un and relaxing way to spend a couple hours. Boy were we wrong in this case. We saw There Will Be Blood. It's up for academy awards and from the description it sounded interesting. We are highly recommending that you never watch it, either in the theater or on dvd. It was a good lesson for us and we will be watching fewer movies for a while just to minimize the chances that we'll have to sit through something like that again. In hindsight we should have gotten up and walked out 30 minutes into it, but we both expected it to turn some kind of corner and at least become a little entertaining or interesting. Nope. Not only did it have disturbing and depressing (not to mention sacrilegious) themes, but it also was quite slow and boring, not very visually interesting at all, lacking a discernible plot, and way too long. It had very little if any of the typical things that would have kept us away--like language, nudity, or excessive violence--but was full of stuff very contrary to what we ought to fill our minds with as Christians. I had to apologize to Stacy for taking her and I didn't really want to confess on here that we saw it, but we wanted to do our part in trying to keep 2 1/2 hours of your lives free from that trash. Please don't see it.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
What does the Academy Know? A Lesson for the Mathews
Last night we went to a movie. After a busy week we thought it might be a f
un and relaxing way to spend a couple hours. Boy were we wrong in this case. We saw There Will Be Blood. It's up for academy awards and from the description it sounded interesting. We are highly recommending that you never watch it, either in the theater or on dvd. It was a good lesson for us and we will be watching fewer movies for a while just to minimize the chances that we'll have to sit through something like that again. In hindsight we should have gotten up and walked out 30 minutes into it, but we both expected it to turn some kind of corner and at least become a little entertaining or interesting. Nope. Not only did it have disturbing and depressing (not to mention sacrilegious) themes, but it also was quite slow and boring, not very visually interesting at all, lacking a discernible plot, and way too long. It had very little if any of the typical things that would have kept us away--like language, nudity, or excessive violence--but was full of stuff very contrary to what we ought to fill our minds with as Christians. I had to apologize to Stacy for taking her and I didn't really want to confess on here that we saw it, but we wanted to do our part in trying to keep 2 1/2 hours of your lives free from that trash. Please don't see it.
un and relaxing way to spend a couple hours. Boy were we wrong in this case. We saw There Will Be Blood. It's up for academy awards and from the description it sounded interesting. We are highly recommending that you never watch it, either in the theater or on dvd. It was a good lesson for us and we will be watching fewer movies for a while just to minimize the chances that we'll have to sit through something like that again. In hindsight we should have gotten up and walked out 30 minutes into it, but we both expected it to turn some kind of corner and at least become a little entertaining or interesting. Nope. Not only did it have disturbing and depressing (not to mention sacrilegious) themes, but it also was quite slow and boring, not very visually interesting at all, lacking a discernible plot, and way too long. It had very little if any of the typical things that would have kept us away--like language, nudity, or excessive violence--but was full of stuff very contrary to what we ought to fill our minds with as Christians. I had to apologize to Stacy for taking her and I didn't really want to confess on here that we saw it, but we wanted to do our part in trying to keep 2 1/2 hours of your lives free from that trash. Please don't see it.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Snow
Stacy has decided to use the word brilliant more often--for three reasons: It's just kind of a fun word. Second, British people use it, specifically Bear from the show Man vs. Wild, who says it about everything from the breathtaking Chilean Patagonia mountain range to the giant, slimy grubs he's about to eat. And third, it describes our time last weekend in the mountains.
We stayed in a cabin at a Christian camp that they rent to seminary students for cheap. We drove around in the snow, watched the Seahawks game at a fun little Italian place, built snow men, drank hot chocolate, played Monopoly, and just relaxed. Then, on Sunday we drove southish a couple hours to Yosemite. It is one of the most, if not the most, beautiful places I had been to. Stacy had never been but now we both have and we got to see it in the snow. Like John Muir, the explorers who found it years before him, and the Miwok tribe who lived there for who knows how long before that, we were amazed at God's creative genius as we drove into the valley. The weekend was very restful and worship inspiring. Here are a few pictures.
We stayed in a cabin at a Christian camp that they rent to seminary students for cheap. We drove around in the snow, watched the Seahawks game at a fun little Italian place, built snow men, drank hot chocolate, played Monopoly, and just relaxed. Then, on Sunday we drove southish a couple hours to Yosemite. It is one of the most, if not the most, beautiful places I had been to. Stacy had never been but now we both have and we got to see it in the snow. Like John Muir, the explorers who found it years before him, and the Miwok tribe who lived there for who knows how long before that, we were amazed at God's creative genius as we drove into the valley. The weekend was very restful and worship inspiring. Here are a few pictures.
Our cabin, us, and our snowmen
Half Dome
Us and Half Dome
Yosemite Falls
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Happy Birthday!
My Love
Today marks the 12045 day or 33rd year of Joshua George Mathews' life and I am inviting you to celebrate with me!
Today marks the 12045 day or 33rd year of Joshua George Mathews' life and I am inviting you to celebrate with me!
