Mysticism of Ordinary Life

Today in class, we talked about different types of mysticism. One of the types that stuck out most to me was mysticism of ordinary life. Something about that connected with me and compelled me to share this story.

One day early this year, I was walking across campus to the bookstore. I don’t remember why. I had a dozen different problems floating around in my head, and I was completely overwhelmed trying to solve each one. I had just crossed the bridge over Harkrider and was walking underneath some trees on the way. There was no one around; it was almost totally silent. All of a sudden, the wind changed directions and hit me just the right way. I stopped. In that moment, everything changed. My problems melted away. I felt this energy that I couldn’t explain. It was like God had whisked all my anxiety away and left His peace in its place. It was like He was telling me, “Everything will be OK.” I probably stood there for 30 seconds, enjoying that feeling as long as I could. I can’t explain it. But never before and never since have I felt so alive. I praise the God who can use the most mundane of circumstances to reveal Himself and heal our brokenness.

My Super-Busy Weekend

Hi, friends! I know I haven’t been posting enough on here. I’m sorry. Since school started, things have been crazy. I’m working on a new vlog that I will hopefully have uploaded by the end of the week, and I promise to keep my site updated as much as possible. Now I’m going to tell you about my weekend.

This weekend was insanely busy. You know how usually college students stress all week and then use the weekend to cool down? Well, that didn’t work out for me this week. On my way home Friday afternoon, I drove through a terrible storm that wreaked havoc on my town. When I got home, we had no power. So much for cooking a frozen pizza and watching Netflix all night. Instead, I went out to eat with my family, and by the time I got home, the power was back on. But by then, it was late. So I watched a little TV and went to sleep.

Saturday was supposed to be an all-day Three Minutes to Midnight shoot, but that didn’t quite work out. Schedule conflicts arose, so we decided to start later in the day. I spent the morning with my family and then headed to the warehouse to film a few scenes. I packed several costumes but ended up spending the entire time behind the camera, which I’m more comfortable with anyway. We only filmed for a few hours because of more scheduling conflicts. Making a movie isn’t easy. Then, I went to Kevin’s to plan future shoots and headed back to Greenwood to watch the Razorback game with Clayton and his family, which was a huge disappointment to say the least.

Sunday morning, I had the honor of worshipping God at my home church. Going to Cavanaugh is seriously one of my favorite things. I love the people, the music, the preaching. It’s all amazing. After church, I had lunch at home with my family. Then I immediately went back to the warehouse to film for TMTM. We spent the afternoon outside in the heat wearing suits. It wasn’t as hot as I thought it would be, though, and we filmed a really important scene. It turned out great. After filming, Kevin and I went to a youth worker meeting at church (wearing our suits, of course), and then I went to Merge Bible study. Some friends and I went to Cheddar’s after Sunday School, and then I headed back to school. After answering literally over 20 emails, I’m now blogging before bed.

Needless to say, it’s been a long, busy weekend. But it was fun, and I love being home. I can’t wait to finish TMTM and show it off to my family and friends. It’s stressful sometimes, but it’s worth it. I can’t wait to see what this week holds for me. I’ll keep you guys posted. Thanks for reading. I’ll see you on the Internet!

Fall 2012 Classes

So the first week of classes is almost over. I’ve been to each of my classes at least once, and I just wanted to write a post about each class and how I’m feeling about this school year.

My first class this semester was Screenwriting. This class is pretty different from my other three for a few reasons. First of all, I am taking this class 100% for fun. It doesn’t fulfill any requirements I haven’t already filled, and it has nothing to do with either of my majors. I don’t even need the course credit to graduate. It’s a true elective, and that makes the class a little more fun. It also takes the pressure off so I can focus more on learning and less on my letter grade. Also, this class has a strange schedule. On Thursdays, it’s just like any regular class, but on Tuesdays, it’s three hours long. This time is set aside for movie screenings. In case you don’t know me that well, I love watching and discussing movies, so the fact that I am in a class that sets aside actual class time each week to watch and analyze movies is just amazing to me. I love it. On top of that, my only assignment in the class is to write a full-length screenplay. So this class is the perfect elective for me. I get to watch movies and write a movie in a fun, pressure-free zone. And the professor is really cool. Screenwriting will probably be my favorite class I take this semester.

Another class I’m taking this semester is Cognitive Neuroscience. I’m mainly taking this class because it fulfills a requirement for my Psychology major, but I think it will be interesting. I’ve always been interested in how the brain and the mind interact, so it should be fun to explore how the brain works and how the brain’s functions turn into our knowledge and consciousness.

I’m very excited about the Childhood and Adolescence class I’m taking this semester. I love kids, and I love working with kids. I think this class will help me better understand how children develop, and I hope I can apply that knowledge to how I interact with and teach children. I think this will come in handy in my personal life and as a pastor.

The final class I’m taking this semester is Theories and Research. It’s a Religious Studies course designed to prepare students to write their theses, the very long final paper each Religious Studies student must write before he or she can graduate from Hendrix. I can’t say I would be taking this class if it wasn’t required for me to graduate, but now that I’ve been to the first class and know what it’s about, I’m kind of excited. I love learning about Religious Studies, and this class will teach me different ways of approaching the subject. It will also give me a glimpse of what writing my thesis will be like, and that is something I can’t wait for.

I am very excited about this semester. I’ve got a great lineup of classes, and I can’t wait to get started and learn as much as I can. I’m sure this semester won’t be easy, and I might get bogged down and complain, but I am very blessed to be getting this education and to be taking classes that I care about. I love college, and I’m very eager to get into the groove of this semester.

I hope all of you are enjoying your classes as much as I am. If you’re not in school, I hope you’re enjoying work or whatever else it is you do. Thank you for reading, and I’m sure I’ll keep you posted on how my classes go throughout the semester. See you on the Internet!