The Mattster's Messenger

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

Christian bloggers...

I recently participated in a Christian blogger survey put out through Rick Warren and purpose driven. Below is a list of all the blogs of the participants of the survey, I will have some of the results later I am told. If you want to, take some time to check out some of these sites. I do not endorse or know the content of each of them, but you may want to peruse some of them to see what our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world are up to. Here is the list...

Monday, February 05, 2007

weight loss battle 07- 1 month in

Well today was judgement day again, time for the monthly official weigh in and new measurements, and I have to admit I was somewhat surprised yet encouraged. As it relates to weight, my official weigh in was 337.2 which is right at 5 lbs lost for the month. When I started this year I was at 342.2. While I did not lose as much "weight" as I had wanted to this month, the numbers are actually a little deceiving. My BMI went down almost a whole percentage point, which is great meaning I am becoming more active and my metabolism is going up. The best part though was that my body fat percentage went down 4.6% equalling out to 18lbs of body fat lost...so basically I "lost" 18 pounds of body fat, converting 13 lbs of that into muscle which is great. To say the least I am encouraged! So one more month down and a long way to go, but we'll get there! Gotta run, I'm off to the gym since all I did this morning was weigh in. Thanks for your prayers and encouragement and if you are fighting the battle with me, hang in there WE can do it!

Thursday, February 01, 2007

Chris Sligh Debuts on American Idol (Season 6)

OKay so here is the other guy I am pulling for this season. Anyone that can make me laugh...AND sing is worth a vote, hopefully at least one of these guys will make it through from Hollywood. Plus this guy seems pretty cool. Thoughts?

Jury Duty...served!

So I forgot to post that I didn't get picked for jury duty. I am not sure what I can say about the case other than it was a civil case, and I'll leave it at that just to keep myself from any possible trouble. So I guess they didn't like my opinions about cases similar to this one so it disqualified me. I honestly wasn't trying to get out of it, I kind of wanted to serve, but I felt I need to be honest, since I was under oath I guess...but here's a quick summary of how the day went...

Wake up...snooze...wake up...realize I better get out of bed and get ready since they make it very clear there are "legal ramifications" if I don't show.

Drive downtown, park the car in a specified location and catch a trolley to the courthouse...yeah really makes me feel like I should be nervous about serving. Get the car parked, catch the trolley, have fun watching people who OBVIOUSLY don't want to be there

Get to the courthouse, go through the security...again making me feel REALLY confident about being here and surviving, proceed to check in.

Stand in line, check in, go to LARGE room with uncomfortable chairs hoping for some type of coffee or breakfast...YEAH no go on that one

Listen to my stomach growl realizing I should have eaten something since they didn't provide anything...also realizing my eyes were very heavy since I hadn't had that nectar which brings life in the morning...COFFEE!!! The only option was vending machine coffee which is just gross.

try to stay awake then greeted by fellow church member who was selected for duty also, talk about youth group and church life...able to stay awake for the time being.

Greeted by over zealous judge and court workers who tell us how happy they are that we are serving...as if we had a choice (but remember I DID want to serve just this once)...told to watch really outdated video about jury service...almost fell asleep

Really outdated video interrupted by a need for 40 jurors...Lord please let me be one so I don;t have to sit in these really uncomfortable chairs...YES I'm picked, but did I mention how much I hate being called Mr. W.M. McKee (they could at least read the whole name)

Proceed to court room and answer many questions in front of the judge, attorneys AND clients-which was really uncomfortable since I am sure the clients thought we were judging them, I know we had to do it, but I sure hope these people who I have never met and never will again most likely don't think I am a bad person because of my answers, but I had to be honest.

After 2 hours of questions informed I would not be selected for this jury...told to proceed back to really large room with uncomfortable chairs. Finally cleared to grab some lunch (did I mention my stomach was growling?) and be back at 1:15 to await more orders (in really uncomfortable chairs).

1:15-nothing, except a bunch more people who just arrived back from not being selected, they were cleared until 2...and us...told to wait again in really large room with uncomfortable chairs and no complimentary drinks until then!

2:00-nothing except a sore butt

2:15-see above

2:30-finally some news-my group will "not" be needed and cleared to go, with full credit of service for one more year!

So no comfortable chairs, no complimentary drinks, and a few hours later and I have fulfilled my civic duty for the year...is this really how it is supposed to work? I love this country!

So until next year...no more jury duty!

Saturday, January 27, 2007

weight loss battle 07-3 weeks in

I'll post this tonight, instead of Monday since Friday has been my official weigh in day. I went into the gym yesterday morning and jumped on the scale and it is official. I am in the 330's! The official weigh in was 338.6, which equates to two more pounds lost! Here's to never seeing 340 again!

Thursday, January 25, 2007

American Idol Memphis 6 Auditions - Jason Sundance Head

Okay, so here is my pic for American Idol 6. I know it is early, but I think he's got a great voice-PLUS I've been told we look alot alike (when I have my long goatee-which I am working on again). My phone was ringing off the hook after his audition. So here's to my twin-Sundance, you got my vote!

Monday, January 22, 2007

weight loss battle 07-2 weeks in

So I am now two weeks into this year's weight loss battle. I have officially been to the gym 9 times in the last two weeks (5 the first week and 4 last week). I am feeling better and seem to have more energy. I am still struggling with the motivation to go to the gym each day, but so far I have been consistent. I really need to do two things-make sure I eat breakfast, and make sure I don't go back to sleep after Meg goes to work. I think if I make myself go to the gym then I may be more motivated throughout the day.

As it relates to weight loss, I have only lost two pounds, but it is two pounds, which means I have not gained. I just need to figure out what I need to do. I have been trying to cut calories and eat healthier, but maybe I need to step it up even more.

So the battle continues, but for this time, a victory-more energy and two pounds down. I still have 3 weeks until the 14th of February to meet my first goal of 14 by the 14th, so I need to keep busy!

Friday, January 19, 2007

Urgent Prayer need!

If you are a graduate of the WU, you may or may not have heard about this yet. There is an urgent prayer need for one of our own, for someone who graduated around the same time Megan and I did. Some of you may remember Josh and Shelly (Syswerda) Buck. They are pastors in MI. I got word vial email tonight that he was in a swimming accident yesterday and is currently not doing well. He is not breathing on his own right now, but is alert and they are not sure if he will be able to walk again or not. If you want all of the latest information go to his church's website www.greenhouseministries.org. They are keeping people updated. Please pray for them, especially for Shelly. If you know them, you know this is not their first bout with tragedy. We all know God answers prayers and He can move in miraculous ways here as well. Please pray for them over these next few critical days!

Thursday, January 18, 2007

SCRUBS...

My wife and I love Scrubs...it never seems to get old. It is one of the most original, random, and funny shows on television right now and I think tonight was perhaps the funniest episode I have ever seen. Many shows have tried to pull off a musical episode in the past (a la Buffy) and they have been mediocre at best, but tonight's Scrubs show was amazing. I don't think I have ever laughed so hard. As soon as I can get it, it will be on my ipod so I can laugh again. Anyone else see it? What did you think?

Never underestimate the power of an excited teenager...

I should have known, it's happened before, it'll hopefully happen again, but my how soon I forget.

I remember the first time it happened, we had planned to go to King's Island for a day in the fall. I had said we needed to have 10 to make the trip worthwhile...no one signed up except for Josie. I told her we couldn't go because we didn't have enough people. She asked for one more day-the result was a need for additional drivers as it seemed we took half of the sixth grade class from Jackson Middle School.

It happened again on New Year's Eve. I said we needed to have five to make the trip worthwhile to go to the lock-in (secretly hoping we wouldn't have enough since I hate lock-ins and I wanted to be fully alert for the bowl games on New Year's Day). We had three-John asked for one more day-the result, eight of us going and one tired youth pastor the next day.

All of these things were worth it-after the fact, and didn't always revolve around something I really wanted to do.

Well, it happened again last night...

