Under my umbrella, ella, ella.

Fairly recently, reader, I was admonished for my deep desire to be capable of rolling my "r's," but not for any sinful linguistic demand, but because I remarked that the lack of this ability rules out singing Roy Orbison's "Pretty Woman" properly, found here and here (if Van Halen suits you better).

Here's another (less) disturbing thought: another good reason a man should carry an umbrella in his car is so that he can lend it to women, or walk them places. After all, women do need that covering, for the sake of the angels! :) Just kidding. That's not really related at all.

I detest the song that lends itself to this title.

Also, we watched 45 minutes of Justin Beiber's documentary film "Never Say Never," after which I must declare I've got a fair amount of respect for how intentionally prevalent his family's faith played a part in the making of his success. And that kid's got some musical talent, beyond his Beatle-esque leaning towards pandering to the performance-craze of teenybopper love songs.

I should, given my romantic tendencies, listen to Usher and Boyz II Men. I'll have to get on that.

On the topic of umbrellas:

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust!"
For it is HE who delivers you from the snare of the trapper and from the deadly pestilence.
HE will cover you with HIS pinions, and under HIS wings you may seek refuge;
HIS faithfulness is a shield and bulwark. 
Psalm 91:1-4 (pay attention to the pronouns)


When I remember You on my bed,
I meditate on You in the night watches,
for You have been my help,
and in the shadow of Your wings I sing for joy.
My soul clings after You;
Your right hand upholds me. 
Psalm 63:6-8


Besides the abstract pictures of God that we are taught to cherish as a western culture, THAT class encouraged (not as a substitute or with the implication of superiority) more concrete thought about God, much like the Psalmist depicts God. It is undoubtedly and unequivocally true that God is love, that God is just, and that God is worthy of power, dominion, honor, wealth, and glory from now until beyond time. But it is also true that God is our Father. God is a shepherd. God is a king. God is a stream of living water. God is a master potter. God is a gardener. God is a poet, a playwright, an actor (in the literal sense of the word), a speaker, and WORD itself. It's true that God is the I AM, but it is also true that God was a carpenter. God is shade. God is a mother hen. God is a bridegroom, a kinsman-redeemer, a judge, a priest, a prophet, and a mighty man of war. 

November 20th: 19

11/20/11
Father, i am now nineteen years old, yet i am not mature in any way, save for sin. i'm pretty good at that, yet these words do not belong together, Father! make me to do good in Your Name, and save me from sin! show me the paths of righteousness, and strengthen me so i can carry Your lambs. please heal jim's knee, as he is in a lot of pain and discomfort; please bring peace to my mother in her loneliness; please comfort the hirtzel family as their grandfather joe is passing away (hopefully into life!); please guard ciaran and havalind, that they would love deeply; please help the rest of team praha and me in our daily lives that so often elude our recognition--let us not grow stale in our routine duties! please help us to maintain friendships with the czechs, and please give strength and courage and perseverance to Your servants at large in this world. if it is Your will, please let and enable me to join the ranks of these life-long martyrs, who sing without tongues as the french huguenots, for You are worthy.

Paedo-communionism

i. Jesus was a) baptized and b) instituted the Lord's supper on Passover night.
ii. Baptism is the sign of inclusion within God's covenant, so far as to replace circumcision [as the sign of inclusion of the "old" covenant].
iii. Infants were circumcised; infants are baptized. (I won't go into further detail on ii. or iii. here)

Hence, paedo-baptism.

iv. The Lord's supper was held on Passover night, which has deep significance, as Jesus is unequivocally the Passover Lamb of God. (I Cor. 5:17)
v. The Passover festival was so important to God that He commanded the Israelites to re-order their months to place God's deliverance via passing over lamb's blood at the beginning of each year. (Exodus 12)
vi. The Passover included the children (Exodus 12:26), as did other feasts include children (Booths: Deut. 16:14, Sabbath: Exodus 20:10)
vii. The Christian sabbath is now celebrated not in the day of Christ's death (that is, Passover day, Friday morning), but on the day of His resurrection.
viii. This is important enough to warrant the early church to recognize the fulfillment of the Passover and the re-ordering of weeks to place the Lord's day at the head.
ix. The Lord's supper is the fulfillment of the Passover.
x. Children of God's covenant were allowed to join the fellowship of believers remembering God's mighty deliverance from bondage in Egypt; children of God's covenant should be allowed to join the fellowship of believers remembering God's mighty deliverance from bondage to sin and death.

This is what causes me to [tentatively] lean towards paedo-communionism.

Resolved: to not be mastered by any addiction or laziness or drug.
Resolved: to stress less and pray often.
Resolved: to not let my future self regret what I do in the present.
Resolved: to want to love; that is, to change my desires so that actions flow naturally from the overflow of a righteous heart.
Resolved: to cherish the resurrection of Jesus.
Resolved: to wear my watch like Mr. Mueller and many other wise men, so as to be surreptitious about checking the time.
Resolved: to be shrewd as a serpent and innocent as a dove. 

Unblemished.

