the Gathering

Update your RSS and Bookmarks--I'm moving!

2006-12-28T15:08:00.000-06:00

Well I've finally moved to WordPress. I’ve been wanting to make this move for quite some time, but didn’t want chock up the $40 bucks/year (i know, it’s cheap…even compared to TypePad), plus I was looking for a good excuse to initiate the move. The combination of the new year and inevitable force to the new version of blogger seems like a good reason to do so. I mean, if I'm gonna have to do all that coding to keep this old template in the new blogger, I might as well spend that energy coding a brand new spiffy blog.

Many thanks and a huge shout out to my mom who purchased my domain name and server space from GoDaddy.com for my birthday.

Anyway, this blogger.com blog has become kind of confusing. It's titled, as you can see, “the Gathering”. Whenever someone links me up or quotes me they say, “Jeffrey at the Gathering…”, leading some people to ask, “hey, what’s the Gathering?” The Gathering was the name of a church that me, my wife, and some others were starting around two and a half years ago. When we realized that the vision God had given us of “the church” had nothing to do with an individual “local church”, the blog content shifted but the name did not.

So now I have a space of my own, that can one day be even more than a blog (but that’s another story). I did import all the posts and comments from this blogger blog to my new one, and I kept the counter going at the same number. Please update your RSS feeds for me to http://feeds.feedburner.com/ShadowsOfLove and set your bookmarks to my new url, http://www.jeffrey-davis.net/blog/.

Farewell blogger, you've been sooo great to me, but I'm moving on to another phase of my blogging life. Peace out.

Christmas Eve Breakfast

2006-12-26T12:24:00.000-06:00

A recent tradition in my clan is that my wife and I head to my parents' house on Christmas Eve morning for breakfast and to exchange gifts with them and my twin sis. This year, a great conversation unexpectedly materialized around the breakfast table. Here's a rough transcript (as I can recall):

[something was said about how much money is spent this time of year]

me: My blog bud Sam Davidson, founder of this thing called CoolPeopleCare...

Nana (my grandmother): what people care?

Mom: Cool People Care

Nana: Oh. ok?

Me: ...he started this campaign called Christmas is not your Birthday and reports from the National Retail Federation that 450 Billion dollars will have been spent from Thanksgiving to Christmas and asks what would happen if even 1% of that money went to charity or someone you know personally who needs it.

Dad, mom, and nana: hmm [collectively]

Me: Have yall heard of Product [RED] by Bono?

[explanation of the RED campaign]

Me: ...it would only take 50 cents per day to supply one person in Africa the medicine they need to not die from AIDS.

Nana: I think if it costs 50 cents per day in Africa, it should cost that in America as well.

Me: I agree, but it doesn't. Damn capitalism.

Dad: It may cost 50 cents per day for one person's medicine, but how much does it cost to get it to them? Does it even ever get to them? Do the governments intercept the monetary aid? How much of that goes to "executive expenses"?

Me: Good questions dad. That's why I hate to give money to brick and mortar charities...not all of of the money I give, in fact, probably not much at all, goes to people who actually need it.

Dad: Yeah, that sucks (my paraphrase)

Me: A buddy asked me a question back in the summer that went something like this--what if every human on the face of the planet were aware of and lived life through the perfect Love of Christ that is within them? What things would we not need?

[puzzled and introspective looks]

Me: My thoughts exactly, lol...let me get us started, we wouldn't need welfare, borders, governments, armed forces, ...

Dad: No offense son, but that's a Utopian dreamworld, why spend time thinking about that?

Me: Because I believe dreams can come true.

Dad: [head snaps around with bewilderment at the previous comment, followed by a look of apprehensive excitement]

Mom: [yells down from upstairs] Yall ready to come open presents?

That was a great covo Nana and Dad. I hope to continue it further. What do I want for Christmas? That aforementioned "Utopian dreamworld".

Technorati Tags: Christmas, Sam Davidson, Love, utopia, dreams, Product Red, Bono, AIDS, Africa, Jeffrey Davis

All the Rage-less

2006-12-21T10:03:00.000-06:00

Be sure to snag a copy of today's "All the Rage", as my "irl" and blog bud Sam Davidson's revolutionary CoolPeopleCare is featured. If you can't get to a place where "All the Rage" is distributed, you can read the article online. If you've never made your way over to CoolPeopleCare.org, then be sure to go check out this site devoted to bringing about a social revolution through five minutes of caring. Live life through love not through rage.

Oh and hey Sam, thanks for the fried pickles and Boddingtons at Dan McGuiness the other day. Good times.

