...which means it is dirty."
This, one of my favorite Mitch Hedberg quotes, has been running through my head all night, but my version needs to say "hand wash" in place of dry clean.
Since I'm moving in a few weeks, I've decided I need to start "getting things done." For starters, I tackled the hand wash pile at the bottom of my bathroom closet. 14 tops!! FOURTEEN! Sweaters were in there that I forgot I had!! This makes me wonder if I'm getting my money's worth out of clothes marked "Hand wash only."
In the "this is what Betsy is really thinking about tonight" category, why does a guy you dated pretty seriously, and who eventually ended up never calling you again, then ignored you for an entire day at a football game, get to act all nice when you talk to him out of the blue? It is unfair and thoroughly infuriating!
Since this post is about nothing anyway, another Mitch Hedberg quote: "This product that was on TV was available for four easy payments of $19.95. I would like a product that was available for three easy payments and one complicated payment. We can't tell you which payment it is, but one of these payments is going to be hard. "
Monday, November 27, 2006
Monday, November 20, 2006
I JUST BOUGHT A CONDO...
...in exotic Cedar Rapids!!!
The most amazing thing, besides the fact that I will be a homeowner on Dec 15, is that I went through the whole process in less than four days. On Thursday night, my friends were telling me I should buy something and I said, "I can't, there's no way," and by Monday night, I've found a place I'd like to buy, been approved for a loan, made an offer, made a counter-counter-offer, and had it accepted. It's pretty unbelievable.
Now all I have to do is move. Anyone is welcome to help - free pizza, cookies, and refreshments for all!! December 16th!
The most amazing thing, besides the fact that I will be a homeowner on Dec 15, is that I went through the whole process in less than four days. On Thursday night, my friends were telling me I should buy something and I said, "I can't, there's no way," and by Monday night, I've found a place I'd like to buy, been approved for a loan, made an offer, made a counter-counter-offer, and had it accepted. It's pretty unbelievable.
Now all I have to do is move. Anyone is welcome to help - free pizza, cookies, and refreshments for all!! December 16th!
Saturday, November 11, 2006
Executive Summary of this Post: DO NOT SEE BORAT.
Indignant is the only way I can describe how I feel tonight.
I am seriously considering never seeing another rated-R movie again. Of my movies, I have three that are rated-R: Legends of the Fall, (which depressed me so much the last time I watched it I may never see it again), Good Will Hunting (which is a terrific movie outside of the gratuitous use of the F-word), and When Harry Met Sally, (which honestly, might be rated PG if it were made today).
To be sure, in light of the movie I saw tonight, all of these movies look like Disney Classics by comparison. A group of seven of us went to see Borat, and the smartest two of us left midway through the movie. Unfortunately, I was not one of the smart two. I spent the drive home wondering if I had missed something in all the reviews I had seen or the people who were talking about it or the commercials I'd seen. Check this page out. I doubt that Citizen Kane enjoyed such rave reviews from critics.
Have we reduced ourselves to such asinine levels that this is "one of the funniest movies ever made?" Is it acceptable that racism, homophobia, sexism, and plain crudeness can be excused under the guise of an ignorant outsider? Further, if you read some of the reviews, they insinuate that a person who doesn't find the jokes funny is really just a closed-minded bigot herself.
Puh-lease. I enjoy laughing at myself as much as the next gal. The fact that I am less than entertained by crass, tasteless humor does not make me closed-minded.
Stef blogged on the issue of moral depravity in movies a couple weeks ago, and I read it without really thinking about it. But I revisited it tonight, and there is an article that she links to that talks about drug addicts often overdosing because they have to take larger and larger doses to get a high. It seems plausible that this is the reason that When Harry Met Sally, which was made in 1989, looks today like a mild PG-13 movie.
With insincere apologies to Mom and Ellen, my evening has been improved by the pleasure of watching Texas lose to K-State as I type. And smirking at the commentators channeling Russ Hodges every time Texas does anything that remotely resembles the actions of a ranked football team.
Oh yeah, when I started researching the candidates I would be voting for on Tuesday, I realized that the Braley/Whalen race that I mentioned in the previous post wasn't even my district. I didn't know whether to be mad that I was subjected to so many low-blow commercials, or to be happy that I wouldn't have to vote for either of the finger-pointing candidates who "approved this message."
Ok, maybe my next post will be happy. I will start thinking positive.....NOW.
I am seriously considering never seeing another rated-R movie again. Of my movies, I have three that are rated-R: Legends of the Fall, (which depressed me so much the last time I watched it I may never see it again), Good Will Hunting (which is a terrific movie outside of the gratuitous use of the F-word), and When Harry Met Sally, (which honestly, might be rated PG if it were made today).
To be sure, in light of the movie I saw tonight, all of these movies look like Disney Classics by comparison. A group of seven of us went to see Borat, and the smartest two of us left midway through the movie. Unfortunately, I was not one of the smart two. I spent the drive home wondering if I had missed something in all the reviews I had seen or the people who were talking about it or the commercials I'd seen. Check this page out. I doubt that Citizen Kane enjoyed such rave reviews from critics.
Have we reduced ourselves to such asinine levels that this is "one of the funniest movies ever made?" Is it acceptable that racism, homophobia, sexism, and plain crudeness can be excused under the guise of an ignorant outsider? Further, if you read some of the reviews, they insinuate that a person who doesn't find the jokes funny is really just a closed-minded bigot herself.
Puh-lease. I enjoy laughing at myself as much as the next gal. The fact that I am less than entertained by crass, tasteless humor does not make me closed-minded.
Stef blogged on the issue of moral depravity in movies a couple weeks ago, and I read it without really thinking about it. But I revisited it tonight, and there is an article that she links to that talks about drug addicts often overdosing because they have to take larger and larger doses to get a high. It seems plausible that this is the reason that When Harry Met Sally, which was made in 1989, looks today like a mild PG-13 movie.
With insincere apologies to Mom and Ellen, my evening has been improved by the pleasure of watching Texas lose to K-State as I type. And smirking at the commentators channeling Russ Hodges every time Texas does anything that remotely resembles the actions of a ranked football team.
Oh yeah, when I started researching the candidates I would be voting for on Tuesday, I realized that the Braley/Whalen race that I mentioned in the previous post wasn't even my district. I didn't know whether to be mad that I was subjected to so many low-blow commercials, or to be happy that I wouldn't have to vote for either of the finger-pointing candidates who "approved this message."
Ok, maybe my next post will be happy. I will start thinking positive.....NOW.
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
On Voting
*Betsy steps up on soapbox.*
Ahem...Ok, so the midterm elections (do I have that right?) are coming up on November 7th, exactly two weeks from today. This year, I'm frustrated by the elections and here's why.
Since Government class my junior year in high school, and probably before then, I have heard that it is not only my right, but my responsibility, to vote. I agree with this. I do think it's important to be involved in our democratic government, and I know that a lot of woman participated in the suffrage movement so that I could vote.
The reason I'm leaning towards not voting is that I am a completely uneducated voter. I'm sure part of the reason is that I don't pay much attention to local news. But it seems like there are two things that politicians running for office are spending money on. The first thing is nice bright signs with their names on them, and possibly what they are running for.
The second thing is completely worthless political ads on TV. For the past month or two, I've been doing everything I can to tune these ads out. Then I realized that I'm not fulfilling my civic duty, so I've started paying attention. So, I know a bunch of names of Iowa politicians now: Nussle, Culver, (who are both running for governor), Hogg, Braley, and Whalen (I don't know what they're running for).
Here's what I've learned so far. Nussle practically worships Bush, (which is bad, of course), and Hogg pronounces his name "hoe-g." Braley is an evil trial lawyer who is single-handedly driving up my medical expenses, so I should vote for Whalen. Whalen believes in Social Security privitization and he's clearly wrong WRONG WRONG so I should vote for Braley. And I can't remember anything about Culver except that his last name is the same as a fast food chain in town that serves really good ice cream...mmm, ice cream.
