Heaven and Hell

Do you believe in Heaven and Hell?

Is heaven paved with gold or like earth, without tears? Or is it both? I haven't ever thought much about heaven and hell other than I hope to get to heaven someday. But I'd like to know what other people expect, think, fear. So if you could take a few minutes to tell me what you believe, it doesn't have to be deep. It doesn't have to have a bibliography. I don't care how zany it seems; I just want to know if people believe and what those beliefs are.

A King & a Kingdom

Who's your brother? Who's your sister? You just walked passed him. I think you missed her. As we're all migrating to the place where our father lives, 'cause we married in to a family of immigrants
My first allegiance is not to a flag, a country, or a man. My first allegiance is not to democracy or blood. It's to a king & a kingdom.
There are two great lies that I've heard: the day you eat of the fruit of that tree, you will not surely die and that Jesus Christ was a white, middle-class republican and if you wanna be saved you have to learn to be like Him.
My first allegiance is not to a flag, a country, or a man. My first allegiance is not to democracy or blood. It's to a king & a kingdom.
But nothing unifies like a common enemyand we've got one, sure as hell but he may be living in your house. He may be raising up your kids. He may be sleeping with your wife. Oh no, he may not look like you think.

- Derek Webb

Any thoughts? Comments? Don't kill the blog!!!!

Where is the Line Again?

So I found this song on iTunes recently and I like it a lot, for obvious reasons and just cuz I like the Dresden Dolls.

bad habit

biting keeps your words at bay

tending to the sores that stay

happiness is just a gash away

when i open a familiar scar

pain goes shooting like a star

comfort hasn't failed to follow so far...

and you might say it's self-indulgent

you might say its self-destructive

but, you see, it's more productive

than if i were to be healthy

& pens and penknives take the blame

crane my neck & scratch my name

but the ugly marks

are worth the momentary gain...

when i jab a sharpened object in

choirs of angels seem to sing

hymns of hate in memorandum

and you might say it's self-indulgent

and you might say it's self-destructive

but, you see, it's more productive

than if i were to be happy

and sappy songs about sex and cheating

bland accounts of two lovers meeting

make me want to give mankind a beating

and you might say it's self-destructive

but, you see, i'd kick the bucket

sixty times before i'd kick the habit

and as the skin rips off i cherish the revolting thought

that even if i quit

there's not a chance in hell i'd stop

and anyone can see the signs

mittens in the summertime

thank you for your pity, you are too kind

and you might say its self-inflicted but you see that's contradictive

why on earth would anyone practice self destruction?

and pain opinions are sitcom feeding

they dont know that their minds are teething

makes me want to give mankind a beating

i'm tried bandages and sinking

i've tried gloves and even thinking

i've tried vaseline

i've tried everything

and no-one cares if your back is bleeding

they're concerned with their hair receding

looking back it was all maltreating

every thought that occurred misleading
makes me want to give myself a beating....

My question is, should I listen to songs like this? Should I read books like Sharp Objects (very good, btw)? Or should I avoid any mention of something that is very tempting? Should we expose ourselves to a certain level of temptation in order to build up an immunity, or is that just asking how close we can get to the line before God gets mad?

Thought from a land far, far away (England)

So Janine Morgan, on of our professors here, has been introducing an idea that has really stuck with me. The existential void. That space that is empty in life. The time between class and finding someone to eat with. The blank pause which hovers in the air between the end of work and going to sleep. The moments you feel alone. Don't you feel it? What are we doing then? Are we filling it with filling-less things? Have you ever thought of facebook and email, t.v. and food as not just wastes of time, but ways of avoiding the feeling of emptiness in this 'void'? That the feeling of desperation to find someone to be with, something to do, is trying to fill up the space? Does anyone else feel this? Maybe this is nothing new to anyone else reading this, but I'd never really been aware of it quite so specifically. Everytime I am in-between activities, I am now aware of the void; it has been named. Janine was prompting us to fill the void with what truely fills. What would happen if everytime we bump into the void we met with God? Hmm...

