Letter from a Concerned Follower

Dear God,

I haven't heard from you in awhile so I wanted to make sure everything is ok. I've been praying every single day for the past two weeks and I still haven't found a job. Are you still there?

I bet you're getting overwhelmed- we've been doing some pretty amazing things down here on earth. I don't know if you heard or not, but we went to the moon. That was almost 40 years ago, so we've done a TON more stuff since then. We invented the internet, which connects us with people all around the world within seconds. Commercial planes allow us to travel wherever and whenever we want, with speeds around 600 mph. We're moving pretty fast down here, so I'm sorry if it's too difficult for you to catch up with us.  This is why I don't talk to you as much- I am just way too busy.  Don't worry, though.  I'll make sure to update you on my life whenever I get a chance.

I hope that's ok with you.

I was wondering if there was any way you could change some of the events in history. I was reading through my Bible and came across the story of Noah's Ark. I remember hearing it when I was a kid and thinking it was so cool, but come on God... I'm a grown up now (I go to college and everything). I understand that you created every star in the universe, that you devised each atom and molecule, and also that you know every one of the hairs on my head. But choosing a man to build an ark and creating a large flood? No, that just seems too unrealistic. Maybe if you take things like that out of history, more people will choose to believe.

I hope that's ok with you.

You would have been so proud of me yesterday. I spent 10 minutes talking to someone about my faith!  I told this girl about church and how I've been going all my life.  I even mentioned all the charity work I do.  However, I didn't mention your son's name.  She wasn't Christian and I didn't want to offend her and force her to believe that "Jesus is the only way."  I told her the most important thing she had to do was make sure she was a good person and that she respected other people.  I'm sure your son wouldn't mind.

I hope that's ok with you.

Well, I gotta get going.  Try to keep some of my suggestions in mind.  In the end, it would be beneficial to you to make some changes.  It really makes perfect sense for people to follow a god who changes with the times.

Sincerely,

Me

P.S. Don't forget- I'm still looking for a job.

(Inspired by the song "Letter from a Concerned Follower" by Pedro the Lion.)

Some folks think we're better now 
Social evolution's new synthetic breed 
You'll keep us on a straighter path 
Better men use brand new math with no wrong answers 

The Men In My Life

I was going through all my pictures, and came across the following pictures. Consider these an early Christmas gift from me to you:

Project: Raise Your Voice HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa

This video is in honor of World Aids Day 2007 (December 1):

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Love: A Higher Law

This weekend, I went to an early Thanksgiving dinner at Erik's grandparents house. I don't know them very well because I never met them until we were together for about 2 years. They are, for lack of a better term, very unique (Grandpa is an alcoholic and Grandma is schizophrenic). It was actually the first time I had ever seen the two of them together. While all the family was talking and catching up, Grandpa and Grandma were just quietly sitting on the love seat together. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his big, bald head rest on her frail, bony shoulder. Erik told me in all his twenty-one years, he had never seen them act affectionate like they were. Within seconds, the rest of the family also noticed and all talking ceased. We must have spent about 5 straight minutes just looking at these two unlikely characters whose love had not been witnessed by one person in decades.

It amazed me to witness how infectious love can be. By the end of the visit, I saw more kisses on the cheek, more warm hugs and more unselfish gestures I had seen in months. I think every single person in that room went to bed that night with a smile on their face.

My favorite line in the book Blue Like Jazz is in the author's note. Don Miller wrote:

Sometimes you have to watch somebody love something before you can love it yourself. It is as if they are showing you the way.

I used to wonder why humans have a natural desire to love and to be loved. I don't necessarily mean the romantic kind of love, but more so a greater kind of love, a love for all people. Not only do we want to love others, but there is something internally telling we are supposed to. It's really an interesting idea once you think about it. Why does a picture of a starving, homeless person make us feel uneasy? Why do girls love romantic comedies? Why does the lack of a mother's touch damn a child for the rest of his life?

It wasn't until I read 1 John 4:19 that I fully understood the answer to those questions: "We love because He first loved us." This is one of those concepts that sounds so simple, yet when you stop and think about it, is so profound. There is something in each human that gives us a common morality, a sense of what is right and what is wrong. The only way to explain our inclination to love and to be loved is by assuming that we were made for that very purpose.

"God will look to every soul like its first love because He is its first love."
-C.S. Lewis

Sharing is Caring

Humans are Horrible Hide-N-Seek Players

This weekend, I was playing Hide-and-Seek with my godson, Jacob. After being chosen as the seeker, I closed my eyes, counted to ten, then walked around the house and saw this:



I couldn't help but laugh. In order to salvage his self-esteem and confidence, I quickly snapped this picture and walked past him, pretending I didn't notice his 3 foot body crouched in the middle of the hallway. Later on, I reflected on the silliness of Jacob's childlike innocence and realized how often I put myself in the same situation as this four-year-old.