Is this supposed to help me make an informed decision? Is anyone else frustrated with this?
*Betsy steps down.*
Ahem...Ok, so the midterm elections (do I have that right?) are coming up on November 7th, exactly two weeks from today. This year, I'm frustrated by the elections and here's why.
Since Government class my junior year in high school, and probably before then, I have heard that it is not only my right, but my responsibility, to vote. I agree with this. I do think it's important to be involved in our democratic government, and I know that a lot of woman participated in the suffrage movement so that I could vote.
The reason I'm leaning towards not voting is that I am a completely uneducated voter. I'm sure part of the reason is that I don't pay much attention to local news. But it seems like there are two things that politicians running for office are spending money on. The first thing is nice bright signs with their names on them, and possibly what they are running for.
The second thing is completely worthless political ads on TV. For the past month or two, I've been doing everything I can to tune these ads out. Then I realized that I'm not fulfilling my civic duty, so I've started paying attention. So, I know a bunch of names of Iowa politicians now: Nussle, Culver, (who are both running for governor), Hogg, Braley, and Whalen (I don't know what they're running for).
Here's what I've learned so far. Nussle practically worships Bush, (which is bad, of course), and Hogg pronounces his name "hoe-g." Braley is an evil trial lawyer who is single-handedly driving up my medical expenses, so I should vote for Whalen. Whalen believes in Social Security privitization and he's clearly wrong WRONG WRONG so I should vote for Braley. And I can't remember anything about Culver except that his last name is the same as a fast food chain in town that serves really good ice cream...mmm, ice cream.
Is this supposed to help me make an informed decision? Is anyone else frustrated with this?
*Betsy steps down.*
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Book Review
I just finished reading a book that was a surprisingly good read. The book is Girl Meets God by Lauren Winner. I checked this book out expecting to skim through some parts, and ended up reading it from cover to cover. It was remarkably honest, and a bit like reading someone's diary, or even her blog.
The author was an Orthodox Jew before she became Christian. The book is organized by church seasons (Advent, Pentecost, etc), and she parallels most of these seasons with the Jewish traditions taking place at the same time. She also talks about her current struggles. While I don't necessarily agree with everything she says, it was very refreshing reading. Honestly, I'm struggling to remember another book that would be filed in the Christian or Religious section of Barnes and Noble that I have been able to relate to quite as well. Also, she partly credits becoming a Christian to the book At Home in Mitford, which has long been one of my favorite series to read. (She says she's "always felt faintly embarrassed about the role Jan Karon's Mitford novels played in my conversion." I, however, am not embarrassed - these books are always fun to read.)
If I started listing the insights she related that struck me, this would be a long post. The one that's freshest on my mind is this: She quotes a character from an old British novel as asking a Christian, "What I want to know is do you believe in it the way you believe in Australia?" An interesting thought, to be sure, but Winner points out that the Christian life is about a promise to believe even when we have trouble wrapping our heads around this huge thing called Christianity.
The author was an Orthodox Jew before she became Christian. The book is organized by church seasons (Advent, Pentecost, etc), and she parallels most of these seasons with the Jewish traditions taking place at the same time. She also talks about her current struggles. While I don't necessarily agree with everything she says, it was very refreshing reading. Honestly, I'm struggling to remember another book that would be filed in the Christian or Religious section of Barnes and Noble that I have been able to relate to quite as well. Also, she partly credits becoming a Christian to the book At Home in Mitford, which has long been one of my favorite series to read. (She says she's "always felt faintly embarrassed about the role Jan Karon's Mitford novels played in my conversion." I, however, am not embarrassed - these books are always fun to read.)
If I started listing the insights she related that struck me, this would be a long post. The one that's freshest on my mind is this: She quotes a character from an old British novel as asking a Christian, "What I want to know is do you believe in it the way you believe in Australia?" An interesting thought, to be sure, but Winner points out that the Christian life is about a promise to believe even when we have trouble wrapping our heads around this huge thing called Christianity.
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Thy Strong Word
I have a love-dislike relationship with contemporary praise and worship music...No need to get into it now except to say that the new stuff has really deepened my appreciation for hymns.
Today in church we sang "Thy Strong Word." This hymn is written in a minor key, has six long verses filled with King James language, and is basically a good example of what some people hate about hymns. But the words are poetic and rich. Read them a couple times. The fifth verse especially never fails to convict me, and notice the description of the Trinity at the end.
Thy strong Word did cleave the darkness;
At thy speaking it was done.
For created light we thank Thee
While thine ordered seasons run
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Praise to thee who light dost send!
Alleluia without end!
Lo, on those who dwelt in darkness,
Dark as night and deep as death,
Broke the light of thy salvation,
Breathed thine own life-giving breath.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Praise to thee who light dost send!
Alleluia without end!
Thy strong Word bespeaks us righteous;
Bright with thine own holiness,
Glorious now, we press toward glory,
And our lives our hopes confess.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Praise to thee who light dost send!
Alleluia without end!
From the cross thy wisdom shining
Breaketh forth in conqu'ring might;
From the cross forever beameth
All thy bright redeeming light.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Praise to Thee who light dost send!
Alleluia without end!
Give us lips to sing thy glory,
Tongues thy mercy to proclaim,
Throats to shout the hope that fills us,
Mouths to speak thy holy name.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
May the light which thou dost send,
Fill our songs with alleluias,
Alleluias without end!
God the Father, light-creator,
To Thee laud and honor be.
To Thee, Light from Light begotten,
Praise be sung eternally.
Holy Spirit, light-revealer,
Glory, glory be to Thee.
Mortals, angels, now and ever
Praise the Holy Trinity!
Today in church we sang "Thy Strong Word." This hymn is written in a minor key, has six long verses filled with King James language, and is basically a good example of what some people hate about hymns. But the words are poetic and rich. Read them a couple times. The fifth verse especially never fails to convict me, and notice the description of the Trinity at the end.
Thy strong Word did cleave the darkness;
At thy speaking it was done.
For created light we thank Thee
While thine ordered seasons run
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Praise to thee who light dost send!
Alleluia without end!
Lo, on those who dwelt in darkness,
Dark as night and deep as death,
Broke the light of thy salvation,
Breathed thine own life-giving breath.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Praise to thee who light dost send!
Alleluia without end!
Thy strong Word bespeaks us righteous;
Bright with thine own holiness,
Glorious now, we press toward glory,
And our lives our hopes confess.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Praise to thee who light dost send!
Alleluia without end!
From the cross thy wisdom shining
Breaketh forth in conqu'ring might;
From the cross forever beameth
All thy bright redeeming light.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Praise to Thee who light dost send!
Alleluia without end!
Give us lips to sing thy glory,
Tongues thy mercy to proclaim,
Throats to shout the hope that fills us,
Mouths to speak thy holy name.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
May the light which thou dost send,
Fill our songs with alleluias,
Alleluias without end!
God the Father, light-creator,
To Thee laud and honor be.
To Thee, Light from Light begotten,
Praise be sung eternally.
Holy Spirit, light-revealer,
Glory, glory be to Thee.
Mortals, angels, now and ever
Praise the Holy Trinity!
Monday, October 09, 2006
Little Suggestions for a Happy Life
The monthly "Windsor on the River Apartments" newsletter arrived yesterday, with this helpful little blurb on the front cover:
Little Suggestions For A Happy Life
*Go on a hayride
*Evaluate yourself by your own standards, not by someone else's.
*Lie on your back and look at the stars.
How quaint. I would offer, however, as a response:
Betsy's Suggestions for Happy Residents:
*Don't wait a month to fix the washer that you're already charging me $1.25/load to use.
