Internationally Known on the Microphone

On McGwire

2010-01-12T10:17:00.003-06:00

Quick two cents. Can the guy catch a break? In an absolute way, yes, he cheated. But didn't put up his finger like Palmero did. A-Rod and Andy Pettite admitted they used, and they're still on the freaking Yankees payroll next year. If they would've given Big Mac immunity he would've come clean. When millions and millions of dollars is at stake, people will go to great lengths. We sure didn't mind in 1998, and we sure do cheer when A-Rod hits a bomb his first at bat back after the "admission".

We shouldn't applaud him juicing up, but we shouldn't hold him to some heightened standard either. Shawn Merriman, Manny, and other steroid users didn't have to sit down with Bob Costas and no one is calling for their heads.

I'm a completely biased. I love that McGwire's back and I hope to see him make the post-season roster.

Sermon from Sunday

2010-01-12T10:13:00.003-06:00

My church kicked off a sermon series called "Missing the Point" last Sunday. We're looking at issues people outside the church have with Christianity, and in the second half looking at misconceptions Christians inside the church have.

I opened it up with a sermon on the question "Is the Church Homophobic".

If you'd like to listen, here is the link. I of course, welcome your feedback.

Keith Brooking is the man.

2010-01-11T08:48:00.000-06:00

Down with consumerism! Buy this to find out how!

2009-12-07T14:36:00.003-06:00

So here's part of a promotional email I got promoting the "Advent Conspiracy". I think the point is great- "spend less money, give more presence." Their promos are real slick too. However, I can't help but relish the irony of this. "Fed up with consumerism"- what like, email advertisement blasts? Links to "buy now"?

"Spend less"...except for buying this small group DVD of course. C'mon guys.

Losin with Loggy

2009-12-02T00:54:00.002-06:00

My boy Loggy put this together for his contribution to the church staff "white elephant" Christmas party. Enjoy.

Losin' With Loggy from Michael Logsdon on Vimeo.

Mustoe's Representing

2009-11-23T23:56:00.004-06:00

My Aunt and Uncles house was featured on the front page of the Moberly paper last week in a story about images of Thanksgiving around Moberly. I'll be there this Wed-Saturday. Very, very excited to see the fam.

Good form! A techno mash up of "Hook". from Relevantmagazine.com

2009-11-17T12:40:00.001-06:00

Pitstop!

2009-11-07T16:47:00.001-06:00

A little wedding day mcdonalds, why not.

The Death of Twitter

2009-11-04T10:34:00.003-06:00

I realize the irony in talking about twitter on your blog. Full disclosure: I use twitter, I like it. If you want to see my defense of it, I'll make some parenthetical comments at the end.

But no matter what you think about twitter, the following link could be a sign of its impending doom:

Christian Chirp

Hey kids! Tired of tweeting with all those dirty "secular people"!? Now there's "the Christian alternative to twitter!!!"

If parents are ruining social media like facebook, what happens when the Christians get a hold of it?

Oh man, where to start.

First the practical, then the theological. Even if a "christian twitter alternative" was a defensible concept (which its not) there is no way that this thing will be technologically nor aesthetically comparable to twitter.com. If you're not going to offer a viable alternative, don't at all. Imitations are never good. Take for example, the "soft fleece blanket with sleeves" or this knock-off iPhone or Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull or Scientology. Clearly, originality and authenticity are often linked to quality.

From a theological perspective, this is a microcosm of a massive problem within Christianity. Lets stop and ask, why do we need "christian alternatives" to anything? What is wrong with people who are Christians, just using what everyone is already using? What is this need to form a lamer and anemic version of popular things? There's a phrase Christians love to use, adopted from the Book of John chapter 17 that goes "in the world but not of the world" meaning Christians are to be present in the world and responding to it's needs without adopting the values and practices of that same world. If you've been around long enough, you sort of roll your eyes when someone says that just because you've heard the trite phrase so many times. However, my cynicism is another blog post altogether. What "Christian chirp" is symptomatic of is the withdrawal of Christians from mainstream America; a tepid faith that only seeks to culturally shield instead of courageously redeem.

Look, I listen to Z107.7. I understand why folks don't want their kids to hear some of that stuff. Lets take for example Britney Spears' latest single "3" which is ironically number 8 on the charts. That is a raunchy song, I would be somewhat embarrassed to listen to it in the same car as my Dad, and I'm a grown man. There are some things in there I'm not even sure I've heard of.

But merely sticking our head in the sand and getting our kids to listen to Barlow Girl instead of Britney isn't going to keep them from confronting cultural issues.

So the concept of "Christan alternatives" is a retreat and imitate approach which I believe does a disservice not only to the Christians trying to salvage their crumbling cultural strongholds, but more importantly it robs the world by continuing to reinforce the cultural concept that Christians are haughty prudes who don't want to have anything to do with anyone except their own kind.

My Dad would tell me "not to major in the minors" and "to develop several subjects on which I have no opinion." Which is good advice, some might wonder why a little website would incite such a rant. The problem is not the basically insignificant URL which will inevitably fail and fold. No, the problem is what this website represents within the faith I love and devote my life to, and the problem I have attempted to describe above is very, very significant.

(On twitter: I have found several practical uses for twitter. While on trips with kids we can keep parents and those who weren't able to come a glimpse into whats going on in real time. I have become aware of events and opportunities that without twitter I wouldn't have heard about. Its an easy way to pass along photos to family, and several of my family members are on it, which is a neat way to stay connected. However, the idea that twitter could be some cultural boon through which "the gospel is advanced" I seriously doubt.)

Rise Up

2009-11-02T08:45:00.004-06:00

Today the Westboro Baptist Church folks came to protest outside of Marquette High School. Marquette is not far from where I live, and plenty of students from church attend there.

At first, WBC didn't register with me. Then someone let me know some of their infamous activities: "God Hates Fags" signs and protesting at soldiers funerals.

Oh ya, that rings a bell.

I'm not really going to get into how insane these folks are. Do a google search and see for yourself, I don't even want to link their site here. Actually, I didn't even see the WBC folks, there were on the other side of a very, very busy intersection.

What I did see at Marquette this morning were over 200 students who had gathered for a "silent protest" around the flagpole. The police did an excellent job of designating spots for different groups of protestors, and the school administrators should be commended for their support of the students' well organized and well attended counter-demonstration.

I was talking with my buddy Adam about this whole thing, and these people are so sensational (dictionary.com: producing or designed to produce a startling effect, strong reaction, intense interest, etc.) their whole bit is demanding attention. The funny thing is if news crews weren't there (like they were today) and counter-protesters weren't also present, and people didn't blog about it (oops) then these seriously warped people would go away. They continue to exist because we give them the response they are trying to illicit.

Truthfully, in my heart, I'm trying to figure out how much of my attending was motivated by the possibility of a show. Hopefully not. I had images of 1960's riots in my mind. However today was not a frenzied melee: no riot gear, no tear gas, no fire hoses.

Westboro Baptist hate was not being reciprocated with hate. Yes, there was still a reaction, these people were still getting attention. But I saw a group of students organize/mobilize quickly (largely through facebook) and behave with sophistication, restraint, and sincerity.

It was good to see that so many students cared enough to show up and demonstrate their opposition of Westboro's values in our community. Now the trick will be to carry the same attitude of unity inside the school.

Rough Week in Missouri Sports

2009-10-12T23:55:00.003-05:00

Cards- swept.
Rams + Chiefs- not a win between them.
Mizzou- loss.
The Killer Beards- loss.

A buddy of mine and I debate often whether sports are a worthwhile thing to spend your time on or not (watching, not playing). Can it go too far? Should I be embarrassed that whether my fantasy football team wins or loses affects my mood the next two days?

For me, sports are a means to an end. Every Monday my buddies get together to watch the football game, and hang out. (In fact, this week we recorded a slate of podcasts at halftime, so those should be up soon.)

Its a time to kick back and not think about anything important. To me, that can be time well spent. What say you- sports: too frivolous a thing to care about?

World Communion Sunday

2009-10-04T16:42:00.000-05:00

Hey there, I know its been a long time.

Here's a message I gave today, world communion Sunday. Enjoy?

