When Students Become Their Teacher's Heroes

I'm feeling a lot of peace and good will this Christmas season, especially since my cell phone provider sent me a little happy birthday note today...never mind the fact that its not my birthday.

"Dear NSA agent spying on my blog, Please tell Straight Talk that their birthday greeting was a neat little PR ploy that failed. I'm not going to feel loved until one of their customer service agents from India gets on the phone and sings Happy Birthday to me IN ENGLISH!"

In all reality I've been thinking about heroes. The stories of the real heroes among us simply don't get told enough. I hear more stories about who won the last volleyball tournament, shot the biggest buck, or has the nicest car than anything else. When was the last time you walked up to a group of young people after church in time to hear them saying, "...sheesh...DUDE...did you see the way  _(enter name)_ was freaking loving people last week...man...that was INSANE the way he...."

I hate to break it to you boys, but anybody can become an amazing volleyball player. Give me six months and I could be playing with the best of you, but I know that it will take a whole blasted lifetime AND the help of Jesus to weed the selfishness out of my heart. In that light I would like to tell you a story of incredible disregard for self.

I once had a student that really enjoyed photography. As a young girl she longed for a good SLR camera. After saving her hard earned pennies for some time, she was finally able to purchase the quality camera she always wanted. If I understand things correctly she is now employed in some type of photography work (at least part time). I know how important her camera is to her.

In spite of how much her camera means to her, she recently gifted it, lock stock and barrel, to a place of need. I know she could have sold this camera for several hundred dollars, but throwing "great stewardship," good business values, and profit motive to the wind, she got nothing in return. I am not the recipient of the gift, but I know the recipient and the giver. I understand the giver felt God asking her to give her camera away...so she did. That's Kingdom values and Kingdom economics at work folks. 

As a teacher, there is nothing that makes me more proud than hearing stories of students doing "Full Bore Kingdom Living" (FBKL). I'm both convicted and inspired...inspired to live by the same set of values that cause people to give when it makes no worldly sense and to love a category of people that the world tells us we should ultimately hate/kill.

Sometimes students become their teacher's heroes!
     

Gettysburg Address: A Civil Spirituality

One hundred fifty years ago today...Abraham Lincoln shuffled with head bowed on to the wooden platform at Gettysburg. Turning is tired eyes toward a war torn audience, he delivered what has probably become the most famous two minute speech. (I'm not sure if there was really shuffling, head bowing, and tired eyes, but...there probably was)

Since that time Christians, conservative and liberal alike, have claimed the speaker and his speech for God Himself.

With all due respect to Abraham Lincoln, who I believe was one of our greatest presidents, I'd like to remind Christiandom of a few things.

While Lincoln grew up in a very religious family, according to our knowledge, he was never a confessing believer. In fact he was quite skeptical as a young man and never joined the church. In spite of this, Lincoln was very familiar with the Bible and eloquent in religious language as a result of his upbringing and endless reading. As he grew older he attended church with his wife and certainly seemed to believe in the existence of an all powerful God.

Incredible power is embodied in a potent civil spirituality. The historians among us know what I'm talking about. A huge portion of Lincoln's lasting presence as a leader is sourced in his incredibly potent civil spirituality. This potent civil spirituality is woven into the fabric of his most famous speech..."that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom."


Quoting another blogger... "For the Christian, the new birth speaks of forgiveness, conversion, and eternal salvation through Christ alone. Lincoln’s new birth served the purposes of nation, civil spirituality, and war, however noble that war’s aims. Lincoln was probably the most skillful proponent of that kind of civil spirituality in American history. But what is lost when the new birth becomes tied to a nation’s history, rather than a redeemer’s saving work?"

Asking the right questions: Who is Truth? (cont.)

Almost two months ago I posted some of my thoughts on Truth as the person of Christ. I suggested that we should primarily ask "Who is Truth" rather than "What is truth." "What is Truth" then becomes a secondary question. If you haven't read that post you can read it here.

I've been wanting to respond to some feedback for a while, but blogging has taken a bit of a back burner for me of late. Several shared an extremely valid question that I would like to respond to.

