Wednesday, January 30, 2008

second degree


**warning: this post is not for the weak of heart or stomach**

I have come to the conclusion that second degree burns on the roof of your mouth is one of the worst fates you could wish on a person.

Over the weekend, while dining at an asian bistro I put a scalding (some might say boiling) piece of broccoli in my mouth. Being my typical prideful self, I chose to keep it in my mouth and just cover my face with a napkin while I tried to choke it down and hold back the tears. (unsuccessfully)

I kept thinking during the rest of the meal that I wasn't supposed to feel flesh that soft and lose throughout my mouth. When I finally got in front of a mirror I was surprised to to see that my mouth was bleeding it two big places from the burns. After some forceful argumentation about whether or not it deserved a trip to the hospital we finally decided to just shove some gauze in my mouth and continue with our plans.

I've spent the remainder of the week fighting the impulse to go to the doctor, fighting a sore throat, and lamenting that every delicious bite of food comes with pain. In my still painful state I can not imagine many fates worse than prolonged contact with boiling water on the inside of your mouth. Please do not wish this on your enemies.

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

think differently


For those of us (like me) who get tempted by gadgets here is a good post by Lifehacker on reasons and ways to avoid buying the latest gadgets. Here's an example: for those of us who might be tempted by something beautiful like the MacBook Air, we need to learn how to think differently.

Like, get a bigger envelope and be happy with your own laptop. Just owning one puts you in the top 1% of the world.

Saturday, January 19, 2008

perspective

This weekend I went to the Underground Network Conference. The Underground Network is a newly formed coalition of churches united by the prophetic call to love the poor, reach the lost and seek biblical justice. The purpose is to facilitate a community of support, accountability, cooperation and creativity between coalition churches and their leaders.


During the opening session the speaker suggested that the prevailing “the world is going to Hell in a hand basket” mentality is not very helpful or Biblical. This caught my attention because my last post was about the reality of our society and how day-time television portrays that.

We are not called to be unaware of the darkness that envelops this world, but it does not help to sit on the sideline and just watch it continue to spread. We are called to jump into the fight and bring light into the dark places. Day-time television reveals the darkness that exists in our hearts, But will I sit and wait for the walls to come crashing down or will I thrust myself into the fray, fighting, giving and sacrificing everything I have to see Light conquer darkness? Time will tell.

Friday, January 18, 2008

day-time television

What kind of society are we? What's wrong with us?

My car broke down today driving from Gainesville to St. Augustine. First I experienced the good side of our society. After, talking to a couple of unhelpful people over the phone I finally talked to a mechanic that was willing to drive out and check out my car where I was for no extra charge. He did all the little tests that a seasoned mechanic knows to do to eliminate possibilities. How to easily check and see that fuel is getting to the engine... How to see whether it is getting a spark... or compression. In the end I had to get it towed in because it wasn't the kind of thing that could be fixed on the side of the road.

Finally, I got to the auto-repair shop with my car. In the waiting room all I wanted was a little bit of silence to clear my mind and figure out how to make the best of a bad day. Instead, I get a TV that is blaring day-time television at me. Is there anything decent on daytime television? It is just ridiculous. My heart grieves for the people who go onto these day-time talk television shows and it also grieves for the people that except it as entertainment. I am angry, frustrated, and sad all at the same time. We are a people who have sold our souls to the god of entertainment and I don't know what will become of us. Am I being over-reactionary here? I don't know anymore.

Thursday, January 10, 2008

camp rules


I have been checking out different sites for an InterVarsity student conference in February. One particular Christian camp has it written into their "Rules and Regulations" that there is to be no playing "rock music" or dancing. Unbelievable! I find myself wondering how they could still (if ever) have that as a rule. It just brings so many follow-up questions to mind:

Is it just rock that is disallowed? What about rap, disco, pop, or techno? What about country? What about Christian rock? Is that allowed? What if 3/4ths of the band claim to be Christians? What if we are reasonably sure that all of the band are Christians but they stick to secular radio and wouldn't be caught dead on WAY FM?

I just find it hard to believe that this document hasn't been updated in the last 40 years or so. Or maybe it's still a strong conviction. Lucky for me, I had the windows up as I blared U2 on the way in.