blandthought

Happy Birthday, Dad

2008-03-15T23:16:00.000-05:00

A must read ...

2007-09-17T13:22:00.000-05:00

You really must read my friend Charlie's thoughts on Softub Baptism (Leslie's baptism in the hot tub). I couldn't agree with him more ...

Wisdom from Solomon:The Man who tried EVERYTHING

2007-09-17T12:47:00.001-05:00

I'm learning quite a bit from Solomon, the man who tried everything. King Solomon wrote the book of Ecclesiastes in his final years, as he was reflecting on his life. His words are sharp, focused, and experienced. He speaks from what he knows first hand.

Solomon was wildly successful. He was a brilliant thinker. And yet, he realized that all his quests for wisdom, money, and power led him to vanity. "For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow" (1:18). He saw everything under the sun, and deemed all of man's work and effort meaningless vanity. He noticed we (humans) spend our entire live striving after the wind, and forget to enjoy life. This must be why my good friend says:

Do less. Be more.
-Dave Rahn

But Solomon also warns of too much pleasure. He made great houses, planted vineyards for himself, made gardens of fruit trees, parks to play in, dug a few pools (sounds like MTV cribs), bought male and female slaves - who multiplied and brought him more baby slaves, had the biggest zoo in the world, and filled the vaults full of silver and gold and some crowns, goblets, and jewels (sounds like National Treasure). He made sure there were plenty of women hanging around for his spontaneous and frequent delight. He said "whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I kept my heart from no pleasure" (2:10).

And yet, even with all that ... he looks back on his life and says this:

Then I considered all my hands had done and the toil I had expended doing it, and behold, all was vanity (meaningless) and a striving after the wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun. (2:11)

Meaningless, he says. Meaningless. He did all that and still came up short, empty, and hollow.

Do less. Be more.

God raises up a Left-Handed Warrior

2007-06-23T09:50:00.001-05:00

Look what I stumbled across in devotions last night (from Judges 3):

Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord, and the Lord raised up for them a deliverer, Ehud ... a left-handed man.

Ehud made for himself a sword with two edges ... and he bound it on his right thigh under his clothes. And he presented the tribute to Eglon king of Moab (the enemy).

And Ehud said, "I have a secret message from God for you." And he arose from his seat. And Ehud reached with his left hand, took the sword from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly ... and the dung came out.

... But the story gets better ...

Then Ehud went out into the porch and closed the doors of the roof chamber behind him and locked them. When he had gone, the servants came, and when they saw the doors of the roof chamber were locked, they thought "Surely he is relieving himself in the closet of the cool chamber." And they waited till they were embarrassed.

A funny story, especially since the servants thought their King was taking a dump. I'm pretty sure there's some significance to the "left-handedness" warrior. Lefty's were considered handicapped in Ehud's day. They were not known for being strong warriors, used by God in powerful ways.

Thankfully, God also uses us in the midst of our weakness.

LOL

2007-06-08T10:47:00.000-05:00

I've noticed recently that I don't laugh as much as I used to. It seems the transition out of college and into the real world stole my laughter. The daily tasks, the routines, unreturned voicemails and emails, piles on my desk and in my home. These things stole my childish laughter and enthusiasm that once was.

My boss, Dan, is a couple years ahead of my in the journey. He wrote this in a recent letter, and it reminded me to laugh and live:

I have no desire to live with regrets. That’s why I laugh more than I once did. It’s why I don’t allow others to steal my joy. It’s why I listen to criticism, but I strive not to lose sleep over it. It lets me admit my frailties and celebrate God’s forgiveness.

Thanks for the reminder. There are no routines when we're found standing in grace and forgiveness. Only laughter and joy.

Cutting Edge

2007-05-08T23:41:00.000-05:00

1.5 months since my last blog post. So much has happened since then, but I've been trying to decrease the amount of time I spend on the computer (which explains the lack of blog posts).

This morning, Tara sent me a text message about a story she saw on Fox news today that shocked her. I couldn't help but post it up here for some feedback ...

Here's the story: A law firm in Chicago has promoted a billboard that reads: 'Life's Short, Get a Divorce', followed by the law firm's phone number. Fox news says "The billboard is complete with two scantily clad bodies — one male and one female."

Here's a link to the article.

The law firm calls the billboard "cutting edge". The lawyers say they're trying to help people out of bad marriage situations.

What do you think? How is this helpful?

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2007-03-28T01:57:00.000-05:00

###

Step up to the Microphone

2007-02-18T20:12:00.000-06:00

This morning I accidentally made myself puke in the front row at church. Brent was standing by my side during worship band rehearsal, practicing his electric guitar. The piano I was sitting at was a tall Yamaha upright grand piano (it's beautiful). While my back faces the church congregation, I can see a reflection of the entire room in the piano. I've always used this as a "rear view mirror" of sorts.

This particular morning, a special reflection caught my eye during rehearsal. In the very back of the room (in the nursery window), I saw my mom, girlfriend, and a little girl playing in the nursery ...

My voice isn't the greatest at 9am. In fact, it's quite pathetic. Since the girls in the back could hear every mistake through the nursery room speakers, I decided to have a little fun. I started hacking and coughing into the microphone ... attempting to stir some sort of reaction from the back.

Then it backfired. Literally. The one cup of coffee I had that morning began to backfire. I slowly raised my right hand and motioned to Brent to stop. He couldn't believe it.

Still tasted (and smelled) like Coffee.

The moral of the story: I'm not sure it has one.

I learned in Dallas ...

2007-02-10T15:03:00.000-06:00

Tomorrow I fly home from Dallas. All week, I've been stretched at the annual YFC/USA staff midwinter conference. I can't wait to get home, but I wanted to write down a few highlights before I forget them ...

1) God is able to far more abundantly than all we ask or think, according to the power at work within us (Ephesians 3). The challenge was do to less asking, and more thinking -- more dreaming and vision casting, recognizing that God will far exceed our dreams.

2) I was challenged to do less work out of obligation, and instead to be compelled by Love. This hit my heart (see my previous two posts). It's (long past) time to start serving out of love, rather than out of obligation.

3) Imagine being invited to a banquet, and while trying to have a conversation with your table host you quickly notice that the host is preoccupied looking for a more distinguished guest. This is not how it works with God. He has invited me to the table, and there are no distinguished guests that he would rather dine with. This reinforces that I can serve out of love and not out of obligation.

4) In order to be a healthy minister, I must have clear vision/purpose. I must also realize that the work is never done, and I must find a sabbath retreat day. This will probably not be Sunday, but I need to find this time.

Goals from this session:
i) Sabbath - one per week
ii) Abiding time - daily
iii) Exercise
iv) Phone off, no email during all of the above.

5) Change is not an event. Change is a process. Is it really about the Kindom, or have I made it about my name on the marquee?

6) There is a huge difference between Culture defense and Kingdom work. Culture tries to achieve outcomes, while the Kingdom trusts God for the outcomes. This Kingdom work cannot be assessed by our cultural methods of data analysis.

There's a lot more, but that's enough for now.

Being vs. Doing

2007-01-30T11:37:00.000-06:00

Over a year ago, I wrote on the topic of "Being" vs. "Doing".

I think it's time to revisit this. The following are some excerpts from my recent talk to Normandale Reformed Church.

Do we really “Get it” that God isn’t interested in how much we “DO” for him, but rather, just want us to “BE” with him?

This was a huge revelation for me this week.
That God isn’t interested in how much I DO FOR HIM, but His head turns when I express that I simply want to BE WITH HIM.

In English, we call this abiding (connect, be close, to be attached). Abiding might be a little like constant text messaging – even though a person is not here, you are remaining connected to them while living life.

Jesus tells a story of two men in Matthew 7. One builds a house on the sand, the other on the rock. The winds and rains destroy the house built on the sand, but the one on the rock stands firm.

I’ve read this a kazillion times, but something new was revealed to me this week – THEY BOTH BUILT HOUSES! They both had something to show for their work. They both labored furiously, and from the outside-looking-in, you might not have known the difference. In fact, you might have walked in the house built on the sand on the day it was built and said to yourself “Man! I wish I could build something like this! This person has it all together! They are a master builder!”

I can’t believe I’ve missed this all long. They both were furiously laboring, tirelessly building, and both had a house to show for their work.

But the problem was in the foundation.

And I’m not much different. Sometimes I wake up in the morning and my mind immediately begins calculating the list of things that I need or should do that day. Those are good days – usually the list gets put together a few weeks in advance. And sure, I find “space” for God – sometimes – where I’ll just sit and be with him.

But Jesus says makes it very clear that our lift ticket into eternity is a personal relationship with him. A deep abiding relationship, that is willing to be quiet, and listen to his still, small voice. Look with me – just a few verses before, in Matthew 7:21:

Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.

Sometime when you have a chance, read John 15:1-17. Jesus invited us to abide in Him. The word abide appears 11 times!

The bottom line:
More than how much we “do for” Jesus, Jesus wants us to simply “be with” him.

What a privilege

2006-12-27T00:50:00.000-06:00

Somewhere along the way, I forgot the privilege. I got tired. I was burnt out, worn, and exhausted. I let the holy-passion that once burned inside of me become a routine. Not only a routine, but a burdensome, religious chore. It sounds like this:

Pick the songs. Arrange them in a fresh “flowing” order, all-the-while being mindful of the song’s key and lyrical theme. Pray (because I’m supposed to, you know). Research appropriate scripture. Type the lyrics. Rehearse every chord. Print 8 copies for the band. Printer out of ink. Drive to store. Buy ink. Look at watch. Complain about having to do all this. Return home. Clear the printer’s queue. Re-print. Paperclip. Stack.

Re-type the lyrics into Powerpoint (yuch), MediaShout, or Keynote. Computer crashes. Re-re-type the lyrics. Grab guitar and rehearse with slides. Make sure they’re in the right order …

Sound equipment: Looks like I need a _____. (guitar string, pick, AA battery, mic cable, insert missing-piece-of-equipment here). Call a friend. Drive to friend’s house. Borrow the equipment.

Rehearsal. Email the band. Find a time that works. Discover that “no time” works, of course. Do the best we can with who can come. But now, where? Where will we rehearse? Call a church. Acquire a key. Figure out the church’s sound system. Screeching feedback. Loud noises. I don’t know what we’re yelling about.

Somewhere along the way, I forgot the privilege. I let the holy-passion that once burned inside of me become a routine. Tonight, the holy passion returned. Thank you, Jesus.

This is not a routine. This is not a burdensome chore. This is an ongoing conversation. It is a continuous dialog between my spirit, your spirit, and the Maker of the entire universe. In this very moment, we have the privilege of communicating, adoring, worshipping, proclaiming the glory, falling down in complete awe before, and singing at the top of our lungs to the One who made us.
For “all the earth bows down to you: they sing praise to you, they sing praise to your name.” (ps 66:4)

This is for glory. What a privilege, Jesus. Father, forgive me for making this about me.

There is no greater love than this:

2006-12-26T16:22:00.000-06:00

One who would lay down his life for his friends.

Fuller's Prez is Blogging

2006-12-20T16:26:00.000-06:00

This afternoon I was writing a letter of recommendation for a friend of mine. He's applying at Fuller Theological Seminary. While on their website, I noticed their president has a blog. He's new to blogging, and I enjoyed his healthy perspective on the concept of blogging and MySpace:

One thing that has been on my heart lately is space. Along with exploring blogs this summer, I became familiar with MySpace. I did some browsing, and was amazed by the sheer volume of this phenomenon: thousands and thousands of pictures of people supposedly inviting you into their “space.”

When I look at all those pictures, I think about how, in some primordial sense, each of these folks realizes that they are not alone. I think that, at some level, they realize the truth of the Psalmist when he said: “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.” Or in today’s vocabulary, we might say: If I retreat into my own website, my own blog, my own MySpace…there, too, I am in your presence.

As Christians in this MySpace culture, we need to be reminding people that everything we call “my space” is also, in a very profound sense, God’s space. We are inescapably in God’s presence.

