Super Great (and pretty sad) Thing

And you question his arm strength

Yea, what a good game tonight. GB wins on the first play in OT tonight 19-13. 6-1 Packers = good

0-2 Intramurals team = not so good. We are struggling. Not just to get a roster, but also to play with the roster. I'm so glad people came to play though. THank you guys for playing!

Tis nice to be busy. No real insight after that...

Couldn't resist posting this too

(from my sister)

Shawn McDonald: Don't Walk Away

And when I look into your eyes
I see the hurt and the confusion
The pain as it rolls down your face
And the questions in your mind
And I know, 'cause I've been there
Yes, I know, 'cause I've been there, time and time again
And don't you walk, don't you walk away
'Cause He will never desert you
He'll never let you down
Don't walk away from Him, no, no, no, no, no
You're always telling me that you don't need to change
That you're fine with who you are
When I look at you, I see you filling your life with all that you can find
Hoping and wishing this world can bring you
A little peace of mind
Well, stop looking, 'cause He's right in front of your eyes
'Cause He will never give up on you today
No, don't walk away
'Cause He'll never let you go
No, no, no, no
Don't walk away
Don't walk away
'Cause He'll never let you go today
Don't walk away from Him

The Weight of Reality

We, as humans, must feel the weight of reality. We must realize how important it is. I don't mean the everyday monotony, but the very real aspects of life that we numb ourselves too. We escape this reality through entertainment, drugs, alcohol, sex, addiction, sports, music, and anything else. These things really give us a chance to escape that which is the reality of this world. The reality that there are very heavy things to realize. Heavy things to NOT IGNORE. These might be what our eternity looks like, what is God all about, what do we do with pain, suffering, and our struggles.

Then, when we realize the weight of the reality of this world, this life, this existence...we must recognize that we can't carry that weight. We mustn't try to hold it and deal with it on our own. As Christ followers, we must really put this weight upon Christ. He came to carry the weight and the burden of this world. Don't doubt te weight and how must he can carry.

This is what's been on my heart this weekend. I got a chance to talk to my sister about it, and it really occurred to be true to me. Thoughts?

The Problem of Pain

It just isn't how God intended it...

ASME Barcrawl and the Presence of God

So I went on my first barcrawl of my college career last night. Yes, I'm a senior, and I JUST went. It was pretty fun though. The setup really worked well. There were pitchers of free beer and buffalo wings at Brothers. I loved the wings, and since I'm not much of a drinker, drinking a couple free glasses and then not buying any more drinks for the night worked well for my wallet. I got a chance to see my buddies in totally different elements from class. ASME is the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and my classmates definitely know how to drink...and drink. It was fun to talk to them. Alcohol definitely ends up being a social lubricant for people and because of it, I was able to get a lot of conversation out of them.

I talk to one guy about just the roughness of life and another couple about just who they were on a deeper level (as deep as one can think when out at a loud bar).

This got me to think (and then this morning talking with Matt). It made me think how sad it was that we needed such a night as that to hang and talk. It makes me sad (to be honest) that that is the only way people feel loved. It makes me sad that the church sits in their tower and loves themselves without reaching out and caring about people (not that this always happens). It makes me angry. Let's be honest.



This is stream of consciousness...
OK, tangential to that is the presence of God. I'd have to say that tangibly feeling the presence of God has been a no-go for me recently. Yet I know his presence by so much more than feeling. I think that's a really good thing. When we can separate God from emotional experiences, I think we are getting one step closer to his pure identity. When we can separate how the church acts from who God is, when we can separate how others make us feel from God, when we can separate emotional music from God, and when we can separate inspiring talk from God, and still know him, we are on the right path. it's not that God isn't in those things, it's just that they are imperfect. The church can screw up, music can evoke fake emotions, inspiring messages can falsely get us pumped and leave us waiting for the next one. I think God
transcends that stuff. He is there no matter if we 'feel it' or not. I need to hear that...a lot.

Psalm 68:4

Sing to God, sing praise to his name, extol him who rides on the clouds—his name is the LORD—and rejoice before him.

LOLcats

These are one of those ridiculous internet phenomenon...kinda like the Chuck Norris facts.

But they are far cuddlier (Alan does not endorse this message, but thinks it is ridiculous that a cat is used to promote it)

The No Fun League

The NFL has a lot of sanctions on celebrations. Effectively, it says that celebrating after a score is a pretty bad and classless thing. However, the newest NFL.com ad (which is sponsored by the league) that is on tv pushes the complete game highlights they have on their site. This is done by saying something to the effect of "looking for new dance moves? Watch the NFL.com highlights." So...