Let me give you the back story...two weeks ago I found out that the teens were inheriting the Sunday night service. We have mostly older folks coming, but a few young adults as well. Since we have been pushing small groups we have talked about (emphasis on talked about) making the Sunday evening service a teen service and allowing those who aren't in a small group to still come to the teen service (it's taking shape and I don't know exactly what the end product will look like-most likely some small group discussion after the service). I wanted to launch it in the fall, but was told it was starting last Sunday night (oh the joy of being a staff pastor sometimes). Well needless to say I wasn't really thrilled, we haven't really had the time to put together a teen praise band yet, but we gave it a go Sunday night. The result...missed cues and singing off key, but you know what...at least some of the students really seemed into the worship. It wasn't bad for a first go around of it.

Fast forward to last night-we had our first official practice with the teen band (which right now consists of more young adults and adults than teens, but it is a start). I didn't know what to expect, but it all came together, and honestly it is working out great. There is excitement and I think in a few weeks, we may be ready to do an AM service as well.

So the moral of the story is this-Never underestimate the teenagers you work with. Sometimes they will surprise you, IF you'll let them.

Lord, please forgive me for my lack of trust and preconceived notions of failure. I need your help with this. Help me to see the potential in my young people's lives and be willing to trust them to try it even when I think it will flop. Forgive me for almost missing opportunities that have been life changing (for the teens AND me). Thanks for not giving up on us,and please let this new excitement be the fire I've been praying for! You're awesome and I'm not!

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

STOOPID WINDOWS!!!

I can't tell you what to do, but if I were you, I would wait for awhile before upgrading to the latest version of Internet Explorer (I think it is IE7?). I downloaded it with my regular updates a week or so ago and I have had nothing but problems since. It locks up and I have to send the error report several times a day. I am guessing they are just trying to still work out bugs and stuff, but it is frustrating. I don't think there is anything on my part causing it, but I just want it fixed. I'm beginning to think I should have bought a mac...oh well, computers-can't live with em' can't live without em'.

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

It's back!

After months of waiting, American Idol has returned, and what a better way to return that to exploit the lack of talent. I know I shouldn't laugh at some of the people, but it is amazing what people will go to in order to try and make the show. It is hysterical. On a serious note, I don't think this year's winner is from Minneapolis. I didn't see anyone that really stood out. Anyone wanna disagree?

Monday, January 15, 2007

Robert E Lee Day...

No kidding! I would like to wish you all a happy Robert E Lee day. What am I talking about? Well of course we all know today is MLK day and we have that to thank for no mail, no banks, and no school-BUT down here, just a little west (8 miles to Alabama) they don't celebrate MLK day, they celebrate Robert E Lee day. I am definitely a Yankee living in a confederate world. It's funny because tonight on the news they will interview southern aficionados about how "similar" these two men were. It is funny to watch. Well I am off to celebrate a day off with Megan!

The south will rise again?

Thursday, January 11, 2007

Eating my humble pie...

I'm eating my humble pie and it sure doesn't taste that good. This picture is for the Gator fans, and I suppose all the Michigan fans who I harassed when the Buckeyes beat them...Oh well, such is life. Note for the future-don't make a wager you don't want to keep. I have to wear this shirt on Sunday morning. Oh well, it's all in fun and it's just football. I still bleed Scarlett and Grey! Here ya go...

Go Bucks!

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

Body weight vs. Body mass

Well today was judgement day at 123fit. I made it through the whole circuit this time training at least at 80% of my target heart rate which is good in order to burn calories and lose weight. The hard part today was stepping on their scale and getting measurements and all of that. The good thing is I haven't gained anything. I am still at 342. The disturbing thing though was that my BMI was 47.1 and my body fat was 60% so I have a long way to go. My measurements were about what was expected, but the body fat part was a shocker. The best part though was that I know I'll never see those numbers again. When I get measured again next month I know I'll weigh less and my numbers will improve.

It's a long journey ahead, but I'll get there with the Lord's help!

Gator Bait it is...

Well I guess we all know the answer now, this year OSU is gator bait. They said that they key to beating the Buckeyes was going to be shutting down Troy Smith and the offense. They said the SEC was the toughest conference and the Buckeyes didn't stand a chance against an SEC team. Well I would say that the gators definitely shut down the Buckeye offense and this year the SEC gets the title of being the best conference...not to mention how good Chris Leak and the gator offense did as well. So I have to eat my humble pie now and admit that the team I have been bragging about all season got beat. The gators played the better game that is for sure and 41-14 is a pretty rough defeat. That's okay though if you are going to lose I guess the best place to lose is in the national championship game. I'll still wear my scarlet and grey with pride, sing Carmen Ohio at the top of my lungs and say GO BUCKEYES....and hey if nothing else, we beat Michigan-again this year. Great job gators you deserved it, and great job Buckeyes for an awesome season regardless!

What sucks is now all we have is the senior bowl and aloha bowl and then we have to wait until September for more college ball-I hate that! The cool part is the senior bowl is local (Mobile) and it'll be on TV here, but unfortunately I won't make it due to a district event which also hoovers as Troy Smith one of the QB's this year.

Well I'm off to sulk a bit-maybe even cry some (nah probably not that)...but again I say GO BUCKS!!!

Sunday, January 07, 2007

Weight loss goals for the year...

So I have been doing some networking with some other people online who are trying to lose weight as well. One of the guys Lou came up with this plan for weight loss for the year. I think it is manageable and so I am jumping on board with these goals for the year as well. Anyone else interested? Here is the breakdown...

14 pounds by Valentine's day-5 weeks to do so

15 pounds by Easter (April 8th)-7 weeks to do so

10 pounds by Mother's day (may 13th)-5 weeks to do so

10 pounds by July 4th-7 weeks to do so

15 pounds by Halloween (October 31st)-15 weeks to do so

6 pounds by Thanksgiving (November 22nd)-3 weeks to do so

8 pounds by Christmas-4 weeks to do so

2 pounds by New Year's Day-1 week to do so

The pounds and dates are semi random due to holiday's, but it seems manageable. If I am able to do this I will finish 2007 having lost 80 pounds. That would put me close to my target weight of 250. Long term I am wanting to get as low as 200, but that will be for a later date. Anyone else interested? What do you think, are these manageable goals?

Book Review: Ministry Mutiny

Book Review: Ministry Mutiny by Greg Stier

Did you ever have one of those books where you felt like you were reading your own life story as if someone had been secretly watching you and chronicling your life as you live it? Well that was the case with this book. In Ministry Mutiny, we read the story of Ty-a veteran youth leader who has had enough of shallow youth ministry with what seems to be little to no results. With resignation letter in hand Ty heads off to what will be his last youth network meeting where he meets Tony, a youth leader that will change his life forever. Tony reintroduces Ty to timeless youth ministry principles that are too often overlooked in today's youth ministry. As the two meet throughout the week the reader is introduced (or reintroduced) to these Biblical principles that are still as relevant today as they were when they were modeled through Jesus' ministry. This book is a must read for all youth ministers of any tenure. It is a great book full of encouragement, and whether you're a rookie or a vet you'll find a lot of great things in this short book that is sure to be a quick read for you. Check it out if you haven't already. Honestly, this book really couldn't have come at a better time in my ministry. Most of you know I've been fighting discouragement and have thought several times about throwing in the towel, and this book really was like reading my own life story. There are six principles in the book and I don't want to give them away, but these principles really opened my eyes to some changes that I need to make and also encouraged me to stick it out for the long haul. I'm not a huge fan of Greg Stier and Dare 2 Share Ministry but this book was truly a Godsend. Check it out if you get the chance!

Saturday, January 06, 2007

The new gym...