Whether it’s on MySpace, in classrooms, or in the workplace, each person we encounter in our day-to-day lives has a God-sized space within their souls. This is a space that can be filled only by a relationship with the one true God.

Richard J. Mouw

Merry Christmas

2006-12-19T00:47:00.001-06:00

Check out this video..

Check out this video..

Silence and Solitute

2006-12-19T00:36:00.000-06:00

Today was a big day at the apartment on Elmwood. For the first time in 5 years, I have my own bedroom. I got home from work at about 5:30, and the guys and I immediately began moving our junk around. It's 12:41, and we're still not done, but calling it quits for the night.

I'm really pumped about having my own room. I'm thrilled to have a place to retreat to, where I can close the door and relax - nap - eat - sleep - read - whatever. This "retreat space" has been missing for 5 years, and the need is becoming obvious.

We read in Luke's gospel that "Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. At times He withdrew with His disciples and other times He withdrew alone.” I have vivid imagery in my mind of Jesus speaking to thousands, all the while nudging Peter to "go get the boat" so they could retreat for rest and restoration.

Psalm 46:10 instructs us to
"Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth."

Today I am thankful ... for this new space ... to be still in, and call home.

Chronicles - Chapter 6

2006-11-29T22:33:00.000-06:00

Solomon had just finished building the most ornate building imaginable. It took thousands of skilled men to build the structure … so many that there were nearly 4,000 supervisors alone. Gold and precious metals were imported and poured into beautiful ornaments, with two enormous gold winged creatures placed inside. Surely this was an incredible sight! Solomon’s God given-task, and his life-purpose fulfilled!

But Solomon recognized that his creation was merely human. He never lost sight of how small he and his efforts were in comparison to the God of the universe. In fact, in his prayer of dedication he said this:

Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, how much less this house that I have built! (v18 - ESV)

God honored Solomon’s kingdom-building efforts (in a huge way – read Chapter 7), but I would imagine God’s response had something to do with Solomon’s humility.

I, too, am making efforts to build God’s kingdom. Most days, however, I think way to highly of myself. I trick myself into thinking that God somehow needs me. That I’m a big deal. Look at me! Look what I’m doing, God! Everyone else come take a look at what I’m doing for God!

Do you catch the sarcasm?

Behold, even the highest heaven cannot contain my Jesus, how much less these little efforts I build.

God, you be God and I’ll be Jake. Today (and again tomorrow), I’ll submit to you.

The Mac Commercials ...

2006-11-12T22:02:00.000-06:00

My friend Bill uncovered these Apple-rip-off commercials, and they're pretty cool. Instead of "Mac vs PC", it's "Christian vs Christ-follower".

I'm just glad that "Christ-follower" is the Mac guy ... Watch Videos

Sleep is for the weak ...

2006-11-06T22:32:00.001-06:00


800+ high school students gathered in Ft. Wayne for GoMAD 2006, a conference sponsored by Youth for Christ/Campus Life. For photos, check out www.yfcpeoria.org

Our Story is God's Story

2006-10-30T10:31:00.000-06:00

I have a friend. His life has a story. Our lives are connected. His story becomes part of my story.

"And our story is God's story. So many of us have been conditioned to think of our faith as solely an issue of us and God. But faith is a communal experience. A shared journey. I have heard people say their stories are not exciting. I can only imagine how deeply offended God is with comments like this. Not exciting? If the story is about me, then, yes, it is only exciting to a certain degree. But the point of our stories and our faith journeys is that they are about something much bigger."

So, if you have a friend ... If your friend has a story, then claim it.

"I tell my story and my wife's story and my friends' stories -- I tell every story. I want others to see how they're all connected. So if you think your faith story is boring, take someone else's.

All things are yours."

(quotes taken from Velvit Elves, by Rob Bell)

Two questions I've always wondered ... but forgot to ask

2006-10-25T19:52:00.000-05:00

1. Does anyone else have trouble with the envelope dispensers in the ATM machines (specifically Money Center 24)? Or is that just me? For 8 years now I've been pulling up to the machine and pushing the metal trigger that says "PUSH". Never has a single envelope ever been dispensed.

So I resort to yanking the envelopes out of the machine. Any suggestions here? Am I the only one?

2. Why - when one runs out of toilet paper, is it customary to get a new roll of toilet paper and leave the empty one on the rod, without replacing it? It would take 3 more seconds to replace the toilet paper. And ... there's really plenty of time to complete the re-stock while sitting and thinking.

Today- When I feel like I don't need Jesus, it's because I'm way too self-righteous. I trick myself into thinking that somehow I deserve all this ...

2006-10-10T00:11:00.000-05:00

... that somehow I've earned this life.

The truth is, I need Jesus not because I am good but because I am very, very sick. Because He's seen my filth at the very core of my being and genuinely wants to spend time in my dirt.

He does this because He and I have no other choice - He, because I am His created child and He loves me unconditionally. And I, because there is this God-shaped hole in my heart that can only be filled by Him.

Thank God that He came to seek and save the lost (me).

Catalyst Conference - Day ONE

2006-10-05T21:18:00.000-05:00

Incredible drumline, live monkey on the stage licking a lollipop, surprise guest comedian/preacher Jeff Foxworthy (yes, redneck guy), knights on real horses, and a Beatles cover band ... these are the things we experienced today at Catalyst 2006.

Justin has some great Foxworthy quotes on his blog. Here are some of my favorite quotes from the speakers today:

Andy Stanley on Humility

The Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men, and he gives them to anyone he wishes (Daniel 4). This should change our perspective on leadership, and eliminate our arrogance.
Leadership is a stewardship. It's temporary, and you're accountable
Christ-like leadership should be diligent, fearless, and humble ... because God has placed me where I am, and I just serve as a temporary sub here for Him.
This isn't about My Story - I am a substitute helping with God's Story

Marcus Buckingham on Management

All great teams have one thing in common: great management
The job of the manager is to turn individual talent into performance, and grow team goals
We're always a work in progress. We are never done with our work
If you can't do - teach. If you really can't do - consult
Capitalize on individual uniqueness
Great managers never speak in generalities about their team: they know vivid detail about each person
When dealing with difficult people, managers should spend 80% of the time sharpening the person's strengths, and 20% of the time filling-in for weakness (most managers have this backwards)
Door after door will continue to open, but not all doors open to your strengths
If you studied "Bad" and inverted it, you don't get "Good" - you get "not bad"

George Barna on the Church

We're not called to "go to" church. We're called to "be" the Church.
Family is the central church experience
"Bigness" is not as big of deal as "depth"

John Maxwell on Leadership

In the beginning of your leadership journey, do everything. In the process, lean towards the things you do very well.
Begin to develop people to complete you in your weak area
We attract who we are, not who we want.
Jesus did not spend equal amounts of time with everyone (Pete, Jim, and John - what do you think Matt and Barts convo looked like?)
The greatest investment in the Kingdom, is to invest in your best (Phil Jackson -> "Get the ball to Michael")
Paul said, "This one thing I do" ... NOT "Fourty things I dabble in"
I'll buy lunch to the first person who reads this line and comments
People who lead the most, have not always had the highest position
Moral failure in leadership is usually due to (1) No accountability, (2) No time in the Word, and (3) a "it won't happen to me" mentality.

Tomorrow ... Louie Giglio and Donald Miller!

To see what my fellow travelers are saying, check out their blogs:

Charlie Dean
Chris Evans
Justin Ganschow
Tim Schraeder
Leadership Journal Blog

Catalyst 2006

2006-10-04T15:22:00.000-05:00

So, we just arrived in our hotel in HotLanta and the four of us have been without internet for approximately 35 hours. We have been craving wi-fi like a pregnant woman craves peppermint orange juice. We had been praying that once we arrived we would be able to check our emails, sports scores, myspace's, etc...And alas, we are here, and we have free wi-fi. What a glorious afternoon this has become.

Here you see us all in our most satisfying positions...laptops on laps.

THIS JUST IN ... "THE GREAT FLOOD": We had quite the adventure after dinner, involving a flooded toilet and the hotel manager crawling around on our floor. To retell this story, I will refer to Charlie , Chris, and Justin.

How is life similar (or dissimilar) to a "Choose your own Adventure" book?

2006-09-26T23:06:00.000-05:00

You know, the kind where you get to choose the next plot twist and "turn to page 36" to see the result ...

A stupid question, I know. But I'm interested to see what kind of similarities or dissimilarities people can come up with.

You can learn (a lot) from my mistakes ...

2006-09-19T22:08:00.000-05:00

A couple days ago I fed this homeless man named Eugene. He was sitting behind Avanti's starving, and I brought him a gondola. As soon as he received it, he began to devour it. Once finished, he did not acknowledge me. No eye contact. Not even a "thank you".

My roommates were around when I got home, so naturally I began to discuss this tragedy with them. "Can you believe the guy didn't say thanks? I bought him food and he couldn't even offer a simple 'Thank You'?"

My mistake. I forgot that my worship doesn't begin with me. It begins and ends with Jesus -- who said this:

Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them ... when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do ... that they may be praised by others.

But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Jesus in Matthew 6 (ESV)

Learn from my mistake. Give freely today to the needy. But don't tell anyone. And don't require thanks. Just give.

A Parable

2006-09-11T08:58:00.000-05:00

I'm in Chicago this week for some meetings ... doing a lot of driving, sitting in traffic, and thinking.

I was on my way to Midway airport to pick up my friend Kevin, flying in from Louisville. About 10 minutes into the commute he called. His flight was delayed by 1 hour. I continued down 55, exited onto Cicero, and planned to stop at Starbucks for my newly discovered extra hour.

Waiting at the longest stoplight in the world, I was fascinated by the man selling the Chicago Tribune on the corner. He was skinny, shivering, and didn't appear very coordinated. He stood, agitated - holding his newspapers high, looking each driver in the eye as we passed by. He had something to offer that we might desire.

I watched him grow even more frustrated as dozens of cars passed, no one even slowed down to consider buying a paper. Some drivers looked confused, while others avoided the potential danger of rolling down their window.

Now, from the window at Starbucks I can see another man standing on the corner. This time ... a traffic cop (with "City of Chicago" written in bright orange across his vest) stood on the corner sidewalk in the pouring rain. As customers exit out of Starbucks, they are greeted by the man with an offer to help them across the street. He stretches out his hand, deflects the oncoming traffic, and walks with the pedestrians until they reach safety on the other side.

I haven't seen anyone turn him down yet.

Planet Pluto

2006-08-28T15:18:00.000-05:00

I heard on the radio yesterday that Pluto has lost it's status as a planet. Read the CNN article.

So now there are only 8 planets in our solar system. I'm fine with that, but what will we teach our children?

My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine ______?
My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Noodles?
My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nothing?

Suggestions please ... you never know, it could make the textbooks.

How Infinitely Sweet...

2006-08-14T17:19:00.000-05:00

...this great love that has redeemed. As one, we sing Hallelujah! He is Holy!

Those words echoed through the exhibit hall of the Anaheim Convention Center just four days ago. 8,000 teens and their adult mentors gathered in one room to praise the God of Heaven and Earth.

(BTW - that's my roommate on the video camera, high above the crowd). It was an incredible moment. My ministry (and my job) is to reach teens with the gospel and plug them into the Church. It's not often that we get to see the fruits of such efforts ... but worshipping together is a beautiful picture.

Yes - we all worship something. This country is not worship-void, it's just worship-misplaced (thanks, Louie, for that one). For some, it's a car ... a computer ... the latest cell phone ... a relationship ... a job ... a book ... Something is screaming for our attention, thoughts, cravings, and desires. For me, at any given moment and I'm worshipping my Apple Powerbook, the search for my wife, my guitar, job, or Jesus.

God, help me make it more of the latter. There can't possibly be an object worthy of greater attention.

