Another Week, Another Blog

As the weather finally warms here in Sheboygan, I come to my readers (however small in number they may be) with my tasty snippets for the week.

Hole In One

Yep, I got one. And I can't say finally, because I know tons of golfers who much more deserving than me and are much better players. But it was a fantastic experience, and I get to say it happened on one of the most difficult courses in the nation. I even got to see the ball go in. 

My joy lasted for about 3 minutes until I started to realize that my playing partners (who all happened to be caddies that drink a significant amount of alcohol) would soon be expecting me to pay for their night of drinks. And sure enough, just as the thought entered my mind, they began to say, "I can't wait to celebrate at the bar tonight!" I've never been so glad not to be of age. Thank goodness it happened when I was 20 years and 11 months and 3 weeks old. I would have been significantly lighter in the pocketbook otherwise.

Congrats to the Lakers

I would like to point out that the series ended 4-1, just as I predicted in last weeks blog. I am rarely right about sports predictions, despite watching copious amounts of it. So I will take this moment to gloat. mmmm...

I can't say I watched much of this game. When the magic were down 10 at half it already felt over. Kobe played well (although I still think his team play is substandard) and his supporting cast showed up in a big way the past few nights. Give them credit. They were clearly the superior team in this series.

U.S. Open

Amazing test of golf. I have no idea who will win. I've got a feeling it is going to be a blast from the past. I'm gonna pick Jimmy Furyk, even though I dislike him. My favorite Johnny Miller quote was about Furyk's game face on Sunday at Augusta. The camera pans to him and Miller says, "boy...That's a face only a mother could love." Let's see if my predictions can go 2 for 2.

On to the next book

As I finished 2 billion cars, a book written by Donald Sterling on sustainability (finally), I began to read arguably my favorite writer, C.S. Lewis. There are so many qualities about his writing that I enjoy. First, I love how it makes me feel about myself. C.S. Lewis has a reputation for heavy and deep reading, and sticking my nose in his book makes me feel smarter. I know that sounds rediculous, and I've never admitted that, but it's true. I do get some snippets out of him that I find remarkably insightful, and make it worth the hours of grind it out, tough reading. In this case, The Problem of Pain is the read. Written about how to deal with loss as a Christian, it has been interesting so far. One of the main premises I have gotten out of it so far is that the reason we struggle with God allowing things to happen is because we think are generally good people. When Jesus spoke to the Jews at the time, the general rule was people knew that they were bad, and corrupt at heart. In this day of age of self-affirmation and political correctness, we have lost that sense of 'badness' and instead look at God's plan with skepticism and rule it unfair. Until we get back to that sense of shame, it will be impossible for us to really understand the world in which we live.

That's my segway to my favorite passage of the week of reading; 1 Corinthians 9. I don't think this chapter gets enough publicity. Everyone knows the 13th chapter about love, but I really thoroughly enjoyed the 9th chapter. Paul comes across as an everyday guy, with passions and things that get under his skin and problems just like everybody else. Despite all the examples of the 'humanness' of Paul, he shows how remarkably devoted he is to the only true cause he lives for. The height of the chapter where he proves this is verse 19. "Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible." God calls us to make these sacrifices. 

I tend to put Paul on a pedestal because his preaching and dedication to Christ is so amazingly high. I can't really put his actions into a current context in the world of 2009. This chapter is as close as I have found to showing the weakness of Paul as well as the absolute power and strength he had through Christ.

That is all for now. Feel free to comment or critique. I look forward to writing again next week. 

SUMMER - In freezing Sheboygan

It is literally 49 degrees here right now. 

I know it’s been a lifetime since I last touched this blog, so I apologize to my 2 followers who actually read this crap. School’s out for the summer, and I think I’ll have more time on my hands this summer than I will for any other part of my life until I am retired. I don’t know if that is sad or exciting, but it is what it is.

 

My insights into weird Christian norms

I always find it strange how quickly Christians can change from a worshipful attitude to a casual shoot-the-breeze conversation and act like it is not strange. When those two worlds collide, I find it very interesting. I have always been someone who keeps my faith mostly to myself; rarely do I post a Bible verse as my status on facebook or public spaces. That is partly because I was raised in a traditionally conservative family.

 

What has always intrigued me about the combination of the secular and ‘religious’ world (I use the word begrudgingly) is how they are separated for me. I talk about God and do my devotions (usually) and I pray, but it is in small designated times throughout the day. They are extremely structured. There are good reasons behind this structure, the main one being that routines allow me to be much more consistent in my prayer life and reading the Bible. However, when it comes to bringing it up in day to day conversation with other interesting topics (likes sports and girls and yada yada) I struggle. So in this blog I am going to make a concerted effort to combine both insights that I have found on my spiritual walk with the secular walk that you and I both partake in every day. At first there is no doubt that my transitions between the two will be spotty and patchy at best, but I think the exercise will allow me to see God in places that I never really looked for him in the past.

