I Wonder What's Going On In Their Mind

How many of you have wondered what the opposite sex is thinking? I know when I was in Jr. High, that was always my question. "What is she thinking? I wonder if she likes me. Does [X] mean [Y]? I wonder what would happen if I said (or did) [X]." Some times we get ideas about the opposite sex and how they think and sometimes those thoughts and ideas can be way off.

For the next three weeks we are going to be talking about sex... yes, that's right, you read that correctly... sex. We are going to look at three big questions Jr. High students typically have and look to the Bible not only for answers but also for Godly wisdom. Tomorrow night we will be looking at the difference between how guys and gals think, and answer the question "They Think About That?"

All Junior High students are encouraged to join us this Wednesday night for Crash as we begin talking about sex, and answer the question, "They Think About That?", discovering that we should consider and care for the needs and feelings of others.

Status Update

Recently I was talking to a friend about a movie called Amazing Grace. It is a great movie about a fantastic man named William Wilberforce. He helped end the slave trade in England. Let me tell you about him.

William Wilberforce was born to a wealthy family and was surrounded by wealth his whole life. When he was 21, he got elected to Parliament. But it seemed that he just wanted to be in Parliament for the status it brought. He even admitted, "The first years in Parliament I did nothing- nothing to any purpose."

Eventually he got interested in making his life and his position in Parliament count. He became extremely interested in the issue of slavery and even wrote, "...I from this time have determined that I would never rest until I have effected [slavery's] abolition." It was harder than he had thought, and his opponents fought him with everything they could, but William Wilberforce eventually won out. He was instrumental in abolishing slavery.

See William Wilberforce had the right idea. He took the right perspective with his rights, influence and privilege, he used them for good. He used them to help those in need.

All Jr. high students are welcome to join us as we finish looking at Philippians: Putting The Unity In Community, and look at the rights and privileges that we have and discover what perspective we should take with them.

How Well Do You Know Cameron?

Here are the long awaited, much anticipated answers to the quiz I posted last week, "How Well Do You Know Cameron?" I hope you guessed right!

1. What is my favorite color? A. Electric Blue. Blue is by far my favorite color, I think it has something to do with it being the color of my eyes. There are, however, only a couple shades of blue that I like. I'm not a fan of navy blue, but I love both electric blue and baby blue.

2. What sports team do I really follow? D. USC Trojan Football. If you were to ask me what sports teams I like, I'd say all Los Angeles (Except the stupid Angels which aren't even in LA County). But the team I really follow, and watch every game (or at least try not to miss) is USC Trojan football. My Brother, my sister-in-law, and my sister all went to (or are currently attending) USC.

3. What country to I want to visit that I've never been to? B. Ireland. I have no idea why, but I am infatuated with anything Irish. I love the Irish, their accents, music, food and all. I have only seen pictures of their lush green rolling hills, and Celtic Cathedrals. This is certainly a place I would love to go to!

4. What is my favorite TV show of ALL TIME? C. Boy Meets World. While I love Lost and Seinfeld, Boy Meets World is my favorite TV show of all time. Although it's not the greatest show, I hugely identify with Cory Matthews. He has an older brother and younger sister, just like me. He is a good kid, who, at times makes poor decisions and did things without thinking, this was me when I was a kid.

5. At Biola, I got my degree in? C. Christian Education Ministries. I love how the mind works. When I went to a community college, I was studying Psychology. But that was only because they didn't have a major in Christian Education Ministries. So when I transfered to Biola I majored in Christian Education Ministries. I didn't need to repeat classes because all I had done at the community college was my general education classes.

6. I am an Eagle Scout? True. I was never in Cub Scouts, but when I was old enough, I followed my brother in Boy Scouts. It was A LOT of hard work, and it took A LOT of perseverance and discipline. I would not have made it without my mom, who didn't do things for me (like other scouts I knew at the time), but rather pushed, encouraged and supported me. Thank you so much MOM! You helped me to achieve one of my biggest accomplishments.

7. Who is my favorite artist? A. Ansel Adams. While the others are great artist and have done some amazing pieces of art, none can affect me quite as much as Ansel Adams. He was a photographer from 1927 till about 1974. Ansel Adams was able to capture on film, the richness and beauty of God's creation. It was with Adams help and photographs that helped the National Parks become what they are, and was instrumental in making Yosemite the National Park that it is today.

8. My favorite series of books are? C. The Ender's Game Series. While the others are good, I'm less of a fantasy fan as I am a Sci-Fi fan. When I was in high school, I had to do summer reading. Ender's Game was on the list. It is a story set in the future when Humans have already had two great battles with distant aliens. It follows Andrew "Ender" Wiggin, who is not much older than 8 but was bred with a super smart and strategic brain. He goes up to a school in a space station to train how to become a strategic general so that humans can defeat the alien race the next time they come in contact. Who wouldn't want to read about aliens and space travel?!

