sabbatical

So i kind of have taken an unintentional break from my cyber life, which i am not that great at anyway. But I thought I might update some of you on what is new. Benjamin is growing up so fast. He will be 6 months on Sunday. He is sitting up so well. And he loves to stand up (with support) and bounce. He is also using his hands really well. It has been amazing to watch him figure things out. He can now use both hands and cooperate to pick up and manipulate big items. Just the other day He used one toy to knock another toy closer so he could reach it because it was too far away. It was exciting to watch his little mind work. He has also become an expert at rolling over. This age has also brought some new challenges. Because it is so cold and dry he has a bad case of eczema on his cheek and above his eye. Also we have read that around 6 months they get needier and start to have attachment anxiety. So now he is whining a lot so that he will be picked up all the time. Not necessarily a bad thing but it makes it hard to get anything done...ie typing this post. He is in my lap trying to press the keys. He has already erased it once :) Also I think he getting a bit spoiled, but it is curiosity also. He will whine if he doesnt have anything to hold or play with, if he knocks something away, or if he is tired of playing with the toys he has. Right now he is crying because i took a note card away from him that he was trying to eat. It has been fascinating watching him develop. He has a great personality and loves laughing and giggling. I hope all is well.

thought provocation

Some of you may have heard of Gregory Boyd because he's a megachurch pastor, some for his open theism beliefs, and others for his books.

I'm not entirely on the Boyd-bandwagon, but his theology of the Kingdom of God and how we are to be a part of it in this current age always challenges me. I'm sure I've recommended his book, Myth of a Christian Nation, to many of you. Essentially it looks at how earthly governments are never "Christian" because they necessitate what he calls "power-over" systems while the Kingdom of God advocates "power-under" methods, i.e. serving. He does an excellent job staying out of the polarizing left/right politics and wrestles with what our role as Christians under government and how we must not rely on it or even assume it can accomplish anything of God's Kingdom.

Anyway, I'd encourage you to read the book on your own. It's not that long. In the meantime, I found this blog entry he recently wrote is very thought-provoking. He's essentially taking some of the themes of Myth to a new level by evaluating whether they perpetuate advocacy of anarchy in it's actual philosophy (not a the popular pictures of anarchy we tend to think of). He doesn't full expound on his views, but it gives the basics. He's hit on it a few more times in recent posts.

You may not agree (as I often don't), but at least it gets you mind moving.

Favorite Albums of 2007

I believe we had a discussion around "best" albums of the year last year. Maybe sharing our favorite albums of '07 will be less contentious and we'll be comfortable sharing our picks even if we haven't listened to all of Pitchfork's favorites. Here's mine:

1. Kings of Leon - Because of the Times
2. Radiohead - In Rainbows
3. Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
4. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
5. White Stripes - Icky Thump
   

New Job & Seasons Greetings

For those of you who may not know, I have left the Big Bullseye (aka Target) in favor of government. I work for the State of Florida for the Department of Health in the Safe Drinking Water program. Living in Tampa, I help regulate the public water systems for Hillsborough County. I work with five other individuals and together with our team of engineers, we inspect/monitor all 800+ water systems in the county (this does not include private residential wells). We are number two in the state for the most systems. The weather down here is great in the winter time and I really don't miss the snow and cold. Summers can be quite hot but that's the price you pay.

Hope everyone is well and have a great holiday season!

Bengtson

Nooma: Burrito

This is a Rob Bell parody that we put together for youth group.

Stars and Iron and Wine and AMAZING

Hey guys... I just got home from a STARS concert. They inspired me to write this post. I hope this post inspires you to check out their new album- In Our Bedroom After the War. It's very good. Their show was amazing!...check them out if they come to your town.

Also ... a plug for Iron and Win's newest release-- The Shepherd's Dog. Sometimes their songs bleed into one another for me... aka they all sound the same. Not the case for this album. Each song has its particular feel. It's an instant classic.

