Living Rarefied

Saw it last night in a pre-release deal.

Interesting, yet my thoughts aren't fully grounded as I haven't read the book yet. I may now read it for more details. I guess the movie left large chunks of detail out.

I struggle with the big deal everybody is making about this book/movie. Isn't our faith supposed to be founded on the experiences we've had with Jesus? Not seeing him on the big-screen or pages of a fictional book. My faith is grounded on Jesus' love I experience daily. I think that questions are a great way to open yourself up to let Jesus' love pour in. I think even the tough questions that may shake the ground the Church was founded on are good questions for you on a personal level. I don't want to belittle the history of the Church with this post and thats not my point. My problem is that we focus on facts facts facts.

I wonder why we put all of our energy towards a book/story like this to have people "boycott the movie cause we dont want to line Dan Brown's pockets with even more money" Yet we sit and don't even know most of our neighbors names, have no idea about the life of the person behind the Caribou Coffee counter, or go to happy hours with co-workers and talk about nothing and go home with no idea of how they are loving their wife/husband or families and neighbors.

CHALLENGE: meet a neighbor you haven't met. learn their names… I've wanted to meet this couple for some time now, they moved in 2 houses away a year ago. But I have done nothing but wave from a distance, hoping they'd make the first move.. I am going to meet them this weekend…

Ethan Daily, Struggles, testing

I hope you've seen then new VW Passat commercial.  It shows a couple driving through town and as they pass other cars of the "luxury" variety the drivers are all heads out the window with a megaphone chanting phrases.  On is of a blond woman in a convertible, claiming that if people look at her it gives her worth.  Another is a man yelling out "because I make more money than you, because I make more money than you, because I make more money than you…"  Over and over.  And the last is a guy in a red Viper saying "because I am overcompensating for something, because I am overcompensating for something, because I am overcompensating for something…"

I love this commercial because it is so true.  But about 3 times a year I get all worked up about getting a newer/cooler car than my 99 Passat.  My car works fine, gets great mileage, is in 1 piece, never a hassle, always reliable…  Now something is telling me that the Passat isn't cutting it for me anymore, something inside me wants to scream out through a megaphone and that megaphone maybe a new car…

I ran into a friend from HS who I haven't seen in 8 years… His 3 questions were, where do you live, where do you work and are you still playing a lot of golf…  I think the 1st 2 questions were to measure up.  Size Ethan up, how's he doing.  And the last question must just be what people think of me as.  I run into countless people who associate me with golf and thats it.  "Ethan? oh he's the golfer…"  I am passionate about golf, but it doesn't even begin to define me, especially these days…
As I prepare to head back to El Salvador in July, I am pondering these items as to what exactly am I screaming through my megaphone.  I think the things that we scream through the megaphone are things that are actually holding us back.  Last time I went in 2004 I think I was screaming out "because i am the best employee around, because i am the best employee around, because i am the best employee around…"  Well I got back and within a week I quit my job. I'm not looking to do the same this time, but I am ready for another change and would love to hear what I am screaming into a megaphone about and hopefully make a change there as well.  Eventually I would like my megaphone to be silent…  I would like my life to speak for me, in a way that nobody tries to measure me, or measure up to me.  But in a way that somebody can admire the silence of my megaphone.

Ethan Community, Daily, Feeling, Surprise Me

Because its not only open to just your friends…

I signed up for myspace a few years ago as a way to learn about music.. The times have changed…

A week ago I cancelled my account for many reasons. One most is a waste of time for me. I would rather "connect" with people in person vs. comments and myspace messages. Secondly, Myspace is getting a bit shady. I have seen many news stories about the presence of sexual predators, schools and businesses using myspace as an additional background check, and many other things I consider wrong and don't want to be a part of…

Quite a few of my youth group friends found me on there, I thought it would be a great easy way to communicate what we had planned for the week, quick hellos and such. Which it was until I started to realize the content people put on their pages. I don't need to get into it, but its enough to make me very uncomfortable being a part of it. Another reason is that about 1/3 of my friends were my youth group friends and should somebody come across my page, they may take the reason i have 40+ HS friends on there out of context.

Mark Cuban wrote a great post about his addition to IceRocket.com to help parents track whats going on in MySpace… the space their kids are in.

I heard a story recently of a student who was expelled from school for some "extra curricular" activities that happened at school afterhours on a weekend. Photos were taken and posted on somebody's profile on one of the social networking sites such as myspace.com or facebook.com. The photos are public, perhaps the students forgot that, but served as proof to what happened and was enough to get the student expelled.

I end with a quote from a detective who was on the Dateline I saw.