Everyone loves standardized testing right? You go in the classroom and time seems to stand still before an endless ocean of bubbles to properly fill in. True story, in Cape Girardeau my sophomore year of high school we all had to take the military standardized test called the “ASVAB”. I asked one of the teachers if this would count towards any of our grades. When she responded “no’ I knew exactly what to do.

For the next 3 hours, I had a great time. I randomly filled in all the bubbles, sometimes even choosing to make little pictures with them. When I got my results back, I was proud to be in the lowest 1% of this great nation. I thought I was hilarious until I found out that is the test score the military will use to place me in the case of a draft. Yikes.

Anyway, back to the beginning of those dreaded tests for us. You know all that stuff you fill out: name, gender, age, ethnicity. These are all examples of categories we’ve made for people, things we’ve all agreed somehow matter, and are used as additional data in your score assessment. I started thinking about what other things we use to put people into categories. Mac/PC. Republican/Democrat, Stoner/Skater, Geek/Nerd. I’m told there are differences between a geek and a nerd. From what I understand, being a geek can be kind of cool? I don’t know, someone explain that to me later. Theres cheerleader/pom girl. Band kid/Orchestra kid. Honor roll student/ISS student. Most of these things are based on appearance or affiliation. Think of it this way, let me name a store at the mall; and what kind of person comes to mind: Hollister. Sears. Abercrombie. Hot Topic. Justice. Do you get an image in your head of “what kind of people” shop there?

So what these companies have done, is gotten us to associate value and social characteristics with their products. We think “these types of kids” shop at Hollister and “those types of kids” shop at Abercrombie. Did you know that Hollister was founded by Abercrombie & Fitch? Whichever one you associate with doesn’t matter to the execs, cause they’re getting paid both ways. See, we love to create all these categories for people. We even do it with our faith. Are you Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Lutheran? Or maybe you’re Free Methodist, Southern Baptist, USA Presbyterian, or Missouri Synod Lutheran? Or maybe you’re “non-denominational” which ironically, is an attempt to get away from categories but has only resulted in another category.

Not only do we have all these denominations, but we’ve got theological divisions too. We’ve got fundamentalists and revisionists. We’ve got evangelicals and emergents. When it comes to women’s role in the church we’ve got complimentarians and egalitarians. When it comes to predestination we can be Calvinist or Armenian. Some of this might be over some of ya’lls heads. But we do it right here to. When it comes to worship: are you a traditional person, or a contemporary person?

Well friends, today is world communion Sunday. Today, we remember that Jesus was not a Band kid or a Methodist or a traditional worship type person; and he certainly wasn’t a white American. Its good for us to be reminded of that. Today we realize that you don’t have to “be” anything to bow at the feet of Jesus. Today churches from all over the world will celebrate the meal he gave us to remember him by. Today we stand before God, and we let all of our stupid categories go. Because in Christ, there are no categories; check this out: Galatians 3: 27-28 “for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

One of the ways we remember that we’re all doing this thing together is through communion. Some have special rules, some do it with little cups, some do it with delicious Kings Hawaiian bread, but at its core- communion is communion. Even that word, communion- something we do together, something we as Christians have “in common” with Christians all over the world, down through the centuries. That to me is a beautiful thing; that communion has been celebrated by Jesus himself, that we celebrate it today, 2,000 years after this night we read about, to remember Jesus.

Now I know I talked about how there are no categories, and its still true. The day I become more of a Methodist than a Christian is the day somebody needs to dropkick me. However, one of the reasons I am a Methodist is because of our beliefs about communion. You don’t have to take a class or sign up beforehand or be a member of this church or have washed your hands a special way. We don’t have to have it in some special cup or use a special type of bread or juice. Methodists believe that all people are welcome because its God’s table, not ours.

There’s a lot of confusion about communion. Again, a lot of us get hung up on all the rules. I could say a whole lot about this subject, and there are entire classes devoted to communion if you go to seminary. Communion is an experience that we have together, that goes three ways. It goes backwards, by remembering what Christ did for us on the cross, as he put it- his blood being shed for many. It makes a difference now, as we recognize Christ’s continued presence with us in reality. It also looks forward, anticipating God’s work on Earth in the future, and in the age to come. All this happens through bread and cup; something we can physically participate in. In this sort of weird way, we believe that Christ makes himself known to us in a special way during communion. I can’t explain it. Some of you guys may just go up there and be glad the bread tastes good, and not feel especially tingly or emotional or feel anything really. What I would say to you, is try focusing on who Jesus was, is, and will be. There’s an old saying called “the mystery of Faith”: “Christ has died, Christ has risen, Christ will come again.” Think about that as you’re chewing this bread and juice.

Think about communion as a meal. How fitting that Jesus left us a meal to remember him by. Many would say it’s a shame we’ve turned communion into such a ritual, because in the early church it truly was a meal. Like, you would walk away full! They’d celebrate communion like we would celebrate a birthday or Thanksgiving. To me, that’s a beautiful picture. Not only because I love food, but I think about how much I love it when my whole family is gathered together for a meal. That feeling I have, that feeling I hope you get sometime in the next couple months, to me is a sneak preview of heaven. The pages of Revelation say at the end of times there is going to be a big family feast. Communion is a mini-version of that feast, until the day comes. Our church can be united with Churches all over the world, and throughout the millennium with the celebration of this meal.

Success!

2009-09-01T11:31:00.006-05:00

Today I successfully traded my Kramer poster for a 12-pack of Dr. Pepper.

Craigslist is changing the world.

Quote

2009-08-27T23:23:00.001-05:00

"To the divine providence it has seemed good to prepare in the world
to come for the righteous good things, which the unrighteous shall not
enjoy; and for the wicked evil things, by which the good shall not be
tormented. But as for the good things of this life, and it's ills, God
has willed that these things should be common to both; that we might
not too eagerly covet the things which wicked men are seen equally to
enjoy, nor shrink with an unseemly fear from the ills which even good
men suffer."

-Augustine

Sent from my phone

HIgh School Retreat Video

2009-08-24T23:06:00.002-05:00

Drug Money

2009-08-17T10:07:00.000-05:00

Wow.

My first Craigslist listing

2009-08-01T14:22:00.000-05:00

If you're interested let me know!

Dedication.

2009-07-30T19:26:00.001-05:00

That's right, I slid home in a casual kickball game. Don't test me.

I'M ON A BOAT

2009-07-25T14:41:00.000-05:00

Taking the ferrie to Illinois for peach picking and Fast Eddie's

Don't Hurt Em

2009-07-23T11:16:00.000-05:00

I AM THE WHEELMAN!!!!!

2009-07-17T20:16:00.000-05:00

A very special groomsman gift

2009-07-16T15:42:00.001-05:00

I Can Now Die In Peace

2009-07-16T10:14:00.001-05:00

Goi all out

2009-07-16T08:36:00.001-05:00

I was excited because the hat fit!

Happy anniversary indeed

2009-07-16T08:05:00.001-05:00

We got buttons at the gate! SO MAGICAL!!!!

In Nashville

2009-07-14T16:02:00.001-05:00

LP field where the titans play and "the batman building" to keep with
the super hero theme.

In Metropolis IL

2009-07-14T13:03:00.000-05:00

HEADED TO FL!

2009-07-13T17:14:00.004-05:00

Tomorrow Sarah and I leave for Florida! My boy Loggy is getting married on Saturday so we're traveling south to celebrate with him, stay with some friends, and Thursday celebrate our anniversary at THE MAGIC KINGDOM! Many pictures will be following I'm sure.

In the meantime, check out the spankin new Podcast: "So, what do you wanna talk about?" with special guest Adam Caldwell. This week we talk to Loggy about his upcoming marriage, the history of the lazy-susan, the dillemma of the sonic drive-in, and dude's with ponytails.

If you want to know more about Loggy, check out he and Susan's wedding blog.

Peace!

Fajita Fail

2009-07-10T19:09:00.001-05:00

They neglected to bring Sarah one crucial component of her meal...

Man Test Answers

2009-07-02T14:19:00.002-05:00

I know you've been waiting, so here they are. Leave a comment for any answer you'd like to dispute.