Reader, you might think this a bit embarrassing (or gross, like Calvin thinks), but I've recently developed a wart on my pinky finger. I've forgotten what common warts are scientifically called, but I can confirm that they have nothing to do with any amphibians. Anyways, God uses this imagery of physical "defects" (even though He created all things "good" and knitted us together individually before our time-lines began) to demonstrate His holiness. Ephesians 5:25, the famous Bible passage wives love to quote to husbands (and of which husbands ought to love to quote to their wives), is followed by these verses: (verse 25 quoted for context)

Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church
and gave Himself for it;
That He might sanctify and cleanse it
with the washing of water
by the word,
That He might present it to Himself a glorious church,
not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing;
but that it should be holy
and without blemish [fault].
Ephesians 5:25-27

--What does this mean?
Well, while the Bible uses repetition and double-tracked poetry, I don't think "spot" and "blemish" are synonymous. Blemish seems to be alluding to a birth defect, whereas the spot seems to be alluding to any non-genetic disqualifications for sacrifice (a wrinkle, a broken bone, a scarred ear, etc.). And that's precisely what I think the purpose of this language is borrowing from: sacrificial language. Sacrifice usually brings to mind atonement or propitiation--that or appeasing God's anger, or pleading for the forgiveness of sins by the substitutionary death of another. This simply is not the case. For what sin was Abraham asked (mind you, he was asked, not commanded) to sacrifice Isaac? Often recorded in the Bible are sacrifices of thanksgiving, which are actually pretty cool to read. Many people bag on Leviticus, but it is full of party language! God commands His people to bring their food and drink and bless God first, recognizing His primary hand in blessings, but then to have a community barbecue party, full of wine and dancing and singing! Joy is serious business to God, as somebody famous once said.

--Ok, fine. So why the sacrificial language here, of all places, even if it's not referring to atonement?! And what's the deal with your finger? By the way, Joseph, that is pretty gross.

(Actually, I don't think warts are that gross, whether they're blemishes or spots. Proper measures are being taken for its [that is, my wart's] eradication.)

To be very brief, the detailed washing and ceremonial cleansing God commanded the priests to undergo before daring to offer sacrifices (found here, Numbers 18-19, KJV) is paralleled and perhaps fulfilled in the anti-type of Christ and the church (which is called a kingdom of priests, who, according to Numbers 18:20 "shall have no inheritance, neither shall [they] have any part among them [the non-priestly tribes of Israel]: I [the LORD] am thy part and thine inheritance among the children of Israel"), and of which godly husbands can imitate in the preparing and beautifying of their wives as offerings of love to God. 

--That still sounds weird. Husbands offering their wives as sacrifices?
Well, Christians all are being sanctified and cleansed [by the word] in order to be offered to Christ as a glorious bride, the New Jerusalem, the church. Husbands, as covenant heads, are lovingly entrusted (as stewards) with daughters of the King. 

It's a bit late, but the intent for writing this post actually came from my father, because he used to gripe that, had we been transplanted 3,000 years ago in the tents of Israel, they would not have let him visit the Tabernacle on account of his scoliosis (Leviticus 21:16-24 NASB). Come to think of it, I wouldn't be allowed entrance either, which would probably bring me great sorrow. Anyways, I always thought it strange that he would think that, seeing how we, as Christians in the twenty-first century, have much greater blessings in that we are called "the temple of the Holy Spirit," that we have the anti-type, the true sacrifice without blemish or spot, the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:18-19 KJV), and that we are called "His flesh and His bone" (Ephesians 5:30). Plus, one would think the puny Israelites of c.1000 B.C. would notice my father's great height before any curvature of his back, seeing how he would stand at least up to Goliath's chest, and would overshadow King Saul. 

On a side note, reader, I'd like to make an observation. Being a covenant child is like being born post-Christ: covenant children grow up with the anti-types and do not have to be dragged kicking and screaming to see the connections that all point to Jesus. 

In the city gates of Jerusalem in the present day, as Jerusalem is in the control of Muslims, a graveyard has been planted within the gate that faces the Mount of Olives, of which the orthodox Jews believe the messiah will come through. These corpses are unwittingly serving the purpose of keeping the unblemished messiah from entering the city, thus touching the dead (c.f. Numbers 18-19), becoming unclean, and thus "spotted." The problem with this thinking is that Jesus the Messiah, the Christ of God has reversed these things. Goodness overcomes evil. Light overcomes darkness. Jesus beats death, sin, and Satan. In Mark 1:40-44, Jesus wills and speaks leprosy away. Like, are you serious right now? 

And there came a leper to Him, beseeching Him, and kneeling down to Him, and saying unto Him,

"If You will, Thou can make me clean."

And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth His hand, and touched Him, and said unto him,

"I will; be thou clean."

And as soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed.

Mark 1:40-42

It shouldn't surprise me that the Logos, the God of the universe, who holds our being together with His word, who saves sinners, could banish leprosy (the classic symbol of physical separation from the community of God's people, and thus, from God's grace), with His words. But it does! Jesus's compassion is greater than my sin. 

The Lamb has redeemed the sheep; sinless Christ has reconciled sinners to the Father.

This is the one thing I know.

Jars of Clay "Liquid"

Christians are cleansed by Jesus, the High Priest, who was the Sacrifice, who is the only acceptable sacrifice (in all senses of the word). 

Prayer 02-21-12

Dearest Father, You're the best. You know exactly what we need, and You don't hesitate to provide our daily bread; no more, no less! Please help me to not ask for more, but to rejoice always with your extravagant blessings. Thank You so much for turning Calvin! Perhaps we will (together) turn our house to follow hard after You--bless our efforts, Father. Please provide more fathers for us in the form of the numerous godly men in the churches. Thank You for our grandfather and grandmother, but You know the count of their days better than we do. If it is Your will, let them last until Calvin and I are matured in Your grace, that we would not be bereft once more as children. Let us love You like growing children. Please bless our efforts in our education; remind us to be diligent in our working for Your kingdom. Let us be cheerful givers. Create in us clean hearts, O God, and give us right minds to know ahead of time how each of us will serve Your kingdom on earth. We love You, Lord; let us never, never outlive our love for You. In Jesus's blessed name, amen!

Remodel.

