homeostasis

it is currently 33 degrees Celsius in Vancouver, BC. There are no clouds in the sky, and there is an occasional and warm breeze.

I have never sweat so much in my life.

my knees are sweating, my fingers are sweating, my cheeks are sweating, my neck is sweating, yeah. it is unpleasant.

I was telling my family that the weather here is perfect because "it never gets too cold, or too warm here."

I think I officially rescind that statement!

I mean, at least my "body-cooling system" is working. (thx lauren)

I am missing the Bowerbirds at the Biltmore tonight. I wish I could see them, pretty bad. it would be awesome.

time.

sometimes it seems to go by so fast, or something.

and then, other times, not at all.

I am going to pretend as if I have no flights anywhere, that I don't have a flight booked home at the end of the month, or anything.

then, I can feel as though all of my time here is well-spent. I won't be waiting for the next chapter, because there's so much plot yet to happen in this one.

some mountains.

Hey! Watch this, if you like. I took this sitting in the back of a 15-seater van. It had dark red seats.

Time goes by faster if you look at the scenery. Don't just watch the road. I dare you.

i know nothing.

right now, me and the team are on a staff retreat in Whistler, BC. it is absolutely beautiful here. there are a lot of mountains and trees! and it is also nice and tourist-y.

tonight we were watching the show 'Intervention' and the one girl, Allison, who was addicted to inhalants, had a pretty rough life.

with Allison, she had become so affected by the circumstances of her life, that without her remaining family assuring her sense of worth, which was altered by the actions and eventual abandonment of her father, she was left to her own devices, numbing herself to the pain.


in christian-world one thing we sometimes talk about is the concept of absolute truth vs. relative truth. I've been trying to decide just what exactly these absolute truths are ... aside from super predictable answers like 'God exists' and stuff. I mean, those are important, too, but I'm looking for something with more meat to it, something substantial.


there was this one scene, and Allison was so earnest! she was high on the computer-duster and cried to her mother, "I just want a father," over and over again.

I think this is an absolute truth that I have realized: that every person has worth - that we are inherently worthwhile and worth loving -- that this is not changed by the actions or words of people around us.

I think what I observed with Allison really reveals a lot about humans. instinctively, we know that we need fathers. biologically, physiologically, emotionally -- all of our facets reveal this and drive us to get our sense of worth in the people around us, especially with that of symbolic roles such as parents.

but symbolic for what?
I mean, I would answer God.

it makes so much sense, and explains aspects of human nature, the human desire to find purpose, meaning, to create, to find renewal, to give meaningless things meaning (superstition?!) and the desire to impact the world around us.

and God is seen in so many ways. man, I love that in the bible it says that his law has been written on our hearts. that's what, to me at least, gives us our sense of right and wrong.

when we see someone damaging themselves we know this is not right. this sense we have cannot just be a social construct. the absolute truth of the endless worth and value of people and things has been written on our hearts and we know it.

because, man, we were made to find deep joy, to experience life fully.
and this is the truth.

finite

I’ve suspected that if Jesus is central and exclusive, he is also universal and inclusive. Even though I can say with a clear conscience that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life, I no longer believe that this is necessarily confined to my obviously limited definition of what this means. If Jesus is the All-in-all things, reconciling all things to the Above-All, then there is no possible way my finite mind can comprehend what this means. Indeed, if my understanding of Jesus limits and confines him to a certain demographic, then it would seem to indicate that my understanding is implicitly erroneous because it is limited and limiting.

-nakedpastor

impact: Vancouver

the youth group from Washington wanted to go to Gastown and challenge people with signs, and then encourage them, too. I wrote this one, to encourage people.

maybe it can encourage you, too.

some moments.

I totally did the seawall (on a bike) around Stanley Park today. it was beautiful, so many mountains, so much sea.

then! we sat on the beach and Roein found this little crab, and he gave it to me. whoa.

visit #2 to Stanley Park today, this time at night. my, the sunset is beautiful.

and then, I decided to cut Kari's hair. but my rule of thumb is, no fun allowed ever. nope. never.

sometimes i feel this way, too.