1. Since roughly 2000 has been a string of “super hero movies”, some more successful than others. Name 5 Bonus point if you can also name the actor/actress who played the hero. *various answers*

2. The St. Louis Cardinals recently acquired third basemen Mark Derosa. Name his previous team: *Cleveland Indians*

3. One of your friends discovers something in the fridge that stinks, almost to the
point of causing vomiting. He offers you a sniff. Do you:
a. Scream “you’re crazy!” and run out of the room
b. Walk over to whatever is causing the stench and inhale deeply
c. Start crying
d. Pretend to sniff and fake a reaction, but you were really holding your breath

4. Albert Pujols is a perennial contender for the “triple crown”. Name those three offensive categories: *RBI, HR, AVG*

5. How often would you say you use the word “dude” on a daily basis?
a. Never
b. Accidentally, sometimes
c. Ocassionally/Socially
d. Dude, all the time!

6. Which of these would you rather eat?
a. Double cheese burger, onion rings, ice cold carbonated beverage
b. A lovely House Salad
c. Whatever Mommy is fixing for dinner
d. Pizza that is cold/left out on the counter/been sitting in a car for a day

7. What is the most appropriate Father’s day gift?
a. a tie
b. gift card to dad’s favorite restaurant
c. fishing pole
d. signing the card that Mom got

8. There are *5* lugnuts on a 17inch tire.

9. In 2009 White Castle is celebrating its ____ anniversary
a. 50th
b. 29th
c. 88th
d. 75th

10. Complete: “*5* Guys Burgers and Fries”

11. If you had $2.50 how many QT 32oz drinks could you afford? (not including tax) *5*

12. Which of these would you want to drive most?
a. 2003 Gold Chevy Malibu
b. 1962 Camarro
c. 2008 H2 Hummer
d. 2001Chyrsler Seabring Convertible

13. Mel Gibson played what Scottish national in the movie “Braveheart”:
*William Wallace*

14. What does “PTI” stand for? *Pardon the Interruption*

15. In what year did the AFL and NFL merge? *1970*

16. 1 point for every Bruce Willis movie you can name:

17. What was the name of Rocky’s opponent in Rocky I? *Apollo Creed*

18. How many championships has Phil Jackson won as an NBA coach? *10*

19. Darth Vader means “Dark Father” in what language? *German*

20. Who played the voice of Buzz Lightyear in Disneys “Toy Story”? *Tim Allen*

True or False, please circle one:

Terminator 3 was directed by James Cameron: True/False

Apple was originally founded by Larry Jobs: True/False

When faced with public flatulence the only option is to “hold it”: True/False

The darker the rind of an avocado the more ripe it is: True/False

Chevy offers 7 cars with 30+MPG: True/False

Starboard is the nautical term that refers to the left side of the vessel: True/False

Viscosity refers to he degree to which a fluid resists flow
under an applied force: True/False

Choose the most Manly:
Reading or Lighting stuff on fire

Root Beer or Pomegranite Limeade from Red Robin

Joe Jonas or Nick Jonas *neither! subtract points if you circled one*

Steven Seagall or Wesley Snipes (This was a tough one, but we went with Snipes because for a while he not only starred in fugative movies, HE WAS AN ACTUAL FUGITIVE from the US Government)

Gladiator or 300

Spiderman or Batman

Bottled Water or Hose Water

Powerwashing something or Showering

Using hair conditioner or Going to a tanning salon

Soccer or Knitting *also neither*

Yes or No?
Ketchup on steaks Y/N

Nickelback Y/N

“footlong” food items Y/N

Popped Collars Y/N

Miley Cyrus ringtone Y/N

Butter on movie popcorn Y/N

Congregating outside Chesterfield Mall on Friday nights Y/N

Meat garnished with other meat: ex chicken cordon blue or chili dogs Y/N

VW Bugs Y/N

Pedicures Y/N

Eating wings with a fork Y/N

When playing rock paper scissors, going on “shoot”
instead of just rock/paper scissors Y/N

“reduced fat” cookies Y/N

Bubble Baths Y/N

Blood baths Y/N

Chess Y/N

My Little Ponies Y/N

Sarah’s Cafe Y/N

Free refills Y/N

V8 Engines Y/N

V8 Splash Y/N

Online Banking Y/N

Great couple weeks

2009-06-30T10:22:00.004-05:00

So these last two weeks have been fantastic. My sister got married June 20th. Sarah and I celebrated our 1st wedding anniversary June 21st. I also had the privilege of preaching that Sunday. If you want you can check it out in audio podcast form here or video podcast form here (links will open up iTunes).

So after being in Kansas City for the better part of a week, we turned right back around and took 17 middle school kids to Kansas City for a mission trip.

Here is our group as we left.

We painted and helped move lots of stuff at Broadway UMC. They made lunch for us both days, which was awesome. The people were so appreciative and Waldo is a cool part of town.

We also worked at ReStartInc an interfaith Ministry to homeless persons. It was very impactful and we helped fold some sheets and cleaned apartments/emergency shelters. To see all the things they have going on there is amazing, and to know all the needs that are around there is crushing.

Being a St. Louis boy I do have some experience on the West side, so we sampled some KC culture: BBQ and lunch at the plaza fountain:

The last night was a peak experience in ministry. It is so cool when the lights come on for the kids. While we were at Restart they were still being very much like middle schoolers- giggling, agitating each other, and seemingly oblivious to the realities that were literally surrounding them. But later that night it was clear that the trip had made an impact, and that the students really did have their hearts broken by what they saw. I likened the situation to what happens in 5th grade when they break up your class into boys and girls and the gym coach came in and taught us boys about sex, anatomy, etc. You don't quite know how to deal with it, so you just try and laugh it off. Same thing when we were at ReStart. Its hard to cope with where you find yourself. But time to process made a huge difference.

THEN we get back to church on Saturday, and after worship on Sunday we hosted a luncheon with Burmese refugees. It was amazing. A friend here at church immigrated from Burma in 1980 and within the last couple years has really seen a huge increase in refugees from Burma and surrounding countries coming to the St. Louis area. So our church is working to assist these folks in many ways, and the coolest part is its not just about meeting physical needs, but we have some real relationships being built. Here's a pic from my phone from the luncheon:

As much as I complain about church signs or many, many other things about church, I was very proud to be a part of my church this week.

IT's HOT

2009-06-26T07:38:00.001-05:00

New Sermon Series on Sunday

2009-06-16T17:20:00.002-05:00

I'll be preaching on the Prodigal Son this week, after my sister gets married!

New Addition

2009-06-12T15:29:00.001-05:00

Someone donated a pinball machine to church!!!

No Rain=Ultimate!!!

2009-06-11T20:19:00.001-05:00

It's on.

MCGEE AND ME!

2009-06-10T16:57:00.002-05:00

All my sheltered Christian kids, holla back!

Bernard Gets "Fixed" : (

2009-06-10T08:58:00.002-05:00

Todays the day. He also recently got a haircut.

Sign of the times

2009-06-09T14:13:00.004-05:00

Alrighty! If you know me very well, you know that one of my favorite rant topics is church signs. Well imagine my delight when I saw this baby. A Methodist Church not far from my own and not much more than a stones throw away from where I live:
"One Destination, Many Paths."

What exactly does that mean?

Before I appear to be cannibalizing, I'll try and give these good folks the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps that means that God draws us to himself through different circumstances in our lives. Maybe they mean in the grand story of redemptive history that we all take different paths to reconciliation and redemption back to God. Maybe thats what they mean. Maybe someone thought it sounded vaguely wise/sagelike and intriguing enough to be noticed so they put it up there. Maybe whoever is in charge of changing the sign just flipped the page in their book of stuff to put on the church sign and they had all the letters so it worked. Shoot, its still better than "This church is prayer conditioned".

"One Destination, many paths." Universalist garbage. I would hope that this sign would upset the Muslim, the Jew, the Christian, the Hindu, the scientologist, the Mormon, and the whoever else all the same.

Why would you undermine your own existence so much? You're a CHURCH for God's sake! (literally!) Why would you say that it doesn't matter, because its all the same? What a self-defeating thing to say. Why not just put "Come join us for worship on Sunday. Or not. Whatever! Just do something." After all, many paths lead to the same destination.