The Pollard residence is having its master bathroom remodeled by the handyman across the street, no less. This is really cool and crazy to watch, but this means that my bathroom now has three occupants instead of just one: me. This has taught me a lot of managing time, now that showers have to be timed and almost scheduled, but greater still is the lesson of humility this remodel has brought to mind.

The bathroom being remodeled is a sign that this house's days are numbered. It's always been inevitable, reader, that our house would eventually end up on the market, since my mother will (hopefully she hopes her children will mature in the Lord and begin families of our own some day) eventually be the only one warming a nearly vacant nest. I don't know (she won't tell me) whether or not this house holds regrets and shame and bad memories now post-divorce, but there weren't that many good memories to be soured in my memory. In fact, I don't remember many interesting stories or games or events around my house. I'll shed no tears to wave this structure gone, but I will for the inhabitants. Symbols are cool, but this one is melancholy. Soon enough we'll find another place to call home, but my home will follow me, for God is with me.

I joy to call Thee mine.

I am SO happy right now, I can hardly be. My brother said that he's "formally become a Christian"! I don't know how to describe that, but it's the sort of thing a not-quite-so-covenant-child would say, reader. I'm sure I would have said as much of myself had I been a better historian and taken better care of noting God's hand in my life.

Oh, and the Southern Presbytery of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church held its High School/Collegiate Winter Camp this past weekend. Pastor Mark Schroeder preached on biblical courtship, which was absolutely appropriate for me to hear. It seems like all of the topics have been completely applicable and apropo whenever I go there.

This was my second year driving up the mountain and my fifth year in a row of camping with the godly young men and women of my presbytery. They are constantly a blessing, and I pray that I was the same for them. Mary York asked me how many years I'd been coming attending the Winter Camp by asking me to name the different skits I performed in each year. I couldn't; the skits were never a key I was never a huge force in my group's skit to make them the memorable factor of camp. Instead, I began to recall the different friends I'd met (sometimes multiple times because of my poor memory) and grown to love [as a brother in Christ]. Mary York was the first person I met, upon setting foot in the Meadow Lodge some five years ago. I didn't know hardly knew the kids from my own church, the Branch of Hope in Torrance, California; how was I to scoot my shy behind into making friends? Yet Mary York turned around from her group of girls, thrust her hand out, and then proceeded to repeatedly forget my name over the next twenty-four hours. I forgave her; my own fallacious memory is bound by my conscience otherwise. I'll continue to post my first memories of friends as they are recalled in order.

Some notable quotations:

"Now that I'm formally a Christian, I agree with like everything you [Joseph] say that used to annoy me." ~Calvin Pollard
"Looking at Joseph makes me feel safe." ~Ethan Blake (Or something like that. It was a pretty cool thing to say, seeing how Pastor Crum enjoyed backing up the Blake's van so that those of us sitting in the back could see over the precipices of the mountain)

"Your mom's lord!" ~Charisa Dorn, mimicking Mary York in a skit

"What will I do with your daughter? You mean today... or next week?" ~Neal Hirtzel, playing a pretty jerk-move character in a skit

"It'll come out in the wash...board abs." ~Austin Gorrell, in a skit

"Well, Daddy, you know what happens at Winter Camp." ~Lydia Gorrell, in a skit

Some notable gleanings from the sermons and devotions:

Past relationships tear your heart into pieces like Horcruxes.

Talk to all parents involved and the elders of your church for wisdom regarding marriage.

Marriage is a good thing.

Don't lather make-up with a trowel.

Be patient; there is a godly spouse.

Courtship is like the law; it's designed to serve and protect those at risk and vulnerable. 

Courtship shows true colors fairly quickly.

Do make checklists.

Don't make checklists.

Holding hands is evil. (jk)

Reserve physical displays of affection for public places, especially with her family present.

Get a job, bro.

Lord, have mercy.

Sons are sent; daughters are given. God gave Eve to Adam; creation ordinance.

Men love their wives like Christ loved the church, delivering himself for her.

Gospel:

I have been crucified with Christ; 

and it is no longer I who live,

but Christ lives in me;

and insofar as I live in the flesh 

I live by faith in the Son of God,

who loved me and gave Himself up for me. 

-Galatians 2:20

Song (O Sacred Head, Now Wounded):

O sacred Head now wounded, with grief and shame weighed down,

now scornfully surrounded with thorns-- Thine only crown.

O sacred Head, what glory, what bliss 'til now was Thine!

Yet, though despised and gory, I joy to call Thee mine.~

What Thou, my Lord, hast suffered was all for sinners' gain.

Mine, mine was the transgression; but Thine the deadly pain!

Lo[ok], here I fall, my Savior! 'Tis I deserve Thy place;

Look on my with Thy favor; vouchsafe to me Thy grace.~

Men mock and taunt and jeer Thee, Thou noble countenance,

Though mighty worlds shall fear Thee and flee before thy glance.

How pale Thou art with anguish, with sore abuse and scorn!

How does that visage languish, which once was bright as morn!~

My burden in Thy Passion, Lord, Thou hast borne for me,

for it was my transgression which brought this woe to Thee.

I cast me down before Thee! Wrath were my rightful lot;

have mercy, I implore Thee! Redeemer, spurn me not!~

My Shepherd, now receive me! My Guardian, own me Thine!

Great blessings Thou didst give me, O Source of gifts divine!

Thy lips have often fed me with words of truth and love;

Thy Spirit oft hath led me to heavenly joys above. ~

What language shall I borrow to thank Thee, dearest Friend

for this, Thy dying sorrow, Thy pity without end?

O make me Thine forever! And should I fainting be...

Lord, let me never, never outlive my love for Thee.~

My Savior, be Thou near me when death is at my door.

