get_connected
25 February 2008
giving up your voice
what does it mean in this day and age, in this country, to give up one's voice?
well, the constitution guarantees free speech and expression, whatever that means. and we are asked to express ourselves in every social and academic situation. ("how are you?" or "what do you think about...?") expression even comes down to what we wear, how we comb our hair, and who we hang out with.
we use our voices to communicate information, to give our opinion, to sing, to laugh, and to warn. some of us have been accused to giving up our voice too much, and others not enough.
our voice is enough to get people elected to public office. it's enough to have changes made to any part of this society—if the voice is strong enough.
shakespeare says: (polonius, from hamlet act I scene 3) "give every man thy ear, but few thy voice."
james says, in his letter to followers of jesus scattered around palestine:
"Post this at all the intersections, dear friends: Lead with your ears, follow up with your tongue, and let anger straggle along in the rear...Don't fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! Those who hear and don't act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like." (Jas 1:19,22-24 MSG)
giving up our voice is important, but giving up our ears is just as important, if not more so.
this was our first open mic event, and while it had limited attendance, we had a great discussion about voicing your concerns and listening. the clip was the last scenes of an episode of arrested development (titled "sobs" for "save our bluths"). it is recommended, as is the entire series, for it is very hysterical.
¶ 10:08 AM 0 Comments
well, the constitution guarantees free speech and expression, whatever that means. and we are asked to express ourselves in every social and academic situation. ("how are you?" or "what do you think about...?") expression even comes down to what we wear, how we comb our hair, and who we hang out with.
we use our voices to communicate information, to give our opinion, to sing, to laugh, and to warn. some of us have been accused to giving up our voice too much, and others not enough.
our voice is enough to get people elected to public office. it's enough to have changes made to any part of this society—if the voice is strong enough.
shakespeare says: (polonius, from hamlet act I scene 3) "give every man thy ear, but few thy voice."
james says, in his letter to followers of jesus scattered around palestine:
"Post this at all the intersections, dear friends: Lead with your ears, follow up with your tongue, and let anger straggle along in the rear...Don't fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! Those who hear and don't act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like." (Jas 1:19,22-24 MSG)
giving up our voice is important, but giving up our ears is just as important, if not more so.
this was our first open mic event, and while it had limited attendance, we had a great discussion about voicing your concerns and listening. the clip was the last scenes of an episode of arrested development (titled "sobs" for "save our bluths"). it is recommended, as is the entire series, for it is very hysterical.
¶ 10:08 AM 0 Comments
18 February 2008
giving up peace
forrest gump is a remarkable film in a few ways. it is mostly remarkable in the way it shows a range of historical events and human experience through the eyes of a man who is, shall we say, less than a genius. despite his lack of intelligence, his ability to tell the stories of his life makes him one of the most endearing characters in the cinema. tom hanks' performance as forrest earned him an oscar, and the film won five others in 1995.
perhaps this is because of the film's statements about something fundamental to human survival: peace. forrest goes to vietnam, and his description of the horrors of war (including how his best friend died and how he saved his commanding officer, lt. dan, who lost his legs) is one huge vote for world peace.
well, world peace is a huge goal. even jesus had to deal with a roman occupied judea.
there is this other kind of peace that all of us strive for. a personal peace. we war with ourselves over all sorts of things. in forrest gump, it's lt. dan warring with himself over why he was saved. he feels he should have been left in vietnam to die rather than have to spend the rest of his life without his legs. The scene that turns him around involves him and forrest shrimping. they are out on the water in a boat looking for shrimp when a hurricane hits. and while forrest is making sure the boat stays together, lt. dan is yelling at god. and laughing. telling god he can't sink this boat (though it's probably the very thing dan wants). in the next scene, we discover that they are the only boat that survived the hurricane. on calm waters, dan turns to forrest and says "i never thanked you for saving me", then shimmies out onto the edge of the boat and plunges into the water, doing a backstroke into the clearing sky. forrest narrates: "he never said it, but i think lt. dan made his peace with god that day."
we need to let go of our frustration to find peace. god can take it; he understands, and even welcomes it. throughout time god's followers have been frustrated, abused, ridiculed, persecuted, and lost. and the bible shows us time and time again when those people have made their peace with god. and god listens and understands.
perhaps when we all have made our peace with god, we will start making our peace with each other.