What really kills me is that Methodism is so willy nilly that there's room for this line of thinking. I find it insulting that a church within my denomination would have this slogan representing their church. I'm not saying my church is perfect, but it is a Christian church. So here we have two United Methodist Churches. Are we really United at all if under different leadership there can be such a divergence of theology?

A famous John Wesley quote is: "In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity"

What could be more essential to a Church than agreement there's something particularly important and distinct about the Christian Church in the first place? Doesn't the church's worship of Jesus matter? Doesn't the church's foundation of Jesus Christ as its head matter?

Why would you ever want to be a part of something that by its own admission, doesn't matter?

Mr. Pujols

2009-06-03T19:27:00.000-05:00

He got new intro music, lame.

It's a rough life.

2009-06-03T19:02:00.000-05:00

Here's where I'm sitting at the Cardinal game tonight, it's not easy
being me.

Pops Pizza: Comfort food and comfortable familiarity

2009-05-30T22:55:00.003-05:00

Today I went to my a buddy from high schools wedding in Cape Girardeau, about 2 hours south of where I live. It was a wonderful ceremony, but thats really not what I'm going to talk about. So, Matt and Tasha, I love you and congratulations!

After the wedding I met my old Young Life director (who's now a Pastor at a church in Cape, he also officiated the wedding) at perhaps my all-time hands-down favorite restaurant on the planet: Pops Pizza. The place is like a time warp. Pretty much EXACTLY how I remember it from high school. We enjoyed off-campus lunch privileges and with a $5 pizza buffet + drink Pops was (and still is) unbeatable.

The thing about Pops is that its actually a bit dingy. I'm so spoiled in my suburban West-County ivory tower if I went there for the first time today, I might have thought it was a little gross. But what makes Pops so great is that it remains unchanged.

C.S. Lewis talks about what I'm trying to get at in "The Four Loves" with familiarity comes affection. Even something that initially strikes us as unpleasant can with time and consistency become charming. Comfort brings affection. We grow to love the familiar. So the pizza place of questionable quality (certainly questionable caloric content, and if I say that you KNOW its bad) with its smeared sneeze guard and sticky tablecloths becomes a thing of beauty. I wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

Last year my church built a new facility. During the moving process when people would get nostalgic about the old building I would try to keep from rolling my eyes. Maybe its a little sad that I'm comparing how I feel about a pizza place to how others feel about their place of worship for so many years, but I have to say I can sympathize a little bit.

In his book "Intuitive Leadership" Tim Keel talks about what happens when God's people get sentimental and rely to much on the past. Talking about the Israeli/Philistine battles in 1 Samuel:

"...what Israel does in their moment of crisis is revert to their past...Israel could have said 'this was the pattern of God's activity in the past. Based on that, how do we discern what to do now?' But in the confusion and pain of their environment, Israel looks to her glorious past. Implicit in this move is an assumption that because God operated in such a manner in the past, he will do so again...The reality is that God's activity in the past can become a stumbling block in the present. When we refuse to engage the environment as it is before us now, we become prone to sentimentality, going through the motions, employing totems, and spouting meaningless God talk..."

So in conclusion, Pops Pizza is a great place to visit but after a fierce inner debate not a place to oft' return. Likewise, Christians need to always be monitoring our mission, our motivations, and our methods so that we don't become so sentimental that we're detrimental to God's work in the world while we sit undistrubed in our monuments of nostalgia.

Youth MiniStarz

2009-05-27T14:02:00.000-05:00

Grandma Betsy

2009-05-27T10:25:00.004-05:00

Many friends already know, but Grandma passed away May 19th in Kirksville. She had suffered a stroke. She lived a long, full 84 years, loved and was loved by many. She had lived in Edina pretty much her whole life and was still in the same house that they had bought in 1954! She was honored at her funeral, and I am so glad my whole family was there to grieve and go through all of that week together.

I thought I'd just put up these photos. The top one is very special. It was given to a family member only two weeks ago! It was from someone who went to high school and Grandma and was on the softball team with her. So the top one is of Grandma when she was 16. The bottom one is of Sarah, Grandma, and I at Christmastime. My Uncle told me it was one of her best days in a long time. We will always treasure our last Christmas all together. Grandma, we love you and will miss you dearly. I will close as my Dad did in a prayer at her bedside: Jesus, we reluctantly but willfully commend her into your care.

Goose on the roof!

2009-05-05T18:22:00.001-05:00

Wii Bowling Tourney @ Youth

2009-04-26T17:44:00.001-05:00

Youth Group + Retirees + Wii=Awesome!

VOTE FOR MY FRIEND KATIE!

2009-04-20T13:38:00.000-05:00

Watch the video, then GO HERE to vote for her!

Cold wife

2009-04-06T18:31:00.001-05:00

Our heat cut out, luckily our landlord is her cool and on thief way.
In the meantime since our home is 53• Sarah is warming her hands by
the steam from the dishwasher drying cycle.

What?!?!

2009-04-05T23:15:00.001-05:00

From Houston: Before

2009-03-31T11:25:00.002-05:00

Just getting around to posting some pics from our workcamp over spring break. Here's the main part of the graveyard when we arrived.

From Houston: After

2009-03-31T11:23:00.003-05:00

On Fasting

2009-03-25T17:14:00.001-05:00

As with many things, if its good enough for Jesus its good enough for me. Fasting is a denial of self to focus on God. Giving up food, something we need, helps us to concentrate on something we need even more; the grace of God. Jesus was quoting the Old Testament when he said “Man does not live on bread alone but by every word of God.” Fasting reminds us of what we need the most.

There are several things about fasting that can be tricky. Jesus warns us elsewhere to not appear pitiful while fasting to get attention. We also shouldn’t use that time we would normally eat to be super-productive either. Many religions fast. Lots of people don’t eat simply to shed calories. What differentiates fasting from merely skipping meals is what you do instead- connecting with the Living God. Check out this quote from Thomas Merton…

"The goal of fasting is inner unity. This means hearing, but not with the ear; hearing, but not with the understanding; it is hearing with the spirit, with your whole being. The hearing that is only in the ears is one thing. The hearing of the understanding is another, but the hearing of the spirit is not limited to any one faculty, to the ear, or to the mind. Hence, it demands the emptiness of the faculties, and when the faculties are empty, then your whole being listens. There is then a direct grasp of what is right before you that can never be heard with the ear or understood with the mind. Fasting of the heart empties the faculties, frees you from limitations and from preoccupations."

Now, as someone who loves more than his share of food fasting can be tough. Part of it for me is surrendering the privileges I enjoy of being able to eat whatever I want, whenever I want it, and how much I want of it. A privilege that works to my disadvantage. I’m attached to food, not only for nutrition but for enjoyment, and often for social purposes as well. Fasting detaches me from my need and allows me to focus on God. This purposeful disruption is an ancient discipline and something that countless saints have utilized in their walk with God.

So, what do you think? Do you fast?

This never gets old

2009-03-22T14:29:00.001-05:00

I have lots of stuff to talk about, but right now I'm at church getting ready for youth group. This ad will always be funny to me:

Ol' Bessie rides again

2009-03-18T14:32:00.001-05:00

My trusty workcamp hat: 5 workcamps, including two trips over the
border. Smelled like it too until Sarah made me wash it.

That's My Girl!!!

2009-03-18T09:43:00.000-05:00

Timber

2009-03-18T06:43:00.001-05:00

First day on the job site

2009-03-17T00:23:00.000-05:00

Here in Houston...

A survey of our first day at work: Matt finds an old bottle of booze, Dan finds a skull, Cody (our native Texan) shows us what flesh-eating plants to avoid, and zombies attack. It was a pretty full day

hard @ work

2009-03-16T13:23:00.001-05:00

Time to go to work

2009-03-16T07:34:00.001-05:00

Expectations

2009-03-15T23:16:00.003-05:00

I'm currently in Houston TX on a workcamp with High School students. Right now everyone else is asleep. I am not. My airmatress slowly deflated.

Upon unwrapping and after initial inflating we discovered a hole. No big deal, patched it up, I'll inflate it before bed. Bedtime arrives. Airmatress inflated. I then discover a 2nd hole, which I taped ferociously to no avail.

So, I decided to blog before bed.

The greatest thing about workcamp is it defies people's expectations. Jesus did that a lot, that was the focus of our devotion this evening.

