If you've got 18 minutes to spare, I highly recommend this video: The Year of Living Biblically. In it, an agnostic talks about the year he spent trying to follow every rule in the Bible.
As one commenter pointed out, he totally misses the idea of living under God's grace. But he also learns to see the good in many biblical rules. I hope you enjoy it.
Friday, August 08, 2008
Song idea
Have you ever heard songs where people put Christian lyrics to popular songs, usually with cheesy (sometimes entertainingly cheesy) results? (Here's one example, complete with an amateur fan-produced video, complete with outtakes.)
Well, as much as I don't listen to that kind of music, I accidentally came up with an idea for a song like that. It's to the tune of Joy to the World (the "Jeremiah was a bullfrog" Joy to the World, not the "Let earth receive her king" Joy to the World). It's about the biblical prophet Jeremiah. Here it is:
But really, what are the odds that I'm the first person with this idea? Someone else has probably written the entire song already.
Well, as much as I don't listen to that kind of music, I accidentally came up with an idea for a song like that. It's to the tune of Joy to the World (the "Jeremiah was a bullfrog" Joy to the World, not the "Let earth receive her king" Joy to the World). It's about the biblical prophet Jeremiah. Here it is:
Jeremiah was a prophet.That's all I have so far. It needs a bit of work. For one thing, I'm not sure what to do with that "Joy to the world" line, because Jeremiah was known as the weeping prophet. So I'm going to leave it to you, my loyal readers (yes, both of you!), to add more to the song. Any ideas? On the very very slim chance I get royalties from this, I'll split it with you, unless you submit the lyrics anonymously.
But really, what are the odds that I'm the first person with this idea? Someone else has probably written the entire song already.
Sunday, August 03, 2008
Home again
I got back from my backpacking trip at Mount Robson a few days ago. It's a beautiful place, probably the best scenery of any place I've been backpacking. There were waterfalls, glaciers, the highest mountain in the Canadian Rockies, lakes, rocks, trees, flowers, and real outhouses (not the roofless, doorless kind we had on last year's trip).
No matter how long or short a backpacking hike is, it seems like I'm ready for it to be over long before it's actually over, especially on the last day. I guess that means I could handle almost any length of backpacking trail if I had enough time. And somehow, it all seems worth it when I'm doing shorter hikes without a heavy pack, and eating, sleeping, and just hanging out in the middle of nowhere. Miles away from my job, my other responsibilities, and even the nearest car.
I've posted photos on Facebook from this trip, and you don't even have to be a Facebook member to see them. Here they are:
Part 1
Part 2
And here's one to look at even if you don't feel like looking at the albums:
No matter how long or short a backpacking hike is, it seems like I'm ready for it to be over long before it's actually over, especially on the last day. I guess that means I could handle almost any length of backpacking trail if I had enough time. And somehow, it all seems worth it when I'm doing shorter hikes without a heavy pack, and eating, sleeping, and just hanging out in the middle of nowhere. Miles away from my job, my other responsibilities, and even the nearest car.
I've posted photos on Facebook from this trip, and you don't even have to be a Facebook member to see them. Here they are:
Part 1
Part 2
And here's one to look at even if you don't feel like looking at the albums:
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Free samples
I was at Superstore today and they were giving out free samples of some food. That never seems to happen at that store.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Vacations
Well, I'm back from Texas. Actually, I've been back for almost a week now. (I'm having a little trouble keeping up with my goal of one blog post per week. I've been busy, but I've been enjoying myself. I've been playing Ultimate and sometimes soccer, and I've checked out a few festivals. Then I went away for a week. I'm also in a bit of a rut when it comes to blog ideas. But for those of you that saw me push the envelope a while back, I thought of another way to push the envelope. So stay tuned and I might try it.)
Last week in Texas was kind of like my weekly games of Ultimate--it has me liking my church more. We had a great bunch of teenage people with us. They didn't cause too much trouble and they were a lot of fun. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with them and the other adult leaders. The trip included a Christian youth convention that probably had about 5000 people at it. For me, the speakers had some good things to say, including a good reminder that God really does change lives. It's also motivating me to think more about how I talk about faith in conversations at work. I know my standards on some things like sex and alcohol are different from a lot of people at work, so how do I make it clear where I stand, without being judgmental and defining my faith mostly by what I don't do? I've certainly thought about this question before, but I think I'm a bit more motivated now. Let's hope it lasts.
