It's late and we just got back from the big movie. It was so good and my mind is still reeling. If you've read anything about the movie you'll have heard that there is a strong Christ theme throughout. After watching it, I can say that is totally the case.
Here is a line from the movie, spoken by Superman's father:
Jor-El "Even though you've been raised as a human being you're not one of them. They can be a great people, Kal-El, they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you... my only son."
Yeah, its pretty obvious.
Anyways, I won't ruin it for you but you need to watch it. It'll entertain but more then that, it will remind you that The World Still Needs A Savior!!!
Enjoy,
John
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Super
So we are just headed out to see Superman Returns. The last movie we saw in the theatre was like The Sixth Sense or something so its been a while. We are excited. In fact my parents are in town, so they're coming too. I almost used the other there word, no not that there the other their - yeah that one - but it turns out the first their, not that there, the other they're - yep that's the one - is actually the correct they're for that sentence. I almost used the other 2 as well. .
Anyways, they are also excited. In fact, the excitement level is high amongst all of us. After the movie we'll probably eat some supper. That is also exciting. So yeah, that's what we're doing tonight. So. . .see ya. . .
John
P.S. This blog entry sounded so much more exciting in my head. Shoot.
Anyways, they are also excited. In fact, the excitement level is high amongst all of us. After the movie we'll probably eat some supper. That is also exciting. So yeah, that's what we're doing tonight. So. . .see ya. . .
John
P.S. This blog entry sounded so much more exciting in my head. Shoot.
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Saturday, June 24, 2006
Recommending Movies
One of the things that sucks about being a minister is you're not really able to recommend movies. If you are a minister, your chin is already smacking your chest. I have made this mistake more then once.
The first time was with my parents. I had just seen the best movie. And the ironic thing was, there was minimal violence, no swearing, no birthday suits and it actually got good reviews. So the next time my parents came to town I said "you guys gotta watch Primal Fear, then I added "Richard Gere" is in it, which secured my mom's support. My dad's a pussycat, and is usually good with whatever. I just pictured my dad as a little fluffy pussy cat, tee hee. Giggle. Anyways, we all sat down, started the show and 40 minutes later the previews ended and the show began. By the 10 minute mark I had already counted 13 tisks, felt 28 eye rolls and even witnessed a full body figet. A few minutes later my dad was on his way to the video store. I was so embarassed yet at the same time. . .strangely impressed. Fitting 26 F words and 1 bloody death into a 10 minute block takes careful writing and precision planning, somebody had logged some serious overtime to craft that kind of brilliance. Ha. Hmm. Anyways, I tried to explain, which as you know is impossible at that point, what can you possibly say, although to this day I am still confused because it was so clean when I saw it on the plane.
The second time I recommended a movie was to some teens in my youth group. Actually this was not an "official recommendation" I just mentioned the movie in a talk I was giving. Well, that night 2 girls rented my mention and within 48 hrs I was trying to explain myself to parents who walked in just as the main characters were snuggling in thier birthday suits. Apparently the characters even snuggled more then once. I tried to apologize telling the parents "I forgot there was full frontal and backal nudity" but they weren't as understanding as you might think.
Anyways, you'd think I've learned but here I am about to mention two movies that I found to be earth shattering. Brilliant actually. I will say - there are some questionable parts - I love that phrase by the way "questionable parts" - what's that mean? "Parts of the nudity are questionable, but just parts, so no biggie" Anyways, its more then questionable in these 2 movies, its there, but not at all the point of the movie just background scenery, so to speak, not saying nudity is scenery, shoot, I'm going to just tell you the movies.
Dogville. Manderlay. They are the first two parts in a 3 part series. They will make you think and think and think for a very long time - think in a good way. I still think about them. Anyways, Ang and I tend to enjoy the non mainstream stuff so if you're a fan of the artsy you'll like it. If your more of a "You Got Mail" kind of person then I would stay away.
