50 beans | dutch bros davis – first impressions

The new Dutch Bros. Coffee hut (not really sure what to call it) opened in Davis today in the spot originally occupied by Caffino. This is a replacement to the Caffino drive-thru coffee spot, and this shop opened with 2 drive-thru lines. I was initially alerted to the joyous news of 24hrs of free coffee by Jenn at small group on Wednesday, and after some quick googling, confirmed that it was indeed free medium any-kind-of-coffee from 5am today to 5am Saturday morning. This morning as I did my routine 5am crawl across the floor to locate the lightswitch, I perked up at the thought of free coffee and knew it was going to be the start of a magical day. I quickly wrapped up my morning ablutions, threw on some clothes, and flew out the door.

When I had gotten there, the coffee hut was jumping with excitement. They overstaffed the workers on the first day to handle the customer volume anticipated on opening day with free coffee. Of course, coffee demand at 5:30am in a college-town isn’t very high. I pulled up in the drive-thru with the window on the passenger side, which threw me off a bit.

The drinks menu was fairly interesting. It’s not quite like a regular coffee haunt where the drink names describe the stuff inside to a certain extent (i.e. large caramel latte – coffee and steamed milk). The coffee menu reads more like the menu next door at Redrum Burger. There’s the Annihilator, the Kicker, the ER-911 (kicker with 6 shots), etc. All of the items read like they ought to come with a complementary ambulance ride with the ER.

I ended up going with a triple Kicker, which is an irish cream coffee with three shots of espresso. My first impressions were the sweetness of the drink. I usually go with low sweetener just because the more syrup they add, the thicker the consistency of the drink. For example a mocha at starbucks has the consistency of sludge at the end of the drink…not very tasty. I’m hoping that if I ever try dutch bros regular espresso I’d be more impressed. The company headquarters are in Oregon, and that’s also where their roasting facilities are. They ship to locations in 7 west coast states, so hopefully that keeps the coffee fresh when it arrives at the huts.

Since this Dutch Bros. is in a college town, I do have to look at it from the point-of-view of a student. A drive-thru coffee place isn’t going to have some of the trappings as other places, and they’ll likely attract only people who are in search of a cup of coffee and nothing more. Many of the students frequent coffee shops to study, or meet up with a friend, or curl up in a seat and read. That isn’t going to happen in a drive-thru coffee place. Just a disclaimer…

All in all a decent experience…can’t really complain when they’re giving coffee away, but I think they could do more to promote their basic coffees and regular espresso drinks. Another coffee spot in davis can’t be all bad, just one more option for students and stuff.

the substance of things hoped for

Do you ever have those emo moments where you just find yourself unintentionally sitting in some random place, thoughts wandering between reality and the abstract and you end up asking yourself a bunch of existential questions that you never really given much thought to before? That's what happened to me recently, when I started reading a book that a friend loaned me two years ago (sorry Geo, you’ll get it back in 4-6 weeks tops) by Elisabeth Elliot.

I’m not sure why it took me the better part of two years to crack open this particular book, but I guess it finally gained relevance to what God has been teaching me recently – about what it means to allow Jesus to be Lord of all my life. I know, this is something I should have been trying to focus on years ago, but I suppose this is one of those better late than never things. Of course, this has been an incredibly slow-moving process (mostly the limiting factors revolve around me being stubborn).

Like a lot of guys my age, my mind gets cluttered with worries about work, thoughts about relationships, and a desire to be able to gain clarity for what the future held. We’re at an exciting juncture in our lives, where we find ourselves dealing with choices that may have long-lasting effects. The questions we face, however, are mostly the same for life-altering decision as for everyday things: Is this God’s will? How can I be sure this is God’s will? Should I move to this place? Should I marry this person? What career should I follow?

I remember a bible study from 2 years ago after retreat on Exodus 13, about God leading the Israelites through the desert. If God had wanted to, He could have led them down the known path to the Promised Land. But would that have taught them to trust in Him? He led them through the desert for 40 years until they fully trusted in God's presence, power, and provision.

Last night's small group discussion had one question regarding how we are affected by the fact that God has a plan for us even before we're born. That question sparked a lot of interesting discussion, and rightly so. How should we feel? This morning, I cracked open the E.E. book and came across this rather convicting quote:

"But how in the world can I find out what God wants me to do, if I don't know what I want to do?" The logic of this question escapes me, but it is one I have heard more than once. Why not start by simply telling God you'll do anything He says? You're the servant. He's the master. It's the only reasonable approach, isn't it?