(Summarized by me)"The argument for changing our primary question makes sense and is fine and dandy in theory. But...does it really change anything that matters? Is it really going to make a difference in the way we follow Jesus, or is it just high minded thinking and rhetoric?"

They say that pictures are worth a thousand words, so I'm going to respond with two pictures.


This is the Christian that primarily askes "What is truth."


















This is the Christian that primarily asks "Who is Truth."

War is a Business.

Today is 9-11...tragedy and war come to mind.

It is easy to forget that for a few powerful elite war is a business, and human lives are a commodity...much like the auction blocks of the African slave trade.

Christian rhetoric can bother the conscience at times, and I can feel the mold growing on my upper ganglia when I hear Christian language that subconsciously endorses war...

I have no desire to play the stock market, but I do receive daily updates on which stocks are going to be "hot." I subscribed to these updates simply because I teach economics and it gives me some great fodder for discussion.

I received this lead several days before anyone envisioned peace with Syria outside the use of force: 

"It`s your turn to make money on war! It`s the very time to do it!!!
As soon as the military attack Syria, oil prices will rise as well as MONARCHY RESOURCES, INC (M-ONK) share price. Start making dollars on Mon, Sep 9, 2013, get M-ONK shares."

Down right appalling, ridiculous, and contrary to the Kingdom of God!

I was reminded of something I read recently:

Chemistry Compilation

This post needs to begin with an apology to my 2012/2013 Chemistry class. I wanted to end the year on a fun and interesting note, so after our final test I assigned a final project. I divided the class into pairs...each pair was asked to prepare a basic Chemistry demonstration of some kind to present to an audience. With the busy schedule at the end of the year, I was never able to arrange a suitable audience, so we agreed that I would video the presentations and post them to my blog instead.

I promised to upload the compilation by early summer. No excuses....my head is now firmly in the sand, so no...I can't see the leaves changing color on the maple trees.

I'm not much for video editing, so what you see is pretty much exactly as it went down. However...the preparation week has been omitted for a number of good reasons.

For example: Note the volume of smoke created by Justin and Jordan in one of the final demonstrations on the video. Then imagine that demonstration occurring in a confined space known in the settled regions of Appalachia as a classroom....of course this is only in your imagination:)

After that week I noticed that I was super sensitive to anybody working beyond the perimeter of my peripheral vision (Not really). We all learned a lot along the way. I have some ideas for making the project even more effective next time and the students learned that teaching Chemistry might actually be harder than learning Chemistry....

They all did an excellent job...enjoy the video!

No Time to Tarry Here???

I pulled in my lane this evening hoping to finally catch up on some sleep...instead I found out that a dear sister from my church took her life today. Sandy is a single lady that has been attending my church for the last number of years...wrestling through this journey...

Now a song from one of my favorite children's choirs is playing through my head over and over....I thought I would share it. Life is a big matter of perspective....when one sees his life held up against eternity, he really has little time to be shoddy here....

Asking the right question: Who is Truth?

I've often thought that finding one's way through life is about asking the right questions as much as its about finding sexy answers. Those who don't ask the right questions rarely find good answers.

A recent email flurry with some friends found us hashing teachers. The best teachers seem to be people that understand that Truth is a person (Jesus). These teachers understand that Truth is not something you google, youtube, look up in an encyclopedia, or learn from the Hardy Boys. These teachers understand that they need to know Jesus and help their students know Jesus. Intelligence, extreme knowlege, or quick wit does not necessarily promote truth...in fact, it just may inherently lead students to ask the wrong question.

So, what is the wrong question? We may need to go back to one of the biggest literal perversions of Truth. When Jesus stood on trial before Pilate (a so called intelligent and learned man), He told Pilate that the reason He came into the world was to show us Truth, and anyone that is interested in Truth should simply tune in to to His voice (John 18:37)

Pilate promptly demonstrates his lack of understanding by asking an irrelevant question (but a question that is considered highly intellectual and intelligent today)...a question that the human race has been hammering into the bedrock over and over ever since. Of course who knows what part of the conversation the story may omit, but according to the account, Jesus does not even respond to Pilate's age old, "What is truth?"

