Suggestions needed...

I haven't been satisfied with music releases lately. Part of my Tuesday morning ritual is always to swing over to the music store on iTunes and fin out what has just been released. Apparently Britney Spears and the Backstreet Boys just released new albums this week. Huh?!?! Did I just flashback to the 90's and someone forgot to tell me? Who lets these people make music?

I could use some help. I need some new tunes. It doesn't have to necessarily be current. It could be obscure. I just need something good. And I know that's such a subjective thing, but I promise I will try to give all suggestions a legitimate listen.

Your suggestions?

Mondays are for...

This is what this Monday exists for:

• drinking french vanilla coffee (and wondering why I have a "children's pastors conference" mug)
  
• catching up on a weekend's worth of email (yes, I occasionally ignore work emails some weekends...I'm told that it's good for me)
• discovering that there's too much to read and too little time to read it in
• thinking "I should clean my desk" (I've had this thought every Monday for the better part of 6-8 months)
• trying to figure out if my body aches and pains are due to my soccer game on Saturday or due to old age which officially arrived yesterday
• contemplating what our next teaching series will be (I'm officially open to suggestions!)
• being a good youth pastor and voting for the only youth ministry question over at "Ask Anything" (my ten votes for the day have now been used up)
• approving a t-shirt design for our upcoming retreat (I'm of mixed opinions of how it will turn out...I'll keep you posted)
  
• music practice
• soccer practice
• eating lunch with Ryan, our student ministry intern (we always solve the world's problems on Monday's, so if you'd like us to solve yours please feel free to send it to me)
  

Anyways, that's probably going to be my day in a nutshell. I'm sure it'll look different by 2:00pm because my coffee is already getting cold.

Without a title...

I can't come up with something smart. Lately I feel like every post is just more of the same and I'm tempted to reuse old titles.

Today I am ponder the abnormalities of a Wednesday night youth event. Everything was squirrelly. Students were off the wall for the second straight week. Leaders were having a tough time. We were missing leaders. I forgot lyrics to songs. The speaker seemed out to lunch. (oh...and I should probably mention that I was the speaker)

It was one of those nights where you get in the door, plop down on the couch and wonder what the heck just happened.

But then I thumbed through some cards that we asked our students to fill out and guess what? One of our high school girls gave her life to Jesus! Woohoo!

I just sent an email to my leaders with a reminder of these words found in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. It's the comments that transpire after Paul asks God to remove the thorn from his flesh.

But he said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Ain't that the truth.

The sun actually shines...

The sun actually came out. Oh, how I've missed it. I feel like a vampire most days...not that I really know what a vampire feels like.

I'm currently still trying to recover from the weekend. My team came out with a 2-2 draw on Saturday, in which I was finally able to get on the scoresheet. There was even a red card and some high tensions as the player who was sent off stuck around to "see" the ref after the game. I guess cooler heads prevailed and there was no need for me to step in and use any of the moves I've been learning from watch UFC.

But somehow I also managed to wreck my back. I spent all of Saturday night in some level of discomfort or agony. Sunday consisted of a major "faux pas" on my part from the stage (I won't say much about this except that I announced someone as being dead who wasn't even dead...it's a long story) before heading home to fade in and out of sleep all afternoon on the couch.

Monday I slept in and tried to recover. I was feeling better and even made it through worship practice with some of my students. I thought I was getting better, but as of noon today I'm still sore. And sitting at this desk isn't helping much.

I guess this is what it feels like to turn 30, eh?

Ask Anything...

Mark Driscoll's taking a page out of the "How To Be A Youth Pastor" manual and is letting the general public dictate what an upcoming sermon series will be about. (I think I poll my own students about what would be relevant to them a couple times each year.)

It's rather simple. Go here and ask your question. Then vote for your favorite questions. Then listen to Mark preach in January about the nine most popular questions (and likely their answers). Then he'll write a book about it. Neat idea. I hope he credits youth workers everywhere for this idea.

Here's a clip:

Procrastination...

I'm currently avoiding doing a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test.

Mike Yaconelli once said something funny about Myers-Briggs that made me laugh. It's in this clip. Start at the 2:34 mark if you can't afford to watch the whole thing.