Other personal highlights from the past two weeks:

Climbed a mountain to 11,000 feet
Drove a porsche -- and almost convinced the Hilton bellman that it was mine
Surfed - well, I tried
Spent a week with some of the most brilliant people I have ever met, including students

Slept for 16 hours straight without waking up - a new personal record!
Flew home on a "Terrorist Red" day, only sacrificing my toothpaste and hair-gel

Time-out on the Blogging

2006-07-29T00:47:00.000-05:00

Have a great couple weeks ... I'll be out of town until August 12.

Week 1: Crooked Creek Camp near Winterpark, Colorado. We're taking nearly 40 high school students and leaders. Please pray for each name below - for safe travel, fun experiences, and that Jesus himself would become more real to us this week. It's going to be an amazing camp.

Chelsea Calli Meredith Roxy Kelsey Chris Joe Brian Jeremy Logan Kelsey Abby Brent Josh Cody Mary Logan Beky Jo Jo Kristen Jeff Josh James Anita Caitlin Dana Jeff Jessey Nikki Annie Callee Kim Jake Jarrod Ross

Our photos will be posted here: www.yfcpeoria.org

Week 2: Flying out to spend a couple days with my friend Ben in LA ... then serving at the DCLA student conference in California. Over 6,000 students will gather. Crowder, Giglio, etc will also be there -- yeah!

I'll be back soon -- see you then!

Preoccupied

2006-07-18T23:06:00.000-05:00

A couple days ago, I stumbled on a blog post that shook me up quite a bit. In a few short lines, I got a glimpse my perceived character...and it wasn't good. The following is a direct quote from one of my Bradley classmates:

I don't know how Jake Bland does it. He is a definite wunderkind in the Multimedia Program...he seems to do everything but at the same time he always seems calm, unstressed, and collected...I just don't get it. Maybe he doesn't put as much work into classes or something.

I always think he'd make a cool friend, but interaction is always...forced, at best. It's weird. He just doesn't seem all that interested in getting to know me or something. I've found that true, though, with a lot of the "good" Christian kiddies around campus--the ones who are super involved with stuff like Cru and IV. Then again, Jarrod isn't all that involved with either of those (though he is in STE) and I haven't really succeeded in becoming friends with him, either.

This is significant because it is everything I strive NOT to be. I never wanted to be one of those "good Christian kiddes around campus" ... the ones who (1) talk a lot about Jesus, and (2) do things for Jesus, but never actually spend any real time loving people or building relationships.

In fact, I want to be just the opposite.

For the past couple years, I've tried to refocus my life and ministry around building meaningful relationships with people. I'm getting much better, but it's evident here that I have a long way to go. I'm striving to live an authentic Christian life, which at it's core means that I must (1) love God with everything I have and (2) love people - openly, honestly, genuinely, without restraint, unconditionally, announcing my own struggles and faults.

Here is one such announcement of failure.

I've written a personal apology to this person, but I wanted to announce this publicly as well. I never intended to be "forced" in our interactions, and I was truly interested in getting to know him. He's right though. I didn't take time. I was preoccupied. I left the relationship at the surface ...

Trying harder today.

JB

The Great Sumo Match of 2006

2006-07-17T23:04:00.000-05:00

This video is in honor of Chris, Bethany, Autumn, and Erin. Tonight we were sitting in my living room talking (with the TV on). A commercial came on that utilized stop-motion photography, and captured our attention.

We joked around about how funny it would be to make a movie like that -- and then in a moment of randomness decided to actually follow through. So, here's what we came up with in 10 minutes ...

Play Movie (11 seconds)

Pirates Review

2006-07-11T23:52:00.000-05:00

Daniel and I went to go see "Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest" on Sunday after church. Hanging out with him was great (I haven't seen him for most of the summer), but the movie itself was disappointing ... I thought.

I was going to write a review up here, but after Marla sent me this Ninja video I realized that I can't say it any better than this. Enjoy...

Some of my Bradley friends started a sidewalk campaign at the end of the school year. They wrote "Pirates or Ninjas?" all over the sidewalks on campus. The age old question was "Who would win in a fight: Pirates or Ninjas?" Does anyone want to take a stab at how they answered that question?

Greetings Guatamalan Missionaries

2006-07-09T21:23:00.000-05:00

My blog tracker shows that I recently had a visitor from Guatamala. If I had 10 guesses, I bet I could guess who it is. A handful of my friends are serving there as part of a church missions trip. In case they check back here, I just wanted to send a shout out -- and let you know that I'm praying for you. Serve faithfully, and come back safely!

On that note, please pray for my friend Ryan in Papau New Guinea. I'm assuming he doesn't have Internet since he's eating bugs, tree bark, and boiled leaves (yum).

Also pray for my friend Brent who is leading a guys retreat in Michigan's upper peninsula.

Who else? I'm sure there are more to pray for ...

New Fangled Technology

2006-07-09T20:36:00.000-05:00

If you're reading this, I'm now able to post from my cell phone. I'm only allowed 200 characters, so I probably won't do this often ... But hey it works :-)

Certified in Pyrotechnics

2006-07-08T22:38:00.000-05:00

For the past three years, my Dad and I have been volunteers for Pekin's Chamber of Commerce fireworks show. Believe it or not, we've actually been trained and certified in the art of launching 6" shells hundreds of yards into the air. And as if that isn't enough fun - they also feed us breakfast, free drinks, and a delicious steak dinner to top it all off. It's a rough gig.

We launch from the baseball diamond: 1 aerial crew on each base path. Our fearless leader stands on the pitcher's mound shouting instructions. Among his vocabulary of commands, "LOW" is the most dangerous ... it means that a shell has failed to launch properly and that we should all hit the deck.

In our training, they said this almost never happens ... They were wrong. It happened twice our rookie year. Three times the second year. It's actually quite entertaining ... you're not supposed to look up, but I usually do just to see what the inside of a firework looks like.

This year was different. Instead of shooting off fireworks, I found myself driving on I-55 south heading home from a conference. I rounded the turn in Bloomington just as the sun went down. As soon as the sky turned dark it was illuminated with fireworks all along the horizon. I could see the shows in at least 8 cities! What an amazing perspective to watch from!

I made it to Pekin to catch the last ten minutes of the show ... can't wait to rejoin the crew next year.

To Have and to Hold

2006-07-01T21:17:00.000-05:00

There's a song by Mae called "Someone Else's Arms". Throughout the whole chorus, they sing "I just wanna wake up..." -- over and over again. It isn't until the very end of the song that they finish the line "...in someone else's arms."

Great song! Over the past two weeks, I've had the priviledge of watching four of my closest friends get married. Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Eric & Jill Larson, and Mr. and Mrs. Jon and Michelle Smith! It's been a blast reconnecting with old friends -- from high school and from college, and sharing these moments together. I think I'm also learning a lot about what real love "looks like" by listening to all these wedding vows. Both Jon & Michelle and Eric & Jill have a very special love for each other that is to be honored. It's a great example for us all, single friends ... Good thing we have four more weddings to look forward to yet this summer ;-)

I leave Peoria at 3:30am tomorrow morning ... heading to Washington, DC for the first part of Youth for Christ's DCLA conference. Thousands of teens will gather. Crowder, Tomlin, and Giglio are going to be there. Best of all, we're going to teach the students about living authentic lives by building loving relationships with people. Please pray for a high impact weekend.

Enjoy your holiday!

A Record Day

2006-06-28T11:40:00.000-05:00

Today is an ironically good day ...

1) My car battery died -- twice last week. Sensing it was on it's last leg this morning, I thought it was going to be a rough day. Turns out that AutoZone diagnosed, sold, and installed my battery in under 20 minutes ... leaving me "on time" for number two below ...

2) A 9:45 dentist appointment (filling). Also not something you'd typically look forward to. Due to some freak circumstances, this particular filling required no shots or numbing at all! The whole thing took less than a half-hour, and the conversation was actually quite enjoyable.

Looking forward to a lunch appointment with the Dreamy Ben Sparks.

p.s. I have no idea who the guy in the photo is.

Pay it Forward

2006-06-18T14:52:00.000-05:00

I was watching "Pay it Forward" with a friend of mine the other night. I had never seen the movie, but the concept seemed familiar. One of the main characters, a young boy, decides that he will do something nice for 3 people, who will return the favor by impacting 3 additional people (and the movement snowballs across the country).

WCIC is doing something like this here in Peoria. They're calling it "tag you're it". I actually saw this in action as the Avanti's waitress received a large tip at the table next to mine along with a notecard reading "Tag You're It". What's great about both of these examples is that they're open to anyone -- you don't have to be a member of a specific club or organization to get tagged. It's a "game" that the entire public is playing.

I have another friend who will often anonymously pay for a group's meal one table over. Try it sometime -- you'll be blessed just watching their reaction, so much that you won't even want the credit.

The Absurd Gospel

2006-06-18T14:23:00.000-05:00

I believe that Jesus -- both fully God and fully man -- lived, died, and rose again to restore our broken relationship with God. His message is love. He loves all ... the businessmen, the haters, the doubters, the prostitutes, the tax collectors, the adulturers, the lawyers, the homosexuals, the heterosexuals, the elderly, the blind, the able-bodied, the cripled, and especially the children.

The religious people annoyed him the most, but he even found room in his heart to love them too.

If Jesus Christ went through the bloody painful suffering on the cross only to establish a group of "nice" people with "nice" morals who dress "nice" and meet in "nice" buildings and try not to do "bad" things ... if that's true, then Gospel is absurd. Who would die for that?

But that's not the Gospel. It sounds more like this: "Come to me, all you who are burdened, and I will give you rest." Or, "I came so that you would have abundant life."

Now seeking: A community of people who love God and each other so much it's contagious.

An Observation

2006-06-16T09:22:00.000-05:00

I took a shower yesterday, and it was glorious (as always). I'm a daily shower-er, sometimes 2 in a day if I can get away with it. As I left the bathroom to go get dressed, my roommate Brent was just beginning his morning routine. Just having finished, you can imagine that I was surprised to hear him complaining from the bathroom.

"The shower doesn't work," he said.
"Sure it does, I just used it." I replied.

But sure enough -- the shower had gone dry within just a few minutes. Brent was completely cut off from the source. As it turns out, the contractors were remodeling the bathroom upstairs and had shut off our water to make the repairs. Our makeshift solution was to use several bottles of water for the important things like brushing-of-the-teeth.

Fact: It's annoying to try and brush your teeth with bottled water. You must return to the source each time for a refill before continuing.

A couple years ago, I used to take the "bottled water" approach to ministry. I would (1) approach the source - (2) fill up - and then (3) pour out by returning to ministry. When I was feeling dry or empty, I'd return to the source. The source would then fill me up, and I'd take my "full bottle" and the process would continue ...

Second fact: That's about as frustrating as trying to brush your teeth with bottled water.

I've realized now that life is more like the shower. To be "in Christ" or to have "Christ in me" means that I walk (or live, or minister) like I'm in the shower all the time. The source is indeed unlimited, and I should not pour out but give away the overflow. This clearly means that the most important relationship that I have is between me and the source.

And so I commit ... to enjoying the source: the author and giver of life.

I Miss You

2006-06-13T23:11:00.000-05:00

Kyle and I were talking tonight about how hard it is to keep in touch after school is out -- and even harder after graduation. We both admitted how much we miss our friends, hang out time, and "the way things were" altogether. It's not that we don't enjoy where we are now, it's just so hard to look back and realize that those times will never be again.

So -- for crying out loud -- keep in touch! How is life? Your summer? Your job? Your family? Drop me an email (jake@jakebland.com), or write a comment on this blog. Let's talk :-)

Peace out, my dear friends.

Life moves fast ... Sometimes Blogs Don't

2006-06-13T22:48:00.000-05:00

So much has been going on these past several days -- what a blast! I've started my full-time job with YFC, attended the HOBY Youth Leadership Conference in Champaign for a weekend (Shout-out to Group #10, "The Green Machine", and my fellow "old people" facilitators shown below), and spent some time in Chicago visiting Gabe and Lindsay. I haven't yet been able to collect my thoughts and write them down here, but will get to that point soon. (Still trying to adjust to this new "real world" schedule).

Give me another day or so -- and then we shall continue the blogging. Peace.

