Thursday, February 16, 2006

Ancient Prayer

well, I just got back from my tribe's land. It's the first time I've set foot on that space since the fall of 2004. It was kind of weird.

I really felt like I needed to go somewhere and connect with God. It was such a beautiful evening, so I wanted to make the most of it. Out of nowhere, I felt this prompt to go to "the Mountain." I debated the trip. Why not just go for a walk through the neighborhood. But the thought wouldn't go away. Even though it was late, I hopped in my car, and drove. I knew the moon would be lighting up the land also, but I wasn't sure what was driving me there.

I didn't know how it would be. I had a wonderful time of prayer in the middle of the night, and watched the moon rise over the horizon. It cast shadows across the land.

Up there, it was just me and God, and the natural world. Maybe I was giving myself closure by going, or maybe I was just re-opening old wounds. I'm still trying to figure it out.

It's hard to believe that I once spent so much of my life on that piece of ground. I'm grateful for my unique heritage. I'm even grateful for the learning and growth that have taken place in my life as a result of my experiences among other Shawnee people. In some ways my whole experience among my people, and even the last couple of years, seems so surreal.

Amazingly, God has already answered at least one of my prayers this evening. I look forward to Him answering my prayers for the Shawnee people as well.

Monday, February 06, 2006

Invisible Children

I just watched the movie Invisible Children this evening for the first time. My friend Dave Williams down at Virginia Tech told me about the movie last summer. Our friend Todd Hiestand showed the movie somewhere in philadelphia.

It's pretty cool that news of this movie is spreading on the underground scene, and it is so impressive to see the wide variety of people who are getting into the mix. The guys who originally stumbled on this tragic story are planning to release a full length movie telling the story of the invisible children of Uganda in december.

The movie moved me to tears. I think this film is great for two reasons. I believe the three guys who stumbled into this tragedy are going to be used to put an end to the invisibility of the children in uganda. I also believe that the momentum gathering won't stop with Uganda. There are invisible children all over the world. We don't see them, we don't hear their stories. Stories of child soldiers. Stories of child prostitutes. Stories of child slaves.

The good earth needs healing--will we stop and do something. And if we stop and do something, what exactly do we do? So many causes to work toward--it's enough to make your head spin.

The only hope this world really has is the gospel. What would happen in this world if the people of the Way started living out the teachings of the Master? I pray that I might live to see more and more of us begin to walk in His steps, and to grow more like Him in our hearts and in our lives, but I know the truth is that it starts with me.

Friday, February 03, 2006

WVU Vs Notre Dame



WVU Vs, originally uploaded by chanchanchepon.
Well the last couple of days have been a lot of fun. I had hoped to take my dad to the big east basketball tournament this year as a Christmas present, but unfortunately the tickets/hotel/food all look to be way beyond our price range. (The face value on tickets is $310/each, and the cheapest I have seen them online is $425).

Instead of going to the tournament, I managed to get my dad a student guest ticket to all of the remaining WVU home games. He came up Wednesday to watch WVU play against Notre Dame. Tomorrow morning we watch WVU play Cincinnati.

It has been really cool spending time with my dad too. We went for a six mile hike this afternoon at Cooper's Rock. One of my favorite places in the Morgantown area.

From the moment WVU hit their first three point shot of the game, I knew my dad really enjoyed his present. Watching this team play is a lot of fun, but sharing experiences like this with my dad is priceless.