Merry Christmas everyone! Have a wonderful, peaceful break.
All will be back to normal soon, I assure you.
Monthly Archives: December 2008
A little clarification
In my last post, I said something that might need a little clarification.
When I said that there were “inconsistencies that arise when taking the Bible as [the] only creed” I didn’t mean to imply that there are inconsistencies within the Bible. Instead, I was trying to say that the interpretations that we come up with are somewhat inconsistent. This is most apparent when it comes to determining which passages we take literally and which we decide are figurative or no longer applicable.
Let me know if further clarification is needed.
Holiday Giving 2008
We’ve developed a tradition at Greteman Group to help us celebrate the holiday season. The entire agency splits into three teams that donate time, energy and resources to three charitable causes. We’ve recorded these activities and created short videos for unveiling (yes, they’re secret) activities at our annual holiday party.
Now you can witness the fun too.
Random Acts of Kindness
The Random Acts of Kindness™ Foundation inspired this team. They made up random acts that touched both complete strangers and familiar faces.
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Team members: Ashley Bowen Cook, Carol Farrow, Lori Heinz, Shelley Downs, Chaney Kimball, Craig Tomson and Randy Bradbury.
Elephant Yard Cleanup
Zoo volunteers seem to hybernate like the animals come winter. It’s hard to get people out to help with necessary manual labor once the thermometer dips. So, this group offered to come out early on a Saturday morning to assist with cleaning up the elephant yard. Raking hay and scooping poo was a small price to pay for the treat that followed the work – an up-close-and-personal visit with elephants and rhinos.
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Team members: Angelina Ortega, Sonia Greteman, Debbie Comes, Jessica Forbes, Donna Grow, Chris Parks and Todd Ramsey. Special guest appearances by Fran and Kale.
Mail-Ordered Christmas
This group really wanted to make a direct impact on young lives so The United Way pointed them to the Wichita Children’s Home, the community’s oldest charitable organization. Armed with aprons and good spirits, they set out to serve up a chili feed alongside teens from the home. Unfortunately, a felonious rapper usurped their plans (yes, seriously) and they had to help out another way. You’ve got to watch this.
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Team members: Deanna Harms, Garrett Fresh, Ginny Walton, Todd Gimlin, Pam Headley, Jen Gore and Marc Bosworth.
Be sure to check out last year’s videos as well. They may not feature any famous rappers, giant beasts or photos of Jack Daniels getting put into mailboxes, but they’re still fun.
What are some creative ways you’ve given this holiday season?
The Church of Christ is done for
I’m a lifelong member of the Church of Christ denomination (yes, yes, I know it’s not a denomination). I’ve attended a pretty broad spectrum of CofC’s – from the incredibly hateful and legalistic to the more progressive, open-minded kind. Which basically means they’re fine with clapping during worship AND after baptisms.
Because of my relationship with the CofC, I take pride in what it brought to the Protestant discussion – mainly its insistence on the Bible as its only creed. At the same time, I’m painfully aware of its shortcomings – mainly the inconsistencies that arise when taking the Bible as its only creed.
I bear no ill-will towards the Church of Christ. It has created what I believe to be a solid foundation for the rest of my spiritual journey, instilling in me a desire to know God’s word, understand it to the best of my ability and apply it as best as possible.
But, I think the denomination as we know it is done for.
The reason – as I see it – is three-fold:
- It is known for what it opposes rather than for what it stands.
- The core values of the Church of Christ are no longer relevant to today’s Christians.
- At the fundamental level, innovation is abhorred and tradition is adored. (Hehe – I like rhyming.)
I’ll go into depth on each of these in an upcoming post.
Am I way off? Are these three things unique to the Church of Christ or do they accurately describe issues facing a number of denominations?
Top Five Christmas Movies – 2008 Edition
I did this post last year, and I thought things might change over the course of the year. But they really haven’t. So I’m reposting them here for your critique and pleasure.
5. Christmas Vacation—Though I’ve seen this movie a dozen-plus times, it still makes me giggle. Cousin Eddie is one of the funniest characters ever penned, and Clark’s no-bonus blowup is absolutely golden. This is definitely a good background movie while you’re (or your wife is) setting up your Christmas decorations.
4. It’s a Wonderful Life—I saw this movie for the first time last Christmas (unbelievable, I know). Though it gets a bit slow in parts, the payoff at the end is absolutely worth it. Stewart is brilliant, the little girl (everytime a bell rings…) isn’t. They should really consider showing Stewart’s performance more than hers when they talk about this movie. If you’re one of the few humans alive who haven’t seen this movie, do it.