*Yes, I know that "All the Rage" isn't named to reflect a position of hate with the word "rage". The play on the word just worked for the title and topic of my post...*

Technorati Tags: Sam Davidson, CoolPeopleCare, All the Rage, Nashville, love, social justice, Jeffrey Davis

The Hermitage/Mt. Juliet Non-Franchise Coffee Solution

2006-12-18T08:44:00.000-06:00

Four words: BILLY GOAT COFFEE CAFE! This joint is my new favorite haunt and I am actually sitting here right this moment as I write this post. For, well what seems like forever, I've been looking for a non-franchise coffee house with, fancy this--good coffee, a good vibe, with reasonable prices on the east side of town. Well my friends, this is it.

My wife and I came in Saturday night for the first time, after dinner at Logan's Roadhouse here in Providence Marketplace with some friends. We met the owners, Judy and Gunnar, who shared with us the story of how the idea behind the Billy Goat Coffee Cafe was born (including where the name originated, but you can read about that on their site).

Now for more details about the Billy Goat. You can find it to the immediate right of the west entrance to Belk in Providence Marketplace. The billy goat logo bids you welcome as you walk through the double glass doors and into the warm and friendly atmosphere of "the goat". Providing this soothing ambiance is foremost the friendliness of the employees that greet you; then a room full of decor in mocha, chocolate, and black; marbleized concrete floors of the same color palette; a big, marble-clad fireplace; and bistro sets, armchairs, and a leather love seat. There is even a huge wooden divider that can be slid shut, closing off a small section of the establishment for conferences or meetings.

The menu is cleverly created in the billy goat theme, even using "kid", "nanny", and "billy" in the stead of small, medium, and large. Another signature difference is the availability of cafe bianco. This is a milder espresso than normal, finishing with the note of something like a Butterfinger Bar, quite tasty indeed. The non-coffee drinkers may still want to visit "the goat" and find their way to the "un-coffee" section of the menu. Not an after 10:00am coffee drinker? That's ok, stop in and try one of their gourmet sandwiches (with chips and a pickle), the soup of the day, or dessert. If you want something to eat with your coffee in the morning, grab a bowl of cereal, bagel, muffin, scone, or turnover.

Before I share some pics of the establishment with you, let me also say that though it may sound like it from this post, Billy Goat Coffee Cafe is not paying me for the positive publicity. I truly do love this new little place and wanted to give a shout out to an up and coming local business that fills a HUGE hole in the marketplace here on the east side of town.

Technorati Tags: Billy Goat Coffee Cafe, Coffee, Mt. Juliet, Providence, Jeffrey Davis

Far From the True Feelings of That I Speak

2006-12-16T13:54:00.000-06:00

I came to again realize this morning that so often times I do not live, even through my writing, in the true reality that I feel exists beyond the realm of most people's awareness. Too often, as someone I love dearly has gently and recently noted, my posts here are cynical and condescending in nature. Ashamedly I admit, this is too true. However, such realizations have led to another great question in my mind. Does the failure to "practice" what one "preaches", in whatever percentage of the time, diminish the authenticity of the belief itself?

This morning I had a meeting at the Frothy Monkey on 12th Ave S and, of course, decided to stay for a bite to eat, some coffee, and to start on a book. So there I was, sitting on the deck surrounded by pets getting their picture taken with Santa (courtesy of Agape Animal Rescue) as I cracked open C. S. Lewis's the Problem of Pain (that I received last Christmas). In the introduction, Lewis writes:

"When Mr. Ashley Sampson suggested to me the writing of this book, I asked leave to be allowed to write it anonymously, since, if I were to say what I really thought about pain, I should be forced to make statements of such apparent fortitude that they would become ridiculous if anyone knew who made them. Anonymity was rejected as inconsistent with the series; but Mr Sampson pointed out that I could write a preface explaining that I did not live up to my own principles! This exhilarating programme I am now carrying out. Let me confess at once, in the words of good Walter Hilton, that throughout this book 'I feel myself so far from true feeling of that I speak, that I can naught else but cry mercy and desire after it as I may.'"

And so I echo those words of C. S. Lewis and Walter Hilton. Many times I may not speak and act and live in the Love that I believe is the true reality, but I believe it still. My only hope is that I will gradually transition to spending more and more time in that true reality, while spending less and less time in this false reality of difference, separation, selfishness, and hate.

Technorati Tags: C. S. Lewis, the Problem of Pain, reality, love, Frothy Monkey, Agape Animal Rescue, Jeffrey Davis

Care for a Geminid?

2006-12-13T12:13:00.000-06:00

Well, one of my favorite meteorologists, News 2's Justin Bruce, just beat me to the punch on this, but here ya go anyway. If you're not doing anything between about 10:00pm and midnight this evening, you should consider finding a nice, dark spot to set up camp for a while and gaze into the night sky. That's right, tonight is the peak of arguably the best meteor shower of the year, the Geminids. Oh and just so you know, the forecast is perfect for optimal viewing--not a cloud in the sky.