I like this video. But it makes me miss Mike.

Bueller...Bueller...Bueller...

You remember that clip from Ferris Bueller's Day Off right?

Don't ask me how my message is coming along for tonight's student ministry event. Instead, allow me to indulge in a little late morning activity in which you can also be involved.

I'd like to do a little roll call. If you're here, could you let the rest of the class know. Just hit the "comment" link and say a little something. Come on now...don't be shy.

Blessings on ya...

Be blessed.
Bless you.
Have a blessed day.
Blessings.

I'm officially no longer sure what a "blessing" actually is. What does it mean to have someone wish you a blessed day? What does it mean when someone thinks that a free magazine they get for signing up for a mailing list is a blessing? What does it mean when we hope that people will be blessed?

I think the word is overused and losing all meaning. Your thoughts?

Great cartoon from ASBO Jesus:

Random recaps are fun...

Sorry. I have a blog post about "online relationships" that I still need to get around to, but I'm just not feeling it these days. So I'm opting for something way more mind-numbing and highlight a few things. There is no specific reason for any of this except that it is worthy of a Monday morning mention.

• Radiohead is giving their new album away for whatever price you want to pay.
• Visit "The Ongoing Adventures of ASBO Jesus" for some thought provoking cartoons.
• Lots of free images and graphics at this site (although we could probably engage in a discussion on how exactly a photo can be "Christian").
• Al Gore won the Nobel Peace Prize and my wife is....well...she's....(insert your word here)
  
• I read "Three" by Ted Dekker and I'm ticked off that I spent the time reading it. I'd ask for my money back on this book, except I got it as a freebie at some outlet book store.
• We had someone candidate for a pastoral position here this past weekend. And he's a Manchester United fan!
• You can now be an "emerging parent" (h/t to EV)
• I've taken to watching the NFL. I wondered why they had a green dot on the back of the QB's helmet, and now I know thanks to Scot McKnight's ability to ask the question on his blog.
• My coffee is now finished and I have 15 things to do today...I should get on it.
  

Saturday...

Looking back, this was a day of ups and downs.

• Up: I noticed I was alive when the alarm clock went off
• Down: The alarm clock brings my sleep to an end
• Up: Watching Aidan play soccer
• Down: I played soccer and my team blew a 2-0 first half lead to lose 3-2
• Up: Catching a nap while watching the Leafs lose
• Down: My Habs lost
• Up: Discovering that we now get RDS HD on the satellite which means I can watch my Habs play
• Down: Finding nothing good on TV
• Up: Eating hot wings
• Down: You should see what my wife is watching on TV right now...
  

Ok, that's enough pointlessness for one evening.

Giving up...

We've been walking our students through Jonah over the last few weeks and we've been trying to challenge them with some important questions each week.

The first week we had them think about what God was asking them to do that they were running away from (you can probably see how that fits with Jonah 1).

Then last week we had them reflect on a dark or lonely place they may be in and how they may be able to see God in the midst of that (similar to Jonah's cry out to God from the darkness of the belly of a fish).

Last night we had the students ask themselves "what is God asking you to give up or turn away from?" We looked at the city of Ninevah and their response to Jonah's warning that they would be overthrown in 40 days if they didn't turn from their evil ways. They completely gave up their way (those Assyrians really were psycho, weren't they?) to call out to God.

Well, we decided to give the students something tangible to do. So my wife took the time to cut some strips of cloth (we were going for a "sackcloth" kind of feel) about an inch wide and a foot long. Then the students were asked to write one each piece of cloth what it was that they felt God was asking them to turn away from or give up.

They were then supposed to take the cloth and tie it to the cross as a way of saying to God, "I'm giving this up to You." Then they took a smaller piece of the same cloth an tucked it in their pocket. They were to keep this smaller piece nearby to remind them throughout the rest of the week of what they were giving up to God, and to also serve as a reminder that God would help them with it. (I wouldn't dare think that any of us has the strength in and of ourselves to give up some of the things we wrestle with.)

I'm not doing justice to this through a blog post, but it gives you the overview. Anyway it was quite something to watch as our students took these little pieces of cloth and tied them to the cross. Here's photo of what it looked like when we were done.