In our world, you work to get paid. You don't pay money to go work. The latter is precisely what we're doing. I love that.

We start at our worksite tomorrow, check lwyouth.org for mobile updates.

Our host church has been awesome. Tonight we even had a true-Texan crawfish boil!

Ok, I'm off to try and make my way to an empty couch. Peace, and sleep well!

Houston here we come

2009-03-13T09:25:00.001-05:00

Good weather starting Monday!

Sweat Shop

2009-02-28T11:04:00.001-06:00

30+ kids showed up to make blankets, making me feel like I'm running a
Kathy Lee Gifford child labor operation

5 Guys: Doin how they do

2009-02-24T09:57:00.003-06:00

So, maybe its bad that my past three posts have involved food...

But a new place opened up around here, with another on the way. It's called "5 Guys Burgers and Fries". The food was really good. But what I really enjoyed was the menu:

They sell burgers. They sell fries. (now, they also have hot dogs, and I think a grilled cheese for kids or something)

But the menu is simple. That is what they do. Check out one of the FAQ from their website:

Q: Does Five Guys plan to add any menu items (i.e. milkshakes, chili, etc.)

A: Five Guys does not currently have plans to add any items to our menu. We follow the philosophy of focusing on a few items, and serving them to the best of our ability. If we were to add to our menu, then you can guarantee that we would only do so if we could serve the highest quality product possible. For example, there are a lot of great milkshakes out there, and at this point we think that others are doing it better than we could!

I find this very refreshing. 5 Guys does their thing. They're not trying all sorts of new stuff. McDonalds is not a coffeehouse. Taco Bell is not where I want to get a smoothie. Pizza Hut is not where I want to get dessert, or pasta. Dominos is a pizza place, not a sandwich place.

5 Guys is a burger place, thats what they do. They're not trying to offer everything thats trendy or cut into their competitions niche.

I'm normally not a "taking something from the business world and applying it to life" sort of guy. But this really got me thinking: As a person, how much time and energy do you spend trying to be someone else, instead of just doing what you do best?

FREE QUIZNOS

2009-02-23T14:15:00.000-06:00

http://www.millionsubs.com/Reg.php

Stuff that is awesome

2009-02-19T11:32:00.003-06:00

Genghis Grill. Build your own Mongolian Bar-b-que. New location opened in Ellisville, and one coming in Kansas City! The place is ridiculous. Pick your meat. Pick your veggies. Pick your sauce. Enjoy. They give it to you in these cool bowls, and I always make mine too hot but still so good when it hits your lips!

Barnes and Nobles Website. Curious to see if they had a book in stock, you can check right from the site. Then, you can reserve it. Within ten minutes I got an email saying it was behind the counter for me. Drove to the bookstore on the way to a meeting, picked it up. Bam!

Kitchen Tables. Sarah and I recently got a small little one, after replacing the one someone generously gave me. Unfortunately that table never was screwed down, so it was a balancing act. Now we can eat meals like real people and actually talk.

Speaking of tables...

The Open Table. Recently I've had a string of conversations with people really wanting to investigate more about God. About the same time I read about the open table on Don Miller's blog. Now, I totally have drank Miller's kool aid just so everyone knows. But I normally don't go ga-ga over curriculum. But this seems to be really good. Got the book and the DVD set, and plan on having some get together's using this stuff.

The Return of the Prodigal Son. By Henri Nouwen. Almost done with it. This is my first Nouwen book, and its really good. We'll be using some of his exploration for a youth retreat in September.

Danny Gokey. He's humble, he's got a heart wrenching story, he's a great singer, he's a church music director, and he rocks the glasses. Plus, factor in the blonde highlights, the last name "gokey", and he's still cool? Danny, a hero lies in you.

Burning Questions: Do only those who believe in Jesus go to heaven? Or can non-Christians be saved? Part 2

2009-02-16T15:58:00.003-06:00

Alrighty,

In the last post on the subject (longer ago than I wish) I discussed how an "exclusive" approach to faith is not necessarily bad in and of itself.

So now the question: Does everybody besides Christians go to hell?

Most of you might know what I'm going to come with next: Jesus seems fairly emphatic that no one comes to the Father except through him. Posts like this sort of make me cringe, and so do all the times when Jesus talks about Hell in the New Testament.

*Possible Cop-Out Alert* I guess my answer to the above question, is "I hope not, and I'm glad its not up to me"

I will say this: Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism are not the same thing as Christianity. To say that all paths lead to God is, to me, insulting to all parties involved. I don't see how any one really thinks that- Buddha and Jesus do not claim the same things. So the Buddhist and the Christian should take issue to that popular statement, or some picture about blind men and elephants.

I will say this: Jesus speaks explicitly about lots of people who think they know him, but don't. I find this terrifying. Jesus also speaks of very religious people happy to get attention but not really caring about other people. I think there is a lot of Christians out there who will be disappointed that Hell didn't have a few more places reserved.

The duty of the Christian is to love. Sometimes that love might mean talking to somebody about their beliefs, and what they think of ultimate destiny. Other times that same love might compel you to be patient with someone; knowing that some discussions could wreck a trust that's been built. I will refer you to Penn's video below, where he asks: "How much do you have to hate somebody NOT to proselytize them?"

At any rate, I believe this conversation can take place in any relationship where there is mutual respect and trust. It's when those things aren't present, in my experience, that emotions escalate and love deteriorates.

"God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."

Stories

2009-02-04T17:30:00.002-06:00

So my Dad's got this story he told me one time. Someone just randomly came in his office and said they had $300 they'd like to donate to whatever Dad thought the church needed. They didn't have some specific place, just had the prompting to bring it in.

Two hours later, a desperate family comes to Dad at the end of their rope, in need of...$300.

Crazy!

I'm trying to get him to send me the story in more detail, because I think it is so neat. I would love to compile stories of times we've had encounters with God, when just absolutely crazy things have happened.

So if you've got one, please send it to me! I'd love to put it up on here, or even somehow compile these into a book for my coffee table or something.

adam (dot) mustoe (at) gmail (dot com)

OUTRAGE!

2009-02-04T10:06:00.006-06:00

IS NOTHING SACRED?

They are "remaking" the Karate Kid.

Check out more: here, here, and hear it straight from Daniel himself representing here.

Lets see, here's a list of my favorite childhood movie franchises:
-Star Wars
-Indiana Jones
-Karate Kid

THE FIRST TWO HAVE ALREADY BEEN RUINED, PLEASE, IF JUSTICE EXISTS LET DANIELSAN BE!

This is unconfirmed, but I'm pretty sure I was the first in North America to purchase the Karate Kid boxed set when it came out; I was at Wal-Mart at midnight, shocked by the lack of fanfare. I thought I was a big fan, until my co-worker Chris came in with the soundtrack today (impressive), and told me about this remake.

The Karate Kid does not fit into the trend of "recasting" series ala Batman/Star Trek. It was a magical moment in time that cannot just be pillaged by some jerk producers looking to pimp Will Smith's kid.

Heartbroken,

-Adam

Burning Questions: Do only those who believe in Jesus go to heaven? Or can non-Christians be saved? Part 1

2009-01-22T09:52:00.002-06:00

This is another in our series of questions people ask, and its a doozy. We talked about this on Sunday and again on Wednesday. I'll try and break this up, because I know most people don't like reading long blog posts.

Here's the thing. In our culture, where most Americans take a "buffet" approach to religion; one of the most reprehensible traits is to be "closed minded" or "exclusive". By responding "no" to the question of "non-Christians going to heaven" most folks would react as if you had just used a racial slur.

If you watched the inauguration speech, you know that our country has changed/is changing, its different than most generations have always viewed it. President Obama referred to our "patchwork" society of many different races and faiths. I think this is cool, so don't hear me saying its not. At the school where my wife works they had a "passport night" where different families with different heritages set up booths about their country and the kids go around visiting the different booths- eating the food, making a craft, checking out the traditional garb, and getting their "passport" stamped. It was incredible. There was a ton of people there and from all over the world...all going to this school in suburban St. Louis MISSOURI. Missouri, a bastion of anglo-culture (you may know my stance on Branson being the white-people's Mecca) can be an extremely diverse place if you start to really look around.