Is Honesty Always the Best Policy?

Okay, so this isn't based on anything in particular. Seriously. I tend to evade questions that I don't want to answer. I don't tend to lie. But that's totally irrelevant.
The point is, is there a good time to lie? I mean, if your life's in danger, that would seem like a good time to lie. But is it?
Is it okay to lie when telling the truth is going to hurt someone's feelings?
Is there such a thing as a "white lie," or is it al the same?
If it is okay to tell a lie, what are the conditions?
Not terribly practical for any immediate problem, but it is an important question. Or rather, series of questions. And, mainly, I don't want Laura to hurt me. :)

bob's your uncle (and mine, too!)

I just wanted to let you all know that Melanie and I are coming up with a new code. We decided that sometimes, being girls, we get in moods where we don't really want to talk to anyone. We'd rather they just know what we're thinking or know what we're saying while we are using the smallest number of words possible. And so... drum roll, please... a new code is emerging from the Isle of Great Britain! Bob's Your Uncle Code!!! This, of course, is working title. For those of you who are unaware, in Great Britain 'Bob's your uncle' is an interjection used to describe, sort of, how easy something is. For instance, that snazzy guy on the infomercial might say, "And now when you order this pair of steak knives we'll give you this hob and grill blooming free! A £35 value, absolutely blooming free! That's right... Bob's your uncle!"

Now some of you are aware of a previous key. This "Boyspeak Key," if you will, has followed me to England and is now posted on our lovely bulletin board. This, along with our slight frustrations with one another, has inspired The Bob's Your Uncle Code. Bob's Your Uncle, though, uses a combination of letters and numbers for initial remarks and a word and number as a response. I just thought you all should know. I'll leave you with a few examples. Enjoy.

Initial Remarks:
A5 What you're doing is slightly annoying just now... Shh!
B5 Do you want to get out of bed and turn off the alarm?
C5 I'm scratching my butt at you. : ) : )
[This one is for all of you in the pod. If you're not in the pod, don't think less of us(And we are, just so you know...)!]
D5 I hate how my belly fat hangs over my pants.
E5 It's cold; plug in the heater. (Useful in our drafty top floor room)
F5 What you're doing right now makes me feel a little sad.
G5 I feel like you don't like me.
H5 What you're doing makes me smile (precursor to C5... see above).
I5 Can I use this book?
J5 Do you need that light on? (This means... Turn It Off!)
K5 How long have your dishes been there? Eww.
L5 Laura is amazing.
M5 Melanie is amazing.

We thought the last two worked out really well, so we stopped there for now...

Response:
Bob1 Yes
Bob2 Heck Yes
Bob3 No
Bob4 Prolly not
Bob5 Terribly sorry, old chap
Bob6 True that!
Bob7 Drats.
Bob8 Huzzah
Bob9 Hot dog!
Bob10 Good grief.

I know this is all very deep, and you may feel too intimidated to comment. Please, this is to be (as Mimi Bernard likes to say) a Low Threat zone. Hopefully this will stimulate High Risk comments and questions. This is a great set up for learning! : ) Let us know what you think or if you have suggestions. I'm kind of thinking of threatening people on Facebook... WATCH OUT! : )

in the footsteps of... a prominent british writer and theologian

It's official. Melanie and I have now launched into an amazing world of patrons. Patrons of a pub I've wanted to visit for as long as a I can recall (at least since I knew what a pub was). Our first supper in Oxford was just consumed in the very same establishment where the Inklings gathered not so long ago. I was thinking about C.S. Lewis being in the very same room I was standing in, and I realized it really wasn't that long ago that he and his colleagues were here. Strange.

We've also done some other fun things. A walk around University Parks. A stop on the Rainbow Bridge. On to the City Centre. Grocery shopping. I got some really great pineapple juice, by the way.

