Some movies need warning labels

It's fairly usual for Kim and me to go rent a lot of movies on the weekend, and last night proved no different.  There were a bunch of new releases that I wanted to check out and while I was looking for those I stumbled across this movie that stood out above the rest.  Sunday School Musical.

Now, being a pastor I have this slight responsibility to watch Christian movies when they come out that way I can promote good Christian media.  Though half the time I would rather point out the latest block buster and the Christian themes with in it.  So when I see a Christian movie I'm inclined to watch it.  

Now from the cover and title you would expect this to be a Christian version of High School Musical, possibly a slight parody there of.  Unfortunately if it was that it would have been miles better than the pile of fecal matter that it was.  The only thing that was actually decent was the music... well the singing of it.  The choreography felt like it was done in preschool.  The dialogue tried to be realistic, but ended up coming off like a speech impediment as almost the whole movie has bad timing.  And the acting to say the least was flat, but that tends to be common in musicals... just its usually not this bad.

There was also the multiple plot points that keep popping up, but then never have a proper resolution. Yet a few scenes latter they have magical disappeared.  Even the overall plot seems to go away at the end with  out conflict only to be resolved, even though for some reason no one brought up it was missing.  

I really wanted this to be good despite the prerequisite for camp that it had to have with a title like Sunday School Musical (which fyi there was no Sunday School, just Christian Schools).  This was probably this worst idea for a Christian musical.  A much better template would either be a) an original score (already proven to work with HERO!), or b) something in the vein of Across the Universe using reworked version's of a popular Christian artists songs (I'd love a suggestion on an artist that could pull of this).

So if you want to torture yourself please watch other wise, boycott it just on the principle of sheer crapiness.

Costs more than Death

Every night my wife and I read a chapter to each other (this is kind of weird writing in a third person sort of thing when 99% of my readers are close friends, so I hope you appreciate this 1%) from the bible.  Right now we are in the book of James.

I have loved this book for a long time.  It is one of a small series of biblical books that I frequent quite often.  I even took a seminar on this book where I essentially had to memorize the whole thing.  Yet still it amazes me that I find something completely new last.   

James 4:15b and 17 read

"If it's the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that."

"Anyone then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins."

Nike might be the Greek goddess of victory, but clearly "just do it" is a Christian thing.  There have been certain issues that I have been wrestling with and essentially over complicating, and these things are several years off.  This isn't how Jesus really works things.  Things are a lot simpler in His plan.  If He asks than you do.  

For me this comes that I am called to Salt Lake City.  So I will go.  I don't need to worry about mother churches, or team members, finances, location, what do I say, or thousands of other things.  I just need to go.  

So this what equates to "Do this ______, or sin", slightly more existential and weighty than Do or Die.

I'm a horrible Blogger

So if I was paid to blog I'm sure I would be fired by now.  The funny thing is in a few months I will be blogging on a professional level as part of the church plant I will be starting.  So essentially a month overdue I am blogging again (at least it's not a year this time).

Recently I have engaged in a new Spiritual journey.  I have found that despite being a person of faith I seem to have very little belief in miracles.  In fact I have noticed that I actually am having a little trouble seeing God in things.  I am not saying I've lost faith or anything, I'm just running into a problem a lot of Westerners seem to have.

It was recommended to me by my boss that I should try the "Experiencing God" workbook.  So on monday I'm going to start it.  I'm not sure if it will change things but I am very open for things to change.

At one point some guys that I would call spiritual leaders saw me walking towards water for my baptism.  They said that I walked with such fervor that they believed I was going to walk on water.  That didn't happen then.  Who knows though what can happen when one's faith is opened to the wonders of Christ.

How you save a life?

Coincidentally a really kewl song but has nothing to do with what I am talking about.  Yesterday when I was in the office a gentlemen in his 60's came in asking for water.  I'm not thinking much of it, people come in all the time for water, we give it away for free.  Then he tells me it is for his heart medicine that he needs to take the pill before his heart explodes.  This is a little out of the ordinary.  After he gets his pill down I find out that he is a recently retired doctor.