If Pilate would have understood Jesus, he would have said something like, "you mean to tell me that YOU think YOU are Truth?" Instead PIlate arrogantly/stubornly saw himself as an intelligent guardian of truth....like he could just flip the right stone and find a worm...like he could put it in a box and send it to his neice for christmas....like he could command Jesus to go google it for him....like he could demand his children to go do it...like he could put it on his oatmeal in the morning like little raisins...like Jesus could tell him what it was with one sentence. If Pilate really wanted to know Truth he was going to have to take some splinters in the kneck...throw that cross on his should and walk with Jesus up that hill. (nobody is interested in cross bearing anymore it seems)

Like Pilate, we still think truth is a "thing," and we're still asking, "What is truth?" What would happen if we started asking "Who is truth?" If we started asking "Who is truth," is it possible that our young people would begin to see Aropostale, Nike, the media, Lebron James, Starbucks, McDonalds, Ford, The Mall and Walmart for who they really are?

Horse Riding Goat

My mom has pygmy goats and they recently multiplied by the motherload. I don't know how many baby goats we had running around, but there sure was a crowd of them.

One of them unexplainably started riding our miniature horse. My dad simply noticed the goat riding the horse one day....its not really an unusual sight anymore.

Chain Letters, Telepathy, and Haggai 1:5-6

 After receiving this chain letter for the 4th time this year I've decided it deserves comment. 

I think there are probably a lot of people out there like me that don't know what to do with these things when they get them....so....
  

"We're starting a collective, constructive, and hopefully uplifting Bible verse exchange. It's a one-time thing and we hope you will participate. We have picked those we think would be faithful, and make it fun. Please send an encouraging Bible verse to the person whose name is in position 1 below (even if you don't know him or her). It should be a favorite verse that has lifted you when you were experiencing challenging times.

Don't agonize over it--it is one you reach for when you need it: or the one that you always turn to.

 Position 1. kickinguphisheelsforJesus@gmail.com 

 Position 2. dancingtherumbawithhimthatisrisenfromthedead@yahoo.com  

 After you've sent the verse to the person in position 1, and only that person, copy this letter into a new email, move my name to position 1 and put your name in position 2. Only my name and your name should show when you email. Send to 20 friends BCC (blind copy).

If you cannot do this in five days, let us know so it will be fair to those participating. It's fun to see where they come from. Seldom does anyone drop out because we all need new ideas and inspiration. The turnaround is fast, as there are only two names on the list, and you only have to do it once.

May God bless you as you share God's Word in Christ."

First of all....what I like about these things:

1. We continually fall into the trap of under-estimating the power of scripture...even a single encouraging verse. We really should share scripture with each other more.

2. I often discover that I DON'T actually have a favorite bible verse on the tip of my tongue:(

3. There may be some elitism in us that doesn't want to identify with the crowd that loves these things. I find myself thinking that I serve God more "intelligently" which somehow begins to equal "deeper" in my prideful little mind. It is good for me to be called away from such foolish and sloppy thinking.  

Now...what I don't like:

1. Seriously why does this thing start with "We're....?" When you forward this thing to your friends It makes it sound like YOU were on the committee that cooked the goose.

2. Its a bit underhanded in that it doesn't explicitly tell you that your inbox could potentially be flooded with bible verses. Some life on life, friend to friend, encouragement is great...but swamping someone's inbox is another thing. Why not just copy and paste the whole Bible into an email and forward THAT to them?

3. So, do I need to write thankyou notes each time someone sends me their favorite scripture...especially if I have no idea who they are?

4. We tend to really get the whole thing of "means to an end" all screwed up. This little chain letter is a bit like the Conquistador's treatment of the Native Americans. The idea that all the pagans should be Christianized was a good idea...their means needed some reworking to say the least. The best way to Christianize a pagan country is simply not by killing and displacing all the pagans.

Likewise, sharing scripture is good idea. HOW you go about doing this actually DOES matter though. I'm not convinced that this little chain letter is the best means to the great end that it has in mind.

