There but for the grace of God go I...

http://asbojesus.wordpress.com/2009/11/30/818/

Little steps, big steps? (from Ukraine blog)

Like so many other recent college grads, I'm trying to figure out what to do with my life (or rather, the life God's given me) and where to go.

The following is an excerpt from a Relevant magazine article.

Litton believes that what sets Christian radicals apart from the world is the commitment to take the teachings of Jesus seriously and to be known by humility and love. “I know a lot of people focus on the big steps—should I leave my job, should I move to Africa, what can I do? And we should be open to those things, but they can become a distraction because, really, what God is calling us to every day is to radically obey Him,” he says. “Radical followers of Christ, their chief characteristic will be love.”

Radical obedience to Christ. That is my calling. My primary calling. No matter where in the world I am. Even if it's difficult for me. Even if I have to sacrifice something of great value. Even when it won't please other people.

What am I to obey? Those "little" commands, that seem the most basic but yet are the most complex. Those "little" commands, that keep at the back of my mind. Those "little" commands that will show our faithfulness in small matters.

Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and muscle and intelligence—and love your neighbor as well as you do yourself (MSG).

Do I truly throw that much--ALL--of myself into loving God all the time?

Am I seeking ONLY to please God--and not other people?

Have I given ALL of me--my past, present, and future--to the unchanging and unfailing God who can use the broken me for His sacred purposes?

Recent thoughts

I've been lackadaisical (isn't that a fun word? it makes me think of daisies) about updating this blog, for various reasons, but more updates can be found at http://ukrainejh.blogspot.com.

I wanted to share some brief updates, and also this music video I've recently discovered, through Matthew Paul Turner.

Updates:

1. I live in Kiev, Ukraine, and teach math at KCA

2. I have 3 classes of great students! 6th grade, geometry, and algebra 2

3. I don't really speak Russian.

4. Ukraine shut down schools/universities for 3 weeks due to the swine flu epidemic

5. We have improvised at KCA so that the students can still have classes. They actually MISS school! Isn't that great?

6. Recently I've had a lot more time to relax, read, catch up on sleep, and do some more baking.

7. Today I made 2 loaves of zucchini bread.

8. I've finished reading Green by Ted Dekker. :)

9. I went to a ceilidh (Scottish dance) the other night...here in Ukraine.

10. This numbering is getting ridiculous.

11. In the past few months, I have gotten "lost" multiple times, understood very little of what people say to me (but generally figure it out/pretend like I do)...

12. I've done more cooking for myself than I ever have, and it's worked out fairly well.

13. Yesterday was Friday the 13th. I thought I'd make that the 13th update. :)

14. I think that's all for right now.

15. I have some other entries that I want to ponder and then write.

Enjoy this music video!

More Quizzing Quotes

Quotes mostly unattributed; please claim your words.

2008-2009
"What's the capital of Boston?"

"No, I'm going to sit and watch you squirm"

Q: "Whose name was Mary?"
correct answer: The virgin
Cindi: Mary!

"Who is the new host of the Drew Carey?"

Matt, about Jen: "She spoke whale!!!" (yawning while reading the question)
Matt, also about Jen: "ooo, look at me, I'm trying to be French!"
Someone's answer to a question: "The baby. John. John the baby."

Years past:
me, probably: "Somebody's not suffering from osteoporosis tonight!"
Becky: "Pluto is my favorite planet in the whole world!"
Shea: "That came out of left field and landed in the end zone."
Lucas about the name Dorcas: "That's such a terrible name! She probably got made fun of in middle school!"
Anne L (who was about 6 at the time): "You won't get to eat dinner or go to sleep if you don't get up!"

Sacred Space, 4/21

"What is present to me is what has a hold on my becoming. I reflect on the presence of God always there in love, amidst the many things that have a hold on me. I pause and pray that I may let God affect my becoming in this precise moment."

My happiness does not come by filling my life with other things. They are all meaningless compared to my identity found in Christ.

Following God is not always just about following Him to a particular geographical location, but about becoming who He wants you to be. The best child of God.

Let God's presence shape me. Not my friends, not my music or books, not my roles in various groups, but God alone. I need to make time for God to allow Him to shape me and be more of an influence in my life than other things/people.

Reading List, Movie List--Conclusion

Well, folks, the summer is just about over, and here's how I did for my reading list:

Books Completed (Nonfiction)

*Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time

*Churched, Matthew Paul Turner

*Simply Christian, NT Wright

*They NEVER Stopped Teaching!

