC to visit our friends. Lucky for us we were able to get inexpensive tickets our a regional discount airline. Well, last week this regional discount airline - let's call them Skybus - declared bankruptcy and shut down all of their flight operations.

In a scramble to try and salvage the fun-filled weekend we had planned, we managed to get relatively comparable tickets using William Shatner's keen negotiating skills (aka Priceline.com). Well, those tickets happened to be with American Airlines. For those of you following the news, American Airlines this past week canceled over 2,000 of the domestic flights to conduct emergency maintenance on their MD80 airliners. It just so happens that the Chicago to KC leg of our journey was one of those canceled flights.

Well, crap. Let me just acknowledge how amazingly friendly and helpful the customer service lady from American Airlines was (really, no sarcasm intended). She managed to get us on a United flight from O'Hare to Kansas City within 10 minutes! Kudos to American Airlines!

So, we drove down to Columbus after work tonight (or last night...uh...what time is it??) and stayed over at our friends Randy and Sarah's. Wouldn't you know it, Ravi was in town. We decided to just stay up all night capping the entire experience off with a killer 4:30 a.m. breakfast at Waffle House. Kudos to you Waffle House!

Now fast forward 2 hours. We're waiting for our flight to board riding our 3rd wind. Reading over this, I'm astonished that it's this coherent. Regardless, I say poop on you U.S. airline industry.

Random Signage IX

2008-04-04T22:12:00.004-05:00

Man, it's been a while since I've posted. Anyway, we found this sign in Magnolia, Ohio. It was in front of a out-of-business restaurant. Obviously wasn't the best marketing idea.

Reflections on Nerd-dom

2008-03-10T12:10:00.003-05:00

If you're ever bored and want to blow a couple of hours online, go to www.NationalAtlas.org. It is the federal governments online collection of maps including everything ranging from congressional districts to industrial energy consumption per capita. The fact that I spent two hours playing around with it the other day proves that I'm a complete nerd. But, even if you're not a nerd, they have an interactive layers map that interesting to play around with for a little while.

It enlightened me to some pretty interesting facts about our country. For example, I was completely unaware of how much land our government still owns. Military installations and national parks aside, the Public Land Office is the largest land holder in the United States. Here's another fun fact. There are parts of western Pennsylvania that are still considered unexplored wilderness. Anyway, if you're not a nerd, you may commence making fun of me now.

Reflections on MLB Prognostication

2008-03-08T13:07:00.002-06:00

Over the next 24 hours, we're expected to get almost a foot of snow around here. So, needless to say, we are housebound for the next couple of days. As I stare out at our snowy front yard, I'm comforted by the fact that spring is so near. To gear myself up, I'm thinking a lot about baseball season, and I'm getting pretty excited about the Reds' chances. Since I'm bored sitting around, I thought I'd post my MLB predictions for this season.

NL East - Atlanta Braves
I know that the buzz is surrounding the Phillies-Mets rivalry and Santana's arrival in the Senior Circuit. But, I think that both of those teams have significant holes that will prove to be fatal this season. The Phillies have no rotation depth behind Hamels, and their new closer Brad Lidge got injured the first day of spring camp. They'll certainly score 800 runs again, but they'll give up 750. Likewise, behind Santana the Mets don't have many proven starters. Pedro will show flashes of his old self but will not top 100 innings this season. Maine and Perez will not perform up to the level they showed last year. Atlanta will dominate starting pitching this year with Smotlz, Glavine, Hudson, and company. They also have the young position players poised to make a huge impact this year.

NL Central - Cincinnati Reds
I'm sure I'll be accused of being the partisan optimist, but when the Reds make the playoffs this year, I want there to be documentation that I called it. The only reason I think this is a solid pick is because they're in a very weak division. Houston will falter because of bullpen and rotation concerns, the Cubs have some unproven position players they're hinging their season on (Pie and Fukudome) and the Brewers are a weaker team this year. The Reds though have added to their big weakness from last year: the bullpen. They have two solid starters at the top of the rotation in Harang and Arroyo, and they added Josh Fogg to bring some veteran stability to the center. The key for the Reds this year is to have some breakout years from some of their young guys. Look for Jay Bruce, Johnny Cueto, and Encarnacion to come up big this year. That'll put the Reds over the top, and they'll only need 88 wins to do it.