Last night my wife and I sat down to read what the students wrote and all I can say is that it makes my heart heavy to see the things that these students are wrestling with. My prayer is that Jesus will provide comfort for many of them this week; that He will give them the strength they need to leave this parts of their "old lives" behind so they can continue to live their "new life" in Him.

If you wouldn't mind, could you pray for our students?

We won...

We finally had a game where we scored more combined goals than the opposing team. 4-2 was the final against a team that hadn't scored a goal in the league so far. I think some of our guys expected an easy run, especially after we scored 2 quick goals. But they gave us a run for our money. Apparently we're weak in the air and poor defenders. Both of their goals were scrappy and I believe they came from inside the 6 yard box.

I'm really sore today after being run down by their keeper while on a breakaway in the first half. I know he didn't have much of a choice, but I'm thinking that he could have been sent off. Intent to injure (he had no intent on playing the ball), the last man back (I was well clear of the entire defense), and he prevented a clear scoring opportunity. Instead he received a yellow and we got a free kick from outside the area, which produced nothing.

I was also dragged down in the area later in the game which led to a shot from the spot. Lacking any confidence on my ability to put a ball in the net I opted for one of the other guys to take it which he proceeded to put in the back of the net. I was have visions of my falling on my rear or launching it over the net.

There was a day when I regularly got clobbered and tackled from behind. I never had phenomenal ball control (like a "crazy legs" Coutts) or a powerful shot. I wasn't a solid defender or a quality tackler. But I could run. And I had a tendency to draw some crazy tackles which from time to time led to cards and penalty shots.

I'm not as young as I once was. I'm not as fit. I'm not completely healthy. So this latest venture into the wonderful world of rec football is somewhat disheartening at times. I'm having to come to grips that my abilities have changed and therefore my style of play needs to change.

I imagine that I'll be constantly playing with sore or strained muscles. I likely won't see the back of the net as often. I'll probably spend more time on my side of half. But maybe I can develop a new skill, like shooting from outside the 18 yard box. That'd be nice.

Friday Randomness...

I did squat all today besides biking up a mountain. Which, if I'm truthful, should really be described as "walking up a mountain" and "sliding down trails in between wiping out". And now, here's a summary of all things important (or not so important) to me:

• Go welcome Brad to the blogging world...and wish him a happy birthday
  
• My blog poll showed that 3 out of 9 of you want me to post about online relationships
• I'm currently working on previously mentioned blog post
• Turkey dinner is tomorrow
• I dropped my iPod and now it's slow
• I'm on the hunt for soft ground football boots...which do you recommend? (maybe a poll is necessary)
  
• My Habs are on a winning streak
• The Red Devils play tomorrow
• Watched my Bombers get beat by BC...blah

Free Burma...

I'll admit that I had no clue what was going on. Then Derek did some posting. Then some other posts started turning up (here, here and here, amongst others). Then I read this and paid a visit to Wikipedia to read a bit more. You can swing by and catch up here. Or you can stop by FreeBurma.org.

With all that being said...

Your choice...

Today I feel like doing a poll. There's a number of things I could post about, so I'd like you to choose. Lame, eh? Yeah...but it is my blog.

Topics you may choose from:

• Global Warming
  
• Mark Driscoll's Ranting
  
• Soccer/football
• Music
  
• Online Relationships
• TV

You may now vote by looking over here in the margins --------->

I'll tally the results sometime this week and respond accordingly.

Pessimism...

I'm somewhat pessimistic by nature. Or maybe just by choice. Either way, it means that I tend to rant more than I dream and I tend to question more that I encourage. It also means I tend to look for flaws rather than looking for opportunities.

I'm trying to work on being more hopeful and visionary. I'm not saying that I'm going to try and become an optimist. But I do recognize the need for me to change my outlook about certain things.

Why this confession? There's been too many rants and complaints lately in my writing. That means this blog is becoming too "one sided" and not as random as I would like it to be. Therefore an apology is in order and an overhaul is needed, just like it was in my real life.

Thanks for reading. We shall now get back to trying to find normal in the randomness of life.