2010: A Year In Review

[I realize that this post is almost a month late, but life has had an extraordinary amount of interesting twists and turns.]

Lately, I have been thinking about what all happened in 2010, from the changes in my job, to the changes in my personal life. I am struggling to come up with a “top 10″ list of things from the year, so let me take a walk down memory lane instead.

January brought along the end of my run as a cashier at Dick’s Sporting Goods. It was a great job while I had it, but it wasn’t the right fit per se. One, I know almost nothing about sports, and that never helps. Two, I am very ADD, and I could not handle standing in one place for too long. However, by the end of January, I was employed with Old Navy.

I stayed with Old Navy from January until August. Nothing special their, except that it was the first job I ever had that was remodeling the store while I was there. That offered an opportunity to work all kinds of crazy hours, and so mornings I would watch the sunrise over the parking lot, which signified that quitting time was a mere couple of hours away.

The job Old Navy was good for a personal reason. It was my first job since Lemstone-Parable that I felt like I belonged there (see above about Dick’s Sporting Goods). I definitely felt like I grew up at Old Navy, and grew into my own skin a little bit more.

From Old Navy, I joined the bigger than life company Walmart as a cart attendant. I kept thinking that I wanted to get a gym membership while I was at Old Navy, but pushing carts makes up for that. I am now more excited for a day off work just so I am not being pushed to my physical limits.

I have to say though, I spent the start of 2010 in a bitter, upset mood, I felt like that was needed. I can never truly share every lesson that I learned, but I can be confident that 2011 will be one interesting year with its own twists and turns.

Lessons From Pop Culture: GLEE – The Characters

In an attempt to explore popular culture a little more deeply, I present this new blog series: Lessons From Pop Culture

I want to take a few moments in time and explore the premise of FOX’s hit TV show Glee: It follows a “ragtag” group of high school students (and their teacher) as they try to ban together to bring their school’s glee club back to its former glory.

[I kept that short on purpose... because... well... if you have not heard of the show yet then maybe you are not suppose to be reading my blog (only kidding there).]

Let us explore some of the characters and why I have decided to explore them a little deeper.
- First, let’s go to one of the original glee club’s, Kurt Hummel (played by Chris Colfer): Kurt is not another pretty faced guy that can sing. During the original few episodes of season one, the creators reveal the slightly effeminate Kurt to be gay. While this was not a shocker I feel that we can still learn a couple of things. The first thing that we can learn is that no matter the decisions that a person makes about their lives, we are still suppose to love them. While, some of the glee members had some initial trouble with Kurt being gay, by the end of season one, all of them had embraced him as a major player to the show. (Creator Ryan Murphy has confirmed that for season two, Kurt will have a boyfriend… and he is not going for the low man on the totem pole either, it is rumored to be that this new character will be the star quarterback.) Another thing that we can learn from Kurt, is that all people need a chance to “show what they are made of”. One of the most memorable moments for me during the original portion of season one was when Kurt when head-to-head against Lea Michele’s Rachel Berry in a sing off of “Defying Gravity”. When it was all said and done, Kurt blew the audition piece so that Rachel could perform the song. Nonetheless, the glee clubs still gave him a chance to show how talented he was (and continues to be).

- The second character I want to look at is lead cheerleader Quinn Fabray (Dianna Agron). Soon after being introduced as a major-supporting character it is a revealed that the president of the school’s Celibacy Club was pregnant. A few shows on television have addressed the current rise of teenage pregnancy, but Glee showed a little bit of a different little to the matter. While MTV’s 16 and Pregnant and Teenage Mom explore this life-altering decision with real people, Glee explores it even differently than they do. Glee has the pregnant be the head cheerleader, which when the news comes out, the mostly-nasty cheer leading coach Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch), forces Quinn off the team. I feel that shows that pregnancy can alter a persons life, in a following episodes Quinn’s parents kick her out of their home for getting pregnant. (However, toward the end of season one, we see Quinn’s mother being the conduit of grace and love toward her daughter.)