Flight of the Conchords

In case you haven't heard, Flight of the Conchords is the funniest show on TV other than the Office. It's on HBO, and features two guys from New Zealand in a digi-folk band struggling to make it in NYC. They break into song frequently. The first season is on sale on Amazon right now for $20. I highly recommend it. Sorry if the adult situations offended anyones sensibilities, I figured we're all adults here. It's Business Time.

just war post clarification

Thanks to Mary for clarifying the lack of Blackwater connection to Calvin in terms of direct giving.

I've taken off the second paragraph of the original post given this new information.

Blackwater and Calvin

Daniel, my old ministry colleague over at the Old First blog has posted some good insights about Blackwater and its connection to Calvin College.

Worth reading and reflecting upon.

Check it out.

Back during my days as a Calvin student I wrestled with the questions of Just War and the right to protest as Student Senate tried to send a letter of protest to President Bush. The student body voted to rescind the protest, but that experience taught me a lot about the community and our struggle to live our theology and convictions.

Perhaps the post will spark some interesting dialogue on this fair blog.

Indie Rock Showdown

Who needs Kanye vs. 50?

October 9th may mark the biggest indie rock release date showdown of the year.

Band of Horses' Cease to Begin vs. Beirut's The Flying Cup Club vs. Sunset Rubdown's Random Spirit Lover

No one has made any claims of retirement based on sales numbers, but go ahead and state your picks. All three had stellar debut's last year, but who will fall victim to the sophomore slump? I'm not sure about sales figures, but I'm putting my money on Sunset Rubdown for the best of the three. What I've heard of the new Band of Horses has not impressed me. Beirut's first album blew me away and it's hard to imagine that happening more than once. Sunset Rubdown has increasingly found itself on my ipod playlist (overtaking fellow bands, Wolf Parade, Swan Lake, and Frog Eyes) and the two new tracks I've heard were nothing short of exciting. I will probably only allow myself to buy or maybe two of these albums so if you give them a listen, let me know.

But what's this...A latecomer just entered the competition.

I'm sure others of you may have seen this, but Radiohead's new album, In Rainbows, will be officially "leaked" for free on Oct 10. Pitchfork has a summary of all the news (including where it will be available for download) that was was kept under wraps so well. Those crafty boys...shaking up the record industry once again.
http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/page/news/46028-radiohead-album-coming-out-as-regular-cd-too

Also in life changing music news, a few short weeks ago I had the opportunity to witness what I've almost conclusively ranked as the second best concert experience of my life (behind seeing Radiohead at Red Rocks)...Arcade Fire at Red Rocks!
Sitting just five measly rows from Win and Co., it was an incredible display of musicianship, energy, and presentation set in the picturesque Red Rocks. LCD Soundsystem blew me away live after enjoying, but not being too impressed by their recordings. For the sake of time and quality, I'll let this article from the local free paper speak to the experience, instead of trying to write it myself.
http://blogs.westword.com/backbeat/2007/09/last_night_arcade_fire_red_roc.php
Also, if you want to get a glimpse of what it was like, check out this youtube video that I found. It took a minute or two to figure out the two bouncing heads at the bottom of the frame were friends who I attended the concert with.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ho8xAM1o1LE

Finally, Missi and I saw Over the Rhine last Saturday. Again an amazing show (no it's not in my top 5). They played for almost two hours. A lot of tracks came from their new album but they played a mix of other songs. If you haven't heard me repent before, I am ashamed of my lambasting of Over the Rhine in the past. In my immature elitism I overlooked the fact that I should listen to a band before I mock it with such clever names as "Over their Prime". The only other band for which my stubbornness has cost me was Modest Mouse whom I based my early hatred on the song "Tiny Cities Made of Ashes" instead of listening to a better representative of their catalog. Fortunately, I've grown wiser and more thoughtful so I'm sure such a arrogant mistake will never happen again.