5. This is not "a one time thing." I've gotten this chain letter four times in the past 365 days.

6. Whoever gave birth to this little chain letter had a good, creative idea. The problem is that they have nothing in place to allow it to run its course, be a blessing, and then end when the time is right...how will this thing ever end unless breakthroughs in telepathy put email out of commission?


And now....I will share a bit of scripture with you that I like to keep in front of me. This verse helps me keep my focus when I begin to press* .

Haggai 1:5-6
Now this is what the Lord Almighty says:  “Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in

 it.”

* - a sports term used to describe the funk that teams get in when losing gets in their head and they can't get it out       

Russian Orthodox Music and Other Bieberish

Leaders that saw their people as an endlessly self replacing commodity....

Wars won by fighting more like ants or locusts than human beings...

Thousands of nameless people like you and I that simply "disappeared" under the Bolsheviks...then Stalin....

Starvation...

Orthodox Russian music bleeds all of this...it makes western pop music seem kind of childish, naive, ignorant, and inexperienced...like a bunch of "bieberish" you might say.

This has been a long time favorite of my family after attending a Russian concert years ago. Its called "The Little Bell." We have ironically turned the little bell into tolling wedding bells. We call it "Peace Prayer" and sing it as a blessing of Love at weddings. No disrespect to those who have sung the solos from Peace Prayer...I myself have been one of those soloists that have committed musical rape here...but the sound of Kremlin Capella is forever more in my head....

"Monotonously the little bell is sounding, and the dust on the way is stirred up a bit, and sadly over the plain field flows the song of my coachman. There was so much feeling in this song, so much feeling in the familiar tune, that in my cool breast my heart inflamed.  And I recalled other nights, and the fields, and the woods of my home, and into my eyes which had been dry so long a tear rose like a spark.   Monotonously the little bell is sounding, slightly echoing from afar, and my coachman fell silent, but the way in front of me is still so long, so long."

And who says high school choirs can't sing? Finally someone sings "Set Down Servant" authentically slow enough...

Does This Church Make Me Look Fat?

Even if every stalk on earth was a quill, there is no book that could possibly contain all the thoughts that went through my mind when I came across this book.

On a more serious note, I did pause and consider all the things that “church” has given me. If you stop for a moment and get off yourself, you might be surprised what church has given you. In the “OLD DAYS” church wasn’t just about pie in the sky spirituality….no sireee brothers and sisters.  Allow me to share 5 things that church gave me:

1.When I was young, church first taught me to “hold things.” There had better be yellow tears oozing out of your eyes if you had any chance of using the bathroom. To this day, I can chug coffee and speed past rest stops on the interstate for hours without even flinching.

2.Church also taught me, there is a time to sit really, really still and say nothing. My brother Shannon and I learned at an early age that my dad’s hand was pretty much a human vice-grip. He could reach over and clamp you on the leg just above knee…and the heads would stop bobbing.

3.I learned at a young age that it is possible to go from the shower to the church pew in one lightening quick fluid motion. I can still see my farmer friends sliding into the pew in front of me at break neck speed. Their hair would be slicked down and you could still see a big drop of water hanging from the bottom of each ear lobe...but they were on time by gum...our hair spray didn't make us late for church in those days!

4.Strange Sunday school classes were my nemesis for a number of years. My family visited other churches quite a bit when I was young...OH how I dreaded going to Sunday School. This is absolutely no joke...I would sometimes start crying Saturday night. Those motherly preschool teachers didn't help the situation. When I would start crying in Sunday school, they would come over and get all touchy and huggy...THATS WHAT I REALLY HATED! I eventually learned that God's people loved me and wouldn't hurt me...you know churches are some of the safest places.

5.Do you know who the cool people were in my church? In my mind those song leaders were real studs...always wanted to be one (a song leader that is). Church taught me to love singing...

Lymphoma and Leukemia Benefit Race

Why I Love Celebrities

At the core of Christ's example, is loving the unlovely. Do you want to know why I love celebrities? Its because they are unlovely.

The first thing I do most mornings when I get to school is to check my email to see if there are any important bits of information that I need in order to live my day the way it ought to be lived. Unfortunately I have to open my homepage before I check my email, sooo....