*All 6 Nazarene missions reading books (they are rather short and easy to read)

(Fiction)
*Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
*The Last Summer (of You and Me), Ann Brashares
*Wuthering Heights
*Life of Pi, Yann Martel
*The Little Prince, Antoine De Saint Exupery

*The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini
*A Thousand Splendid Suns, Khaled Hosseini

Books In Progress

a book by Jodi Picoult that I can't remember right now
God.Com, James Alexander Langteaux (haven't read this in years)

When I go to Ukraine, I am taking a small handful of books with me, enough to last me until I can come home for Christmas and swap them for others. These books include:

A Perfect Life, by Bo Cassell (modern version of Wesley's A Plain Account of Christian Perfection)
Global Christianity, Bo Cassell
Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy

Also, I will probably borrow books from the missionaries' libraries, relating to theology, missions, and/or Ukraine.

Reading List, Movie List

"*" denotes I have finished reading the book or have watched the movie.

MY 2009 READING LIST
The Master and Margarita, Mikhail Bulgakov
Russka, Edward Rutherford
Salvation on the Small Screen: 24 Hours of Christian TV, Nadia Bolz-Weber
Myspace to Sacred Space: God for a New Generation, Piatt
*Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson
The Coffeehouse Gospel: Sharing Your Faith in Everyday Conversation, Matthew Paul Turner
Borderland: A Journey through the History of Ukraine, Anna Reid
*Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
The Princess Bride (unabridged edition)
Looking Backward from 2000 to 1887, Edward Bellamy
*The Last Summer (of You and Me), Ann Brashares
My Darling Elia by Eugenie Melnyk
*Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte
Memoirs of a Geisha, Arthur Golden
*Life of Pi, Yann Martel
*The Little Prince, Antoine De Saint Exupery
Les Miserables, Victor Hugo
a book of the letters between John and Abigail Adams
*My Bengal of Gold (Nazarene Missions reading book)
*From Main Street to Managua: Stories of Volunteer Missionaries (Nazarene missions reading book)
*Why This Road? The Carolyn Myatt Story (NMI reading)
*Churched, Matthew Paul Turner

*Strangers No More (NMI reading book)

*Under the Ombu Tree (NMI reading book)
*Simply Christian, NT Wright

Everything is Illuminated

*Smoke that Thunders (NMI reading book)

Books I Own
*The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini
*A Thousand Splendid Suns, Khaled Hosseini
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
Relational Holiness, Oord/Lodahl
A Biblical Case for an Old Earth,
What is a Nazarene?: Understanding Our Place in the Religious Community, Tracy Ingersol
A Perfect Life, by Bo Cassell (modern version of Wesley's A Plain Account of Christian Perfection)
*Global Christianity, Bo Cassell
God.Com, James Alexander Langteaux (haven't read this in years)
*They NEVER Stopped Teaching!
The Music of His Promises, Elisabeth Elliot
Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy

Movies to Watch
*Twilight
*Push
Get Smart
Charlie Bartlett
*Lars and the Real Girl
*Penelope
*Blindness
*The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
*The Dark Knight
Splendor in the Grass
*Atonement
*He's Just Not That Into You
Adam
The Class (French film)
*Meet Me in St. Louis

*Julie and Julia

If you own any of these and would be willing to loan them to me, let me know! :)

I am hoping that throughout the summer, I will have time to read these from the library. With all the driving I will be doing, I should see if I can find some of them on audio CD or as a podcast. As far as most books (especially easy reads), I'm likely to read it once and not very often after that -- hence, I try to find it at the library or at a discount price.

Also, in a previous entry, I supposed that I would have more time to read "fun" books (aka not text books), but alas, that has not been the case.

Thanks to Cheap Ways to..., I have discovered the website called Paperback Swap. It is a book exchange network, where you earn credits by mailing your own books to others. I'm not sure if I have at least 10 I'm willing to part with, so this may have to wait till I am home and can do an inventory of all my books. You can also swap CD's and DVD's for additional credits.

spiritual gifts

Originally posted in 2006, here are some updates...

Within the past "three" years (06, 05, 04), I've taken spiritual gifts survey things....We took one on Sunday and I thought I would dig out my others. Of course, this is just three years in a row, so I'm not sure they're going to show any major switches.

