An Overwhelming Torrent

Since becoming a philosophy major, I have continually felt overwhelmed by wave upon wave of information, ideas, and beliefs. I read A New Kind of Christian and Blue Like Jazz and think, "This is truth! This is how we should live!" I converse with those older and wiser then me, deep thinkers who are appropriately in the field of philosophy and my mind is flooded with doubt that brings me to borderline madness and anguish; somehow, by the graces of God, I come back to Him although I never really left. I watch I Heart Hucabees and know that at least a hint of truth can be found there -- but where? I know that if God is God, then the truth of our existence, of Him, of our salvation is beyond the grasp of infinitesimal minds. But the atheist claims (and rightfully I believe) that that is begging the question.

My pastor this morning explained why the Old Testament prophets were so angry and frustrated, but still hopeful. The message was powerful and convicting, a call for true Christians to leave behind the apathy of wealth and comfort and serve the needy as Christ calls us to. Already a negative stereotype of Christians is being potrayed by the media -- watch Saved and I Heart Hucabees if you have any doubt, and it is far from flattering -- unthinking, blind, and detached from the world. Yet people like Pastor Dan, John Piper and others are bringing us back to the world that needs the salvation of Christ. I have a feeling that the Christian Church in America is going to end up much the same way as Texas State. A few years of less then reputable behavior will take decades to overcome.

So what am I trying to say in this scattered and uncolleceted post? David Crowder expresses it best:

I feel I'm drowning,
My arms are just too tired to swim
I feel I'm sinking
On my knees again

In the roar of Your waterfall
In the storm of You,
May You find me holding on,
May You find me true

Why the Supertones Rock!

As of late, the Supertones have come underattack by a few friends. I have decided that it is my duty as an OC Supertones fan to defend their music, no matter what others may say and what friends may leave me because of what they perceive as horrendous musical taste (Corrie >:-( .

In Michael's comment section of the Daily Rice, I stated that the Supertones had amazing lyrics that give most Christian bands a run for their money. Alas, I gave no supporting evidence and Corrie attempted to disparage the band by quoting lyrics from the song "Chase the Sun," from the album Chase the Sun. What she fails to mention is that it is the worst track on that album, because of -- admittedly -- lyric quality and the fact that it takes on more of a rap vibe (ughh). For the first four years that I owned the CD, I made sure I skipped that track. The majority of my defense will be quoting other Supertone songs. It must be noted that this is a ska band, so although the lyrics can stand on their own, they are much more powerful in the context of an actual song. Since Corrie used the Chase the Sun album, I will do the same, although their first two albums (Adventures of and Strike Back) had equally good if not better lyrics.

Sometimes I think,
how can You love me?
My thoughts are so far from your own.
Why choose me Lord?
I'm a poor reflection.
Why use me to make yourself known?
-- Old Friend

Kids in universities
drowning in an ocean
of apostate philosophy
We need apologetic instruction
mental reconstruction,
Ignorance reduction...
...Wisdom and truth have been vandalized...
...Expose the lies
no matter how they're disguised
-- Grounded

I want to quote about five or six more songs, but I'm going to stop myself . So many Christian albums seem to be strictly "praise" songs that potray a Christian life as something that is relatively easy and rarely scratches the surface of real life or real issues (ie Reliant K). In contrast, the Supertones touch on just about every aspect of life -- about feeling inadequate (Old Friend), about the lack of unity in the Christian church (One Voice), and even the apathy of wealthy American Christians as our brothers and sisters die for the gospel (Health and Wealth). The song "In Between," addresses the struggle a Christian feels as he struggles to do good despite the sinful nature that resides in him. "Sure Shot" is about the desire to live a life to the fullest, a life that means something. Oh yeah, and all this is in one album. There are still two more that are truly great for all the same reasons.

Cultural Anthropologist -vs- Pastor

Yesterday one of our church pastors gave an impassioned sermon on the Song of Solomon, which if you don't know, is the "scandalous" book of the Bible, since it's about the birds and the bees, if you catch my meaning.

During his sermon, while he was sharing some of his experiences of counseling married couples I began thinking about credibility. Why do we so often believe the pop psychologist before we believe the church pastor? As of recently, I haven't been too fond of Wild at Heart by John Eldridge due to the bold sweeping claims he makes in regards to manhood. I think: How does he know all that? Not all guys have the same undercurrents of thought, passion, etc. (FYI -- my biggest pet peeve is when people try to pigeon-hole me. I hate spiritual gift surveys!!!) But then I realize that Eldridge is a man who has counseled countless men and married couples for several years -- couldn't he have noticed a pattern in the problems and desires that all these people had?

Why do we believe the 30 or 40 something "experts" who have Ph Ds, and not our eighty something grandparents? I have also realized how tragic it is that people have to turn to books for wisdom and advice. I love reading, and we can learn much from a good book, but where is that community of support that we so desperately need in times of despair? And where is my JC Ryle? A man who has seen it all and is on his way out and not afraid to share his knowledge with the next generation, who will convict and challenge and encourage those who are my age to live a God-centered life?

And it Begins

I spent my weekend in the Gainesville area to attend the wedding of one of my cousins, who is now Honeymooning in Spain with his lovely new bride. It was a good time to catch up with family, and since the bartender didn't check ID, to try a few beverages. Now before anyone freaks out, I didn't actually get my own drink, but as usual mooched off the the people around me. I tried about 3 different wines, and they were all horrible in my humble opinion. According to one of my many cousins, if you don't like wine, it's because you haven't found your kind. Whatever. I'm not spending money on a bottle of some substance that's going to repeatedly kick me in the back of the teeth and suck my mouth dry.

Today was the first day on the job working for Klein ISD and I can already tell that this will be the easiest job I will ever have. I arrived at 6:30 this morning to clock in, but because of "orientation," we didn't start until 7. After I was assigned to a regular hand, we drove around for two hours addressing maintenence request all over the district. This meant that for two to three hours we were in the car driving through bad traffic (which meant I made 14-21 dollars for riding in an air-conditioned vehicle). Once that was done we started wiring cable in an elementary school so that the students can have televised announcements. After two hours, we finished two rooms.With an hour left in the day, we went back to the office and sat on our butts. So after spending half of my eight hour work day on my butt, I came home pretty well rested.


Dan

Oh yeah, and I now have 60ppl in my family

The Things I've Got Going for Me

The other night, a friend from high school invited a girl he knew from college to hang out with us. The following conversation is 100% true.

Glamorous Girl from Trinity: So, what's your major?

Me: philosophy.

GGfT: Have you had your mid-life crisis yet?

Me: Excuse me?

GGfT: A friend of mine is a philosophy major and he says that while studying existentialism, you question everything and feel extremely suicidal. But don't worry, it goes away after a while.

Me: Okay, thanks.

Needless to say, I'm really excited.