So Meg and I decided not to rejoin our gym from last year. I liked it, she didn't so much as she really didn't feel like they wanted to help us get in shape there. It was more like come work out and we'll help if you need us, but unless you pay extra you're on your own. So instead we found a new gym that is run by a Christian family here in town called 123...fit. It just opened up and is a circuit training facility similar to Curves, but it is for men and women. It's really cool-we really feel welcome there and there seems to be a genuine concern for the fitness of everyone there. They are going to set up a fitness tracker with us and we get weighed and measured every month to track our progress, and they are also there to answer all of our questions at no extra charge. So we gave it our first run today and needless to say, it kicked my hind quarters. The goal is to work around the circuit from machine to machine every thirty seconds keeping your target heart rate in the proper area. Let's just say I had no problem keeping mine where it needs to be and I realized just how out of shape I am. Even though I walked three 5k's last year I have a long way to go yet. I am excited about this new opportunity and I think it will be a valuable asset to my weight loss journey. If you are looking for a gym to join I would recommend looking into these facilities and see if they have one around you. The cost is reasonable and the benefits are awesome!

Friday, January 05, 2007

Dear grandma...

Dear Grandma,
Meg and I went to see our movie tonight. I know you and I had originally planned on seeing it together since it was one of our favorites. You know which one I am talking about, Charlotte's Web. Of course we used to watch the cartoon version and this one was live action, but I remember those times well. I even remember you reading some of it to me at bed time whenever we would stay over at the house. I'll never forget those times. I always looked forward to coming over when Charlotte was on. It seemed like it was always close to Christmas and I remember we would come over in our pajamas ready to watch it. You'd pop some popcorn and we would sit there together watching it with the wood stove crackling in the background and the lava lamp bubbling which created just enough light. I still have the lava lamp and turn it on almost every night as it reminds me of you.
I really wish you could have been there with us tonight to see Charlotte's Web, I think you would have liked it. Although you weren't there to see it with us, know that as we watched it I was thinking of you and all the great times we had. I miss you grandma, Christmas wasn't the same without you this year, but I am glad you aren't suffering anymore. Well this has been long enough. I just wanted to let you know I miss you and was thinking of you tonight.
Love you,
-Matt

YES!

So I guess I am officially an adult now. I opened the mail today and da da da...JURY DUTY! It looks like the last week of this month I have been selected for jury duty. I guess I must have finally grown up, that or my lucky number came up. So you must now refer to me as Juror #162. YES!

Thursday, January 04, 2007

#4b. What is a Buckeye? (OT)

Last one...we may not be able to describe what a Buckeye is, but we're still gonna eat some gator come Monday night! GO BUCKS!!!

OSU vs UF #3: The Gift...

Another one for the gator fans...GO BUCKS!!! Nice slap at Michigan in there too.

OSU vs UF #1: Heisman

For the Florida fans...Go Buckeyes!!! This one is honor of our great QB Troy Smith-Hesiman winner baby!

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

National Champs or Gator Bait?

Well we are just five days out from the big game. Soon we will know if the Buckeyes are national champs or gator bait. You all know what my vote is and either way I am still pulling for a playoff system as win or lose there will still be one undefeated team in the form of Boise State who I think even though they were a Cinderella team deserved some type of shot. Oh well, the future will tell I guess. Well in honor of the big game I'm going to post a few thoughts throughout the week including this little pic I put together to promote the game. We are busy getting the house ready for the game...

Let me explain a little bit about the "gator bait" hat. It is obvious that my mom and dad's lab is not an Ohio State fan (that or she just got mad because we left her and Jackson alone for awhile) as she chewed up my good hat...thus the reason I have a brand new one, but I thought it made for a good picture. 5 days and counting, there will be more posts throughout the week promoting all things Buckeye...

GO BUCKS!!!

Tuesday, January 02, 2007

The 100th post!

Wow I can't believe it, post number 100 my first blog milestone...so what to write about? How bout my final project for my master's degree. I opened up the syllabus today and found this....it's a how to and sample proposition...wow I think I'm gonna be sick:

Overview of Workshop One
In this workshop you will draft a project proposal which you will submit to the facilitator by midnight Sunday (i.e., Sunday night). S/he will then review it and give you feedback by the beginning of the next workshop so that you can begin on good footing to plot your research method in greater detail next week. The goal is to have your proposal fully approved by the end of the second week of class.
The basic outline of a project proposal includes the following sections:
1. An Introduction
In the introduction you will give background to the problem you are going to address in the project.
2. Statement of Purpose
If you do not identify the problem you are going to address clearly, then you are not likely to solve it very well. In a paragraph or two, you will present the purpose of your project.
3. Review of the Literature
In this section you will identify the most important books, articles, and all around resources available on the topic you plan to address.
4. Research Method
In this section of your proposal you will set forth a synopsis of how you plan to go about addressing the problem at hand, including what the chapters of your project will be.

Statement of Purpose
Why Begin Here?
You might wonder why we would write the "Statement of Purpose" before we have written our introduction. Believe it or not, book writers of all kinds often write their introductions last or at least revise their first drafts significantly after they have finished the bulk of their writing. One reason for this procedure is that you do not always know where your research will take you when you start a project. Only when the project is done do you have a full sense of what you are actually introducing!
In the same way, while you will write your project proposal this week, you will not go back and turn it into the full "Introduction" of the project until near the end of our eight week pilgrimage, after you have written up the rest of the project.

What is a Project?
A project identifies a problem that it then goes on to solve. In contrast, a standard thesis asks a question that it then proceeds to answer on paper. Given the nature of this program, it seemed fitting to its designers to have you do a project rather than a thesis. So in these eight weeks you will 1) identify a problem and 2) solve it.
The way in which you solve a problem varies depending on the nature of the problem. If the problem is concrete, then solving it will involve doing real time things. If the problem is a lack of information on a topic or a need for a certain kind of curriculum, then the solution can be on paper. Since we are only together for these eight weeks, it will be key for you to pick a problem to solve that you can address sufficiently by the time the course ends.

Crafting a Project "Statement of Purpose"
"A problem well defined is a problem half-solved." I do not know who first said this dictum, but it is right on target. If you cannot identify the problem you wish to solve, then you are not very likely to solve it. If you do not know what is broken, you are not likely to get it fixed.
The first step in crafting your proposal is to be able to state your problem clearly and succinctly enough for it to pass. This portion of your proposal need not be long. You will have already provided the background to the problem in the introduction portion of your proposal. So what we are looking for here is one or two paragraphs in which you state the problem in its most basic terms.
Here are the main characteristics of a good problem to address:
1. It should be focused enough to address adequately in less than 100 pages and within the eight weeks of this course. "World Hunger" is thus far too broad a problem for a project of this scope.
2. It should not be so obscure that you will not be able to find any resources or so little a problem that it is not really a problem. In general, the narrower the topic the better. On the other hand, you would not want to write on "The Difficulties of Getting Food through Customs in Tibet" unless you actually have access to some resources you can bring to bear on such a subject: people to interview, online or hard documents to read, etc... Further, is hunger a big problem in Tibet and is it really hard to get food through customs?
3. It should be graduate level. For a masters degree, research work does not have to be completely original, but it should be insightful and challenging above the undergraduate level. If you are going to write on "Getting Essential Resources to Churches in Disaster Areas," you should address the issue with competence beyond that of a college student.
Here is a sample "Statement of Purpose" I have drafted myself:
"This project will address the problem of how to relate to openly gay teenagers who are attending a youth group. Should they be asked not to attend if they are practicing? What if they are not practicing? How should the issue be addressed with the rest of the group? What biblical teaching is relevant to the problem, and how do Christian principles best play themselves out in contemporary practice? The rest of the project will address these issues."

Draft a Statement of Purpose in Groups
Take a moment to think of a problem you might want to tackle for these next eight weeks. Be sure to pick one that interests you and is relevant to your ministry--it will be easier to stay motivated! When you have thought of one, post it in your Group Folder. Be sure to comment on your fellow group members' work.