*Don't tell me you can't waive the late fee when I've (stupidly) forgotten to pay the rent because I'm white (yes, this actually happened).
*Don't try to charge me $10 a month more in rent when I re-sign my lease just because you think you should be able to, then complain about me calling to tell you I'm not paying any more rent because I don't think I should have to.
*Find a way to stop the chain smoker living below me from smelling up my apartment when I have my balcony door open.
*Do something about the occasional shootings in the complex. (This makes it sound like I live in the ghetto...I really don't.)
*Sigh* Maybe someday I will be a proud, penniless homeowner.
Little Suggestions For A Happy Life
*Go on a hayride
*Evaluate yourself by your own standards, not by someone else's.
*Lie on your back and look at the stars.
How quaint. I would offer, however, as a response:
Betsy's Suggestions for Happy Residents:
*Don't wait a month to fix the washer that you're already charging me $1.25/load to use.
*Don't tell me you can't waive the late fee when I've (stupidly) forgotten to pay the rent because I'm white (yes, this actually happened).
*Don't try to charge me $10 a month more in rent when I re-sign my lease just because you think you should be able to, then complain about me calling to tell you I'm not paying any more rent because I don't think I should have to.
*Find a way to stop the chain smoker living below me from smelling up my apartment when I have my balcony door open.
*Do something about the occasional shootings in the complex. (This makes it sound like I live in the ghetto...I really don't.)
*Sigh* Maybe someday I will be a proud, penniless homeowner.
Monday, September 18, 2006
Randomness
Things on my mind tonight:
Baseball playoffs are in full swing. My pick, Twins over Mets. Twins made sure I got that wrong. So much for knowing anything about baseball. The Tigers just got their second win over the Yankees. You cannot believe how happy this makes me.
I got to see my sister last night, and again this afternoon. I got lost in three different states last night trying to find her in Dubuque, and I ran a red light and almost killed someone. But I found her. She is spending a year on/with Youth Encounter. Please take some time to read her team's website. She is traveling the States and putting on programs for the next three months, and then heads to Peru and Bolivia to do the same there. I know that God is doing and will do amazing things through them.
I am home alone on a Friday night. The playoffs are on, I haven't been home much lately, last night was a late night and, most of all, I needed to do laundry. Here's the thing...turns out I'm out of laundry detergent. Not to worry, I found some Woolite. But I used my last dryer sheet a couple weeks ago. I can go without, (what do dryer sheets do in the first place, anyway?). But the real limiting factor was that I only had enough quarters to do three loads. Nothing like planning ahead.
I have an overdue library book. I read something about this book, and put it on hold weeks and weeks ago at the library, finally got it and didn't finish it in the 10-day check-out window. Now I owe $2 on it and I'm not that enthralled with the book. But I feel committed to read it in the same way that I feel committed to a staying on a customer service phone call after I've been on hold for 45 minutes.
I recently purchased two cds from Sandra McCracken and aside from a couple necessary country music fixes, that's all I've been listening to. Both cds have beautiful final tracks, songs that I've listened to over and over and over. Last night's episode of Grey's Anatomy (yes, I'm hooked) touched on a theme that Sandra McCracken so eloquently sums up: "And I'd rather have the mystery, and the madness and the rains, because hell's the only place we can be free of all love's pain."
Last weekend was easily the most fun I have had in a very long time. I went to Shelbyville, MO for a Shrimpboil. There were 1700 people in attendance. 1100 pounds of shrimp, 500 pounds of catfish, 750 pounds of crablegs, and 3 whole hogs, and that was just the main courses! I went with 7 other people who I've met through ADM, people who make me glad I moved up here just because I got to meet them.
So Stef and I were talking about being single a while back, and both agreed to blog about it. She beat me to it by about a month. I've had a draft for a while, entitled On Being Single, Too. For On Being Single One, click here.
It's been hard for me to blog about being single because my opinion of being single changes so often, sometimes by the hour.
Sometimes, most times even, I'm so glad to be single, for now. I like being on my own, I like going places on the weekends, and I like hanging out with people who I probably wouldn't hang out with if any of us were married. In short, I'm having fun. On the other hand, I do really want to be married at some point in the not-so-distant future, and I get impatient. Sometimes I don't want to wait another second for My Guy to show up. Other times, I'm more than willing to wait to become the girl that he needs, even as he does the same for me.
I've heard a theory kicked around that unsettles me. It goes something like this: "You're not ready to be married unless you can get comfortable with the idea of being single your whole life." If this is true, (and I don't think it is), I will never be ready for marriage. I've met a lady here who didn't get married until she was in her mid-50s. She is a terrific woman, smart, pretty, funny, successful. Outwardly, there is NO reason she shouldn't have been married earlier. More than once, I have thought, "I want to just pull this lady aside and get the whole story." The thought of being single that long does not sit well with me at all. I struggle with this, because what it comes down to is trust. I can either trust that it is God's will for me to be married and have a family someday, or I can trust that I can serve him by being single, and that will be enough.
If there is one thing I am sick of hearing, it is that I "need to trust God's timing." I don't mean to nullify that point. I know it's true and I know it's biblical that God times things perfectly. I've just heard it so often that it doesn't mean much to me. Or, why is it this person's "time" to get married, but not mine? Or, when the time actually comes, will it be worth the wait? But recently I ran across a quote that shed a new light on God's timing, and more than that, why waiting on God's timing is so important.
"Man finds it hard to get what he wants, because he does not want the best; God finds it hard to give because He would give the best, and man will not take it." George MacDonald
Baseball playoffs are in full swing. My pick, Twins over Mets. Twins made sure I got that wrong. So much for knowing anything about baseball. The Tigers just got their second win over the Yankees. You cannot believe how happy this makes me.
I got to see my sister last night, and again this afternoon. I got lost in three different states last night trying to find her in Dubuque, and I ran a red light and almost killed someone. But I found her. She is spending a year on/with Youth Encounter. Please take some time to read her team's website. She is traveling the States and putting on programs for the next three months, and then heads to Peru and Bolivia to do the same there. I know that God is doing and will do amazing things through them.
I am home alone on a Friday night. The playoffs are on, I haven't been home much lately, last night was a late night and, most of all, I needed to do laundry. Here's the thing...turns out I'm out of laundry detergent. Not to worry, I found some Woolite. But I used my last dryer sheet a couple weeks ago. I can go without, (what do dryer sheets do in the first place, anyway?). But the real limiting factor was that I only had enough quarters to do three loads. Nothing like planning ahead.
I have an overdue library book. I read something about this book, and put it on hold weeks and weeks ago at the library, finally got it and didn't finish it in the 10-day check-out window. Now I owe $2 on it and I'm not that enthralled with the book. But I feel committed to read it in the same way that I feel committed to a staying on a customer service phone call after I've been on hold for 45 minutes.
I recently purchased two cds from Sandra McCracken and aside from a couple necessary country music fixes, that's all I've been listening to. Both cds have beautiful final tracks, songs that I've listened to over and over and over. Last night's episode of Grey's Anatomy (yes, I'm hooked) touched on a theme that Sandra McCracken so eloquently sums up: "And I'd rather have the mystery, and the madness and the rains, because hell's the only place we can be free of all love's pain."
Last weekend was easily the most fun I have had in a very long time. I went to Shelbyville, MO for a Shrimpboil. There were 1700 people in attendance. 1100 pounds of shrimp, 500 pounds of catfish, 750 pounds of crablegs, and 3 whole hogs, and that was just the main courses! I went with 7 other people who I've met through ADM, people who make me glad I moved up here just because I got to meet them.
So Stef and I were talking about being single a while back, and both agreed to blog about it. She beat me to it by about a month. I've had a draft for a while, entitled On Being Single, Too. For On Being Single One, click here.
It's been hard for me to blog about being single because my opinion of being single changes so often, sometimes by the hour.