Redneck Stove and Grill

2006-06-01T21:55:00.000-05:00

My boss showed me this photo today ... after camping 3 times in the last week, I found it pretty funny. Thanks Dan.

Thanks, too, for the prayers and the encouragement. Life has been rough the past couple of days -- but not in all areas. I was overwhelmed last night as I sat back and intentionally reflected on the many blessings God has given me. So thank you - family and friends - for being such a blessing. :-)

Do I not know? Have I not heard?

2006-05-30T23:30:00.000-05:00

I lost a dear friend tonight ... a loved one, for sure ... someone very close to my heart. After hearing the news, I spent most of the night angry - shouting - confused - frustrated - crying - fearful - terrified - and even downright ticked off. God felt very far away in this moment. I felt like he couldn't see me.

Why - on the very day that I began my full time ministry - would God allow this to happen? Am I abandoned? Forgotten?

No. I am not. Read these words from the prophet Isaiah, which had as much impact on my heart tonight as they must have had thousands of years ago:

Why do you say, Jacob, and complain ...
       "My way is hidden from the LORD;
       my cause is disregarded by my God"?

Do you not know? Have you not heard?
       The LORD is the everlasting God,
       the Creator of the ends of the earth.
       He will not grow tired or weary,
       and his understanding no one can fathom.

He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;
but those who hope in the LORD
       will renew their strength.
       They will soar on wings like eagles;
       they will run and not grow weary,
       they will walk and not be faint.

Roadtrip Day 2-4: Ohio to Maine via NYC

2006-05-29T16:08:00.000-05:00

Here are some more highlights from the trip:

Deerfield, Ohio is the gravesite of U.S. Grant's grandmother. Who knew?
In the same town, some guy had spray painted the side of his house: "God Bless our troops. God forgive our government." ... ON THE SIDE OF HIS HOUSE!
I bought a book from the bookstore last night on the history of Google and learned a little about their business strategy. This means I'm a big nerd.
We passed a fire station with a Darth Vader helmet on top.
In Evelyns, Ohio there is a $1,500 fine for dumping.
Nearby, we found a cemetery with the following sign: "Cemetery: No Trespassing Except for Cemetery Purposes." What?
I am now a library card holder in Canfield, OH. We needed to use the public access computers to see if J Scott had any upcoming shows in NYC. After all the work to register, it turned out he didn't have any shows.
Pennsylvania's welcome center has free cookies.
The highest point on I-80 is in Clearfield, Pennsylvania ... the landscape is beautiful
We took a tour of Penn's Cave - a deep cavern that was formed by water erosion to the inside of a mountain. Our tour guide had a cute accent, and a little boy in our boat kept growling at her.

Also - one guy in our boat looked like Bob Ross. Jason wanted me to ask him to say "Happy little cloud."
Ate dinner at the Turnpike cafe, in the middle of amish country.
We decided to stay the night in Bethlehem, but the inn's were too expensive (anyone see any irony here?) - we ended up staying in a cheap hotel just outside of Bethlehem.
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania is home to "Pooch & Kitty's Pet Shop"
Jason and I nearly killed each other in Newark, NJ ... over driving directions and lack of sleep
We took the train into NYC, and spent the day walking around and laying around in Central Park. Hard to believe that we had driven all that way. Ate a small Chinese place in Greenwich village ... we liked the square plates and the frosty glasses.
This was my third trip to NYC, but my first time noticing that all of the restaurants have storage below them. To access they must open up the sidewalks and walk down a staircase. Never noticed that before.
We met up with J Scott, and got some dinner in little Italy ... the restaurant owners all wait on the sidewalks and beg you ("Everything you'd ever want" ... "You want it, we got it") to come to their place. It's kind of intimidating.
10 girls walked in and sat at the table next to us, and we convinced Jason to go ask them for directions. Turns out they were from Macomb, IL. We took the subway down to times square.
Slept on the floor in NYC with no blankets and no pillow.
Hartfield, Connecticut is the home of Trinity College Men's Squash National Champs 1999-2005!
We sat in dead-stop traffic all day through Massachusetts. Apparently the state has spent billions of dollars trying to dig their interstate highways into tunnels under Boston, only to find out that they did the whole thing wrong. They call it the "Big Dig". Jason and I vowed never to return to Massachusetts again.
We drove all the way through New Hampshire in 15 minutes.

That's enough for now :-)

Road Trip Day 1: Peoria to Columbus, OH

2006-05-27T00:55:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting here with my friend Autumn. She just asked me: "If you could sum up your trip in one word, what would it be?"

My response: "Relaxing ... Free"

"That's two words," she said.

Dang.

10 days. That's all we had. 10 full days to unwind between 12 years of school and entrance in to the real world. 10 days in the "space between". We were no longer college students. We were not yet in the real world. Our status was undefined. 10 days, and Jason and I set out to explore ...

This is the story.

5/16/06 - Peoria, IL

Unplugged. I turned off my cell phone only two hours ago and I'm already starting to feel the effects. My leash has been removed, and I'm no longer accountable to anyone. A much needed mental rest after completing four years of college -- four years of stress, pressures, deadlines, joys, celebrations, sorrows, and struggles.

But now it's all over.

My friends packed up ... some moved far away. The campus - once alive and social - is now bleak and empty. In two shorts weeks I will transition into the real world. No more school (sure, the education continues) but the classroom model (all I've ever known) has faded. The job awaits. The ministry continues. But first, I unplug.

As I write that word, I'm reminded again that my hero often withdrew to lonely places and unplugged. Before and after the big moments, he always took time to relax and chill. To be absent. To spend time with his father, and only his father.

PHANTOM VIBRATE: the unique sensation that you're receiving a cell phone call (you actually feel the vibrating phone) but there is no actual phone in your pocket. I think it's a disease.

5/16/06 - Indianapolis, IN

Timeless. The absence of time. Jason and I noticed right away that one of the major changes of a trip like this is the absence of time. It takes some getting used to. Initially, we kept checking our clock and eventually asked "WHY!?!" Somehow, this led into a discussion of the words: eternal, immortal, and mortal.

<-------> Eternal
| -------> Immortal
|--------| Mortal

The entry sign to Ohio says "Ohio: The Center of Everything." Quite the claim, eh? We ate dinner at the original "Max and Erma's Cafe" in Columbus, Ohio -- in the middle of the German Village. I got a little creeped out because the bathrooms were in the basement of the restaurant. I ordered the BBQ Chicken Quesadilla (sick pack - inside family joke). We also found a book store with over 30 rooms! It was set up like a labrynth ... thought I was caught in an eternal maze of books. Quite the day ... slept in my pastor's vacant house in Canton, Ohio -- which they were kind enough to loan us for the night. We were about 8 hours away from home.

Prayer and the Art of CRV Maintenance (PACRVM)

2006-05-16T10:33:00.000-05:00

My friend Jason and I will depart in just a few minutes for the road trip. Please pray for us. We will return a couple days before my birthday on May 29. See you then! :-)

Commencement

2006-05-13T16:52:00.000-05:00

These past few days have been bittersweet. On the one hand, graduating from Bradley University is an incredible accomplishment, and my friends and I are enjoying the celebrations. On the other hand, it marks the end of a life-chapter ... a point in time where friends move away and out into the real world. These bonds that we've formed are now being broken and scattered across the country. To be honest, everything has felt like a blur. Today's commencement ceremony made everything seem so final (which is ironic since the word "commencement" actually means a "beginning"). It's really over. Seriously - I can't believe it.

I arrived at the Peoria Civic Center this morning at 7:15 (which is way to early to get up on a Saturday). I couldn't sleep last night (Was this because of nerves? Or the excessive amounts of dessert I consumed last night? -- I can't decide).

I was honored to be selected as the 2006 student commencement speaker. A student selection committee decides who they will ask to make the address. I have to admit I was surprised -- I'm not a straight "A" student, I'm not the president of the school, nor did I serve on any student government committees. Nonetheless, it was a privilege and an honor.

Many of you requested that the speech be posted up here, so I have done my best to do that. If you have the Macromedia Flash player, you should be able to watch the video below. If you don't have it, you can download the player.

If you can't see the video above, you can read the transcript below:

Dr. Broski, distinguished members of the Board of Trustees, Faculty, Staff, Families, Friends, and my fellow classmates, take a sigh of relief … we are finally here.

It was not long ago that we walked on campus as incoming college students. Our tour guide demonstrated his remarkable ability to walk backwards, looking each of us in the eye as he spoke. The buildings seemed foreign – and although we ourselves may have been uneasy, the spirit on campus was … comfortable, conducive to learning, and somehow it just fit.

Take a moment to reflect on your first move-in-day experience. While cars lined up for hundreds of yards, the seemingly endless array of Greek students approached, saying “Can I help you with that?” I remember feeling unsure as to whether or not I should trust these complete strangers with all of my personal belongings – no – my life, which had so quickly been reduced to a collection of small suitcases and cardboard boxes.

A hug and a kiss to Mom and Dad, and they revealed a parting gift that demonstrated their love … that was extremely protective and hesitant to let go. I eagerly opened the package much to my surprise to find … a “roll-up fire-escape ladder”. The only problem was this: it was a two-story ladder, and I lived on Wyckoff 4. Always prepared, my mom uncovered a second gift – a two-story rope that would allow me and my roommate to repel down the final two floors in case of emergency. I hurried my parents out the door in hopes to begin my new life – free from their protection, and free to make my own decisions.

As the years went by, our college experiences grew. From the “Crisco Carpet Bobsled Championships” in the dorm hall, to countless spontaneous road trips, to late night study sessions and cramming for final exams. One experience however stands above the rest. Let’s call it “The Great Power Outage of 2003.” Campus-wide, everything went black. Time stood still for several hours … no one could do anything: no Internet, no lights, and even in some cases – no bathrooms! It was as if to be a subtle reminder that life exists beyond this these pressures and tight schedules that we so often place upon on ourselves.

Friends – we’ve been through so much together. We’ve seen the renovation of Bradley Hall, installation of wireless Internet throughout campus, and celebrated our men’s basketball journey to the Sweet 16. We’ve gained friendships that will last forever, and mourned the loss of loved ones who are dear to us.

I urge you friends to challenge yourselves as we move forward in this journey … to never stop learning … to realize that there is more to this life than what is so easily seen. Move forward as the holistic beings that Bradley has developed you into: physical, intellectual, and spiritual. Clothe yourselves with compassion – with kindness – with humility – with gentleness – and patience. Always forgive, love, and reach out to those in need. Serve your community with a rigorous and endless passion.

Congratulations and God bless you, Bradley University Class of 2006.

Walking and talking ...

2006-05-07T01:12:00.000-05:00

I spoke at a church in Peoria Friday night. As I was preparing my thoughts, I decided to take a walk through Laura Bradley park. My house is about 4 blocks from the park, so I listened to the new Brandtson CD until I found myself in a large open field that seemed suitable for the task-at-hand.

I took my headphones out, expecting a peaceful silence. Instead, I heard a guy screaming at the top of his lungs: "You F&@#n B!@#h, I #$% hate you and your @#$% lies!!" He preceded to scream into the phone for 10 minutes or so ... I'm assuming targeted at his significant other ... and he often repeated himself.

Needless to say, it was pretty difficult to work on my talk in this environment ... but as he went on I felt my heart breaking. So much anger, so much pain, and so much hate screeching from the top of his lungs. He literally sounded insane.

My cousin has a post on her blog that says -- "Why is it that the people you love the most, always seem to disappoint you the most?" I don't exactly know what's going on in her life because I haven't seen her for a while ... but I wonder the same thing.

So how do you respond? How do you respond when the pain is so great and the words are so intentionally hurtful?

Disclaimer: These questions are only generic. I haven't been intentionally hurt in the past couple weeks. I think it's stupid when people send out "code messages" in their blog -- so trust me, there's no secret agenda here. I just need to know the answer to these questions.