Then let Thy presence cheer me; forsake me nevermore!

When soul and body languish, O leave me not alone

but take away mine anguish by virtue of Thine own!~

Be Thou my Consolation, my Shield when I must die.

Remind me of Thy passion when my last hour draws nigh.

Mine eyes shall then behold Thee, upon Thy cross shall dwell!

My heart by faith enfold Thee--who dieth thus dies well!

Beatlemania

Love me; do ask me why. From me to you, I saw her standing there; she loves you. I want to hold your hand; please please me. It won't be long; it's been a hard day's night. All my loving... I'm a loser. Can't buy me love eight days a week; I'll be back again. I feel fine and I love her. No reply? Help! You're going to lose that girl yesterday; yes, it is the word. You've got to hide your love away, day tripper. Ticket to ride? I'm down. We can work it out in my life. Norwegian Wood? Think for yourself; drive my car nowhere, man. 

P.S.- I love you.

I was trying for a day to walk to a waltz's 3-beats, as opposed to a 2-beat march. It doesn't work. We only have 2 legs. 

Paul is my favorite.

I've known many Paul-s in my life, even in a short nineteen years. The first was a boy named Paul Kim, who was two years my junior. I would beat him in foot races (he was a bit pudgy, and I've always been quick on my feet), but he would challenge me in mathematics, music, and memorizing the Bible. He knew from the young age of eight that he would serve God as a pastor. I don't know where he is now, but he would be 17, and I'm sure he has surpassed my understanding of many things. He was a bright kid.
The next Paul that entered my life was in the form of the  Pastor Paul Viggiano  of  Branch of Hope OPC . He taught me to cool my jets and stop blasting people for their faulty theology and worldviews. Sarcasm lost its grip on me, and I've yet to attempt taming it again. I'll admit, reader, that I've taken the easier solution of the avoidance of sin rather than the more difficult careful controlling of my tongue to be able to know the right words for each situation, including the ones that call for sarcastic and emphatic (even expletives, when necessary) language. He's been a great preacher, and he's taught me much about an optimistic view of Jesus' work of redemption on the cross and in His resurrection, which then flavours and colours all other aspects of life. He taught me much about marriage and the sovereignty of God, and how they can be used as object lessons for one another to become graspable.

I'm going to throw my two cents in here about Paul McCartney before I move on to my last Paul (who really isn't called Paul at all, but for all intents and purposes of this artful narrative he is the third Paul I've met). Paul McCartney is my favorite Beatle, for reasons beyond the fact that he's one of the two remaining members alive today. He had a way with melodies as John Lennon had a way with words and puns. If you know me fairly well, reader, you may be surprised that I'd not favor John Lennon for his pessimistically sarcastic and punny innuendo. Perhaps it's because I relate too closely with Lennon. As a Christian, however, that sort of pessimism has no place in my life. Here's why I like Paul the best.
Paul McCartney bit the bullet for the band when they lost their fifth member (a bassist) early in their career, long before they were called The Beatles. They decided that one of them could drop the guitar and pick up the bass to become a quartet. So Paul, being the most musically gifted, picked up the bass guitar, and reinvented the purpose of the bass guitar.
Paul McCartney created beautiful vocal melodies as a composer. His songs are generally less dominated by chords as John Lennon's were, but made up for the lack of instrumental depth in the background by fueling the narrative by his voice... and he could sing pretty well. He also made sure to include a melody for himself in a complicated bass guitar complementary melody.
Paul McCartney was optimistic. His songs (at least the ones I've heard so far, as my class is forcing a chronological view of this band) all use the psychological effects major and minor keys have upon the human mind to fuel the narrative. Prime example here ("We Can Work It Out") . The verses are in a major key, but end neutrally, which makes the listener honestly wonder whether or not "we can work it out". The bridge (which also does a cool time switch to 3-beat time!) switches to minor (compliments of John Lennon). The reason I like Paul McCartney the best is that the song ends in the major key.

The most recent Paul I've met (for the purposes of this narrative, I won't include acquaintances) is a man after God's own heart. I've no doubt that he will be a Paul like the apostle, preaching good news to people in far-off islands, and I'm happy to play the role of Barnabas to him.

Justice, Mercy, & Faithfulness

resolved: to give without concern or care
of cost or profit, t'not be burdensome.
resolved: to be faithful and true: a pair
of the virtues required to build a home.
resolved: to see and know the base rules
behind commands which daily guard my eyes
from diving into vile cesspools.
resolved: to bleed my hands in sacrifice
for paralytic friends and family.
resolved: to lead with suff'ring, yielding all
my life and love to Christ, who joyfully
surrender'd thrones and crowns for manger stall.
my thoughts could end without a follow through,
but words alone are void 'n' nowhere near true.
------------------------------
Chiastic Prose, Shakespearean Sonnet-style.

William Sprague requested the college group of Branch of Hope to each write a sonnet as an exercise in creative and methodical thinking, so I decided to torture myself by writing my thoughts as if I were writing an essay full of prose, with resolutions in the style of Jonathan Edwards. I also tried as best as I could to write it "chiastically," which probably isn't a word based on the fact that my computer puts red squiggly lines underneath it, but it's basically a literary tool used in Scripture and numerous other famous works of literature (Dante's pieces, Rowling's Harry Potter, Collin's The Hunger Games, etc.) which centers the thesis at the climax, and then mirroring the "descending action" to the "rising action." Since I couldn't really do this with the final couplet, I instead re-stated my thesis resolution.

Inspirations: Micah 6:8 and Matthew 23:23-24, which lends their words to both my thesis and the title of this poor sonnet.