Sometimes, most times even, I'm so glad to be single, for now. I like being on my own, I like going places on the weekends, and I like hanging out with people who I probably wouldn't hang out with if any of us were married. In short, I'm having fun. On the other hand, I do really want to be married at some point in the not-so-distant future, and I get impatient. Sometimes I don't want to wait another second for My Guy to show up. Other times, I'm more than willing to wait to become the girl that he needs, even as he does the same for me.
I've heard a theory kicked around that unsettles me. It goes something like this: "You're not ready to be married unless you can get comfortable with the idea of being single your whole life." If this is true, (and I don't think it is), I will never be ready for marriage. I've met a lady here who didn't get married until she was in her mid-50s. She is a terrific woman, smart, pretty, funny, successful. Outwardly, there is NO reason she shouldn't have been married earlier. More than once, I have thought, "I want to just pull this lady aside and get the whole story." The thought of being single that long does not sit well with me at all. I struggle with this, because what it comes down to is trust. I can either trust that it is God's will for me to be married and have a family someday, or I can trust that I can serve him by being single, and that will be enough.
If there is one thing I am sick of hearing, it is that I "need to trust God's timing." I don't mean to nullify that point. I know it's true and I know it's biblical that God times things perfectly. I've just heard it so often that it doesn't mean much to me. Or, why is it this person's "time" to get married, but not mine? Or, when the time actually comes, will it be worth the wait? But recently I ran across a quote that shed a new light on God's timing, and more than that, why waiting on God's timing is so important.
"Man finds it hard to get what he wants, because he does not want the best; God finds it hard to give because He would give the best, and man will not take it." George MacDonald
Thursday, September 07, 2006
Who says God doesn't have a sense of humor?
It's late, I should have been in bed at least an hour ago because I am really going to go to the gym tomorrow morning (REALLY!).
But I was just doing my usual evening routine - reading in bed until I fall asleep. Thing is, there's a boy 'round these parts who hurt me not too long ago, more than I've let on, even to myself. I ran into him today. And even though I try not to let it bother me that things are the way they are, it does.
So I'm reading, but really thinking about something else, and my heart feels twisted. I start praying, and realize I should put down the book I'm reading (jury's still out on whether it has been worth my time or not, but it's certainly interesting...), and read the Bible.
Psalm 37 immediately jumps into my mind. My sister's confirmation verse is Psalm 37:4: "Delight yourself in the Lord and he shall give you the desires of your heart." I haven't read it in a while. I open up to Psalm 37. Verse one reads thusly:
"Do not fret because of evil men."
You just can't make that stuff up. I don't mean to make light of God's word, and I know that, in context, it's not telling me to not worry about guys (I won't say jerks) I've dated who aren't the one for me.
But it was nice to laugh.
But I was just doing my usual evening routine - reading in bed until I fall asleep. Thing is, there's a boy 'round these parts who hurt me not too long ago, more than I've let on, even to myself. I ran into him today. And even though I try not to let it bother me that things are the way they are, it does.
So I'm reading, but really thinking about something else, and my heart feels twisted. I start praying, and realize I should put down the book I'm reading (jury's still out on whether it has been worth my time or not, but it's certainly interesting...), and read the Bible.
Psalm 37 immediately jumps into my mind. My sister's confirmation verse is Psalm 37:4: "Delight yourself in the Lord and he shall give you the desires of your heart." I haven't read it in a while. I open up to Psalm 37. Verse one reads thusly:
"Do not fret because of evil men."
You just can't make that stuff up. I don't mean to make light of God's word, and I know that, in context, it's not telling me to not worry about guys (I won't say jerks) I've dated who aren't the one for me.
But it was nice to laugh.
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Football fans learn theology
Ok, I never posted again last week, but I was successful in not using the gym once last week. Tuesday I had to do laundry, Wednesday I had a surprise work function in the evening, Thursday I got free tickets to the Iowa State/Toledo football game, and Friday I had to clean the apartment and get ready for my friend Betsy's visit to Iowa!! Sunday we drove to Madison, WI, and spent some time there. Basically, for every day I didn't go to the gym this week, I probably consumed an extra 2,000 delicious calories. I have eaten at a Chipotle, Noodles and Co, and Jimmy John's in the last three days! Not to mention the Taste of Madison festival where I had my first ever falafel! This means that I haven't been in Cedar Rapids lately, the crappy food capital of the nation. And that my stomach is very happy!
I saw something that really disturbed me on Thursday night. I was at the Iowa State football game, which was worlds different from A&M football. To begin with, I almost needed a jacket on the last day of August!! As I approached the north end (where there was no sign of the Fightin' Texas Aggie Band), I saw a gigantic sign that said, "Turn to Jesus! You are headed for hell! Rev 20:15." I didn't think much of it, until we were actually waiting to go into the game. Picture the mob scene around the gates of a stadium. Smack dab in the middle of the mob was a girl holding this huge banner above her head, and I noticed a guy a few yards down from her, also with a similar sign. The girl was screaming at the top of her lungs, "YOU ARE ALL HYPOCRITES! YOU ARE SCREAMING YOUR LUNGS OUT OVER A FOOTBALL GAME!" The guy was yelling, "YOU ALL ARE PATHETIC! YOU'RE WASTING YOUR TIME AT THIS ATHLETIC EVENT TO FILL YOUR MEANINGLESS, PATHETIC LIVES!" At which point people from the crowd were saying "Go back to Iowa City, Hawkeye fan!" or "Ok, guys, let's all convert now!" and other things that, quite frankly, were sadly humorous.
I would love to know what these people think they are accomplishing. Do I think anyone became a Christian as a result of their insults? In a word, NO. I'm not absolutely writing off the possibility, I guess, but call me a skeptic. Maybe there is one person who will, years down the road, say, "I'll never forget it, I was at a football game in 2006, and this girl was basically insulting me and telling me I was going to hell, and I saw the light." I just don't think it's likely. I'm not gonna lie, it left a bad taste in my mouth for "Christians."
Mainly, I wanted to march up to them, Miller Lite in hand, and tell them that it's possible to believe that my life is in the book of life, that I do have a Savior, and I can even (gasp!) enjoy a football game! I have yet to figure out how those things are mutually exclusive.
As Christians, it is certainly our job to warn. But that is only part of our job. And by excluding the other parts of our job, mainly the grace that comes through faith, are we not failing?
My last question, would it have done more good for them to have stayed home on Thursday?
I saw something that really disturbed me on Thursday night. I was at the Iowa State football game, which was worlds different from A&M football. To begin with, I almost needed a jacket on the last day of August!! As I approached the north end (where there was no sign of the Fightin' Texas Aggie Band), I saw a gigantic sign that said, "Turn to Jesus! You are headed for hell! Rev 20:15." I didn't think much of it, until we were actually waiting to go into the game. Picture the mob scene around the gates of a stadium. Smack dab in the middle of the mob was a girl holding this huge banner above her head, and I noticed a guy a few yards down from her, also with a similar sign. The girl was screaming at the top of her lungs, "YOU ARE ALL HYPOCRITES! YOU ARE SCREAMING YOUR LUNGS OUT OVER A FOOTBALL GAME!" The guy was yelling, "YOU ALL ARE PATHETIC! YOU'RE WASTING YOUR TIME AT THIS ATHLETIC EVENT TO FILL YOUR MEANINGLESS, PATHETIC LIVES!" At which point people from the crowd were saying "Go back to Iowa City, Hawkeye fan!" or "Ok, guys, let's all convert now!" and other things that, quite frankly, were sadly humorous.
I would love to know what these people think they are accomplishing. Do I think anyone became a Christian as a result of their insults? In a word, NO. I'm not absolutely writing off the possibility, I guess, but call me a skeptic. Maybe there is one person who will, years down the road, say, "I'll never forget it, I was at a football game in 2006, and this girl was basically insulting me and telling me I was going to hell, and I saw the light." I just don't think it's likely. I'm not gonna lie, it left a bad taste in my mouth for "Christians."
