on election & predestination

Here is yet another post Mandy won't read. But that's ok, I love her anyways! And I'm well aware that most people don't share my interests and will have no desire to read this. But in the off-chance that someone finds this subject compelling, I'm presenting here a little essay of sorts advocating corporate election over the schemes prevalent within Calvinism and Arminianism. I've studied this subject pretty in-depth, and I think this little article will shed some light on why I think corporate election offers the best understanding of the subject. So for those wanderers who may find themselves on this website due to a google search on the subject (or, perhaps, even Bing?), please enjoy. 

Election and Predestination

As an afterthought, it annoys the HELL out of me that Scribd doesn't keep the justified setting for the typeset. 

the 64th week

Seriously. It's amazing.

Monday. I opened with Amos and closed with Jake, a long and grueling day. It's felt like autumn the past couple days, crisp & chilly, and I mustn't lie: it may be about time to break out that kick-ass autumn wardrobe. I went to The Anchor after work, then spent the evening hanging out with Amos, Andy, Blake & Brandy. We smoked hookah and watched Mel Gibson's "Signs". I hadn't seen that movie in ages, it holds a special place in my heart: really, it's what kick-started my high school social life. Rob always joked that I'm like the little girl on signs, leaving a variety of barely-touched glasses of water around the house. Favorite quote from the movie: "You're too old for this," said to a six-year-old girl who does the same thing I do on a regular basis.

NEVER FORGET! Jake & I opened, and I worked on laundry (always a multiple-day project because of my forgetfulness) before going to The Anchor for a bit. Andy, Mo & I grabbed Chipotle for dinner and enjoyed a cool, quiet evening watching the latest season of "Parks & Recreation" on Netflix.

Wednesday. I had the day off for an appointment that got cancelled last-minute. I had breakfast burritos upon waking, and I grabbed Q'doba for lunch, visiting Andy on the line. I took a nap, went to The Anchor, and then I went over to the Loth House to round out the evening playing MW3 and watching "Deadly Women" with Amos & Brandy. Back home Andy & I got McDonald's for dinner and watched "Parks & Rec." Before bed I talked to Mandy K. for a bit. I talked to her 'bout some things I've been wrestling with, the weight of my past sins wrapping a psychological noose around my neck, how I'm striving to see myself as God sees me, trying to appropriate God's grace in my life. She pointed out that God's grace isn't cheap, but it's effective; and to deny grace is to say, in a sense, that the cross just didn't cut it. She's right: when we can finally accept grace, there's freedom, freedom from who we were and what we've done, freedom to be the kind of people God wants us to be. God is relentless in his love, and clinging to guilt and shame like some moth-eaten blanket is akin to keeping one foot in the sinking boat and refusing to fully climb aboard the one that's securely afloat. She pointed out that while I can accept that God can and does use others who've fallen far into sin, or wandered far off the path, or whatever phrases you want to us, the fact that I think I'm the one exception in all the world is rendered illogical albeit understandable (really, we all do it). If I'm so willing and eager to believe that God forgives and uses others, I shouldn't be so wrapped up in my own issues to think I'm somehow cut from a different mold.

Thursday. Back to the grind: I covered Ana's Food Prep shift with Tiffany & Sarah working the counter. After work I ran some errands and went to The Anchor, and I spent the early evening cleaning around the house and working on laundry (remember: it's a multi-day project), and Andy & I went to the Loth House to play video games with Amos and smoke out on the patio, and Brandon came by for a while and it was so good seeing him outside work. Everyone's been so busy lately, the "family" at T.M. hasn't had a lot of "alone time."

Friday. Ana found a crippled bird outside the store window, just picked it up and brought it right inside, desperate to help it. "Ana! You can't bring that in here! Make sure you wash your hands!" Silly Brazilians. I think she was upset I made her take it back. Bird was damned cute, though. After work I went to Dusmesh to grab lunch with Andy, Kyle S. and his wife, and some friends of theirs. They were 20 minutes late, and I tried to wait, but the buffet was right there, and the chef brought out fresh samosas and bhatura, and that demolished all willpower. So I ate alone and loved every minute of them, and when they arrived I just sipped my diet coke and caught up. Before going to The Anchor I went by Emily's place in Northside, hadn't seen her in at least a couple weeks. We sat on her front porch in the cool and overcast evening, playing guitar and teasing her cats. Isaac and Josh visited me back home after The Anchor, quite intoxicated after a bout of drinking at Neon's, and I went to Ams' new place just down Glenway. It's an upgrade, but the Claypole House isn't much to beat these days. We watched "Parks & Rec" and hit up Rock Bottom. Keith, the G.M., was there and hooked us up. We played video games till about 1:30 AM and then I drowsily headed home.