- The final character I want to explore is Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch). While most of her screen time with either pity one-liners (“Your delusions of persecution are a telltale sign of early stage paranoid schizophrenia.”) or insults toward the glee club teacher (Will Schuester, played by Matthew Morrison), their have been moments of love and kindness as well. One particular episode that stands out to me is when she allows a character with a mental handicap on the squad when she typically only accepts the best of the best from the school. This moment was a pivotal for Sue Sylvester since from that episode on we can see that she plays this tough girl character so hardcore to protect not only but those people (and things) that she holds dear. (Later in that episode we see that play out when it is revealed she has a sister with a mental handicap as well.)

This is not the end of the road for Lessons From Glee, in my next post I want to explore the music and what we can learn about life (and trust me, it is pretty interesting).

The Life Abnormally: Part II

Holy crap it’s been awhile since the last post… well, I am hoping to get back into the swing of things again real soon. Here are some highlights of what has been going on in life:

It’s The End Of Me As An Old Navy Employee
That was a little strange to walk out of there just a customer when I walked in as an employee. One of the things that I will miss is the people. Of the places that I have worked, Old Navy was a great example of a family. Which seemed a little unusual to me, more because when I think of a workplace with a family feeling, my first impression would be a Christian store not a “secular store”. Can non-Christians have some things figured out better than Christians do?

Emergency Rooms Are Interesting At 6 PM On Friday Nights
The last time I went to an emergency room because an injury to me was when I cracked my collar bone in fifth grade. Well, last night after leaving work (not Old Navy) I went again. Long story short, I just have a sprained muscle in my right shoulder. While I was sitting in the exam room they put me in, I was listening to the nurses talking (it was either that or listen to the wind from the AC vent). Well, a nurse was walking from a room further down the hallway and she had her hands full of prescription and as she passed my room all she said was, “Holy, hell” (while looking at the prescription bottles). That still makes me laugh.

Sam Walton’s Company Is Now My Boss
I left Old Navy to work at Walmart. Nothing exciting yet, but one PSA thing: If you have a cart, please, please, put the cart away in the cart corrals. Nothing annoys cart attendants more than free-roaming carts in the parking lot!

Summer 2010: The Summer Of Guilty Pleasures
Here are a few things that I became fascinated by this summer:
-The TV show “House” -The TV show “Glee” -The TV show “Jersey Shore” -Trying to cook more than frozen foods

Okay, well, that’s just a snapshot of what’s been going on.

The Life Abnormally With Steven D: Part I

I have recently realized that I blog about my life that often (I often times look at aspects of it, but not it as a whole). I want to change that, so every now and then, I am going to blog about my life… as it is my blog, I can do that.

Here is Part I of The Life Abnormally:

* Everyone Have Their Tickets?
This past week I won tickets to different things, one a concert and one a comedy show. The concert tickets were from KPLA to see The Eagles with special guest, The Dixie Chicks. Now, through a series of unfortunate events, I was not able to go to the concert, but I must say, it was still cool to win the tickets. The comedy show was at Deja Vu with Dan Grueter and Erin Jackson. Both were awesome!! (If you did not catch that, I did attend that one.) Those tickets came from BXR. I thank both stations for the tickets!

*Can I have iOS for 4.0 please, Alex?
Also, this past week I got my iPod Touch updated to iOS 4.0. I must say, while I don’t have multitasking capabilities, it totally kicks OS 3′s butt. It looks better, the email inboxes are more user friendly, and it works better overall. Even though it took 2.5 hours to update my iPod at MacXperts… it was soooo worth it. Also, while there, I got to play with an iPad. If you are trying to figure out what to get me for Christmas… the 16 GB iPad would be awesome!

*Reliving my childhood is always fun!
I saw the most awesome Toy Story 3 from Disney/ Pixar this week. I don’t want to give any part of the movie away, but it made me a little teary eyed at the end. I am so glad that Disney/ Pixar gets better with age!

*Abnormal science can be fun
A few friends of mine expressed how J.J. Abrams still rocked when it came to his show Fringe on FOX. While I did not start watching the show until this week thanks to Netflix, I am glad I did. Wow, this show rocks!

I am hoping you have enjoyed knowing what’s going on in my life, and I hope to share again soon!