Mainly, I wanted to march up to them, Miller Lite in hand, and tell them that it's possible to believe that my life is in the book of life, that I do have a Savior, and I can even (gasp!) enjoy a football game! I have yet to figure out how those things are mutually exclusive.
As Christians, it is certainly our job to warn. But that is only part of our job. And by excluding the other parts of our job, mainly the grace that comes through faith, are we not failing?
My last question, would it have done more good for them to have stayed home on Thursday?
Monday, August 28, 2006
If it came down to it...
The average month has 30.42 days in it, which means I make approximately 26.42 excuses daily for not using my gym membership. (Ok, it's not quite that bad...every month anyway...) In any case, this week I am going to chronicle the excuses as I make them up. Then you can decide whether or not they are valid.
Yesterday (Sunday) I did not go to the gym, but I did take about an hour-long bike ride on my new bike! (Ain't she purdy??) It wasn't necessarily rigorous exercise, but it's definitely better than just sitting on the couch, right? (Which is exactly what I did the other 61.5 hours of this weekend.) Note that I did not use the "day of rest" excuse. That will be reserved for another Sunday.
Tonight, I had really good intentions, but I'm instead going to watch co-workers play volleyball. I like volleyball, I like beer, and I haven't hung out with my co-workers in, well, 41 minutes.
Also on my mind: this article. Read it first before going on, pay attention to the part about Islam, and answer this question: What would you do in their situation?
Go on, read it!
Really!!
I gotta be honest with you, the thought of being in this situation terrifies me. It's really easy for me to sit here and say, "I would never denounce my faith," but how do I know? I've also never been held at gunpoint, and I have no idea what my reaction would be. This morning, I found myself thinking, well, it doesn't matter, they would be empty words anyway. I quickly realized how unimportant that is. Would I be so scared for my life that I would lose any trust I have in God?
I think about Peter denying Jesus, and how we say we would never do the same thing. Well, Peter said that too! I find myself more sympathetic to Peter than I used to be...he was fearing for his life. He didn't know what would happen. He didn't understand all the things that Jesus had said during his ministry the way that we understand them today. I can't say I wouldn't have reacted the same way. I'm thankful that God is bigger than my doubts.
Anyway, just something to think about. Please leave comments.
Yesterday (Sunday) I did not go to the gym, but I did take about an hour-long bike ride on my new bike! (Ain't she purdy??) It wasn't necessarily rigorous exercise, but it's definitely better than just sitting on the couch, right? (Which is exactly what I did the other 61.5 hours of this weekend.) Note that I did not use the "day of rest" excuse. That will be reserved for another Sunday.
Tonight, I had really good intentions, but I'm instead going to watch co-workers play volleyball. I like volleyball, I like beer, and I haven't hung out with my co-workers in, well, 41 minutes.
Also on my mind: this article. Read it first before going on, pay attention to the part about Islam, and answer this question: What would you do in their situation?
Go on, read it!
Really!!
I gotta be honest with you, the thought of being in this situation terrifies me. It's really easy for me to sit here and say, "I would never denounce my faith," but how do I know? I've also never been held at gunpoint, and I have no idea what my reaction would be. This morning, I found myself thinking, well, it doesn't matter, they would be empty words anyway. I quickly realized how unimportant that is. Would I be so scared for my life that I would lose any trust I have in God?
I think about Peter denying Jesus, and how we say we would never do the same thing. Well, Peter said that too! I find myself more sympathetic to Peter than I used to be...he was fearing for his life. He didn't know what would happen. He didn't understand all the things that Jesus had said during his ministry the way that we understand them today. I can't say I wouldn't have reacted the same way. I'm thankful that God is bigger than my doubts.
Anyway, just something to think about. Please leave comments.
Friday, August 25, 2006
Friday comments
A couple of quotes that have been going through my head all day:
"The Christian life is not hard. The Christian life is not difficult. The Christian life is IMPOSSIBLE unless we abide in Christ." --Gregg Matte
"Will there come a day when our faces will not raise up from the dust? Will we then still say that this mercy is our only trust?" --Sandra McCracken (in her typically eloquent, slighty enigmatic fashion)
Things I've wanted to blog about but just haven't gotten around to:
Discipline
Christian platitudes
A Boy
And now that Derek has called me out on my statement about organic foods, I guess I'll have to articulate that soon, too. ;)
Maybe this weekend, I'll touch on one of those subjects...
"The Christian life is not hard. The Christian life is not difficult. The Christian life is IMPOSSIBLE unless we abide in Christ." --Gregg Matte
"Will there come a day when our faces will not raise up from the dust? Will we then still say that this mercy is our only trust?" --Sandra McCracken (in her typically eloquent, slighty enigmatic fashion)
Things I've wanted to blog about but just haven't gotten around to:
Discipline
Christian platitudes
A Boy
And now that Derek has called me out on my statement about organic foods, I guess I'll have to articulate that soon, too. ;)
Maybe this weekend, I'll touch on one of those subjects...
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Super Size Me
If anyone knows me at all, they know I love to eat, love to cook, and I love to learn about eating and cooking and food. So last night, I finally sat down to watch Super Size Me, the documentary by Morgan Spurlock. While filming this movie, he eats McDonald's three times a day for 30 days.
My overall review: GREAT movie. I would highly recommend watching it. I didn't really know what to expect. Honestly, I was expecting more propaganda, a la Fast Food Nation, (which is an interesting read itself, but much more dramatic). I was impressed by the scope of health issues that the movie covered. Also, Spurlock makes this movie really entertaining.
Did you know that the island of Manhattan, approximately 22 square miles, has 83 (EIGHTY-THREE!) McDonald's? That McDonald's serves 46 million people a day worldwide? That McDonald's spent 1.4 BILLION dollars on advertising in 2001?
It really got me thinking about what we put through our bodies. This guy ate 30 pounds of sugar in a month of eating McDonalds. A whole pound a day! After this movie was over, I vowed to eat nothing but fruits and vegetables. (Of course, I had chicken for lunch today...oh yeah, and Cheetos...so much for that.) Or at least, figure out what the heck this pyramid means, and why it is better than the more straightforward one I was introduced to in middle school. In any case, we eat food that is loaded with preservatives and sugar and sodium...overall, food that is getting further and further from the actual natural ingredients. I've never really worried about it, until I read last week that raw meat is often sold with broth added to it to keep it flavorful but lean. So even our "natural" foods have extra sodium and chemicals in them. I really do try to shop the perimeter of the grocery store, because it's where the unprocessed foods are. But now I will be paying even more attention to what I'm buying. And the thing is, I'm pretty against the idea of paying for organic foods, for reasons I won't get into. And furthermore, the crappy foods taste SO good, and they're so cheap! And when it comes down to it, how much do I care, when it's just so much easier to eat badly?
Anyway, if you watch the movie, be sure to watch "The Smoking Fry" in the bonus material (it will blow you away), and be sure to let me know what you think!!
My overall review: GREAT movie. I would highly recommend watching it. I didn't really know what to expect. Honestly, I was expecting more propaganda, a la Fast Food Nation, (which is an interesting read itself, but much more dramatic). I was impressed by the scope of health issues that the movie covered. Also, Spurlock makes this movie really entertaining.
Did you know that the island of Manhattan, approximately 22 square miles, has 83 (EIGHTY-THREE!) McDonald's? That McDonald's serves 46 million people a day worldwide? That McDonald's spent 1.4 BILLION dollars on advertising in 2001?