Saturday. I woke to a clear, beautiful, sunny morning. The chill cut through me, but I shed it like a winter coat at The Anchor with a steaming cup of coffee, N.T. Wright, and Damien Jurado on the jukebox. I went hiking at Mount Echo for a bit, there's some decent trails farther-out past the main ones, and once you go far enough you start getting into woods untouched by liquor bottles, soda cans, and used condoms. I went over to Ams' place afterwards, and we watched "Parks & Rec" and played some video games and went to Target, where I found some amazing college-ruled composition notebooks for only 22 cents! I passed time at The Anchor before enjoying dinner: a pumpkin spice frappuccino and a cream cheese pumpkin muffin from Starbucks and making a second run to Target to buy up the last of their 22 cent college ruled notebook stock. I have problems when it comes to composition, I think. I spent the rest of the evening at Ams' house playing through the campaigns of both Modern Warfare 2 and Call of Duty: World at War. I even wore a headset to make it that much cooler.

Sunday. This morning I met up with Jessie, who was in town, and we grabbed breakfast and coffee at The Anchor. It was so good catching up with her. I miss her, I really do. I didn't go to church this morning, ended up taking a cat-nap that lasted till about one in the afternoon. I still went to Dayton, albeit later than usual, and I spent most of the evening hanging out with Tyler at his place: we played MW3 and shot firecrackers and M80s off his second-story balcony. I didn't return to Cincinnati till late, and on the way I caught up with an old friend who's been having a hard time as of late. "I just want to be happy," she wept. HAPPINESS. What an elusive little whore.

romans 9-11

Over the past couple weeks I've been working through a bible study on Romans by N.T. Wright. I chose Romans because it's one of the most complex yet beautiful letters of the New Testament, and because I wrote a lengthy exegesis on it back in my college days (170 pages!). I chose N.T. Wright because he's pretty much a bad-ass when it comes to anything in the realm of biblical studies. I've loved the study thus far, but I got pretty bogged down in Romans 9-11. It's a complicated passage, and to be honest I've never really had anything close to a solid grip on it. Sure, I could point out things here-&-there, but when it came to the overall scope and narrative flow of the section, I was all but lost. So I decided to take some time to really focus on these chapters, and I tickled my exegetical bone and put together a little synopsis of the section ("little" being 19 pages) so that I could get a decent bird's-eye view of the text without sacrificing the little details thrown in all over. It should come as no surprise that much of my understanding of this passage comes from what N.T. Wright has written regarding it in several of his works (Climax of the Covenant, Justification, and Paul have all been used as research). I've decided to upload the document not because I think any of my readers will be enthralled to read it, but because I'd like to have easy access to it whenever the need arises. So for those who may have bones tickled by such things, enjoy; and for those who don't care, reading this paragraph is a portion of time you'll never get back. Go do something useful. 

Romans 9 to 11

I've decided to use Scribd for most of my "short" writings. It's a good place to catalogue them, and you can embed them anywhere you like. Hell, you can even post them directly to Facebook! I've got another document in the works--"Election & Predestination"--and I'm still piecing together the first "assumption" of The Quest. Please be forewarned, it could be quite a while before it finds itself on this blog. 

an anniversary

American forces holding their own (if only for a bit)

The Battle at Brandywine Creek.
September 11, 1777.
Try to get more patriotic than that. I dare you.

the 63rd week

our campsite at Koomer Ridge

Labor Day. I slept listening to the rains, and Blake, Isaac & I woke early and decided to do coffee and breakfast at The Anchor before the sun fully rose. I love early morning coffee on rainy days. The morning  was spent reading Rebels & Redcoats, a makeshift companion to Shaara's The Glorious Revolution. Rebels & Redcoats is an older book, published in 1957, and it's a phenomenal retelling of the war, a narrative history infused with letters, diary entries, and later recollections of those who lived and fought it. n Andy & I met up with Eric & Tiffany at the Hilltop. I got a traditional cappuccino followed by a chocolate chai, my staple drink back in the days of O.T. History with Danny Dyke and cigar smokin' at Mount Echo. Ams, Blake and I spent the evening over at Brandy & Amos': we ordered pizza, watched "King of the Hill," played Call of Duty, and Amos cut my hair and clipped my ear. "You're the first person I've made bleed!" he exclaimed. I unknowingly had a mullet that needed to be cut.