Anyways, my point is that in our society to be seen as "exclusive" is one of the worst ways to be viewed. That's what makes this question so rough. "Are you going to be so arrogant as to claim that Christianity has a monopoly on truth?" So we champion diversity in our American ethos, but how else does that play out existentially? Is exclusivity really a hateful thing? I would argue that it is not, and in fact can be a very loving thing.

Our most important relationships are all exclusive. Thats what makes marriage so special. You are saying "I am not concerned with what else is out there, I choose you." Another way of putting that might be, "Sarah, you have a monopoly on my love, attention, and care." It's not up for grabs. In this sense, love is exclusive; because love is particular.

When Sarah and I were looking at dogs, we went to the mall (mistake I know, kind of sad, and definitely overpriced). Did you know that a lot of these mall pet stores have like, replacement policies? In other words, if your puppy gets sick and dies within 30 days don't worry, they'll replace it for free! Oh ya, try that one with your 10 year old: "Here Tommy, Scooter the puppy you've loved for a month died, but look, here's a new one thats just as good!" No man, its not just having a puppy that the kid loves, he loved that particular puppy that he named Scooter.

SO, idea of the day: exclusivity is not universally synonymous with hate/evil/wrong/bad.

Pot calling the kettle black, after the pot injected the kettle with performance inhancing drugs

2009-01-22T09:43:00.004-06:00

Just read this story about Mark McGwire's brother; who's trying to get a book published about Mark's steroid use. Jay McGwire, the attempting author is estranged from Mark and says this:

My bringing the truth to surface about Mark is out of love. I want Mark to live in truth to see the light, to come to repentance so he can live in freedom -- which is the only way to live.

What a crock. Homeboy just wants to make a buck, and nobody's biting.

What is the deal with all these "whistleblowers"? Jose Conseco, Brian McNamme, Kirk Rodomski, and now Jay McGwire. These dudes come off like they think what they're doing is noble; but they are implicit in the whole process! How are you going to try and put these guys in a negative light for using steroids when YOU WERE THE ONE WHO PUT THE NEEDLE IN? Where were your principals then?
So lame.

More Bernard

2009-01-20T15:11:00.003-06:00

I'll try not to be the guy who always talks about his dog...But I couldn't resist:

He shall be called... Bernard

2009-01-16T13:21:00.000-06:00

Picking him up tomorrow at 1!!!!

Flip the Script

2009-01-15T15:09:00.002-06:00

Here is an article I saw on relevantmagazine.com today.

A man expressed displeasure at Buddha statues at the KC zoo.

Now, this man is a Christian and said that the statues were "infuriating to God". But consider what he said: “We can’t have a cross or a nativity scene on public property,” said Engle of Overland Park, who complained to a zoo employee. “It is phenomenal to me that the zoo would put up Buddha statues.”

In my estimation, Buddha statues are like the sign of the cross. When they sell them at Urban Outfitters, you can pretty much say their original intents have been thrown out the cultural window. The zoo was going for an "Asian theme around the Tiger Trail" so they put up Buddha statues.

Here's my questions:
Where's the ACLU on this one? What if that would have been the 10 commandments instead of the Buddha? How would we view this article if the objecting man wasn't a Christian?

Frankly, I couldn't care less if the 10 commandments were on display at any courthouse in America. But I do find it fascinating the way these things differ in how they are treated and how much attention they get.

(un-related side note. I hear a lot of people say the phrase "I could care less". But I don't think thats right, because you're saying that there is some amount of caring. I think the proper idiom is "I couldn't care less" because you're saying there no way you could care any less.)

Interesting Video

2009-01-14T11:10:00.004-06:00

Penn is very candid here.

Its funny, I've heard Christians say some of the same things Penn does here. I've even got into some feisty discussions around this same topic; the whole "if you knew someone was about to get hit by a truck" thing; or "if you someone had a disease and you had the cure" deal. More on this later...

Quick Update

2009-01-13T14:03:00.001-06:00

Congratulations to Christmas Vacation, voted best Christmas movie ever by readers of this blog. Not gonna lie, I voted for it more than once.

I do want to say I have really tried hard to refrain from too much iPhone discussion here on the blog. However, this must be shared:

www.nuevasync.com

If you use iPhone and Google Calendar, it will wirelessly sync events from Google Calendar to your phone AND VICE VERSA! FOR FREE!

I'm geekin out over here.

Burning Questions: Why doesn't God make his existence more blatant and obvious?

2009-01-07T17:55:00.003-06:00

My church is doing a sermon series based on feedback we received to the question "If you could ask God anything, what would it be?" We don't think its novel or original, but it is meaningful for the next couple weeks to respond specifically to the questions people have.

Tonight at Roots, our alternative service I am giving a message and hosting a discussion to the same question. Check out this link before reading. I know its long, and I know I may be re-hashing dusty material for some. But maybe not. Either way, here is what I have to say:

Tonight and for the next couple weeks we’re going to be looking at “Burning Questions”. We surveyed our congregation and asked them: “If you could ask God anything, what would it be?” Tonight’s topic is one of those questions: “God, why don’t you reveal yourself to us in more blatant and obvious ways?”

Before we really jump in, I want to say that this we should not feel dirty or guilty for asking and investigating this question. I think as people, especially as modern people, we really love the security of “facts”. We’ve been raised with science class, which has shown us that hypothesis can be tested and proved. We have calculators on our cell phones that have exponentially more computing power than the devices that guided the first manned missions to the moon. We have GPS devices to guide us on our route, even tracking our speed and predicting our arrival time. Have you ever encountered road construction while being guided by a GPS? Did you freak out? Has one of these devices ever lead you the wrong way? Watch this…

Michael Scott robotically followed the GPS into the lake. He then decries technology altogether, no longer putting his trust in the cold hard calculations of machines. I think in addressing this question, we’ll have to do a bit of the same with some of the things we’re so used to guiding us. One of the things we need to do is recognize our dependence on “proof”.

Belief in God necessitates a suspension in empiricism; empiricism meaning that which is demonstrable, or “provable”. We cannot prove God’s existence by some formula or miracle equation. This frustrates many faithful people and also gives others plenty of reason to be dismissive of God altogether. However, if there is no God, if there is no higher order in the universe, why should anything make sense? So whereas we must suspend our requiring of facts to “prove” the existence of God, perhaps our inner desire for order and our ability to reason in and of themselves make a case for the existence of God. I offer this quote from C.S. Lewis: “Atheism turns out to be too simple. If the whole universe has no meaning, we should never have found out that it has no meaning.”

We must then adjust our concepts of how God would make himself “blatant and obvious”. Let us consider the words of Paul in his letter to the church in Rome:

“For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”

What inside us even causes us to wonder if God exists? Could this urge inside be God revealing himself “blatantly and obviously”? Often people will say things like; if God is so good, why does he allow even in the world? My response is, how do you decide what is evil? Let me again offer the words of my boy, C.S. Lewis: “My argument against God was that the universe seemed so cruel and unjust. But how had I got this idea of just and unjust? A man does not call a line crooked unless he has some idea of a straight line. What was I comparing this universe with when I called it unjust?”

God’s eternal power and his divine nature, being clearly seen and understand from what has been made. Hhhmmm. Well, that would include us, if we are part of God’s creation- what has been made. But what would we know of God’s eternal power and his divine nature? Some feel it between their toes on a beach when the tide is coming in. Others might find it in a sunset, especially one seen from a mountain summit. Some might feel moved through art or music. If you’re a parent, I’ve bet you’ve felt it when you first held your child. Can’t we as people experience love and beauty? Perhaps our innate knowledge of love and what is beautiful is God making himself “blatant and obvious”.

Perhaps it’s the pit in your stomach when you see someone begging on the street. Do you feel a wave of sadness and compassion when you see reports of violence and famine overseas? Do you get angry when you hear about corporate greed that abuses and takes advantage of people? On a more personal level, what about that feeling you have when you know your loved ones are making poor choices. Or that pesky little thing we refer to as our conscience. I believe inside we do have “an idea of a straight line” as Lewis puts it. Our inherent sense of right and wrong, of empathy, of justice. I believe these are just a few of the invisible qualities that Paul speaks of, and what he says is true. They are clearly seen by what has been made, us. Another way to say clearly seen, is “made blatant and obvious”.

