Academy Awards

So the Oscars are upon us. There's no clear cut favorite like there was last year with LOTR:ROTK and Peter Jackson. This is actually the closest race there has been in a few years. So, here are my picks for the only categories that really interest me:
Best Picture: Having not seen Million Dollar Baby yet sorta limits my opinion on the film. But I believe its gonna take it despite recent controversy. Being released this late in the season allows it to be fresh in everyone's mind. Plus, by being the only one of the top 3 that isn't a biopic, it benefits from being different from Ray and the Aviator. I really like the Aviator , but I felt that it was a bit anticlimatic and just sorta faded towards the end.
Best Actor: I will be greatly surprised if Jamie Foxx doesn't win this. I know him and Leo both took home Globes, so its gonna be neck and neck . I'm not the biggest fan of Leo, but I think his work here is much better than in Gangs or even Catch Me. However, I gotta think Foxx's degree of difficulty with acting, singing, and playing will give him the edge here. In addition, there might be residual effects from his supporting role in Collateral that could be in his favor if some people were on the fence.
Best Director: I think Scorsese will get this one. Hopefully, I'm wrong in the Best Picture category because Best Director usually accompanies Best Picture. I have this thing against any Eastwood film after Unforgiven. Scorsese should get a sympathy vote as well based on his past Oscar experience.
Who I can't wait to see is Chris Rock. He's been saying he has some special stuff in store for the show so I'm hoping he won't disappoint.

house concerts

My friends and I are in the process of gathering info on house concerts in an attempt to start hosting one ourselves. There aren't too many in this area so any help or info would greatly assist us. Local house venues, actual house concert artists, anyone who is hosting one now...things like that would put us on the right track.

Ship of relations

As I grow older, I really begin to see that quantity of friendships doesn't necessarily equate to quality of relationships. In this post-college/pre-career phase, I'm convinced that being personal is far more important than being popular...and not only important to me but significant to the other person as well. Now, maybe this might seem obvious to others but its only been on my radar in the last year or two. Maybe its out of selfishness, but I like to invest the majority of my time and energy into developing existing relationships instead of making new ones. Not that I want to totally disregard any new people I meet or stop meeting folks altogether...but I've felt that in the past, I've allowed the desire to know lots of people to inferfere with getting to know some people better. I can picture right now a couple of friendships that have withered because of lack of nourishment and time and contact. Unfortunately, I don't know what I can do to fix those or even if they're fixable...but I would like to preclude it from happening again. I admit this might not be the best way to go about it but, at least, its a start. I was with some good people the other day hanging out and would hate myself if I caused any friendships in that room to wilter away.

How would I like to describe my faith? What quality should be the foundation of a Christ-centered community? What element in a person would draw others to them? I've been thinking of what my generation desires most from the church, most from "Christians", most from people...I believe the at the heart of it all is authenticity. Love, compassion, truth...all these necessities come about from the one source of true relationships: being genuine. Not being perfect or being right but being honest with who you are...a friend of mine was wondering if everything can be reduced to the search of "who am I?". I think it begins there...finding out who we are in Christ/ what our needs are socially, personally, emotionally, intimately, spiritually, logically, etc./ discovering what drives us and what bogs us down...and in the process of figuring ourselves out, to be open and honest with people we love...to allow them to be part of the journey...to allow God to mold and guide through out this process.
I think the tough part with being authentic is being open which means being vulnerable. If I can just grow and discover behind closed doors so that my faults and mistakes can't be seen, that would be ideal. And there are times I try to operate like that and end up not really living. Life isn't meant to be an isolated experiment of self-discovery but an endeavor of trust and dependence and community.
Being authentic will be far more impactful than any cleverly crafted campaign or catchy program or popular church model or desire to be culturally relevant...I can picture people in my life who have exemplified this for me and the effect has been ginormous...far more reaching and long lasting than any message or sermon can ever be.
Do I want to be known as a loving person? Absolutely. Would I like people to say that I'm kind and considerate? Definitely. But if the thread of authenticity can be inter-woven through out the fabric of my life, then I can truly be that light...that voice...that difference...