The Introduction to the Proposal
What Goes in the Introduction?
Now that you have some clarity on the purpose of your project, go ahead and draft an introduction. The purpose of the introduction to the proposal is to give us some sense of why you are doing this project. Why is it significant and why is it significant to you? Lead us from having no sense of what you are doing to the statement of purpose that sets the course for the whole project.
A good introduction will be like any good piece of writing. It will be interesting and to the point. It should not ramble on and on. On the other hand, this part of the proposal can be the most personal part of the introduction--within reason. This is a public document, and there are things to say and things not to say... Or if you prefer, you can take the part of a "scientist" analyzing a situation.
After you have provided important background to the project and its problem, your introduction should end with a clear and succinct statement of the problem. The Statement of Purpose tells us what you plan to do in your project. The statement of the problem identifies clearly the problem that gives rise to that purpose. All in all, such an introduction may be 2-4 pages in length, give or take.

Some Sample Thoughts
Without writing a full sample introduction, let me suggest how I would go about introducing a project that aimed to help a segment of a church population enslaved to such debt that it was causing significant problems in every area of their life.
I might start off with a story, maybe a true one with the names changed or perhaps a hypothetical one. I introduce a couple that perhaps ends up divorced or has significant marital troubles because they are so strapped with credit card debt that they cannot function at all. Maybe he or she works two or three jobs. Far from being able to tithe, they cannot pay basic bills like electricity or gas. Problems spill over to the children not only because of the stress level in the home but because their parents are far too busy to give them any time.
I might then give some "starter statistics," some basic numbers on how many Americans are in similar situations. I might then generalize about how such problems quickly affect the spiritual domain of a family's life. Indeed, there are any number of consequences that are part of the spiritual domain to which the church should minister.
I would then end with a clear statement of the problem, something like, "Clearly the current economic state of so many Christians today is having an overwhelmingly negative effect not only on the spiritual lives of the individuals, but on marriages, children, and broader church families as well." The statement of purpose would then follow.

Write your Introduction!
Now try your hand at writing a sample introduction. Post it in your Group Folder. Read the introductions of the other group members and learn from all the feedback!

Plotting a Method for Your Research
Getting from A to B
You can often get from one place to another by more than one path. So it is with a project. There is often more than one way to get from A to B. Next week you will write an entire chapter to plot in detail the entire course of action you will take to solve your problem. In the meantime, your proposal needs to give us a good taste of your method.

The Two Basic Types of Research
There are two basic ways to do research: qualitative methods and quantitative methods. Quantitative methods, as the name suggests, deal with things that you can quantify. Accordingly, such methods are particularly useful in sciences of all kinds, fields like chemistry or medicine. But any minister who has ever quoted Barna realizes that you can do quantitative research of a sort in relation to ministry as well.
For example, a person can use surveys to generate data for quantitative research. If you want to know whether there is any correlation between a youth minister's marital status, the number of years in youth ministry, or any number of other factors with a struggle with Internet pornography, a person might survey a sufficient number of youth ministers in order to gather appropriate data.
WARNING: This last comment leads us to an important warning. Very few of those taking this class will have taken a course in statistics and will not be qualified to conduct this kind of research on a sufficient scale within the allotted time for your data to be valid.
For example, the smaller the "sample" surveyed, the less accurate your survey is likely to be. In addition to basic averages, you would need to be able to figure out things like "standard deviations" from the average. You would need to take into account the fact that not everyone returns surveys. You would need to have some expertise in crafting questions so that your questions do not bias the kinds of answers you get.
Because of the constraints of time and expertise, most of you in this course will want to conduct more qualitative research, research that is more anecdotal than quantifiable. Such research is especially relevant to things involving people. Thus surveys can provide information for qualitative as well as quantitative research. The interview is an even more impressionistic source of qualitative information.
Thus surveys and interviews can provide you with useful solutions to problems that are not conclusive, but are nevertheless persuasive. Let us say you are addressing the matter of how best to counsel someone who has lost a young child in a sudden tragedy. You might survey a number of pastors, youth pastors, etc. who have faced this experience. You might ask them what courses of action seem to have worked best with certain types of people and/or situations. The answers you get will not be conclusive, but they may point you in fruitful directions.
Let me suggest finally that these kinds of research tools can serve both to 1) clarify the problem and 2) point toward solutions. If you wish to use research tools of this sort, you should clarify in your mind exactly which your tools are meant to do, including the possibility that they might contribute to both.

Staging
Your write up of this part of your proposal should present the "staging" of your project. What steps are you going to take to solve the problem your project is addressing. Accordingly, this section will present 1) the steps you are going to take, with a brief description and 2) a timetable for their completion.
This timetable may or may not coincide exactly with the workshops of this course. For example, let us say that your project has to do with helping teens in your district (or some similar group) set physical boundaries when dating. Let us also say that you want to survey the teens of your district or interview selected teens for some qualitative sense of how far they are going and under what circumstances. It will take some time to collect and organize this data.
In the meantime, you will be writing chapters in accordance with the course schedule. For example, you will probably want a chapter on the biblical and theological foundations of Christian sexual boundaries. While you are waiting for your data to come in, you might spend Week 4 writing such a chapter as your chapter 4. In Week 5 you might then write chapter 5 to present your observations from your interviews and surveys along with the kinds of observations you might have found in books or other studies. Chapter 6 might then present lesson plans or guidelines for pastors or it might document actual events that took place in your local congregation (videos or tapes might even accompany your project).
Although in your final product, the research method chapter will follow your literature review, we will write that particular chapter next week so that you can get right to work implementing it. You will want to send out any surveys or arrange any interviews you plan to conduct as soon as possible so that you have the data back as soon as possible. In general, you will want that information available to process by the fifth week of the course or sixth week at the latest.
So the staging of your project might look something like the following:
Week 1: Write proposal and submit to facilitator for comments.
Week 2:
1. Send out surveys to all the district youth ministers
[You would also provide in your proposal some general sense of what those youth ministers will be told to do, whether you are going to contact them personally, etc...]
2. Arrange youth event at my church with all district invited for Week 6: "Setting Sexual Boundaries."
[In your proposal, give us some sense of what this event will be like, what will be involved, how it will relate to your research in these next few weeks, etc...]
3. Write Research Method chapter with actual survey, rationale, detailed instructions, etc... Submit to facilitator.
4. Submit edited proposal to facilitator for final approval.
Week 3:
1. Write Review of the Literature and submit to facilitator.
2. Make any necessary edits to Research Method chapter and resubmit to facilitator.
3. Conduct key interviews with person x, y, and z.
Week 4:
1. Write chapter 4: "Biblical and Theological Foundations of Sexual Boundaries." Submit to facilitator.
2. Make any necessary edits to Review of the Literature chapter and resubmit to facilitator.
3. Contact youth ministers to remind them that the surveys are due in the next two weeks.
Week 5:
1. Data is due. Collect and compile data.
2. Make any necessary edits to "Biblical and Theological Foundations of Sexual Boundaries" chapter and resubmit to facilitator.
3. Write chapter 5: "The State of Sexual Boundaries in the Indiana North District." Submit to facilitator.
Week 6:
1. Conduct district youth event: "Setting Sexual Boundaries" Videotape
2. Make any necessary edits to "The State of Sexual Boundaries in the Indiana North District" chapter and resubmit to facilitator.
3. Write chapter 6: "The Event: Setting Sexual Boundaries 2005" and submit to facilitator. The chapter will include documentation from the event, the agenda and any presentations. You will note that a DVD accompanies the project.
Week 7:
1. Make any necessary edits to "The Event: Setting Sexual Boundaries 2005" and resubmit to facilitator.
2. Write the Conclusion and submit entire first draft to facilitator.
Week 8:
1. Write the Abstract
2. Make any necessary final revisions and submit final draft to facilitator.

Potential Elements of a Project
There are countless problems to do a project on and countless ways to approach each one of them. The examples we have given so far give you just the barest tip of the iceberg in terms of problems you might tackle and how you might tackle them. The following is a list of a few different kinds of "solutions" toward which you might work. Remember that these kinds of things happen all the time in ministry and that your project needs to effect these kinds of things on a graduate level with an appropriate level of research and development.
An Event or Set of Events: The purpose of these events would be to address (and thus "solve") your problem. The example above involved an event in which district teens were led to consider appropriate sexual boundaries.
Set up a Structure, Organization, Mechanism: If you work in a rural church in which farm accidents are a regular feature, you might put "structure" or "mechanism" in place by which grieving families are immediately met at their needs.
Set up a Curriculum or Catechism: If your problem involves a deficiency of knowledge or skills in your congregation, you might set up a curriculum or catechism that will systematically and innovatively address that deficiency.
Create a Manual or Set of Resources: If your problem is a failure of ministers to know how to deal properly with grieving parents of young children, you might create a mini-manual to address this deficiency of knowledge.