Shameless Promotion

2006-05-05T21:39:00.000-05:00

Apple has released a new line of commercials that are sweet, as usual. To view the them, check out: Apple's Website

The Larkus Ending

2006-05-01T00:36:00.000-05:00

Or perhaps more accurately titled ... "The Lark Ascending"
Join us on Olin Quad 8:30 Monday for the final Worship@FullVolume

i'm just trying to make you sing
from inside where you believe

like it's something that you need
like it means everything

and i'm trying to make you feel
that this is for real

that life is happening
and it means everything

i'm just trying to make you sing

- crowder

p.s. we'll be in the Field House if it rains.

Cross-Country Adventures

2006-04-27T01:23:00.000-05:00

I ordered a new book today called "Roadtrip USA: Cross-Country Adventures on America's Two-Lane Highways". If you can't tell, I'm starting to get pretty excited about this whole spontaneous road trip thing.

We're not going to plan for much -- but I thought it would be helpful to have a guide of some cool places to visit.

If you have any friends/relatives that live between Illinois and Maine -- or anywhere in the general northeast area of the US for that matter -- would you email me? We might be looking for a couch to sleep on ... Peace.

Tick Tock

2006-04-24T12:45:00.000-05:00

How many days until Bradley graduation? Find out >

l'Île-du-Prince-Édouard

2006-04-23T17:05:00.000-05:00

Three days after graduation, my friend Jason and I will hit the road for an "unplanned" roadtrip! We'll be gone for 10-12 days, and unavailable via cell phone or email.

We call it "unplanned" because we really don't have an agenda ... we're setting sail and seeing where the open road will take us. At this point, our only known destination is Prince Edward Island in Canada, where we'll stay with some friends for a few days. The bridge pictured above leads to the island. It is the longest bridge over waters that freeze in the world, and is the longest bridge in Canada. Pretty sweet, eh?

We Were Acting Like Kids

2006-04-23T16:31:00.000-05:00

Last night, the Fullvolume band went on a camping trip. These are our stories ...

The campsite host informed us that we could only camp there if we were members of the human race. Apparently, we looked questionable.
4-6 coyote's were howling in the distance, but we stood our ground. Look at our muscles.
Adam, Stacey, and I assembled two tents in complete darkness. We then carried the assembled tents to our site - also after sundown. This was very stupid on our part, but we had no choice.
Our party was just getting started at about 1:30am, when we were silenced by the shouting from nearby tents. The natives were restless. The loud voice told us to "Shut the !@#$% UP!", because we were "acting like kids". We obliged. Actually, we didn't know anyone was that close to us.
Rising early, it took all of us to prepare breakfast over the fire in the morning: eggs, bacon, cinnamon rolls (not over the fire), and orange juice.
Our relaxing adventure concluded with some extreme badmitten (yes, extreme), acoustic worship songs, and a stop for ice cream in Kickapoo. The whole weekend was great.

I don't really have anything deep to say ... preparing for exams, writing papers, and senior projects have completely stolen all of my thoughts. In 21 days all of this will end ... and I'll be left with a lot more time, and so many of memories to hold on to.

Electric

2006-04-19T01:14:00.000-05:00

The night sky in Peoria has looked like this for about 4 days in a row ... Isn't it awesome?

Post College - Time to Grow up

2006-04-19T00:41:00.000-05:00

I made a visit to Moody Bible Institute today in Chicago. I'm praying about applying for their graduate school program...we'll see.

The "real world" is quickly approaching. I've been in school my entire life. It's the only culture I really know, and I've gotten pretty good at the "school" routine. Listen, take notes, study, apply, test, repeat. It's pretty well defined.

Preschool lasted 2 years.
Elementary school: 4 years.
Intermediate school lasted 3 years.
Junior High (in Pekin) was a 2 year school.
High School was 4 years.
Undergraduate also lasted 4 years.

So what about the real world? No 4-year term? All of a sudden the model has changed ... and I want to make sure that I'm still making goals, still growing, still learning, still moving forward.

At work, each of us has been asked to put together a "Personal Growth Plan." We're identifying specific goals for spiritual, financial, familial (is that a word?), vocational, ministerial, physical, and intellectual growth. My friend Bill says that In order for God to do great things through us, we must first allow him to do great things in us. I think I'm ready to be stretched into this real-world thing.

Here are some verses on this topic that really spoke to my heart this week:

"Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection ..." Hebrews 6:1

"Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ..." Ephesians 4:14-15

"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize..." 1 Corinthians 9:24

"Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales; rather, train yourself to be godly." 1 Timothy 4:7

"Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." Luke 5:16

It's obvious to me that Jesus had a strategy for surviving the "real world". He made sure he was spending time with His father. I intend on following His example.

How about you? Friends out there who have already graduated -- any tips for those of us preparing to make the transition?

Monthly Voicemail Awards: April

2006-04-12T13:37:00.000-05:00

Last month I began a new series on this blog called the "Monthly Voicemail Awards". Each month, I'll post my favorite voicemail on the web for you to listen to.

There are many funny messages to choose from, but rarely does anyone ever sing ... that's what makes this one the ultimate pick for the month of April. Enjoy!

LISTEN NOW (2MB wav file)

Oh, and of course -- a free lunch to the person who first correctly guesses the voice.

Congratulations to Beky "BeXster" Smith, hailing all the way from East Peoria High School, who correctly guessed the March voicemail (Bryan Caudle). I still owe her lunch :-)

Is "true love" aggressive?

2006-04-05T14:45:00.000-05:00

ag·gres·sive / (-grsv) / adj.
Assertive, bold, and energetic: an aggressive sales campaign.

I can only spell that word correctly thanks to the cheerleaders from junior high basketball days. Since I rode the bench for the entire season, I had plenty of time to listen to the cheers, one of which involved spelling out the word aggressive. :-)

One of the books I've started-and-yet-to-finish is "Flashbang: How I Got Over Myself" by Mark Steele. He is a comedian/film producer/theologian, and his book is quite possibly the funniest book I've ever read. Really ... I've laughed out loud, several times.

But some of it is pretty deep. Like when he claims that true love is aggressive. Here's the quote:

He [God] is continually reaching out [to us] in new ways. If the sunrise doesn't work, He'll go for a miracle. If that doesn't work -- the still small moment. Whatever it takes -- He keeps reaching until His hand is slapped aside. And even in that case, He will reach again. Because He never forgets us.

Johnny Cash did this with June Carter (in the movie, at least). He even got his hand slapped aside a few times. And yet, how many times did he ask her to marry him? Countless.

But I still struggle with that word aggressive. I don't like thinking of love as a sales pitch. Salesmen (not all, but some) are fake, and self-interested. True love is not self-seeking.

How about persistent as an alternative. What do you think?

Twister

2006-04-04T02:01:00.000-05:00

It was approximately 7pm. Ben, Sean, Jason, Erin, Jamie, and I were out back grilling up some brats (is that spelled right?). The sky was blue. The weather was beautiful. Someone mentioned that Peoria was under a tornado watch ... and I decided to speak confidently that in my 21 years of existence I had never seen a tornado strike Peoria.

Then the sirens came. The sky was still blue. No one panicked. We were determined to cook the food.

The temperature dropped fast, and the sky turned green. In the midst of a downpour and near-tornado, my friends and I were out celebrating the time change ... Our first cookout of the season. Brilliant.

The man next door came outside. He didn't see us at first, but then noticed us huddling around the grill. "Did ya know there's a tornado warning in effect for Peoria county?" he said.

At that moment, I couldn't decide who was more of an idiot. Us -- for grilling outside oblivious to the potential danger. Or him -- for having a complete understanding of the situation and deciding to take a stroll in his back yard.

What do you think?

Theeawlohjee

2006-04-02T03:11:00.000-05:00

A friend of mine just asked if she could borrow C.S. Lewis' book from me -- it's called "A Grief Observed." As I'm preparing to loan it to her, I decided to skim through the pages and take a look at my own markings ...

In this book, Lewis describes the the intense pain of losing his deepest love. He asks lots of questions to God, and questions his theology in many different ways. I love the conclusion he makes in the final chapter:

When I lay these questions before God I get no answer. But a rather special sort of "No answer." It is not the locked door. It is more like a silent, certainly not uncompassionate, gaze. As though He shook His head not in refusal but waiving the question. Like 'Peace, child; you don't understand.'

Can a mortal ask questions which God finds unanswerable? Quite easily, I should think. All nonsense questions are unanswerable. How many hours are there in a mile? Is yellow square or round? Probably half the questions we ask -- half our great theological and metaphysical problems -- are like that.

People were always asking Jesus the wrong questions. I'm thinking of His encounter with the woman at the well. The people were arguing about which mountain they were supposed to worship from ... they asked Jesus, and He responded that they were asking the wrong question ... that the mountain was irrelevant, and that God was looking for worshippers who would worship in Spirit and in Truth.

I'm wondering how often I ask God stupid questions -- they don't seem stupid to me, but they are completely irrelevant to the big picture. I'm so thankful that His love is patient.

Funny Picture

2006-03-31T18:27:00.000-06:00

Who do you think this is?

If you are - or are related to - the one that sent me the photo you are not allowed to post a response.

Meeting God in my Confusion

2006-03-31T18:00:00.000-06:00

A friend of mine recently applied for a job. He really wanted it. We prayed - a lot. He just got a phone call today, and he didn't get the job. Bummer. He's taking it very well ... but I know he's disappointed. At first, I mourned with him. Then, as I brought this before God - I began to celebrate! I celebrate that there is a better opportunity out there, a better fit, a better choice. This job would have worked for him, and God would have been glorified -- but there is a better plan.

This is the season of life that my friends and I are at. We're at a point where we're asking so many questions ... "Why did this job fall through?" "Why did I get rejected in this relationship?" "Where am I going to ..." "How am I going to ..." "When am I going to ..." Such is the confused and somewhat selfish mind of a college senior.

I'm reminded of how often the original disciples of Jesus were confused ... "Why are we going there?" "What are we going to do when we get there?" "Why did you say this?" or "Why didn't you say this?" They asked these questions often, but Jesus always had a plan. Always, it was a way better plan than the disciples would have ever come up with on their own.

I saw a bumper sticker for sale at a gas station that said "God is my co-pilot." Wrong. There have been seasons in my life where God was the co-pilot ... those were the worst seasons. God most definitely deserves the pilot's seat.

I've mentioned before that one of the deepest life-struggles I'm going through right now is trust ... I know (head knowledge) that God is sovereign, that His spirit lives inside of me, and that by living within His moral will I simply can not fail. I've known that in my head, but I've struggled to apply it recently. I've been selfishly confused.

Until now. I think the battle is finally won. I'm blowing up my picture of trust, and trying to make it more than a concept in my mind. If you're feeling this, I'd recommend Dr. James MacDonald's recent podcast on Walk in the World called Meeting God in my Confusion.

The Home Stretch

2006-03-21T23:33:00.000-06:00

A good friend of mine recently challenged me with some advice to "finish well". It was intended to be a private email, but I've asked permission to post it here. It has encouraged me for the last several days, and I've pasted it below in hopes that it might encourage you as well -- regardless of what stage of life you're in:

JB - You are truly now on the home stretch - post springbreak, last semester, Senior year. You are close. But you are not there. I exhort you to finish well.

Papers, tests, projects, relationships, reputation, family, Fellows, FullVolume, you name it - - finish well.

Throughout your life, you will reach endings - job changes, housing moves, others leaving, etc... These endings come because there are beginnings ahead, just around the corner.

Beginnings are great - exciting - filled with potential - shiny - dynamic - fresh and more.

Endings can seem dreary, a drudgery, a formality not worth the effort. They are not glamorous and often it seems that no one notices anyway.

Finish well at BU, and continue your life pattern of finishing well. And then someday, maybe in 50 years, or longer, or possibly and sadly much shorter, you will finish for that final time. And when you do, it will be so sweet, if they say of you .... "he finished well" - sweet words -sweet rest - sweet reward.

I forgot to say "Thank You"

2006-03-20T00:44:00.000-06:00

As the moments of spring break ticked away, Ben and I decided to celebrate with some Texas Roadhouse. My friend Dan likes to remind me that this was my last college break - EVER. Thanks for that, Dan.