I know that I am a little bit biased because I have the best husband ever but I am sure that any of you who know Josh would agree about his character.
Josh is a man marked by the Word of God, as he has devoted his life studies to sit under the Living Word and be taught by it. Even when there are hard things to understand he is ready to study yet also be molded.
He is a man of discipline who takes seriously that our days are numbered and so the way that he chooses to spend his time in practice will make the habits that prepare him for the finish line.
He is a man of his word, if he commits to something he will follow through with his actions.
He is a man of leadership and guides our marriage to be a reflection of the Lord especially when it is hard.
He is a man of quick whit, whenever there is something fun to say he will offer an opportunity for laughter.
He is a man of loyalty who has friendships from boyhood that he cares about and invests in and takes great delight in relationship with family (not to mention his favorite band U2 and the Seahawks).
He is a man of kindness who is always seeking ways to prefer me and others before himself.
He is a man of humble strength in his quiet way he will unwaveringly stand for the truth.
He is a man of life who has taught me so much about playing hard and seizing the moment to explore and make memories.
He is a man of risk otherwise we would not be married!
Josh is a man marked by the Word of God, as he has devoted his life studies to sit under the Living Word and be taught by it. Even when there are hard things to understand he is ready to study yet also be molded.
He is a man of discipline who takes seriously that our days are numbered and so the way that he chooses to spend his time in practice will make the habits that prepare him for the finish line.
He is a man of his word, if he commits to something he will follow through with his actions.
He is a man of leadership and guides our marriage to be a reflection of the Lord especially when it is hard.
He is a man of quick whit, whenever there is something fun to say he will offer an opportunity for laughter.
He is a man of loyalty who has friendships from boyhood that he cares about and invests in and takes great delight in relationship with family (not to mention his favorite band U2 and the Seahawks).
He is a man of kindness who is always seeking ways to prefer me and others before himself.
He is a man of humble strength in his quiet way he will unwaveringly stand for the truth.
He is a man of life who has taught me so much about playing hard and seizing the moment to explore and make memories.
He is a man of risk otherwise we would not be married!
Happy Birthday my love, here's to another wonderful year!!!
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Celebrations and Traditions
We left on Dec 20th for Oregon and a wonderful visit to both of our families. But first Stacy had her directorial debut the night before. She was in charge of adapting and directing the Christmas program at the preschool. It took months of a lot of work, practicing lines and songs with the kids, making props and decorations, coordinating help from parents, and overall chaos control of the 2, 3, and 4 year-olds. It all paid off with great success. The kids did great, aside from the to-be-expected few cryers from stagefright. Stacy shined all night. And most of all the good news of our Savior's birth was proclaimed loud and clear to a full audience, many of whom were not believers.
Then we came home on New Year's Eve day, which we highly recommend because of the lack of traffic, and now were two days into our somewhat normal routines here. Overall it was a great time of traditions, celebrations, relaxing, and being with loved ones.
After taking down the decorations we went home and wound down, slept hard for a few hours, and woke up excited to leave early the next morning. We made it over the pass without having to put on chains (the requirement was lifted 5 minutes before we reached the place they were stopping people), and spent a couple hours and had some soup in Medford with Stacy's family. We got to Josh's parents' house that evening and spent five wonderfully relaxing days there. It even snowed a little on Christmas eve and Christmas day. We continued the all important little smokies tradition. For those of you who don't know about that we cut a hole in the top of a cabbage big enough for one of those little sterno liquid fuel cans to fit in. Then we put toothpicks with little smokies all around the outside. The kids (and some big kids) crowd around and roast the little smokies and dip them in ketchup, mustard, and sesame seeds. We don't really know where it started but it has been going in the Mathews family every year as long as any of us can remember. Maybe it's an old Norwegian tradition that Grandma carried on. (Rachel, Nathan, and Boaz are doing the "Smokey Dance" in the pictures.)
Then we went back down to Medford and spent five days there. We celebrated with Stacy's sister Cynthia, who got engaged to a great guy named Kenny. It was so good just to be with family. There was some snow there too. Stacy's parents are doing well in spite of some ongoing health difficulties. They keep busy and stay involved with church and with their grandkids. The four of us, Mom, Dad, and the two of us, carried on another tradition. We played Chinese checkers, which is Mom's favorite. Because he's still the new one in the family, they all let Josh win... barely.
Then we came home on New Year's Eve day, which we highly recommend because of the lack of traffic, and now were two days into our somewhat normal routines here. Overall it was a great time of traditions, celebrations, relaxing, and being with loved ones.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Advent
Winners!
On Sunday night we had our Abiding Way church Christmas party at the Melicks' (our pastor) house. It was a great time of socializing and food. It's fun to be a part of a church that can pretty much fit in our pastor's living room and dining room. The food was great and so are the people. And to top it off we won two movie tickets in the door prize drawing!
