And they shall know you by your love

When I was in elementary school, the month of February always meant eating lots of conversation hearts and deciding which valentine cards to give to others in my class. In high school, Valentines Day became a holiday that always involved me being jealous of girls who liked to show of all the gifts they had received from their boyfriends. Then when I came to college, I stopped being jealous and scoffed at the sappy sentimentality of the holiday, especially when I learned that the greeting card industry reinvented what was formerly known as St. Valentine's Day in order to make some serious profit. Well, I've come to a point in my life where February 14th, the proclaimed "day of love", has gained a new meaning. It's an opportunity to ponder what loving others---our family, our friends, our community, our enemies--- really means, especially in the way Jesus called us to. In the book The Irresistible Revolution, Shane Claiborne puts it this way:

"I started to see that miracles were an expression not so much of Jesus' mighty power as of his love...what had lasting significance were not the miracles themselves but Jesus' love. Jesus healed the sick, but they eventually caught some other disease. He fed the thousands, and the next day they were hungry again. But we remember his love. It wasn't that Jesus healed a leper but that he touched a leper, because no one touched lepers. And the incredible thing about that love is it now lives inside of us...we shall do even greater things because the love that lived in the radical Christ now lives within ordinary radicals all over the planet."

So as Valentines Day is upon us, let it be a reminder of the impact we can have on the world through love, with God's help.

hold on to your butts

Thank you Election '08, you have succeeded in making me more interested in the political process than I have ever been in my entire life. Here's to a wild ride!

Why Things Could Get Very Interesting In August...

Yes we can.

Today I woke up and actually jumped out of bed excited (if you know me, you know I'm NOT a morning person and me being excited about getting out of bed is something quite rare). The cause for my excitement was exercising my right to vote on this morning of Super Tuesday. For the first time since I have been able to vote, I have a surprising amount of optimism for what the future of politics holds--and this is because of the hope that I think Barack Obama provides for our country. In him, I see a new political era rising. He is definitely not the perfect candidate and I disagree with him on some issues, but still, Obama has given me a reason to participate in this election and feel like I'm contributing to something bigger.

Here is the key article that really helped me make my decision to stand behind Obama. Now it's just a waiting game to see what happens at the polls today...