More often than not, I'm greeted with these kinds of headlines. Jenifer Lopez (in her 40's) dates young co-star (low 20's)...Brad Pitt wants a tattoo on his left ham-hock...Lady Gaga wears an outfit made out of meat...Check out which celebrities are getting a divorce for the 6th time...Labron James has a black-n-blue mark on his knee (boo-hoo)....Britney Spears is getting fat so she decides to pierce her belly button...this dingleberry is doing this, and that dingleberry is doing that! *

Every morning when I see these headlines over my cup of coffee....I'm encouraged and inspired anew to keep making a difference...to go out and be RETARDED for Jesus!(read sarcasm)

Look...if some 40 year old wants to date a 20 year old or tattoo his hind-end, I sure as Sam Hill (trying not to swear here) don't want to hear about it... AND...for God's sake don't put that childishness out there where the young people that I love and care about can see it. Its like force feeding your toddler pasted lima-beans drizzled in battery acid.

Don't get me wrong...I have no ill will toward these people or the media (in fact I love them) and they're not all like that, but the percentages sure aren't good. Thank the good Lord for the few celebrities that have matured into adults and know how to carry themselves and their money humbly...intending to make the world a better place.

When I see herds of mindless people screaming for autographs, I'm not sure who to feel bad for. I feel really bad for the celebrities, who's lives aren't even remotely what people crack them up to be (it has to be really disappointing to wake up some morning and discover this...its probably why there is so much drug abuse among the celebrity population). I also feel bad for the mindless herd that has nothing better to live for than a tacky old autograph.

Jesus wasn't joking when He said it is more blessed to give than to receive. The problem is that every morning the headlines tell me that its more blessed to be selfish, get lots of attention, get a lot of money, find a better partner, and ultimately receive more. The thing that gets my goat is how tempted I am to believe those headlines. You know...if nobody read that crap...they would quit putting it out there.

I DO love celebrities...I love them because they really do have pretty crappy lives and are pretty needy people. Its just so hard to love the unlovely...

Tip of the week: Before you open your homepage every morning, Read Acts 20:35 to remind yourself of what is really true.

* none of these examples are fact
** I've discovered all homepages are not created equal.   

13th Annual Just a Short Run

So I haven't been logging the miles that I should be and I'm definitely not in top running form. The great thing about this sport (distance running) is that success is not defined by your finishing times and PRs. Success is defined by running a race the right way...for the right reasons.

Some of you may know my friends Josh and Jean Nisley. They have been in a battle with Hodgkin's Lymphoma for almost a year now. Jean's younger brother Ted is in my 8th grade math class. Ted recently found a benefit race put on by the leukemia and lymphoma society. The 13th annual "Just a Short Run" is comprised of four events: a 5k run/walk, 8.1 mi run/walk, 1/2 marathon run/walk, and a 30K run. Ted and I are registered for the 1/2 marathon.

Am I prepared to PR? Not unless they provide snarling dobermans to nip at my hamhocks. Can I drag my carcass over the 1/2 marathon distance to help fund cancer research? You bet you beautiful little bobby socks!

Ted has never run 13.1 miles, but he's training. We won't be running for time...we'll be crossing the finish line together, hoping the Lord brings his hammer down on cancer! Of course if you're interested in doing some running or walking on March 30 you can come join us...and above all remember Josh and Jean in your prayers!

I'm not tech savvy enough to live stream the race, but I'll at least post a video of us finishing....

Race location:
North Park Boathouse
399 Pearce Mill Rd
Allison Park, PA 15101

Registration link:
http://www.race360.com/R61666206496

Goosebumps, Things I "USED" to do, and Church

I remember having an older friend that often talked about the things he "USED" to do. He left you wondering what his life was really like, back when he did all those things.

I remember wondering when I would start talking about the things I used to do. As human beings, our attention span is pretty blame short. The only thing that seems to keep our attention is ourselves. We love something for a while, but as soon as a few goosebumps disappear, we're trying to find something else that will give us more goosebumps. The only thing that consistently keeps our attention is giving ourselves goosebumps. Its no wonder we have trouble loving Jesus for a whole lifetime.

