Technology, Teaching, and Sickness

This is the view from my room at WCIU in Pasadena. This is all I've seen for the past few days! As I write this I pray that you will eventually read it, as my apparent lack of technical savvy has prevented me from posting anything for the past few days. I would type a good 7 or 8 paragraphs, go to post it, and all of a sudden all of my writing was gone. sigh...I remember the good old days when I used to know how to work the 486...

Training is well under way, and I've been able to surmount all feelings of fear and inadequacy. The only trick now is learning to lesson plan quickly, effectively, and so my students won't fall asleep! Honestly, there's much more to it, but I feel I can handle it better now, and all with the Lord's help (He's the reason I'm here anyway, right?).

The past few days have been interesting though. Last Thursday I came down with a sniffly nose which eventually grew into a full-fledged upper-respiratory infection. (Okay class, repeat after me: "PHLEGM"). It got bad enough that I needed to go to the doctor, which I did (in downtown LA, whoo hoo). My doctors were two USC Medical Students and it was...achem...different. It felt like the Spanish Inquisition. "WHY does your throat hurt?" "What caused you to get sick?" Aren't they the doctors? Oh well. I was quickly prescribed some antibiotics, and sent on my way. Despite the gestapo performance by the doctors, I am feeling much better. I've been in bed for about two days straight and am getting a little antsy, but am realizing the benefit of getting better rather than trying to jump back into it before I'm healed. Elanor has been coming to see me on a regular basis, which I have greatly appreciated. I love her so much! The coming year will be hard, being away from her for so long, but I will hopefully be able to see her a few times a week.

I'm currently working on getting some pictures online for all who are interested, so once I figure out a) how to do that and b) the most effective way to show them to you, you will see some pics of California.

Well, that's all for now, I need to get up and stretch my achin' bones! Dobrý večer!

Teaching, and other extreme sports

I have finally made it to training! I arrived last week early, and Elanor and I stayed with her grandmother for a couple days before training started on Saturday. Yesterday was my first day of teaching! Praise God! It was also the day in which I pulled every new-kid play in the book. I was teaching about daily activities, and for some reason in the lesson planning stage of the day I completely blanked out. My brain ceased to function at a level above 5-year-old. Luckily, my amazing teammates soared in and calmed me down, helped me get planned, and the whole thing went off without a hitch. The first time was not so bad after all!

Training is going very well. My teammates on the Central Europe team are all amazing, my roommate Zach and I are getting along famously, and God has been providing so much beyond what I thought or knew I needed.

Each day we get to know the rest of our team by breaking off into small "Disco" groups (cool-person speak for Discovery group). Disco groups provide us with the time and place to get to truly know ourselves, our teammates, and the reasons why we are going overseas. Yesterday was very interesting...we talked about the Essentials and Negotiables of the Christian faith, i.e., what things are essential to Christianity, and what things are culturally and preferentially decided? We came to realize that the majority of the things we "do" in the Christian faith, though important, are not essential to all Christians in all cultures in the world. We all have preferences, but they should not be points of division. In thinking about this, I researched a bit and found a great article about essentials.

The essence of the article was this quote from Augustine: "In Essentials, Unity; In Non-Essentials, Liberty; in everything, Charity."

That Augustine was a smart kid.

Ch. 4- Organs

Yesterday Paul and Arwen got married, so that makes to weddings in two weekends. I like the trend...

This morning the Rimmers and I attended Living Word Lutheran Church in Grapevine, TX. It was good, and the Pastor (whose name I can't recall) was pleasant. He was an older, retired chaplain, and seemed to know and love the liturgy beyond the mere ceremony of it all. I still don't know what I think about all the solemnity, the muttered words of piety, the grand statements of joy, all in a carefully metered monotone. I mean...I was getting a little tired just being there. What does God think about it? It is for Him that we gather, right? To worship him, not to go about our rituals to make ourselves feel connected to God?

At the same time, I recognize the awe with which they treat God. He is worthy of all that is performed there, the words, the actions, etc. I guess I just wonder, if Jesus died so that we could be with Him, why act in a way that seems...contrary to intimacy? Or is it? I recognize my own shortcomings in all of this rambling...the fact that I'm not as comfortable in a High church setting (at least when communion and musical worship are concerned) and that God can work in many ways that are alien to me. When Jesus died he "gave a loud cry, and breathed his last. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom." To me, that is God saying, put down your robes and rituals and come sit at my feet that I may show you the depths of my unending love for you. Come in, not just the priest once a year, but all who would believe.

But that's just me. What do you think?

The service began with a brother and sister playing a French horn/Trumpet duet. It was nice, albeit not very musical. That's most likely the music snob in me coming out. I should say, They're young, and it is great that kids are willing to worship God with their instruments.

My favorite part of High Church in the protestant realm, however, is the organ. I love that many organ pieces tend to be darker sounding than most hymns and praise songs, but end more triumphantly. It acknowledges the darker parts of life, more than just in word. It cries out in ominous and fearful strains rather than the mournful, complaining way that some songs do. Don't get me wrong, I love those other songs, but my heart is captivated when I hear the organ. It makes me think of Bruckner and Bach, and how glorious it must have been to listen to their hearts come through their fingers, out the pipes and into people's souls. I hope wherever I end up worshipping in the Czech Republic that they have an organ!

Thank you God for a heart-probing morning of worship and prayer to you. Forgive us when we mumble through our worship, incoherent and unaware of the words of love that we speak to you. May our hearts be grabbed, and tears brought to our eyes when we think of what you have done for us. We are all living on borrowed time; may we live and love well, and better each day.