We can like Michael Scott following his GPS. We can try to prove God in a scientific sense, a “blatant and obvious” sense to a culture obsessed with data and proof. His intuition should have told him not to go straight into a lake. My intuition tells me that the most important things in life are not provable. Here’s a pen, paper, and a calculator. Who can prove to me that they love their husband, wife, children, or friends? Who can make it “blatant and obvious”?

We should not expect God to conform to our enlightenment-shaped, modern, scientific sense of what is “blatant and obvious”. Nor should we think that we can “prove” God’s existence to someone who is skeptical through mere argumentation. To me, these invisible qualities of God are made visible through relation rather than simply information. In other words, the way God is seen on this planet is through his creation. I don’t think its just a pretty sunrise, I think its through his people. Jesus told his disciples that all men would know they were his disciples if they loved one another. Does Jesus say: “they will know you are my disciple when you have all the answers to combat the theory of evolution”? No. What about “they will know you are my disciples when you hand then a small business card with an acronym on it”? No. What about “they will know you are my disciples when you browbeat them into submission with your clever hypothetical arguments”? No. So I can give this little sermon, walk out the door and be a huge jerk. What good does that do? Jesus’ followers are charged with making God’s invisible qualities known. That is the Christian response to the question of the existence of God- making God’s invisible qualities known; in word and action.

I believe if you truly survey your life that you can find God in ways that will calm the storms of doubt. Maybe you’re sitting here thinking that you don’t see a lot of love, beauty, or justice in your life. You still desire them, and God desires those for his people. Michael Scott was allowing the wrong things to guide him, in the same way, we can be asking the wrong questions. So tonight perhaps our appeal to God should not be: “Why don’t you show yourself in more blatant and obvious ways” but rather, “God, will you help me see your eternal power and divine nature? God, will you help me to make your invisible qualities seen clearly in this hazy world?”

Amen.

Why You're Not Happy

2009-01-07T14:18:00.002-06:00

Yahoo ran this article yesterday, it's title being used for this blog post as well.

Its funny, my boy Adam and I had this discussion over the holidays.

Maybe we're not happy because we are pursuing the wrong things to make us happy?

In other words, happiness is attainable, but you have to change the ends of happiness and the means to attain that.

"He who seeks to lose his life for my sake will find it."

My sister is engaged!!!!

2008-12-29T19:35:00.000-06:00

Kelly and Doug, freshly betrothed.

Mustoe Christmas #3

2008-12-28T19:26:00.001-06:00

Me, the Mrs. and my Grandma

A Mustoe Christmas Dont Stop

2008-12-26T09:39:00.000-06:00

Christmas morn

2008-12-25T09:06:00.001-06:00

After four Christmas eve services last night, Sarah and I have
completed our first Christmas morning together! She got me an Iron
Man bobble head, who we see paying his respects at the manger.

"The Greatest Gift"

2008-12-20T22:25:00.002-06:00

Here's a video we made for Sunday. Big ups to my boy Loggy (who is pictured below).If you'd like to see the others click here

"Dirty Santa"

2008-12-17T14:29:00.004-06:00

At our staff Christmas party we have a "White Elephant" gift exchange, or what some may call "Dirty Santa". My boy Loggy and I decided to wrap up some pictures of us in some different sized frames/felt ornaments/a snowglobe. May they spread Christmas joy to you and yours:

"You're going to make fun of me on the internet aren't you"

2008-12-17T14:23:00.003-06:00

So, there Sarah and I are at Michael's looking for various things. And she can't figure out why the "E" in mouse is missing.....The blog title was her response.

Christmas Music Update

2008-12-11T12:38:00.002-06:00

My friends all know that I'm nuts about Christmas music. Last year my sister and I came up with a pretty sweet compilation. So this year, I have some additions to recommend:

Glory in the Highest | Shane and Shane I listen to this from top to bottom all the time. Now, if you don't like S&S you definitely won't enjoy this. Their harmonies and guitar parts are ridiculous. But sometimes they can get a little like Boyz II Men at the end of their songs when they're really goin after it... "Although we've come, to the EEEEEEEEEEEENNNNNNNNNDDDD OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOF THE ROOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAADDDDDDDDD". This is my favorite new Christmas music this year.

Other Noteworthy Additions:
Winter Song | Sara Bareilles This song is very pretty. "December has seemed so long, you're not where you belong, inside my arms." Whew! Not cheesy when you listen to it, promise.

Jingle All the Way | Bela Fleck and the Flecktones Yule tide Banjo.

Feliz Navidad | Los Lonely Boys I'll admit, most of the reason I like this song it because it makes me think of Taco Johns Nachos Navidad

Finally, check out this powerful rendition of O Holy Night. This was sent to me by my friend Dan who is a Vocal Performance/Sacred Music grad-student at UMKC. It defies further description.

Its Happening

2008-12-09T11:47:00.002-06:00

So I'm hanging out with Middle Schoolers on their half day today.

We're playing some Christmas jams, and one of my favorites "Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays" by Nsync comes up.

The kids don't even know Nsync ever existed. They have no idea who they are.

I'm getting old.

Rude Awakening

2008-12-03T10:27:00.001-06:00

So I'm getting ready this morning, and being winterish outside I had a bit of dry skin on the ol' noggin. I get out Sarah's moisterizing face lotion to remedy my "shkin" situation, and it explodes all over me.

The future is here

2008-11-30T14:56:00.001-06:00

When my buddy krueger end to Japan a couple years ago he told me about
the vending machines there. You could enter your cell phone number,
select a drink, and they'd bill it to your cell. This isn't quite as
cool, but at chesterfield mall they now have a coke machine that
accepts credit cards! Pretty cool.

What in the World is Going On?

2008-11-30T01:12:00.002-06:00

So I'm on Amazon snoopin around for some books to put on the ol' Christmas list, and I see this:

What In the World Is Going On? Ten Propehtic Clues You Cannot Afford to Ignore

Ah yes, no better subject for ranting than Christian literature.

To be fair, I haven't read the book. And I won't. I know all I need to know from the description:

It is hard to piece together all this information in a way that gives a comprehensive picture of what the end times will look like. That's why so many theories abound. And that's why Dr. David Jeremiah has written What In the World Is Going On?, a unique book that cuts through the hundreds of books and numerous theories to identify the essential 10 most important bible prophecies.

AKA "Yeah, we know theres a ton of other books like this out there, but they all suck and this one is right."

Also, note that they are trying to compell you to purchase the book by relying on fear. "Clues you cannot afford to ignore." Right. This is the same tactic the local news uses right before the commercial before they tell you about the dangers of salmonella tracings on your child's lunch tray.

The book offers scriptural enlightenment on the following subjects:
- The oil crisis
- The resurgence of Russia
- The new axis of evil
- The importance of Israel
- The new powers of the European Union

Now, we all know its easy just to rip on stuff and never really offer anything yourself. So here's my take: Whats wrong with the world can be seen when a Wal-Mart clerk is crushed beneath a mob of blood, er, bargain thirsty shoppers. When a man who is clearly dying, being treated by emergency response crews is casually passed by because BluRay DVD players are 10% off, we can see what is wrong with the world. I don't think scripture is meant to be twisted into an ethnocentric magic 8 Ball and I don't think we need to see another Christian prophecy book. Rant on!

Back in the saddle

2008-11-26T12:02:00.005-06:00

Hello friends. I've been absent as of late. I didn't think any one really noticed, but I received a couple of comments within a short span that reminded me that sometimes people do check this thing, and think of me as a bum when the posts have been so infrequent.

So, today I resolved myself to resurrect my electronic presence. Both on here and Facebook; plus Brad and Adam have both posted. So I gotta keep up with them.

Here's the Rundown:
-Election
-Quantum of Solace
-Holidays
-Funny Stories

Election So I put up a post from my phone the night of the election. It was a neat event to witness for sure. I watched the quarter million people at that park in Chicago and I just don't have that much hope that all of a sudden everything is going to be awesome. BUT many people a two generations ago would've laughed you out of the room if you told them there would be a black president. I just hope we don't lose the urgency for alternative fuel with gas prices falling, although I'm not exactly complaining. It was $1.49 in St. Louis today! I almost offered to fill a strangers tank up.