NL West - Arizona Diamondbacks
This division is probably the strongest in the National League, and therefore the hardest to call. The D-Backs, Dodgers, and Padres have all made significant additions, and the Rockies should also compete again this season. The big question across the division is lack of offense. The Dodgers probably have the edge in that category with Kent and Martin. But, I chose Arizona because I think Randy Johnson is going to have a comeback year, and add him in between Webb and Haren and you have a rotation good as any in baseball. But, it could just as easily be any of the other three I mentioned also.

NL Wild Card: Los Angeles Dodgers

AL East: Toronto Blue Jays
This pick is bound to get some hoots and hollers. But, I'm going to go out on a limb. I strongly believe that the Reds Sox are overrated this year, and they have some serious questions facing their rotation. Beckett is as good as any pitcher out there, but I think we're going to see a big sophomore slump from Dice-K. The Yankees will undoubtedly score close to 1000 runs again but their pitching will once again be their down fall. With that said, look for the Blue Jays to be the dark horse this year. They have a great one-two punch in their rotation (Halladay and Burnett) and they'll have their closer back this year. It'll be a three way race for the division through the end, but I think the Jays will come out on top.

AL Central - Cleveland Indians
This is going to be a fun division. The Tiger made some huge improvements that upgrade an already potent offense. Their rotation and bullpen are still big questions, but they'll score the most runs in the majors this year. But, I think that the Indians will slightly edge out the Tigers because they have more depth in the rotation (although I doubt Carmona will pitch like last year) and a far better bullpen. Regardless the 19 games these two teams play against each other will be full of fireworks.

AL West - Seattle Mariners
This is the division that I know least about, but with the addition of Erik Bedard, the Mariners have made some significant improvements. The Angels will chase Seattle all season but I think that they'll falter in September.

AL Wild Card - Detroit Tigers
I pick the Tigers only because the AL Central is a two team division where as the East is a three team division. I think that the Red Sox, Yankees, and Jays will beat on each all season, and the Tigers will end up with the better record.

Cleveland Indians beat the Atlanta Braves in 6 games for the 2008 World Series title.

Reflections on The Machines

2008-03-04T19:53:00.002-06:00

So, we voted today. It was the first time that I had used those electronic voting machines, and I'm not sure what to think of them. What worries me is that what little I know about computers is that they break and they break frequently. We're trusting our most sacred secular privilege to the Machines...it's Terminator all over again. What is worse is that these polling stations are usually staffed by retirees who don't much about computers. The man right after us started having problems with his machine, and I don't think they knew quite what to do.

Reflections on Wings and Chris

2008-02-28T15:35:00.003-06:00

Boy, did we have a wild couple of days earlier this week. On Sunday we drove down to Columbus to visit with some friends from college. One of these friends, Chris Cieto, was visiting from New Hampshire. To commemorate the visit, on Tuesday we gathered at Quaker Steak & Lube for all-you-can-eat wings night! We ended up having more than twenty people from our OU days there.

Aside from that we spent a couple of days catching up with these amazing friends. We laughed really hard and stayed up late. It was awesome. Kathi and I are so grateful for friends that we can pick up with right where we left off. It doesn't matter how long it's been since we've been together, it never felt like we were apart. Man, we wish these guys.

Reflections on Voting

2008-02-19T22:12:00.003-06:00

For the most part, I've avoided political comments on this blog mainly because I'm disillusioned with politics in America. Regardless, I have been very fascinated by the Democratic and Republican primaries recently. But, with all of my interest it's hard for me to really believe that my vote really counts. I don't mean that in the sense that most people mean it. It's hard for me to have confidence in the political process because politicians are essentially professional con artists. Their objective in an election campaign is to make themselves into the image of who they believe the electorate wants them to be. Once a candidate is elected, he or she hardly ever turns out to be the "person" you were voting for. You instead were voting for an image concocted by campaign managers and spin doctors.

I did discover something really cool though. There is a website that provides non-partisan information regarding candidates policy positions, personal beliefs, and voting records. It has really helped me cut through some of the bull. Not only that, it gives details of state and local ballot issues. I highly recommend it. It's called VoteSmart.org. The technology is available to truly make our leaders accountable, but we need to use it.

Reflections on Happy Fun Leslie

2008-02-12T21:50:00.002-06:00

Yesterday afternoon I got a call from Leslie Chamberlain saying that she's on the road coming to visit us from Philadelphia. Surprise! So, today we had Happy Fun Leslie Day! Much to her chagrin, Leslie traveled to Ohio right in the midst of the biggest snow storm so far this year. Leslie was therefore stranded at our place. We did what any self-respecting 30-year old would do in these situations. We went sledding.