Actually I would quite enjoy entering into a "you gotta see this movie" kind of discussian, so tell me what you've seen recently that hit you between the eyes or resonated with your heart.
John
The first time was with my parents. I had just seen the best movie. And the ironic thing was, there was minimal violence, no swearing, no birthday suits and it actually got good reviews. So the next time my parents came to town I said "you guys gotta watch Primal Fear, then I added "Richard Gere" is in it, which secured my mom's support. My dad's a pussycat, and is usually good with whatever. I just pictured my dad as a little fluffy pussy cat, tee hee. Giggle. Anyways, we all sat down, started the show and 40 minutes later the previews ended and the show began. By the 10 minute mark I had already counted 13 tisks, felt 28 eye rolls and even witnessed a full body figet. A few minutes later my dad was on his way to the video store. I was so embarassed yet at the same time. . .strangely impressed. Fitting 26 F words and 1 bloody death into a 10 minute block takes careful writing and precision planning, somebody had logged some serious overtime to craft that kind of brilliance. Ha. Hmm. Anyways, I tried to explain, which as you know is impossible at that point, what can you possibly say, although to this day I am still confused because it was so clean when I saw it on the plane.
The second time I recommended a movie was to some teens in my youth group. Actually this was not an "official recommendation" I just mentioned the movie in a talk I was giving. Well, that night 2 girls rented my mention and within 48 hrs I was trying to explain myself to parents who walked in just as the main characters were snuggling in thier birthday suits. Apparently the characters even snuggled more then once. I tried to apologize telling the parents "I forgot there was full frontal and backal nudity" but they weren't as understanding as you might think.
Anyways, you'd think I've learned but here I am about to mention two movies that I found to be earth shattering. Brilliant actually. I will say - there are some questionable parts - I love that phrase by the way "questionable parts" - what's that mean? "Parts of the nudity are questionable, but just parts, so no biggie" Anyways, its more then questionable in these 2 movies, its there, but not at all the point of the movie just background scenery, so to speak, not saying nudity is scenery, shoot, I'm going to just tell you the movies.
Dogville. Manderlay. They are the first two parts in a 3 part series. They will make you think and think and think for a very long time - think in a good way. I still think about them. Anyways, Ang and I tend to enjoy the non mainstream stuff so if you're a fan of the artsy you'll like it. If your more of a "You Got Mail" kind of person then I would stay away.
Actually I would quite enjoy entering into a "you gotta see this movie" kind of discussian, so tell me what you've seen recently that hit you between the eyes or resonated with your heart.
John
Friday, June 23, 2006
books
I just finished a book that I thoroughly enjoyed, only to discover when I was done that it was classified as a teen book! Now, I like teens, I am after all married to a youth minister, but I opt to think that as I near 30, my reading material would be at a slightly more mature level. After a quick moment of self doubt and "is this some sort of early mid-life crisis" type questions, I came to the conclusion that there are some really good authors writing for young people now, as opposed to the Babysitters Club and Sweet Valley High of my younger days. The book is How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff and it's really very cool. John and I are also reading through the new Myths series and totally loving it. The first book is a general intro to myths by Karen Armstrong (who is fantastic) and different authors from around the world have been chosen to rewrite ancient myths in any way they choose. Margaret Atwood (I'm ashamed to say I haven't read her before this, but want to) is quite hilarious in The Penelopiad and Jeanette Winterson wrote Weight (about Heracles). I just have to mention a couple more books to keep you totally captivated (kidding. I'm recieving your telepathic messages as I write, "So, tell me, Angie, how do you spell boring? With a capital 'B', please." I'm almost done.). Fall on Your Knees by Anne Marie Macdonald (yes, it's an Oprah selection, so don't ask), A Fine Balance (beautiful and tragic) by Rohinton Mistry, and of course anything by Jane Austen, who is just so clever. I was also recently introduced to P.G. Wodehouse- honestly I couldn't even laugh, he was just that funny. The kind of funny you have to solemnly appreciate. Love Crime and Punishment. And when you're done that and want something light and adventuresome, David Liss is very entertaining. Ok, I'm going to stop now.