It really got me thinking about what we put through our bodies. This guy ate 30 pounds of sugar in a month of eating McDonalds. A whole pound a day! After this movie was over, I vowed to eat nothing but fruits and vegetables. (Of course, I had chicken for lunch today...oh yeah, and Cheetos...so much for that.) Or at least, figure out what the heck this pyramid means, and why it is better than the more straightforward one I was introduced to in middle school. In any case, we eat food that is loaded with preservatives and sugar and sodium...overall, food that is getting further and further from the actual natural ingredients. I've never really worried about it, until I read last week that raw meat is often sold with broth added to it to keep it flavorful but lean. So even our "natural" foods have extra sodium and chemicals in them. I really do try to shop the perimeter of the grocery store, because it's where the unprocessed foods are. But now I will be paying even more attention to what I'm buying. And the thing is, I'm pretty against the idea of paying for organic foods, for reasons I won't get into. And furthermore, the crappy foods taste SO good, and they're so cheap! And when it comes down to it, how much do I care, when it's just so much easier to eat badly?
Anyway, if you watch the movie, be sure to watch "The Smoking Fry" in the bonus material (it will blow you away), and be sure to let me know what you think!!
Monday, July 31, 2006
Tongue twisters
Tongue twisters: we all know some, and we all think we can say them when we hear them. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. Betty Botter...and something about bitter butter. Unique New York. She sells sea shells by the sea shore. And one that is far less nonsensical:
"I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do." (Romans 7:15)
The Bible is filled with words that baffle me, remind me of how awesome God is, humble me, and can suddenly hit me with new meaning even after hearing them over and over. It contains beautiful exhortations such as "Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." (Hebrews 12:1) It has eloquent poetry like "We are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?" (2 Corinthians 2:15-16)
On the other hand, Paul seems to almost stumble over his words in Romans 7. "For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do--this I keep on doing." Now this sounds like something I would write! The frustration of being human. The way I can think about God and have sinful thoughts at virtually the same moment. (How does that work? I usually have trouble walking in a straight line...) I am continually amazed by my struggle with my humanness. I mean well, but it just doesn't work out. It angers me that I can be as indifferent as I am sometimes, but it happens without my even thinking about it. I try my best to do things perfectly, but I fail. There are times I simply screw up.
These verses comfort me in a such a way that it seems I am constantly reciting them in my head. Unfortuately, it is not because I have answers to this problem. Rather, the comfort comes from knowing that God has provided an answer. "There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus..." (Romans 8:1)
There is a song that illustrates this beautifully. It's called "You Did That for Me" by Sara Groves. I "borrowed" the cd from my roommate for um, like a year, and I still wish it would have "accidentally" "fallen" into a box when I moved out. How much simpler can it get? I don't have to beat myself up over what I've done or not done, because it's all been done for me. This song's message brought me peace, on nights like tonight, when I do not understand what I do.
"I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do." (Romans 7:15)
The Bible is filled with words that baffle me, remind me of how awesome God is, humble me, and can suddenly hit me with new meaning even after hearing them over and over. It contains beautiful exhortations such as "Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." (Hebrews 12:1) It has eloquent poetry like "We are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?" (2 Corinthians 2:15-16)
On the other hand, Paul seems to almost stumble over his words in Romans 7. "For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do--this I keep on doing." Now this sounds like something I would write! The frustration of being human. The way I can think about God and have sinful thoughts at virtually the same moment. (How does that work? I usually have trouble walking in a straight line...) I am continually amazed by my struggle with my humanness. I mean well, but it just doesn't work out. It angers me that I can be as indifferent as I am sometimes, but it happens without my even thinking about it. I try my best to do things perfectly, but I fail. There are times I simply screw up.
These verses comfort me in a such a way that it seems I am constantly reciting them in my head. Unfortuately, it is not because I have answers to this problem. Rather, the comfort comes from knowing that God has provided an answer. "There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus..." (Romans 8:1)
There is a song that illustrates this beautifully. It's called "You Did That for Me" by Sara Groves. I "borrowed" the cd from my roommate for um, like a year, and I still wish it would have "accidentally" "fallen" into a box when I moved out. How much simpler can it get? I don't have to beat myself up over what I've done or not done, because it's all been done for me. This song's message brought me peace, on nights like tonight, when I do not understand what I do.
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
A good laugh...
I ran across this funny link just now while looking through very old emails. I remember laughing at this until I cried. This might have been the result of having lived in hotels for two months at the time, but I don't think so because I opened it up tonight and laughed almost as hard.
I love baseball. It's a great sport.
I love baseball. It's a great sport.
Monday, July 10, 2006
Time to resurrect the blog...
I don't know why it's been over a year since I've posted. I'd like to have a place to collect random thoughts, though, and this seems as good a place as any...
I saw The Devil Wears Prada tonight. This is the second movie I've seen in the past nine months that I've liked better than the book, the other one being In Her Shoes. I think this might say something about the quality of literature that I am reading. Maybe I should stay away from the chick lit genre.
Speaking of books, I'm also reading Conspiracy of Fools, about Enron. For some reason, this story fascinates me. Kurt Eichenwald also penned The Informant, about the ADM scandal, which I have a bit of interest in, as well. ;) I'm not done with Conspiracy of Fools, but I recommend either if you're looking for some interesting non-fiction.
As Miranda Priestly would say, "That's all."
I saw The Devil Wears Prada tonight. This is the second movie I've seen in the past nine months that I've liked better than the book, the other one being In Her Shoes. I think this might say something about the quality of literature that I am reading. Maybe I should stay away from the chick lit genre.
Speaking of books, I'm also reading Conspiracy of Fools, about Enron. For some reason, this story fascinates me. Kurt Eichenwald also penned The Informant, about the ADM scandal, which I have a bit of interest in, as well. ;) I'm not done with Conspiracy of Fools, but I recommend either if you're looking for some interesting non-fiction.
As Miranda Priestly would say, "That's all."
Wednesday, May 18, 2005
The Same Old Struggle
We were talking about blogs yesterday at work...as it turned out, I was the only person who really knew/understood what they were. I admitted I had one, and then felt really silly! I've gone from feeling really old at school to feeling like a mere babe at work. Anyway, I also realized how long it's been since I've blogged.
Appropriately, today I was blind-sided by something I feel compelled to write about. My parents were visiting me in this lovely state (shaped like a cracker, as Derek pointed out), and once again made fun of me for all the CDs I own. Dad said it would take me three years to listen to all of them. So I decided to actually listen to all of my CDs to see how long it would take. I have close to 200 CDs, so I figure it will probably take a few months. We'll see. Anyway, the point is that I'm listening to a bunch of CDs I haven't listened to in a while. Tonight I got to Big Tent Revival, which is one of the few CDs I have with only one song on there I like, "Two Set of Joneses." The song is basically a paraphrase of the parable of the wise and foolish builders, applied to two married couples. One of the lines says, "Reuben and Sue they had nothing but Jesus, and at night they would pray that he cared for them each."
Now, Reuben and Sue, as far as I know, are fictional characters. But my eyes welled up with tears of admiration for this couple. What would it take me to be completely reliant on God? Is it going to take a tragedy? When will I just believe and not doubt? When will I have to stop praying "I do believe, forgive my unbelief?" Does the fact that I am so blessed made me less reliant on God? I ask that at the risk of sounding ungrateful...but that's not my intent.
How does one become reliant on God? How many times a day do we have to relinquish control back to God? Why wouldn't we let God worry about all this stuff for us? As a silly example, if I could be somehow guaranteed that someone else would take care of all my finances - bills, paychecks, 401k, investing, giving, etc, etc, and my money would always be absolutely taken care of in the best way possible, without my even thinking about it, wouldn't I turn it over in a second? Like Forrest Gump, "One less thing, you know?" I have the strongest guarantee that a loving God is going to make all things work for good for ME - yet I worry and fret and try to go it on my own. I'm not very smart!!
The good thing is, that I DO have a God who loves me, who I can depend upon even when I'm not depending upon him, and who paid the ultimate price so that he can be with me. And that's something I can sleep on.
