TOMS Shoes

25Jun09

So today’s post is kinda an infomercial but I think it’s a worthy infomercial!

I recently ran into TOMS Shoes while reading a magazine that I subscibe to.  Here is the details of it:

TOMS Shoes was founded on a simple premise. For every pair you purchase, TOMS will give a pair of shoes to a child in need. One for One. Since our beginning in May 2006, TOMS has given away over 140,000 pairs of shoes to children in need around the world. TOMS plans to more than double this giving number the upcoming year.

Pretty neat eh!?  You buy a pair of nifty shoes and TOMS will go to a community where their is needy kids and they will give them shoes!

I would encourage you to check them out! You can click on any of the pictures or this link to get to their site: www.tomsshoes.com

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Tags: Shoes, TOMS, TOMS Shoes

A Biblical Studies Education

22Jun09

Here is my personal theme for the next 3 years as a Biblical Studies Major at Grace College and Seminary:

For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

- Paul in 1 Corinthians 2:2

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Tags: 1 corinthians, grace college, Grace College and Seminary, Seminary

3 Years

16Jun09

Tomorrow will mark 3 years of dating my best friend!

I love Monica so very much!

I cannot wait to spend many more years with her!

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It’s All Gotta Go!

09Jun09

Will give away for free or you can pay what you would like (post on here if you would like something…):

Textbooks:

American Government 11th Edition by Walter E. Volkomer

Foundations of Christian Thought by Mark P. Cosgrove

The Drama of Scripture by Craig G. Bartholomew and Michael W. Goheen

Books:

18 New Testament English Standard Version Bibles (ESV)

4 Paperback New King James Bibles (NKJV)

1 Paperback King James Bible (KJV)

2 Santa Biblia (Spanish Bibles)

Triple by Ken Follet

Shoot Him If He Runs by Stuart Woods

Hot Mahogany by Stuart Woods

The Run by Stuart Woods

The Short Forever by Stuart Woods

Scavenger by David Morrell

Dry Ice by Stephen White

Marker by Robin Cook

Crisis by Robin Cook

Vector by Robin Cook

Chromosome 6 by Robin Cook

Toxin by Robin Cook

Fatal Cure by Robin Cook

Blindsight by Robin Cook

Saving Faith by David Baldacci

Hour Game by David Baldacci

Split Second by David Baldacci

Last Man Standing by David Baldacci

The Runner by David Baldacci

Other Stuff:

Cushioned Guitar Stand

13″ Advent TV (remote does not work…still works great though!  Used it for a long time!)

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The Louder You Yell = The Smaller You Are

04Jun09

So this post is going to be kinda reactionary to a situation I found myself in today.

I was sitting in Clay Terrace today in a plaza that has benches and all that Jazz.  I was taking a break after several hours of bicycle advertising in the Arts and Design District.

Out of nowhere a truck pulled up behind where I was sitting and a passenger got out of the vehicle (while holding up traffic behind him).  The man who got out was probably twice the size of me and pretty built.

He then proceeded to yell from his position that I needed to move.  I responded by saying (please note that I was cool, calm, and collected) that I was allowed to sit there.

Growing more agitated the man said that I needed to move because he said I needed to move.  I then responded again by saying that I had the right to sit there.

Growing more agitated the man said that if I didn’t move that he was going to call security on me.  I then responded by saying that I was fine with that and that I was allowed to sit there.

He then got back into the pickup truck and drove off.

I quickly grabbed my iPhone and wrote down the license plate.

Several minutes later security walks out and I tell the officer that I had just been yelled at by a man in a pick up truck saying that I had to move (like how I reversed the reason security came out…they came out for me but after the way I was treated it was really like that guy called security on himself).

Long story short security takes me into the security office to talk with the “boss” of security and then they direct me to talk with mall management.  Staying completely cool, calm, and collected we (mall management and I) were able to come to the conclusion that I am still allowed to ride in Clay Terrace but only on the public road.

I still don’t know who the guy in the truck was.  He was just wearing a polo shirt…nothing to identify him as someone who enforces mall rules or anything of that nature.  He never identified himself nor did he ever ask what I was doing.  Security thinks that they know who he was (he must work for Simon Malls or something) and they are going to have a talk with him.

I was taught a lesson today.