- Steven

An Illusion of Completness: Being LOST, Yet Not Found

As, pretty much, everyone knows, this past Sunday night was the finale of a personal favorite television show of mine, LOST. Many reviews have posted about the ending in relation to personal opinions, but I cannot keep thinking how some of the show echoes either beliefs I have or how certain situations reminded me of events from my life.

*Spoiler quote warning* I want to first look at something that was said by Christian Shephard to his son Jack in one of the last moments of the show: “The most important part of your life was the time you spent with these people. That’s why you’re all here. Nobody does it alone, Jack: you needed all of them, and they needed you…” I’ve personally have felt like the time I’ve spent with different people in my life has been so pivotal to other events in my life. Recently, I have spent time reflecting on some of those particular people and the moments that they helped with, here are just a few:

- Getting a phone call in 2006 from Scott inviting me to a Chi Alpha Bible study: While this may seem a little trivial, it was definitely a moment that showed me, that “nobody does it alone”. At this point, I had spent most of my time at MU just being another number or face to many people. I prayed at times for God to help me out, but I was not certain what was taking so long. Then, in January 2006, my friend Kyle invited me to my first Chi Alpha service. That was an awesome moment for me, but that was not the moment of “nobody does it alone”. Even though I grew up attending church, I still was not familiar with the fact that Christians need community to grow and become stronger in their faith. Then, when Scott called my house, I was still unfamiliar with that idea, however, as our friendship grew, he started showing me just how true that was. (Example: Look at the example of an all one gender Bible study, you can have accountability and a place to share what’s really been going on in your life.) As Scott and I became better friends, I became more involved with Chi Alpha, and that really showed me how true the start of that quote was: “The most important part of your life was the time you spent with these people.” At times, in the 3.5 years I was involved with Chi Alpha, it seemed like smooth sailing, but every now and then, it seemed like I was in some rough waters. Those 3.5 years, I realize now, were so important to me for various reasons (a deeper walk with God, a sense of true community, learning about accountability, etc.). While, I am only 23, I have a feeling that those years will truly be really important as I continue on in life.

- Becoming friends with Ryan: While, this may seem really closely related to my prior point, it is also a little different. It is similar because we became friends from Chi Alpha, yet it is different because I have felt more and more like our friendship is like the end of the quote: “Nobody does it alone, Jack: you needed all of them, and they needed you…” While I cannot speak for Ryan on the part of him needing our friendship, I can say that I have needed our friendship (not in one of those, elevating him to the position of God in my life, but a healthy need). I cannot count the times I have asked Ryan for his advice from relationships, to understanding something theologically (even though we still disagree on occasions on that), to fashion advice (yes, I just admitted that there times I do not know what looks good together and have to turn to others for help). Recently, I have needed the friendship I have with Ryan to help me through various, to keep with the sea analogy from earlier, waves (ranging from work to personal stuff). I am grateful everyday for that kind of friendship!

Now, to escape from that quote, I want to look how I have learned more and more from LOST how important it is to look at the whole story. In six seasons of the show, they showed various aspects of the characters life, from the past, to the future, (*spoiler*) to life in a purgatory like manner. With the flashbacks, they showed how every character was personally “lost”. Kate was a murderer on the run, Jack was dealing with his father’s death, Claire was about to give up her son for adoption, and Charlie was a “recovering” drug addict (he had lapsed back into the addiction before getting on Oceanic 815). They all had demons they were dealing with, and the plane crash forced everybody to deal with them in some capacity. The flash-forwards showed just how six of the characters had to deal with the demons they had suppressed on the island when they returned to non-island life. We do not know what we will face in the future, we do know that God does and we have to trust in that. However, examining our past really does put a lot of things into perspective. At times we all repeat something we have once done (that is if we did not learn our lesson the first time). However, when we pull back from the events down the road, we can see what brought us to this point in our life. We can go from being “lost”, to at least having some bearings for where our destination is. (While I could address the purgatory still manner it seemed season 6 had, I do not know enough on the subject to do so.)