Space.com writes,

"The Geminid event is known for producing one or two meteors every minute during the peak for viewers with dark skies willing to brave chilly nights...The Geminids are a very fine winter shower, and usually the most satisfying of all the annual showers, even surpassing the Perseids. Studies of past displays show that this shower has a reputation for being rich both in slow, bright, graceful meteors and fireballs as well as faint meteors, with relatively fewer objects of medium brightness. Many appear yellowish in hue. Some even appear to form jagged or divided paths."

SkyTonight.com writes,

"The Geminid meteor shower, possibly the year's best, should peak late tonight in the moonless dark sky. The best time should be from about 10 p.m. until moonrise before dawn."

Finally, the American Meteor Society (AMS) writes,

"The Geminid shower is the favorite of most experienced observers. While most showers wax and wane throughout the years, the Geminids almost always provide an impressive display of celestial fireworks...Near maximum activity this shower can produce over 100 shower members per hour as seen from rural locations..."

There ya have it, grab some blankets and coffee, brave the chill, and wonder at the beauty of the evening.

Technorati Tags: Geminids, space, nature, astronomy, radiants, Gemini

Does Marriage Require a Wedding?

2006-12-11T11:02:00.000-06:00

My wife and I have a great friend, Brittany, who is getting married this coming May. She and her fiance will also soon be finishing up school at my wife's alma matter. Anyway, their soon-to-be legal union has had me thinking for the past month or so. The question at hand is, "At what point does marriage actually occur?"

Traditionally, the institution of the church has forbidden sex before marriage. What has struck me as odd this last month is that it then goes on to define marriage with the intangible notion of the "two becoming one". Such a notion is typically derived from portions of the Bible found in the book of Genesis and in the letter to the Ephesians, among other places.

That said, I do believe this notion is true and real. However, as I previously noted, such a definition is quite abstract. At what point do the two become one? Can you even select a definitive moment in time in which such an event occurs, or is it more of an ongoing process? [Let me take a minute to mention that if you define the two becoming one simply by the physical, meaning sex, then I believe you may have a grossly over-simplified perspective regarding the beauty of a marriage commitment.]

By now, you definitely see where I'm going. The institution of the church deems that "sex before marriage is a sin." However, by its own romantic notion of marriage (and I would say this is the same notion shared by the general populous), wouldn't it be impossible to say, as the result of an event (the wedding), that now you are married, ten seconds ago you were not? Does that really fit into the greater intimacy and truth of what a marriage is?

It seems to me, uncomfortable as it is to admit (because of my traditional upbringing), that the commitment of marriage and the wedding itself may actually have little to do with each other. Yeah, the "wedding" is the celebration of the commitment, but it's truly more for legalities than it is reality.

Then again, I could be totally wrong, as I have been many times before. At any rate, what do you think?

[An Afterthought: I want to make sure that no one hears me saying that we should treat sex frivolously. I believe that sex is a great physical picture of the multi-faceted union occurring between two people who Love each other and have committed to that love for the rest of their lives...among other things ;-). What I merely mean to ask in this post is how would a person/people/the church/etc determine when "marriage" has occurred, when the very notion by which we define it is, again, of an abstract understanding.]

Technorati Tags: marriage, wedding, weddings, love, reality, Jeffrey Davis

Do These Pics Make Up for My Absenteeism?

2006-12-09T22:58:00.000-06:00

Once again I was unable to make it to a Nashville blogger meet up. I was really hoping to make this Christmas one today, but couldn't do it. I swear I'm gonna make it to one some day. Anyway, I hope these pics keep me in good standing with my Nashville blog buds ;-). I snapped them this morning at J. Percy Priest Dam while Rick and I were trying to catch the Mars, Jupiter, & Mercury grouping this morning. (We were unsuccessful in viewing the planets, but will try again tomorrow morning.)

By the way, the official weather news said it was seventeen degrees this morning at Nashville's airport. With the wind and cooler temps coming off the water, we speculate that we stood outside for over an hour in single digits. I have never been that cold in my life!! My lips actually went so numb that I was unable to speak.

Tags: Percy Priest Lake, sunrise, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Jeffrey Davis, nature

Make Starbucks Play Fair

2006-12-08T06:57:00.000-06:00

This morning I found in my inbox the following email from my friend Lacey:

Each year, coffee companies make billions of dollars. Starbucks alone earned almost $5.8 billion in net revenues during the first three quarters of 2006.

Yet, for every cup of coffee Starbucks sells, poor farmers in coffee-growing countries like Ethiopia earn only about $.03.

Even worse, while Ethiopian farmers grow some of the finest name-brand coffees in the world - think Harar, Yirgacheffe, and Sidamo - they don't see the premium profits those names command among consumers.

Oxfam and a coalition of allies are asking Starbucks to sign this agreement. According to one coalition member, control of the name brands could increase Ethiopia's coffee export income by more than 25 percent - or $88 million annually. This money could go a long way to help lift millions of Ethiopians out of poverty.