Also a highlight... Melanie already tried to burn down our room. We were sitting in our room trying to get our Internet connections up and running. Something started to smell like burning plastic! We thought. We thought. Thought some more. "Melanie," I said, "Is that your computer?" Indeed it was. She'll have to elaborate if she so chooses. It was pretty entertaining. We had to open the window for a bit.

Just wanted to give you an update. Someone should post something real on the blog so we can discuss! : ) Peace, friends.

I Hate to Hog the Spotlight....

Okay guys, does everyone know what time it is?
Come on. We need to pick a new book for this semester. Comments? Suggestions? I've been looking and haven't fallen in love with anything yet. But we've got like 2 weeks until school starts and we need to have something picked by then. Let's start talking about this kids...

I can't stand it anymore!!

We must either hold a funeral for the blog,and graciously let it go to the happy hunting grounds, or it must be given new life. But no more of this lifeless existence. Effervescence my friends! Laura, I, and now Donald (for significantly longer than Laura and I) will be away from all you lovely people for several months, and need our link to the circle we left behind, intellectual conversation with the brilliant geniuses (is that redundant or what) in Abilene. So, since it would be rather hypocritical of me to simply bemoan the state of the blog without doing anything about it, I will attempt to pose a thoughtworthy, well, thought. Ahem...

What do you all think of the concept of identity? Do you ever think to yourself, what if I'm really not the person that I fancy myself being? You'd like to think of yourself as philosophical, analytical, creative, artsy, whatever, fill in the blank, but then you look at yourself and wonder in it's just sort of an act or your forcing something that isn't really there. Do other people see the 'real' us, or do they see what we want to be seen. Thoughts, comments, reprimands, rebuttals?

return of the native

hey, sorry, i don't really have a way of communicating with most of y'all back home, so i figured i would take advantage of this system here. forgive me, it's not really a post. more like an invitation.
mis padres are having a party (not for me, it's a church party), and i've been told that i can invite all my friends who i haven't seen in nearly four months now. so if you're still in town on friday night, you're welcome. in fact, your company is greatly desired. i don't know details, but if anyone is interested i'll supply those. :) good luck on finals, everyone.

Birthday Serenade

Hint: Name the pictures as you go through. I'll comment in a few days and tell you the lyrics. :)

Repairing Past Damage

So I've been thinking a lot about how the world views Christianity. I really want to be able to reach out to the people around me and share my faith with them, but I know that Christianity has a bad rep, and for good reasons. Past events (especially the Crusades and the corruption of the Church during the Renaissance) are still remembered around the world. Throughout history, "Christians" have persecuted Jews, Muslims, and various other religious groups in the name of God. More recently, right-wing conservative "Christians" have been condemning everyone around them. I actually know of churches that teach that if you don't go to their denomination, or worse yet, their particular congregation, then you are going to hell. And of course, there is always the big scandal over Catholic bishops that occured recently. The truth is, the world tends to focus on the negative, and they have a lot to choose from here.
Although I can't condemn others (because there is no way for me to truly see their hearts), I do want to help people see that Christianity isn't about hatred; it's about love. I want to show the world God's love, and that God didn't call people to persecute others but to minister to them. I want to help people physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I want to be accepting of others and show that I am willing to listen and learn. On the other hand, I can't just accept everything as true. As a Christian, there are certain beliefs that I have to stand by. There are certain thigs that I have to say are absolutes, and I have to believe in them with my whole heart. If I could believe strongly OR be accepting, my task would be easy, but I'm asked to do both. I have no idea where that line is. So I guess my question is, how do you do that? How do you compassionately stand for something? How do you make sure your words and actions remain consistent with your beliefs without unnecessarily offending people? When is it okay to offend people?

to go or stay. to dream of then or live now.