July 2004:
1. Hospitality, Missionary
2. Helps, Service, Knowledge

August 2005:
1. Missionary
2. Helps
3. Service

June 2006: (different test)
1. Encouragement, Service
2. Knowledge
3. Helps

Hmm so the constants have been:
3 out of 3: Helps, Service
2 of 3: Knowledge, Missionary
1 of 3: Encouragement, Hospitality

Nothing about teaching on there whatsoever. Then again, I think it's about teaching the Bible, not other stuff.

In 2009:

1. Helps

2. Pastor/Shepherd

3. Knowledge

4. Apostleship

Birthday update

So, today is my 22nd birthday! This is the first birthday since 19 that I've been in Maryland for some part of the time...for #20, I was in El Paso, and for #21, I was in Ukraine (I've celebrated #17 and #18 in Pennsylvania--the rest were at home in MD).

The past couple days I was with my mom and brother in Troy, NY for his college orientation. I mostly wandered around the campus (and downtown a bit), scoping it out and taking photos. I went to a few of the parent/family sessions, but I've already heard similar spiels from my own college search. It's a great school for engineering/science-type majors, and Adam's going to be studying aeronautical/mechanical engineering. We also met his roommate (for all of about 5 minutes) and got to see the room where he'll live this year. Sadly, I won't be back up to NY for move-in, as I will already be in Ukraine.

The highlights of my birthday were: getting a Snuggie from Adam--yes, one of those blankets with sleeves, advertised on infomercials (he insists that I have to take it to Ukraine)--getting free ice cream at the Carvel shop on the NY State Thruway, eating Chili's (yum yum), and talking to friends. :)

Last month I took the Math Content Knowledge and Math Pedagogy PRAXIS II exams for MD state teacher certification, and I got my results this week -- by MD standards, I passed both of them!!!!

Therefore, at this point in time, I can now apply for certification to teach secondary math in the following states: Colorado, Delaware, Maryland, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Vermont (among others). Other states require additional PRAXIS tests, or have specific requirements (but I may be able to use what I have to get credentials in their state). However, I'm going to wait till I return from Ukraine (whenever that may be), and until I figure out where I will live.

A month from today I will be arriving in Kiev, Ukraine. I still need to pack, and buy some stuff, and do some more preparation for teaching. I also have 3 weeks remaining of working--babysitting a 9 year old girl. That leaves me time in the evenings to run errands and otherwise prepare. For more specific updates on my Ukraine preparation, visit ukrainejh.blogspot.com

I think that's about all for now...I should tidy my room some and prepare for traveling this weekend. On Saturday I am going sailing with my dad and stepmom, and in the evening I'm going to a wedding. After that, I'm speaking at a church, then returning to my dad's house. Whew.

Another ethical justification for not drinking alcohol?

I have a theory that possibly could be used as an ethical justification for not drinking alcohol. But first, some background.

In Living Issues, we learned the approximate amounts of grain it takes to feed certain animals for human consumption. In order to obtain one pound of beef, it takes 15 pounds of feed. For one pound of pork meat, it takes 6 pounds of grain. It takes 5 pounds of feed in order to reap one poind of chicken.

(since I don't have my notebook with me, I found the numbers here)

As you can see, this is not an efficient system, as the energy that is taken from the food is used for more than just muscle development and “beefing up” (so to speak) for the market. If those pounds of grain were redistributed to those in need, rather than used for feeding cattle, a lot fewer people would go hungry and/or die of starvation each and every day. By not eating meat, vegetarians are withdrawing their involvement in this system, even if they may not make a difference as a single individual. (If I were to become a vegetarian, this would be one of my reasons.)

Now, as I understand it, wine is made from fermented grapes, and beer is made from fermented grain (not sure what kind). Could the same reasoning as above be used to decrease the consumption of alcohol? The grain that is being left to ferment could certainly be made into bread for the hungry!

There are probably holes in my theory, two being that many churches use wine for Communion, and that if the grain is going to ferment, it might as well be used for beer. True. However, when so many experience the adverse effects of alcoholism, when so many could use that grain to fill their bellies rather than get a beer belly, why is drinking beer/wine/alcohol for pleasure seen as an option? (Besides that, alcoholic drinks are so expensive—at least what I’ve seen!)

So, go for some Fair Trade coffee or tea or hot chocolate or a smoothie at your local coffeeshop, rather than a drink out on the town, and help break cycles of addiction, poverty, and destruction.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10)