It’s not about yelling.  It’s about talking.

Nothing was accomplished by yelling.  Everything was accomplished by relaxing and talking.

Think about how this affects other aspects of life:

Anger at home.

Frustration with a friend.

Someone who has wronged you.

Your faith.

Your teacher.

Your schoolwork.

Don’t be intimated by those who yell.  The only point in their logic is their volume.

Filed under: bicycle advertising, random   |  2 Comments
Tags: jonathan haag, yelling

Sometimes it just rains and rains and rains

03Jun09

As most of you know I started my own business a few weeks ago called “bicycle advertising.”

It has been an experience to say the least!

Here are some of the numbers:

13 – Local and National Advertising agencies I have contacted.

50 – Businesses initially contacted

100 – Miles logged on the advertising bicycle in the past couple weeks (approximately).

This whole entrepreneurial journey has taught me alot.  For instance:

• If a newspaper says that they are “Your Newspaper” or “A Newspaper for You and By You” they are lying.
• The manager of a store never seems to be there when you would like to drop off information or talk to them.
• When someone says “I will give this to the person in charge”, I’m beginning to wonder if that the person in charge is a trash can.
• A bad economy hurts everyone.
• I’m beginning to wonder if “Green Initiatives” are just marketing ploys (I still stand next to my bicycle advertising’s  greenness though! ).
• Why does it cost you money to become a part of the Chamber of Commerce!?

That brings me to today.  Today was supposed to be the first actual contracted day of advertising and I was going to visit some more potential advertisers, ride around Clay Terrace, the Arts and Design District, and wrap the day up at the Summer Concert Series at the Gazebo and Fountains.  But ever since Monday it has been raining and raining and raining.   Hail storms, lightining, and constant rain can really put a damper on an outdoor job.

I could definitely let today, all of the “no’s”, and all of the “we already spent our marketing budget” get me down.  But I am 100% convinced I have a good idea and a profitable business.  And others are noticing that and signing on to advertise.

Life and business is not about being defeated or letting the “no’s” get to you.

It’s about continuing and pushing on.

It’s about riding a bicycle with a heavy trailer attached to it for hundreds of miles for little or no pay because you believe in the product you have.

It’s about enjoying your idea and life instead of growing frustrated with it.

It may rain and rain and rain but you gotta keep pushing on and loving life!

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Tags: advertising, bicycle, bicycle advertising, economy, entrepreneur, jonathan haag, joy, life

Studying Him yet Missing Him

01Jun09

Now if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, then He who raised Christ from the dead will also bring your mortal bodies to life through His Spirit who lives in you.
Romans 8:10-11

Funny the way it is that in college I am studying about God, reading textbooks about God, and writing papers about God but never really rest with God.

Let me try to clarify that statement a little bit.

We study God in Biblical Studies Classes.  We learn about the mechanics of who He is and the mechanics of Christendom.

We read textbooks about God.  We read books like The Drama of Scripture, Foundations of Christian Thought, and The Best Question Ever.  Each of the books come just short of calling themselves the ultimate authority on their subject.

We write papers about God.  Worldview Papers, Interview Papers, and Biblical Story Papers.  Why Postmoderns are wrong was basically the point of all of them (I’m making a hasty generalization of course).

But semester after semester we haven’t rested with God whom is inside of us.

We spend our time reading theology textbooks (opinions if not grounded in Scripture), listening to opinions, and then writing opinions instead of just stopping and resting in the Truth who is inside of us.

What if being a Biblical Studies student was more about resting with the One who lives in you rather than reading opinions about Him?

What if being a Biblical Studies student was more about chasing after intimacy with the One who lives in you rather than staying up to date with the latest theological terms?

What if being a Biblical Studies student was more about standing in awe of the Creator of the universe in you rather than reducing Him to textbooks?

What if being a Biblical Studies student was more about letting everything you learn be taught by the Truth inside of you rather than the latest wave of theology?

What if being a Biblical Studies student was more about being a child loved by God rather than being a Biblical Studies student?

What if it was all just about Jesus?

Filed under: grace college, spiritual   |  4 Comments
Tags: Child, Child of God, God, grace college, Grace College and Seminary, jesus, joy, love, Religion, Romans, Seminary, Textbooks, Theology, Truth

Funny The Way It Is

26May09

I have been listening to a new Dave Matthews Band song called “Funny The Way It Is.”

