Am I wrong in doing this?

Today gets a rare double-feature as I would like to convey a story. The story is true, but the names have been changed to protect the innocent.

Jack is an aspiring Youth Minister. He believes he has a specific calling and has spent his life pursuing that calling.

3 months ago Jack applied at Church A. Church A posted a youth ministry opening and Jack thought it looked like something right up his avenue.

Jack was excited when he received an E-Mail from the head of the search committee. The E-Mail told him to expect to be contacted during the 2nd week of November. That contact never came.

Jack wrote the person he expected contact from twice during the month of November. No responses came. During the month of December, Jack went to Church A's website and dialed the phone number he found on it. He left a voice mail on the answering machine.

December came and went without a response. Finally in January, Jack E-Mailed the senior minister of Church A, exactly 3 months after he initially sent his resume. Two days later, Jack received a polite but brief E-Mail from the search committee head informing him the position had been filled.

Jack immediately wrote back. While accepting that God's will was obviously going in a different direction and thanking the head for the information, Jack inquired as to why he never received the contact he had been expecting.

Jack suspects he may not get an answer. Jack does not intend to pursue it any further, regardless of whether closure on this issue comes or not.

The moral of Jack's story? Jack doesn't really know, he just thought he'd blog the story.

Jack remains curious for the future. While he sees the fruit and worth of where he is at now, at the same time he knows it's not permanent.

"Jack" asks for prayer and patience as I continue to seek where God would have me serve. I know it's out there somewhere and I will keep searching for it, but I can't help but feel like an elder from Israel waiting to see the temple rebuilt. "How long will I wait?"

God's timing. The past, present and future are in his hands. My job is to be obedient in the now. And I will continue to attempt this to the best of my ability.

God Bless and good luck Church A.

-"Jack"

Wii want to play something good!

Time for a rant concerning the business of video games.

There is no doubting that Nintendo is a tremendous company. Premiering in 1978 with it's first hit Donkey Kong, the company has gone a long way. Super Mario is the most popular video game character in history, and his self-titled 8-bit Nintendo Game was the best selling video game of all time until this past Christmas.

Nintendo has been through some tough times. Rival Sega almost always had a competing system. Game Gear to match the Game Boy, Genesis to match the Super Nintendo, and so on. Sony released what is now known as the Playstation 1, which was a huge step because games were now on CD. Nintendo responded with the Nintendo '64, which retained the classic cartridge format for their games.

They have always met success in the face of stern opposition, but a lot of this success must be credited to a loyal base of fans who fell in love with the company's early franchises. Re-imaginings of these iconic characters in new and better games have long kept fans clamoring for more, and with each "epic" reinvention of a series the fans loyalty has always been rewarded. Metroid, The Legend of Zelda and even the children's smash hit Pokemon are great examples of this.

It is my belief that the fans carried Nintendo through "tough times." When the Gamecube came out to combat Sega's Dreamcast and Sony's PS2, it was clearly an inferior system. It could not match the capacity's of either competitor nor did it try to. Even the long-loved franchises previously mentioned went in new directions and this left a mixed taste in the mouths of savoring fans. Zelda went to cel-shade graphics which made the game look "cartoony" while Metroid became a 1st person shooter. Mario went from besting Bowser to polishing pollution.

For the most part the fans stayed with them though and they still enjoyed some unique and enjoyable games. The Gamecube is a very family-friendly system and as a result it found success in many younger homes.

Sega eventually left the console contest, only to be replaced by Microsoft's X-Box. That brings us almost up to today. While Microsoft and Sony began touting their new systems, the X-Box 360 and the PS3, Nintendo once again went in a completely different direction.

They announced the Wii.

It goes without saying the Wii has been revolutionary. Wii Sports replaced Super Mario as the all-time best selling game, while all the loyal fan favorites were once again reinvented in clever and amazing ways. Games like Mario Kart, Super Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime 3, Twilight Princess and Brawl are all examples of this.

Why do I bring all this up? Why do I type all this jargon that is no doubt incomprehensible to most? I will tell you why.

I have stood proudly and been a loyal Nintendo fan for most of my life. I've watched the company rise and fall, stumble and rise again. I've stood by their products and enjoyed many fun gaming experiences. I've watched Nintendo reclaim their position on top of the world concerning video game entertainment, and I've watched them gain a new audience as Wii's are still clamored up as fast as they can ship.

Nintendo's loyal fan base is no longer the target audience of the company. The casual person is their new target. As I look upon the release calendar for 2009 and itch to see what new products they will bring out I worry. The effort and the excellence Nintendo has always fought to deliver are no longer there. This company has constantly pushed the edge and found new ways to revolutionize how people spend recreation time. As I look to the future I don't see that drive. I don't see that passion to push for the future that has been so present throughout the company's history.