Church has been a grind as of late...to be more precise, church leadership has been a grind as of late. Now, I know the current model of leadership is a widely debated issue, and I don't have the energy to get into that right now( or ever if I can help it). But it sucks to have to deal with things that don't relate to sharing Christ with people. For example, I'm in high school ministry for the purpose of loving the students who walk thru that doorway the way Christ does, to manifest that love in a way they can relate to and experience as well, to be a trustworthy source of wisdom and compassion. I'm here, first and foremost, to serve Christ and not WGBC.
Am I to use my gifts and talents for the good of the church? Absolutely. Am I called to be part of the body? Absolutely. But where do I draw the line between church and Christ?
And when I say church I refer to the institution. And maybe thats where the difficulty arises...I see church as people, as community, as followers on a journey...but when church is being presented, the majority of things I hear deal with programs, growth opportunities, degrees of participation...how I see church and what church looks to me differ considerably.
I'm attending another meeting tonight about a new church "campaign" but a lot of underlining issues are rooted in church leadership and the way certain things are presented to everyone else who aren't involved in the decision making process(but should be). I've been thinking about it alot, praying that God would remove any personal agenda that I may have...that as I come to this meeting, I would sense his heart and would respond accordingly with boldness and in love...

2.4 mil huh?

So what can you buy for that much money? How about 30 secs of fame for the pleasure of about 86 million viewers? The popularity of Superbowl commercials has become as a great an entity as the game itself( and in certain circles, much more popular especially with the non-sports enthusiasts). I notice some of my friends getting up to grab food and beer during the game so that they can sit back in time to catch the ads.
There were some pretty good ones: the BudLite skydiving one with the pilot was great, the Burt Reynolds/list/bear one was funny, and my favorite has to be the one with what looks like the husband killing the cat but not really. Good stuff...in case anyone missed them, you can check them out here http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/3379574?GT1=6083.
Unfortunately, there some pretty bad one too: any Cialis ad is unnecessary, the P.Diddy/Diet Pepsi truck sucked, and the MC Hammer one was weak.

I'm sooo money

I hate to brag but...c'mon, did I not predict the outcome of the Superbowl? See the post below:superbizzel. I won 2 hundo(like my boy Derek says it) when the Eagles cover the spread like I predicted...the Pats won by a field-goal like I predicted...the Eagles' D came up with a huge 4rth quarter stop that gave them a chance to win the game like I predicted...
What I didn't predict was McNabb choking in the final 5 min. of the game! Where was the sense of urgency? This is the Superbowl dude...you can't just casually walk up to the line like its just another game...I'll admit, he had a couple great throws...but you'll have to admit, everything else he threw were either ducks, low to the ground, or behind the receiver...he didn't have his A game at all...his poor play coupled with Andy Reids's mismanagement of the clock lost them the game...and let's not kid ourselves, the Pats played great but the Eagles had a good shot at the upset.
Who wants to talk smack about TO now? Wheres all his critics now? The guy played an amazing game, exposing the huge weakness in the secondary...don't know why they didn't go to him in the red-zone though...its all good though, the Eagles are coming back next year especially with how weak the NFC is.
Theres no doubt the Pats are a dynasty especially in this salary-cap modern era. Belichick ranks as one of the greatest coaching geniuses of all time right up there with the likes of Lombardi and Walsh. As an organization, I think they are the best well-ran team in all of sports(and this is coming from a huge Yankees fan). However, the one thing I don't agree with is the comparison of Brady with the greatest QB ever, Joe Montana. 3 in 4 is an amazing feat but not hall-of-fame material just yet...lets see how he does in a few more seasons... Brady is great but he hasn't actually put the team on his back and "won" them the game like Joe did time and time again. So until Tom does, lets not go there quite yet.

It would seem that I've been inundated with a myriad of great quotes lately. I've always enjoyed a good one or two but some great ones have found their way to me one way or another. These are sent to me from my good buddy Aaron.

