Suicide Road Trip (pt.1 of 2) "I'm going to Jackson"

Right now I am writing this in a basement that belongs to my friend Andy's parents. This basement is connected to a house that is located in Jackson Missouri.

Andy and I left this morning at 2:30 (MST) and got here at 6:00pm. We made this drive to pick up a dog that Andy's sister and brother-in-law are giving him. Since I am such a good friend I agreed to come wit him so that he would not be alone for the trip.

We are leaving tomorrow morning and driving back to Denver.

Then I will got to bed and get up to teach twice on Sunday.

I am a good friend.

Thus far on our drive the following has occurred:
1-We ate lunch at Taco Bueno (there are no Taco Buenos in Denver...this was a big deal for me-in fact it is like a man getting to hear the Clash when he lives in a town that only plays Nickleback.

2-We saw the Oscar Meyer Weiner mobile. This is always a great sight that inspires grown men to begin making jokes that are on par with most jr. high maturity levels.

3-We almost got in a wreck. There was a wreck. It happened quickly. Due to my cat-like reflexes i was able to point towards that car that was moving at 70mph just a mere second before and was now at a stand still in the middle of Interstate 70. Because I was able to point so quickly Andy had adequate time to stop before hitting the back of the car.

4-I discovered the magic of XM Radio. The magic of XM Radio is that any given time you can find a song from R.E.M. on at least one station.

5-At one point we saw what we thought was a break in the flat lands of Kansas...it turns out that is was just a grassy area that had not been mowed in awhile.

I will write more thoughts after we get back to Denver. Then I will have experienced everything I did today but backwards, and with a dog.

It was...arrested development

Last night Meredith and i finished watching one of the best (if not the best) series in the history of television for the third time.

Arrested Development was 53 weeks of hilariousness and good times.

If you have not seen the show then you really need to.

If you have seen the show you know what I am talking about.

If you do not like the show then I would suggest that you go move into the mountains and not bother anybody.

However, there are very obvious rumors out there that there will be a movie. I really hope that this is so.

To make me alugh at work I think everyone should post their favorite Arrested Development quote.

At least I am batting over .500

Now that the sweet sixteen has been set I now have to look at my bracket and weep. I got 11 of the Sweet Sixteen.

My final four is shot.

Stupid Georgetown.

Culture Shift - Albert Mohler

I just finished reading Culture Shift by Al Mohler.

Mohler is the president at Souther Seminary and I have to be honest, I was a little nervous about reading this book. When I went to seminary (another southern baptist seminary) I left with a really bad taste in my mouth.

I felt like I was surrounded by people who loved to argue theology but were afraid to engage or interact with the culture. This is the problem of a lot of evangelical Christians. We like the idea of changing the world in the name of Christ but we are afraid to be exposed to the "world's evils" which I firmly believe is a bigger statement about our faith than it is about the culture.

Mohler's book (for the most part) is a breath of fresh air. Mohler uses good theology, merged with common world views from a variety of sources and ends up presenting a call for Christians to engage the world with a gospel of grace and change.

In the introduction of this book Mohler makes it clear that to sacrifice theology and blend in to the culture is a sin, but at the same time it is a sin to not live a missional lifestyle.

Mohler's take on the so called secular world view, how to deal with the issue of abortion and world relief are well thought out and well written. Mohler makes it clear that a Christian can be smart, well informed, well balanced, and yet hold to an accurate theology.

There are a couple of issues where I find Mohler a little hazy. One example is that Mohler speaks out against torture but still says there is a place for it. Unfortunately this is a pretty wide view and yet there is not definition for when such action would be deemed acceptable. I will admit that it is hard to reconcile any form of torture while holding to a belief that all people are created in the image of God.

There are also two chapters that Mohler writes in regard to dealing with students which seem to contradict each other. In one chapter Mohler expounds on the idea that we are raising a nation of wimps. This is due to increased coddling by parents who try to protect their children from any form of evil, including the child's own bad choices. When I read this chapter I found myself saying "amen" and banging a tambourine in my head quite a bit. It was like my own private mental charismatic worship service in my head.

However, in the other chapter regarding parents and raising Christian students he leads to the idea that parents should begin preparing an exit strategy from public school to protect them from the "evil teachings of homosexuality and sexual behavior" I firmly think that this flies in the face of his argument about how parents treat their children.

It seems to me that the parents could respond to this by engaging in conversation with their students (it might be awkward but it is also biblical). No student wants to hear their parents talking about sexual acts but that is part of life. This way parents can combat information that is being taught to their students while continuing to allow their students to be light in a dark world.

I do not think it is any coincidence that out nation's jr. high and high schools have become as spiritually dark as they have which Christian parents have pulled their Christian children out of high school at record numbers.

It reminds me of a quote that I used to have as my wallpaper on computer by Rob Bell. He said. "Why blame the dark for being dark, it is far more helpful to ask the light why it is not as bright as it should be."

Although I tend to begin disagreeing with Mohler on these areas I would still highly recommend this book to anybody who would like to read a good philosophy in how to deal these issues in our society in a way that is not judgmental but in a way that is loving and points people to Christ.

Not so sweet sixteen

So I just watched Georgetown lose. This is the same Georgetown that I had in the final four.

Stupid Davidson.

Right now of the twelve teams that are in the sweet sixteen I only have eight of them. No to mention that I did not pick W. Kentucky or San Diego...which mean at best I can only get 11 of the sixteen.

There is a dark cloud over my head today.

Dark cloud thy name is Davidson.

Because everyone cares...

After last night my bracket is in shambles (at least my espn one is). I am 20-12 on there.

I am actually 23-9 on my yahoo bracket.

Last year I picked all 16 of the sweet sixteen teams. This year, at best, I can get 14 of the 16 because like I said...shambles.

I am so march mad

After the conclusion of yesterday's games my bracket currently has me at 11-5. If A&M had lost like they were supposed to, and had UNLV not been better than I expected, or if I had thought a little bit more about the "suckiness" of Baylor, perhaps if Arizona and Kentucky had pulled off the upsets that they could have I would be in a better mood today.

On the brighter side...today is a brand new day. I can look out at the world and know that Rick Astley has made me a promise that he will keep...
Thanks Rick...you have made the day a little brighter.