I worry Nintendo has forgotten their fans as they scamper about to satisfy this new and curious audience. And I fear that ultimately this would be their undoing, but the Wii keeps selling and their unchecked agenda goes forward. The stalwart fan forgotten, I wonder what to do...

Maybe it's times like this that wii (or at least I) need to remember there's only one worthy of such devout attention and admiration. Maybe if I could serve God with the same passion and zeal I could do much more for his Kingdom. Or maybe this unnecessarily long discourse is exactly what the first sentence said it was. And now I'm back to real life, where I continue to try and serve God each day.

Matthew 6: 19-20 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal."

A classic

EDIT: In my excitement to share this I forgot to mention that it is an E-Mail forward. I did not write it. Sorry for the confusion.

In a few short days, an African American man will move from his private residence into a much larger and infinitely more expensive one owned not by him but by the taxpayers. A vast lawn, a perimeter fence and many well trained security specialists will insulate him from the rest of us but the mere fact that this man will be residing in this house should make us all stop and count our blessings - because it proves that we live in a nation where anything is possible.

Many believed this day would never come. Most of us hoped and prayed that it would, but few of us actually believed we would live to see it. Racism is an ugly thing in all of it's forms and there is little doubt that if this man had moved into this house fifteen years ago, there would have been a great outcry - possibly even rioting in the streets. Today, we can all be both grateful and proud that no such mayhem will take place when this man takes up residency in this house. This man, moving into this house at this time in our nation's history is much more than a simple change of addresses for him - it is proof of a change in our attitude as a nation. It is an amends of sorts - the righting of a great wrong. It is a symbol of our growth, and of our willingness to "judge a man, not by t he color of his skin but by the content of his character".

There can be little doubt now that the vast majority of us truly believe that this man has earned both his place in history and his new address. His time in this house will not be easy - it will be fraught with danger and he will face many challenges. I am sure there will be many times when he asks himself how in the world he ended up here and like all who have gone before him, the experience will age him greatly. But I for one will not waste an ounce of worry for his sake - because in every way a man can, he asked for this. His whole life for the past fifteen years appears to have been inexorably leading this man toward this house. It is highly probable that in the past, despite all of his actions, racism would have kept this man out of this house. Today, I thank the lord above t hat I am an American and that I live in a nation where wrongs are righted, where justice matters and where truly anything is possible.

Random Thoughts a Year Late

6 days into 2009 and I have no idea what to think. Lots I said I would post about and no idea where I'll end up as usual. Let's get down to business!

1) I am enjoying the job at Speedway. If I didn't feel called to Youth Ministry and could make enough to earn a living I would love to invest in a career there. You get hundreds of one time opportunities to impact people. You get more long-term opportunities with the employees obviously and that's cool too.

2) Still no word from the Churches I put in for. A little frustrated about this. Trusting that God is in control and again there's no doubt that he's using me where I'm at so I'm trying not to worry about it.

3) I watched the premiere of ABC's new season of Scrubs...the show that ended last season only to be bought out and brought back. Here's my thing: I did not like the ending of Scrubs. However, after I thought about it and re-watched it, I couldn't help but feel it was perfect, just like the Seinfeld ending. It encapsulated the show perfectly. Now the show is back, and while the second episode that showed tonight was powerful at the same time the show is lacking.

4) Videogame updates and mini-reviews.
- Left 4 Dead: Zombie survival game. Incredible and one of the funnest games I've played in a long time. Great originality. Bought by my future brother-in-law Erik. A lot of fun.
- Fable II. Christmas Present. Very involving and fun Role-Playing Game. Your actions (good and bad) not only impact the appearance of your character but the world around you as a whole. A very interesting concept. Not as solid as the first one story-wise, but I have enjoyed my time with it.
- Guitar Hero World Tour: Erik got it. Huge drum set as well as a huge play list of songs. Not particularly challenging though.

5) Christmas Presents? I wasn't expecting much this year and was grateful for the time spent with family on Christmas day. So what did I walk away with? Let's see...
- Season 7 of Scrubs
- Seasons 3 and 4 of the Office
- Trivial Pursuit: SNL DVD edition...no idea who to play this with by the way.
- Rechargeable battery packs for Wii-Motes (great investment)
- A "Nerf Blow-Gun" handmade by my cousin. Works too well...

6) A previous post on my blog featured a person (Remi Galliard) attempting to play "Mario Kart" in real life. It is kind of funny. A couple of weeks ago Chris, Blue and myself found the website of the guy who did that video. Turns out he's a big French comedian. We started watching some of the other videos on his website. Without meaning to we watched them all and I can't tell you how much we laughed. The guy is stinking hilarious. I won't link to his site due to one or two videos some might find questionable.

I will feature another one of his videos because he is that funny. This guy is all about breaking the cultural norm and doing what he can to get a response out of people. Check out this elevator oddity and see if you could imagine what you would do if this happened to you.