Sunday, July 1, 2012
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Thesis
As a part of the requirements of my master's degree, I've spent the last year and a half writing a thesis. It had to be an original study based on scholarly literature, sound educational research methodology and then defended before a committee. Terrifying things.
Things I have completed.
I was wise (fortunate) to have picked a topic that interests me and I actually enjoyed looking into the relationship between ministry and student development in higher education. The thesis' actual title is "The Impact of a Ministry Experience on the Personal and Academic Development of College Students". Long, I know.
It was a great way to consider some of my own collegiate experiences though and to put some scholastic muscle behind the things that seem valuable in helping students grow. I've known that I want to be in ministry and student development is the route I am taking now, so this has been a great primer for me to learn how to get those two things cornered in good ole-fashioned mash-up.
I might get the thing published. After I leave it alone for a month or two (for my own mental health and sanity) I think I'll look into some of the Christian journals on higher education and student development. I'll be sure to let you know if something goes down there.
But for now, it is great to be finished not only for the relief of it but also for the satisfying completion and the knowledge gained.
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Christmas Proposal
On Christmas, I proposed to my girlfriend of nearly three years and she accepted!
I had been planning on this for about a month, had the ring since the first week of December and only my parents and her parents knew about it until it was actually happening. Here is the story of how it all went down.
I asked permission from her parents when I went out to breakfast with them last Wednesday. When I had received their blessing, I told them my plan to send Kelsie on a scavenger hunt at the end of the Christmas present unwrapping. They were very good in helping me set that up.
Sunday morning, I was all a jitter. It wasn't that I was in doubt as to how she would answer: this was a question I wasn't going to ask unless I already knew the answer. But the family had voted to give gifts after church, in the afternoon, so I had a lot of anticipation to get through. And in Kelsie's family each person unwraps one gift while everyone else watches... one... gift... at a time. With 13 people, I was controlling a minor heart attack after 2 hours of cordial gift-giving.
Finally, Kelsie's dad presented her with a gift wrapped note card that I had prepared to send her on a scavenger hunt. (At this point it must be noted that I was a good little Boy Scout and actually had two scavenger hunts prepared in case of rain). I had accidentally given then "rain-check" version to Kelsie and I had to quickly switch it out.
With that done, I ran off while Kelsie read through the clues: each rhyming quatrains that led her through her house and some memories we have there, finally ending at a neighborhood park that has a dock extending out into a large lake. At the end of that dock, I was waiting under a gazebo.
Kelsie approached and I walked to her, giving her a hug and getting down on one knee. She of course said yes and we hugged and cried a bit and her family soon arrived in the park and took all sorts of pictures (some of which you can see below!)
Kelsie and I at the end of the dock
The ring! The center diamond was my mother's engagement ring.
Us, excited at the park; the dock and gazebo in the background.
We are not sure about the date or location of the ceremony yet, but we will figure that out soon.
I had been planning on this for about a month, had the ring since the first week of December and only my parents and her parents knew about it until it was actually happening. Here is the story of how it all went down.
I asked permission from her parents when I went out to breakfast with them last Wednesday. When I had received their blessing, I told them my plan to send Kelsie on a scavenger hunt at the end of the Christmas present unwrapping. They were very good in helping me set that up.
Sunday morning, I was all a jitter. It wasn't that I was in doubt as to how she would answer: this was a question I wasn't going to ask unless I already knew the answer. But the family had voted to give gifts after church, in the afternoon, so I had a lot of anticipation to get through. And in Kelsie's family each person unwraps one gift while everyone else watches... one... gift... at a time. With 13 people, I was controlling a minor heart attack after 2 hours of cordial gift-giving.
Finally, Kelsie's dad presented her with a gift wrapped note card that I had prepared to send her on a scavenger hunt. (At this point it must be noted that I was a good little Boy Scout and actually had two scavenger hunts prepared in case of rain). I had accidentally given then "rain-check" version to Kelsie and I had to quickly switch it out.
With that done, I ran off while Kelsie read through the clues: each rhyming quatrains that led her through her house and some memories we have there, finally ending at a neighborhood park that has a dock extending out into a large lake. At the end of that dock, I was waiting under a gazebo.
Kelsie approached and I walked to her, giving her a hug and getting down on one knee. She of course said yes and we hugged and cried a bit and her family soon arrived in the park and took all sorts of pictures (some of which you can see below!)