This week I had the rare opportunity to teach a 1st and 2nd grade art class. Even though I spent most of the time sharpening colored pencils, I was energized by the way they would bite their little lips and concentrate on mixing red, orange, and yellow. The pleasure they took in each of their little projects reminded me of the time when I used to love art. That night I went home and looked through my sketches. I used to love to draw, but I've hardly smelled graphite since high school. I never took any lessons...a trained artist would certainly find my drawings unimpressive. After looking for a bit, I found the last picture I drew just for fun. Its a shame, but I think I drew this picture when I was a senior in high school.... 

John Mark and I also went to the slopes with some of our students this past week. It has been almost 4 years since I've been skiing. The second time down the slope I tried a teensy weensy little baby jump and only managed to make the slope a very dangerous place for a brief moment. As I lay mangled in the snow, trying to spear other skiers with my ski poles as they passed, I tried to remember what it used to feel like to gracefully hit a jump at full speed...I decided the more hip, rugged, raw, brazen, out of control look was more in style now, so I would stick with that. Skiing definitely doesn't give me goosebumps anymore...except when I see trees(doesn't matter how far away they are).

Them be magniferous men and women...

So I ask myself, will I ever say, "I 'used' to be close to Jesus." How are my "Jesus goosebumps" doing? I hope goosebumps are giving birth to goosebumps.

On a more serious note, I have learned something that I think is true for most people. In order to remain motivated in anything there has to be energy flowing into me. When I'm training for a marathon it sometimes goes months between races. All my running energy is being expended...its going out of me, into my training. If I don't find another runner to run with...if I don't run in even a little 5k...if I don't hang out with other runners...If I don't find a way to let some running energy flow back into me...I lose my way and find no joy in running. Eventually running becomes a thing I "used to do."

Personal salvation/relationship with Christ is really emphasized in our day. I think its a bad emphasis. If you try to love Jesus by yourself, it will become a thing you "USED TO DO!" Paul warns us not to forsake the assembling of the Body, and he was no spring chicken...he knew something about human nature. Church matters...

One might argue that the Church is full of hypocrisy. As I heard one preacher say, "Its just the place for you...you'll fit in just fine!"

Who are the Needy?

Sorry ole' buddy...you don't know the poor as good as you think you do....that's what God has been telling me recently.

I rented an apartment from some friends the first several years that I taught school. Schedules and structure were unimportant in those days, but they were good days...days that were often kick started on toasted pop tarts and sparkling grape juice (I lived 30 ft from a bulk food store that kept sparkling grape juice on hand).

I lesson prepped at odd times of the day, jogged in the mountains and the streets of Shippensburg, sat above the turnpike tunnels (you wouldn't believe how bad the car exhaust smells right above the tunnels), read in coffee shops, and taught school during the day.

God seemed to use my unstructured lifestyle to bring me face to face with the needy. I got into some weird situations to say the least. One night I found an old man up in the mountains that had a stroke. He had been there for about 14 hrs, and wasn't doing so hot. Another night I rushed up on four guys in the middle of a drug deal on a back road. One of them made a half hearted attempt at grabbing me...he missed and there was a general diaspora. There are other stories like the unusual exchange I had with a character at the laundromat, and some intriguing conversations/relationships at the local basketball court. I felt like I was getting to know these people....

When I moved home, I moved back into the protection of a structured lifestyle...partitioned off from the needy. I try to combat this by picking people up by the road from time to time. I know its a bit dangerous in our day, but I don't have a family relying on me so....

I don't know how many people I've picked up in the last two years, but they all have their own story. Sometimes the pack of lies begins right away other times the stories seem sincere. Most recently I picked up a man that had just got out of prison. He was trying to walk 30 miles to his mom's house because she doesn't drive. He was trudgeing along in 15 degree weather with no coat...25 miles to go.

After hearing his reasoning, I realized that I just couldn't identify with his logic. A herd of thundering Bison couldn't induce me to start a 30 mi trek in his condition...the thought wouldn't even enter my mind.