Death on a Island: On LOST there were numerous deaths (Boone, Shannon, Charlie, Mr. Eko, Anna Lucia, etc.), and thinking about that makes me think of how death has affected my life. The death that has affected me the most, at least so far, in my life, was the death of my grandmother back in 2004. While I cannot say it was entirely shocking, it was still heart-breaking. For 17 years, I had grown up with her being in my life, and due to cancer, she was gone. I can honestly say, I never want that to happen again, however, I know that it will and it will break my heart every time. I hope that for every death that looms ahead, I can come out stronger and take the time to realize how that particular person affected my life for the positive.

For six years, LOST captivated my attention for its story telling and its questions. While not every question I had was answered in the final season, I feel like that was what made the show so great. It concluded with as much (if not more) uncertainty than how the show began. While I will not be walking around saying “son of a bitch” all the time, I will probably randomly sing “you all everybody”, and when I do, I will remember the lessons learned from one of the greatest television shows I have every watched.

More Grey Areas for More Topics

About a year ago I addressed five different topics and some questions that I had about them. (You can view that post by clicking here.)

Without further ado, I have to admit that some of these five topics will not be fully easy to define, and nor will the conversation that results from them be easy to take in; however, I feel like it’s important to address some of these now.

1) Environment: On April 20, 2010, an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico caught on fire and exploded. The result of this explosion was that, up to, 210,000 gallons of oil a day could be spilling out. As Christians, how are we to respond to disasters like this? What are options in how to respond? Do we simply sit back and believe that others will take an active role in cleaning it up?

2) Earthquakes: As we all are aware, there have been numerous earthquakes this year alone (starting off with the earthquake that rocked Haiti). While this topic may be better for the environment topic rather than on its own, I wanted to make it its category because it’s not related to oil spills but to human lives. In a disaster, such as an earthquake, there is one main aspect that needs to be addressed, so here we go:
- What can we do to help? We can send money, but is that all we can do?

3) Secular America vs. Christian Nationality: Something that has been bugging me some is the idea that there are two different world-views out there (at least two different ones according to most Christians), and they are: the “secular/ worldly” and the Christian view. The former referring to music to the likes of Lady Gaga, movies like “Shrek” and TV shows such as “LOST”. The later referring to music by Hillsong United, movies like “The Passion of the Christ”, and TV shows like “Touched by an Angel”. Can Christians only function within the Christian subculture or should we try to reach out to the secular/ worldly standards and try to redeem them for the Kingdom of God? If we can redeem them, how can we do that? The phrase “take back America for the Kingdom of God” has been tossed around; however, was America ever a Christian nation? If not, then how can redeem any part of it for the Kingdom of God? If it was a Christian nation, when and how so?

4) Prosperity Gospel: The following definition of Prosperity Gospel is from Wikipedia – “a religious belief found among ‘tens of millions’ of Christians centered on the notion that God provides material prosperity for those he favors. It has been defined by the belief that ‘Jesus blesses believers with riches’ or more specifically as the teaching that ‘believers have a right to the blessings of health and wealth and that they can obtain these blessings through positive confessions of faith and the ‘sowing of seeds’ through the faithful payments of tithes and offerings.’” — Is this a true representation of the Gospel? If so, what is the Biblical proof for it? (Also, how do we explain this concept to Christians in third world countries that make next to nothing?) If it is not, then why is this a popular belief among some Christians?

5) [My topic of controversy for this post] LGBT Rights: This topic may be more spawned by the United States of America’s Declaration of Independence more than the Bible; however, I feel like this is a topic that Christians should have some thoughts on. A) In his State of the Union address this past January, President Barack Obama declared that he would work with Congress to repeal the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law that President Clinton signed into law in the 1990s. (For a full transcript of President Obama’s State of the Union address, you can click here.) Should openly gay, lesbian, and bisexual men and woman be allowed to participate in the military? B) A handful of states have addressed the issue of Gay Marriage (California mostly notably appears to keep flip-flopping on the issue), the overall idea is that marriage is only for heterosexual couples and gay couples should not be given the right to marry. While many church officials have commented on this issue, I would like to know, if we, as Americans, can deny this right to people? If America is not a Christian nation, then what does it matter if we offer equal rights to all? (The idea of equal rights can be found in the most famous line of the United States Declaration of Independence.)

I hope that this post can spark a conversation of some of the big issues that are in today’s news and I hope that we can all walk away with a deeper understanding of recent events.

