hotshot209's Xanga

powerful...

Fri, 02 Nov 2007 05:46:51 GMT

video game follow up...

Wed, 10 Oct 2007 00:00:55 GMT

amazing article in New York Times last week:
"Thou Shalt Not Kill, Except in a Popular Video Game at Church"
read it HERE - i hope it's still available...

if not, here are some of my favorite quotes:

Far from being defensive, church leaders who support Halo — despite its “thou shalt kill” credo — celebrate it as a modern and sometimes singularly effective tool. It is crucial, they say, to reach the elusive audience of boys and young men.

Witness the basement on a recent Sunday at the Colorado Community Church in the Englewood area of Denver, where Tim Foster, 12, and Chris Graham, 14, sat in front of three TVs, locked in violent virtual combat as they navigated on-screen characters through lethal gun bursts. Tim explained the game’s allure: “It’s just fun blowing people up.”

Once they come for the games, Gregg Barbour, the youth minister of the church said, they will stay for his Christian message. “We want to make it hard for teenagers to go to hell,” Mr. Barbour wrote in a letter to parents at the church.

"It's fun BLOWING PEOPLE UP."

Playing Halo is “no different than going on a camping trip,” said Kedrick Kenerly, founder of Christian Gamers Online, an Internet site whose central themes are video games and religion. “It’s a way to fellowship.”

Mr. Kenerly said the idea that Halo is inappropriately violent too strictly interpreted the commandment “Thou shalt not kill.” “I’m not walking up to someone with a pistol and shooting them,” he said. “I’m shooting pixels on a screen.”

one says it's no different than a camping trip; one says it's fun "blowing people up"

my question, and i am not supposing i know the answer: would Jesus play Halo?

this weekend...

Mon, 08 Oct 2007 04:15:09 GMT

i'm a big fan of camp...Junior High Retreat this past weekend...good times...here's some pics...

moments before my big wipe out!

driving with Junior Highers?

the rubicon at Cascades Camp!

conservative theology, video games, etc...

Fri, 05 Oct 2007 04:21:58 GMT

why do so-called "conservative Christians" (those that are pro-Focus on the Family, anti-gay rights, anti-abortion) ok with violent video games and supportive of war?

i recently had an epiphany concerning a video game i really enjoy...
Counter-Strike...
don't know if you've played it, but it's great; at least i thought it was...
in this "first person shooter" you are a counter-terrorist or terrorist and try and kill the opposition...

the setting:
i'm watching Black Hawk Down
i'm sitting next to a high school student playing a similar game where Iragi Insurgents fight US Soldiers
i'm at this house because the oldest brother is graduating from boot camp...

my epiphany:
i don't want anyone i know being in the situation depicted in this movie
people, real life flesh and blood people, die in war
the young man graduating from boot camp could be the one in the movie
the young man could be the one in the video game

does this seem like a problem to anyone else?
how do we address these issues in the church?

kids these days...

Tue, 02 Oct 2007 01:28:14 GMT

oh man do i have some stuff to share...

i know it has been awhile since i've blogged, so here goes nothing...

reading a book by Shane Claiborne, founder of the Simple Way...
Irresistible Revolution
you need to read this book...

i've been coaching high school football this year.
it's a blast to be at the high school; a privilege to be involved
however, i'm a little frustrated with the players...

we have some straight up PUNKS on the team...
kids that act as though the world owes them something; that i owe them something...
this is nothing new for most, but it's new to me...

at the same time some of my youth group kids are driving me insane...
so
i'm reading this book and come across this quote:

“God forgive us for all those we have lost because we made the gospel boring. I am convinced that if we lose kids to the culture of drugs and materialism, of violence and war, it’s because we don’t dare them, not because we don’t entertain them. It’s because we make the gospel too easy, not because we make it too difficult. Kids want to do something heroic with their lives, which is why they play video games and join the army. But what are they to do with a church that teaches them to tiptoe through life so they can arrive safely at death?” (226)

the organization Young Life was founded on the principle that "it is a sin to bore a kid with the Gospel." however, Young Life went the way of entertainment and dumbing down to make the Gospel more interesting...
Claiborne is talking about something very different...
he's talking about making the Gospel about sacrifice; about Jesus

what a concept!

dwell on that quote...
i'll have more on the video game and fantasy thing in the future...

i am FIRED UP

Christianity and words...

Mon, 06 Aug 2007 18:35:21 GMT

i wish i had the exact quote in front of me, but i recall while reading Contemplative Youth Ministry that the author, Mark Yaconelli, made a statement that said something like this:

"to the new believer, after experiencing Christian worship and church life, one might assume that Christianity is all about words."

think about it...
evaluate a Christian worship service or other church program...
how much of what we do is about saying the right thing, or just saying "things"?
how often have you heard of someone encourage you to "listen" another person into the kingdom?

i've been thinking about my own ministry and the services i am a part of lately...
in Sunday worship, i would say between preaching, prayer, singing, and announcements there is only about 5-10 minutes of silence in an hour and a fifteen minutes and it is usually not planned...

have we forgot how to listen?
or
have we decided listening is a waste of time?

i wish i could say i'm innocent when it comes to my ministry to youth, but it's not often that i leave time for silence or prayer during our weekly meetings...

what does all this mean for the church?
what are the implications?

categorizing music...

Mon, 30 Jul 2007 20:12:55 GMT

though i love music, i'm not much of a concert goer...

however

over the last week i was gone at the Creation Festival Northwest
and
returned for The Fray in Vancouver last night (yeah, i was backstage with the band; it's who you know)

i've been thinking a lot about music after attending these concerts and reading Body Piercing Saved My Life (if you like music, read this book)

what's up with Christian music?
it's not all bad, but come on, there are surely artists out there who happen to be re-diculously talented and Christian, right? where are they?

are the Newsboys still the best we've got?
are Switchfoot and Relient K "Christian" bands?
what about U2?

what makes a band "Christian"?
the number of times they say "Jesus"
their record lable
the venues they play at
what makes a band "Christian"?

slow down...

Mon, 16 Jul 2007 22:08:03 GMT

my time at camp always helps me slow down...

yes...slow down...

even though we're running around playing re-diculous games, i am always able to slow down at camp...

there are no distractions at camp; no bills to pay; no emails; no cell phones

camp is a time to slow down and listen for God...

and God shows up in the people and in nature...

what have i learned?

when we slow down, God shows up...

camp...

Mon, 09 Jul 2007 16:15:51 GMT

heading to camp this week...
going to Cascades Camp near Yelm, WA with some Junior Highers...
looking forward to a nice week at camp...

enough already...

Thu, 05 Jul 2007 05:22:15 GMT

anyone else sick of fireworks yet?

i can't think of a better way to support the troops and exhibit your patriotism than by blowing things up and making pretty designs out of explosives...

is this the best we coud come up with; the best way to celebrate our freedoms; to make bombs beautiful?

i guess they'll just label me a complainer or a dissident...