Ordained Jell-O...

This weekend was crazy busy for me and the Trudster (I've never referred to her like that before and probably won't again). Friday was her mother's (my mother-in-law) birthday. In honor of that event we went to what was described to me as a "catfish place" called Frank and Mary's. I've never been to a restaurant that specializes in catfish. In fact, I've never eaten catfish. Luckily, I was assured that there would be a myriad of choices on the menu that ranged from hamburgers to fried mushrooms. Frank and Mary's does business in the small town of Pittsboro, IN; population: 2,749. Pittsboro has the distinguishing honor of being the birthplace of the one, the only Jeff Gordon. Would you believe that the entire interior of this restaurant was decked out in Jeff Gordon wall clocks, cardboard cutouts, and neon signs? But of all things at Frank and Mary's, the most egregious was the cost of a soft drink. They allowed one free refill on your soft drink and then charged another $1.75 for your third cup. With this understanding I kept my Coke consumption to 2 cups...and then out of nowhere the waitress brings me the dreaded third cup! Have they already charged me for this unrequested cup? If I take one sip is that an entire $1.75? I left the cup untouched in hopes to save just under $2. That is my entire impression of Pittsboro: Jeff Gordon and overpriced soft drinks.

Sunday was a double dose of action for me. After lunch I was ordained at TPCC. I had never been to an ordination, nor (obviously) had I been the subject of one. Therefore, I knew not what to expect. It consisted of worship, prayer, and a great encouragement/charge from my good friend Henry. Henry (and later I found out Trudy) had gone out of his way to get insight from some of the key people in my life on why they thought I was set apart for ministry. Person after person waxed eloquently about my call. Every minister just has those days when it feels maybe you zigged when God wanted you to zag; their words will serve as a reminder and guide when I lose my way.

That night we had our first (possibly annual) TPCC Jell-O Wars. Jell-O Wars is just as ridiculous as it sounds. Essentially, the people in charge spend many hours of their life boiling water, adding packets of Jell-O powder, adding more water, and cooling it. We had in excess of 160 gallons of Jell-O. We spread the Jell-O on tarps to make it slick and proceeded to play many games that required students to immerse themselves in the jiggly fruit snack. Tug-O-War, Slip-N-Slide, and any other game with a random letter in the middle become much more exciting when played in Jell-O. I was made aware of only one minor injury (a gigantic knot on a girl's head) which is considered a success. Hopefully the one thing you can't say about the TPCC High School Ministry is that we never do anything interesting!

Shoes Jones...

I realized this weekend that while shopping for apparel, I'm far more interested in shoes than any other clothing item. Shirts, pants, and sweaters are all second-class citizens in my fashion world. I genuinely enjoy finding a pair of cool shoes; especially when they're on sale. This was the case at the mall this weekend. I walked out of there with three pairs of shoes and I felt like a moron. Nonetheless, I was proud of my thrifty shopping. Ultimately, I don't know what kind of man this makes me. I don't know if it's more manly to prefer shirts to shoes or sweatshirts to sneakers. Maybe it's most manly to care about neither. I just don't know.

This Madden Curse had Gone too Far...

In 1988 EA Sports graced mankind with a new football video game called John Madden Football. For the last twenty years it has been a perennial bestseller, obsession for college males, and inspiration to an unwatchable reality TV show. Until 1999 the namesake of the game, announcer John Madden, appeared on the cover. 1999's version plastered the likeness of Garrison Hearst on its cover. Since then, there has been an eery connection between a player's appearance on the Madden cover and a decline in his football skills. A list of recent players to appear on the video game cover and subsequent drop off: 2004-Michael Vick (charged with illegal dogfighting), 2006-Donovan McNabb (played only 9 games that season), 2007-Shaun Alexander (out of the league in 2008), 2008-Vince Young (lost starting job to Kerry Collins). You can see the obvious impact. This story has been much documented and maligned. Yet there is a new angle that appeared this week that I have yet to hear anyone bring up. The Madden Curse has officially affected the officials in the game! Madden '09 has one referee for every game played and it is modeled after NFL official Ed Hochuli. Hochuli has been ever present in the media this week for completely botching a call in the Chargers/Broncos game, which essentially gave the Broncos a second life and took a win from the Bolts. Hochuli has been a much respected official, if for nothing other than his massive biceps. Now his appearance in the massively popular video game has affected his real life performance as an official. This is getting ridiculous...

Dudes...

