BLeach

BCS Drama

The drama surrounding Michigan's BCS snub continues.  After we lost to Ohio State I resigned myself to the fact that USC would probably win out and we'd miss the national championship game.  I could have lived with that.  But to see USC get upset and then so many coaches flip flop their votes in the coach's poll to put Florida at number two was too much for my maize and blue Wolverine heart to take.

Now I'm faced with a dilemma.  Do I support my friend Lars and cheer for the Gators, or do I suck up my pride and cheer for the Buckeyes and their non-voting sweater-vest coach so that the Big Ten is vindicated.

This story helped me decide.

Urban Meyer, Florida's coach, has assumed the role of BCS politician the last several days.  One of his arguments against Michigan playing for the title is that a rematch against the same team isn't good for college football.  Yet here is an interesting story from his own website. 

In 1996 Florida won the national championship.  The interesting part is how they won.  The Gators lost their final regular-season game to their rivals at Florida State (sound familiar?).  They lost by three points (sound familar?).  They lost on the road (sound familiar?).  But...they were granted a rematch with Florida State in the Sugar Bowl.  In that game Florida won 52-20 and were voted national champions.

The rest is history.  So ancient it seems that Florida fans can't remember:)

Domesticated Part 2

Tonight I doubled my lifetime cooking experience with the above creation of Cranberry Chicken.  Thanks for the recipe Leah.

Send me your recipes.  I'm on fire! 

(Not to be confused with my kitchen being on fire, which I have been the cause of before).

As a side note, my new kitchen skills are already getting me in trouble.  This Sunday night is our Movements Christmas party.  When I volunteered to bring drinks I was shot down and reminded that I cook now. 

This can't be good.

No Laughing Matter

I was reading through Luke 8 this morning and verse 53 caught my eye.  The daughter of a synagogue ruler named Jairus was sick.  So Jairus came to Jesus for help.  But on their way to the house the little girl died. 

So Jesus made a prediction.  If Jairus believed the little girl would get well. 

People were already mourning when Jesus and Jairus arrived at the house.  Jesus told them to stop crying and alluded to the girl's recovery a second time.  That's verse 52.  Here's verse 53:

And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead.

Did you catch that?  Jairus came to Jesus for help, and then when Jesus told him his girl would get better, he laughed.  He didn't jump.  He didn't start writing a thank you note.  He laughed at Jesus.  I don't think it was an "I can't wait to see Jesus do this" kind of laugh.  He didn't laugh out of anticipation.  He laughed out of disbelief.

When God told Abraham that he was going to have a son, Abraham laughed.  He was 100 years old; past his prime:)  Sarah overheard the conversation, and she laughed too.  Sarah was 90 years old; past her prime.  Genesis 18.11 puts it tactfully.  The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah. 

How do you think God felt when they laughed?  He came to this ancient couple with some news he couldn't wait to share.  What did he get in return?  "Hah, that's a good one God!"

What about Jesus and Jairus?  Jairus' laughter was even more pronounced because it was heard against the backdrop of previous weeping.  Everyone in the house had been crying because of loss, and then in one moment they were laughing in disbelief.  I know God made a promise in the Old Testament to turn our weeping into laughing but something tells me this isn't what he had in mind.

Don't forget, the promise of these miracles was not funny because it was irrelevant.  Abraham needed a son.  Jairus needed his girl to be raised.  But faith typically takes a backseat to experience.  100 year old men don't have sons.  Dead girls don't sit up in bed.  And the suggestion that they will is just kind of...well...funny:)

I've tried to picture Jesus' facial expression when Jairus started laughing.  I don't think he scowled.  I don't even think he frowned.  My gut tells me he smiled.  Maybe he even laughed with them, thinking... 

If you thought that was funny, wait until you see this:)

What is the What

One of these days I'm going to update the books on the sidebar of my blog:)  In the meantime let me recommend one book I read on the islands.

What is the What is the story of a Sudanese refugee named Valentino Achak Deng.  As a boy he was forced to run from his small village in Southern Sudan when the Murahaleen attacked from the north.  I was interested in the story because of all the press the Civil War in Darfur has received.  What I found out is that the attention given to the conflict is not near enough.

Achak's story gives a personal face to a political conversation.  I'll never have the same perception of a refugee camp again. 

It's also a profound example of the insanity that is racism and the extreme capacity in the human heart toward both love and hate. 

Most of all, this is a story of deep suffering.  Achak wouldn't consider himself a Christian.  His experiences actually cause him to ask difficult questions about God.  But if you're interested in watching one remarkable young man walk a raw road between doubt and faith this story is worth your time.

This Is Not Hawaii

On Maui they're preparing for winter.  At Banana Republic in Lahaina they've got the same wool sweaters out that are being sold here.  We asked one of the employees who buys them.  He said that as soon as the weather drops to seventy degrees the locals all put their wool sweaters on. 

Huh?

Winter in Metro Detroit means pulling out my flip flops when the weather tops off at forty degrees.

I've been home since Friday, but today's snow fall closed the door on Hawaii for good:)