Go times were had all around. Included in the great moments today was making the Poop Mountain Snowman. I know that sounds weird, but it's a little too in depth to go into. And, you probably don't want to hear about it anyway. Regardless, it was some amazing Leslie time. Tomorrow she gets to drive all the way back to Philly in freezing rain, so have fun with that, Les.

Reflections on Church Ambivalence

2008-02-04T21:10:00.000-06:00

One of the things that disturbs me about Christians my age is the total ambivalence and at times hatred they have for the Church. I know that it's hard to blame people. The Church is a messy business. But, the mantra of many young Christians concerning the Church is, "no thanks". For all of its foibles and sins, the Church is still the Bride of Christ. It makes me so sad that so many believers are giving up on her. Today I came across this quote from Carlo Carretto, which shows such a beautiful and authentic heart for the Church:

How baffling you are, oh Church, and yet how I love you! How you have made me suffer, and yet how much I owe you! I should like to see you destroyed, and yet I need you presence. You have given me so much scandal and yet you have made me understand sanctity. I have seen nothing in the world more devoted to obscurity, more compromised, more false, and I have touched nothing more pure, more generous, more beautiful. How often I have wanted to shut the doors of my soul in your face, and how often I have prayed to die in the safety of your arms. No, I cannot free myself from you, because I am you, although not completely. And where should I go?

Reflections on Apple and the End Times

2008-01-28T09:23:00.000-06:00

Two of my very good friends just bought the new iPhone from Apple. Even though this is one of the coolest things to be made in the last decade, I seriously dislike Apple, Inc. No one can fault them for producing quality machines. But, they've created a subculture around their computers that basically says, "you're not really cool, hip, or alternative unless you own a Mac." The near self-righteousness of many Mac owners (I have many friends who own Macs, so forgive me guys) is repugnant. What is more, I'm pretty sure that Apple, Inc. is a sign of the End Times. Here's how I got there:

To be sure, the iPhone is astounding. I toyed around with one a while ago, and I coveted the ability to seamlessly use your email, internet, play music, make calls, and much more. The technology is amazing. I can easily see how this can evolve into the next generation of ease and convenience. It wouldn't take much to integrate your personal banking and finances into the iPhone. Whenever you buy something, instead of pulling out your wallet just swipe your iPhone. In fact, you could easily make all of your personal identification securely ingrained in your device - no more need for a wallet at all. Heck, why stop there? Who wants to carry around a bulky iPhone? We can just miniaturize it and implant the device into our hands or foreheads. And, just to make security and identification easier, we can electronically imprint all of these devices with a key code, say... "666"!!!!

Does anyone else find it interesting that the first Fall of Man was also initiated by an apple? Is anyone else freaking out?!? While this is mostly tongue-in-cheek, I would be remiss to not acknowledge the seriousness of the End Times. I can't shake the sense the things are beginning to come to head in this world. I may be wrong - there have been many periods in world history that have been mistaken for the Apocalypse. But, there will be a time when it won't be very funny.

Reflections on Old School Baseball

2008-01-23T11:01:00.000-06:00

Recently, my dad has been going through my grandparent's old picture slides and scanning them into his computer. The other day he came across these amazing pictures and emailed them to me. Top left is a picture taken of Crosley Field in Cincinnati during a game in 1961. Top right is the same game down at field level. The player on the right (#20) is Frank Robinson who won the MVP for the National League that year. Bottom left is Yankee Stadium during a game in 1960. You can see Mickey Mantle trotting around second after hitting a home run. Bottom right is the scoreboard at Yankee Stadium. If you look closely you can see "Mantle Home Run Was Number 8 of Season".

Reflections on Thirty Years

2008-01-21T19:32:00.000-06:00

If you have ever felt like there was just something missing from the American church, you need to read the book I just finished. It's called Thirty Years That Change the World: The Book of Acts for Today by Michael Green, who is an evangelist and professor from Oxford. He basically is reflecting on what made the early church so amazing, and why we don't see these things in our churches today. He does a great job of avoiding the theological soapboxes found in Acts and focuses on the power, influence and priorities of the first Christians.

One of the biggest things I took away from this book is the fact that the church in the West has fallen into a maintenance mentality. By being focused on our buildings, church staff, and programs, we have for the most part lost our missionary and evangelistic zeal. The truth is that God is a God on a mission, and He has promised to equip His people in accomplishing that mission.