Let's start with some things we know. I'm attending a Christian University. I am majoring in graphic design. The mission of my university is ‘To educate students for Christian leadership service throughout the world.’ So I wonder, how do those things match up? When does the formal education stop and the leadership and service begin? I have a couple of roommates, whom I admire greatly, seriously and practically discussing just that. How much education does it take to serve and lead? Sure, there are a lot of people hurting in Abilene. We should help them. There are thousands of people in our country in desperate need. We should help them. There are tons of people to help them. What about the thousands of children in Liberia living on the streets without parents or even the shelter of orphanages? What's stopping us from going there? How much education is needed to love? How much knowledge is needed before our feet hit the ground running? How far will we go to trust? How far do we need to go to trust?
I hear my roommates talk about getting to places of great need as soon as arrangements can be made, and I want to be at that point with them. I want to take nothing but what I carry in my heart and head and go.

Then I get a call from a sister. My sister calls me, and I can tell, even over the phone, that she's broken-hearted and pulling her ever amazing trick of hiding it. I want to take nothing except what fits in my heart and head and get out of here... again. It becomes difficult to pin down just which place needs more help.

It seems this whole semester has been me struggling with wanting to be some place other than the place I am in. What I've been deciding is... I'm in a place. Live here! Regardless of views of God's will and whether He or I have landed me here, I am here. I'm going to school. I'm part of this community. So I need to be living in it and being thankful with every day.

Something's still bothering me, though. What about being called to other places? Do I so avoid the call of God that I'm rationalizing too much? I listen to my pod-mates, and I feel like a coward. I'm failing to see how my graphic design degree is of vital importance to the kingdom. Biology/Biochemistry majors acquire medical knowledge and go out to help people. Bible majors acquire knowledge to have better insight into people’s situations and such. Graphic designers... well they... hmmm... oh yeah… aaahh… get people's attention? What?! How sad. What a pitiful calling if that's all there is to it. So finally, an outright question... Do you all ever wonder about this stuff? Do you ever feel like you're rationalizing your way around the call of God? Have you (hopefully) come upon a God-formed conclusion? Pray tell... : )

That was lengthy a little.

swine of the blog

It stikes me that our blog is kind of sad. I think this might have two main reasons. One: We've talked about everything! Now, this is obviously not true. There are tons of things we haven't talked about, but we've covered a lot of things in the past year or so. I know we all still have things we wonder about or are passionate about or we want opinions on. This is me encouraging you all to blog about them (before I do something crazy like blog about dating and purity! : ) Noooooo! ) Two: The majority of us live in a pod together. We hear each other's opinions every Friday or, for that matter, anytime we ask (and sometimes when we don't). So this is me encouraging those of you who don't live in the pod (coughkaylacoughcough) to not feel like blog hogs! Please, blog more than once in a row if you're so inclined. Someone will tell you if you're taking over the blog. I can even threaten people so they will comment if you want me to do so. : ) Postscript... Still working on the pictures.

thoughts from exile

One of the classes that I'm taking in this inspiring setting is Christain Worship. I just signed up for it because it was upper division bible credit, and I might as well take something. But Janine Morgan, the professor, is a pushy person; I think she's gonna make me stretch or something tragic.
All that to preface a question. How do you balance awe and reverance of God with seeking an intimate relationship with him? I keep thinking of Esther. She couldn't even approach her husband without fearing for her life. All she had going for her was beauty and sex appeal. Are we supposed to live in fear and trembling before the Omnipotent One or with delight at the thought of the Bridegroom coming for us? How does this effect our worship? Can there be a balance?

oxfordian life

hey, i don't want to cut off the wit started by DPS, but i thought i'd let everyone know that i created a blog to report my traveling and life overseas in case anyone is interested. theramblingrambler.blogspot.com i miss y'all guys.

Okay, seriously now...

