A few days ago, I came up my walk and discovered a large paper bag on my stoop with my name on it. It wasn't on fire, which is a good sign, and I figured it was a present from one of my neighbors.

The night before, at 3:45am, I was alerted to the fact that some boys where moving trashcans around. Namely, my trashcans. They were bored, and so in an act of hoodlumary and teenage rebellion, they decided to take my trashcans and put them on someone else's drive. So I, dressed in nothing more than yellow shorts, went outside to confront them. My reasoning was that, as the many cultures who went to war naked discovered: it's much scarier to be confronted with a madman in the buff.

They moved my trashcan back.

And the next day I had a bag with a note of apology and a six-pack by my front door. A kind and thoughtful gesture, though I can't stand the taste of alcohol, so cream soda would have been more fun for me.

Gifts

Also in the photo above is a gift we got from some of the kids we teach for Sunday School--since we're going on Summer Break. It is a paint can filled with s'more supplies and a very cute poem. My dad asked me to blog about it because we all need a little encouragement and some ideas of how we can bless those who serve us. And he's right. I'm terrible about giving thank you gifts, but they sure are great to receive.

And one last gift, this from the code demons of the blogoverse:

Blog Fail

It only happens in IE. It goes away if you clear your cache. It comes back if you refresh my blog.

Thank you to all my readers using Firefox, RSS, or some other tool that continues to display my blog content day after day. I will be working on this issue more next week.

Speaking of next week: I have to take some time off, so I won't be around as much next week. Sorry, friends.

Have a great Memorial Day!

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Mary Grace got me thinking: I like having my superhero cape askew.

My Cape

I like getting excited about things like business cards. I'm okay with the fact that a small piece of paper with a little ink makes me feel more legitimate. And I enjoy sharing these small moments of my life with you.

On the other hand, I'm an introvert by nature in the sense that I feel drained when I'm around tons of people, I don't mingle well at parties, and I keep my conversations one-on-one. But I don't mind public speaking and I like having people over to my house for a relaxed get-together. And that's part of this online community that I'm sad we don't do more of: Hang out IRL instead of on our various URLs.

So, until I can practice the ancient custom of hospitality and have you over, we have to settle for this online friendship. And so, I'd like you meet someone:

Ektharian

He's my "Main"--my original, main character--in World of Warcraft. WoW is another place where I find community, friends, and people with whom I can interact. I've met a student living in Iraq, a 14-year old struggling with her worth, and several Christians who have been incredibly encouraging. And there's something about running around as a Night Elf Hunter that lets other people open up to you. You can, in some sense, be more transparent and open with people when you're not face to face.

You can also lie, so that's the other side of this.

May you--the real, human, soul, you--find the support you need both in the real world and here. And if I can ever be of assistance, please let me know.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Luke Skywalker was, of course, referring to C-3PO. But I have commandeered the quote in reference to myself. Because this is my blog, so I can do that kind of thing. Watch me.

For the two of you who may have noticed that I didn't blog yesterday--and the one who took it a step further and actually wondered, 'Why hasn't Luke posted anything today?'--here is the answer: I'm sick.

I left work at 1:30 yesterday and went right to bed. I didn't get up until 8 this morning; I had a meeting at Sonlight I needed to attend, so I had to get up. I'm still not feeling great, so your prayers are welcome.

I even had a plan for what I was going to write about yesterday, but I didn't get around to it because I was trying to get better by sleeping. And it's hard to write blog posts that others can read while you're asleep.

I was going to comment on a video about charitable giving. Sonlight is very aware of the fact that 99% of church giving stays in the US, and only a very small part of what goes overseas is used to reach unreached peoples. Most of it goes to the "sexy" things like relief work. That's why my parents have made a conscious effort to give to bring the good news of Christ to people who have never had the opportunity to hear it before.

What bothers me about this video--and other things like it--is that I find the comparisons unfair. Sure, it may cost a lot less to feed Sudanese children than American children, but that's because the cost of living is so high here. It really costs a ton to live in the US. And, yes, if I drove an SUV, had a gym membership, and owned a time-share, this video may speak to me more. But I don't.

On the other hand, I do give to my local church, support missions efforts, and am thrilled to participate in Sonlight's giving opportunities like the Rice Bag Project--the one coming up this year is even more exciting... in my opinion.

Yes, true religion is looking after widows and orphans. But the more I hear about the nations who refuse money and are doing better because of it, I have to wonder if just giving money is the answer. As I mentioned above: It's "sexier" and easier to feel good about, but is it really helping? Is it really looking after widows and orphans to pour money into those countries?

My guess is that it's much more of a "teach a man to fish" kind of thing.

Thoughts?

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Mr. Deity: "Fully God and fully human, that's how you do the whole 'sinless life' thing."

Jesus: "Well, that hardly seems fair."

I've gotta say: I love the wide variety of blogs I read. In fact, if you just poke through my Other Posts of Note, you can find stuff from a wide variety of perspectives. I mean, just today I've got some John Piper and Evolutionary Morality--to say nothing of the funny stuff I bump into. My hope is that this keeps me sharp and smiling.

So, what should we make of Mr. Deity's inability to make things fair/logical? Well, let's work through it, shall we?

1. Three days (well, 36 hours). Prophecies. This has pinged the back of my mind now and again: Three days? Really? I think the scholarly response would point to how prophecies work, their vantage point of history (with a compressed future), and the fact that it really was the third day. But, in the end, I haven't run into any Jewish teachers who discredit the resurrection account based on this issue, so I think we're cool with this as the three day period.

2. What Jesus gets from this. "Full partner." and 3. Why God can't do it Himself. "I'm not chicken." These points play off the difficulty of the Trinity: God, three Persons, One God. That's a pretty easy one to pick on--as Clint Eastwood does--but if you accept that Jesus and "Mr. Deity" are one, both of these issues disappear.

4. Can't You just forgive? Sin. This is another thing I've thought about, especially in light of Greek mythology. Who has power: The gods or the Fates? So why does God need blood for forgiveness? Who is He bound to? Reading all of Hebrews 9 sheds a little light on the subject, but Hebrews isn't an easy book to understand. It seems that God demands it Himself. Why? I don't really know.

5. Fully God/fully human. We're damned anyway. This goes back to the Fall, where we were set up well and decided to trade it in to become like God. And as humorous as it may be to see Mr. Deity gloat over our destruction, that's not how God is. Instead, He has provided a way for us to get back to Him, despite our demonstrations of human defiance.

6. Created way beneath God. Expected to live up to His standards or be damned. Again, this is a severely distorted view of God. He used to walk with us and connect with us. And then He did it again. His standards are not hard to keep, until we decide to rebel against them.

In the end, all of these points come from the cynical point of view--which is why it can be funny. But cynicism is hardly good discourse. And while I am hardly a Saint, I am one of the saints, and I thought I should point out that there are perfectly legitimate answers to these questions.

And I've learned something by watching Sonlight's general manager: It's easy to be cynical, to declare that you are not "duped" by this or that, and it is really hard to give an answer that will satisfy the cynic. But the great managers, like Wayne, can take such complaints and sometimes offer insights and words of wisdom that cut to the center of the issue.

Because cynicism is rarely--if ever--about really addressing a question. It's about making your point sting so you feel better about your position. I've been there. But seeing really great people respond with gracious, well-reasoned responses that point out the flaws in cynic's thinking has inspired me to try to do the same.

Try is certainly the operative word here. But I am trying.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father