Potential Chapters in your Project
The basic structure of an IWU project is:
Abstract
Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Review of Literature
Chapter 3: Research Method
Chapter 4: Content Chapter
Chapter 5: Content Chapter
Chapter 6: Content Chapter
Chapter 7: Conclusion
Depending on the specifics of your project, you may need to modify one or more of these elements. For example, if your project is to write a manual, set up a curriculum, etc..., you may or may not need to have a chapter on research method. Further, the number of "content" chapters--indeed whether they actually turn out to be content chapters--will depend on exactly what you are doing. It may be that you do not need as many content chapters as some others.
In general, you will want at least one of these chapters to address biblical issues. Then you may or may not want a separate chapter to cover additional theological issues, matters of Christian history, or matters of practical theory.
If you do surveys or interviews, I have suggested that the three content chapters follow some pattern like the following:
Chapter 4: Biblical and Theological Issues about x
Chapter 5: Presentation of the Data from my surveys, interviews, etc...
Chapter 6: Proposed Solutions on the basis of all my research.
As in my examples, chapter 6 may very well turn out to be documentation of an event, presentation of a curriculum, etc...

Now Write the Research Method Section of your Proposal
This is no doubt the hardest part of the proposal to write and at the same time the most crucial. Do your best to plot a course for yourself, giving the staging of your project with explanations and deadlines. Post it in your group folder and then give feedback to others and learn from their feedback to you.

The Literature Review Part of the Proposal
Review of the Literature
The last component of your proposal that you need to write is your review of the relevant literature. Here is where you need to put into practice all the things you learned from your very first course in this program. Use the resources at your disposal to gather a bibliography of resources into which you will dig deep in the weeks to come.
As you learned in your first course, these resources include things like:
1. Books/Journals from Libraries
2. Online Databases/Resources
3. Media of Various Type (tapes, videos, CD's, DVDs, etc...)

Review "Literature Review" Material from Proposal
From Workshop One
Your Review of the Literature will put into practice all the things you learned from your very first course in this program. Use the resources at your disposal to gather a bibliography of resources.
As you learned in your first course, these resources include things like:
1. Books/Journals from Libraries
2. Online Databases/Resources
3. Media of Various Type (tapes, videos, CD's, DVDs, etc...)

Finding and Assimilating Literature
One of the greatest skills of learning you will ever acquire is the ability to find and assimilate information quickly. It is both a discipline and an art and the best scholars know how to do it, many intuitively.
But you can also learn these skills, and the age of information technology has made it increasingly easier.

Scanning Library Shelves
In the olden days, you might have a subject card catalog in a library where some painstaking librarian had typed up cards individually with books in that library on a subject. With computer catalogs, the computer will not only do this work for you, it will do it for vast numbers of libraries within hours of the central library you are searching!
Nevertheless, there is still something to be said for finding just one book on your topic, going to that section of the library and just standing there flipping through the books in that section. If those who stock the library have done your homework, you will find the most recent and most important books on a particular subject there. At the library of a Christian college, you will often find the resources most particular to that college's Christian tradition (expect to find some Wesleyan-Arminian books at Indiana Wesleyan's library that you might not find at Calvin College!).

Skimming Books
The ability to "blow through" massive amounts of literature in a relatively short amount of time is an incredibly valuable skill. In the field of research, those who "read every word" in some ways has a vice of which they need to be able break themselves at least on occasion. There's no value in reading every word if you cannot summarize the book when you are done.
Read as much as you need to and for as long as you can. But you might be surprised how much you know about a book after 1) reading the introduction, 2) reading the first and last paragraphs of every chapter or every section in every chapter, 3) reading the first sentence of every paragraph--and going on if the paragraph seems particularly relevant, and 4) reading the conclusion.

Book Reviews
You will often find that experts have already reviewed and evaluated the key resources you are looking at. Find these as best you can. Libraries like Indiana Wesleyan pay large amounts of money to give you access to resources like the Religion Index or Epsco Host so that you can search them. Don't try to reinvent the wheel when someone who is an expert has already done it for you!

Google, Wikipedia, and Friends
Google has already become my primary venue for research. You might be amazed at how many Google searches I did in preparation of this course! And what I found was amazing and amazingly helpful. The more and more material that becomes available on the web, the more these kinds of search engines will become the way to do research.
Google arranges its material by frequency of use as well as by how close the hit relates to the way you entered the search request. What this means is that you will tend to see at the top of the results the material that the most people have found the most helpful. This is nothing short of amazingly helpful. Go with it!
www.google.com
www.wikipedia.com

Footnote Chasing
On the scholarly level, when I want to get "up to speed" on the highest level on a topic, I follow the following procedure in addition to searching Ebsco Host and Googling:
1. I find the most recent book or article I can find by an expert on a particular topic.
2. I look for what key books and articles the expert refers to. You find these in the footnotes.
3. I go to those books and articles and repeat the process.
4. Eventually, I will generate a sense of what the key resources are on that topic and get some sense of what the key issues and points of debate are in the process.
These are a few ways in which you can go about gathering information by the experts relevant to your particular project and its related topics.

Write the Review Part of the Proposal
You will do a full literature review the third week of the course. For your proposal, create an initial bibliography of about 20-30 resources. Come up with at least a sentence on most of these to describe how you think that particular resource might be of value to your project.
Of these, identify further about five that you think will play the most significant role in your project. Do an "annotated bibliography" on them, giving a summary of what that resource contributes to your project. To annotate them effectively, you will need to scan the book or resource.
You should create a reading/skimming plan for these next eight weeks, particularly the next three as you work toward your literature review. You will be glad you got a head start when we get to week 3.
Further, now is the time to order any resources you already realize you will need via interlibrary loan. Is there a major research institution within an hour or two of you? A seminary? A Christian college? Plan to visit it!
Now write the "Review of the Literature" part of your proposal. Post it to your group folder, give feedback to the others in your group, learn from their feedback to you.

Submit the Proposal
Congratulations--"A project begun is already half done."
If you have come this far, the worst is over. The rest of the capstone is simply playing out the game plan you have already set out.
Take the components of the proposal that you have been working on this week, incorporate any insights or edits from your further reflection or from your group feedback, and assemble the components in the following order:
Introduction with Statement of Problem
Statement of Purpose for the Project
Review of Literature
Research Method with Staging and Dates
Submit it to your facilitator by Sunday night, midnight, so that s/he can have feedback ready for you by the beginning of the next workshop.
Wonderful! You are on your way
Seem a little daunting to you? Am I bit overwhelmed-just a wee bit...but I suppose I'll get it done somehow. Can someone please put all of this in common English so it makes sense to a schlub like me?

I honestly am not even sure where to start. I am leaning towards one of two thoughts- "being the fat kid in a skinny world:a look at teens ans self-esteem" or "i'm a youth pastor now what?: A look at building a ministry from the ground up." I don't know if these are too general or where even to start so I could definitely use your prayers over the next eight weeks. The paper has to be 65-100 pages long. If I write 8 pages a week that isn't too much, but it just seems to be so much. Tell me this is worth it, I know I've come this far and can't quit, but I am just a wee bit scared of this.

Simply put...WOW!

I do believe I just watched the most amazing bowl game ever. I've been watching football all day and this year's Fiesta Bowl was perhaps the best game I have ever seen. It may even beat the 2002 Championship game when OSU beat Miami. Great game, great job Boise State.

The battle at one year...