So please, help us convince Starbucks to sign this agreement with Ethiopia. Poor farmers deserve a fair share of the profits.

This email came because Lace had it sent to me via MakeTradeFair.com, a site devoted to bringing about fair trade for medicines, impoverished coffee growers, and more. So if you're a big coffee drinker, like myself, go on over and sign the petition. Also check out the Fair Trade Federation to learn how screwed the growers of our beloved coffee actually get.

And just for the record if there were at least a half way decent non-franchise (or at least a local franchise) within five miles of my house, I'd abandon Starbucks altogether. However, this is currently not the case...well, actually there is one in Mt. Juliet, but it closes at 5:00 pm. :-/

Tags: fair trade, coffee, activism, Ethiopia

The Christmas Spirit--Why Not All Year?

2006-12-07T07:07:00.000-06:00

Last night as I was on my way to the new Starbucks in Hermitage to hang out and talk with a couple of guys, as I do most every Wednesday evening, a question popped in my head that has me perplexed still. I heard on a radio station, which one I cannot recall, a request for unwrapped gifts, which is obviously a common thing this time of year. I began to think, "why do people so generously aid their fellow man/woman this time of year, while ignoring or out right kicking them the other eleven months of the year?

I dare say that few people give this time of year out of some arbitrary sense of obligation. However, even if they do, the feeling of joy and high that remains from having given and helped someone, rather than taken from them (or ignored them altogether), quickly dispels any remnant of that begrudging motivation. Having experienced those wonderful sensations in our otherwise stagnant (unfortunately) spirits, again, what leads to our selfishness the other eleven months of the year? Did the stirring of Love hidden in the recesses of our hearts actually frighten or confuse those not used to it? Perhaps. Perhaps not.

At any rate, as I slightly start to ramble, I just think there has got to be a reason that people act so selflessly this time of year, while maintaining an "I'm gonna get mine" throughout the rest of the year.

Tags: giving, generosity, Love, Christmas, selfishness, Jeffrey Davis

A People Without Weakness--Wait, that's Us!

2006-12-05T07:29:00.000-06:00

Recently, I've been coming to the belief that we live in dual realms. Not one seen and the other unseen, but that we have the ability to see and be aware of both. Not to overuse the analogy I so often default to here, but I believe it is very much like the Matrix, in some ways, and very much unlike it in others. I believe that many of us live in and out of both realms while being only conscious of the one, the physical. Coincidently, I do not think that physical is synonymous with real. I think the other realm, the spiritual realm, is more real--even by definition--than the physical (do I sound too much like Morpheus here?).

At any rate, I got to thinking about the subject for the post after reading a post over at Lacey's blog, who is my best female friend, outside of my awesome and beautiful wife that is. My relatively new blog bud Kyle, whom I met through Lacey, has a post touching on this as well. Anyway, on to the freakin' topic. (Man I can ramble...)

For the past several years, at least, the institution and system of the church has been on a "spiritual gifts" kick. If you've ever "served" at a "church" then chances are great you've taken a spiritual gifts test who's purpose is to tell you in what areas you are gifted. These gifts are typically derived, like virtually everything else in the church, from the Bible and are traditionally found in two places. Now, I don't see anything wrong with discovering what areas you are "gifted in", however, I do think the nomenclature of such is faulty.

For example, anyone who would seek to discover their "spiritual gifts", as they exist in the Bible, would agree that Jesus the Christ possessed all of them in equal measure. He was, after all, the full man, second Adam, etc. So here's the question, if Jesus exuded all of the "spiritual gifts" (and by very nature, he must), and it is the life of Christ (not our own) that lives through and as us [Galatians 2:20, Colossians 1:27, Colossians 3:4, etc], then how could we be gifted in one or two areas and not the others?

The apostle Paul even writes to Timothy to inform him that he already has everything he needs for life and godliness through the one who called him by his own glory and goodness [Jesus]. So perhaps we need not figure out "where we're gifted", for that affords us an excuse in a great many circumstance, but rather to discover in what ways the life of Christ is being revealed through us at that particular juncture in time--while realizing it may (and should be) different at some point in the future.

Back to the excuses. If we are able to take a test and hence claim, "I'm a prophet [i.e. tell it like it is, see things black & white, etc]...", then that gives us an excuse to NOT exercise grace in our dealings with people (that one, by the way, is unfortunately from personal experience :-/ ). Another example might be to close the doors of our home to someone who needs a place to stay because we "don't have the gift of hospitality". What a crock of crap that would be. If Christ is everything, and his life is ours, then we will take on all (not just the one or two) of the facets of his nature over time. So if you go about taking "spiritual gifts tests", I hope you're able to see that it is merely an indicator of how you are being transformed into the image of Christ in the now and the physical. [Perhaps one's passions and "gifts" are actually quite unrelated. Hmm, that's another post for another day. I'll have to think on that one. Sorry, stream of consciousness there...]

