Imago Andei

Fighting Stillness

One of my favorite stories from the Bible is the story of God rescuing the Israelites from captivity in Egypt and bringing them to freedom.  I was reading part of the story last night and a verse that I had never really caught before jumped off the page and hit me.  They've just left Egypt and they are at the edge of the Red Sea and the Egyptian army is chasing after them and everyone is freaking out and beginning to wonder why they left and worried that they are about to be killed by the powerful Egyptian army when Moses says,

"Do not be afraid.  Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today.  The Egyptians you see today you will never see again.  The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." -Exodus 14:13&14

For most of us that would be the worst thing to do if we were in the Israelites' shoes.  They are literally be chased down by an army and they are fleeing to freedom and Moses tells them to be still.  Stillness goes against every instinct most of the time.

We are a people of doing and progress and action.  But God is a God of stillness.  He beckons us to hear Him in a whisper and to meet Him in silence.  But all that seems so very unproductive.  We are supposed to do our part, to pray, to read our Bibles, and to engage God with our minds.  But I think more often than not God calls us just to be still and know that He is God.  He will do the fighting for us, we just need to be still.

I think the verse jumped out at me because I feel like I'm in some battles right now.  I'm hunting for a job and feeling the weight of unemployment heavily these days.  I'm trying to dive into the business world where I have no experience and leave the safety of ministry behind.  There's a lot of fighting to do but God has been calling me to stillness, silence, and solitude.

What battles are you fighting where God is asking you to be still?

Stand Up For Migrant Workers

Del Monte, the huge produce conglomerate, is being sued by the Southern Poverty Law Center on behalf of nearly 500 migrant workers who were not paid wages they had earned.  Del Monte is trying to hide behind the middle men who are supposed to pay the workers but they are the ones with the power and at fault.

Migrant workers are one of the most abused and mistreated people groups in our society.  No matter what you're political stance is I think we can all agree that everyone should be entitled to wages they have earned but often times these migrant workers are not treated fairly or paid appropriately and our economy has become addicted to their cheap labor force.  It is time for a change.

Go here to let your voice be heard on behalf of the migrant workers.

Google Maps Adds Walking Directions

With the soaring price of fuel many Americans are trying to figure out ways to cut gas out of their lifestyle.  Many cities are trying to figure out ways to encourage people to take public transportation, walk, or bike to work.  Now Google maps is doing it's part, you can now get walking directions.

Image via TreeHugger.

Protestor Glues Himself to British Prime Minister in Totally Awesome Non-Violent Protest

I think this is awesome.  A man committed to fighting global warming and protesting Heathrow's proposal to add another runway glued himself to Prime Minister Gordon Brown during an awards ceremony.  I don't know about you but I think that is a really great way to have your message stick.

Click here for some video and here for the article.

Apple Hints At Something New

 On Monday Peter Oppenheimer, Apple's CFO, announced that the company expected to take a little bit of a hit financially this quarter but that coming by the end of September there will be "a future product transition, which I can't discuss today."  Many people believe they are getting ready to revamp their line of notebooks and that they might be introducing something smaller than a laptop but larger than the iPhone.  So, we'll see!

Click here to read the article.

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip

This morning I dug up an old episode of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip I had downloaded when it first came out, and I just have to say, I loved this show.  I think Aaron Sorkin is a genius (West Wing is one of my favorite shows) and I loved the fast paced wit and humor found on Studio 60.  It's demise came as both a surprise and a disappointment to me.  The cast was amazing with Bradley Whitford, Matthew Perry, & Amanda Peet.

Oh Studio 60 how I miss thee.

Jimmy Carter Was Right

Ever since hearing President Carter speak at the Leadership Summit last year I've been keeping an eye out when his name pops up.  I was very impressed with how he held himself and some of his views and just the fact that he has been able to increase his influence over the years.  So when I saw this post on TreeHugger I checked it out.

It quotes an Atlanta Journal Constituion article that points at all the things Carter foresaw back when he was president in 1977-81.

• He was right in seeking to raise the fleet auto mileage standard to 48 miles per gallon by 1995. (Even U.S. automakers admitted at the time that they could easily achieve 30 mpg by 1985.)
• Carter was right in exhorting Americans to turn down their thermostats, even if he did look nerdy in a cardigan while urging us to do so.
• He was right to encourage fuel conservation by proposing a 50-cents-per-gallon tax on gasoline and a fee on imported oil —- in effect, a floor for fuel prices.
• Invoking the pioneering spirit of the 1960s moon mission, he was right to recommend a tax on windfall oil profits to finance a crash program to develop affordable synthetic fuels.
• Carter was correct, too, in setting a goal of obtaining 20 percent of our energy from solar power by the year 2000.

TreeHugger quoting AJC.

Oh Fox News How Thee Entertain Me

Via Relevant Magazine.

Surrendering The Future

This past fall I took the StrengthFinder's test as a part of the internship program I was a part of.  My top strength came out as Futuristic.  Basically it means that one of my strengths is to be able to anticipate what is coming ahead.  They phrased it as a gift, which it certainly is, but lately I've been feeling more of the curse about it.

I'm obsessed with the future.  What it will be like when Tovah and I have kids, or own a house, or live here or there, or do this or that.  And lately I've been finding myself wanting to fast forward to that point, the future.  I've had this problem for a very long time, I've always been one who couldn't wait for the next thing until it got there.  But I swear I had a couple months of contentedness.  I didn't want or need anything I was fine.

That, ended a couple weeks ago and I'm back to my old can't wait for X self.  I think it's partly because I'm sick of being unemployed.  Everyone has been telling me how lucky I am and all, and I really have had a great time, but I'm about to enter into month 3 of unemployment and that's a bit excessive for a vacation.  I want to begin my career and grow and learn.  I want to accomplish and succeed. 

But I guess that's what this whole time has been about.  God reminding me that He is more fulfilling than any career could be.  And that's great because I learned that lesson and am now ready to get back to the real world.  See, lessons I can handle, they are compact and easy and I can apply them when needed to fulfill some need.  What I'm experiencing is way bigger than a lesson.

So I guess I'm going to try and slow down again, and once more surrender my plans to Him because I do believe that He does love me and won't leave me hanging.

This Weekend

This was a good weekend.  Friday night was my birthday party over at Piece Pizza which was awesome.  It was great to hang out with friends and eat some really good pizza and to be celebrated like that.  Then yesterday Tovah and I went to the Evanston Ethnic Arts Festival to see one of her classmates Chaze perform with his African drum group.  It was really cool to be in such a diverse environment and hang out.