search and rescue

there are a tremendous number of little things on my mind, and they've begun to wedge themselves in the crevices of the deeper things. in one way or another, they seemed worthy of being remembered, but i'm afraid i'll lose them inside my head. here's my attempt at search and rescue:

- at my first-ever massage yesterday, my masseuse rachel told me that the number of ounces of water you should drink per day is determined by your weight divided by two.

- semantics definitely set first impressions, but how important are they? i've been discussing this issue with my roommate who has been a bit adverse to the idea of "megachurch," citing the lack of personal attention and intimacy that could be better found in smaller house churches. i argued for the importance, nay, the necessity, of life groups which offer that commitment and intimacy regularly, but i'm not sure she was buying it. then while searching the mars hill church website the other day, i discovered that they refer to their life groups as "house churches." excited, i brought it up to bethany later, and she agreed that that seemed like language she could get on board with ... i guess i have to wonder, how picky do we have to be? i understand the importance of language, but is this just a matter of being PC? or is this the new wave of Christianesely Correct?

- speaking of bethany, she made an excellent point the other day that's helped me better define how i feel about short term missions: "while long-term missions seem to be an investment in a people group or a place, short-term missions are an investment in an individual by those who financially and prayerfully support him or her."

- i've always been a little shy of mega churches, but i have to admit that The Volunteer Revolution by Bill Hybels of Willow Creek has certainly taught me to be less judgmental. I highly recommend it. A little highlight: "It must break God's heart when people come to church with a consumer mindset, content to eat and run. 'Serve me,' they say. 'Teach me. Pray for me. Fix my kids. Counsel my spouse. And if you don't do all of this up to my standards, I'll go down the street and see if another church will pay better attention to me.' I've learned that you can't possibly build a God-honoring church with a congregation full of consumers."

- in just one night of brief sharing, the 6th grade girls i get to volunteer with have changed my outlook on middle schoolers again. when everyone's turn at hot seat begins with the same question, "what boys do you like?" it's like you can almost see how quickly the next few years will go. i can remember liking tony kohmann in 7th grade and walking through the park by my house with him, his friend lenny smoking only yards behind us. and that feels like yesterday. it makes me so excited to get to walk through life with these girls, too.

- and speaking of junior high, i read a quote today about middle school ministry that i loved:
"when our junior high director tries to draft people into youth ministry, he doesn't say, 'i know all junio high kids have a frozen brain for 3 years and they dress weird and they're generally obnoxious. but they need adult supervision. so would you bite the bullet and give me a little help?' he says, 'i've committed my life to a group of people who are in the most crucial three-year period of life. MTV goes after them. most of the marketing for offbeat products and destructive lifestyles is directed toward them. they haven't yet developed the inner spine to make their own choices, so they're very impressionable. if you want to make a huge impact on vulnerable kids whose future hinges on the decisions they make today - if you really want to make a difference with your life! - then join our junior high ministry.'"

- on another note, jon suggested i record a list of all the unspoken rules i hold (and have had to break since dating him) regarding dating relationships. i've had to address them a couple of times, and really don't know where they came from. but here's my list thus far:
1. all couples should look alike.
2. all men should cry if they're really in love.
3. when standing across the room at a party, all boyfriends should find moments when they can wink at their girlfriends across the room ... if they're really in love.
4. even if it means being late for something else, boyfriends should make sure that their significant others never feel rushed ... if they're really in love.
5. giving up sleep for the sake of talking well into the night should be something men do joyfully for their girlfriends ... if they're really in love.
6. he should state regularly how lucky he feels to be dating his girlfriend ... if he's really in love.
7. he should be happy to watch chick flicks with you because it means he gets to cuddle with you while watching a movie ... if he's really in love.
man, just writing all of these out makes me laugh out loud and feel a little foolish. i think i watched way too many girly movies in all my years. and listened to diamond rio's "what a beautiful mess" one too many times. ah, well, i'm learning .... :)

anyway, that's it for now. i'm off to journal a bit. thanks for letting me clear my head.