'My lord God, I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.
Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your
will does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please you
does in fact please you.' Thomas Merton

'But the simple fact of being for one hour in the presence of the Lord
and of showing him all that I feel, think, sense, and experience,
without trying to hide anything, must please him.
Somehow, somewhere, I know that he loves me,
even though I do not feel that love as I can feel a human embrace,
even though I do not hear a voice as I hear human words of consolation,
even though I do not see a smile, as I can see in a human face.
Still God speaks to me, looks at me, and embraces me there,
where I am still unable to notice it.' Henri Nouwen

Even as I sit here posting this, I don't know what to say. These words echo in my mind...their meaning resound in my heart...on one hand, they offer hope and a sense of belonging greater than myself...yet on the other, I desire to rejoice with him as opposed to just knowing I'm pleasing him. I've been on this portion of my journey for too long w/o experiencing his warmth radiating on my soul...it is not enough for me to know to find joy and peace in him but everything in me longs to experience thses gifts with him...

superbizzel

Alrighty then, lets get down to business...I'm betting that the Eagles will cover the 6 1/2 point spread. Actually, I'll be happy no matter what the outcome is. I'm personally rooting for TO and McNabb, and I think their D is good enough to keep them in the game and, possibly, give them a chance to win late in the game. However, if the Pats win, that'll cement their status as a dynasty. I can't think of a better team and coach who deserves this distinction in the modern era. In my mind, the Pats are gonna win by a field-goal the same way they did the other two big games.
Everybody is waiting anxiously to see what TO will do if he scores. I can't even imagine what celebration he'll pull out for this occasion...what I think he should do is totally shock every single person on this planet by just calmly hand the ref the ball as he walks off the field with a "business as usual" game face on. Thats what people'll be talking about, for good or bad, long after the game.
I think I'm probably gonna skip half-time. (Sorry, Mr.McCartney.) Commercials are either gonna be super clever or super-sucky with the FCC regulations and all. At least, they'll stop with the idiotic Cialis promos.
To change gears a bit, rumor has it that Phil Jackson has been mulling the possiblity of coming back to LA land now that Rudy T has stepped down...I hear Kobe has no objection to this...not that he would, I mean Phil Jackson or...uhhh,Frank Hamblen? Lets get this show on the road...whatever LA gots to do to make it happen, then do it...please.

beautiful

I'm not a big sports movie fan, but I saw the movie "Coach Carter" the other day mainly b/c I heard it was very good, and I was very impressed indeed. The fact that it was from the here in the bay area made the movie a little more real than other sport films. You just can't beat the ol' underdog/against the odds/boys transforming into men/individuals learning to depend on each other kind of story...I'm sort of a sucker for films like that.
But what what really grabbed me was a quote by one of the characters towards the end. Through out the movie, Coach Carter keeps asking his players,"What are you afraid of most?" / "What is your greatest fear?" Nobody on the team gets what he's talking about but during the best scene in the movie, one of the kids stands up and delivers this quote:
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is
that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our
darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be
brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not
to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the
world. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within
us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our
own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do
the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence
automatically liberates others."
I found myself blown away when I heard this. The quote was written by Marianne Williamson. It comes from her book, A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of "A Course in Miracles." Its been burning in my mind ever since. I still haven't processed it yet. I'll post my thoughts on it when I actually have some.

straw-drawing 101

I was reading thru Acts again yesterday, and I noticed something peculiar that I didn't catch other times. The disciples were trying to decide who was gonna take Judas' spot and become one of the big 12, but they had these two guys to choose from. So, naturally, they pray about it and ask God to reveal to them who he wants. But get this, after all that praying, they just cast lots to determine who its gonna be. So it was basically like," Uhh, okay God, we're gonna draw straws here and please let the guy you want pick the longer one. Thanks."
Maybe thats what I gotta to do now...that after all this praying and seeking and meditating, I just gotta draw straws and trust that God will reveal the step he wants me to take...maybe what I really need to move on is just a little faith...is it that plain and simple?