Seeing that gave me an odd tingly slightly guilty feeling, primarily because I've found myself asking that question a few times before. I think of some of the decisions I've made without consulting God first. Was that me trying to figure out what I want to do first? I wonder what plans Abraham must have had for Isaac? Here, he waited soo many years for a son. He trusted that the Lord will provide, and after years of praying and petition, his aging wife gives birth to Isaac. Can you imagine the kind of things Abraham must have thought he would do with his son? Teach him to fish, build a fire, or even whistle. What does it say about Abraham that he was willing to lift Isaac over that altar?

Great, so I know that I'm supposed to allow Jesus to be Lord of all my life. I see it as a theme throughout the bible, and in this book; so what does that look like?? (I have a friend who's favorite thing to ask in a bible study is this, so buddy, if you're reading this...I know you were thinking it!) Truth be told, I'm not entirely sure...that's what I'm going through this book in hopes of discovering. One of the key points in her book is how to wait on the Lord and how to keep lifting our gaze upward. I suppose there's no real good way to close this post, so maybe today I'll take a page out of Ernest Hemingway's book and walk away in the middle of a sente–

**to be continued**

the predictability of deliciousness

Have you ever looked on the right hand side of your facebook newsfeed? There's a little section that has suggested facebook friends – basically they find people that you might know and recommend them to you so that you can add them as a friend. Did you ever wondered how they do that? Apparently, facebook uses complex mathematical algorithms to find people you may know depending on who your friends are and who's page you visit most often (i'm sure a ton of other stuff factor into it too).

Netflix also uses algorithms based on your streaming behavior to create a list of suggested movie and tv show picks. Same for amazon, same for gmail. All these companies employ algorithms to analyze large sets of user data to their advantage. In the election earlier this month, Nate Silver (NYT) used algorithms to accurately predict the outcome of every state in the presidential election.

So what does this have to do with deliciousness?? Well, as it turns out, a scientist named Lada Adamic from the University of Michigan (and facebook apparently) teamed up with two other scientists at Michigan and Harvard to create an algorithm that analyzes a recipe and will be able to tell you if it will turn out tasty or not. This formula can predict with nearly 80% accuracy how many stars your uploaded recipe will receive on allrecipes.com. It can also recommend ingredient replacements if you find yourself short of nutmeg or croutons.

Adamic started by taking the nearly 50,000 recipes and millions of reviews from the site and stripping out every ingredient, method, and taste profile. She then builds a virtual social network of sorts for the ingredients by mapping out the common occurances for each ingredient with other ingredients and the associated flavor profiles and such. The resulting network and data set allows her algorithm to predict with surprising accuracy how a recipe will fare in a taste test (or at least on the site's ratings scheme). It also allows for ingredient substitutions. That way you don't find yourself halfway through a mac'n cheese recipe before you realize you didn't pick up the bacon bits (mm...bacon) and frantically drive down to the store.

While the practical applications of such an algorithm aren't fully explored yet, I could see this being very useful in an interactive site or something that help people find what to cook after work one day. Think of what this could do when coupled with those 30-minute meals shows? You could create an interactive kitchen walkthrough!! Ohh the possibilities...

what passes for entertainment on a lazy saturday...

Yep. Another one of those clips. Luke can chime in with the crickets. btw just listen to what elmo says...this is what happens when west wing writers write lines for a puppet.

onomatopoetically speaking

Apparently only turkeys in english speaking countries say gobble gobble. I found this list (below) of turkey sounds in foreign languages. I'm not really sure how hebrew turkeys sounds...i can't imagine them making that exact noise...

Afrikaans: Kalkoen kloek
Albanian: krrull krrull
Danish: Kalkunen klukker
English: gobble gobble
Esperanto: glu-glu-glu
French: glouglou
Hebrew: Tarnegoley hodu mekarkerim
Montenegrin: glu-glu
Portuguese: glugluglugluglu
Turkish: glu glu
Ukrainian: glyu-glyu

If turkeys in Turkey say glu glu, well then, that's good enough for me!

Happy Thanksgiving!

netflix/redbox/public library pick of the month...

I know this is going to sound really nostalgic and date my childhood back to the early 90's, but please hear me out. My movie pick for this month is The Three Musketeers. Yes, the super old school Disney one with Kiefer Sutherland,  Charlie Sheen, and some-other-guy-I-don't-know-the-name-of. Do any of you remember that movie?

I know, some of the acting seemed a little amateurish, the jokes disney-esque and cheesy, and the swordfights looked totally staged; yet, when you're about 9 years old, this movie was amazing!! For months after this seeing this movie, I pleaded with my folks for fencing lessons (they wisely said no).

Of course, this movie isn't really accurate to the book, but then again, what Disney movie is? Even wikipedia describes this movie as having greatly simplified and altered the story, and took considerable liberties with French history.