Tuesday. I slept listening to the rain and hail and woke to a muggy, hazy day. Hurricane Isaac brought rains and then followed it up with sweltering heat and humidity; I just want it to end! Amos & I opened 600. T.M. is an absolute cluster-fuck at this point. Brandon simply doesn't care anymore, and he hates that fact, it goes against the grain of his entire being. Amos is just waiting for the best opportunity to piss off the owner and walk out. Tiffany begged me to stick around for a bit longer. I've no immediate plans to leave: despite all the stress and frustration, it's kinda fun watching the president single-handedly tear down his little "coffee empire". Amos & I went to his place after work and played some MW3, and I went to The Anchor for  bit before making pesto pasta back home with Andy & Mo. We tried making homemade garlic bread but burnt them to a crisp and set off the fire alarm; Chef Waugh came to our rescue, bearing a gift of white wine. Amos and Brandy came over, and we crowded Blake's room playing Mad Libs and coloring dinosaur pictures. 

Wednesday. I opened with Jake, and it was a crazy day with a $500 catering order with no tip. We hired a catering director, some chick named Mears, and I think she'll do all right. Brandon agrees. Isaac offered Amos store management at Carew; "Hell no!" he exclaimed. The day's craziness was made crazier by the fact that with Andy gone from Chiquita, the president's sent two of our best baristas--Sarah & James--over there to fill the gap. Thus he cut 600 (the only profitable store) two people to keep Chiquita (the most unprofitable store) afloat. I spent my afternoon reading Rebels & Redcoats at The Anchor: it's so damned good! Storms tore through, bringing cooler air and washing away the humidity, and the rain fell so hard it sounded like the diner's windows would burst, and the roof leaked and the thunder boomed like cannon. Fitting for reading about the defense of Sullivan Island at Charleston. I enjoyed eggs, toast, and cereal for dinner and went on a late-night drive before winding down with some white wine and Revolutionary War history on the front porch. Also, Andy got a new gig as a manager at Q'doba (sp?) down Glenway. Pretty awesome.

Thursday. Tiffany & I opened, it's always fun to team up with her. It doesn't happen too much, since she's full-time baker and all. After work I packed my bags and went to The Anchor to drink countless cups of coffee and read Rebels & Redcoats: I'm "caught up" to my place in Shaara's The Glorious Cause (i.e., I've reached the battles of Trenton and, subsequently, Princeton), and now I'm moving backwards yet again with a non-fiction narrative history of the Revolution from a political/cultural perspective, and I'm going to read all three books in tandem for a better understanding and appreciation of the fascinating events. The 700-page book is called The Glorious Cause, not to be confused with Shaara's book of the same name. Yes, I'm a nerd. I enjoyed a dinner of eggs & toast at the diner, and then Dad picked me up back home and we headed south to Red River Gorge for two days and nights in the beautiful outdoors. We stayed in a cabin with Joe & Cindy, their daughter Sarah, and a few other folk from Southwest Church. There was a little dog named Molly who had no teeth, and her tongue hangs out from the side of her mouth all the time, and she's pretty cute.

Friday. Dad & I woke early, and after coffee we left the cabin and staked out our tent at a campground called Koomer Ridge. We got an isolated spot tucked deep into the woods. We spent the day hiking: Chimney Top, Natural Bridge, Needle's Eye Staircase and Devil's Gulch. We were beat by the time we got back to camp, and we made a fire and roasted brats and drank beer and reminisced on the olden days at Southwest Church.

Saturday. Rain fell all night and all morning, but we donned ponchos and went hiking anyways after a campfire breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage, and coffee on the perculator. We admired the views at Sky Bridge and did some free climbing at Gray's Arch. After striking the tent we grabbed pizza and Ale8 at Miguel's Pizza, a must for any solid Red River trip, and then we headed back to Ohio. He dropped me off and I cleaned up, spent some time hanging out with Blake, went to The Anchor, and then headed up to Dayton to spend some quiet writing and thinking out on the patio in the dead of night with Sky curled up at my feet. I love the countryside, the wilderness, could definitely call such a place home someday. That is, perhaps, why I find Alaska so drawing: it's all of that, except on steroids. Also, I got to talk with Rob out in Portland for a bit, it was good to hear his voice and equally good to know things are going amazing for him and Mandy out there.