We are not sure about the date or location of the ceremony yet, but we will figure that out soon.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Movies Watched
2011
Inception
The King’s Speech
True Grit (John Wayne)
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Thunderball
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
Hombre
Thin Red Line
The Living Daylights
This is Spinal Tap
How to Train Your Dragon
Lethal Weapon III
13 Assassins
Red
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
The Sixth Sense
True Grit
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Cars
X-Men: First Class
The Other Guys
Salt
El Dorado
Dirty Harry
Easy A
Gran Torino
The Reader
Field of Dreams
Heartbreak Ridge
Legends of the Fall
High Noon
Cool Hand Luke
The Fighter
The Last King of Scotland
2001: A Space Odyssey
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
The King’s Speech
Jurassic Park 2
The Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Winchester ‘73
How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days
Tree of Life
The Man Who Knew Too Little
Tangled
Horton Hears a Who
The Paper Chase
Die Hard
The Family Man
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Inception
The King’s Speech
True Grit (John Wayne)
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Thunderball
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
Hombre
Thin Red Line
The Living Daylights
This is Spinal Tap
How to Train Your Dragon
Lethal Weapon III
13 Assassins
Red
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
The Sixth Sense
True Grit
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Cars
X-Men: First Class
The Other Guys
Salt
El Dorado
Dirty Harry
Easy A
Gran Torino
The Reader
Field of Dreams
Heartbreak Ridge
Legends of the Fall
High Noon
Cool Hand Luke
The Fighter
The Last King of Scotland
2001: A Space Odyssey
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
The King’s Speech
Jurassic Park 2
The Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Winchester ‘73
How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days
Tree of Life
The Man Who Knew Too Little
Tangled
Horton Hears a Who
The Paper Chase
Die Hard
The Family Man
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Books Read
2011
| Jan 3 - 20 | The Importance of Being Foolish | Brennan Manning |
| Jan 5 - Feb 16 | Helmet for My Pillow | Robert Leckie |
| Feb 18 - Mar 1 | The Unlikely Disciple | Kevin Roose |
| Mar 5 - 22 | Hiroshima | John Hersey |
| Mar 23 - 31 | A Severe Mercy | Sheldon Vanauken |
| Apr 4 - 27 | Swiss Family Robinson | Johann Wyss |
| Apr 6 - 18 | Cultivating the Spirit | Alexander Astin |
| May 1 - 9 | Peter Pan and Wendy | J. M. Barrie |
| May 15 - Jun 2 | The Last of the Mohicans | James F. Cooper |
| May 31 - Jun 3 | The Radical Disciple | John Stott |
| Jun 3 - Jun 5 | Out of the Silent Planet | C. S. Lewis |
| Jun 6 - Jun 15 | Perelandra | C. S. Lewis |
| Jun 16 - Jun 25 | That Hideous Strength | C. S. Lewis |
| Jun 27 - Jul 12 | Serving with Eyes Wide Open | David Livermore |
| Jun 27 - Jul 18 | To Be Told | Dan Allender |
| Jul 19 - Jul 25 | Treasure Island | Robert L. Stevenson |
| Jul 25 - Aug 31 | 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea | Jules Verne |
| Jul 26 - Aug 8 | The Poisonwood Bible | Barbara Kingsolver |
| Aug 13 - Oct 18 | The Fellowship of the Ring (read aloud to Kelsie) | J.R.R. Tolkien |
| Aug 30 - Oct 16 | The Celebration of Discipline | Richard Foster |
| Aug 31 - Oct 17 | Desiring the Kingdom | James K. A. Smith |
| Sept 5 - Nov 21 | Wild Blue | Stephen Ambrose |
| Sept 27 - Nov 15 | The Courage to Teach | Parker Palmer |
| Sept 28 - Nov 11 | Humility | C.J. Maheny |
| Oct 20 - Nov 17 | Cultivating the Spirit | Alexander Astin |
| Oct 22 - | The Two Towers (read aloud to Kelsie) | J.R.R. Tolkien |
| Nov 6 - Nov 10 | Heaven is for Real | Todd Burpo |
| Nov 10 - Dec 8 | Souls in Transition | Christian Smith |
| Dec 4 - Dec 10 | Culture Shock! Ecuador | Nicholas Crowder |
| Dec 10 - Dec 20 | War Child | Emmanuel Jal |
| Dec 21 - | Compassion | Henri Nouwen |
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Year End Lists
The next few blogs are going to be lists of what I've done this year: a compacted form since I do not blog often. But I followed the example of my friend Josiah this year and wrote down what books I've read and movies I've watched. It's been an interesting practice to see how much time I've spent on some things and how the titles of the books and movies can reveal what's important to me.
We read a book for my grad program this semester called Desiring the Kingdom by James K.A. Smith. A major premise of the book was that our actions form habits which shape our lives and reveal what our vision of the good life is. So hopefully through these few lists you can see a glimpse of what the liturgies were in my life this year.
To tie it all together I might finish with some sort of tying-it-up thoughts, but seeing the frequency of my posts this year, it's doubtful. Especially because I am gearing up for a missions trip to Ecuador which you can follow on my missions blog next month.
We read a book for my grad program this semester called Desiring the Kingdom by James K.A. Smith. A major premise of the book was that our actions form habits which shape our lives and reveal what our vision of the good life is. So hopefully through these few lists you can see a glimpse of what the liturgies were in my life this year.
To tie it all together I might finish with some sort of tying-it-up thoughts, but seeing the frequency of my posts this year, it's doubtful. Especially because I am gearing up for a missions trip to Ecuador which you can follow on my missions blog next month.
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