One special time was when our group sat down outside the convention centre to talk about what we're learning at the convention. We also prayed. It's great to see these people wanting to follow God more closely. Even if they're not so interested in God, I appreciate their honesty and having them as part of my life.
And soon I'm off on another vacation. This time I'll be backpacking near Mount Robson in British Columbia.
Last week in Texas was kind of like my weekly games of Ultimate--it has me liking my church more. We had a great bunch of teenage people with us. They didn't cause too much trouble and they were a lot of fun. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with them and the other adult leaders. The trip included a Christian youth convention that probably had about 5000 people at it. For me, the speakers had some good things to say, including a good reminder that God really does change lives. It's also motivating me to think more about how I talk about faith in conversations at work. I know my standards on some things like sex and alcohol are different from a lot of people at work, so how do I make it clear where I stand, without being judgmental and defining my faith mostly by what I don't do? I've certainly thought about this question before, but I think I'm a bit more motivated now. Let's hope it lasts.
One special time was when our group sat down outside the convention centre to talk about what we're learning at the convention. We also prayed. It's great to see these people wanting to follow God more closely. Even if they're not so interested in God, I appreciate their honesty and having them as part of my life.
And soon I'm off on another vacation. This time I'll be backpacking near Mount Robson in British Columbia.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Vacation #1
I'm off to San Antonio tomorrow with the youth group from my church. I'm one of the adult leaders helping take them to the Church of God International Youth Convention there. Should be a fun time, but I might get just a bit tired and maybe a bit sunburned. I hear the Mexican restaurants there are excellent. My taste buds will be so happy and my stomach won't be. I can't wait.
Saturday, July 05, 2008
June
At my church, we used to have fairly regular activities for the College and Career group. ("College and Career" is a common label that churches use for their younger adults.) Eventually, maybe people got too busy and nobody really wanted to plan anything. There were some of us that played squash, but there were a lot that didn't.
In May the place where we played squash shut down for renovations, so for a few Wednesdays nothing was planned. But someone had brought up the idea that we could play Ultimate (a.k.a. Ultimate Frisbee) sometime. Around the end of May, I got some of them together for a game of Ultimate, and I enjoyed it a lot. Quite tiring though. I thought it would be nice to do it again, and I guess some others thought so too because they decided to do this every week for the summer. We've also been going for ice cream afterwards.
I think this was what I needed. I have friends at church who are close to my age and older who I haven't spent much time with in the last while, except at church services and maybe lunch after church. And then there are the friends younger than me. They hadn't really had the chance to be involved in the group back when it was going, because they were too young. I work with them in running the youth group, and as much as I usually enjoy my time with the youth, it's nice to finally hang out with these friends without having responsibilities going on at the same time. Maybe it helps having a bit less going on with the youth group this month (no fundraisers in the last few weeks!). The exercise is good too.
It's been a refreshing month, and maybe it's been refreshing for some others too because they keep coming. Maybe in certain ways, pursuing some self-interest in church can actually do some good. After all, there's a good chance that if I need something (for example, refreshment and times with friends), others need it too. Of course, selfishness in a church can be a very damaging too. So how do you decide when your own desires are a good thing?
In May the place where we played squash shut down for renovations, so for a few Wednesdays nothing was planned. But someone had brought up the idea that we could play Ultimate (a.k.a. Ultimate Frisbee) sometime. Around the end of May, I got some of them together for a game of Ultimate, and I enjoyed it a lot. Quite tiring though. I thought it would be nice to do it again, and I guess some others thought so too because they decided to do this every week for the summer. We've also been going for ice cream afterwards.
I think this was what I needed. I have friends at church who are close to my age and older who I haven't spent much time with in the last while, except at church services and maybe lunch after church. And then there are the friends younger than me. They hadn't really had the chance to be involved in the group back when it was going, because they were too young. I work with them in running the youth group, and as much as I usually enjoy my time with the youth, it's nice to finally hang out with these friends without having responsibilities going on at the same time. Maybe it helps having a bit less going on with the youth group this month (no fundraisers in the last few weeks!). The exercise is good too.
It's been a refreshing month, and maybe it's been refreshing for some others too because they keep coming. Maybe in certain ways, pursuing some self-interest in church can actually do some good. After all, there's a good chance that if I need something (for example, refreshment and times with friends), others need it too. Of course, selfishness in a church can be a very damaging too. So how do you decide when your own desires are a good thing?
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