So you, yeah you, did you know that in the real reality you are without weakness, have everything you need for life and godliness, contain within yourself perfect love and the life of Christ, and are [gasp] perfect? I wonder what would happen if we all lived our lives in the constant awareness of that reality...

Tags: real, reality, spiritual, spiritual gifts, metaphysics, the Matrix, Jeffrey Davis

Living Vicariously Through Papyrus

2006-12-04T07:24:00.000-06:00

What would life be like if all the books, paper, texts, and digital records on this planet suddenly dissolved, leaving no written record of...well, anything? Do you suppose we'd find that humans actually live in, or at least through, the past? I wonder.

I think it is safe to say that the majority of religions in this world are systems based on some ancient text[s]. Perhaps one of the best things that could happen for "religion", or rather the people that adhere to those religious codes, would be for this record dissipation phenomenon to actually occur. But why? Because even a religion like Christianity that involves a "personal relationship" with God, is actually so dependant on a text, the Bible, that no personal relationship actually occurs...in many cases. This is called Bibliolatry and is, as the word would describe, the worship of the Bible.

So what? Who cares if someone worships the Bible? It matters because God desperately longs for humans to come to the awareness of his perfect Love within and all around them. The Bible, or rather most "Christians'" dependant on it, is a great barrier to that awareness occuring. Search your spirit and you will find that, in fact, we end up living vicariously through the Biblical characters' relationships with God, rather than having an intimate one of our own. I suppose it was about a year ago that God led me into a desire to discover my own relationship with him, not built on the premises and experiences of someone else or a Biblical character.

Disclaimer. I'm not saying let's just all go pile our Bibles outside and burn them, because the Bible as an inanimate object (and IT IS inanimate) has no bias. It is, again, people's unhealthy dependance on it that causes the problem. So I do not invite you to kick your Bible to the curb, (though that may help for a while), but to kick sola Scriptura to the curb and discover the voice and the Love of God in nature, other people, and yourself--through your spirit and not a book. If you are a Bible reader, you already believe that God spoke to the people who "wrote" the Bible in a way that didn't involve a text (because there was no text), so why couldn't he speak to you in the same way?

Tags: Bible, sola scriptura, Martin Luther, spirit, God, Love, relationship, spiritual

Rescuing Beached Doritos

2006-12-01T21:55:00.000-06:00

I couldn't resist giving props to one of my favorite green blogs, Tree Hugger, with this post over there today.

I don't know about you, but I long for those good ole' Doritos Harvesting days of yore. Mmmm.

As TreeHugger's post points out, not all things that get spilled into our oceans can be as tasty as Doritos or as cute as rubber duckies. It's true, innumerable spills and accidents occur on the high seas every year, dumping pollutants and toxins into our planet's oceans, but as most of these occur in international waters, insurance companies pay and no one cares...

Tags: Doritos, rubber ducks, rubber duckies, oceans, dump, spill, environmentalism, green

Help! Looking for Lion King Tickets

2006-11-29T06:55:00.000-06:00

Ok Nashville blogosphere, here comes one of those posts that cries out for a response with the hope that you won't abandon me after skimming the first three sentences from your feed reader. ;-)

In an extreme act of generosity the parents have offered to buy me & Shaunna tickets to Disney's The Lion King at TPAC...if we can find them. Ticket Master's website says their sold out, as does Brad on 2 as well. Anyone know where we can score tickets to the Friday night, Saturday night, or either one of Sunday's performances?

Muchas gracias.

Tags: Disney, The Lion King, Broadway, TPAC, musical, tickets

Shidum Haleesh Melosophashal

2006-11-27T23:09:00.000-06:00

That's just about how it most likely sounds to "non-church people" when "church people" open their mouths and fill the air with what might as well be a language from another world. Author, thinker, wonderer, and bud, Jim Palmer of Divine Nobodies, takes a shot at acquiescing to an unknown person's request to "communicate in words the good news of God without using any religious or theological verbiage."

"God is Love.

Love (God) seeks the highest good of the other.

The greatest good God (Love) could offer is himself and so God made all people a reflection of himself in order to form an intimate bond with humankind.

In God, we experience life, love, freedom, joy, and peace.

God is pleased and smiles.

But doubting God, we seek fulfillment our own way and fall short of experiencing what God desires for us.

..."

Go check out the rest.

Tags: Jim Palmer, Divine Nobodies, spirituality, love, God

The Shula Saga

2006-11-27T06:31:00.000-06:00

ESPN reports this morning that AD Mal Moore dismissed coach Shula late last night. My response? BIG MISTAKE! I know he's 0-4 against Auburn and finished 6-6 this season but come on! He just came off a 10-2 season last year!