Hey- I'm just realizing that most of the above authors are Canadian- go Canada!
And female- go women!
And have the letter 'e' in their names- go letter e!
Ang
Hey- I'm just realizing that most of the above authors are Canadian- go Canada!
And female- go women!
And have the letter 'e' in their names- go letter e!
Ang
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
God in a Cab
Ever have one of those days where you feel like you have fallen off the good luck truck and landed in a pile of unlucky poop? Yesterday was one of those days for me. It all began when I decided that 8000km was pushing it and I really needed to get an oil change done on my van. I took it to my friendly neighborhood Wal Mart, gave them the keys (useless piece of information or clue to what's coming ahead? Hmm) and went back to work. At the end of the day I went to pick up my van and an hour later the entire staff were still looking for my keys, which they had lost. I was flabergasted and believe you me, I don't use that word lightly, or ever really. Seriously, what kind of auto shop loses your car keys? Its not like they specialize in like outdoor plumbing and do cars on the side - all they do is cars - so how the heck do they lose the keys??!?!?!? Anyways, so there I stood fuming. . . as I fumed a thought entered my mind, "Yo John, (apparently my thoughts are always spoken by someone from the hood) perhaps God is trying to show you something." Now listen, I am a Christian, hech, I'm even a preacher, but come on, I hate thoughts like that. Thier so. . . invasive. . . even when thier not from the hood. Well anyways, that stupid thought wouldn't leave me alone and before I knew it my head had sold out and it was nodding as if to say "yeh, for schizzle, it probably is God." That last quote was sponsored by Snoop Dog. What up dog. What up preacher. Well, they never did find my keys and so they offered me a cab. The last time I road in a cab was back in 1991 but that doesn't really count because I was also dreassed as a brazilian nun and asleep. Well, what could I do? I agreed to the cab and they agreed to pay for it and oh yeah to also find my keys. As I got into the cab the thought from the hood came back like an unstoppable reble force hell bent on ruining my day. My head resumed its nodding and before I knew it I felt God in a Cab. What does God in a Cab feel like John? It feels like a middle aged sikh with a really expensive fare. Huh?
So yeah, my cab driver was a Sikh. A Sikh is a follower of the Sikh religion, no way, that got its start in India 500 years ago and is essentially a reaction to the Caste system. The Sikh religion emphasizes equality of all people among other things. BTW - I wonder if they call people who are interested in thier religion "Sikhers." Giggle. Ahem. As we drove the man shared his faith and I shared what I do for a living. After a while the man turned to me and said "Now tell me about this Jesus of yours." Now I've been to Bible College, even Seminiary and they all trained me for moments such as these but when he said those 8 words my mind went blank and I think I said something to the effect of "I like cake." He stared at me blankly which gave me enough time beg God to "get me out of this mess he put me in" and before I knew it I was sharing my heart with this Cab driver. I spoke of the hope Jesus offers us, hope of a better life then the one we are living right now, I spoke of love and humility but mostly about my relationship with him and how it has changed my life. It was amazing. Almost like a church service. In fact, maybe it was because in the end I had to pay. But here's the coolest thing. As I got out of the cab, Gill, the cabbie, stopped me and asked for my phone number. I hesitated wondering if I had managed to find the only cabbie in Calgary that, well, you know, fancies the dudes, but God slapped me upside the head and I gave him the number. Apparently our conversation was an encouragement to him and judging by the look in his eye, I think it was just what he needed. In fact, judging by my pounding heart and tight throat, it was just what I needed too. As I walked away I felt that I had done more ministry in that 33 minute cab ride then months of "church work."
Imagine if I had chosen to fume instead. . . Thank God.
John
P.S. The van place just called, they found my keys. I guess God does have a handle on things.