So, I think it has now been proven that it is summer and our brains are protesting all serious thought. However, as we only have a week or so left before we must jump into full brain-power mode, perhaps we should at least put our big toe in the water (unless you chose to cut that one off). So here's a question. Someone at my grandparents church used the term "quasi-Church of Christ". Now I have no idea what exactly he meant because the conversation didn't really go on or have to do with that, but anyway, I immediately start to get defensive and ready to argue (in my head of course) Judgement and division and such in the church are a problem. Given. A lot of times when I encounter a person that I feel is being very close-minded and exclusive as far as church things go, I know that my personal reaction is to get kinda upset and feel like they are wrong. But...my judgement of what I perceive as judging could be just as equally wrong. So how do you go about differences of opinion and interpretation? And I must add just to be honest here, that I often don't really have a founded opinion on things, I simply argue the opposite of what people say when they are saying that only one thing is right. (i.e. instrumental music, expression in worship, etc.) Just thought this would be interesting to get everyone's thoughts on (yes i ended my post with a prepostion).

Total Rip-off of Mel's Post

Okay, so actually, this isn't a total rip-off. It's actually much less fun. But yeah, I just thought it would be interesting to know what annoys &/or makes you guys mad. Beyond the obvious curiousity, I though it would be nice to know this sort of thing before we were actually living together (so that some unnecessary arguments can be avoided). And for those of you that won't be pod-ites, I'm also interested in your response just because I'm horribly nosy.

1)People being condescending makes me mad.
2)Annoying/sleazy customers hitting on me at work makes me mad and annoys me.
3)People tailgating me annoys me (which is bad because I totally tailgate people too), and...
4)people cutting me off annoys me (I don't really do that though).
5)Having no time by myself makes me really cranky (and by that I mean somewhat evil), but I'm not usually the first to notice.
6)People being inconsiderate of other people's time annoys me and can make me mad if it happens a lot.

Umm. I'm out for the moment. So let me know your personal pet-peeves.

So, I have no life. And the last post seems to have reached it's pinnacle of comments, so I deemed it time for a new topic of discussion. This will be light hearted and smiley, but what makes each of you happy? What makes you tick? (insert deep drawl in this comment for those movie nighters amongst you) Little things or big things, we can get to know a lil more about each other.

a post entitled... how dumb am i. (a statement, not a question so don't try just looking at the title and telling me how dumb I really am because that

would be mean). That's the end of the title that wouldn't fit in the title section... and I'm mostly joking.

So I'm having this ‘thought/small revelation’ right now. It kinda reminds me of a previous post by Marcella about sackcloth and ashes... so I realized today how dumb I am. I do horrible things continually. Take tonight for instance. I just had a really great Bible study with some younger girls from my church and then practically right afterward (we hadn't even left the room) my cousin, who was also there, and I started arguing about something pointless that wasn't even worth the effort and in fact was just a big misunderstanding (which we worked out after we chilled, by the way). At least that one had a redeeming quality. I've done worse things recently that haven't had redeeming qualities so much... like call someone OCD (rudely) when I could have figured on them being embarrassed and upset because of who we were around. Or... get upset and defensive when a friend stomps on my art piece that I had even said wasn't that great. : ) There are more where this came from, and I wish I had time to list them all because I think I need to dwell on them a little more than I often do. But for now... on to the point.

I'm not saying any of this stuff so people can come back with well-intended comments that tell me that it's OK that I mess up, or that I'm not really a horrible person. I'm also not just pointing out that I mess up and feel bad and beat myself up mentally. I'm posting this because I was amazed again tonight how God really doesn't need me. He's perfect without my help (surprising since I generally think few beings are. Gah!). In fact, sometimes I think he works better 'on the fly' with my mistakes because when I mess up it’s the only time he seems to get through with the message... 'Laura, you're not self-sufficient or even just sufficient most of the time!' All I do is mess it up. He's the one doing things correctly. Nice.

I think all I need now is to have this kind of experience at least once a week so maybe I'll finally get what Paul was saying... I like it when stuff really sinks in like this and you get it even if it's just for a second. Say it with me now... 'It's not about myself.' Aaaaahhh. Didn’t that feel nice? I'd also like to say ignore Humanism… and… this is our 51st post. Lovely job, Gang.