Quantum of Solace This movie was awesome. Daniel Craig is a man, baby! Sure, some of the scenes were over the top; the plane chase in particular. But isn't that why we saw the movie in the first place? There were about 19-23 times that I said "that was awesome" under my breath.

Holidays Sarah and I are having our first go around with Thanksgiving and Christmas as a married couple. Christmas is something I take very seriously, and I've got some fresh recommendations for the sounds of the season for later on. The Mrs. and I went and bought some decorations. Including the search for the perfect Mustoe Family Christmas Tree: a 4.5 foot pre-lit beauty. It is beyond my ability to describe how great it was to put it up. We're going to KC Wednesday night thru Sunday. For Thanksgiving i'm smoking a turkey! So I'll try and have some progress updates with that adventure.

Funny Stories I had a "you know you're married now" moment at last week. Sarah and I were at the grocery last week:

Me: "Hey, you want to get some of that pulled pork again?"
Sarah: "No! You remember how that made me sick last time?"
Me: "...ya, but thats because you got the spicy kind."

Also, last Saturday I bought a new holiday sweater. We have church directory pictures coming up, and its always good to be festive right? So I get one from Target and wear it to church last Sunday. Jordan, one of my students says "Hey, Justin (his brother) bought that sweater too. He wore it to our church pictures." I tell him to call his brother in order to alert him to not wear his sweater. Jordan says "Got it, I'll call him."

Sure enough Jordan called his brother. Only he said: "Hey, Adam wants to see your new sweater." Well played Jordan, well played.We thought it was a bit like a before and after weight loss shot.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody, I'm back!

Speech

2008-11-04T23:25:00.001-06:00

Just watched Obama's speech in Chicago. What blows my mind are all the
people that have voted today that coudnt when they were my age because
of their skin color, and yet a man who couldn't have ridden in the
front of a bus in the 1960s is the president elect. I think Jesse
Jackson says and does many, many stupid things. But when I see his
reaction it's a peak at the significance of this election. More later
this week.

Sent from my phone

I Got Served

2008-10-22T14:23:00.007-05:00

So after last Sunday's loss in our Fantasy Football League
my fellow staff member and fantasy victor Michael has the entire staff sign a grief card for me. Nice. Here are some highlights:

"Adam, thinking of you in this difficult time"
"Adam, you're a winner just for playing"
"Adam, you suck"
and my personal favorite-
"Adam, I will be lifting you up in this time of loss and despair. But you know- I just have to believe that at this point in your life you should be pretty used to losing."

Just thought I'd share.

MISSOURI FINALLY GETS SOME DAP

2008-10-10T10:33:00.001-05:00

The Yahoo headline: Will Missouri voters decide who will be President?

RESPECT!

Bell's New Book

2008-10-08T15:07:00.003-05:00

Picked this up today: "Jesus Wants to Save Christians" by Rob Bell and Don Golden.

Should be interesting. From the back cover: "It's about what it means to be a part of the church of Jesus in a world where some people fly planes into buildings while others pick up groceries in Hummers."

Snap!

The Imitation of Christ

2008-10-01T17:02:00.002-05:00

Tonight at worship we're beginning a series based on The Imitation of Christ. Here is some more information:

About the author, Thomas 'a Kempis

More on the book here, here, and a free ebook here.

Buy it here or here.

roflrazzi.com

2008-10-01T13:39:00.004-05:00

more lol celebs!

Here's a pretty funny site, from the creators of LOLCats. I liked this one, even though I don't understand anything about bailouts or deficits.

The Politics of Faith

2008-09-30T13:13:00.002-05:00

I always read Relevantmagazine.com's news headlines. Read this one today. Apparently some Pastor's are sticking it to the IRS and risking their non-profit status by endorsing candidates from the pulpit, which would be a violation being that:

Under IRS regulations, non-profits are "absolutely prohibited from directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign on behalf of (or opposition to) any candidate for public office."

I believe this is tricky stuff. I don't think a Preacher should tell people who to vote for from the pulpit either, but perhaps for different reasons. To me, I would find it hard to come down definitively on one candidate. This is the first part of the joke of this whole debate: as if one Presidential candidate (or party) has the solution to all of our nation's problems. Preachers do have a responsibility to point their congregations in the right direction; I just think there's too much ambiguity on all sides of the political spectrum to proclaim one party/candidate as "the right one" especially from a pulpit.

The second part of the joke in the article, to me, is the underlying assumption that faith should be relegated from politics. You cannot nor should not keep them separate. Am I saying that we should elect super-Christian President man someday, like some White Knight of WASP lore to rescue all the good and God-fearing folks from liberal degradation and R rated movies? Uh, no.

I'm just saying if your faith isn't informing how you see the world than it doesn't hold much water. Faith is very much a political matter.

In Defense of Cable

2008-09-26T09:16:00.003-05:00

Ok, so all my buddies are doggin on me now because I caved and got cable?

Here's the thing, previously my buddies and I would just sit and veg in front of ESPN and never say anything. Thus, TV eroding at community.

But Sarah and I find ourselves at home quite a bit, and would like to enjoy several shows together. Thanks to the DVR we can. For instance, I have band practice on Thursday nights. So, we record the Office, and watch it when I get home. Or, Sarah can now join in on the "Project Runway" discussions in the teacher's lounge. Thus, TV building community.

PTI is no longer on ESPN.com by the way, they're promoting the audio podcast instead.

We do actually save money on Internet, but then we turn around and spend it on the cable.

We got a Toshiba HD TV for our wedding, and it would be silly not to use it to its fullest potential.

So there it is. I went for a year, it was good. But its good to be back. BB, you gotta help me out here.

5 Lists of 5

2008-09-25T08:31:00.002-05:00

Hey gang. Long time no post. Here's a little something.

5 reasons I haven't blogged lately:
-Led worship on Sunday morning for 3 weeks
-Preached last Sunday
-Fantasy Football time eats into blog time
-Launched a new worship service
-Am married now, so blog time at home is not as plentiful. I'm not as bored!

5 things I am excited about:
-Office premier tonight
-Getting cable installed today
-Just got some new frames after 3 years, with my wife's sweet sweet teacher insurance
-Iron Man on DVD/Body of Lies coming out in a couple weeks
-My buddies Diffey and Crystal are getting married this weekend

5 things I would normally be embarrassed to admit:
-I actually enjoy watching "Dancing With the Stars"
-I downloaded, and often listen to "When You Believe" by Whitney and Mariah
-Sarah and I refer to "Wheel of Fortune" as "our show"
-My favorite item from Shake's in Columbia was called "The Pink Poodle"
-I still have a deep desire to play with Legos

5 Political/Current Event Comments:
-If Sarah Palin wasn't hot, she wouldn't be as big of a deal. Just sayin.
-If we are in such a financial crisis, why have there been like, 8 new banks built all over the place?
-Missouri currently may have the worst sports teams combined in history: Cards/Royals- not in the playoffs. Rams/Chiefs- two worst teams in the NFL. Blues- sucked it up last year, and currently have a "whatever it takes" campaign going. On the bright side, we do have Mizzou football, but that doesn't count towards the professional ranks.
-I find campaign ads insulting to the public's intelligence. Whether its McCain/Obama or Missouri Governor ads, they both say the other will raise taxes and that they've lowered taxes.
-The Zooperstars are awesome. I think mascots are hilarious.

5 Bold Predictions:
-The Presidential debate this Friday will be the highest rated ever.
-The Office Season 6 will be its last.
-Within 15 years, the Methodist Church will split over the issue of homosexuality.
-The San Diego Chargers will rally from a 1-2 record to win the Super Bowl, and LaDanian Tomlinson will retire.
-People will finally realize the futility of offshore drilling and by 2012 we will have alternative fuel stations (I almost wanted to say Gas stations...)

ROOTS | Launches Wed September 3 | 7-8pm

2008-09-02T23:37:00.002-05:00

I AM KING OF THE NERDS

2008-09-02T16:45:00.001-05:00

My email was answered on the ESPN fantasy focus podcast today!

Thank God I'm already married.

Check it out here

They answer my email at the 38:35