So yeah, my cab driver was a Sikh. A Sikh is a follower of the Sikh religion, no way, that got its start in India 500 years ago and is essentially a reaction to the Caste system. The Sikh religion emphasizes equality of all people among other things. BTW - I wonder if they call people who are interested in thier religion "Sikhers." Giggle. Ahem. As we drove the man shared his faith and I shared what I do for a living. After a while the man turned to me and said "Now tell me about this Jesus of yours." Now I've been to Bible College, even Seminiary and they all trained me for moments such as these but when he said those 8 words my mind went blank and I think I said something to the effect of "I like cake." He stared at me blankly which gave me enough time beg God to "get me out of this mess he put me in" and before I knew it I was sharing my heart with this Cab driver. I spoke of the hope Jesus offers us, hope of a better life then the one we are living right now, I spoke of love and humility but mostly about my relationship with him and how it has changed my life. It was amazing. Almost like a church service. In fact, maybe it was because in the end I had to pay. But here's the coolest thing. As I got out of the cab, Gill, the cabbie, stopped me and asked for my phone number. I hesitated wondering if I had managed to find the only cabbie in Calgary that, well, you know, fancies the dudes, but God slapped me upside the head and I gave him the number. Apparently our conversation was an encouragement to him and judging by the look in his eye, I think it was just what he needed. In fact, judging by my pounding heart and tight throat, it was just what I needed too. As I walked away I felt that I had done more ministry in that 33 minute cab ride then months of "church work."
Imagine if I had chosen to fume instead. . . Thank God.
John
P.S. The van place just called, they found my keys. I guess God does have a handle on things.
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
solar system
We've been learning about the solar system with our schooling lately, which is quite fascinating. Did you know that Saturn is so light, if you put it in a large enough pool of water it would float? The kids are learning alot, especially once Ethan got through his inquisition on the sun. "If you took 112 ice cubes to the sun, would they melt?" "Oh yeah- they would melt." "WHOOOAAA!!!! What if you took a million ice cubes?" "Yep, they would definately melt." "OH MAN!!!!! What if you took Superman's special really cold fridge and it was full of ice cubes......". As you can see, this could go on and on- and it did. Ethan's leg is doing much better (did we mention it was broken?). The cast is off, but it's still quite weak. Maddie showed me her diary tonight: "Dear Diary- today Ethan got his cast off remember when he broke his leg on page 36 and 37? Well now he has it off! But it does feel strange for him. I wonder if he will be able to walk better. I hope he will!"
Don't worry, it's not a private diary. I just thought the grandparents would like a glimpse.
"Yes, Mr. Therapist, my mother published my diary on the internet!"
yikes.
Ang
Don't worry, it's not a private diary. I just thought the grandparents would like a glimpse.
"Yes, Mr. Therapist, my mother published my diary on the internet!"
yikes.
Ang
Monday, June 19, 2006
Oilers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well, the Oilers lost.
It sucks. It really sucks. I hate the fact that they lost. In fact, it almost feels like I lost. I could barely eat the entire game. I felt like I was out there. When the puck dropped so did my heart and when Willians scored the empty goal, Angie had to remove the knife from my heart. Oh, that hurt. But alas, it's just a game, I know, much much worse things in life. But at the time, boy does it hurt.
As we drove home from the game, our Oilers car flag flapping in the wind, Ethan piped up from the back and said "Dad, you might as well just open your window and let the flag go, it doesn't matter anymore." I thought about what he said and wondered if this was a "pull the car over and spank"offense but reason quickly took over and instead I responded by saying something to the effect of "don't you think the Oilers need us now more then ever before?" Which is a funny thing to say because I'm quite confident Chris Pronger, Shawn Horcoff and all the Oilers in fact haven't any idea who John Close is yet here I am probably one of thier biggest fans and to me they feel like family. Its also a funny thing to say because Ethan is 5 and "what the heck is dad talking about?!?!?!?" Its wierd how invested we get into people we have never met. People who will never even know our name. One of the great mysteries of life.