Do You Remember Jennifer Knapp?

Christian Artist Jennifer Knapp recently released a bunch of news about herself and her career while promoting her new c.d. Letting Go (which “drops” May 11). This is the first c.d. from Knapp in about nine years, in 2003 she said she was taking a hiatus from recording music and touring. Recently, Knapp did a couple of different interviews that fans of the Christian artist should take a look at.

One is with Christianity Today, and the second interview worth noting is with The Advocate.

Why do I feel that Knapp’s fans should read these interviews? Well, for starters, “The Advocate” is a publication specifically for the LGBT community… And, in case you have not heard the news, Knapp has announced that she is gay. Can you see why these interviews might be worth noting now? Personally, I think that some fans will find out she is gay, and then turn and never to be her fans again. But, how can a community with “love your neighbor as yourself” as it’s second greatest commandment become so hateful toward her?

It’s time for people to really think how much their actions speak for them, even when they don’t say something. Refusing to be a fan of a musician whose music you have listened to for the past decade, when they make announcement that you disagree with, does not make sense. Currently, Knapp is touring with “controversial” Christian artist Derek Webb; and on his recent album Stockholm Syndrome, he wrote a song entitled “What Matters More”, here are a few lines from that song: “You say you always treat people like you’d like to be/ I guess you love being hated for your sexuality… If I can see what’s in your heart by what comes out of your mouth/ then it sure looks like being straight is all it’s about.”

Webb has a point here, if you’re a Christian, speaking love and showing love are the top priorities that you should focus on. We should stop condeming people for being different than us. It’s time we take charge and show the world what love looks like… and that’s not hating others for having a different sexuality than ourselves.

Denying Human Rights

If you follow me on Twitter or if I share things with you via Google Reader (and Google Buzz) then this story is not all that new to you, but I want to share it with you again and to share my thoughts about it as well.

This portion is from the Human Rights Campaign [HRC] (for more information on HRC feel free to look at their website by clicking here): We’ve been following Itawamba student Constance McMillan’s struggle to attend prom with her girlfriend and wear the clothes of her choosing. A court decided her school was wrong to deny her attendance but stopped short of ordering them to hold the prom. So parents and private citizens offered to put on the prom, but details of that prom were mysterious and Constance wasn’t invited. Then it was reported that the mystery prom had been cancelled, but that another prom would be held at a country club in nearby Fulton, MS; Constance was invited and would be going to this prom. It took place this past Friday and was attended by exactly seven students – Constance, her date and five others, plus some teachers and the principal as chaperones. How could this be? Quite simply and horribly, the event at the country club was a ‘fake’ prom and all the other students attended the ‘real’ prom at another location. (Emphasis in the original.)

Here’s my opinion on this story: To me, this is a great example of people discriminating against others because they are different. I have hated that people are discriminated against for being different my entire life. At times, I have been the source of minor discrimination (or bullying) for being the chubby kid or the poster boy for ADD, and since then it breaks my heart when I hear stories like this. While you may disagree with me on this, I just want you to think. In Constance’s case, she was denied to attend a prom because she wanted to go with her girlfriend. Would you want to be denied in going to a prom for your date being male or female? I think this story reflects a certain amount of hatred and phobia people have in our society. I think it’s time we get past that, it’s time we show people that we love them. (We may disagree with choices they make, but that does not give us the right to not love them. Christians especially are commanded by Christ to love people, you can’t love and hate the same person.)

Would you stand with Constance and the Human Rights Campaign and say that this was uncalled for discrimination or would you agree with the actions of the “parents and private citizens”? Let’s stop trying to push people away for being different, let’s open our arms and embrace them.

Stop discrimination toward people different than you!

You Never Know What Could Happen

I have often wondered what God’s will is for my life. I have spent time in prayer on the issue, and I have asked others to pray that I hear what God has in store next or even down the road for me. However, after reading Francis Chan’s article in the March/ April 2010 issue of Relevant Magazine, I feel like there is a different way to approach the issue. On the title page of the article it says the following: “I just wish I knew God’s will…” We’ve all said it-but what if we’re getting it wrong?