Through the conversation I find out a lot about his faith and basically his testimony.  It was interesting hearing him talk about how he was led to a strong faith knowing the miracle of the human body.  At the end of the conversation he wanted to share with a lot of friends about Overflow so he took a bunch of our info.  

When he left his words telling me how we were such life savers, and really meaning it just stayed with me.  Especially given we were thinking of canceling the free water just a few weeks ago.  So how do you save a life?

I heard it... and it was really weird

So I was on the way back from a meeting with my boss today.  As we were having a conversation I heard something come out of my mouth that I have never heard before.  I said the word "out" and heard the dreaded Canadian accent.  This is the first time I have ever heard it seriously.  I have heard it plenty of times when people try to show me how I sound but I've never really heard it out of my own mouth before.  This is the weirdest thing ever.  I now understand why Americans make so much fun of it, it really sounds weird and kind of funny.

On another slightly more spiritual note.  I have been really struggling with God's current prompting in my life.  I really love where I am right now and it seems like an excellent place for me to grow in so many ways but I know this isn't where I am supposed to be.  As I have been coming to terms with going back to the Maritimes, God has given me a huge passion for Sussex Wesleyan Church.  I would say this annoys me and I want to kick and scream at this.  But it is such a burden of love that I can not help but feel peace towards this.  The weird thing is that this isn't staying internalized.  It has just started to flow out of me.  My wife even said that I was seeming perky, which even the idea of such things was described years previous as a sign of the apocalypse.  I am enjoying this being more Christ centered.  Possibly even being sanctified, but I'll let the theologians debate that.

Jesus Eats

One afternoon in a cave far away

A table is drawn for many,

as they slowly come to sit 

each chair hand carved with heart

knowing care given to the soul that will sit there.

As they file in, it is plain to see

How different they are

Nothing in comin' by face or deed.

In one chair a man who has seen little day light,

still baring the chains marking 

how violent his life has become.

The next is pale and sickly

baring legions on his skin

showing a love that has betrayed him.

A general sits down next,

squinting through his glasses

he wonders why the world thinks he mistreats his people,

darkly he wonders if his people feel the same.

Solemnly another enters with a long beard and a head fully dressed.

Lines mark his face from when he has smiled at others strife.

A Doctor is next who feels she has done no wrong

as her actions were all some one else's choice.

More fill up the table with stories of strife.

Pain and fear.

Hatred and angst.

All enemies to those who are just.

Then their host raises his hand

marred by gracious love

for all those who attend

with a small blessing, He says

"my friends let us eat!"

Outside as they eat

There is a deafening roar

Signs wave in the air

to protest the day.

They claim someone as Lord

but little do they know.

Inside a cave,

With those the abhore

Jesus Eats

Pray

Pray for them

Pray for the girl who cries alone with no one to turn to

Pray for the man that took her joy away

Pray for the one that couldn't handle the shame of the life on her inside

Pray just Pray

Pray for the man in the cave who plans away,

praying that you will die another day.

Pray just Pray.

Let the tears run down your face

As your heart falls to pieces

Your knees begin to throb

and your hands blister from your clasp 

Pray just Pray.

Pray for the person in the box

huddled next to the vent just to stay warm

Pray for the man being pulled over for not being the same

Pray for the officer about to make a mistake

Pray just Pray

Pray for the girl on the corner

who is enslaved to a stranger with a needle

 Pray for the husband who hides his ring

as he goes to pick her up,

because those images in the dark no longer work

Pray just Pray

Pray for the child who dies once you finish this line

Pray that the next one gets food

or medicine

or

That Jesus comes and shows us all

That it all means something

If we just 

Pray

I haven't done this in a while

It has been close to two years since i Blogged here.  It doesn't help that I lost my e-mail and password to access it but somehow a new one i made a few months ago works fine.  I did start a thoughts and ponder blog called Emmaus crawl but I started to neglect that.  So now I am back, at least for a while.  