¶ 9:30 AM 0 Comments
perhaps this is because of the film's statements about something fundamental to human survival: peace. forrest goes to vietnam, and his description of the horrors of war (including how his best friend died and how he saved his commanding officer, lt. dan, who lost his legs) is one huge vote for world peace.
well, world peace is a huge goal. even jesus had to deal with a roman occupied judea.
there is this other kind of peace that all of us strive for. a personal peace. we war with ourselves over all sorts of things. in forrest gump, it's lt. dan warring with himself over why he was saved. he feels he should have been left in vietnam to die rather than have to spend the rest of his life without his legs. The scene that turns him around involves him and forrest shrimping. they are out on the water in a boat looking for shrimp when a hurricane hits. and while forrest is making sure the boat stays together, lt. dan is yelling at god. and laughing. telling god he can't sink this boat (though it's probably the very thing dan wants). in the next scene, we discover that they are the only boat that survived the hurricane. on calm waters, dan turns to forrest and says "i never thanked you for saving me", then shimmies out onto the edge of the boat and plunges into the water, doing a backstroke into the clearing sky. forrest narrates: "he never said it, but i think lt. dan made his peace with god that day."
we need to let go of our frustration to find peace. god can take it; he understands, and even welcomes it. throughout time god's followers have been frustrated, abused, ridiculed, persecuted, and lost. and the bible shows us time and time again when those people have made their peace with god. and god listens and understands.
perhaps when we all have made our peace with god, we will start making our peace with each other.
¶ 9:30 AM 0 Comments
10 February 2008
giving up chocolate
typically for lent, many christians give something up in their lives in order to symbolize their devotion to god and jesus. this lent, we at the get connected café have decided to give up. give up to god, that is.
ok. perhaps that's a bit corny.
today we gave up chocolate, which is often a sacrifice made during lent. really, we were lifting the sweet things in life up to god, praising him and thanking him.
also, we asked for clean hearts and minds after watching a clip from chocolat. in it, père henri (played by hugh o'conor) gives this sermon:
"Do I want to speak of the miracle of our Lord's divine transformation? Not really, no. I don't want to talk about his divinity. I'd rather talk about his humanity. I mean, you know, how he lived his life, here on Earth. His kindness, his tolerance... Listen, here's what I think. I think that we can't go around... measuring our goodness by what we don't do. By what we deny ourselves, what we resist, and who we exclude. I think... we've got to measure goodness by what we embrace, what we create... and who we include."
jesus' humanity is often overlooked. he was a real guy, just like you and me. his human example is the one we should be following, because it is the way to his divine example. there's that old saying: "to err is human; to forgive is divine." jesus showed us that for forgive can, indeed, be human.
"Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right, persevering, and steadfast spirit within me.
Cast me not away from Your presence and take not Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and uphold me with a willing spirit."
(Ps 51:10-12 AMP)
happy v-day
¶ 10:04 PM 0 Comments
ok. perhaps that's a bit corny.
today we gave up chocolate, which is often a sacrifice made during lent. really, we were lifting the sweet things in life up to god, praising him and thanking him.
also, we asked for clean hearts and minds after watching a clip from chocolat. in it, père henri (played by hugh o'conor) gives this sermon:
"Do I want to speak of the miracle of our Lord's divine transformation? Not really, no. I don't want to talk about his divinity. I'd rather talk about his humanity. I mean, you know, how he lived his life, here on Earth. His kindness, his tolerance... Listen, here's what I think. I think that we can't go around... measuring our goodness by what we don't do. By what we deny ourselves, what we resist, and who we exclude. I think... we've got to measure goodness by what we embrace, what we create... and who we include."
jesus' humanity is often overlooked. he was a real guy, just like you and me. his human example is the one we should be following, because it is the way to his divine example. there's that old saying: "to err is human; to forgive is divine." jesus showed us that for forgive can, indeed, be human.
"Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right, persevering, and steadfast spirit within me.
Cast me not away from Your presence and take not Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and uphold me with a willing spirit."
(Ps 51:10-12 AMP)
happy v-day
¶ 10:04 PM 0 Comments
04 February 2008
fourth and goal
"I'm not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don't get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I've got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I'm off and running, and I'm not turning back." (Phil 3:12-14 MSG)
the goal may be a far away thing to reach, all the way down on the other end of the field. or maybe the goal is so close you can almost touch it. either way, it's sometimes hard to make the goal all by yourself. not with all those other guys on defense. not with all those other guys barrelling down on you, taunting you, waiting for you to drop the ball.
it's a good thing you're on a team. it's at the moment where it matters the most that having good relationships with others really comes into play. if you're on a team of strangers, it's much harder to play the game than if you're on a team of buddies. and it's much harder still to play on a team of enemies.
players who cultivate a good, strong relationship with each other are far more likely to succeed than the team of strangers, enemies, or egotists. the goal is only as close as the players reaching for it.
watch jerry maguire to see how a strong relationship can make all the difference.
¶ 11:47 AM 0 Comments
the goal may be a far away thing to reach, all the way down on the other end of the field. or maybe the goal is so close you can almost touch it. either way, it's sometimes hard to make the goal all by yourself. not with all those other guys on defense. not with all those other guys barrelling down on you, taunting you, waiting for you to drop the ball.
it's a good thing you're on a team. it's at the moment where it matters the most that having good relationships with others really comes into play. if you're on a team of strangers, it's much harder to play the game than if you're on a team of buddies. and it's much harder still to play on a team of enemies.
players who cultivate a good, strong relationship with each other are far more likely to succeed than the team of strangers, enemies, or egotists. the goal is only as close as the players reaching for it.
watch jerry maguire to see how a strong relationship can make all the difference.
¶ 11:47 AM 0 Comments
