Best of 2012!

My college roommate always publishes his 40 Best albums of the year, so this list of my Favorite things from this year is sort of inspired by him. Also I will be listing my Favorites as well.

Best Movie of 2012:

Les Miserables.

I know some people would expect some different things, maybe a Django plug or Avengers, Batman, Skyfall, Looper, etc.. While all of these movies I thoroughly enjoyed (I specifically remember telling my dad as we left Looper that I thought that might have been the best Sci-Fi movie I had ever seen) Les Mis took my breath away. Not many movies can give me goosebumps throughout the movie. Were there flaws? Yes, some of the singing was pitchy but that is to be expected from live singing and actually acting through the song. I am even considering seeing the movie again. Not many 3 hour musicals will I say that about.

Favorite Movie of 2012: Tie between Wreck-It Ralph and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

Call me crazy but I am a sucker for feel-good Disney movies, but tie those in with video games and I am all the more in love. Wreck It Ralph in all its 108 minutes had me grinning from ear to ear. 

AL:VH, I loved it for very different reasons. I mean come on what is not to like about Honest Abe weilding and Axe soaked in holy water. 'Nuff said.

Best Song of 2012

Ho Hey: The Lumineers slight nod to Freedom at 21 by Jack White.

Ho Hey (or as my mom calls it, "That Ho Song") was on repeat on tn my Itunes for a long time. Not only is it really catchy, but they don't try to do much with the song. It sounds cheaply recorded but that helps it work. Rather than focus on all of the technical aspects of music now adays The Lumineers stripped down their sound and let the instruments and vocals do all of the work. I love listening to music when you can hear in the background band talking like it was meant to just be  rehearsal but they liked it so much they kept it. I also love that this song is now getting airplay, way to go popular radio, way to finally catch on that this is a good song months later.

Favorite Song of 2012:

We (WeEEEEEE) Are Never Getting Back Together : Taylor Swift

Call me a sucker and a loser all you want but I bought Red. And you know what I love Red. And I love this song. As much as I heard in on the radio I still can't get enough of it. The sheer sillyness of the chorus, the instant hook that is just so darn catchy, whatever. I just love it okay. Not sure how I justify it.

Best Album of 2012 (that I listened to)

Boys & Girls : Alabama Shakes

I love music but I do not have the hard drive space nor the wallet to listen to as many albums as I need to to really be an expert on this topic however one album that caught me completely off guard was the album mentioned above. I caught Alabama Shakes on Conan and was hooked. "Hold On" is a wonderful single that just completely dragged me into the band. Once I started listening to more I realized that this was a complete album. The lead singer sounds like a mixture of Janis Joplin and Tina Turner, the guitars and very bluesy. The Drummer is a former punk rocker. It shouldn’t work but it does.

Favorite Album of 2012 (that I listened to): Tie between

Red: Taylor Swift and Babel : Mumford & Sons

Read the favorite song section for info about Red. Instead I will talk about Babel. The second I saw that Mumford was released a second album I instantly pre-ordered it, I mean like 5 minutes after I learned about it. When I got it on September 25th, I listened to it until Red came out. Now they swap positions when I am driving places. I can get enough of “Lover’s Eyes” and “Lover of the Light”, but really the whole album is great.

Best TV Show:

The Walking Dead

I don’t watch a lot of TV so I don’t consider myself a true expert. I had every intention of watching a lot of new shows this year but I really only stuck it out with one. Walking Dead was a tour de force for me. I started from season 1 early in the fall and was caught up enough so now I watch new episodes as they come out. Season Two became a struggle to watch as I progressed through as I felt it was the same episode every episode, but season 3, in the words of Kanye “that sh.. Cray”. Season 3 has hooked me even more that I was already hooked and I can’t wait till February when it comes back.

Favorite TV Show

How I Met Your Mother

I know my best TV show and favorite should be the same, but I am giving the slight nod to HIMYM. I love HIMYM, I love the story arc they are currently in, and even though I liked Victoria (even predicted that she was the mom) I am okay with the direction Ted is heading, which I couldn’t say in previous seasons.