I read this stat that blows my mind: there are between 11 and 13 million more Christian women than men. 60% of all Christians are women.
Why? What is it about men or what is it about the church that has made this so? Maybe men are so fiercely independent that a inter-relational faith makes them incredibly uneasy. Maybe the church is often so soft that men see it as weak and fragile. It's obvious that women truly gravitate toward ministry and the church in general. There are women's ministries, dance ministries, knitting ministries, cooking ministries, and women talking about women's ministry ministries. On the other hand, the men's ministry in a given church often struggles to gain momentum. So what's up with the dudes? How can we create an environment that encourages their masculinity while at the same time teaches submission to Christ? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Innovation...

I'm reading the book It: How Churches and Leaders Can Get It and Keep It by Craig Groeschel. He is the lead guy at LifeChurch in Oklahoma. They do a big deal on the Internet with their church, broadcasting services and making LifeChurch as accessible as possible. He noted that innovation will happen where there is a passion. This struck me as profound and true (which is a nice combination). The things we truly care to do, we'll find a way to do them. I will find a way to scale any wall that gets in the way of doing what I love. We do this often without even realizing that we're true innovators. If a set of circumstances is preventing me from following my favorite sports team, I will get very creative in finding a way to get the score: locating a computer, having a buddy text me, or peeping through some one's window who happens to be watching the game...just kidding. When we truly care to get something done, we find a way to make it happen. Which also reveals something about when we fail to get things done. We begin making excuses: not enough money, other people holding us down, too much red tape, etc. It's possible that we just weren't passionate enough to defeat the obstacles. It was an encouragement to me that if I'm truly passionate about getting something done, I'll flip the innovation switch and find a way.

Vantage Point = 90210...

Yesterday afternoon before Catalyst I went home and watched the movie Vantage Point. I remember being excited about the previews but suddenly realizing that I should just wait for the movie on Netflix because paying for a movie ticket means I won't eat that day. I wanted the movie to be good. I like Matthew Fox, Forest Whitaker, and I can stand Dennis Quaid. Anything terrorist related sucks me in (ex: 24). The main issue was their complete disregard for any character development whatsoever. Which was the same exact thought I had concerning the new 90210 show (yes I watched it). It seems to me that the prevailing wisdom is to create a large cast, bounce back and forth from one storyline to the next, and that way no character really has to have a story. If I can bounce to a new storyline every 3 minutes, no one can get bored enough to change the channel or eject the DVD. In the end, all I have is a predictable story, no attachment to the characters, and a realization that I'll never get those two hours back.

Olympic Junky...

In the last few days I have developed an addiction to the Olympics. I have been unable to pull myself from watching sports that I have no previous passion for whatsoever. Last night I stayed up much later than anticipated to watch the "Women's" Team Gymnastics final. I put "women" in quotations because let's be honest, we all know those Chinese gymnasts were an entire decade from being an adult. I have especially enjoyed the beach volleyball. I'm amazed at how high they jump in sand...do you know how hard that is? Then, what more can be said about Michael Phelp's dominance? It appears that he was created to swim. Plus, he doesn't seem like a bad guy...in an age of suspect professional athletes it's nice to root for a good guy.

Jesse Jackson and me...

Friday night Trudy and I met Henry and Cheryl Hamilton on the south side of Chicago for a White Sox/Red Sox game. I usually try to make it to U.S. Cellular Field once a summer because it's the closest American League ballpark the Sox (Red) will visit all year. It can be somewhat unnerving attending an away game for your favorite team. You're decked out in Red Sox gear attempting to ask White Sox fans for directions to public parking. One lady was going to let us park in front of her house but wanted us to leave her keys with her so she could move our car if need be...thanks but no thanks. The White Sox fans were very amicable with only a few boos and jeers as we walked to our seats. One guy even offered to take our picture for us when Trudy and I were doing the awkward try to hold the camera and take a picture of two people at the same time bit. Boston lost 5-3 but at least made a game of it when Pedroia hit a 3-run homer (which got an unusually loud ovation at an away game).

They showed Jesse Jackson on the big screen during the first inning. Believe it or not he had first row seats and somehow there was no one around him. As soon as the crowd saw him they booed uproariously. I guess that's what happens when you reveal your desire to mutilate Illinois' favorite senator.

The next day we had lunch at the Signature Room on the 95th. It's a restaurant on the 95th floor of the John Hancock building. You can see for miles. I am still in awe of how engineers can be confident enough to allow people to live 95 stories in the air. Plus, there's a buffet at the Signature Room. People get crazy at a buffet. All rules of personal space are forgotten. One swift shove to attain some potatoes au gratin could have led to a disastrous fall.