Most of you know that last January I decided to do my best to get in better shape and lost the weight that has been plaguing me all of my life. For years I have fought with failed new year's resolutions as well as many failed attempts at dieting and exercise. I still have a long way to go but I am happy to say that I ended 2006 25 pounds lighter than when I started. I have included pics from last year and the latest taken. I still can't see much of a difference, but clothes are fitting better and I feel much better than I did last year at this time. These pics don't show much, but they give me something to work from. As I continue the battle this year I'll periodically post more pics as I continue to lose. This may be more of me than you wanted to see and if that is the case I am sorry. Please pray for me and feel free to help hold me accountable. I'll keep up with the journey on the blog along with everything else.

January 06:front view (367lbs)

January 07:front view (342)-I can't see much difference here though

January 06:side view

January 07:side view-this is where I can see the most difference

There's a long way to go, but God is good. I'm off tomorrow to re-up my gym membership!

Monday, January 01, 2007

Double Grrr...

So listening to sports talk radio yesterday to keep up with all things NFL- and of course everything that needed to happen to let the Bengals make the playoffs yesterday happened. Even though the Jets won if Kansas City won and the Broncos lost (which both happened) the Bengals would have been in had they not gotten beat by Pittsburgh. And this i the SECOND week in a row that this happened...so not just GRRR but double GRRR! Oh well, it's just a game and I'll get my football fill today with the bowl games and then THE bowl game next Monday night. Of course then there is the NFL playoffs and the Super bowl which is good but that means...FOOTBALL SEASON IS ALMOST OVER which I hate. Good thing NASCAR begins two weeks after the Super Bowl huh? Okay so I guess I just gave myself away and I officially scream redneck.

Sunday, December 31, 2006

I'll always shout WHO-DEY!

Well again this year the Steelers ruined the post season for my Bengals. Last year it was the first round of the playoffs, this year it was for a wild card bid for the playoffs. But that's okay. I still say Who-Dey. I've always been a fan and always will be and .500 isn't bad considering the issues they've had this season and the fact that Marvin Lewis is still building a team. So although an 8-8 season isn't the best, I still say great job guys, although I hate Pittsburgh even more now than ever. I think this will shape up to become a bigger rivalry than the annual battle of Ohio. I will have to say though that if they were going to lose, what a better way than in overtime. Did I mention I hate sudden death overtime? In addition to that, I guess if you are going to lose in overtime, who better to lose to than ex-Buckeye Santonio Holmes. Oh well, it's just a game and not the end of the world.

See you next fall guys! WHO DEY!!!

In-law update

So my mother-in-law redeemed herself. She took Meg to the airport. After talking with Meg a little bit more I found out the real story behind what happened, which I figured was the case. Meg's aunt was telling her mom that she should just have Meg take a cab so she could sleep in since it was so inconvenient (read: she would also have to get up to let her mom back in the house). I would expect this from her aunt so it wasn't a big surprise...after all, her aunt and uncle always make it clear what is inconvenient for them, did I mention our wedding day was inconvenient for them? They even tried to get us to change that date because they would have to make a trip down to Ohio from their summer home in Michigan. So sorry to inconvenience you all.

Okay enough complaining about my in-laws

Saturday, December 30, 2006

The year in review...

So everywhere you listen or watch right now you are bombarded with "year in review" shows and lists. Well I am no one famous and not a lot happens in m world, but I thought I would share with you just a few of the things that happened in our lives this last year. Nothing too exciting, but just a little bit of what happened in the McKee household in 2006-since we didn't do a letter with our Christmas cards...

In January I weighed myself for the first time in a long time. I was having some health problems and knew that something needed to change or I was going to drastically shorten my life. So I declared a "new year's revolution" and decided to change my life forever. I weighed in at 367, which was really discouraging since I had never been that heavy in my life. I am proud to say that I end the year at 342. I know it is only 25 but I still consider that a resolution kept. I hope to lose a lot more this year, but a lifestyle change is not easy and it takes time.

In February, mom and dad came down for a couple of weeks and we all got to experience our first Mardi Gras. I had misconceptions about Mardi Gras and what it was like, but we all had a great time. You can read about it in the link above or check out the March archives.

March was the first time I got to put my feet into action (literally) in my weight loss battle and life change. I walked my first 5k here in Pensacola. It was tough, but fun and I really felt a sense of accomplishment when I was done.

May brought a much needed vacation and a few days at Disney in Orlando, but the vacation was interrupted when we had to make an unexpected trip home when grandma passed away.It was tough to say goodbye to her, but I know she is not suffering anymore and is in a better place.

June brought on the big 3-0 and visits from family and friends including my folks, sis and brother-in-law, and my college roomie Phil and his family. Although we didn't get to go deep sea fishing as planned fun was had by all and 30 wasn't so bad after all.

July was a busy month as I had the chance to be camp director for the first time in my life. For not knowing what was doing I think it went pretty well. The result? Definitely made me pull my hair out and resulted in the new look for the summer.

August brought three years of being married to the most beautiful woman in the world and a surprise from God in the form of a dream job for Megan. She had been patiently waiting and hoping to get away from the bank and boy did He deliver. She is now teaching elementary music at Navy Point Elementary here in Pcola. I also walked my second 5k and improved my time from March.

September brought 5k number three as well as two trips home to Ohio. It was all about reunions including getting to see my mentor Rick and attending the 100th anniversary of the first church I served in as well as Meg's 10 year class reunion. We even found time to take the teens to Universal Studios for Rock the Universe in the middle of all of that.

October was a life changing month for me. I decided it was time to fess up and start being real. I was ready to leave the ministry but I asked God for help, and he delivered. My testimony is in the October archives if you want to read it.

Of course in November, America "voted for change," but for us it meant hosting our first Thanksgiving dinner. It turned out great, but I kinda forgot to blog about it, so no link sorry. And of course...who could forget, it was also the month when the Buckeyes shored up their shot at a national title by beating that team up north.

Finally this month. It was awesome. Meg and I both had the chance to participate in Pensacola Winterfest. It was a great chance for Meg to play her flute and get her name out in the city and I got the chance to give tours of downtown and tell corny jokes at the same time (think an amusement park ride where there is a story/dialogue with built in jokes that aren't that great sometimes). We have been praying for ways to get into the community and this was one of those opportunities. I also found out that I am going to get a shot at reality TV in the form of VH1's World Series of Pop culture. Then of course we got to go home for a few days, but now it is back to the grind here in Pensacola.

It has been an interesting year. Nothing too exciting or worthy of a movie, but it was our lives for 2006. I can't wait to see what 2007 holds. May God continue to bless you all, and be safe as you celebrate the beginning of another New Year that God has blessed us with.

God is good!

I love my mother-in-law but...

I love my mother-in-law, but I have to admit I am just a wee bit frustrated with her right now. Meg decided to stay a few extra days in Ohio so she could spend some extra time with her mom and dad. She is flying in tomorrow morning and her mom was supposed to take her to the airport. Well I just got word a little bit ago that her mom is making her take a taxi to the airport in the morning. Megan was crushed and to say the least a bit upset. The only reason she stayed was to be with them...and the way her mom says goodbye...here's 20 bucks for the cab fare. GRRRR!!! The reason why...its just too much of an inconvenience to take her that early in the morning to the airport. I love you too mom...Sheesh!

Monday, December 25, 2006

Merry Christmas to all of you!

Merry Christmas to all of you from Matt and Meg! We love and appreciate you guys and hope that this Christmas is a great one for you!

Christmas thoughts part 2...

Is anyone else bothered by the story of the Little Drummer boy? It has perplexed me for years and honestly I have gotten a little cynical about it as it is not one of my favorite Christmas songs and I have yet to find where it is found in the scriptures. The only thing I can gather about it is that the boy played his drum for Jesus since he had nothing else to offer him. The modern day application (which is a stretch) comes I suppose in that we are to offer Jesus what we can. Funny thing is, it is making its way into manger scenes around the world...when my wife opened the additions to her Jim Shore manger there was a drummer boy in it. I appreciate the challenge, but I think it is getting stretched just a wee bit.

Here is all I could find on the little drummer boy and the story behind it. Anyone know more? Anyone else a little perplexed by it and frustrated that it has made its way into the manger stories today?