02/11/12
I don't think I'll bodily be able to share this in person at Branch of Hope's college group since my family may be finding another church body to call home at this present time. This is not a medium in which details may be disclaimed respectfully, so I won't bother with explaining the "why?"s. However, I will post it [the poem] here, in case they read it.

According to John, Part 1

I never thought "κατά Ιωάννην" would be the most beautiful words I'd heard this week. That is, reader, the Greek for "According to John." 

I think I always get sick before exams. Perhaps this is a small way God humbles me. More Greek to come!

"Yes it is, it's true..."

I've been taking this course called Music 8: The Beatles and the 60s, which I simply adore. It's a blast, and it combines a lot of my favorite things: music (obviously), history, music theory, and the chronology of the Beatles--what inspired them, what made them stand out, and their dramatic influence on history and pop music today. Yesterday, Professor David Brodbeck analyzed "Yes It Is," which he later told us is his favorite Beatles song. Its lyrics are as follows:

If you wear red tonight, remember what I said tonight.
For red is the color that my baby wore, and what's more,
it's true; yes, it is.


Scarlet were the clothes she wore. Everybody knows, I'm sure.
I could remember all the things we planned...
Understand, it's true. Yes, it is; it's true. Yes, it is.


I could be happy with you by my side
if I could forget her... but it's my pride.
Yes, it is; yes, it is.
Oh, Yes, it is, yeah!


Please don't wear red tonight; this is what I said tonight.
For red is the color that will make me blue, in spite of you,
it's true; yes, it is,
it's true; yes, it is. 


This song is beautiful. The Beatles employ a 3-part harmony, which makes me extremely happy. Joyous, even. This song has become my limited theme, in that I share the sentiment of trying desperately to move on by means of intentional forgetfulness. I need to repent of this; intentional forgetfulness of good people, good memories, and good things is wrong. If you forget history... all the music in the world couldn't stop the piper from getting you.

Also,
Resolved: to keep my Facebook dedicated primarily a[n] (albeit miniscule) ministry opportunity. 
Resolved: to never open cards for any occasion until I find solitude.
Resolved: to never mimic an accent different from my own.
Resolved: to be punctual.

"And now my lifesong sings to you"

I once was lost, but now I'm found.*
I was so far away, but I'm home now;
I once was lost, but now I'm found.
And now my lifesong sings:


I once was blind, but now I see.*
I don't know how, but when He touched me...
I once was blind, but now I see.
And now my lifesong sings:**


I once was dead, but now I live*
Now my life to You I give**


Hallelujah!
Hallelujah!
Let my lifesong sing to you...


-Casting Crowns "And Now My Lifesong Sings to You."
*x=repeated line


Reader, however deep and philosophical and true the logos of the history of God's creation may be, however deep and thorough you research, however many evangelistic debates and conversations we pursue-- let it never be that we forget the magic of God's love. Unconditional love is unfathomable... but life not only would not function without it, nor would life be bearable without Him. Jesus's spit opened the blind man's eyes, but the Roman guards and the Pharisees spit on Him to prove how blind and unclean they really were. Jesus's parable tells of the unconditional love of the Father, but the Pharisees and their fathers before them killed the prophets of God, and refused to rejoice when the blind see, when the lame walk, when the deaf hear, when the mute sing, when the lost are found, and when the dead live.

Now my life... to You I give.
Now my life to You I give.
Now my ^life^...... to You I give.
Hallelujah; hallelujah! Let my lifesong sing of You!

Resolved: Part 2

Resolved: to, as a student with no income, to always appear before the house of God with a monetary gift, no matter how small, to remind myself (by means of a physical object) to be faithful in my worship.
Resolved: to make jagged and staggered stairs to ascend God's hill. 
Resolved: to remember peoples' names better.
Resolved: to make service my pleasure, so that sacrificing leisure time would not be a burden.
Resolved: to never grow weary of initiating.
Resolved: to not worry about my past (for God is gracious and forgives my sins) nor my future (for God is gracious and will provide), but to only visit the place of Worry in brief intervals, praying always, being anxious never, for God is the I AM, not the I WAS or the I WILL BE. 
Resolved: to never become narcissistic, but to allow for a proper measure of maintenance. 
Resolved: to see and know the purposes behind rules of chivalry, and then to do them. 
Resolved: to temper my tongue from improper use of swear words, not to place an unyielding embargo on them, but to reserve them for proper emphatic and literal use. 
Resolved: to be a better caretaker to my cat.

Resolved: an Intervention.

I make a lot of silly little resolutions , reader, that honestly don't have any deep theological meanings. Not that all resolutions should have that weight, but should I be so comfortable to make promises to only myself and God so frequently?

Resolved: to always consider the persons involved in a meal as more important than the quality or quantity of the food. 


Resolved: to never go to the campus dining hall alone, but always with a friend. (For God had given me so many friends to leave me without excuse other than neglectful apathy)


Resolved: to always remember to be at least partially intentional about my conversations over food, to pray for blessings before, throughout, and after a mealtime's conversation. 


You don't know this, reader, but I both value and esteem consistency and transparency in conduct and integrity fairly highly. (Also, my sentences have been looking funky lately. I blame Greek.) But my own conduct has been sorely derelict lately. Shall I speak differently about persons when they are present and when they are not? No, that would be gossip. Shall I honor persons with my time and affectionate prayer more than others? Would it be wrong to respect certain persons differently? (Besides one's parents and those in authority.)