That's when I realized how worldly I still am. I think like the world...I don't know people like Jesus knows them...I don't understand them like Jesus understands them. I confess this worldliness and repent of it. I am slowly coming to recognize that I am the needy. God brings the poor into my life...they are poking me...prodding me...being patient with me...sometimes spanking me...showing me what Jesus looks like....    

The Israelites: Teachers of All

As even Answers in Genesis admits, archaeological evidence of the miraculous destruction of Jericho is incredibly scanty. For years archaeologist have been raking the west bank in search of supporting evidence for the Israelite story.

As of last week the world now stands in shock while the archaeological community discovered they just might be searching in the wrong corridor! As the ice pack melted in North Western Pennsylvania a small group of private christian school students stumbled upon a scene emerging from centuries of glacial cover. The scene has the Board of Biblical Archaeology (BBA) and strict fundamentalist alike, sputtering for answers. Judge the scene for yourself.

  The stillness of the scene is quite haunting....a moment in time frozen on the very faces of those involved.

No one has answers! How did the Lanapi hear of the Israelite success, and what led them to believe they could experience the same success against a "Five Nations" palisade?

O Sinner Man Where You Gonna Run To?

We have been studying Mennonite migrations recently in my 11th and 12th grade World History class. Why have large groups of Mennonites migrated in the past? How did these migrations impact Mennonite culture? What happened to those who didn't move out with everyone else? Will there ever be cause to migrate again? If so, where would we go?

 In this light, I gave my students a little assignment: "Things get bad for us in the United States. As a group of people we decide this is not the best place for us. (One could argue that we should consider such a move right now on the basis that the Anabaptist people have begun to accept perverted American consumerism.) Do some research and recommend a suitable destination to the Mennonite community."

This is what they found. Of course the research is quite limited and not necessarily in depth. Still, using several criteria these were some of the re-occurring suggestions. Some of them even had google images of the land in their presentations.

1. Australia ( Tasmania, Victoria, Queensland,) 
Pros:
High GDP/ low poverty rate Good agriculture
Space
61.1% Christian
Dairy products are the 4th most valuable agricultural export
No military conscription
Already some Mennonites there
High health standards
Religiously tolerant

Cons:
HIGH COST OF LIVING
In debt (190 billion) (Sure does beat the slats out of 15 trillion)
Can be dry

2. Iceland (Hunavatnshrepopur), 
Pros: 
-Mostly Christian
-Strong sense of community: 98% of the population believe that they know somebody who would help them in a time of need
-Very beautiful
-Small population
-Located on a major trade route between North America and Europe
-2nd highest quality of life in the world
-4.8% unemployment
-Public school system demands that Christianity be taught
-Constitutional Republic
-No regular military forces

Cons: 
-Language
-Cold rough country
-Not much farmland/ main industry is fishing
-Friends with United States
-Small island/ limited space

3.French Guiana 
Pros: 
- Are welcoming Mennonites
-GDP per capita highest in South America
-Main religion is Roman Catholic
-Close to Brazil which is also a good option

Cons: 
-Soil is low in nutrients (they are working at changing this)
-Main language is French (Some English is spoken)
-Issues with illegal immigrants and clandestine gold prospectors

4. Brazil 
Pros: 
-Nice cities and lots of country
-Temperate climate/ good for working with the land
-2010 survey showed they had the highest religious and cultural tolerance.
-Places to escape to if need be. (mountains, swamps)
-Technologically advanced

Cons: 
-A country with a fair amount of world recognition
-Fairly populous

Late Season Archery

Over Christmas break I had the time and freedom to be in the woods a lot. With all the snow there is almost no place I would rather be. I wasn't hunting or videoing most of the time...just watching.

The video camera binge will pass soon as do most things with me, but there really are some incredibly sacred sanctuaries in the woods right now. I never video the sacred things...I don't want to ruin them. 

In that light, here's another video to demonstrate how idiotic we really are....

If you're wondering why I'm whispering when it doesn't seem like I would have to...you're definitely not a child of the woods. After several hours of snow muffled silence, even a whisper sounds like howling tires on hot summer blacktop.