Here is the link... http://www.answers.com/topic/little-drummer-boy

Christmas thoughts...part 1

So I have been thinking about the Christmas story as we celebrate with family and friends over the Christmas season. Obviously it is at the center of my whole life since it is the foundation of my faith. But as I was sitting around these past few days and had a little bit of down time and so I thought I would offer this Christmas devotional thought...

Who are you this Christmas? Each of the characters played an important role in the nativity story. So the question is, who are you?

MARY-You could be like Mary-she was chosen to carry the Christ child. She was a young woman who was anointed by God to bring Christ into this world, how awesome is that? When I look at Mary, I think of someone who was willing to accept God's will for her, no matter what. She could have said no I suppose, but she didn't even though she may not have understood the full magnitude of what God was asking her to do, she simply said yes. Am I willing to accept God's call on my life, even when I don't understand the circumstances?

JOSEPH-I think Joseph is sometimes underestimated in the Christmas story. Sometimes he gets looked over. Here is a man that could have very easily chosen to just let Mary go and been on with it. He knew he might have been facing persecution and rumors, but he stuck by her side. He played a support role, one that was very important. He was chosen to be the earthly father of the Messiah. He was beside Mary through everything and chose to support she and Jesus. Sometimes I wonder if we are called to play the role of support. We aren't always the star and that can be discouraging because we all love the spotlight, but Joseph chose simply to play the support role. How awesome is that? Lord help us to be willing to be the support of those who are following your will and are carrying your message to the world.

THE SHEPHERDS-These guys are awesome. I love the shepherds, here are your everyday guys. They lived in the fields with their animals, I am sure they were rough around the edges and probably not really respected in the community. These guys were just simply your average Joe's...but God chose them to be the first ones to proclaim the message of the Messiah. Talk about God at work. This is so awesome, because they weren't important, they were just normal...it was so awesome as the got to be the first messengers! God chose them to take the message of the newborn baby to the world and God still asks us to carry his message today, as everyday people...no matter who we are or what we do.

So who are you this Christmas? Is God asking you to answer His call for your life, even if it doesn't make sense? Is God asking you to support those in ministry? Is He asking you to carry his message to the world in your community, workplace, and family? As you celebrate the Christmas season, ask God to show you who He wants you to be this Christmas.

Merry Christmas and may God bless you richly!
-Matt

Saturday, December 23, 2006

Merry Christmas from the Mattster

Just a little Christmas cheer for all of you. Click the link...laugh, and then go ahead...just go ahead and try to get this image out of your head!

http://www.elfyourself.com/?userid=dbde97c9dcf085f8c3445beG06122316

Disturbing isn't it???

Transformers Movie Trailer

Okay so I am extremely excited about this movie! I cannot wait until next July. I will admit though, I am a little concerned though as with just the brief views of their faces it looks like they may have abandoned the look that made the transformers famous. Call me a purist, but I hope they didn't change it too much as I'll be disspointed. I guess the only way to say it is, "All we need is a little energon and a lot of luck.

Autobots...ROLL OUT!

Friday, December 22, 2006

Final grades...

Well I just got word from my professor that I got a B+ in his class. Although I was hoping for an A, I'll take it. One more class to go starting in January and then I'll be done with the program and have my MA. Graduation, here I come!

Thursday, December 21, 2006

Community

So if it is okay, I am going to wax a little sentimental tonight. We had the chance to get together with some friends of ours from our previous church. These are not just friends, but more. They are the friends who are like family, in fact we almost consider their kids our own. We always try to get together with them when we are home and so tonight we hit one of our favorite restaurants BW3's for some wings and fellowship.

I'll be honest. I really miss this type of community relationship. We have been at our current church for almost two years now and we still only have one couple who would fall into that category. I sincerely wish there was more, but I don't know what to do differently to achieve it. We try as hard as we can, we invest in the kids and their parents as much as possible, but it still feels like all we are doing most of the time is damage control. There are times when I really feel unwanted at our church. It really can be discouraging and I think this lack of community is one of the things that contributed to my thoughts back in October (see the archives for my testimony). What can we do differently? Do these people understand how lonely we feel in ministry? Would they listen if we told them?

Okay I know I am whining, but I really need to feel this community again. Sorry for being so blunt, but as I said back in October I am tired of hiding how I feel and pretending like everything is always okay. Sometimes I hurt, sometimes I am lonely and now is one of those times. I am thankful for the ones we have, and I know God wants us to stay where we are in ministry, but I long for community and am not sure how to find it. So please pray for me.

Longing for community...
-Matt

PS. I removed the post from yesterday about the lady from our church. I posted the thoughts for humor's sake and the situation is nothing strange to our church, but I removed it because it could have had the potential to hurt someone's feelings and that would be the furthest thing from my mind so I removed it.

Wednesday, December 20, 2006

Sittin in the airport...

To the tune of "singing in the bathtub"-

Sittin in the airport

Bored out of my mind

gotta lot of time left

I think I'll go insane

people are getting angry

Flights have been delayed

Christmas carol singing

Everyone's insane

soon I'm gonna get home

Then I'll go crazy

Lot's of friends to see

Not enough time yippee.

Okay so I am not a song writer, but I had to do something to fill the four hour layover I have in "hot"lanta. It is funny to watch people and evidently Denver is closed so people are going insane and people are getting angry at each other...It really is the "most wonderful time of the year."

Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Update on scrooge

Okay...So since I have already got one nastygram pretty much pointing out how I was "misinformed" allow me to clarify my previous post. I was in no way intending to bash Disney or say that Santa got kicked out of the park. I only posted the article because I found it amusing and it was meant to be a piece of sarcastic satire during the Christmas season. Everyone who knows me (read my archives) knows that I am a fan of Disney and by no means am a Disney basher...So while I appreciate the strange traffic on my blog people please understand I write humor filled with satire and sarcasm. I do not bash people or places that I disagree with, I am just having fun here. So sorry Disney, I wasn't trying to bash you!

Talk about your Ebenezer Scrooge...

I can't believe this article, talk about your Christmas fun killers...What was he supposed to do? I give him props for "doing what he was asked" but not backing down completely, poor guy...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6189521.stm

If you can't get the link basically here is the rundown, a 60 year old man who looks like Santa was asked to stop impersonating Santa or be kicked out of the park because "Santa was a Disney character." All he was doing was winking and saying ho ho ho (excuse me, I have to be PC..."lady of the night, lady of the night, lady of the night") instead of crushing kids dreams. It's not like the poor guy was sitting kids on his lap and taking pictures in the middle of the park! Come on guys, you know I love Disney, but this is ridiculous. I'd say someone is definitely getting nothing but a lump of coal this year!

Thursday, December 14, 2006

A Christmas poem...

I am not a huge fan of comedian Paul Gilmartin (TBS's Dinner and a Movie) as he can get a little foul at times, but I have always enjoyed his Christmas poem. It is a little off color, but always gives me a chuckle, so here for your enjoyment, Paul Gilmartin's Christmas poem...

Eggnog, tinsel, falling snow
Buttered rum and mistletoe
Christmas trees and hanging lights
The sound of carolers fills the night

Shopping hours long and hard
Visa phones and cancels card
Unpaid bills and mounting debts
Family gathers; depressions sets

Drinking starts, harsh words are said
Dysfunction rears its yuletide head
Argument turns to shovin'
Drunken brother punches cousin

Tree tips over, popping lights
Curtains catch, house ignites
No one hears the reindeer cries
Wedged in chimney, Santa dies

Though he kicked and did perspire
His chestnuts roasted on an open fire.

It is just a little funny to me, I know I am sick! But I always get a little chuckle out of this, because we can almost all think of someone's family that is like this...To some extent.

Merry Christmas! (early)

Crazy Phobia...