Chan starts by stating that very few people in Scipture ever learned God’s will for their lives. He then discusses Abraham’s obedience to God even though he was not certain what God had in store. If you have been around the Christian bubble for any length of time, you have probably heard at least one sermon or Bible study over Abraham (most specifically when God tested Abraham’s faith). [In case you need a reminder on the story check Genesis 22.] I’m taking a shot in the dark here, but I think a small portion of Abraham’s thought process at this time in his life was that God was a little crazy. Why would the all-mighty, all-loving God of the universe say years earlier that all generations would be blessed by Abraham’s son Isaac, then this day God says to go sacrifice him on a mountain?

For me the lesson is not from the outcome of this particular event, but it comes from the exchange in the early portion of the chapter between God and Abraham. In verse two, God tells Abraham what to do. Verse three records that the next day, Abraham did just as God commanded of him. I know for me personally that if God had told me to travel 50 miles to sacrifice my son, I would question what God had in store. To be honest, I am not certain I could even do it. However, the elderly Abrahan does obey without question. What can we learn about God’s will from this event? We read that Abraham did not ask what God had in store, he simply acted. What I learned from this is that when God tells me to do something, I should not stop and ask questions, I should act and obey and reflect on what happened down the road.

[Chan only spent one paragraph discussing Abraham, but I wanted to highlight that particular event.] Here is a quote from second paragraph: “A lot of us need to forget about God’s will for my life. God cares more about our response to His Spirit’s leading today, in this moment, than about what we intend to do next year,” (pg. 53). I know that for me, I have fallen into the trap of thinking down the road, and not thinking about the right here and now. I have a feeling that this is true of a lot of other people as well. In elementary school we learn about making goals (ranging from short-term to long-term), but sometimes doing that we forget about how our actions and responses now will effect those goals. If we set out to when a Nobel Prize before we die, that would mean we would have to do something to garner the attention of the Nobel Foundation. We can’t simply sit back and do nothing, we have to act and do something. Setting up practices now to get us to where we need to be in order to win that Prize is the only correct form of action.

I love what Chan goes on to say in the next paragraph of his article: “It is easy to use the phrase ‘God’s will for my life’ as an excuse for inaction or even disobedience. It’s much less demanding to think about God’s will for your future than it is to ask Him what He wants you to do in the next 10 minutes. It’s safer to commit to following Him someday instead of this day,” (pg. 53). I have heard before that all we have to do is just pray for something and if it’s in God’s will, it will happen. I disagree with a part of that theory. We should do more than just pray, we need to act as well. Going back to the Nobel Prize illustration from earlier: we can pray we get a Nobel Prize, but (as stated earlier) we have to act as well. They do not offer a Nobel Prize in laziness, they award them “for achievements in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and for peace,” (nobelprize.com). Sitting back and just praying does not do a lot here. Praying and trying to make a change in any of the above mentioned fields might do something. The point I want to get to is, being a “just pray-er” does not work all the time, we have to be “prayers and doers”.

Chan’s article helped remind me that the actions of here and now are within God’s control and will work out for His glory. We just need to let go of what God wants us to do 10 years down the road focus on the 10 minutes we have now. As Christ said, “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble,” (Matthew 6:34). Overall, the article was a great read and something that helped me see that it is time to focus on today. Sometimes, when we look down the road for the opportunities to share the Gospel with people, we forget about those that are around us right now that need to hear the Good News as well.

Rock You Like A Hurricane

(I am not going to post the lyrics to that awful song… don’t start freaking out… lol.)

If you have kept up with the news at all lately you would know that their have been numerous earthquakes around the world (with the first one being in Haiti). It seems like to me that the start of this year has been full of more earthquakes back to back than I can remember. I hope that you have had the chance to give to what is now a worldwide relief efforts. The American Red Cross offered the chance for people to text in donations for the first time after the earthquake in Haiti. They have since released that they have raised more money than they thought they would. Actually, NBC News reported January 21, 2010 (ten days after the Haiti earthquake) that the total (at that time) for text donations was $30 million for a lot of organizations combined… not just the Red Cross.

Please continue show the world the love of Christ and help out for the worldwide relief efforts.