So I reasoned with my self, and I came to the conclusion that in matters of the consistency of the spirit, the only thing that must be retained in all circumstances is one's core identity. Mine is Christ; I will never be unashamed or act differently around spiritual Jews and spiritual Gentiles, as the apostle Peter once did. However, in other matters, I can see that it would be acceptable for me to be more respectful around my grandparents than around my friends. Yet my language shouldn't change-- why should I feel comfortable to break character when the beloved Director is always helping me with my lines? Perhaps it's only the topics of conversation that could differ from person-to-person that I speak with. I wouldn't need to evangelize Christians, after all.

I often find myself being the initiator at Irvine and at home. Forgive me, reader, if I'm not more talkative elsewhere; burning my light at both ends tends to burn me out.

By the way, we finished our adapted Aesop's Fables in Greek! Well, that's not the exciting part. Those fables are fairly entertaining, even if the morals are often faulty. For this week we're translating adapted versions of John 9, the story of Jesus healing the man born blind. While it isn't *exactly* the Bible's manuscript, it's still pretty exciting. And how fitting, to translate this as my first portion of Greek New Testament!

Resolved: to use my backspace less.
Resolved: to use the "strikethrough" feature more often.
Resolved: to never grow weary of doing good.
Resolved: to write in pen rather than pencil, when answers are less logical than mathematics.
Resolved: to never lose sight of the brevity of this life or the length of eternity. 
Resolved: to clean my room.
Resolved: to never complain about driving Calvin places.
Resolved: to stop muddying up my eyes. 
-------------------
He answered, 
"The man who is called Jesus made clay, and anointed my eyes, and said to me, 
'Go to Siloam [Sent] and wash';
so I went away and washed, and I received sight."
......
"He [Jesus] applied clay to my eyes, and I washed, and I see."
John 9:11, 15b
------------------


Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost but now am found; was blind, but now I see. 


Jesus is kind of amazing. And He was funny. And He definitely was a man of God who kept the Sabbath. And He *is* the miracle, the sign from God. All the other stuff, like walking on water and changing water into wine into pee--that's nothing, man. He's more than a prophet; He's more than a king. He's more than a teacher; He's more than a martyr. He's.

EDIT: 02/08/12
Saying Jesus' miracles and signs and wonders were nothing was a comment that, frankly, even if used for its intended effect of being juxtaposed with the incarnation, was inappropriate. I rend my garments.

John Calvin: Predestined to Succeed (Part 1: Conventional Biography)

Known as a Christian Reformer of the early 16th century, a period of history largely characterized by the reforms of the Christian church, John Calvin has made indelible marks in numerous facets of life, ranging from practical theology to philosophy to human rights to politics. Calvin’s seminal work, The Institutes of the Christian Religion, was sold out when published in 1536. Calvin’s Institutes remains today not only as a widespread influence in the Western world and a key theological resource, but also as a lasting reminder of the incredible influence John Calvin’s master pen worked for the benefit of the French language (Holder). These things all qualify the French-born theologian for all persons’ standards of fame-based or monetary success. John Calvin’s conventional success was coincidental to his burning passion to spreading biblical truth, which was the source of his true success.


John Calvin (French: Jean Cauvin) was born on July 10, 1509 in the small town of Noyon, France. A precocious child, Calvin found opportunities falling into his lap left and right. As his father was a notary, Calvin did not descend from the 16th century beginnings of the bourgeois or aristocracy. Rev. Ward Holder, professor of theology at St. Anselm College, says that “through the good fortune of his father’s professional relationship to a family of the local nobility, [Calvin] received a private education with that family’s children” (Holder). Gerard Calvin wished better lives for his sons, and with the financial support of the local church he sent Calvin to Paris to become a priest (Holder). However, Calvin’s meager origin should not be taken at face value as a rags-to-riches story, for he was given many advantages that punctuate his life’s story even from his beginning.


According to Alexandre Ganoczy of Cambridge University, Calvin was a pupil of Mathurin Cordier at the College de la Marche before he enrolled as a philosophy student at the College de Montaigu. Cordier was the world’s leading expert of the Latin language (Ganoczy 3). He completed his master’s degree at the College de Montaigu in the University of Paris at the early age of 18, but his career as a clergyman seemed to disappear when his father was excommunicated from the church after 1526. Tucking his master’s degree quickly under his belt, Calvin was then urged by his father to commit himself to a law school (Holder). Calvin studied law at the University of Orleans, and “continuing his studies at the University of Bourges,” he went on to publish the first of his many commentaries in 1532 on Seneca’s De Clementia (“John Calvin: Biography”). While at Bourges, he learned Greek, which would become useful for studying the New Testament (Ganoczy 4). Calvin befriended the rector of the Parisian College Royal, Nicolas Cop, who later “was branded a heretic after calling for reform in the Catholic Church” in 1534 (“John Calvin: Biography”). Though it is heralded as a time of great reform, the 1500s held nothing but violence for controversial doctrines, however true or false they may have been. Calvin’s time spent in Paris studying the budding philosophy of humanism as related to politics and law would soon come to an end when his association with Cop forced him to flee to Basel, the border-town between France and Switzerland.


Fleeing the violent opposition towards reformation driven by French unrest in the early 1600s, Calvin dared a return to Noyon on May 4, 1534 only to “[surrender] his clerical benefices,” thus severing any lingering semblance of a “personal attachment to the church of Rome [the Roman Catholic Church]” (Holder). His now abandoned life as a clergyman (as well as the political and religious unrest of the early 16th century) “disciplined him in his writing project,” and he began working on what would become his magnum opus: The Institutes of the Christian Religion (Latin: Institutio Christianae religionis) (“John Calvin: Biography”). This grand collection of Calvin’s doctrines for church order, ethics, philosophy, government and politics, and theology was first published in Latin (being the reigning tongue of the church at the time) and was sold out of print in its first publication in 1536.