Anyways, as heart broken as the Oilers and all thier fans are, September is only a few months away. And besides, I'm sure my wife will be thrilled to have 3 evenings a week back.
John
It sucks. It really sucks. I hate the fact that they lost. In fact, it almost feels like I lost. I could barely eat the entire game. I felt like I was out there. When the puck dropped so did my heart and when Willians scored the empty goal, Angie had to remove the knife from my heart. Oh, that hurt. But alas, it's just a game, I know, much much worse things in life. But at the time, boy does it hurt.
As we drove home from the game, our Oilers car flag flapping in the wind, Ethan piped up from the back and said "Dad, you might as well just open your window and let the flag go, it doesn't matter anymore." I thought about what he said and wondered if this was a "pull the car over and spank"offense but reason quickly took over and instead I responded by saying something to the effect of "don't you think the Oilers need us now more then ever before?" Which is a funny thing to say because I'm quite confident Chris Pronger, Shawn Horcoff and all the Oilers in fact haven't any idea who John Close is yet here I am probably one of thier biggest fans and to me they feel like family. Its also a funny thing to say because Ethan is 5 and "what the heck is dad talking about?!?!?!?" Its wierd how invested we get into people we have never met. People who will never even know our name. One of the great mysteries of life.
Anyways, as heart broken as the Oilers and all thier fans are, September is only a few months away. And besides, I'm sure my wife will be thrilled to have 3 evenings a week back.
John
Sunday, June 18, 2006
Fathers Day
I have to say, at the risk of sounding cheesy, that John is a great dad and this is why: he's goofier than most kids, he's a great story teller, he's patient and persistant enough to teach the tougher things in life like bike riding and bath tub acrobatics (no, I wouldn't make a thing like that up), nothing embarasses him- which is a recipe for for good times, and, on top of it all, he's a real, genuine guy (the best kind of guy). We had a fantastic day, eating lunch at A&W (John's choice, of course) followed by four hours at Callaway Park (4hours and 4 rides- but still fun) and are now settling down to a manly night of action movies and chicken wings. yay. I mean YAAAAAYYY!!!!!
Ang
Ang
Saturday, June 17, 2006
Oilers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BABYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!
WE WANT THE CUP!!!
WE WANT THE CUP!!!
WE WANT THE CUP!!!
I don't believe I have seen one team dominate another like the Oilers dominated the Canes tonight.
UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
JC
WE WANT THE CUP!!!
WE WANT THE CUP!!!
WE WANT THE CUP!!!
I don't believe I have seen one team dominate another like the Oilers dominated the Canes tonight.
UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
JC
Friday, June 16, 2006
Sexual Advice
Here's some questions that have been on my mind lately. . .
Will the Oilers become only the second team in the history of the NHL to come back from a 3-1 deficit and win the cup?
How much longer does God want me to do youth ministry?
Are we saved through Jesus because he is the way or are we saved by living in the way of Jesus? If its the latter, what are the implications for Non Christians ignorantly living in the way of Jesus, can they be saved? E.G. Gandhi
And last but not least. . .
How do you prevent night toots? They are annyoying to everyone involved and really hamper the. . . sleep. . .
John
P.S oh yeah, re: Sexual Advice. None needed at this time, just thought it made a more appealing title.
Will the Oilers become only the second team in the history of the NHL to come back from a 3-1 deficit and win the cup?
How much longer does God want me to do youth ministry?
Are we saved through Jesus because he is the way or are we saved by living in the way of Jesus? If its the latter, what are the implications for Non Christians ignorantly living in the way of Jesus, can they be saved? E.G. Gandhi
And last but not least. . .
How do you prevent night toots? They are annyoying to everyone involved and really hamper the. . . sleep. . .
John
P.S oh yeah, re: Sexual Advice. None needed at this time, just thought it made a more appealing title.
