Saturday nights are generally spent watching movies on the big screen in the family room, but every now and then I jump in the car and go down to The Garage on Main Street, a renovated bus garage that now serves as a venue for local artists. I’m not really a fan of the hardcore music, but I’m friends with everyone who works there: Chad on the sound board, Chris and Matt and Jeph in the coffee shop, and Seth who owns the place. The Garage was originally built by the (retired) youth minister of the church where I teach, and I did my youth ministry internship while The Garage was under its beginning and middle stages of construction. I helped with the electrical wiring, some construction, and getting things organized. A minor role. The pay-off is that I don’t have to pay the $7 cover fee whenever I show up. I just walk in. When the money-handlers are new, it’s sometimes a hassle. I look like I’m fourteen, so when I tell them that I get in free because I’ve been working with The Garage for as long as its existed, they think I’m just trying to slip them a lie. Eventually Seth comes down and explains it to them, and in time it’s not a hassle. Saturday night was a good night to be at The Garage. Some big bands played—the names of which I never caught—and lots of my old hometown, pre-college friends were there. Chris was working the coffee shop, so I helped him out a little bit. I slipped three bucks into his jeans and made myself an iced caramel macchiato. Ashlie showed up and we talked about everything and nothing. It was good just to talk with her in a non-hurried environment (a.k.a. church). There was a girl there flirting with me, and it was kind of awkward, because she’s fourteen and I’m twenty. It’s all right though. I’m used to it: twenty-year-old girls think I’m fourteen so they generally ignore me even if they’re interested (it’s been an occurrence when a girl was “interested” in me but was under the impression that I was much younger, so she didn’t move forward). I can’t blame the minor, either: she probably had no idea that I was twenty years old. Such is my life. My fortune cookie today after take-out Chinese read: Good Things Will Be Coming To You In Due Time. I don’t believe in fortune cookies, but sometimes I wish I did.
Class on Sunday went extremely well. I slept in too late and missed first service, but made it to 2nd. I taught on selflessness as the way of life that Christians are to embody (for selflessness is the root of love, and Christians are to be known for their love). We examined two passages in Philippians—Phil 2.5-11 and Phil 1.21-27—and explored how Christ was sacrificial through living a life of servant-hood and giving himself up on the cross despite his desires to bring about reconciliation in another way; and we explored how Paul embodied selflessness by remaining to live for the sake of other peoples’ interests despite his own desires to manipulate his trial before Emperor Nero to bring about his own death.
In New Testament Seminar I gave a presentation on “The Role of Government.” The role of government, as seen in the New Testament scriptures, is to enforce justice. God doesn’t care what form of government is in place (democracy, dictatorship, aristocracy, republic, communist state, etc.) as long as it is enforcing justice. God’s concern is not the form of government but the function.
Class on Sunday went extremely well. I slept in too late and missed first service, but made it to 2nd. I taught on selflessness as the way of life that Christians are to embody (for selflessness is the root of love, and Christians are to be known for their love). We examined two passages in Philippians—Phil 2.5-11 and Phil 1.21-27—and explored how Christ was sacrificial through living a life of servant-hood and giving himself up on the cross despite his desires to bring about reconciliation in another way; and we explored how Paul embodied selflessness by remaining to live for the sake of other peoples’ interests despite his own desires to manipulate his trial before Emperor Nero to bring about his own death.
In New Testament Seminar I gave a presentation on “The Role of Government.” The role of government, as seen in the New Testament scriptures, is to enforce justice. God doesn’t care what form of government is in place (democracy, dictatorship, aristocracy, republic, communist state, etc.) as long as it is enforcing justice. God’s concern is not the form of government but the function.
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