Ok, ok, I know that his combined record against Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, LSU, and UT is only 2-15 (yikes), 3-15 against SEC teams with winning records, 4-13 against nationally ranked teams, and is 0-19 in 4th quarter comebacks...but still. I think, given the circumstances, he's done a hell of a job. He took over a young, hurt, and talent depleted team in their last year under the NCAA death penalty AFTER spring practice and after one coach was fired due to scandal and the next one walked out quick.

He's definitely had some coaching struggles, himself and those around him, but given the circumstances, I think he's done ok--not great--but ok. Definitely not poorly enough to lose his job.

Sorry Shula. I liked ya man. Want to come help me coach my little league NFL flag football team in Mt. Juliet, TN?

UPDATE: Tide players respond, Coach Shula's statement, Mal Moore press conference video, and Interim Coach/Defensive Coordinator Joe Kines' video statement.

Tags: Shula, Mike Shula, fired, Mal Moore, Alabama, University of Alabama, Bama, U of A

Christmas is Not Your Birthday

2006-11-26T15:36:00.000-06:00

My bud Sam Davidson of Cool People Care has launched a campaign called Christmas is Not Your Birthday to help us rethink the bucks we spend on friends and family (and have spent on ourselves) over the next month or so. From Sam's interview with News 2 VJ Jamey Tucker, "The National Retail Federation projets [Christmas] spending this year at about 450 billion dollars..."

Like Sam, I wonder what would happen if only 1% of money that went to a charity, non-profit, or maybe better yet--someone you know who may need some help right about now?

Tags: Sam Davidson, Jamey Tucker, Cool People Care, Christmas is Not Your Birthday, Christmas, Spending, Money, Jeffrey Davis

We See Dead People...but Just Don't Realize It

2006-11-15T07:41:00.000-06:00

In the past few days several things have transpired causing me to wonder, "what if 'Heaven' wasn't another place, but instead, another realm?" What if the after-life, or rather life as it continues after our physical container ceases to function, is moving and living all around us, in the same place, but on a different plane of existence...the most real plane.

I think back to my grandad, Bubba, who suffered through more than a year as his physical body slowly shut down. Towards the end of his body's existence, he began carrying on conversations and attempting to interact with people that weren't there. A detail I had previously over-looked regarding this strange behavior was who he was talking to. He never talked to anyone who was still alive, always people who were dead. You would think that since his wife and immediate family were the people who dominated his consciousness that he would naturally attempt to interact with my mom, for example, when she was absent. No. It was always dead people. Something even freakier...this seems to be the norm for elderly people who's bodies are failing slowly. Makes one wonder doesn't it?

Here's my theory. Jesus said that God is spirit and we must worship him in spirit and in truth. You may have noticed in this post that I refer to death in a slightly different way than most people. That is because I feel that humans are spiritual beings contained in an earthly, physical, body. When the body dies or ceases to function, the spirit lives on. I'm coming to realize that the spiritual reality is more real than our current physical reality. At any rate, God is spirit. We are spirit. What if as the body begins to fail, people begin to see through their spirit and not with their eyes (though they seem to perceive it to be physical sight)? What if, as their consciousness drifts between the physical and spiritual, they see the spirit of others who's bodies have failed? The strange thing is that though they may be seeing the spiritual, they attempt to interact with these people in the physical realm by talking to them, reaching out for them, etc.

So the question is, how do you interact with something that is spiritual. Perhaps we could glean still from our elderly friends and family as we observe how they attempt to interact with the spiritual beings that they encounter. What if we could learn how to interact with God in greater reality, since he is spirit, as we watch them grope for this understanding somewhere between the two realms? Of course to do so we would have to actually pay attention to them and not say foolish things like, "oh they're just not really there anymore" or "it's just the medication".

On a slightly more vague note (as if there could be one), my Bubba and many others, as they grew nearer to death, had begun to speak of "that man over there" or "that man over there in the corner". It is always the exact same wording. Anybody else had this happen with someone they watched struggle to the end of their physical existence?

Weird post, I know.

Tags: death, ghosts, spiritual, God, real, reality, Sonny Johnson, Jeffrey Davis

God's Wrath: Reality or Cop-Out?

2006-11-13T07:31:00.000-06:00

I've been involved in a comment string on a friend's blog that has begun to deal with this issue of God's wrath. [~~I'll link up that convo if and when some comments get going here, so as not to slant or jade the dialogue before it begins.~~ *UPDATE*: Screw it, here's the link.] So here's the question, do you think that God's "wrath" on humans and nations living in sin is a reality, is it a fictitious way that humans have copped out of responsibility and/or blame, or is it something else? I know my blog really isn't known for it's massive comment strings, but I do hope to get some discussion going on.