Appropriately, today I was blind-sided by something I feel compelled to write about. My parents were visiting me in this lovely state (shaped like a cracker, as Derek pointed out), and once again made fun of me for all the CDs I own. Dad said it would take me three years to listen to all of them. So I decided to actually listen to all of my CDs to see how long it would take. I have close to 200 CDs, so I figure it will probably take a few months. We'll see. Anyway, the point is that I'm listening to a bunch of CDs I haven't listened to in a while. Tonight I got to Big Tent Revival, which is one of the few CDs I have with only one song on there I like, "Two Set of Joneses." The song is basically a paraphrase of the parable of the wise and foolish builders, applied to two married couples. One of the lines says, "Reuben and Sue they had nothing but Jesus, and at night they would pray that he cared for them each."
Now, Reuben and Sue, as far as I know, are fictional characters. But my eyes welled up with tears of admiration for this couple. What would it take me to be completely reliant on God? Is it going to take a tragedy? When will I just believe and not doubt? When will I have to stop praying "I do believe, forgive my unbelief?" Does the fact that I am so blessed made me less reliant on God? I ask that at the risk of sounding ungrateful...but that's not my intent.
How does one become reliant on God? How many times a day do we have to relinquish control back to God? Why wouldn't we let God worry about all this stuff for us? As a silly example, if I could be somehow guaranteed that someone else would take care of all my finances - bills, paychecks, 401k, investing, giving, etc, etc, and my money would always be absolutely taken care of in the best way possible, without my even thinking about it, wouldn't I turn it over in a second? Like Forrest Gump, "One less thing, you know?" I have the strongest guarantee that a loving God is going to make all things work for good for ME - yet I worry and fret and try to go it on my own. I'm not very smart!!
The good thing is, that I DO have a God who loves me, who I can depend upon even when I'm not depending upon him, and who paid the ultimate price so that he can be with me. And that's something I can sleep on.
Tuesday, March 01, 2005
Mere Repentance
A thought-provoking quote from Mere Christianity:
Only a bad person needs to repent: only a good person can repent perfectly. The worse you are the more you need to repent and the less you can do it. The only person who could do it perfectly would be a perfect person -- and he would not need it.
Couldn't have said it better myself, actually. I know I can sin with the best of them, and I hate those sins, but here I read that I can't do anything to fix them. Ah yes, we're back to the part where we can do nothing for ourselves. I'm continually amazed at how little my faith, and God's forgiveness, have to do with me. In fact, repentance isn't so much an action on my part, but rather a description of turning back to God, of realizing, once again, how much I hate my sinful nature. As Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 7, godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation. The most amazing part is that God recognizes our repentance, and forgives, even while He knows that this sorrow will soon fade as we live our lives.
Anyway, perhaps more on that when it's not bedtime!
Only a bad person needs to repent: only a good person can repent perfectly. The worse you are the more you need to repent and the less you can do it. The only person who could do it perfectly would be a perfect person -- and he would not need it.
Couldn't have said it better myself, actually. I know I can sin with the best of them, and I hate those sins, but here I read that I can't do anything to fix them. Ah yes, we're back to the part where we can do nothing for ourselves. I'm continually amazed at how little my faith, and God's forgiveness, have to do with me. In fact, repentance isn't so much an action on my part, but rather a description of turning back to God, of realizing, once again, how much I hate my sinful nature. As Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 7, godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation. The most amazing part is that God recognizes our repentance, and forgives, even while He knows that this sorrow will soon fade as we live our lives.
Anyway, perhaps more on that when it's not bedtime!
Monday, February 21, 2005
Training Day
Time for a new post...it’s late, I don't have to work tomorrow, and I'm feeling like writing. I've spent the last two days doing practically nothing. That's a weird feeling for me. It's definitely a bittersweet feeling. It's nice to not have to worry about doing a darn thing all day. Luxurious, almost, to know that there's no one counting on me, that I have no responsibilities, and I don't have to do anything I don't want to do. To the contrary, it's depressing to know that there's no one counting on me, that I have no responsibilities for the day, and well, the not having to do anything I don't want to do is still nice. It seems as though the biggest change for me is that the pace of my life has slowed way down, a fact that I still haven't digested. Last weekend, I was sitting in my pastor's office in St. Louis, and we were reminiscing about ULC and he looked at me and said, "But that time in our lives is over.” And what I seriously thought was, “Well, maybe for you, it is.” And then I realized he was right. And that thought hit me like a ton of bricks.
I've completed week five of training. It's been an interesting trip. I've joined a man's world, witnessed by the party I attended on Friday night at a co-worker's house, at which I was the lone female. (And PLEASE don't ask me if they were unattached. It's already gotten old.) However, I've found that most of the people who work for ADM are phenomenal. It's amazing how many people in this company truly enjoy their job. It makes me feel blessed to be in such a situation. I guess I always expected to have a job I hated. I mean, isn’t that how it generally works. That’s why Office Space is so funny, right? But the past five weeks have shown me that I could definitely enjoy what I’m doing. I'll just have to wait and see what happens!
I've been living in a hotel for five weeks, and I'll likely be living in one for another four weeks or so, by the time I get into an apartment. Funny story - I had a pile of papers and other random crap on the desk by my laptop, and I cleaned up the other night, and there happened to be a dollar bill under some of the papers. I didn't think much of it, and left it there but I came home on Friday evening and found a note that said, "Thanks for the tip! Housekeeping" I laughed as hard as I have since I started this job. Is it customary to tip the maid? Or perhaps the more important question, is leaving only a dollar being cheap?? (Yes, Mom, I know I shouldn’t leave money lying around.)
By the way, the four most beautiful words in the English language: “Pitchers and catchers report.”
I’ve been introduced to a praise song that I like as much as any praise song I’ve heard the past few years. It’s called “How Deep the Father’s Love.” The last verse especially, blows me away:
I will not boast in anything, no gifts, no power, no wisdom.
But I will boast in Jesus Christ, his death and resurrection.
Why should I gain from His reward? I cannot give an answer.
But this I know with all my heart: His wounds have paid my ransom.
For Lent, I decided to get back in the habit of reading my Bible every day. This is a habit I got into a long time ago, but fell out of in grad school. No excuses, really. Anyway, last night, I read 1 Tim 4. Verse 7 says, "Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales, rather train yourself to be godly." I'm sure I'd heard that verse before, but it hit especially hard last night. Two parallels occurred to me. The first, more obvious connection is the comparison to an athlete training. When someone is training, it pervades his every activity. Training is not an isolated part of an athlete’s life. It doesn’t solely occur when he is at the gym. It affects what he eats, drinks, and all his other activities. In order to be most effective, training can’t be a half-hearted attempt. It’s sort of like my efforts to exercise and make healthy meals while I have a hotel room with a kitchenette, while I also keep two pints of Ben and Jerry’s in the freezer. (Anyone tried the Peanut Butter Cookie Dough? They might as well have called that Betsyjo’s Batch.) Anyway, any activities that don’t support the training routine can only keep physical condition in maintenance mode. In the same way, it seems like any activities that don’t completely train me in Christ’s ways can, at best, keep my faith where it is. And that’s if I’m lucky.
The other kind of training that I thought about was the kind of training I am doing right now. I’m getting involved with the different activities of ADM, which has exposed me to things I didn’t even know existed. I thought about what a great analogy this provides for training myself to be godly. I have been told repeatedly to do two things. First, learn as much as I can. I can do this by being in the Word, going to church, finding a Bible study, etc. This will undoubtedly expose me to things I’ve never seen before. Which leads to…the second thing I’ve been told to do is to ask lots of questions. I have learned to be inquisitive the past five weeks. Asking a lot of questions isn’t a natural impulse to me. I’ve usually been quite content to sit back and take it all in. But I realized that is wasting valuable resources. Even if I’m relatively sure of the answer, if I ask an expert, they’ll usually expand the answer into something I haven’t heard before. So I’ve learned that questions are a good way to learn. So can I ask God questions? Will he teach me? As a matter of fact, God answers my question by saying, “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” (Jeremiah 33:3) Sometimes, God will show me the answers quickly. Sometimes He might not. And sometimes, just as in my current training, the answer is, in so many words, “You just wouldn’t understand that right now.”