I always get on edge this time of year because of my stupid phobias...I am serious, I think I am nuts when it comes to this. There isn't a whole lot that scares me. I hate spiders, don't mind snakes so much and heights don't really bother me. So what am I scared of? Puke! I am always on edge during this season because of the wonderful stomach bug that makes its rounds this time of year. Now I am not a germaphobe on a Howie Mandell level, but when it comes to getting this type of sickness I freak out! I can stand a cold or being knocked out by the flu for a couple of days, but for some reason when it comes to being "sick" with the stomach bug I freak out. It has been this way for some time. When I was growing up any time someone had the bug at our house I would walk around the house with a can of lysol, go out through the basement door where my room was and try to stay as far away from anyone with it as I could.

I know I am crazy. I thought it would get better when I got older, but I still freak out about it. Any time a teen or anyone for that matter says something about not feeling good I freak out. I actually almost make myself sick worrying about being around it and maybe getting the bug! I know I can't keep from getting it-even if I wash my hands all the time, but I still go nuts for some reason.

I don't know what it is...Even when Meg is sick I am almost paralyzed and she makes fun of me because I want to "help" but she knows how scared I get about it.

I don't know if it is the action, the smell, or what, but I just can't deal with vomit...Never could and not sure how I'll ever be able to.

So I am officially crazy....Call the men in white coats, maybe it will get better when we have kids someday. Speaking of kids I think I'll probably be okay with the morning sickness thing because it won't be catching...I KNOW! See how I rationalize it...I am a freak and should get over it, maybe someday!

Running from the fears...
-Matt

Monday, December 11, 2006

Going to the World Series...

Okay so not that world series...Only if by some random luck the Reds go again someday...Instead I am going to this world series...

If you have never heard of this, every summer VH1 features a pop culture tournament and they are holding the auditions right now. I have always been told I am a pop culture junkie and no one likes to play trivial pursuit or scene it with me so this is the one for me. I sent in our applications for our team "2 schmucks and a duck" and sure enough they selected us for the audition so myself, and two members of our church are heading to Orlando in February for the try outs. This should be fun! There's a shot at 250,000 so we'll see if we have what it takes to win it all!

Sunday, December 10, 2006

I'll do it...Tomorrow!

Okay, so I am not going to lie about it. There are two weaknesses that I will readily admit to. I don't like them, but I am still working on them and wonder if maybe I always will. First I am unorganized, I do not do a very good job at planning my schedule and making sure that all the boxes are checked off. In addition to that, I am a procrastinator. Thus I find myself in an all too familiar situation...I will be up all night writing book reviews that I have put off until the last minute. I am not sure how I get to this position other than I just don't manage myself well enough to not procrastinate. I am a world better than I was in my undergrad, but I still have a long way to go yet. So...I'll work on my disorganization and procrastination-tomorrow!

I guess this is just a chance to get back to my undergrad years...Ahh the memories, not really. I want to sleep, but here's to coffee and my laptop!

-Matt

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

Christmas at the McKee's...

Here are a few pictures of our Christmas decorations. As soon as I finish the outside I'll get pics of those as well...

This is Meg's Nativity made of Heartwood Home (I think is the name of them) collectibles. To the left is the Large wiseman display which she is working on collecting next. The three wisemen combine to show a full nativity themselves.

This is Meg's tree-her Angel tree. The tree has white lights and almost all of the ornaments are flute angels. There are a couple of special ornaments on there as well, but mostly flute angels. Here is my favorite part of the house-the fireplace and mantle are decorated with snowmen and I think the rocking chair adds a special touch...Plus that is my tree-completely decorated in colored lights and "fun" ornaments-mostly M&M related things (M&M-obviously the connection to the candy comes from Matt & Megan), NASCAR ornaments, and Hallmark Keepsakes of Star Wars and Star Trek-I guess this one is our redneck tree, but since it is mine I am a little impartial to it. Speaking of M&M's check out this next picture...This is from our curio entertainment center. The whole thing is decorated with M&M related things (someone at the wedding thought it would be cool since we are M&M and it has been the gift of choice from teens and parents ever since). This is the holiday city that we put out each year. There is a whole series of them and the other smaller ones are left over ornaments from my tree and candy toppers that people have given us.

So there you have it, Christmas in the McKee household. If you stop by you'll have a "warm" Christmas, but you'll still get all the decorations just as if we were in the cold up north!

Humble Pie...

Here is a pic of my youth sponsor Scott Sanborn after the Ohio State Michigan game. He is an avid Michigan fan so it really pained him to have to wear my Ohio State tie. Thanks for being a good sport Scott and thanks for all you do!

Borrowing from Marko...Again

It's not that I haven't had anything really good to say lately-okay well it is, but that's beside the point. I will have some Christmas pics up soon, but at the risk of sounding more and more everyday like a junior high student trapped in an adult body I am borrowing this headline from marko's blog (www.ysmarko.com). It was just too funny and priceless to pass up. I know I am 30, but there is still just something funny about flatulence, especially in a situation like this...Here's the link to the article:

http://www.wbir.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=40210

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Baptism Cannonball!

Kudos for marko (www.ysmarko.com) for putting this up on his blog, but I couldn't pass up the chance to post this. This is priceless. I could totally see some of my teens doing this someday. It's worth the laugh it is guaranteed to bring!

Thursday, November 30, 2006

voltron vehicle opening video

Just to prove I'm not crazy...very few people remember this one, and it's pretty much the same opening dialog with different video footage. I wish they would put this one on as well as lion force!

GO VOLTRON FORCE!!!

Ahhh...childhood memories!

Remember this golden gem from our childhood?

"Activate interlock, Dynotherms connected, Infracells up...megathrusters are go...GO VOLTRON FORCE!"

I love it! And now I can relive it every morning on the cartoon network, it's on early so thank God for DVR's!!!

"Form feet and legs...form arms and body...and I'll form, THE HEAD!!!"

Anyone else remember vehicle Voltron? It wasn't as popular, but I always thought it was cool...and actually if I remember right it was on long before Lion Force Voltron.

In Touch with my inner child as always,
-Matt

I hate goodbyes...

The title says it all, I hate goodbyes...Plain and simple, they suck. There is no way to avoid it, and because that word seems so "permanent" to me I tried to stop saying it when Megan and I were dating. We wouldn't say "goodbye" we would say "see you soon," acknowledging that even though we were a thousand miles apart we would see each other again soon. I even try to say it with people that I see on a regular basis, but a lot of times I'll say "see you in a bit," which used to upset some of my friends because they knew it would be a long time before we would see each other again.

So I have gotten pretty good at avoiding the word goodbye, until yesterday. When I dropped my folks off at the airport I said goodbye-I didn't do it intentionally, it just came out that way. I know I'll see them again in three weeks for Christmas, but it still stunk having to say goodbye and I was even angrier at myself for using that phrase. I wonder if it was a subliminal way of admitting how hard it is each time they leave. I have always been close to my family, as is Megan with hers. When we made the decision to move here almost 2 years ago it was not an easy decision. There are times when I hate the fact that we are so far apart...I wasn't able to say goodbye to my grandma one last time before she died, my parents aren't getting any younger (but I don't anticipate them going anywhere any time soon), and my baby niece is growing up and I miss getting to see all of her "firsts" since she is the first grandchild for our family cell.

I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that we were called to be here and God reaffirmed that call in October, but there are times when it is tough to be so far away. There are times when the enemy sweeps in and I catch myself questioning God, I know I shouldn't but it is hard not to sometimes. So pray for me, as the holidays are one of those times...We only have a limited amount of time with family, we have to balance between the two, and then it seems to end and before we know it we are saying "see you soon" again knowing that it might me as much as six months before we do see each other again.

God is good though, and it is in these times that He stretches us most and pulls us closer to Him. I don't know about you, but I am glad that he didn't say "goodbye" after He ascended into heaven...He is coming back, He hasn't left us, and there will be a time when we are all together forever if we know Him. I think that is one of the things that helps me to hold on during these tough times because I know that He didn't say goodbye, but rather "see you soon." I look forward to the time I get to spend with family, no matter how short of a time it is, and I look forward to the day that we get to see Jesus again as well.

Just a little sentimental rant...Any ideas to help with the time apart with family?