Glass Panes That Separate

Tomorrow, I embark on a new journey. I’ve been working at an office supply shop doing computer and network service for the last few months. It’s been fun, but there’s just been something missing. My coworkers are great (they’ll probably never read this). I’ll miss Tom, Jeremy, and even April too. Denny…not so much. Actually, I go to church with him, so it would be tough to miss him when I still see him.

My new job will be as Technology Coordinator at DCC, our local community college. I’d give you a link to their website, but I don’t want anyone to see it yet; at least not until after I’ve had a chance to clean it up a bit. I’m pretty excited, as there will be a lot more of what I like to do there, but most importantly, its where I believe God wants me to be right now. I can’t ask for anything more than that (and I won’t).

So, farewell, old job. Hello, new job!

That’s about how my brain feels right now. We’ve been looking for a job for some time now (since May of 2007). After Thanksgiving, we were starting to think perhaps I should finish my Computer Science degree somewhere. The likely suspects were Evangel University and NDSU. Now, there’s another piece of the puzzle thrown out there (I think that God is is just toying with me at this point). At any rate, there’s a job opening in my home town that seems quite promising. I’m applying for it, but it’s almost too good to be true. And you know what they say about things that seem too good to be true. Well, I don’t think ‘they’ (whoever ‘they’ are) are always right, so we’re keeping our fingers crossed.
I’ve also been delving back into the area of Bible study software. My favorite has always been Bibleworks, but just recently, I gave gnomesword another try. I’m not sure it’s a replacement for BW, but it sure is pretty good. You can even download some freely available content from biblegateway.com and crosswalk.com into it if you’re clever enough (or find scripts written by someone else who is even more clever). At any rate, it’s a nice interface for browsing, but the greek and hebrew lexicon integration of Bibleworks makes it the ‘king of the hill’. Maybe someday I’ll join the gnome sword team, and help them integrate cool things like that…

This is by no means ‘news’. However, I just saw a special on TV about Dog the Bounty Hunter, and how Mexico is trying to hose him for bringing a serious criminal to justice. There’s a petition to help expedite the proceedings, and ‘Save the Dog‘. I’m number 16029.

March was a month of madness (no pun intended). So much has happened, that I don’t even remember it all. Early in the month, we had Spring Break (during which we were still working in the IT office). I ran lights for a play produced by the Historical Society in Ellendale. We found a house to buy, and are currently in the loan application process. I also preached for youth group a week ago, and for church last Sunday as well. It’s always incredible to see how God can take a good sermon, and make it really impact people’s lives in a way you never expected.

I’m now down to 20 fish. No, they aren’t dying on me. People are finally asking for them, and hopefully they are doing alright in their new homes. On Sunday, we are going to Forman, ND to ‘interview’ at the church there. Last night the youth group t-p’ed our house. It also rained last night, and so we have a soggy mess of toilet paper all over the yard. Oh well, we still feel loved.

I’ll be going through some (around 200) pictures and posting them online, so you can check that out later.

Something we talked about in our youth leader’s meeting last night was devotion. And commitment. Far too often, we settle for less with God. We ought to devote our whole lives to Him. We ought to be committed to God above everything. Nothing else will have eternal impact. Nothing else even brings us fulfillment in life. Last night, I finally started settings aside a specific time for God. It was awesome just to enjoy God’s presence. Why is it so hard for us to devote time to something that is so incredible? It makes my head spin to think of it.

God is amazing. Let me tell you why. Before Christmas, money was tight. We were planning on going home for Christmas, and I knew we didn’t have the money to do it. I said ‘God, you gotta do something.’ By the time we came home, we had received over $300 from different family members.
The other day, I was trying to figure out what to talk about for Sunday School. God gave me a theme, and then our pastor confirmed it with both messages on Sunday.
My wife and I have been trying to figure out if we should stay here for a few years, or if we should find a church elsewhere. For a while we prayed and sought God. He answered us both within minutes of each other. We made the decision, and now all the right doors are opening up.

This is part informative, and part rant. Some people no doubt already wonder what sort of Christian I am for titling this entry ‘xmas’. Many people object to this practice, but have no idea where and how it actually originated. I’ll be brief for the sake of those who already know. The letter X is the first letter of the greek word for Christ. It was used frequently among Christians of earlier centuries as an abbreviation: Xians, Xianity, and Xmas. In fact, its use was so common, that it actually occurred in some manuscripts of the New Testament.

Now on to my rant. Christmas music, bah.
I wish people would put some effort into producing it, instead of simply grabbing a microphone, and chanting the same tired out tunes 84,000 times. I love Christmas music, but the problem is that we get stuck in this rut of singing the same songs, all the time, over and over again. Why can’t people write some new songs for us to sing? At the very least, we could come up with some new arrangements. Maybe it’s because we don’t care enough to expend the effort necessary for this endeavor, since it’s only ‘one day out of the year’. What??? Christmas is the day that our savior came to earth. Christmas is the day that God began his long awaited plan of redeeming mankind. It ought to be a day of hope and inspiration so incredible that new lyrics and tunes float out our ears. Well, that’s enough. You get the point. So go buy some original Xmas music, and blast it out for all to hear.

Human potential, it is often said, is a vast untapped pool of resources. While this is true, what is it that keeps us from realizing our potential. I was inspired last night by the Aphid. I don’t even know if this is what he inteded, but it hit me like a ton of lollipops this morning. Our crutches are what keep us from our full potential. His character relied on several crutches: food, beer, and swearing. It is not that we need these crutches to make it through life. These are the things that hold us back. It is not their nature to hold us back, but it is our nature as humans to use them for that purpose. Read more

Now, unless I seem entirely humanistic, let me clarify. The above diatribe is for the average american. It is not for the believer, the saint, the one who follows Christ. For us, there is an even higher standard, a greater motivation, a more pressing need. We must use our gifts for Christ. No call could be greater, and yet few of us really make the commitment. It is not our sin that people stare at. It is our lack of commitment to something that should enthrall every fiber of our being. If what we say is true; if the gospel is indeed the salvation for every man, it ought to be worth the commitment, the pain, and the suffering. But what we have shown the world is just the opposite. It is not worth much of anything. It is worth a little portion of our money, a few hours out of a week, and a few moments before each meal. That is all.

Let us not be guilty of this great hypocrisy. Let us show the world that our message is not filthy rags. That our faith is more than dust and ashes. That our faith is alive. And has the power to breathe new life into any man. Every man.