Calvin would not simply reprint the Institutes as many college professors do today in the twenty-first century, but he would go back and heavily revise his work to turn out the subsequent editions in Latin over the next two decades. He translated his own work from Latin into French in 1545 and 1560 editions, in order to make his writings conveniently available to his lay countrymen who, for the most part, so furiously raged against religious reform. Holder asserts that “if this had been the sole gift from Calvin’s pen, it might seem enough…but Calvin also wrote commentaries on almost every book of the Bible, issued numerous [Christian] tracts, and preached almost every day in Geneva” (Holder). According to Austin Cline, Atheist Guide of The New York Times’ About.com, Calvin’s Institutes “play[ed] an important role not only in the development of religion in France, but also of French language through the 17th century” (Cline). Along the same line, Holder likened Calvin’s influence and aid in forming the modern French vernacular with Martin Luther’s (prominent German Christian reformer of early 16th century) linguistic contributions to modern German (Holder). For all the praise and success rendered to him from Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion, Calvin’s large masterpiece was as much a response to the failings and inconsistencies Calvin saw in the Roman Catholic church in the 16th century as it was an exhaustive systematic theological resource for Protestant Christians.


Calvin would travel to Geneva, Switzerland twice in his life, never leaving the city after his second journey. Kathryn Hadley of History Today writes that in September 1536, “[Calvin] subsequently worked on reform with the French evangelist William Farel,” who “carried the [reformation] to Geneva” from French-speaking borderlands of the Swiss Confederation (Hadley). Calvin and Farel did not stay long in Geneva; in February 1538, one year after the two reformers advocated “free use of excommunication and the imposition of a puritan moral discipline throughout Genevan society,” a newly-elected civic council banished Calvin and Farel from Geneva (Hadley). Calvin returned once more to France, pastoring a congregation in Strasbourg where he would spend his energies publishing commentaries on most of the books of scripture. Geneva called him back in 1541, where he would remain until his death in 1564. Not content to ever let his pen wax dry, Calvin wrote his Ecclesiastical Ordinances of the Church of Geneva, another great contribution to the church. According to Holder, “in this [the Ecclesiastical Ordinances], all the principles of Reformed polity are found” (Holder).


Calvin’s final home of Geneva, Switzerland was not an easy life. With the opportunity given him, he taught daily, preached weekly, continually wrote commentaries and treatises, as well as pastoring the church in Geneva. In 1552, the libertines (who believe in exemption from moral/religious law) compromised Calvin’s authority, and even “nearly succeeded in banishing [Calvin] from Geneva a second time” (“John Calvin: Biography”). However, John Calvin’s greatest opposition came from his theological antagonist, Michael Servetus. Calvin and Servetus maintained a civil dialogue-debate through letters for years before Servetus appeared in Geneva to publicly denounce the doctrine of the Trinity, of paedobaptism (infant baptism), and revile his nemesis, John Calvin. He was wanted for numerous capital crimes of heresy by the French Inquisition. Servetus was abhorred by both Roman Catholics (representing the church at large) and Protestants alike (representing the rest of western Christendom at the time). Michael Servetus was arrested in Geneva and handed over to be executed by burning at the stake on account of heresy (“John Calvin: Biography”). Just as John Calvin has become the archetypal symbol of Christian Reformation and loyalty to truth, Michael Servetus has become the archetypal symbol of religious persecution.


The main branch of philosophy Calvin fleshed out was that of the sovereignty of God and the free will of mankind. Calvin taught that “God is absolutely sovereign – nothing can happen without God wanting it to happen and nothing that God wants to happen can fail to be good. God is the absolute standard of everything” (Cline). Calvin also taught that “humans, on the other hand, are absolutely powerless… [and] they are also completely depraved and sinful” (Cline). To address the philosophical “problem of sin,” Calvin simply took the undisputed Christian doctrine of predestination to its logical conclusion. Cline summarizes Calvin’s doctrine by stating that “it [sin] exists because God wants it to exist – but for the purpose of achieving some greater good… [thus], some people are predestined to be saved while others are predestine to be damned” (Cline). While Calvin contributed numerous gems to the crown of philosophy, his doctrine of predestination is the most debated today and has had the most influence on western thought.


Calvin lived out the rest of his days in Geneva, quelled by a multitude of debilitating diseases in 1564. It has been said that he preached and wrote to his dying day, thundering loudly to any urging for him to respite for his health with the now-legendary quote: “What! Would you have the Lord [Jesus Christ] find me idle when He comes” (“John Calvin”)? Throughout his life of reformation, John Calvin was successful because he was faithful with the opportunities given to him to spread the gospel of truth.






Works Cited:


"John Calvin." Grandpa Pencil. 2011.Web. 3 Feb. 2012.


http://www.grandpapencil.net/projects/concepts/calvin.htm


"John Calvin: Biography." Calvin 500. The Standard Theme, 2012.Web. 18 Jan.


2012.http://www.calvin500.com/john-calvin/biography/


Cline, Austin. "John Calvin." About.com. The New York Times Company, 2012.Web. 17 Jan.


2012.http://atheism.about.com/library/glossary/western/bldef_calvinjohn.htm


Ganoczy, Alexandre. "Calvin's life." The Cambridge Companion to John Calvin. Ed. Donald K.


McKim Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2004. : 3-4. Print. 1


Feb. 2012.


Hadley, Kathryn. "Calvin's Legacy." History Today Aug. 2009: 6-7. Print. 23 Jan. 2012.


EBSCO.http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=43675299&site=ehost-live


Holder, Ward. "John Calvin (1509-1564)." Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 17 4.


2001.Web. 19 Jan. 2012. http://www.iep.utm.edu/calvin/

I got soul.