My biggest flaw, and the one that is notably referred to as "the great sin," is pride. Owning up to my mistakes is one of the hardest things for me to do; this consequently affects my relationships with family, friends, co-workers and, most importantly, God. I've noticed in myself a pattern of "hiding" from God after I fall into temptation. I put "hiding" in quotes because, just like Jacob, I'm really not hiding at all. I bet God chuckles and shakes His head each time I poorly attempt to "hide" from Him.

Humans so easily fall into the trap of being ashamed of their sin without repenting it. We hide behind our jobs because, in the world's eye, being busy means being successful. We hide behind our ministries because doing good deeds make us good people.

My favorite line in Phil Wickham's song "True Love" is:

"Lose your life just so you can find it."

There are times when it's acceptable, and even honorable, to hold up your white flag and surrender.

This is one of those times.

For Old Times Sake

I just spent the last 10 minutes watching this and laughing. And to think I used to daydream about dating them...ahhh, good times.

(Note: If you look to the right at the 4 second mark, Joey lovingly rests his arm on JC. True love.)

Girls Are Weird

I think I am the only girl in the world who doesn't like the movie "The Notebook." I used to think I did because I'm a girl and girls are supposed to enjoy that kind of stuff. I even listed it in the movies section of my MySpace just to make sure everyone knew I was a normal girl with normal girl feelings.

I remember crying when I saw it in the movie theater, but I think it was because I was PMSing and I get emotional during that time. The final scene is a shot of two birds flying over lake into the sunset. While everyone was thinking about Noah and Allie flying off together, I was wondering where that lake was. It looked so serene and reminded me of a place I would go to read a book and drink apple cider. The movie theater was silent and everyone was sniffling. It took about five minutes before anyone even stood up to leave. Finally, a young couple began walking out and the guy stopped in the middle of the aisle just to hug and embrace his date. I heard a bunch of "Aww's" echo in the theater. I remember thinking he was definitely going to get lucky that night.

I mentioned my dislike of the movie to some girls in my class last semester. I told them I found the story line to be very predictable, while the characteristics of the protagonists were weak and inconsistent. I said it was bizarre that the guy spent his every waking hour to build a house for someone he hadn't spoken to in years. I also mentioned I found it extremely distasteful of the girl to cheat on her finacee, who seemed like a very respectable gentleman that was deeply in love with her.

Oh man, if looks could kill. Three sets of jaws dropped and six eyes widened at me. Following closely after came a series of high-pitched squeaks: "Noah and Allie are meant to be!!!" "How could you even say that?!" "She never got his letters!!!" I was reminded that day the reason I have more male friends than I do female.

Oddly enough, I later overheard those same girls discussing their relationship problems. One of them was saying how she was unhappy with her boyfriend because he was just "too nice." The other two nodded fervously and made noises like, "Mmhmm" and "Ohhh" to show their agreement. After getting the support she wanted from her fellow sisters, the girl with the "problem" said confidently, "'I'm gonna dump him. He's just way too nice and he loves me too much...it's almost creepy."

My gender confuses me.

WGA Strike: The Office Is Closed

There's a been a lot of talk going on about the Writer's Guild of America (WGA) strike. From what I understand, screen writers (along with actors and directors) are not getting paid residuals for any new media. This includes purchased movies on Amazon or a television shows on iTunes. NBC also posts episodes on their website with advertisements. The group of people who wrote, created, acted & directed are getting absolutely none of the profit sales made from those three sources.

Networks said the following shows have either stopped production and/or will immediately go into rerun due to the strike:

• "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno"
• "Late Night with Conan O'Brien"
• "Last Call with Carson Daly"
• "Late Show with David Letterman"
• "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson"
• "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart"
• "Colbert Report
• "24"
• "The Office"
• "The Ellen DeGeneres Show"
• "Back To You"
• "Til Death"
•"Rules of Engagement"
• "The Big Bang Theory"
• "Two and a Half Men"
• "The New Adventures of Old Christine"
• "Desperate Housewives"

As a consumer, viewer & supporter of the entertainment industry, I find this whole situation to be unjustifiable. I knew something was seriously wrong when NBC didn't renew its contract with iTunes because Apple refused to sell each of their episodes for $4.99, as opposed to the standard $1.99. If I don't get my weekly fix of "The Office" because of money-hungry studio owners, I am NOT going to be happy.

Here's a bonus video of "The Office" writers on strike. It's bound to put a smile on your face.