Sunday. I went by the Centerville Starbucks for an iced soy pumpkin spice latte, my own way of kicking into autumn. The Saturday rains brought quite a cold front in, and I shivered in my shorts and t-shirt. I picked up some breakfast burritos for lunch and joined Mom & Dad for church at Southwest. This was the second sermon on baptism, and it was interesting; I don't know where I stand on the subject, it's a difficult one with lots of different angles, but that's a post for another time. After lunch I spent the day doing laundry, and then I went to The Anchor before heading over to the Loth House to play video games and hang out with Amos. On a sadder note, Ams officially moved out today, and the Claypole House is emptier yet again. Andy will be gone soonish, and then Blake & I will say our goodbyes. The end of an era. 

red river gorge '12

the 62nd week

our weekly, self-indulgent ritual

Monday. Our new store hours (7-4:00) started today, and we're cut down to 20% labor, which basically means we've gone from having six people on the floor per day to four. Thus work was busy and frustrating. I'd better get used to it. I hung with the housemates after work and then went to The Anchor: coffee, blogging, Romans. I did some grocery shopping for the week and made pan-seared swordfish with sauteed mushrooms for dinner, polished off with a growler of Summer Honey Ale courtesy of Luke at Rock Bottom. I took a contemplative drive with peach watermelon juice and City of Colour, and I rounded out the night with cantaloupe hookah and the housemates plus ex-housemate Amos.

Tuesday. Brandon & I opened, and after work I went to The Anchor and a semi all but ran me off the road. I wanted to shoot out his tires; too much GTA4, perhaps? I went over to Amos' and we hung out with John & Brandy and made angel-hair pasta with broccoli, mushrooms, and chicken, but I added too much butter so the noodles were rather gooey. "You know how I am with butter," I told Amos. He quipped, "Cooking dinner with you is always crazy, that's why I love it so much." We've certainly got a laundry list of dinner experiences. We played MW3 with the gang and when I got home Josh & Brandon were waiting for me, and we talked about our frustrations with T.M. and Andy & I sat on the front porch late into the night and then I went to bed.

Wednesday. Jake & I opened, and after work I took a nap and went to The Anchor for a while. I threw together a homemade Greek pizza and despite not reading the directions for the dough, it turned out somewhat decent. I have my little victories, though they're few and far between.

Thursday. Lucid dreaming kept me awake all night, in fits of frenzied terror, and I covered Ana's F.P. shift and we were slammed and understaffed and Brandon and I both drank some rancid orange juice and had some awful, sub-par defecation. Things with T.M. continue to become more and more convoluted (is that the right word?) and peoples' spirits and hopes are breaking. Lots of people are feeling out other jobs, biding their time here. "Anyone who's smart and who respects themselves is looking for another job," Amos said. What's that say about me? It's not that I'm superbly happy at T.M.; I'm not, though I do enjoy working with friends. I've just got so much on my plate right now that focusing on a career (or lack thereof) is the furthest thing from my mind. I took a 2-hour nap and woke feeling sick, and I went over to Amos' and John grilled chicken and Brandy made corn on the cob, broccoli, and baked beans. Ams & Andy came over, too, and we all spent the evening hanging out in the living room and playing video games. I'm so blessed to have the friends I do.

Friday. I opened with James and went to The Anchor instead of taking a nap, and I had dinner at Cancun Mexico down Glenway and enjoyed a quiet evening rewatching episodes of The Walking Dead. Hurricane Isaac is supposed to sweep up here sometime tomorrow, bringing heavy winds and blustering winds. Andy remarked, "We're either going to get a shit ton of rain or no rain at all, just wind." We'll see.

Saturday. I woke too late to go to The Anchor before Indian buffet, so I grabbed coffee at McDonald's and then joined Andy, Amos, and Brandy at Dusmesh. It was Brandy's first time, she was pretty into it (she took the pic above; I'm eating on the left, Andy's on the right, and Amos is filling his second plate at the buffet). We went to the Loth House afterwards for some hanging out and video games, and I started feeling kinda sick so I went back home and took a four-hour nap, woke feeling a bit better. I may have eaten some bad Indian, but will that keep me from it? Hell no. I went to The Anchor to throw off some residual grogginess from my nap, and then I spent the evening hanging out with Andy before jetting up to Dayton to see Mom & Dad and to cuddle with Sky. We watched "Ocean's 11" and "Sherlock Holmes" before calling it a night. I slept with the window open listening to distant thunder from Hurricane Isaac blended with the cicadas in the trees.

Sunday. It rained most of the day, Isaac sweeping through. I went to the Centerville Starbucks to sip on an iced soy caramel macchiato and continue plowing through Romans, and then I joined Mom & Dad at Southwest Church. The sermon was on baptism, it's a four-part series, I'm going to try and be there for the others. It should be interesting. Tyler & I did Wendy's for lunch and spent the afternoon playing MW3 and catching up. I returned to Cincinnati and spent the evening reading The Glorious Cause and hanging out with Andy, Blake, and Isaac. Oh, and I ate not one but four chocolate-dipped cookies & cream ice cream bars. My entire week's allowance, gone in a single day. We were going to go to the rock ledge at C.C.U. to watch the fireworks, but it rained so we listened to them in Blake's room. "Wait, is that Antietam?"