neat pic!

About a week ago, I came across this image on Google+:

I don't know who created it.  I read through a number of comments on the photo, some positive, some negative, with different people interpreting it different ways.  I don't know what the original intent was.  But I know my reaction when I saw it, "Yes! Love it!".

We live in an increasingly interconnected world.  100 years ago, Americans would have typically lived on a farm, gaining most of their daily sustenance by their own hard work on their own land.  People all over the world, in fact, have lived this way for thousands of years.  Interaction with others was largely limited by geography.  And in these times and places, Christians all over the world would pause before a meal and say a word of thanks to their creator.  Prayer before a meal is still common among evangelical Christians, of course.  The act serves to remind us, daily, that all we have comes from God, and we take the opportunity to align our attitudes toward one of thankfulness.  In the Lord's prayer, Jesus Christ directed his disciples to pray a prayer of thanksgiving for their daily bread.  Gratitude is one of the more important attitudes to develop in life.

But today, our daily bread doesn't directly come from our own hard work on our own land.  Food comes from the store!  And that food is brought to us by thousands of others who are doing the direct work of planting & harvesting.  It is easy to forget that there are so many others who play a part in our meals.  And not only should our thankful attitude be extended to God, but also to those who've done the direct, hard work, who might even live in a different country and culture.  As a white, middle class American, I need to be grateful for those take part in growing & harvesting the food I eat, also because many of the folks doing this are probably less well off than I am.  And I need to let that attitude of thanks stew deep in my mind, allowing it to work its way into other thought patterns, and eventually come out in word & actions that I take.  The person who harvests my food might just be from a nation somewhere in Latin America, and might be named Jesus, a fairly common Spanish name.  Both Jesus the Christ and Jesus the hispanic worker deserve my gratitude for their part in proving me the meal I'm about to eat.

Why Last Saturday's Political Conclave of Evangelical Leaders Was Dangerous | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction

Christians, and especially evangelicals, are known for wanting to change culture. And I do to. There are many things in our culture that need redemption. Unfortunately, sometimes we miss the mark and attempt to change culture in the wrong way. This piece from Christianity Today spells out very clearly why some strategies with political groups are a mistake. A must read!

Why Last Saturday's Political Conclave of Evangelical Leaders Was Dangerous | Christianity Today | A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction:

'via Blog this'

MLK

I can't let this day go by without something to say on the day we remember the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  What an amazing message of hope that he gave.  The courage to stand up in the face of gross injustice and cry out for equality is truly inspiring.

I'll leave with some lyrics to a song by one of my favorite bands of all time:

"Did you hear the thunderous voice of Dr. King?
The Ghost of Hope still strikes its brilliant lightning!
Through the dark our hearts will scream
For a word we've only dreamed.
And the past it will decay, so sing goodbye to yesterday.

And I believe
That we will burn the starless night
The truth will ring through depths of twilight
Liberty, our hearts ignite
Let hope still ring through depths of twilight."

-"Through Depths of Twilight", Brave Saint Saturn

Quaff the Elixir & Tweeting in #ONUChapel

So yesterday here at ONU, Chapel took a very different turn.  Dr. Mark Quanstrom was on the docket to speak.  He gave his sermon in 3 words: Quaff the Elixir.

Most of the folks in chapel yesterday got a vocab lesson - "quaff" meaning "to drink copiously & heartily", and "elixir" referring to a drink that's good for you, healthy, stirring to the mind, soul, & body.  Dr. Q was referring to Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas, where the phrase 'quaff the elixir' is known from the heyday of the bath houses in years gone by.  And not only good for bathing, but the water was touted as good to drink.  I doubt there are any medicinal properties to the water itself, but the park does monitor the water and it is safe to drink.

Dr. Q translated this to the spiritual life - to have a close connection with God, we must "quaff the elixir".  That is, drink copiously of the life giving water, letting it nourish our souls and feed us.  You can even buy the T-shirt.  We do this by observing Christian practices - prayer, reading scripture, attending church services, among other things.

But in addition to the message he delivered, Dr. Q also mentioned the fact that a number of students here at ONU live tweet the Chapel services, and he read some of the tweets from the previous day when Dr. Bowling had spoken.  He spoke positively of this and said he was going to try and follow along with the live tweets during his own sermon and respond to them.  This was a courageous way to try and integrate social media into the Chapel experience, and the students responded by MASS tweeting!  The live tweets in chapel are generally tagged with the hashtag #onuchapel, which for those who don't know, is used in twitter and google+ as a way to connect the posts of various users under a single, clickable search term.  That way, users who are all commenting on a common subject can connect with one another more easily.  Unfortunately, Dr. Q's phone wasn't downloading correctly and he wasn't able to interact, but I give him major points for the attempt!  (and for those new to twitter, the twitter account @ONUChapel is not at all the same thing as the hashtag #ONUChapel).

The official ONU twitter account (@OlivetNazareneU) frequently retweets a few of the live tweets from the students during Chapel, selecting those that give a short, simple, great quote that relates the message.  For the most part, the tweets were positive and encouraging from the students (see them here).  I know that some think that it is distracting during the Chapel service to do this.  It's true that a cell phone can be pretty distracting, but just like any tool it can be used for good.  It can be a way for listeners to find a gem from something they are listening to and share it with the world, and I think this should be encouraged.  When I travel to professional conferences, live tweeting is common.  I've done it several times myself, although I'm typically using Google+ rather than twitter.  It's a way to highlight the best stuff, the most interesting and/or relevant content of the message, and share it with a broader audience.  You can sift through the tweets from the last couple of days and get a decent idea of how students were responding.  Some of my favorites from yesterday:

"We only have life as long as we draw it from him."
"God is not a one time drink.  We are always thirsty for him."
"Good message today Dr. Q. It gives me a lot to think about."

A Fresh Start

So I've ignored this blog for a long time.  I've also ignored the twitter account associated with it.  But I've been thinking over the past couple of months that I should get back to it.

And so I am.  Both of these are going to get a bit of a fresh cover, and I plan to start posting regularly again.  The twitter account associated with this blog is going to become my personal account, where I'll post information intended for the Olivet Nazarene University community, as well as the broader Christian community.  Of course, anyone else interested is welcome to read & follow along as desired.