In-N-Out Celebration
Yesterday was the last official day of the semester. Both Josh and Stacy got all their papers turned in and celebrated at In-N-Out with some fellow OT PhD students, Kevin and Seth, and Seth's family, Ling (his wife), Yael (daughter--7), and Nadav (son--3). Praise the Lord for a good semester.
Tamalpais
We finally made it up to Mt. Tam, after being turned away by the weather and car problems before. Some amazing views. Below are some photos from the east peak.
Helped... again
Yet again we experienced the Lord's impeccably timed provision. On the very day we had to fork out a big, unexpected sum of cash, we got an even more surprising and unexpected check in the mail that pretty much covered the cost.
Upcoming Program
The big Christmas program is coming on Wednesday night. It will be a great opportunity for the families of the kids to be impacted by the gospel. Please pray for Stacy as she directs it and especially that the Lord will be glorified and that hearts will be drawn towards what Christmas is really all about.
Shelves, Stacks, Shifting, Sorting, and Studying
Today I (Josh) started working part-time at the library. I've been planning to work a few hours and I figured since I spend much of my days in the library anyway, I might as well get paid for it. Plus I get my study room paid for, a free cup of coffee everyday, keys to the library, and other perks that only a geeky academic guy like me would appreciate.
On Sunday night we had our Abiding Way church Christmas party at the Melicks' (our pastor) house. It was a great time of socializing and food. It's fun to be a part of a church that can pretty much fit in our pastor's living room and dining room. The food was great and so are the people. And to top it off we won two movie tickets in the door prize drawing!
In-N-Out Celebration
Yesterday was the last official day of the semester. Both Josh and Stacy got all their papers turned in and celebrated at In-N-Out with some fellow OT PhD students, Kevin and Seth, and Seth's family, Ling (his wife), Yael (daughter--7), and Nadav (son--3). Praise the Lord for a good semester.
Tamalpais
We finally made it up to Mt. Tam, after being turned away by the weather and car problems before. Some amazing views. Below are some photos from the east peak.
Helped... again
Yet again we experienced the Lord's impeccably timed provision. On the very day we had to fork out a big, unexpected sum of cash, we got an even more surprising and unexpected check in the mail that pretty much covered the cost.
Upcoming Program
The big Christmas program is coming on Wednesday night. It will be a great opportunity for the families of the kids to be impacted by the gospel. Please pray for Stacy as she directs it and especially that the Lord will be glorified and that hearts will be drawn towards what Christmas is really all about.
Shelves, Stacks, Shifting, Sorting, and Studying
Today I (Josh) started working part-time at the library. I've been planning to work a few hours and I figured since I spend much of my days in the library anyway, I might as well get paid for it. Plus I get my study room paid for, a free cup of coffee everyday, keys to the library, and other perks that only a geeky academic guy like me would appreciate.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Christmas Party!
Since we are only in Cali for about two weeks of December we thought that we should have a Christmas get together before the time gets away. So we did... and we would like to tell you about it. Our new friends Josh and Elizabeth Howeth and Drew and Shannon Cunningham came over for some spaghetti, Christmas cookie decorating, and a game of Settlers. Drew and Shannon are the Settler pros as they are serious settlers that play via the internet against each other. And Shannon remains Queen of Catan until the next game...
We are blessed to be around other couples who are seeking the Lord and His Word at this point on the Journey.
Drew and Shannon
We are blessed to be around other couples who are seeking the Lord and His Word at this point on the Journey.
Drew and Shannon
Josh and Elizabeth
Saturday, December 1, 2007
San Diego and Qumran
This year the meetings for the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) and the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL) gave us an excuse to take a mini vacation. They were held in San Diego and we thought, for just the price of one more plane ticket we could both go down the coast into the warmer weather for a couple days. I went down on Wednesday, the week before thanksgiving, and Stacy joined me the next day after she worked half a day. I took in a lot of papers and we took in a lot of San Diego sights together. It was good to meet up with friends and profs from both Wheaton and Multnomah. We went to the beach, the beautiful Hotel Del Coronado, Tijuana (briefly), Balboa Park, and to the Natural History Museum where they have the Dead Sea Scrolls on exibit.
It was fascinating to see little fragments of writing pieced together to make up so many parts of the Bible. It was fun to walk through the exhibit with little children and grandparents and all different nationalities looking at the Word of God. It was a wonderful reminder of how God preserved His Word through so many years so that we could read and obey it.
In all the whole time in San Diego together was a wonderful break from the somewhat ordinary. Here are a few pictures (none of the Dead Sea Scrolls. They don't allow that)
BubbleShare: Share photos - Delicious Christmas Recipes.
It was fascinating to see little fragments of writing pieced together to make up so many parts of the Bible. It was fun to walk through the exhibit with little children and grandparents and all different nationalities looking at the Word of God. It was a wonderful reminder of how God preserved His Word through so many years so that we could read and obey it.
In all the whole time in San Diego together was a wonderful break from the somewhat ordinary. Here are a few pictures (none of the Dead Sea Scrolls. They don't allow that)
BubbleShare: Share photos - Delicious Christmas Recipes.
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