I want my life to be different. I want it to look more like those first Christians who were full of radical love, power, and conviction. But, I'm too much a product of my Christian culture. I honest don't even know what it would be like to have a life like that. But, I want it.

Reflections on Chicago Drill Bits

2008-01-12T22:12:00.000-06:00

So, yesterday we drove back from a week in Chicago. We were hanging out with some old friends and doing some support raising. We spoke at a young adults group in the city, which yield new friends and good contacts. It was actually a very productive trip, but we are so happy to finally have a rest day tomorrow.

This is totally unrelated, but we found out this week that the soon-to-be tallest free-standing structure in North America is currently under construction in Chicago. It's call the Chicago Spire, and it's going to be a 150-story residential tower right on the lake front across from Navy Pier. They've already been laying the foundation, and it should be completed in 2011. They haven't published officially how tall it will be, so it is possible that it will recapture the tallest building in the world honors for Chicago (it may or may not be taller than the Burj Dubai which is currently being constructed in Dubai and will top out at 2,111 feet). I had no clue they were building this thing in Chicago. Isn't that wild?

Reflections on Auld Lang Syne

2008-01-03T22:43:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year, everyone! I figured I would get the first post of the year out of the way by sharing a great picture of my nephew, Gavin. We took this at his birthday last month.

Reflections on Sixties Child

2007-12-31T09:48:00.000-06:00

Last night we went out with my mom to celebrate Christmas and the New Year. We started talking about her as a teenager and young adult back in the 60s and 70s. She shared with us that as a high schooler, she was actually very conservative and was a registered member of the Teens for Nixon champaign organization! Then when she went off to Purdue University, her political worldview completely changed. She became a ragging hippie protesting the Vietnam War, burning her bras, and taking part in the first Earth Day.

I remarked to her how it seemed strange that she so radically transformed in just a short time. She said that she even remembers the moment she abandoned her conservative ideals. Thinking that it was some deeply cathartic experience, I was very interested in this story. She said that early on in college, she got into a conversation with another girl in her dorm. My mom remarked to her that the war in Vietnam was necessary to the world's security. The girl simply responded, "No, it isn't." Not to be out done, my mom said, "Yes, it is." The girl again just looked her in the eye and said, "No, it isn't." And, then my mom told me something ridiculous. She said, "And, I believed her!" She said at that point she became a hippie!

What?!? That's all it took?!? I lost it right there. It cracked me up that her worldview could be so dramatically altered by the earnest beliefs of another woman. We laughed a lot.

Merry Christmas

2007-12-25T17:13:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas, everyone! We hope that all of your are enjoying your families, and most importantly having a day of rejoicing over the birth and continuing presence of Jesus. Kathi and I are spending the day at her sister's place in Wellington. That's been really enjoyable mainly due to Kathi's two young nieces. It's fun to be around kids during Christmas. Plus they just got a Wii.

I say this every year it seems, but I always want to cut through the busyness of the time to really prepare spiritually for the holiday. For the first time in a long time, I did take that time this year. It was a blessing to dwell on the present realities of the truth of the nativity. One of the best things that I did today was listen to a lot of Christmas music. Along with all of the fun secular music, I've absorbed some of the classic sacred songs that I never really stopped to listen to.

Hark! The herald angels sing
Glory to the newborn King
Peace on earth and mercy mild
God and sinner reconciled

The Cost of Getting Off the Sidelines

2007-12-17T16:00:00.000-06:00

I've been wrestling with some pretty weighty things lately. Here's what I wrote in my journal today. Is anyone else feeling like this, or is it just me?

Right now I’m reading Garrison’s Church Planting Movements book. The movements of God’s Spirit in the world are amazing. God truly is doing something in the world that we have never seen before. He is beginning to reap a harvest that we can’t even imagine. But, for the most part I feel like I’m sitting on the sidelines. I’m so comfortable with my easy evangelical life in my safe evangelical church.

I make grand statements about how I want to give my life for Christ, but do I really understand what I’m saying? The one thing I’m learning is that these great movements of God’s Spirit are advancing at a great cost. To get off the sidelines and into the game, so to speak, would cost my reputation, my comfort, my safety, and perhaps even my life. But, isn’t that the very cost that Jesus paid? He knew that the cost was miniscule compared to the glory that was reveal in Him in the resurrection. Paul knew it too.

“But whatever was to my profit I now consider a loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish that I may gain Christ and be found in him. I want to know Christ and power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.” (Philippians 3:7-11)