 

Sunday night Blogging

 

Hopefully this will be a weekly “routine” for me now; the sermon(s) for the day are fresh in my head, and I have to only be at work by 11 AM on Monday.

 

I miss my church back in Grand Rapids immensely; the worship cannot be beaten, and the hymns at my church just don’t strike me the way that the newer songs at Crossroads did. But that’s OK. I’m still learning, in a more cognitive rather than emotional way back at my church.

 

We had a guest pastor tonight at our church, some old guy named Zoshky (that’s how it sounds, that’s not how it’s spelled). This guy’s style is slow and methodical, but he had a great point than I could certainly relate to. Overall, I took away 3 telltale signs of your life being taken over by this world rather than focused on “your first true love.”

 

PASSAGE – Revelation 2: 1-5

 

The Church of Ephesus became more and more secular over time and Paul begs them to get back to the basics. Zoshky had 3 signs for the congregation that our life is being filled with the secular sawdust. I certainly could relate to all 3

 

1) I’ve lost the joy – You are bored; you feel empty, and God does not provide the joy that He should. Don’t blame this one on Him; it’s only because you’ve put Him on the backburner and haven’t Him to work.

 

2) I no longer want to pray or read the Word – This one really struck a chord with me. No matter how many days a week I work or how much time I blow on the internet, I somehow justify to myself that I don’t have the time for a chapter of the Bible a night and 10 or 15 minutes of prayer. It’s pathetic. This is something that I am going to try desperately to change. I know if I don’t find the time in a time of life like this (slow), I have no chance of setting aside time later on when things really get hectic. Pray for me and others who struggle with committing time every day to God and God alone.

 

3) My time goes to other things (Like entertainment). You got the idea on number two. If I can get on facebook 2 or 3 times a day, as well as failblog, espn, and a brewers blog page, I most certainly can spend a half hour delving into my relationship with the creator of the universe.

 

Focus for this week – Really dedicate some time to God.  I know I have it to give to Him, now let’s do it.

 

TO THE SECULAR WORLD

 

Work is slow; to the point of frustration. It’s only been two weeks, and I’ve already been sent home 3 times. That’s three more times that the past two summers combined. The good news is I get to play more golf. I’ll give you a little insight every week into one thing on the job that makes things interesting. This week is the new bunker on hole #6 on the Straits.

 

#6 is a short par 4 – from the blues it’s only 355 yards, and driveable for the pros with the right wind. However, the average player out there is now faced with a daunting challenge – a ten foot deep pot bunker right in the center of the green. The green is connected by a slim 10 foot area, but otherwise is the equivalent of two greens. If anyone other than a pro ends up in this bunker, they have absolutely no chance of getting out. It’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever seen on a course that has an average guest who can’t sniff 90 strokes. Kohler wants caddies to tell their players they can’t chip their ball from one side of the green to the other. Good luck. If I paid 400 dollars to play a golf course, I think I’ll do whatever I like to the greens, thank-you very much.

 

OTHER TIDBITS

 

I love Bill Simmons’ columns. They are fantastic, and I haven’t found any other writer that keeps my interest for such long articles.

 

I miss my friends and my life in Grand Rapids like crazy. I don’t know how I’m gonna make it all summer here. I have great friends here that I truly enjoy hanging out with, but they are twenty minutes away anytime I want to do anything, and often are too tired to hang out.

The Magic are going to win 1 game in the finals. That's it.  The matchups they had against Cleveland were fantastic. The matchups they have against the Lakers are not. I'm rooting hard for you Dwight, but maybe your reason for beating the Lakers was a little questionable.  http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=macgregor/090601&sportCat=nba 

 

I’m halfway through my 3^rd book this summer already.  They are:

 

·      This Side of Paradise – F. Scott Fitzgerald

   This book was strange. Sort of interesting, but old school (I think it was written in the 20s). All about someone my age and their struggles in choosing what to do.

·      Blink – Ted Dekker

  I found a new equivalent to the left behind series. A great page-turner, extremely fiction, but with a Christian message. These books I like because if someone asks about them at work, I can get them to read something that isn’t overtly religious but makes you think about God and your faith (or lackthereof)

·      2 Billion Cars – Tough read, educational, but slow. Read it if you are into what the options for our fuel and auto dependency are in the future.

 

Thanks for sticking with me. I’ve written this in about a half an hour. Hopefully it’s readable for the 1 or 2 that actually read it. Thanks for listening through my rambling and feel free to send me some feedback if you want. This blog has more to do with me getting out what I’m thinking and doing than attracting readers, so sorry if it isn’t more interesting. I TRIED!