May our training regimens be rigorous.
I've completed week five of training. It's been an interesting trip. I've joined a man's world, witnessed by the party I attended on Friday night at a co-worker's house, at which I was the lone female. (And PLEASE don't ask me if they were unattached. It's already gotten old.) However, I've found that most of the people who work for ADM are phenomenal. It's amazing how many people in this company truly enjoy their job. It makes me feel blessed to be in such a situation. I guess I always expected to have a job I hated. I mean, isn’t that how it generally works. That’s why Office Space is so funny, right? But the past five weeks have shown me that I could definitely enjoy what I’m doing. I'll just have to wait and see what happens!
I've been living in a hotel for five weeks, and I'll likely be living in one for another four weeks or so, by the time I get into an apartment. Funny story - I had a pile of papers and other random crap on the desk by my laptop, and I cleaned up the other night, and there happened to be a dollar bill under some of the papers. I didn't think much of it, and left it there but I came home on Friday evening and found a note that said, "Thanks for the tip! Housekeeping" I laughed as hard as I have since I started this job. Is it customary to tip the maid? Or perhaps the more important question, is leaving only a dollar being cheap?? (Yes, Mom, I know I shouldn’t leave money lying around.)
By the way, the four most beautiful words in the English language: “Pitchers and catchers report.”
I’ve been introduced to a praise song that I like as much as any praise song I’ve heard the past few years. It’s called “How Deep the Father’s Love.” The last verse especially, blows me away:
I will not boast in anything, no gifts, no power, no wisdom.
But I will boast in Jesus Christ, his death and resurrection.
Why should I gain from His reward? I cannot give an answer.
But this I know with all my heart: His wounds have paid my ransom.
For Lent, I decided to get back in the habit of reading my Bible every day. This is a habit I got into a long time ago, but fell out of in grad school. No excuses, really. Anyway, last night, I read 1 Tim 4. Verse 7 says, "Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales, rather train yourself to be godly." I'm sure I'd heard that verse before, but it hit especially hard last night. Two parallels occurred to me. The first, more obvious connection is the comparison to an athlete training. When someone is training, it pervades his every activity. Training is not an isolated part of an athlete’s life. It doesn’t solely occur when he is at the gym. It affects what he eats, drinks, and all his other activities. In order to be most effective, training can’t be a half-hearted attempt. It’s sort of like my efforts to exercise and make healthy meals while I have a hotel room with a kitchenette, while I also keep two pints of Ben and Jerry’s in the freezer. (Anyone tried the Peanut Butter Cookie Dough? They might as well have called that Betsyjo’s Batch.) Anyway, any activities that don’t support the training routine can only keep physical condition in maintenance mode. In the same way, it seems like any activities that don’t completely train me in Christ’s ways can, at best, keep my faith where it is. And that’s if I’m lucky.
The other kind of training that I thought about was the kind of training I am doing right now. I’m getting involved with the different activities of ADM, which has exposed me to things I didn’t even know existed. I thought about what a great analogy this provides for training myself to be godly. I have been told repeatedly to do two things. First, learn as much as I can. I can do this by being in the Word, going to church, finding a Bible study, etc. This will undoubtedly expose me to things I’ve never seen before. Which leads to…the second thing I’ve been told to do is to ask lots of questions. I have learned to be inquisitive the past five weeks. Asking a lot of questions isn’t a natural impulse to me. I’ve usually been quite content to sit back and take it all in. But I realized that is wasting valuable resources. Even if I’m relatively sure of the answer, if I ask an expert, they’ll usually expand the answer into something I haven’t heard before. So I’ve learned that questions are a good way to learn. So can I ask God questions? Will he teach me? As a matter of fact, God answers my question by saying, “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” (Jeremiah 33:3) Sometimes, God will show me the answers quickly. Sometimes He might not. And sometimes, just as in my current training, the answer is, in so many words, “You just wouldn’t understand that right now.”
May our training regimens be rigorous.
Saturday, January 22, 2005
A New Post...Finally
Reading over my few past posts from what seems like years ago, I realize how much I expected my life to change. And that it has. I recently graduated from grad school, a reality that has yet to take hold. I took a job with Archer Daniels Midland, a company that has blown me away after just one week of employment. I've moved out of the house I'd been in for well over three years, and threw almost as much stuff away as I packed. And I'm living in a hotel for seven weeks while I go through the ADM training program, visiting exciting towns in Illinois, Iowa, and Indiana. Oh yeah, and freezing.
Ever heard of ADM? I realized that few people actually know anything about them when I started talking about this job. But literally everyone in this nation has some ADM products in their possession. Believe me? Well, let's see....do you like soft drinks? Ever read the ingredients? High fructose corn syrup? Likely an ADM product. Oreo cookies? ADM's black cocoa. Eat chicken, pork, or beef? Those animals were probably fed with ADM soy meal or special feed ingredients that help growth. Listerine? Made with ethanol, the same stuff that makes bio-diesel products. Vodka and other liquors? Might be ADM ethanol as well. Hair gel or Bath and Body Works lotion? Both contain ethanol. Chewing gum? Dextrose, sucrose, sorbitol and other ingredients all come from corn. Flour goes into Sara Lee and General Mills products, among others. We sell oil to Burger King, Chick-Fil-A, KFC, A&W, Long John Silvers, Taco Bell and others for frying, and also provide the private label vegetable oil brands to Walmart, Kroger and other grocery stores. The exhaustive list of ADM's products is phenomenal, so I'll just stop there. So, along with the excitement about the new job comes the feeling of horror when I realize how much I have to learn. I wonder if I can pick it all up...but I'm sure I'll be just fine. At least I'll keep telling myself that.
Well, I have a lot more time on my hands these days...so I'm finally going to read Mere Christianity all the way through. I'm only a few chapters through it, but C.S. Lewis has a lot of good things to say. More on that to come, I'm sure. Blogging will give me something to do on, ahem, Friday nights. For now, it's bedtime.
Ever heard of ADM? I realized that few people actually know anything about them when I started talking about this job. But literally everyone in this nation has some ADM products in their possession. Believe me? Well, let's see....do you like soft drinks? Ever read the ingredients? High fructose corn syrup? Likely an ADM product. Oreo cookies? ADM's black cocoa. Eat chicken, pork, or beef? Those animals were probably fed with ADM soy meal or special feed ingredients that help growth. Listerine? Made with ethanol, the same stuff that makes bio-diesel products. Vodka and other liquors? Might be ADM ethanol as well. Hair gel or Bath and Body Works lotion? Both contain ethanol. Chewing gum? Dextrose, sucrose, sorbitol and other ingredients all come from corn. Flour goes into Sara Lee and General Mills products, among others. We sell oil to Burger King, Chick-Fil-A, KFC, A&W, Long John Silvers, Taco Bell and others for frying, and also provide the private label vegetable oil brands to Walmart, Kroger and other grocery stores. The exhaustive list of ADM's products is phenomenal, so I'll just stop there. So, along with the excitement about the new job comes the feeling of horror when I realize how much I have to learn. I wonder if I can pick it all up...but I'm sure I'll be just fine. At least I'll keep telling myself that.
Well, I have a lot more time on my hands these days...so I'm finally going to read Mere Christianity all the way through. I'm only a few chapters through it, but C.S. Lewis has a lot of good things to say. More on that to come, I'm sure. Blogging will give me something to do on, ahem, Friday nights. For now, it's bedtime.
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