The wait time for a table was 35 minutes. Granted, this is pretty good for TR, but we were starving. I inquired if we could order food from the bar - and she responded positively, so we took the immediate seating.

So there we sat. I ordered a Dr. Pepper and an 18-ounce ribeye steak. Ben ordered a Cherry Coke and some chicken strips. It was delicious ... I mean, really, really good.

Fast forward about 7 hours - I was putting on my coat for a late night run to Walmart, when it hit me: I never said "Thank You". The steak was incredible, and I never even made once glance upward to thank God for the food.

Read this carefully. I'm not obsessing over the routine of prayer before meals -- I actually don't like the concept of a routine. I hate it when prayer becomes so rote (is that the right word?) that we do it "just because we always have", or "out of obligation", or "simply because". Don't pray because you feel like you have to. Prayer should be in tune with my life ... a moment-by-moment conversation with Jesus, who lives in me (and maybe you).

I'm striving to be in conversation with Jesus all day long, so that in my bedtime prayers I can simply say "Goodnight Jesus." Not a long, drawn-out bedtime prayer - just the punctuation mark on an ongoing conversation.

Some days I think I've got this down. Today, my conversation skills needed a little work. Take a look at Jesus' life - he always said "thanks" for the food before he ate it.

I-L-L - - I - BU?!?!

2006-03-18T20:13:00.000-06:00

Ben, Daniel, Jason, Kyle and I were honored with front row seats to watch Bradley beat Kansas in the NCAA tournament -- front row, that is, at Buffalo Wild Wings in East Peoria. It really was a great place to watch the game (as roudy as the commercial if you've seen it). In fact, the BU fans were so crazy that Bdubs decided to call 3 cops, just in case.

At any rate, congrats Braves. You've made your classmates proud. So much for not letting us in the tournament because of an offensive mascot ...

Monthly(?) Voicemail Awards

2006-03-17T00:58:00.000-06:00

I have a personal policy not to answer the phone if I'm having a conversation with someone face-to-face. This will change when I get a wife & kids, but for now I try to stick to this idea ...

I've noticed that some of the voicemail messages that come in are downright hilarious, so I've decided to start a new series on here called the "Voicemail Awards". Hopefully you'll see one posted about once a month.

For March ...
The first award goes to a dear friend of mine. He moved out-of-state not too long ago, and called to give me his new number. A free lunch to the first person who can correctly identify the voice.

LISTEN NOW (2MB wav file)

Sweet

2006-03-16T01:22:00.000-06:00

Most would agree that getting older is tough -- bills, rent, insurance, work schedule, etc. I have found this to be true, but there's something else: Getting older means building "mature" friendships. I have some of the sweetest friends in the entire world. They challenge, encourage, and love ... and I am blessed to know them.

In grade school, making friends was about not getting beat up on the playground. Naturally, I was the strongest kid ... so you can imagine that I had a lot of friends (not).

In jr. high - it was about popularity, of course.

In high school and college, I made my friends based on the activities I was involved in ...

Now, transitioning out of college, my friendships have grown much deeper. We laugh & cry together. We could talk forever. Sometimes, we're content not even saying a word. Some of these friends are much older than me. A few are old enough to be my parents. Two of them are my parents.

It's becoming clearer and clearer to me that life - as it was designed - is about genuine, honest relationships between people, and most importantly a solid relationship between us and our Creator.

New Wheels

2006-03-11T00:13:00.000-06:00

Bought a new (used) car yesterday from my good friend J. Scott. The license plate now reads "PIANOMN". Kind of a bittersweet moment - the old truck has served me well since 16. If you'd like to pay tribute to the red rocket, you'll find it in my parents garage. If you want to buy it, give me a shout.

Take One ... That's a Wrap

2006-03-08T14:20:00.000-06:00

Had another guitar lesson with my buddy Chris over at the Children's Home. We've only had two lessons, but this time he informed me that he was ready to record his first demo CD. Most artists practice for years before digging up enough courage to record. Not Chris, he was ready to tell the world.

I had my laptop with me and we decided to record a few tracks (he wants to show his teacher what he's been up to in guitar lessons).

We hit record. Chris played his heart out. Three tracks:

God of Wonders (with voice)
God of Wonders (without voice so he can sing along later)
Joy to the World.

Those were his selections. He insisted that I play along ;-)

Pause here for some background information: I've spent the past four years studying multimedia -- with a concentration in music technology. Any elective chance I've had, I've studied music recording/production/theory/etc. I've recorded with many perfectionists ... a painful process, indeed.

So you'll understand why I was shocked when we hit the stop button after the first take.

"Great!", he said.

Great? After the first take? He doesn't want to record it again?

Nope ... "Great". To Chris (the master-of-one-take), he had given it his all on the first try, and there was no need for more. I think we can learn a lot from Chris. He pulled out a black permanent marker and said "Call it: Chris' First Recorded CD Soundtrack Ever."

Oh Happy Day

2006-03-08T07:26:00.000-06:00

Went to bed last night at 9:30 (Wow! I don't think I've been to bed that early since I was 12). Yesterday was not a good day, and I didn't mind it ending a little early. Ever have one of those days where you just can't do anything right? Yeah - that was yesterday. Several of my friends and family called to remind me of my shortcomings. It weighed pretty heavy on my spirit.

I had a test to study for, but somehow couldn't dig up the energy to study. I needed rest. I hit the sack hoping to rise early (6ish) and go for an early breakfast study session.

My iPod wouldn't work on the way to One World. I need music in order to properly wake up, so this was a problem. Took my headphones out and decided to listen to God instead (yeah, he often speaks louder when I don't have headphones in).

As I moped over to breakfast, it became instantly hilarious to me when I opened the door to the cafe and heard "Oh Happy Day" blaring through the speakers. (You know - the cheesy Sister Act version - that's the one ... haha). I'm not sure why this was so funny, but it was definitely a God-thing.

Oh happy day, when Jesus washed my sins away. Good thing I took those headphones out. Now - back to studying.

"Your Grace is enough for me" ... today ... forever.

Choose your own Adventure

2006-03-06T00:41:00.000-06:00

And for our latest adventure, I must refer to my friend "The Woodler". See Jason's blog for his write up on our recent late-night travels.

Unchanging

2006-03-06T00:37:00.000-06:00

Even in a world where nothing stays the same
There is still a truth - a truth that still remains
Even though the heart always seems to change
There is still a love - a love that stays the same

Forever You will always be our God on high, the Lord in me
The King of hope, the lord of love, the prince of peace, the lamb of God

You will always be exalted
King of Kings and Holy Father

Thursday is a Big Deal

2006-03-01T11:15:00.000-06:00

Something really big is happening here locally, and I'm excited about it.

This Thursday - - 7pm - - Peoria Christian High School.

A prayer meeting. A meeting about unity. Young and old will gather. Tons of churches and other like-minded groups will be gathering -- all for one purpose: to pray ... to dream ... to seek what things "could be" if we started working together for the sake of the Gospel.

This hasn't happened often (at least, not in Peoria). This is new. This is exciting. Jeff Schwarzentraub (spoke at w@fv two Mondays ago) will be leading the prayer/discussion. Many of you commented that his words touched your hearts last week.

If you'd like to go, but need a ride -- let me know and I'll get you there.

Check out John 17, and you'll see why this is so cool ...

Freely Give

2006-02-28T23:59:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I was walking home after my 10am class. Passed a homeless guy on the sidewalk. I walked right on by - didn't make eye contact - didn't stop ... nothing. I was too busy. About 200 feet down the sidewalk God stopped me right in my tracks ...

Turn around and give that guy some money, He said. I tried to ignore God for 3 more steps. I didn't want to turn around. The Holy Spirit is relentless sometimes, so I reluctantly retraced my steps back to the man.

I'm glad I turned around. I approached Tim, who was carrying all of his earthly posessions on his back. Huge sacks - 3 or 4 of them at least. I asked him if he had eaten lunch. He had not, so I asked him if I could give him $5 for lunch. His eyes lit up as he told me that I had not only given him enough for lunch - but also dinner, breakfast, and lunch tomorrow.

I usually don't give homeless guys money. I would much rather give them food. As I walked away, I was kicking myself. Why didn't I just go buy him some food? Now, I'm out 5 dollars, and I have no idea how he'll actually spend my money. My money? As I type this I'm convicted again ... my money? Where on earth did I get this concept that it was MY money to begin with?

Jesus said "Give away your life, and you'll find life given back, but not merely given back -- given back with bonus and blessing. Giving, not getting, is the way. Generosity begets generosity." (Luke 6:38)

He wasn't joking. After I reluctantly gave away 5 bucks, someone ended up buying my lunch. I also received a Barnes & Noble gift card in the mail, but it didn't stop there ...

I went to the mall because I needed to buy hair gel. I was really excited because I had completed my "punch card" -- which means I have purchased 9 things of hair gel from the same place, and was now due for my 10th FREE gel. Turns out it was 2 for 1 day. I ended up getting 2 of them free. And there's more ... she gave me my punch card BACK, and told me to use it again NEXT TIME for one more FREE thing.

Jesus wasn't kidding. Give, give, and give - and trust that he'll take care of you. I'm understanding that a little better today.

Pray for Tim (now, please).

Feedback time: Idol vs. Hero

2006-02-28T00:40:00.000-06:00

I'd like your help on this one.

I was going to write up an entry tonight on the difference between an "Idol" and a "Hero", but I'd rather hear your thoughts ...

What makes someone or something an idol? What makes a hero?
What are the similarieis and differences between these two concepts?

I think I'm going to wrap this into a talk sometime ... or I may just post my thoughts on here, but first I'd like to hear your comments ... thanks.

Sweet Video - You Gotta Watch it

2006-02-26T23:40:00.000-06:00

Play Video

Jason McElwain, an autistic high school student in Rochester NY, served as the basketball coach's assistant and spirit leader for several years. On the final game of the season (last Thursday) the coach let him finally put on a jersey with the rest of the team. Watch what happens then...

Thoughts from the Throne-Room

2006-02-23T00:10:00.000-06:00

I am a follower of Jesus, a Christian.

Not a religion, a relationship (much different). God loves me so much and desires a relationship with me. I, the imperfect human that I am, resisted that relationship with all the crap in my life. So ... things got so bad that God had to send his son Jesus: who lived, died, and rose from the dead so that my relationship with God could be restored. It is my positive response to this truth that restores my relationship with God.

The scriptures teach that Jesus is inside of me. That his spirit lives, breathes, and moves me. If I can fully embrace this, then I have gained access to the throneroom of God. Jesus himself sits at the right hand of the father (God). And if Jesus is in me, then that means I too get that kind of access.

Not because of me, but because of Jesus.

Tonight, as I prepare for bed - I'm trying to keep that mental picture in my mind. Me sitting in the throneroom next to God - because of Jesus. When I wake up tomorrow, I hope it changes me - and especially how I love and interact with people.

I will only be tempted to sin if I lose that mental picture. Me sitting next to God, in the throneroom. Behold, the Kingdom of God is at hand!

Do I owe you money?

2006-02-19T23:29:00.000-06:00

I get this feeling that I owe someone money, but I can't remember who.

Not a lot of money -- just lunch or something.

Is it you? Let me know ... cuz I forgot.

The Busy and Powerful Romans

2006-02-19T22:29:00.000-06:00

I'm working my way through the New Testament of the Bible. This month, I've just finished Paul's letter to the Romans. I didn't write much about it on here, but I've certainly pulled some significant truth from this scripture. Even now as I sit, I continue to be challenged. These words are growing and stretching me.

