The story of the 2nd half

Really, there are two stories. 

One, USC defense.  They came out on fire.  They dominated the 3rd quarter.  They boosted the energy in the coliseum and invigorated their offense.  And they held the Irish back for the 3rd... then they held the Irish back for 10 minutes in the 4th.  Interceptions were the highlight, but only a small part of the story.  The defense just plain shined.

Two, play calling.  But this is hardly a story.  It is rather a theme for the entire season.  Kiffin continues to make questionable and strange play calls.  I mean, come on... he called the exact same play 4 downs in a row, and it took all 4 downs to punch it into the end zone from the 9-yard line.  Granted, the calls had some improvement in the 4th.  But, as good as the defense was playing, the USC points should have been much higher than 16 when the Irish finally scored with less than 3 minutes remaining on the clock. 

Should have been, but they weren't.

So when the Irish finally got things together, they didn't have far to go.  And one interception for the Irish defense was all they needed.

God Knows

One day last year I spent a day fasting and praying about a situation I was facing.  I learned a lot during the 24-hours that I spent in prayer and fasting.  It was going to be a busy day for me, but I knew that I needed to stop and spend a day seeking the Lord so I spent the time I would have been eating and making my meals in the prayer chapel at my school, praying instead.   

I had already prayed about the situation, but what I hadn’t done was stop. Telling God about my problems is only one half of what should be a two-way conversation.  So, I spent that Wednesday listening.   

Skipping the time I normally spend making my breakfast, I drove to school early and went into the prayer chapel for a few minutes before heading to work.  I unloaded with the same prayers I had been praying.  I boldly pleading with the Lord, asking Him to provide the answer I wanted just like the crowds of people who came to Jesus and boldly asked for physical healing.

After work, I rushed to class like I do every Wednesday.  But instead of spending the following hour and a half hanging out with friends and enjoying lunch, I again headed to the prayer chapel. 

An hour or more of dedicated prayer time is always a great experience for me.  I am always reminded to let my words be few.  I can begin with a laundry list of things I want to tell the Lord about, but I quickly remember an important thing that is easily forgotten:  God already knows.  He already knows all of my inmost needs and desires.  When I spend a long time in prayer, I’m reminded of that. 

Soon, I shut up.  I remember what King Solomon said, “Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God.  God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few” (Ecclesiastes 5:2). 

God is in heaven and I am on earth.  This reminds me of the overwhelming truth that my view is limited, while God’s view is infinite.  He sees the storm while I see one drop of rain.  He is sovereign. 

Part of my time in prayer that day I opened up my Bible and was reminded of the gentile woman who came and asked Jesus for healing for her daughter.  Jesus' response seems cruel as He tells her “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel… It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs” (Matthew 15: 24, 26). 

Amazingly, this Canaanite woman understands what Jesus is saying and does not take offense at this statement (I think I would have!).  She responds by saying, “Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their master’s table” (Matthew 15:27).  Even a crumb from the Lord is a treasured gift, great enough to heal this woman’s daughter. 

I was also reminded of other words Jesus spoke.  “What man is there among you, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!” (Matthew 7:9-11)

God has only good gifts to give me when I ask Him.  But sometimes the things which I think are good are not really best for me.  As a good Father, He wants to only give me the best.  And in His sovereignty, He knows what is best for me – even when I think something else might be better.  I am reminded to ask – and sometimes to ask boldly.  But also to lay down my will, just like Christ in the garden before His betrayal.   

God knows what’s in my heart.  He also knows how best to satisfy those longings and desires.

I didn’t get any answers that day.  In a way, I’m still waiting for an answer.  But I gained so much peace from reminding myself that God is sovereign, that God knows, and that God knows what’s best for me.

First Date (part 2)

So you're on that first date.  The guy asked; the girl said yes.  Maybe the feel is a casual hang-out; maybe the date has a very clear "date-feel."  Regardless, there's a task at hand.  Girls need to express their interest; guys need to make the following hour (or more?) an enjoyable time.

How do you do this?  By being prepared.

Be prepared for communication.  Don't always expect it to happen naturally.  If it does, great.  But if it doesn't, begin to build the foundation for natural communication.  Typically, natural communication grows out of common knowledge… things you know about the other person and the things the other person has an interest in.  So take the time to discover things about each other - their daily interests and maybe a few of their passions.

Before the date, think about what you do and don't know about him or her already and come up with some questions.  If you haven't had much communication prior to the date, here are some starting points...  If you don’t already know the answers to these questions, then ask the questions!

-          What church does he or she go to?  Is your date involved in any ministries at church?  Ask about them!

-          Does he/she work?  …go to school?  What does he like about his job? (Stay on the positive... talking about what you hate about your job doesn't create chemistry!)  What is she studying in school? Work and school are the things in our lives which take up the most time... so ask about them!

