Hump, hump, hump, hump, hump day. [That's a whole new kind of camel.]
I love it when Jason does chapel announcements. There are very few people in the world who have the innate, uncanny ability to take ten minutes to say what could be said in two and still make it entertaining. At least that's eight less minutes of sermon. . . . And I don't leave feeling the need to visit the counseling center for lowered self-esteem.
It was nice of the band to try and coordinate one of their music selections with the topic for the day. "Jesus with a tattooed arm, Jesus raising two alone. . . ." Maybe next time, though, they should pick something a little less Cheez Whiz.
You guys can go ahead and sit down now, after that standing marathon. Thanks, Jason. I'll bet the band appreciated that.
Youth in Submission.
Thank you, Rebekah, Robin, and Seth for getting up on stage and sharing your stories today. One, it's refreshing to see someone trying to work off the secretary's ass they've developed from sitting on a pew their whole lives. Two, it's nice to see that I haven't scared everyone away. [Seth . . . . miss the shirt memo?]
The only issue I took with the stories that were shared is that the students sharing seemed to be hinting at God's being involved in their fund raising efforts. Now, don't run home to your mothers and tell them that Daedalus said God doesn't care about your Youth in Submission trip. All I'm saying is that I think the fund raising can be explained and accounted for without invoking the power of the Almighty. I mean, it's not like the money magically appeared in their accounts while no one was looking.
And about the money. Here's an idea for a YIS trip: how about you guys take all the money you raise to go on your vacations to Scotland and give it to the OKC City Rescue Mission. Then, get in your cars and go find a bunch of the homeless people in Oklahoma City, Yukon, Edmond, Bethany, Moore, and Norman and fix them a nice dinner. [Please note that I said "nice dinner." Any arragement involving sack lunches or catering from Sodexho would not fulfill this requirement.] Over dinner you could give them information about job opportunities, shelters [City Rescue Mission, the Jesus House, etc.], and maybe play some table games while they tell you about their lives. Who knows, you might even learn something.
Personal reflection. I'll never forget the time I was driving south on MacArthur, about to get on I-40, and I saw a group of ten to fifteen teenagers standing in the median by the stoplight, trying to raise money for their church to go on a summer mission trip. They had signs and buckets for donations and looked very excited about the opportunity to travel abroad to "do the work of the Lord." Meanwhile, no more than one hundred feet away, a homeless man was standing in the median, the same one, with a cardboard sign informing passers-by that he hadn't eaten in several days and was in need of a little help. He was unshaven and had a tattered backpack at his feet, presumably holding everything he could call his own. No more than one hundred feet. I wonder how much money it would have cost that youth group to buy that guy a meal from McDonald's and give him a ride to a shelter downtown. I'll bet it would have been far less than the cost of their mission trip.
Also, about Youth in Submission. I especially enjoyed the part of chapel today when Mr. Missionary took the stage and tried to guilt students into giving his organization thousands of dollars so that they could get on a plane and go sight-see for a couple months overseas. [And occasionally get used for bitch-labor.] It's always entertaining to hear someone tell you that you need to "listen to the call that God is placing on your heart" and then continue, in the next sentence, to tell you exactly what that call is. I wonder if there's a YIS trip to Cabo. I really felt the Lord burdening my heart with the needs of all those tourists. [I'm sure all those celebrities in Hollywood need Jesus too. Can I please go share the love of Jesus with Topher Grace?]
Oh, and Mr. Missionary, just so you know, chapel is over at 10:50. I know you were really enjoying the sound of your own voice as it reverberated through the sleeping masses, but no one else was. So, if you ever come back to speak in chapel, please wear a watch.
I hate to say this, but right now I'd kill for another sermon on identity. These substance-less chapels are boring me.
I have posted a new discussion board thread on the Facebook group, Flying in Circles. It is titled, "Missions."
Discuss.
"Keep near me and you will be safe."
Daedalus
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8 comments:
What's this? Our beloved chapel blogger decides to be a little nicer, and no one wants to comment anymore.
But maybe it's better this way. To be honest, some of the anonymous responses to your blog have made me embarrassed for our school. (Calm down, everyone. This doesn't mean I suddenly find myself in overwhelming agreement with every word that comes from Ms. Jackson's keyboard. I just like the idea of disagreeing in a somewhat civil fashion.)
Regarding Youth in (sub)Mission chapel...
I can see where you're coming from. To be honest, these chapels always make me a little uncomfortable. We sit there listening to how YIM trips "changed my life" for only $4,000...but wait, aren't there people right here who need help? Heck, I could even buy a plane ticket to Uganda, pay for the dirt cheap living expenses, and help out with the mission efforts, with quite a bit of cash still left in my pocket.
And why does all the YIM marketing have to be about what the trip will do for ME? Chances are that if I'm attending SNU, my life is not too terribly tough. Am I wrong to believe that the motivation for a mission trip should be more service-driven?
Before anyone responds with an angry anonymous response, let my give my disclaimer: I think YIM was born out of good intentions. Serve people in various parts of the world, while helping young people develop a worldview that expands beyond the good ol' U.S. of A. But looking at the big picture, it seems like there are better ways to accomplish those goals.
On a different note, I would like to welcome the djembe back to chapel. I don't think we have seen one all semester...something just didn't feel right.
While I agree that YIM can seem somewhat pointless in its overtly expensive trips overseas, I think part of that is to help students develop a global perspective, rather than simply seeing the world through wholly American eyes.
And, some homeless people don't want your help. I'm not saying you shouldn't offer it, but the problem is probably slightly more complex than you've made it out to be.
So Wanderer, since some homeless people apparently don't want our help that certainly puts us off the hook doesn't it? Plenty of nonreligious or other-religious people don't want to be "converted" to Christianity but that doesn't stop some Christians from tirelessly proselytizing by knocking on stranger's doors and leaving silly witnessing tracts and testamints instead of tips for their servers. I smell a cop-out...
now eryn...we all make excuses in life...it's not nice to blatantly point them out to the whole world.
I totally understand the desire to broaden the world view of todays youth (thank God I'm no longer in that category). In fact, I am extremely thankful to my parents for providing me with the opportunity to travel extensively when I was in high school...but I never tried to disguise my sight-seeing/educational trips as missions. If indeed our goal is to help others, then others should be the focus...no?
I was not trying to say we shouldn't help the homeless, I just think that sometimes we oversimplify the issue.
I also was not trying to say that seeing the rest of the world was the only point of YIM, just saying that might be an argument as to why we should do compassionate work there rather than here.
I'm afraid I might need Josh to explain the oversimplification. I honestly don't see how the problem is more complex. People need help locally. Christians should be stewards of their own community [that's not to say that they should never do mission work abroad].
Perhaps I'm just ignorant of the complexities of need. Maybe you can give me an example or two of how this issue is being oversimplified.
I was merely saying that the homeless problem is more complex than a lack of resources. Some homeless people don't want help. They don't want an honest job, because they can make more money panhandling.
None of this is to say that we shouldn't do everything we can to help the homeless, but it might involve a more in-depth consideration of the problem than simply throwing resources at it.
Daedalus ~
I've been asked to offer a few short words while officiating over the Lord's Supper/Communion/Eucharist next week.
While my assumption is that you'll have some words of rant/rave no matter what I say or do - since I assume you'll offer an opinion on the idea of sharing said meal/event/activity together . . . I am curious. . .
What issues would your perspicacious perspective pro-actively and pre-script-ively proffer to my plans?
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