9. What reality TV show would I want to be on? B. Amazing Race. From the moment I saw this show, I have wanted to be on it. I mean who wouldn't want to be on a show where you travel around the world. I would love to be on this show with my brother. I believe we could go all the way!

10. What is one of my life goals? D. Donate 10 gallons of blood. I have been donating blood since I was 16. It's something I love to do. It's something that I can do to help save lives. It really doesn't cost me anything, except some time... and some blood, which replenishes anyway. When I was in college I made it my goal to donate 10 gallons of blood- that's 80 pints (which is what you give every time you donate). I have gone 15 times, so I only have 65 more times to donate before I hit my goal.

Now you know a little about myself. I hope you enjoyed this. The next time you see me, tell me your favorite book series, or a life goal that you have, that way we can get to know each other better. =)

As Alien As You And Me...

There is a clothing brand that is popular among Christians. It seems to be everywhere, on clothes & apparel, on car windshields, on Bible covers. It is the brand Not Of This World (or NOTW). The meaning is simple, the owner claims to be "not of this world," meaning they are aliens, meaning they are foreign.

We see God call His Kingdom and His followers aliens to this world. In John 17:14-15 while praying for His disciples, Jesus states, "...For they are not of the world any more than I am of the world..." When on trial before he was crucified, Jesus told Pilate that his kingdom was not of this world.

So if we are aliens, what is our place in this world? Should we have a place in this world? Should we remove ourselves from this world and live in a bubble? What is our role as foreigners? And what does it mean to be "Citizens Of Heaven"?

All Jr. High students are encouraged to join us at Crash this Wednesday night as ask these questions as we continue our study of Philippians: Putting The Unity Back In Community.

The Cure for Spring Break Boredom

This week is Spring Break. As I have talked to you, I have heard that some of you are already bored, and can't handle the week of no school. Here are some ideas to cure the Spring Break Boredom.

First, I want to remind you all of running deals that I have going with all of you. Some call it bribes, I call it deals. You will get a 2-L bottle of soda all to your self, if you memorize and can recite to me any of the following without looking...

1. All the books of the Bible in order

2. Psalm 100

3. Philippians 2:5-11

If you are able to memorize all of Psalm 139, I will take you and a friend out to lunch to a fast food restaurant of your choice! Also, remember, if you print out this blog and bring it into Crash, you will be entered into a drawing for some candy! So get memorizing today!

Secondly, this week a student brought to my attention that I know some things about all of you (like your favorite color, or your favorite superpower), but you don't know a whole lot about me. So I figured I'd tell you... sort of... What follows is a quiz on how much you know about me. So good luck, do your best, & I'll reveal the answers in next weeks blog. By the way if you get at least half right, I'll give you a candy bar!

How Well Do You Know Cameron?

1. What is my favorite color?

A. Electric Blue

B. Periwinkle

C. Blue... No wait, green!

D. Sea foam Green

2. What sports team do I really follow?

A. LA Lakers

B. LA Dodgers

C. LA Angels of Anaheim

D. USC Trojan Football

3. What country to I want to visit that I've never been to?

A. Dubai

B. Ireland

C. Germany

D. Iceland

4. What is my favorite TV show of ALL TIME?

A. Seinfeld

B. Sponge Bob, Square Pants

C. Boy Meets World

D. Lost

5. At Biola, I got my degree in?

A. English

B. Film & TV

C. Christian Education Ministries

D. Psychology

6. I am an Eagle Scout

True

False

7. Who is my favorite artist?

A. Ansel Adams

B. Leonardo DaVinci

C. Michelangelo (David sculpture, Sistine Chapel Fresco)

D. Pablo Picasso

8. My favorite series of books are

A. The Lord Of The Rings

B. The Chronicles Of Narnia

C. The Ender's Game Series

D. The Born Series

9. What reality TV show would I want to be on?

A. American Idol

B. Amazing Race

C. Big Brother

D. So You Think You Can Dance

10. What is one of my life goals?

A. Eat a 40x40 at In-N-Out

B. Ride a unicycle

C. Run in a marathon

D. Donate 10 gallons of blood

Lastly, we will NOT be meeting tonight for Crash, however, we have had our 'Spring-Break Hang-Out' times. We met Monday and yesterday and hung out in the Loft from 2-5 PM watching a movie and playing games. Today is the last day of Spring-Break Hang-Out. We will be meeting at Palm Desert Civic Park from 2-5 PM and playing some park games, so come and hang out and have some fun!