Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your name...

Time: 2:48 p.m. Eastern Standard

Place: Brew Daily's Cafe, Auburn

It's good to be home. Or at least in some place that resembles what you considered home to be. Although, it wasn't as if living at school took me across the country; I only lived a half-hour away. But rarely would I make the trek back into Auburn. I had no reason to, nor any desire.

Now that I'm done with school and living with a family I just met (so far, so good), I figured it would be good to return to my roots. At least the ones I sowed at Brew Daily's.

Nothing has changed in the months I've been absent.

My favorite table is still in place. The coffee is still top notch. And the same regulars are sitting on the couches, as if they never moved since I last visited. There's a few that I wouldn't be surprised if that idea were true for them.

It's a good feeling. Kind of like this...



Norm!

The greatest thing about my newfound time and availability for all five of you readers? More posts, more often!

Stay tuned...

Jar

F.I.N.A.L.S. (Fine. I Never Actually Learned this Stuff)

I took my last final today, and before I set my #2 down, I knew I had done well. Skipping a night's worth of sleep would not afford me anything less, of course.

Now that school's out, I suppose that means I'll have time to relax, right? After all, isn't that what a student's summer vacation is all about?

Eh, not so much.

I have a few days to catch up on a semester's worth of sleep before I start my internship with Grabill Missionary on the 20th. I just found out today that they were able to secure a family for me to live with during my time there. I'm excited about meeting them. I find that it's an incredibly selfless act to welcome a stranger into your home for an extended period of time.

Even more so when that stranger is me.

I'm not particularly nervous about how I'll interact with them. I think that I'm a pretty easy going guy.

My main concern is how I'll do with the church. Mostly because it's been a few months since I've even been active in one. After resigning at County Line before coming to school, I decided that God wouldn't be too upset if I took a sort of sabbatical from church. How long that sabbatical was supposed to last, He did not specify.

Either way, I'm about to venture back into the grind of what my life will be all about: church. More specifically, community.

It'll be good to recharge my academic mind, while strengthening my vocational one.

I believe that seasons like this are to be embraced. Too much of one thing for too long can lead to apathy. And we all know that's just the easy way out.

There's a quote that was shown to me not too long ago:

"That which is without period of rest will not endure."

I'll take that.

Here's a list of my goals for the summer, in no particular order:

*save as much money as possible*take a couple of online classes so I can raise my GPA*invest in some running shoes*run in them*actually use the calender in my Palm Pilot*remember that I actually have a Palm Pilot*increase in my knowledge and understanding of theology through contemplation and prayer*become a better dribbler with my left hand*just become a better dribbler in general*keep myself from raiding the $5 DVD bin at Wal Mart*along with Tyler, figure out the direction we want to go with PUSH*actually head in that direction this time*gain a working beginner's knowledge of photography*invest in the lives of the students of Grabill Missionary*

I hope your week is going well,

Jar

A Letter to a Friend...

Dear Driver's Side Hubcap,

Where did you go?

I was under the assumption that our arrangement was binding and for you to just take off without proper notification leaves me amiss.

I miss you, Driver's Side Hubcap. Think of the memories we shared.

The road trip to New York City.

The four different proms we attended.

The casual drives through Berne, Indiana. For no reason, whatsoever.

Sure, life together wasn't always as bright as rainbow sherbet.

The winter of '03. You remember the winter of '03, right? Yeeeaaahh, you do. We got up close and personal with each other during that time. How many times did we get stuck in a ditch? 3? 4? 8? But that's ok, Driver's Side Hubcap; even though you're extremely small in stature, and not intended for off road winter action, we still made the most of it.

You're sorely missed. Without you, Driver's Side Back Seat Hubcap is all alone. Don't even get me started on Passenger Side Hubcap. She's thinking about taking a leave of absence to grieve. Without you, we are incomplete and asymmetrical. And if you step far enough away from the car, she looks like she's winking at you.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, come home. Without you, Driver's Side Wheel is just plain tired.

Jar

Finals...

Sorry that we haven't been putting up any news posts lately. We are in the middle of a very stressful week or so of final projects and final exams. We'll be back in about a week. Talk to you guys soon.

Tyler

Jesus...scaring the hell out of people since circa December 25, 6 B.C.

In one of my classes today we had a slight discussion about a popular church production called "Heaven's Gates, Hell's Flames". It's a common tool for evangelism, or if you prefer a phrase I believe is more appropriate: fear induced salvation.

Fire. Brimstone. Sulfur. Weeping. Gnashing of teeth. Etc.

All of these unfortunate, hellish concepts are mentioned vividly in the Bible, but how much attention are we to give to them? Am I advocating that we drop them from conversations with Christians and non-Christians alike?

Forgive the pun, but....Hell no!

Someone in class stated that more so than any topic in the Bible, Hell or eternally damning ideas are mentioned and proclaimed.

While it's true that it is mentioned often, and with great emotion and weight, I don't think this is necessarily true.

I believe that where one may possibly head in the afterlife is a legitimate discussion point with a non-Christian, but I would prefer to discuss with them the aspects of Christ's love, service, and sacrifice; all which save us from damnation.

I'm not about peddling "fire insurance". I'm not about fear-mongering, which is what tends to happen too often with evangelism.

I do believe that there is an element of fear, but it must be properly placed.

Hell terrifies me, but it's not what makes me love Jesus.

Jar

Simplicity...

There are days when I feel as if the best thing for me to do is rip someone's head off.

Jar

Ain't not party like a...

Here's the deal...

We want to get the word out about this blog. We want as many people to read, write, and contribute in other fashions as possible.

To encourage that, I'm asking for your help.

We are a start up, there's no denying it. But I fully believe that we have the potential to go a long way as time progresses.

To inspire and possibly bribe you to get the word out, we are going to throw a party.

When we hit a thousand profile views, and I believe this is well within reach in the near future, Tyler and I will throw a bash to end all bashes. Or maybe just a barbecue.

Once we've hit the goal, all of you are invited, even if you've only read the blog once or twice.

So get the word out there. It's going to be awesome.

Not unlike this (Yay double negative!)...