I can’t really add too much more to what the song says but I think as followers of Christ we can really learn something from it.  I’m not saying we as followers of Christ should have all the answers to questions and have it all figured out but I think it is good to think about the questions ans statements in this song because people are obviously asking and thinking about what went so wrong in this world.   This song artfully asks these tough questions.

Video and Lyrics:

Lying in the park on a beautiful day
Sunshine in the grass and the children play
Sirens pass and fire engine red
Someone’s house is burning down on a day like this
And evening comes and were hanging out
On the front step and a car goes by with the windows rolled down
And that war song is playing “Why can’t we be friends?”
Someone is screaming and crying in the apartment upstairs

Funny the way it is
If you think about it
Somebody’s going hungry
And someone else is eating out
Funny the way it is
Not right or wrong
Somebody’s heart is broken
And it becomes your favorite song

The way your mouth feels in a lovers kiss
Like a pretty bird on a breeze or water to a fish
A bomb blast brings a building crashing to the floor
Hear the laughter while the children play war

Funny the way it is
If you think about it
One kid walks 10 miles to school
Another’s dropping out
Funny the way it is
Not right or wrong
On a soldier’s last breath
His baby is being born

Standing on a bridge
Watch the water passing under me
It must have been much harder
When there was no bridge just water
Now the world is small
Compared to how it used to be
With mountains and oceans and winters and rivers and stars

Watch the sky
A jet plane so far out of my reach
Is there someone up there looking down on me?
A boy chase a bird
So close but every time
He never catch her but he can’t stop trying
Funny the way it is
If you think about it
One kid walks 10 miles to school
Another’s dropping out
Funny the way it is
Not right or wrong
On a soldier’s last breath
His baby’s being born

Funny the way it is
Not right or wrong
Somebody’s broken heart
Becomes your favorite song
Funny the way it is
If you think about it
One kid walks 10 miles to school
Another’s dropping out

Standing on a bridge
Watch the water passing under me
It must have been much harder
When there was no bridge just water
Now the world is small
Compared to how it used to be
With mountains and oceans and winters and rivers and stars

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Tags: christian, christianianity, dave matthews, dave matthews band, dmb, faith, funny the way it is, lyrics, questions, video

A Few Thoughts About Those Who Believe

25May09

You are loved.
Not because of your actions but because of who you are.
(Ephesians 2:19)

You are heard.
You can do nothing to suffocate your line of communication with Him.
(Romans 8:11)

You can rest.
Because He has done the work and is doing the work.
(Galations 2:20 and Hebrews 4:9-10)

You are perfect.
Because the Cross took away all of your sin.
(Colossians 1:22 and Hebrews 10:14)

You are secure.
Nothing you ever do can make Him love you any less.
(Romans 8:38-39)

Loved.  Heard.  At Rest.  Perfect.  Secure.

That’s some good news right there!

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Tags: believer, Bible, christ, christian, Colossians, Cross, Ephesians, God, Good News, heard, Hebrews, jesus, joy, loved, peace, perfect, rest, Romans, scripture, secure, sin, work

2009 Cystic Fibrosis Walk

18May09

I had the awesome opportunity to help out at the Downtown Indianapolis Cystic Fibrosis Walk again this year.  As some of you know my girlfriend’s sister has this disease so finding a cure hits home to my girlfriend’s family and mine as well.  Here are some pictures from the event which had an amazing turnout and raised $120,000.  The amazing weather on Sunday was a plus too!  Visit www.cff.org for more information on Cystic Fibrosis.

Amazing view of Downtown Indianapolis from where the event was:

Crowd gathering before the walk:

Ernie from 97.1 Hank Fm getting the crowd pumped:

Starting the walk around the canal:

Walking along the canal:

Walking along the canal looking at the Indianapolis skyline:

For many more pictures click on this link: More pictures from the 2009 Cystic Fibrosis Walk

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Tags: 2009, 97.1, Canal, Celebration Plaza, CF, Cystic Fibosis Foundation, Cystic Fibrosis. Cystic Fibrosis Walk, Downtown Indianapolis, Ernie, Ernie 97.1 Hank Fm, Great Strides, Hank Fm, indiana, indianapolis, Indianapolis Canal