Thursday, June 15, 2006
a reluctant hockey fan
Um....Oilers? Wow, I can't believe how excited I am about a bunch of overpaid guys, who switch teams at least once a season, so you're not really loyal to the team, are you, more the symbol on their jersey and next year I'll have to memorize a whole new slew of names so I can sound remotely intelligable when someone says, "How 'bout them Oilers?", because I am, after all, married to John and his dreams are my dreams, etc., etc., yet, here I am, counting down the minutes until Saturday night when we'll don our Oilers shirts, pull out our Oilers flag and, yes, our Oilers Build-a-Bear will be comfortably seated on the couch next to us and I will, against all reason, find myself jumping and cheering and yelling at the refs- even John will be proud. What have I become!
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
storm
We woke up to quite the thunderstorm last night, complete with hail- love that! The girls slept through it, but Ethan's a storm junkie like his mom so we got up to enjoy the show. Ethan still talks about a time when he was three and I woke him up to come sit outside and watch a storm as it was coming in- a reminder I need now and again that sometimes it's easy to be too practical as a parent. That's one of our more special memories and I almost let him sleep through it because we had plans the following morning! They can always nap the next day, right?
go oilers go.........
Ang
go oilers go.........
Ang
Monday, June 12, 2006
What we look like
This is Maddison; 8 next month, Alexa; 4 next month and Ethan 5.5. The dog is a friend's. Our dog, Golden Retriever, will be born sometime next week and we should get him in August. We're thinking of calling him Hugo. . .
Living in the moment
If we could somehow measure how much time we spend thinking about the past and worrying about the future I bet we'd discover that we haven't truly lived in sometime. I certainly have been guilty of not living, especially the past few months.
According to my birth certificate, I turn 30 this year, in less then 2 months actually. Depending on the moment or who I'm talking to I either feel blessed or depressed. For instance when I'm talking with someone older, I feel blessed, when its someone younger, depressed. Why is it that we struggle so much with enjoying life today, right now, in this very moment? Why do we allow moments that have passed and moments that have yet to come to destroy the moment we are in right now. Why are we so distracted, unsettled, and dis - eased, as Ronald Rolheiser says.
If you are waiting for my wise answer, that wouldn't be wise because I wouldn't mind hearing yours. In fact, I'm tired of trying to answer that question. I'm sure many of you have asked the same questions and struggled with the same realities so here's your invitation to share what all that looks like for you.
Just recently our future became a little more clear as every career opportunity we were persuing fell through. As I sat in my living room trying to calm my mind and make sense of it all I had the distinct feeling I had finally learned the lesson God had been trying to teach me for the past 4 months: Enjoy today. Let me worry about tommorow.
I think I will. . .
According to my birth certificate, I turn 30 this year, in less then 2 months actually. Depending on the moment or who I'm talking to I either feel blessed or depressed. For instance when I'm talking with someone older, I feel blessed, when its someone younger, depressed. Why is it that we struggle so much with enjoying life today, right now, in this very moment? Why do we allow moments that have passed and moments that have yet to come to destroy the moment we are in right now. Why are we so distracted, unsettled, and dis - eased, as Ronald Rolheiser says.
If you are waiting for my wise answer, that wouldn't be wise because I wouldn't mind hearing yours. In fact, I'm tired of trying to answer that question. I'm sure many of you have asked the same questions and struggled with the same realities so here's your invitation to share what all that looks like for you.
Just recently our future became a little more clear as every career opportunity we were persuing fell through. As I sat in my living room trying to calm my mind and make sense of it all I had the distinct feeling I had finally learned the lesson God had been trying to teach me for the past 4 months: Enjoy today. Let me worry about tommorow.
I think I will. . .
Monday, June 05, 2006
Blogging is pretty neat
Hi, our names are JohnAngieMaddisonEthanAlexa and we're new at this.
Geese rock. So gototheJohn and take a gander. . .
Goodbye. . .
Geese rock. So gototheJohn and take a gander. . .
Goodbye. . .
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