Hey guys, don't dance. If we do, we'll fine you....AND THEN, we'll let people know about it and use it to promote our league.

Interesting...

Peach People

I just listened to a talk today from GCM Ignite a few years ago. It was a seminar talk, and it was about vision for our lives. I've heard that a few times the past few months. But it was really neat to hear nonetheless. A couple of thoughts I took away from it...

• People in America are peaches. In some cultures people are coconuts. Very tough on the outside. Difficult to get close to, but when you dig through the tough stuff, it is soft on the inside and easy to relate. In America, it's easy to get close quickly, but this is to only a fairly shallow depth. How can we make sure we let people into our core?
• Happiness is not = Joy. I knew that, but an interesting definition was given. Happiness comes from what is happening at the time. Joy is a more permanent state. I can be joyful and not very happy. I think I can see that in mysel these days. Maybe not the most ecstatic person in the world (the darkness man...the darkness!) but I'm ever joyful in Christ and his redemption
• Sometimes we have to be forced into our calling. Somebody just has to push us.
• The thought has been presented, "what would you do if money were not a problem?" But this presented it in a way that resonated with me a bit more. "What do you want to be doing in ten years?" Maybe that is something to work towards. It seems like a good way to live. Building a solid foundation.

So that's that. I can across the talk because of the iPod Shuffle. It is a great tool. I just autofill it and every once in a while it is loaded with a teaching that is on my iTunes. I love almost having a teaching forced upon me. I'll gladly listen :)

The Office, Last One Standing, and Darkness

So, my roommates really love the tv show The Office. I've watched bits and pieces here and there, but I've never been that interested. At this point in my day though, I have just watched the newest episode, and I really have to say that I'm finding myself attached to the characters. They are really well done. Substantially quirky and honest at the same time. It really is a fantastic cast. If only I'd realized this sooner.

Another show we've picked up is Last One Standing. There have been three episodes so far (I've yet to see the third). This show basically takes incnredible and diverse athletes from the US and Britain and pits them against natives of different countries in their own fighting style. For example, last week, they went to a Zulu tribe in South Africa and learned Zulu Stick Fighting. It's definitely a really neat show as well.

Finally, I've noticed lately how much darkness is lame. I live in the basement of my house and I can tell you whenever I step into the dark, I feel different. More sad, more easily beat down. It kinda just stirs of sad/bad feelings. It's pretty fascinating seeing the power of darkness. I'm gonna keep exploring this one later as I'm really tired right now.

Muddy

Feeling kinda muddy this week. Emotionally, etc.

Got turned down by Shell in my internship serarching. Probably better. I didn't want to work in the oil industry. But it still kinda stinks to not get an offer. Welcome to trusting God. Even if you don't know how that works.


Illini lost...sad, very sad. But perhaps we're a year away from a truly studly team.

Packers won. 5-1 into the bye week. Pretty fantastic. I'm really enjoying that, although the Illini loss is pretty stinging.

I produced a church service again for the first time since the summer. At Illini Life we had our Friday Night Grace service (typically Saturday Night Grace) because of a wedding. Surely enough, the guys who typically do the producing were the groom and a groomsman in the wedding. So I produced the service. It went pretty well. Wayne spoke of Christ as a victor and we played a montage of the Illini-Arizona Wildcats basketball game from 2005 to start the night off. Got me stoked, that's for sure. I might be producing this week again. We'll see...

If you don't get this...I'm either sad for you or elated for you

First Life

Preseason Polls

I feel like the college preseason polls are pretty much one of the dumbest things in sports. Yes, I mean the preseason polls, not the BCS polls. Illinois beats Wisconsin convincingly, has the same record overall, and still is below the Badgers in the polls. If the polls started about 1/3-1/2 through the season, we'd have a better idea of how teams should start. Wisconsin started high because people thought they would be good. They were, but so was Illinois and people didn't think they would be. So, can you win a conference and be ranked lower than a team you beat? It probably won't happen that way, but it's still an interesting thought. Give schools a chance to compete. And don't just call this 'parity'. The Illini are gonna stay good. We're not some cellar dweller that isn't as bad. We're a team on the rise and there is no dropping.

EDIT: The Illini are 19 and the Badgers 14 in the coaches poll. In the AP poll, the Illini ARE ahead of the Badgers 18th to 19th.

Another interesting video

Pretty useless rube-goldberg machine

What happened to news?