As a habit - I tend to write things in the margins of my Bible. Sometimes words. Sometimes complete phrases. Tonight as I finished, I flipped through the pages of Romans, and wrote these phrases below:

We received in Jesus: (1) A precious gift of life, and (2) The urgent task of passing it on to others
Paul "Thanks" God ... often. He also prays all the time - authoritatively.
We're all in this together - "You have as much to give to me as I do to you."
Paul said he was proud to proclaim God's message. I wonder how often I have been ashamed to stand up for Jesus
Our sin has confused us. We don't know how to be human. We don't understand sexuality. We understand lust better than love.
Everytime you criticise someone, you condemn yourself. Judgmental criticism of others is a way of escaping detection in your own crimes. God sees right through.
God is kind, but He's not soft.
If you sin without knowing what you're doing, God takes that into account. But if you sin knowing full well what you're doing, that's a different story entirely
If you were brought up in religion, don't assume you can lean back into the arms of your religion and take it easy. Paul gives a special word to the "religious" who think we "have it all together".
God is faithful - even when we're not
Paul knew these were holy scriptures, even as he wrote them
Evil vs. Good - our evil doesn't throw God off course. He is able to underline His goodness even in the midst of our evil
Not serving others is a sin
No one is righteous
His righteousness, not our righteousness.
God does not respond to what we do, we respond to what God does. Let him set the pace
Jesus' death does not cancel the Jewish law, it fulfills it
Trust, not work is key.
God blesses even the unsaved.
TRUST brings us into ultimate reality with Christ
When it's SIN vs. GRACE - grace wins hands down.
We were dead to sin, now we're alive to God.
We must throw ourselves wholeheartedly and full-time into God's way of doing things.
The Gospel message is a FREEDOM message
Paul admits his own sin struggle - coveting. He acknowledges his turn from the OLD way and into his NEW free way.
Sin hides within the law - Satan can twist even the things intended for good.
Brokeness brings us to the answer - not our own strength
Die to self
Don't know what to pray? Fine! God can make prayers out of our wordless sighs, and aching groans.
God calls us by name, not by number
Nothing can separate God's love from us
Paul would give up his Salvation for the unbelievers
The religious Jews mentioned in Chapter 9 had strong worship - but no Jesus
God - do you know what you're doing? Yes, indeed He does.
Don't have a borrowed faith
Make life on God's terms
Salvation: Our Response
Not everyone is ready: Listen, then Trust.
There will be a loyal minority
Again - on God's terms
Paul - an evangeslit (outward) - looked inward and called the "insiders" to WAKE UP!
Abiding is key - if the primary root of the tree is holy, there's bound to be some holy fruit
God's door is open to all
Offer ourselves as living sacrafices
Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it
Get the best of evil by doing good
Paul affirms military and police
When you add up everything in the law code, the sum total is LOVE
Don't run up debts, except for the huge debt of love you owe each other
Don't bicker over denominations. None of us are permitted to insist on our own way in these matters. It's God we are answerable to - not each other
Help the weak-faithed.
Maturity will develop unity - then we'll be a choir - not our voices only
Paul went to the places where Jesus was not yet known
Paul asked for prayer: (1) That he would be delivered from the lion's den of unbelievers (2) That the believers would accept his gifts
Christians were "famous for hospitality" - are we still?
Paul served with women: Phoebe, Priscilla, Aquila, Mary, Tryphena, Tryphosa - to name a few

All of our praise rises to the One who is strong enough to make you strong, exactly as preached in Jesus Christ, precisely as revealed in the mystery kept secret for so long but now an open book through the prophetic Scriptures. All the nations of the world can now know the truth and be brought into obedient belief, carrying out the orders of God, who got all this started, down to the very last letter. All our praise is focused through Jesus on this incomparably wise God! Yes! (16:25-26)

iBradley2: Student Film Festival

2006-02-15T23:55:00.000-06:00

Bradley’s Multimedia Program is teaming up with Apple Computer to host the “iBradley2” Film Festival – an opportunity for students to recognize and display their talents in script writing, video filmmaking, editing, and the creative development of story lines.

The entries will be screened February 18, 2006 at 7pm in Neumiller Lecture Hall. Panels of faculty, students, local media professionals, and representatives from Apple will judge the films. Winning projects will be published on Bradley’s website and will be available for Apple’s use on their website. Representatives from Apple will attend the event and display a variety of products. Prizes include iTunes downloads, an iPod shuffle, and the iPod nano.

The Film Festival was introduced last year by Dr. Ray Zarvell, Executive Director for the Center for Student Development and Health Services in cooperation with planning by Scott Quinn as part of MM 450. Their vision was inspired by similar events at Duke and other universities. “There are only a handful of schools doing film festivals on the scale of Duke and Bradley,” said Steve Rambo of Apple.

This year’s festival is sponsored by the Multimedia Program at the Slane College of Communication and Fine Arts, supervised by Ed Lamoureux and James Ferolo, and coordinated by Jake Bland and Joel Raabe.

Happy Valentines Day ... Mom

2006-02-14T17:36:00.000-06:00

A good woman is hard to find, and worth far more than diamonds. Her husband trusts her without reserve, and never has a reason to regret it. Never spiteful, she treats him generously all her life long ...

She's like a trading ship that sails to faraway places and brings back exotic surprises [sometimes wierd antiques]. She's up before dawn, preparing breakfast for her family and organizing her day ... First thing in the morning, she dresses for work, rolls up her sleeves, eager to get started. She senses the worth of her work, is in no hurry to call it quits for the day. She's skilled in the crafts of home and hearth, diligent in homemaking.

She's quick to assist anyone in need, reaches out to help the poor ...

Her husband is greatly respected when he deliberates with the city fathers ... When she speaks she has something worthwhile to say, and she always says it kindly. She keeps an eye on everyone in her household, and keeps them all busy and productive.

Her children respect and bless her; her husband joins in with words of praise: "Many women have done wonderful things, but you've outclassed them all!"

Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades. The woman to be admired and praised is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-GOD. Give her everything she deserves! Festoon her life with praises!

Love you, Mom. (Proverbs 31)

Identity

2006-02-07T18:53:00.000-06:00

I pulled up to the Children's Home today with my beat up truck. I was 4 minutes late. "Chris" was standing on the porch, alone, with a quite depressed look on his face. I've never seen a kid jump so high - he leaped off the porch, and came running to meet me at the truck.

"Is this your truck?" he said, enthusiastically. "It's awesome!"

Pause for a moment with me and imagine my vehicle. It has served me well. I am grateful to have received it. It gets me from point "A" to point "B", but the word "awesome" has never even crossed my mind when considering how to describe my faithful mode of transportation. The front end is smashed, the dash lights are broken, the back is almost rusted out, and the ceiling liner often falls down just enough to remind me that I need a haircut.

But for Chris, it was awesome. It was awesome that I even have a car to drive. It was awesome to him that I had used the car to meet him today.

Chris and I are starting a new journey together. I'm going to visit him for 1/2 hour a month -- to give him guitar lessons. I expected to walk in and minister to him, but everything about this encounter changed me today. He lives with other boys - most of them would drive me nuts if we spent 2 hours together. He has no posters on his bedroom walls. The music he's listening to is about 10 years old. The only adults in his world are the people who are paid by the government to take care of him. But what impacted me the most were the questions he asked:

Jake, since you're my mentor - that sort of means that we're friends, right? Can we be friends?
Will you tell your other friends about me, Jake ... will you tell them that you have a new friend?
Here, take this guitar strap. Will you wear it to the concert on Friday? Will you tell them I gave it to you? Say my name, please. Tell them who gave it to you.
Will you sing "God of Wonders" on Friday? Will you tell them that I requested it, because we're friends now ... and we hang out so you let me request a song from the band?

As he asked these questions, I realized that his basic human need is not met. Chris longs for someone to give him identity. He needs to know that he is loved. His heart is restless. His mind is confused. He's lacking a very basic component that our hearts were made to desire. I'm looking forward to our next meeting together, but not nearly as much as he is.

And it puts all my prayers (wants, desires, needs) in perspective. What could I possibly need that God has not already provided? Thank you Jesus, that I am loved by You. Help me show Chris how much You love him.

By the way. YFC is seeking Children's Home mentors. Please ... please ... please. Will you adopt a kid? It's not rocket science - you just show up. 1 hour a month isn't that much time out of our schedule - but it's what kids like Chris look forward to all month. If you can help, email my friend Linda (lthomas@yfcpa.org)

Leavin' on a Jet Plane

2006-01-31T00:36:00.000-06:00
I'm heading out to Denver tomorrow (to a meeting at the YFC/USA office), so I won't be making any posts for a few days. The plan is to come back late Saturday (I think). Peace.

Miracle Camp

2006-01-31T00:32:00.000-06:00
Took the band up to Miracle Camp this past weekend. Great trip. Thanks Coon.

The Way

2006-01-25T00:32:00.000-06:00
Just finished reading through the book of Acts -- the second book in the bible authored by Luke. In his first book, he tells the story of Jesus. In his second book, it's the story of how early Christians carried on the message of Jesus.

As I finished Luke's book, I went back to read the publisher's introduction (written by Eugene Peterson). A portion of his intro really challenged me tonight:

"The story of Jesus doesn't end with Jesus. It continues in the lives of those who believe in Him. The supernatural does not stop with Jesus. Luke makes it clear that these Christians he wrote about were no more spectators of Jesus than Jesus was a spectator of God -- they are in on the action of God, God acting in them, God living in them. Which also means, of course, in us."

I'm also reminded of what Brennan Manning taught a few weeks ago:
Jesus loves us for who we are, not for who we should be, because no one is who they should be.
The essence of the Christian faith is not a religion, but rather a furious love affair between us and our Maker

Unknown Assurance

2006-01-22T00:54:00.000-06:00
I'm still reading through Acts. I'm also still wrestling with trusting God. With the future so cloudy, it has become difficult for a "planner" like me to trust with honest faith. These words struck me tonight from the scriptures ... I inserted my own passion in brackets:
But there is another urgency before me now. I feel compelled to to [reach lost teens and unify the church]. I'm completely in the dark about what will happen when I get there. I do know that it won't be any picnic, for the Holy Spirit has let me know repeatedly and clearly that there are hard times and imprisonment ahead. But that matters little. What matters most to me is to finish what God started: the job the Master Jesus gave me of letting everyone I meet know all about this incredibly extravagant generosity of God. (20:22-24)
Amen. That's my heart tonight, word-for-word. Sometimes it's simply incredible how God uses the scriptures to speak to us. Goodnight.

FullVolume /// Monday

2006-01-21T19:09:00.000-06:00
Worship@FullVolume starts back up on Monday. All are welcome to join us on the second floor, ballroom, Robert H. Michel Student Center, Bradley University, Elmwood Street, city of Peoria, county of Peoria, state of Illinois, United States of America, North America, Northern Hemisphere, Planet Earth.

FullVolume will start at 8:30 -- or maybe 8:32. Check out www.fullvolume.org for more info.

A still, small voice

2006-01-21T18:11:00.000-06:00
I had a lot on my mind driving home from Chicago today. God and I entered into an intense conversation (there have been several this week), and in the midst of my shouting I quickly realized that I couldn't hear Him.

I changed the radio station to a Christian frequency, thinking that the Holy Spirit might use the music to speak to my heart.

Nothing.

So I flipped on my iPod to listen to a sermon, hoping that I might find my answers in the teacher's words.

Nothing.

Changed it over to "The Message" audio book. Nothing. Tried a few worship CD's. Nothing. Still driving.

God, please speak to me, I said.

Then I was reminded about how God spoke to Elijah. The guy was chillin' on a mountain top, and he wanted to hear God. The scriptures say that that there was a loud tornado, but God's voice wasn't in the tornado. He might have been discouraged. Then an earthquake shook the ground, but Elijah couldn't hear God's voice in the earthquake, either. Finally, a blazing fire -- yet still no voice of God.

Then, as all of the racket cleared up - God whispered to Elijah in a still, small voice. God's voice wasn't in the noisy distractions, He was in the silence.

Immediately, I punched the car stereo's OFF button. The sound of the heater vents whooshed on. I shut those off, too (which made for a very cold car ride). All of a sudden - in the midst of silence - God was finally able to speak to my quiet heart:

Jake, I love you. Even before you were flesh, I knew you. Get ready ... keep preparing the way ... the best is yet to come. Trust me. I know EXACTLY what I'm doing.