"As a parent, I dont think I could hire a private investigator to get me more information than these kids are giving away on their pages"

Follow up video of a kids perspective…

Ethan Community, Daily, Surprise Me

This just came across the EO News Ticker…

I will be returning to El Salvador in July with the Upper Room community.  I am thrilled as I was asked to be a team leader, I am very honored.

I will need to start gathering some prayer support and financial support and other logistics of the trip.

But i am very excited to go back.  My life began to be transformed drastically last time I was there. I am excited to get back there and see Manuel again, experience the happiness of the people of El Salvador and grow with a community through the experience the trip brings…

Ethan Daily, Struggles

About a month ago I was with friends in Palm Springs. On the way back we tried to catch an earlier flight on standby. 3 of us got called up.  Steve & Kyle & I, 4 others didn't make it.  In the commotion to figure out who got to get home at a decent hour, we lost one spot.  Down to 2.  I have nobody to get home to so I was planning on conceeding my seat anyway.  So Steve & Kyle were gonna take the seats, Kyle hadn't been away from his son Brennan so he was a for sure.  Steve is Steve, and based on coolness factor he was going too.

A woman came from the jetway all worked up that her ticket didn't work.  That she had called a few hours earlier and gotten her ticket changed to the earlier flight.  Evidently she had bad information and was booked on the late flight with the rest of us.  She mentioned she had 4 kids at home and she would lose her job if she didn't get on this flight.

I looked at Steve without any knowledge if her claims were true or not, whether she would lose her job if she got home at 8:00 PM or 1:00 AM?, and said, "Opportunity??"

Response: "Love Wins!!"

Steve gave up his spot on the flight to her, she was gracious and got on the flight.  We never got a chance to talk to her more about whether it was a scam or the truth.  We'll take it as the truth.  But I'd like to think love won that night as there were then complications with our tickets as we were locked in the middle of being transferred to the flight that was already landing in Minneapolis.  Mine was sorted quickly with a re-print. Steve's took some time.

Seating assignments:

• I got front row bulkhead window seat.  3 feet of legroom and nobody in the middle seat. Plenty of room to sleep!
• Steve got upgraded to 1st class.  Nothing more to say there…

I don't look for rewards for love.  But I can't help but think the premium seating assignments were the tangible smile of Jesus from a small sacrifice to love sombody.  All I said was "opportunity"

Ethan Daily, Feeling

I am as close as I ever got to attending Yale… I got a phone call this morning from a Young Life friend of mine, Dan. He got into Yale today! I guess nowadays you can check online to see if you got in, a little different than when most of us had to wait and check the mailbox each day.

2 amazing examples of subtle love:

• I was the first person he called. It touches my heart like I can't explain that a HS kid would think to call me first about such huge news! Even before he posted it on his MySpace.com bulletin!
• He also hasn't heard back from Williams… His brother goes there. Hist brother didn't get into Yale with perfect SAT scores and a 4.0+ GPA. He told me he hopes he doesn't get into Williams so that his brother can say to him, "I got in to Williams and you didn't" Simply amazing that he is thinking of his brother in that way. It strikes me as a perfect way of loving his brother that he would lay his own humility on the table before him.

SIDE NOTE: he got into Wheaton where I wrote him my first letter of reccommendation… 1 for 1 baby!!!

Ethan Daily, Feeling

I launched a new website for my good friend Andrew tonight…

I recommend using him for all your photographic needs…

Ethan Daily

I went to the Gopher hockey game last night with the son of a close friend of mine.. He's 6, but don't tell him that cause his 7th birthday is next monday the 20th.  I'm too old to go to his birthday party, but I wasnt too old to watch hockey with him.

Again with my young friend, a lesson of simplicity and living in the current moment was preached from his actions and words last night.

Its way more fun to imagine how cool it would be if the Gophers scored a million-kazillion goals and the other team only scored 2, than worry about anything my mind may be occupied with.

Ethan Daily

Top 2 reasons I will never be in the Olympics.

1. I don't have the drive to get myself to the gym lately, let alone prepare for the Olympics.
2. Spending 4+ years for a 1 minute run of which I would most likely screw up 10 seconds into it, therefore nullifying my previous 4 years. Then having to wait another 4 years to redeem myself.  Its just not my cup of tea.

But skol to those who do it year after year, you inspire me.

Ethan Daily, Feeling

So I have been asked to present my thoughts on Technology in Youth Ministry at Bethel University.  I am delivering the goods tomorrow night.

Funny thing is, I think the students will most likely all be older than me.  They are all currently staffed at a church or other youth ministry organization and are in their last semester of Seminary.

Ethan Daily