Best Sports Moment of the Year:

Olympic Gold for US Women’s Gymnastics

I know I know, I’m supposed to pick UK winning the National Championship. Yeah, Yeah. But this is so much bigger. I was like a ton of other Americans that knew the results before I watched the finals in gymnastics, I already knew but I watched anyway. And I almost (emphasis on almost) cried when they won. I was so proud to be and American at that moment. Now granted UK winning the title was cool and all, but it just can’t top the Fab Five.

Favorite Sports Moment of the Year:

Penn State Football’s Revival

Everyone has heard of the Sandusky scandal, but how new coach Bill O’Brian took his team, which all pundits agreed would finish with less than 5 wins, to an 8-4 record. I was completely amazed at the turn around that they were able to have and to be able to let the university have something positive to focus on in the face of adversity and doubt.

Least Favorite Sports Moment of the Year

Infield Fly Rule

‘Nuff Said.

There you have. Feel free to disagree or even shed some light on what I have liked or loved. If you think I would like something feel free to leave me a comment. Thanks.

Faith Like a Child

I do believe that it has been a long time since I wrote one of these...so here goes.

I know many of us have had those experiences where we just seem to know that God is working through us and in us. I had one of these experiences this past weekend.

As many of you know, I spent the weekend volunteering at The Center for Courageous Kids in Scottsville, KY, and I think that I could not have had a better weekend. This is not because of all the fun that I had, but also the reassurance of the calling that God has placed on my life. This weekend I was with children that were not "normal" but they were loved anyway. Working with these children just kept showing me of what God wanted me to do with the rest of my life. Work with children that need help of any kind.

Down Syndrome is an interesting condition. I know we are all familiar with it, but seeing the passion of those kids just brought life back into me. You could really see God in those children. Just by how they treated each other and how they treated you and showed their love for you.

I just thank God that I got this opportunity to go volunteer this weekend, and I hope that he continues to give me opportunities like this.

"Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Matthew 19:14.

Community of Believers...Right now I don't think we are.

(Disclaimer: If you are offended by what I am about to say…good. Maybe you needed to hear it. I do not apologize for what I am about to say, nor will I retract what I say, or make any concessions.)

Community?

Something has really been bothering me lately. It has been bothering me a lot actually. I also know that this has become an issue for others as well. So I figured I could address this, if only to get what I think about it out in the open. This is not solely a BCM issue (though we do have a big problem with this), rather I think that it is a Christian issue.

I have been told a couple of times recently that people have stopped coming to 180 because they do not feel accepted or part of the community there. This is a serious issue guys. I really have started to notice that as the semester goes along we, and I do include myself in that we, have started to go back to falling within our safe little group of friends and not really going outside our comfort zone and meeting and making new people feel welcome. Guys this should not happen. I say this because I am as guilty as anyone.

Cliques are becoming a huge issue. Not just little groups of people that won’t go out and mingle with others, but also the leadership council. I can no longer say that the BCM is a welcoming place. This is a very sad reality. How can we show God’s love to the campus if we really don’t like to be around each other. John 13:35 states:

“This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

I don’t think that this is saying that we should love only non-believers, but also fellow believers. If we truly claim to be followers of Christ, why do we close up around others that share our faith? Why do we judge each other more harshly then we do non-believers? It shouldn’t matter what our classification is, one thing is true; we should love one another as we love ourselves. This includes our brothers and sisters in Christ.

I haven’t told anyone this, but last week I had a dream that was really disheartening. I dreamt that the BCM had become like the Jewish church in Jesus’ day and we, the Council, we their Pharisees. I woke up in a cold sweat when I saw myself in the dream, but I think that this is exactly what is happening, though I do not believe that it has progressed that far. Why have we succumbed to that level? Why are we not the loving, humble followers of Christ that we are called to be?

I believe that the answer is simple. I believe we get so settled into routines that it is very difficult to break out of that routine. I believe that goes that same with groups of friends. I think we get so settled and endoctrined with a particular group of people that we really don’t want to step out of our comfort zone to include others in our group as well.

Have we progressed so far as to not change it? No, I don’t think so. It will just take some lifestyle changes. The Bible clearly states that we should be a community of believers. Paul preaches in Romans that: “you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another” (Romans 7:4a). He preaches something similar to this in 1 Corinthians: “I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings” (1 Corinthians 9:23). And yet again for unity through the Spirit (Ephesians 4:1-3, Philippians 2:1-2).