Tags: Christianity, wrath, the wrath of God, grace, forgiveness, Jeffrey Davis

After Two Weeks, We're LOVING T-Mobile

2006-11-06T17:38:00.000-06:00

The wife and I have been T-Mobile customers for two weeks now and are absolutely loving our service! The myFaves plans are incredible. We use the myFaves Family share plan with 700 minutes between us, and of course we have unlimited talk time to the five people that are set as our Faves. We've also added the "any 400 messages" option to each of our phones. I LOVE the way T-Mobile bundles their message packages. It is the way that I feel it should be--you get "x" number of messages, period. Whether I want them to be all text, all video, all picture, IM, or a combination of the above, it doesn't matter. I have my allotted number and use them as I choose to.

Verizon and Cingular separate all their messages into text, picture, media, etc, bundles in what seems to be an attempt to confuse the consumer and ultimately take them to the cleaners. (I almost had to make a flow chart or something to keep track of what I get in which message bundle when I was comparing T-Mobile vs. Verizon.) At any rate, as my wife and I didn't have text capable phones until we switched to T-Mobile, the 400 messages each will more than suffice. If our addiction grows, T-Mobile allows unlimited messages (still of any type) for everyone in the family plan for twenty bucks per month. That'd be a great deal even for just the two of us, not to mention if there were two or three teenagers on the plan as well...so take note you parents of text-happy adolescents.

After driving all over the Nashville area from downtown, to Goodlettsville, to Lebanon, I've only dropped two calls since our conversion to T-Mobile and they were in the following spots between Hermitage and Mt. Juliet. *Note that these are the spots as I estimate them on the T-Mobile coverage map. This coverage map should be drastically changing at the end of this year as T-Mobile is erecting (ha, snicker) a number of towers in Middle Tennessee at the end of this quarter. It's important to note that I've been on calls through these two spots at other times without dropping them as well. Anyway, here are the images:

Here's a zoomed out view of the two spots:

One last thing, the T-Mobile customer care reps I've spoken to regarding a few questions about some plan details have been the most pleasant and most helpful customer service people I've ever spoken to, and not just in the cell phone industry. All-in-all, we're MORE than satisfied thus far with our service. If you're in the Nashville area and want to switch to T-Mobile, go to the Opry Mills Store and ask for Jessica, she was soooo nice, very knowledgeable, and incredibly helpful. Tell her Jeffrey and Shaunna Davis sent you...if she doesn't remember us, just tell her "you know, the guy who asked 10,000 questions back in October," then she will.

Go T-Mobile!

Tags: T-Mobile, Verizon, Cingular, myFaves, cell phone, Opry Mills

When All Our Heroes Crash and Burn

2006-11-03T08:58:00.000-06:00

This post started out as a work of reality-based fiction, but for some reason, didn't feel right. Perhaps it is because it is easier to surrender to my cynical nature if I detach from the truth of the situation. Nevertheless, here we go.

The news about Ted Haggard's struggles just came out this morning and I'm already sick of hearing about it. One news report that I heard as I was getting dressed this morning was, "...the evangelical community's response to this news can be summed up in one word, shock." (Let me pause here to clarify that the cynicism I'm fighting against in this post is not directed toward Ted, but toward the "evangelical community".) Ok, that pause greatly aided in slowing the anger I sensed welling up inside of me (albeit what I might call, righteous indignation).

I do so hope that the "evangelical community" does not react in the way the so mercilessly tend to do in similar scenarios. Hopefully Mr. Haggard will not be laughed at, discredited, slandered, or kicked to the curb as if he were a filthy leper that must spend the rest of his life wandering here and there, calling out "unclean! unclean!". Rather, I hope that he is loved, embraced, and nurtured, as the same Christ that lives in him lives in us all...many just may not be aware of it.

I find it incredibly sad that Christendom continually heaves a few "big boys" or "heroes" up onto the pedestal of faith, only to disown and condemn them when they come crashing down. However, many of the heroes themselves are not entirely void of blame. They, as I once did, have desperately sought their entire lives to be in such a position of power influence. Unfortunately, as many learn the hard way, great is the cost of "Christian super-stardom"--not only to the "super-stars" but to the people who put their faith in them, rather than God.

Dear Ted, I may not agree with your ideology of "church", among a great many other things, but I love you. You have struggles, just like me. Now, though without your initiation, those struggles are out in the light of the public eye. I know how unfortunate that must seem and how scary it must be, but at the same time, I'm sure an incredible burden feels as it has been lifted off of you. You do not now hold secrets from those you "lead" or love. What a relief, huh? May you discover the Love and the voice of Christ within and around you as you stand at this incredible crossroad. The roads that cross? That's for the Spirit to show you.