My goal for this week is to pray more, and to seek more opportunities for silence. I'm reminded that "Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." Usually after teaching, He "went up on a mountainside by himself to pray." I'm not sure that the "mountainside" was significant (I can't find any in Peoria) - but I think the "by himself" may have been the key.

And let this be my prayer: "Yet not as I will, but as you will, Father" (Jesus said that, too).

Learning to Trust

2006-01-13T00:16:00.000-06:00
Someone please tell the guy with the sign that it's not that easy.

Tonight I was talking on the phone to a friend of mine. To be more specific, I was complaining. I was complaining because two of my closest friends "don't have enough trust." I'm tired of these two worrying about ___, ___, and ___. Why can't they just trust that God knows what he's doing?

A few hours went by. I returned some email, read a bit, and shut off the light to go to bed. As I put my head on the pillow, I began to pray:

God, how come I can't see what's coming in the months ahead? I'm scared.
God, why can't I have ____? I'm really heartbroken.
Oh and one more thing, God: ______. Yeah, that doesn't make sense to me either.
God, do you really know what you're doing?

Then the Holy Spirit responded with more clarity than I've felt in a long time. No, not an answer to any of those questions (I wish). But instead, a striking and more-appropriate conviction from God himself:

Jake, do you trust me?

Whoa. I am just like my friends. I was annoyed that they were struggling with A, B, and C ... but even so I lay awake and worry about X, Y, and Z. Jesus, forgive me for not trusting in you with all of my heart.

Friends, please know that I am a struggling sinner trying desperately to follow Jesus. Too often I fail to trust, but tonight God is growing me closer to himself. He made me, so he knows what he's doing ... it's just so hard to see from my perspective.

I had to get up and write about it before I forgot. Now it's back to sleep.

Blessed

2006-01-11T20:02:00.000-06:00
I've just returned from (almost) a week in Chicago. I was "officially" up there doing some web work, but the trip was so much more than that. It was a great time to re-connect with old friends, and made me realize just how blessed I am with some of these relationships. Thanks Beau, Erin, Gabe, Jamin, Lu, Perry, and Rita for a great week. You made me feel at home in your city.

I should ask for prayers for Dre and Mrs. Dre (ask me the story sometime - it's a fun one ... her real name's Marilyn, but he insisted that I call her Mrs. Dre). They are a homeless couple that I was priveleged to have lunch with on Friday. We were able to spend about an hour together, and it was so cool to learn their story. Please join me in bringing them before the throne.

And again I say, Rejoice

2005-12-31T15:59:00.000-06:00
I had a revelation today. It came while I was cleaning my kitchen and listening to Damien Rice - preparing for tonight's festivities. It comes from a scene in the movie "Office Space" where Peter Gibbons reveals that every day is the worst day of his life. It goes something like this:
Peter: So I was sitting in my cubicle today, and I realized, ever since I started working, every single day of my life has been worse than the day before it. So that means that every single day that you see me, that's on the worst day of my life.

Dr. S: What about today? Is today the worst day of your life?
Peter: Yeah.
Dr. S: Wow, that's messed up.

I don't have a clue why this scene played back in my head. One of those random things - maybe Damien's lyrics cued it. Many of my friends are living this way - somehow they've allowed situations to convince them into believing that today is bad - that tomorrow has potential, but more than likely it will be worse than today.

Sometimes I get trapped here, but not often. My revelation is that for those who attempt to follow Jesus - for those of us that are honestly trying - today is potentially ... no, today is definitely the best day of our lives. And tomororw will only be better. At a minimum, each day brings us one step closer to death - a temporary passing that brings a holy encounter with our Maker who loves us so much. Eternity in paradise is one step closer, today.

Sure, sometimes I forget. Last night I was thrown a curveball that hit me in the gut ... I wasn't prepared to bat. I hit an emotional low. My friend Brandon quickly grounded me with an all-curable remedy (launching 2 liters of BigK hundreds of feet in the air to watch them explode in the street - followed by an original song written in high school). Try it sometime. Thanks, Brandon.

So I'll take my base. Indeed, joy transcends all. And welcome to the best day of my life. Yes, even as I clean the kitchen.

Welcome to 2006. It's bound to be the best year of my life. Psalm 118:24 guarantees it. Look it up.

Acts of the Apostles: Growth

2005-12-30T00:48:00.000-06:00
Let's hope Luke looked nothing like this guy. What a weird looking man. Is that some sort of ancient hand signal?

Luke wrote his first book about Jesus. Many Jesus-followers and other Christians call it "The Gospel of Luke". You've probably heard Luke's second chapter read a billion times over the past couple weeks ... good :-)

Luke's second book (called Acts) was written about the early Church. Hold up -- don't start thinking about stained glass windows and cheesy music. The Church in Luke's day looked nothing like it looks today. They obviously had some different kind of ministry going on. Check out this trend I've been noticing as I'm going through:
1:15 ... a gathering of about 120 persons were there together
2:41 ... that day there were added about 3,000 souls (whoa ... did he say that DAY?)
4:4 ... many of those who heard the message believed, and the number came to be about 5,000
5:14 ... multidues of men and women, were constantly added to their number
6:7 ... the word of God kept spreading, and the number of disciples continued to increase greatly
9:31 ... so the church enjoyed peace, going in fear of the Lord and the comfort of the Holy Spirit, continued to increase
12:24 ... the word of the Lord continued to grow and be multiplied
16:5 ... so the churches were being strengthened in the faith, and were increasing in number DAILY
19:20 ... so the word of the Lord was growing mightily and prevailing
Sign me up for that kind of ministry.

What were they doing differently? I think I'm going to re-read the book a few more times and throw some thoughts up here.

525,600 Minutes

2005-12-20T23:19:00.000-06:00
My highlights from '05:

January
The first New Years Eve party I've ever hosted - power went out, it was great
Worship@FullVolume rocked with about 500 crazy high school kids at Miracle Camp in Lawton, MI ... dozens of students met Jesus for the first time
Peoria Children's Home visit with Undertone - always a great time

February
YFC staff retreat in downtown Chicago ... got to see Blue Man Group, and Jamin
Undertone hosted their first concert event in Pekin - about 500 students in attendance
Brandon and I worked on his demo project - turned out great
Went to a Jars Concert with the family

March
Spent all of Spring break doing homework ... yuck
Celebrated the resurrection of Jesus

April
Participated in Bradley's 24 hours of music ... outside on the quad
Undertone concert even in Chillicothe - met Jeff Schwarzentraub, a new friend and partner in ministry
Watched my friends Amie & Justin get married
Kyle and I found out we could play Fondulac golf course in under an hour ... played 3 times in one week (over lunch!)

May
Mom was honored as Pekin's Outstanding Employee of the Year by the YWCA.
Rocked out with 300 kids in Metamora ... saw Batman & Robin fly above the crowd (probably the first time ever in the Metamora town square)
Joe's DI Team competed for the Global Finals ... traveled with them to Knoxville, TN and spent my 21st birthday on a charter bus
Took a summer class on 3D video compositing - the best class I took at BU

June
Attended a YFC's Summer Institute on Evangelism - a week at Huntington University ... fell in love with their passion for relational ministry
Came home for one day: went to YFC's annual golf outing
Left the next day: for YFC's Reachout tour ... 9 kids, 3 volunteers, a big smelly white van, a trailer with 4 million guitars ... and lots of changed lives.

July
Dad and I served our 3rd year as part of Pekin's fireworks launching crew
Walked 7 times around PCHS praying that God would bring YFC ministry to Pekin
Climbed an 11,000 foot mountain as part of our week at YFCamp. Celebrated as my brother recommitted his life to Jesus, but missed my friends Megan and Dave get married

August
On the seventh day, we walked around PCHS seven times praying for YFC ministry ... feet hurt.
Had lunch with my Grandma and Mom at Panera - a vivid memory for me ... hope it always is
Golfed with Doug Cheney, Dad, and Andy Sparks at Weaver
Watched one of my best friends (Renee) marry her best friend (Bruce).
Kicked off the school year with W@FV freshman ecumenical service
Worshipped outside on the quad - the power went out, and the voices got louder

September
Ben and Jake's random road trips ... much fun
Got to watch my freshman brother play VARSITY soccer

October
Coondiggers weddin' in Michigan ... road trip, sweet trip.
"So Pretty Much this is Gonna Rock" Party, version 2
YFC Banquet
GoMAD Conference
Tough decisions ... peaceful answers.

November
NASHVILLE
Thanksgiving
Had to go to Symphony over Crowder ... whaa?
Cookouts, and ... "Dip it, Pop it, Shoot it!"

December
4 A's, one B
3 opportunities to speak at church
www.jakebland.com/christmas

Our Christmas Video

2005-12-18T23:00:00.000-06:00
Sean, Daniel, Ben, and I put together a special Christmas tribute for you all. If you haven't watched it yet, you need to visit:
www.jakebland.com/christmas. Enjoy.

Sorry I've been short of words on this blog lately. Finals really did a number on me. They stole all the Blandthoughts and I have nothing left. Just give me a few days to hibernate :-)

Watch the video!

Rob the jewelry store and tell em make me a grille

2005-12-13T23:15:00.000-06:00
Had a whole top diamonds and da bottom row's gold

Three Goals for Today

2005-12-10T15:21:00.000-06:00

That I'd stop praying that God would meet my needs, realize that he's already met them, and get on with it.
That I'd stop holding so tight to my possessions, realize that they're not mine anyway, and freely give/loan/love.
That I'd forget about finals - and give my undivided attention to celebrate my brother's birthday. Yeah!

This just in ... my brother Joe drained a 3-pointer against Springfield this morning. Watch the highlight clip.

Be patient - it may take a few minutes to load the video.
Requires QuickTime to play. Download it free from the Apple website

Finals

2005-12-06T22:39:00.000-06:00
Words can't express ... so let me illustrate:

The Drummer Boy

2005-12-04T18:05:00.000-06:00
Effective December 1st, we began piping 24-hour Christmas music through the apartment. It's only been four days, and we're already tired of most of the songs on our list - but we're committed to keeping it going until Christmas! If you've got any good Christmas CD's ... bring them here :-)

I sat down this weekend to work on the Christmas@FullVolume set. I can't wait until Monday night! It's going to be a very fun way to end the semester.

"The Little Drummer Boy" is one of those songs that used to annoy me. Growing up, I used to think the "pa rum pa pum pum" part was cheesy. Still do, but last night as I sat alone ... rehearsing in the living room, the meaning behind the song really impacted me.

Come, they told me - a newborn King to see!
Our finest gifts we bring to lay before the King, so to honor Him.

I am a poor boy. I have no gift to bring that's fit to give a King.
Shall I play for You on my drum?

Mary nodded. I played my drum for Him - I played my BEST for Him!
Then He smiled at me.

I've studied music all my life. Throughout the years, I've been fortunate to play some sweet gigs ... Ford's Theater (where Lincoln was Assassinated), the World Leadership Congress Choir, and most recently on Rich Mullins' piano.

However, none of those even compare to the opportunity I have every day ... to offer my gifts to the King of the Universe, the Prince of Peace, Emmanuel, Jesus. Whether it be alone in my living room, or that "barely-a-joyful noise" I often make in the car or in the shower, or on stage with hundreds of my brothers and sisters -- the greatest opportunity I will EVER have is to offer my gifts for the King.

A second thought. The boy in the song claims he "has no gift to bring that's fit to give a King." I often feel like that. I'm usually too broken - too worn out - or feeling too inadequate for what "I think" is deserving of a King. The irony is that the scriptures say he uses the broken vessels ... the filthy rags ... the weak ... to serve His Kingdom.

So I played my BEST for him.
Then, He smiled at me ... "well done."

I hope you'll join us Monday night:
Christmas@FullVolume
Monday, Dec 5 - Bradley University Student Center Ballroom
8:30pm

New Car

2005-11-30T22:01:00.000-06:00
This thing showed up in my front yard today. Wha??