3. Elf—Classic Will Ferrell. If you like that, you’ll like this movie. If not, you’ll probably still find something to enjoy. The story is funny, heartwarming and appropriately cheesy. It’s a perfect movie for the whole family to watch together.
2. Love Actually—Not only is this on my top Christmas movies list, it ranks in my “top movies of all time list.” If you don’t get the warm fuzzies from Liam Neeson and his son or Colin Firth and his love interest, it may very well be possible that you aren’t a human. Unfortunately, this movie isn’t perfect for the whole family to watch together—there is some unnecessary nudity. Fortunately, even that story ends up being cute.
1. Christmas Story—When you were growing up, did you have a movie that you loved, but you didn’t know anybody else who had even seen it? Princess Bride was one such movie—until I got to Harding, I didn’t know how many people worshiped it. Christmas Story is another such film. I absolutely loved it growing up, but I didn’t know it had mass appeal until TNT started running day-long marathons. The reason this flick is at the top of my list is because when I watch it, I still feel the same as when I was a wee child, exhausted after a morning of present-opening and new-toy-playing, laying on the floor, watching Ralphie and his quest for the official Red Ryder carbine-action 200 shot range model air rifle—and that’s a good feeling.
So, that’s my list. What did I leave out? What did I screw up? What’s your top five?
The new look
You may or may not notice that things look a little different around these parts. I just want to do my part to make your blogsurfing just a little more pleasant.
You’re welcome.
Rest assured, these changes won’t last too long.
You Choose – Naughty or Nice?
Life can get crazy around the holidays – especially if you wait until the last minute to buy gifts for your loved ones. So forget the malls and the crowds. Here’s something special that you can give to someone special.
On this fun little microsite you’ll find just the thing for everyone on your shopping list. Just because you don’t wear footie pajamas anymore doesn’t mean that giving handmade, redeemable coupons isn’t still a great gift. After all, the true meaning of the season isn’t about spending money. It’s about spending a bit of yourself to show others you care.
So head on over to the site, check out our naughty and nice ideas and pass them along to friends and family. Let us know which are your favorites – or if you come up with some wickedly clever ideas of your own. We know you have it in you.
Blessed?
But I get turned around
I mistake some happiness for blessing
But I’m blessed as the poor
Still I judge success by how I’m dressing”– Faith My Eyes, Caedmon’s Call
I’m not sure I understand how I have been blessed.
Don’t get me wrong, I know I am blessed, but I’m not sure which good things in my life actually count as blessings.
Is it a blessing that I have a nice home? A nice TV and Xbox 360 to play on that TV? A car that runs? My health? A wife who loves me? The fact that I was born to loving parents in the most prosperous nation in the world (at the time) and have had countless opportunities afforded to me?
While those are all good things, I’m afraid to claim them as blessings. Not because I’m not grateful or disappointed in what I’ve been given, but because of what my claiming those as blessing implies.
If those things are indeed blessings, what does it say about those people who don’t have those things? Are they not blessed? Are they just blessed in different ways?
Help me understand what it means to be blessed.
UrbanSpoon Serves Up Wichita
Urban Spoon, the wildly popular iPhone app, has finally launched in Wichita. Let the rejoicing commence!
This app’s brilliance is found in its simplicity, doing one thing and doing it well. As the iPhone commercial says, it answers the age-old question “What are we doing for dinner tonight?” And it does a pretty decent job of offering up viable suggestions. Combine its functionality with a clean, fun interface and there’s little wonder why it’s one of the top 10 most popular apps.
But our favorite aspect of UrbanSpoon is that it’s powered by people. Is your favorite Thai restaurant not showing up? Go to UrbanSpoon.com and get it added. Is there a restaurant that keeps showing up in an incorrect category? Go to the website and make a suggestion. It’s truly community-driven.
We’re pumped that the time spent on our “where-are-we–going–to-lunch-today” conversations are about be cut in half – now we just have to make sure we don’t fill that time trying to master TapDefense.
How Pepsi does poor taste
Check out this new ad campaign from Pepsi, highlighting their one-calorie PepsiMax beverage. (Click the images for a larger view.)
“One very lonely calorie.”
I’ve always thought there was too little suicide imagery in advertising today, haven’t you?
I don’t think I’m too conservative when it comes to things like this, but even I think this is in very poor taste.
If the Motrin Moms can go crazy over a relatively tame ad, I wonder what the outcry will be over something like this?
What do you think of the campaign?