Love and Grace,

Jeffrey

Tags: Ted Haggard, New Life Church, Religion, Christendom, Scandal, Love, Grace, God

Vampire Dogs

2006-10-26T07:25:00.000-05:00

This pic is priceless! [via NiT & John Dwyer]

Tags: halloween, halloween pictures, vampire dog, vampire, funny, humorous, pets

It's not that easy being green

2006-10-24T08:34:00.000-05:00

Green. The image this word now conjures, at least to me, is no longer one of color, but of conviction. It is a word that now refers to an environmentally friendly means of producing energy. During the previous year or so, the global warming phenomenon and other environmental issues have recently become of greater and greater cause for concern in my own values, and I'm glad to see them do so to the greater public as well.

However, it unfortunately seems that "being green" is the new capitalistic fad. Everywhere you look headlines like "Wal-Mart building two experimental green stores" come a dime a dozen. My question is what's the motivation? Is it a ploy by resource devouring corporations to pretend that they care about the environment in an attempt to boost sales? Is it a genuine shift in values, like I myself have experienced? Even if it is the former, or something closely related, does the end justify the means? I don't know.

The question of motive has been in the forefront of my mind over the past three years. It first began as my wife, myself, and a few others set out to follow a vision and dream that God was birthing in us about what the Church could be. Having no other vehicle to assimilate such a vision into, we used the only one we had, a local church. It took about a year and a half for us to discover that the vision God was stirring in us pertained to the Church globally--i.e. everyone, everywhere--but we learned a valuable lesson in motive nonetheless.

As we set out to "plant a church" (again, before we realized the faulty perspective), we began to get involved in our community, organize events to give aid to those around us, and other seemingly noble actions. However, the real and underlying value wasn't simply to help, aid, and be involved, but to get people to come to "our church." I'll never forget when we all recognized this leading to a serious heart to heart. For us, we decided that such an end did not justify this ulterior motive. We continued such events for a while, but not in publicity of "our church", but because we truly cared.

Anyway, those days have past, the life of Christ in me now takes me down another trail on my spiritual journey, and this post has gotten much longer than normal, but what say you? Does the desired end of "being green" justify any misplaced motive or means to achieve it??

Tags: green, environmentalism, spirituality, church

Save the Internet! Moyers on Net Neutrality

2006-10-19T08:00:00.000-05:00

Last night the Bill Moyers produced, "the Net at Risk" prime time documentary hopefully helped to raise public awareness of just how serious of a risk we are of losing our internet. If you're not quite sure what the issue at hand really is, then you should go to SaveTheInternet.com and read up a little bit on it. Until then, Net Neutrality is about persuading Congress to NOT pass a bill proposed by Sen. Ted Stevens of Alaska that would allow the big ISP, cable, and telephone companies to act as "gatekeepers" or "toll booths" of the information super-highway.

If they were able to do so, they would not only continue to gouge their customers for internet/tv/telephone service, but they would also levy "tolls" on users of the internet, controlling who's information got to your screen through the express lanes or by creeping down the shoulder. What does that mean? That means that big corporations who can afford to pay the toll will be the content that reaches you--not by your choice, but by the gatekeepers'. This means that never again will a blog, "un-approved content" (via the gatekeepers' perspective), small business, forum results, and countless other types of content top, or even be present, on the list of your Google search results...that is if Google, in fact, happened to have been the highest paying search engine, maybe it would have been Yahoo, Ask, or some other engine.

One estimate given on last night's special said that 60% of the content on the internet comes from individuals. That turns the statistics of traditional media on it's head. Typically, whether it be TV, newspaper/magazine, or radio, 95-99% of the content is controlled by corporations. Will you let the telecom companies and Congress do that to the internet in the upcoming lame-duck session? Will you let them take away your blog, MySpace, Facebook, Flickr pics, YouTube videos, and all you other favorite web sites? Take action! Save the Internet!

Here are some ways to get involved: sign the petition, host a banner, blog about it, add SaveTheInternet as a MySpace friend, contact your senator. and tell your friends about Net Neutrality. Also be sure to go to SaveTheInternet.com and MoveOn.org for more info and ways to get involved.

Tags: net neutrality, network neutrality, save the internet, lame-duck, ted stevens, bill moyer, the net at risk, pbs

Stand for the Family/Anti-Gay Rally Roundup

2006-10-17T15:04:00.000-05:00

So here's the roundup from the folks who covered the "rally" last night at Two Rivers Baptist Church:

Kat Coble at NiT has a roundup of her own.

The Tennessean did an article with a comment feature at the bottom.

The Refugee Baptist has a clever post on the event, complete with a rather humourous spoofed photo.

Good ole' Sharon Cobb wonders how TRBC gets to keep it's tax exempt status.

...and finally, News 2 has got your video and commentary, courtsey of faith and ethics video journalist, Jamey Tucker.

Tags: ammendment #1, tennessee, stand for the family, james dobson, two rivers baptist church, gay, anti-gay, protest, jerry sutton, southern baptist, constitution