Paul clearly believes that Christians are supposed to be a community, or better yet a family. I mean we are all baptized as either a brother or sister in Christ when we are dunked under the water. We are family if we believe in Christ. Why then do we treat each other as less than that? Instead, we should do as Paul tells Timothy. “Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity” (I Timothy 5:1-2).

I simply ask that we treat each other like we would want to be treated, that we would grow together as a body, not as individuals. If we were to do this who know what may happen. I always wondered how the early Christians managed to “recruit” others to the cause of Christ. I was reading through Acts the other day and I read this:

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2: 42-47).

Maybe we should take a lesson from the early Christians.

I warn you though, I said this in the disclaimer, I will call people out if I see you treat another as less than family, and I expect you to do the same with me.

May God bless you and keep you.

God is our Refuge...

(Disclaimer: With The Refuge being next week, something was sparked in my head. While The Refuge is worship based, this post is not about worship.)

I just finished reading Wild At Heart by John Eldredge, and while the book is not perfect and I do not agree with some of his arguments, one thing that he brought up really stuck with me. In the book Eldredge spends a lot of time discussing what he calls the battle for the Man's heart. I don't think that this battle is exclusive to the Male. Rather I think that it is something that all of us have to realize and deal with on a daily basis.

I used to hear preachers say that we are in a spiritual war. That we are beset on all sides by those who want to invade our lives and breakdown every stronghold we have ever built. They always used brilliant imagery, I guess this was to make it seem more real to those of us listening. To be honest I always thought it was over the top, and I always stopped listening when my pastor, Kevin, would start talking about spiritual warfare.

However I do believe that I have had a lightbulb moment. I guess I just came to realize that all this spiritual warfare stuff is actually true...

"Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." (1 Peter 5: 8).

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy," (John 10:10a).

The Bible doesn't shy away from the subject, why do we as Christians shy away from this and say that we don't fear the enemy, or act like we got it all together. I am as guilty as anyone, I have never truly respected the devil. Yes I said respect. I think that as Christians we need to respect the devil to truly understand what he is capable of. He can bring out our worse at the absolute worse time, and most of the time we don't know that he doing it. To quote Verbal Kent from The Usual Suspects, "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist."

If the devil can make us not respect him than he has already won.

Bleak picture isn't it? I did not choose to write on this because I want to frighten Christians into watching for the devil at all times, but rather to show that in this war we have someone better on our side.

I am pretty sure we have said the God is our refuge at some point. We probably have sung the old hymn that says "What a mighty is our God." Do we truly believe this? In other words, are we hiding in God's stronghold or are we trying to build our own hoping that they will be good enough.

"He is my rock and my salvation, My stronghold; I shall not be shaken. On God my salvation and my glory rest; the rock of my strength, my refuge is in God. Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us." (Psalm 62: 6-8).

What is the Psalmist saying? God is our refuge, our stronghold in Him is unshakable. Do we truly want to put our complete trust in God, as our General. I think we should. If you have ever read Revelation then you know how it ends. And speaking for myself, it feels good to be on the winning side. But how to we keep the devil from completely ruining us.

I think that this is very simple...sort of. I believe the closer we draw to God the more he helps us in our struggle against the Prince of our world. However the closer we draw towards God, the more the devil attacks us. I guess this is a literal catch-22 right, but its the best I got. I would much rather be singled out by the devil because I was a force to be reckoned with rather than just kind of giving up and letting him win. Remember God has given us a full body suit of armor to battle with...don't believe me go read Ephesians 6:10-17.

I just write this to encourage you, not to discourage. But I will leave you with one last verse.

"and do not give the devil an opportunity to work." (Ephesians 4:27, ISV).

Good Luck and God Bless you in your future battles.

I have been fearfully and wonderfully made...

I have been reflecting on the words to one David Crowder Band song recently. The chorus goes like this.

"You make everything glorious. And I am yours, so what does that make me."

I have heard that song what seems like a million times but the words never really sunk in. If everything God has made is glorious, than wouldn't that make me glorious as well. I guess that I have never realized that I was a glorious creation. What makes this worse is that I look around at others and it seems like they don't seem to see that either. Have we lost out on what God really thinks of us?

The bible mentions many times over that we are special to God in some way.