The news of the days a big for those who read this, not really all that big for those who actually know me.  I got married a little over 2 months ago.  I'm on my internship thats why the picture is that kewl O logo that the logo for the church i work for "Overflow: a church for the thirsty"

In other news I'm one step closer to really being a Doc as i will be starting my master soon.  Yay for NTS and there M. Div program

In recent events I just finished a huge Guitar Hero Aerosmith tournament.  I didn't get as may people in as i expected.  But the face time i got with those that did show up was huge.  Never devalue relationship building for small numbers.  I think we will host another one in Novemeber.  Thats all for now.

Carpe Nox

There is an alien in my office

First off I need state a retraction from my last post. By something that is pretty much dead on to an act of grace and or a miracle, I received a job in the feild that I am trained for. And here is the kicker of it I am actually getting more than a social worker. This is one of the few times I am glad that I have been proven wrong.
Second my office rocks mainly because I have an alien in it. I am supposed to have internet but for some reason the lan line isn't agreeing with my iBook. Eventually I will figure out why and fix it. My coworkers are fairly kewl, my boss is quirky to say the least. For the most part me work has been research and updating forms and files. I have been doing tons of preperations just for when we start up summer session. For some reason we had 4 tv's sitting in storage all of which still worked, so we are going to use those for something awesome. On the flipside we are also doing tons of work for the Philly Missions trip wich I am pumped for.
The final thing is if you notice there is a new link on the side bar. www.whosjesus.com this site is amazing. Go to it watch everything and Follow the leader.

The Great Job Hunt

Job hunting has to be the downfall of human civilization. Well I doubt it is but it man does it feel like that when you are in the process of finding a job. If you don't have connections it doesn't matter how many jobs are near by, or how qualified you are, you won't get anything. I have been job hunting since my last post and only last week did I find something and that was by luck because it was through connections. I'm not even trained to do this job, but because I knew a guy I got the job.
I am trained as to work with Youth and in counseling. I am not trained to as crack filler. I work with people thats what I am good at. I rock at retail, most pastors do, because we are people persons. We are good at helping people, thats what retail is a service. But did I get an interview at any retail place, nope. Also keep in mind I have worked retail in the past. Try and make sense of that.
The disturbing fact of the matter is that I am trained and really good at a job that is constantly short changed or asked constantly to be done for free. And why is this because I use God as a motivator to why I help. Yet a civil servant who tends to be detatched, and distanced, and just ineffective because they've gotten beaten by the job. But its rare for pastors to just lose it and when they do it never long. We have a love for this, it isn't work it's life. It's sad that the world doesn't work out the way it should, but I will fight to help people. And maybe one day it will actually help out my wallet as well, until then good luck and God bless.

Adventure's in Independance

Well for the first time ever I am living my life in complete independance. I'm not living at home, and I'm no longer living on campus. Although to many people's opinion it is unfortunite that I'm still living in Sussex a place that makes nothing interesting at times. As of last friday though I am living in Sussex, down the street from a Subway in fact, in a small little appartment (emphasis on the small, but hey its affordable).
My major adventure in independance happened on Saturday when I went grocery shoping. This was trickier than I thought. There is alot that fits under the category of essentials, and not all of it lasts that long. Aparently a box of cereal only lasts four days. But the worst part is how expensive they are, i know some of the stuff will last me till christmas (thank God for PB&J).
The next major adventure happened on thursday. My first visit to the laundry mat. After being to the laundry mat I now have a good idea of what purgatory is like (not Catholic by the way). Again a good discovery laundry is expensive with one load costing $3.50. This seems a little high, owell you kind of need clothes to live.
All this though is worth it. See I'm staying in this small backwards town to help out with the youth group I voulunteer with. They're a great group of kids and I'm glad to be doing this. But all of this culmanates to another adventure the great job hunt.

Planet of the Apes

Today Israel moved the rest of its Jewish citizens out of the Gaza Strip. What does this have do with the Planet of the Apes, simple take at Sharon he looks like a shaved orangatang. Then George Bush, and Tony Blair look like chimps. Paul Martain reminds me of a gorilla. Now this by no means is rascist as they are all white and I am like wise. But isn't it funny that current world leaders all bare resemblance to monkey's. Hmm now if I remember the movies correctly the next thing that happens is nucleur holocaust and charelton heston in lepord skins. Creepy.