On our way from Philosophy to Psychology, Ryan and I had this little conversation... about a month ago.

Ryan: "You live in California, man. Your lungs are black."
Me: "But I ran cross country!"
Ryan: "Doesn't matter. You have strong black lungs."

Without getting too discouraged by Los Angeles's smog, he's got a point. We all breathe smoke and nicotine and caffeine and marijuana and disease and grime. It's kind of disgusting, but there are parts of UC Irvine that I hold my breath to walk through. But hey, it's a thing like this that clicks metaphors in my mind to share, so you'd benefit from my (cough) hazy thoughts, reader.

Firstly, on the topic of soul:
The human soul, or psuche (Greek), or nephesh (Hebrew) generally means one's self, identity, consciousness, life. 

Then [after cultivating the gardens Himself, for there was no man to serve the ground (v.5c)] the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul [nephesh]. 
Genesis 2:7


Hear, O Israel:
The LORD our God, the LORD is one.
Love the LORD your God with all your heart
and with all your soul [nepheshka]
and with all your strength.
Deuteronomy 6:4-5 (See this previous post for a more in-depth study on the Anglicized Hebrew)


If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So it is written: 
"The first man Adam became a living being [psuche];" [Genesis 2:7]
the last Adam, a life-giving spirit.
I Corinthians 15:44b-45


I sometimes forget that my every breath comes not primarily from the automatic flexing of my diaphragm or the intake and swooshing exhale of my lungs, but from Jesus's Word. Without His spoken approval, all things fall apart and come unglued like ice cream on a summer day--our consistency as creatures is in our Creator and Redeemer. Things haven't changed much from the dawn of human history as creatures built to worship God and serve the land God gives us.

Secondly, on the topic of spirit:
The human spirit, or pneuma (Greek), or ruach (Hebrew) is generally defining the ethereal, spiritual part of life. That which we can't touch, but can feel, much like the wind which both Greek and Hebrew equivalents also connote.

Jesus answered,
"I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit [pneuma]. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying 'You must be born again.' The wind [pneuma] blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
John 3:5-8
(I only wrote pneuma twice, for emphasis on the word-play our Savior uses. The other instances of wind/spirit are also pneuma.)

Who knows the spirit [ruach] of man which rises upward, or the spirit [ruach] of the animal, which goes down into the earth?
Ecclesiastes 3:21


Into Your hands I commit my spirit; [ruach]
You have ransomed me, O LORD, God of truth.
Psalm 31:5

Thus declares the LORD who stretches out the heavens, lays the foundations of the earth, and forms the spirit [ruach] of man within him,...
Zechariah 12:1b

Having just completed my first Philosophy course, I feel it wouldn't do if I don't plug some sort of knowledge into this topic--for the most part, modern philosophers believe the human "being" is monistic in nature (the mind/soul/spirit/etc. and body are one and the same). That is, reader, opposed to the dualistic view of the human "being" as comprised of two parts-- the mind and the body. As a Christian, I believe that the biblical view of the "other" side of mankind is a unison of all these things: the soul, the spirit, the will, the sub-conscious, the mind, the thoughts, the desires and intentions, the bowels (or intestines, or liver, or stomach, or heart, or other graphic images the authors of the Bible used to describe a man's innards), and so forth. Man is not a machine; the fact you can read these words demonstrates my point. But our souls and spirits are poisoned, and we need a transplant desperately.

As love would have it, our Creator did not leave us like Dr. Frankenstein. Our monstrous hearts, tainted and vile with addicting sin, are graciously removed, paid for by the Surgeon's love. And the only spirit that would do would be His own.

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit [ruach] within you;
and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
I will put My Spirit [Ruach] within you 
and cause you to walk in My statutes, 
and you will be careful to observe My ordinances...
I will put My Spirit [Ruach] within you and you will come to life.
Ezekiel 36:26-27, 37:14a


How glorious and wonderful my Savior's love is!

Parrot Prayers

Today I ran over to the food court on campus in the 30 minute segment between my writing class and a meeting. I walked past Subway's long dinner line and weaved through Panda Express's maze of a line. Mandarin Chicken, baby. I could almost taste it (I hadn't eaten a real breakfast or lunch, and it was 5 PM; college is treating me well!) before I'd ordered. The guy who asked me my order was a noob; he'd never done single entrees or sides. When I got to the cashier, the girl ringing our orders asked me if I wanted my receipt.

(I've been in this silly habit of collecting, recording, and discarding receipts for cash-paid orders, just so I wouldn't forget how much money I'd been spending.)

I said that I would like my receipt, thanked her, pocketed the change, and wished her a good day. Then she willed me to enjoy my meal, and I reciprocated in turn: "You too!" Ah. I quickly noted my error, and she laughed with me at myself. I'd been a bit preoccupied thinking about CCM and John Calvin and how irresponsible with my time I've been, and how dreadfully tired and depressed I'd been lately.

We may get away with parroting our way through life with trite sayings and reciprocated responses & assertions, but how dare we come before God with parroted prayers? Yet often I find myself reciting simple prayers of a 3 year old.

(I'm not at all arguing against creeds or formalized, written prayers. Just sayin', for the record.)

Sort of like singing, praying is serious business. We're God's children and He holds our hands as we walk, but that doesn't mean He doesn't expect maturity in time. And if I'm simply praying or reading our Bibles or even going to church to fulfill our quota of spirituality, the acts become idols, and I become guilty of self-righteousness, much less the guilt of regarding God lightly! Don't trifle with God; He's the boss. He's a loving boss who cleanses our sins.

Pray earnestly, reader, for the salvation in this life which comes from Jesus's resurrection.