-          Does your date have any siblings?  You don't have to find out each family member's life story, but you can get a general idea about his or her family life by asking the right questions... so, ask about them!

If you've had more interaction before the first date, hopefully communication flows more naturally to begin with.  But, this is still the first date and you might still have some butterflies.  If you're having a hard time coming up with some questions to ask, hopefully these suggestions will spark something...

-          What was the last big event your date had that you know of?  Finals?  A review at work?  A mission’s trip?  A visit with family?  Ask how it went.

-          What ministries is he or she involved in, inside or outside the church?  Ask how they're going... If you're involved in a ministry together, you could talk about an upcoming event or activity or any recent ones (are you excited about the high school sleepover next week?  I think the 150-foot slip-n-slide is going to be so fun!)

-          Have you heard of any recent prayer requests?  Ask for an update.

All of these things will show genuine interest, keep conversation moving, and help build the foundation for future conversations to be able to flow naturally without so much effort.

A question to ponder...

I am currently reading Milton's Paradise Lost.  In Book 9, we receive the narration of the fall - the deception of Eve and Adam's decision to eat the forbidden fruit.  (I carefully craft that, for, according to Milton, Eve is deceived and Adam is not, but instead willingly chooses to partake of the fruit Eve offers).

It opens to me a pivotal question.  See, Adam was created by God from the dust of the ground and thereafter Adam sees God face to face and joins in dialogue with God (We are not informed of the frequency of this conversation, either in the Genesis narrative nor in Milton's depiction, at least not from the parts I have read for class.  Yet, we are informed that Adam had dialogue with God at least once in the naming of the animals). 

Yet, when he discovers that Eve has eaten of the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he chooses Eve over God.  He chooses "death" (whatever that is, I'm not sure that either Adam or Eve would have been able to understand what death was at this point) with Eve over continuing in Eden with God.  How could he do this?

I think the answer lies in the type of relationship which Adam had with God.  I think the answer is quite simply that we have created a heaven out of Eden, painting a picture of Adam having complete and unhindered access to God.  Yet God is not present when the serpent comes to deceive Eve, nor when Adam discovers Eve's offense.  I think this requires us to re-imagine what Eden was like so that we can better understand why Adam chose Eve over God.

First Date (part 1)

There was a lot of blank staring at my hands.  I didn't realize I was copying his movements until I'd been doing it for... how long?  Well, we'd been sitting there for 15 minutes.  Maybe the whole time?  Say something, say something, say something!  My mind was like a broken record.  But what should I say?

This experience was brought back to my memory recently when I accompanied two friends on what might be considered their first date.  After meeting up at the ice cream shop, I ordered my ice cream and found a table for the three of us... and I finished my ice cream before either had said a single word to the other.  Again, I found my brain playing the broken record.  Say something, say something, say something!  I wish I had telepathic capabilities.

We've all been there.  Some of us more frequently than others.  Sitting there and observing from the outsiders' perspective provided a lot of insight.  I realized things I had learned (rather painfully, I might add) over years of dating.  Based on this experience, I offer the following advice.

Girls - the guy just did his job.  He asked you out... for dinner, for coffee, or for a scoop of ice cream.  Perhaps he was a little more creative and asked to pick you up at 4:30am so you could watch the sunrise over the mountain together.  Hopefully he didn't ask you to go to a movie with him (only because there is no opportunity for communication and you spend your time getting to know someone else's story instead of writing your own).  Maybe he made it clear that it was a date; maybe he didn't.  Nevertheless, he took that first step and now you're headed "out" - somewhere - with him. 

This was a step of pursuing, however aggressive or passive his approach.  Now he needs a little encouragement.  Let him know you're interested, too. 

One way of doing this is to blurt out "Thanks for asking me out to [you fill in the blank]!  I'm glad you're interested in me!  Guess what!?!?  I'm interested in you too!"

Sure, you can do it that way.  But you can also expect him to go running, especially if he opted for the passive approach.  But... maybe I'm wrong and maybe I don't know.  I've actually never tried this approach.  Maybe it would work...

Another way of doing this is to simply act interested.  But I'll get back to that one in part 2.

Guys - Don't assume that just because you did your job that now it’s her turn to do hers.  Some girls are shyer than others.  And even the ones that aren't shy can still be charmed by your stunning good looks and suddenly find themselves tongue-tied.  As I already mentioned, it has happened to me.  It's happened to me even after multiple dates with a guy I thought was amazing. 

Just because you asked her out doesn't mean your job is done.  Your next job is to do what you can to see to it that she has a nice time.   You can do this by letting her know you're interested in getting to know her - who she is beneath the surface.

Ultimately, my advice to both guys and girls is the same: be prepared for communication...