"For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God has prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them."
Ephesians 2:10

"Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children"
Ephesians 5:1

"See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us,
that we would be called children of God; and such we are.
1 John 3:1

"For You formed my inward parts;
You wove me in my mother's womb.
I will give thanks to you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made."
Psalm 139:13-14a

"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord.
'Plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you a hope and a future.' "
Jeremiah 29:11

How is it that we treat ourselves like we are less than what God looks at us as.

I am reading a book right now called The 4:8 Principle by Tommy Newberry. It is about reforming your thinking around the teachings of Philippians 4:8. One thing he mentions in his book is that our negative thoughts come from our own self-image. We think negative thoughts because we don't place enough value on ourselves. We don't realize that we truly are Children of God. What would happen to our self-image if we truly started to believe that we are beautiful children of God the Father? Newberry continues to say that we don't realize that we are special.

"There has never been and never will be anyone just like you, and God has not made anyone else in the world out of better clay than he used to make you. Your life here on earth is your special, unrepeatable opportunity to fulfill God's vision for your life and to magnify the joy he has placed within you." (Tommy Newberry, The 4:8 Principal, pg 42).

You are special, I am special, and we are are beautiful children of God who were fearfully and wonderfully made.

I wrote this while I was at Lake Barkley in late December but I also think it applies to today.

How Beautiful is your creation, O Lord.
The lake shines, the trees sway in the wind,
It is a simple subtle beauty.

It takes times like these to truly be
Reminded of how intricately made nature is.
How leaves change colors in the fall,
How evergreens cling to their color
Through the harshest winter cold.

In this light winter breeze, amongst
The cries of geese and ravens I hear you.
I sense your presence on this lake shore,
I see your beauty and magnificence
reflect off the water.

O God of Creation, I am but a speck
In the vastness of creation,
Yet you love me more than the crying birds,
Or the trees on the Lakeshore.
God help me realize this daily,
On days when I do not have a Lakeshore
To show of your beauty,
Lord, let me see your beauty in everyday life.

Worship in the Wonder of God...

Why do Christians always seek to understand everything about God? Its like asking an ant to understand why we do the things that we do. Why do we not just bask in the wonder of what God is? I don't think that this is an easy question to answer.

To be honest I think it has to do with how we are wired. Humanity, Americans in particular, are so obsessed with knowing everything there is to know about a situation. We go to school to learn everything about a particular profession that we can so we can be ready for that profession. We aren't happy with just knowing as much as we need to know. Rather we feel that we need to go above and beyond to fully understand everything. I am guilty of this too.

We do this with our relationships with God as well. We question God to let us in on His plan at all times rather than just going with the flow of God. We feel like God has to explain Himself in great detail that way we won't feel left out. I am this way too. However I do not think this is how our relationship with God should be.

I love the way that Job answers God after God grills him with questions of His own.

"Job answered,
I'm speechless, in awe-- words fail me.
I should have never opened my mouth!
I've talked too much, way too much.
I'm ready to shut up and listen."
(Job 40:3-5, The Message)

Notice how Job responds to God. He shuts up and listens to God. How many times do we actually sit back and just enjoy God as He is, rather than what we want Him to be. Do we ever just sit back and enjoy the wonder of God. Rather than try to understand Him totally we should really just worship the fact that we don't understand everything about him and never will.

We will never ever understand everything about God. Now I am not saying that we should not try to understand Him at all. That's not the case. If we don't understand the nature of God, then we will never understand what we are to do as followers of Christ. David writes in the eighth psalm, "What is man that You take thought of him, / and the son of man that You care for him? (Psalm 8:4). God loves us enough that He wants to let us in on His plan. But not all at once.

So really it comes down to faith. Do we have faith enough just to go with God and not wonder where we are going. Or will we always ask questions and object when things aren't going our way. Donald Miller says in his book Blue Like Jazz that "too much of our time is spent trying to chart God on a grid, and too little is spent on allowing our hearts to feel awe. By reducing Christian spirituality to formula, we deprive our hearts of wonder . . . I don't think there is any better worship than wonder."

Sometimes we just need to be reminded how expansive God is, how unfathomable He is. But this wonder of God is truly worship of Him as well. So rather than question God, or make our religion in to a set of rules and regulations, let us just bask in the nature and awesomeness of God, not wanting more than just Him.