The synopsis is simple. D'Artagnan wants to join the musketeers. He runs into three of them: Athos - a duke with a hidden past, Porthos - a heavy drinking swordsman, and Aramis - a onetime priest (incidentally, the only time you'll ever see charlie sheen try to act pious). He joins them for a few fights and they like him so they accept him into their little club. They fight off the bad guys, ride horses, and protect the king from the evil cardinal and assassination. Pretty cool plot huh?! Anyways, I miss this movie...one of these days I'm gonna have to get netflix and rent this movie.

like a swallow to capistrano

Recently I've been facing a small group dilemma. Ever since small groups have started, I've been going to the acacia small group in Sacramento. It only made sense, I work in Sac, and usually got off around between 6 and 7pm, so I've just always gone to small group in sac after work. Now that my day has been shifted earlier due to changing roles, I get off around 4-5pm, which means an hour or two of bumming around in Sac before small group, long enough to get bored, not long enough to go home, just in a limbo waiting period. So this year, I've been presented with the option to join the Davis small group. This allows me to go home and do things on Wednesday before heading off to small group nearby.

Fairly simple choice right? Well this dilemma is tearing me up inside. I've been going to sac small group since it first started, and while I try to be friendly to anyone in acacia, I feel a closer connection to the friends at SSG. I've seen this small group evolve from a house gathering at angel's or osmond's, to a regular temple cafe table, to a korean restaurant marathon, to a stall at the midtown crepeville. I've seen the group grow and shrink with the ebb and flow of life. SSG has been with me through thick and thin and it's something I won't ever forget. No, this definitely isn't going to be an easy decision to make.

I'm not sure how to end a post like this as I haven't really made up my mind, so I suppose I can close with this random observation. San Juan Capistrano is known as the site of Mission San Juan Capistrano (duh) and also the locale of the first Zorro story. They're also known for its famous cliff swallows. These migratory birds begin the journey each year from Argentina, and arrive consistently in San Juan Capistrano in mid-march, building their mud nests into the eaves of the mission. As creatures of habit, this has basically become a second home for the birds as they "winter" up north each year. Pretty neat huh?

fair winds and following seas

Tonight I finally had the realization that in just a few short weeks, prayer meetings will be drastically different. Uncle David's last one was today, and Pastor Gee's will be in a few weeks. By the first Tuesday in January, both of them will have moved on. Crazy huh?

the last full measure of devotion

Earlier this year, I had a random day off work (Good Friday), and I ended up dropping by the office hours of my old econ professor, Dr. Russ to catch up. During that visit, we discovered a mutual fondness for history books, and since I was just wrapping up 1776 (David McCullough), she recommended a book called Team of Rivals (Doris Goodwin). It was recommended because Doris Goodwin was considered an authority on Abraham Lincoln and this book was written to detail the political genius of his career and the coalition he formed out of his adversaries.

Now, if you read this blog, then I’m sure I’ve already bored most of you with the details of this book already. However, please let me set the record straight. This book is no Hunger Games. It is not a page turner that you’ll find yourself staying up till 4am reading. Essentially, if you’re not a history nut, you’ll likely find this book mind-numbingly boring. Fortunately, this movie won’t be the same.

With a stellar cast, including the likes of Daniel Day Lewis, Sally Fields, and some other people I haven’t heard of but am sure are great, I believe the movie will become quite the spectacle when it comes out on Friday. Plus, if you’re republican (and got basically no good news this fall), you’ll finally have something to look forward to!! Lincoln was not only a Republican, but he was instrumental in founding the party and getting it on the national stage by becoming its first national candidate to win the presidency. Ohh yea. Of course you won’t be seeing any of that in this movie…it only covers the last few months of his life, encompassing the end of the civil war and the setup to the reconstruction period. Tragically, Lincoln ended up giving, for his country, what he himself would've described as the last full measure of devotion.

Seeing as the movie is coming out on Friday in Davis, I hope to enjoy this movie very soon. So once again, I will be attempting to compile a coalition of movie-goers to descend en masse to Davis Stadium and (peacefully) assemble in the theater for a few hours of sheer brazen Lincolnesque fun. Am I hyping it up too much?

Gravitas and Knut

It’s funny that at the same time our country is in the middle of picking a leader for the next four years (in addition to house/senate seats), our church here in Davis is going through a transition of its own. Pastor Gee is moving on to a congregation in Oakland, so we are now in search of a pastor to replace him. The recent buzzing around elections and new leaders makes me question: what makes a good leader? We often ask this questions of our civic leaders, as well as our church leaders.

Over the last few months, a group of people from our congregation have been meeting to discuss what we would like in a new pastor. This is an important step, as the church elders need input as they put together a set of criteria as they begin the search. During this series of meetings, a lot of different factors needed to be considered. Pastor Gee’s strength was the relational aspect of his job. He was a people person, and while he was interesting to listen to on Sunday mornings, he was better at interacting and checking up on folks at the church. This is something we need to consider as we embark on our search. As a family-oriented church, I would like to think that this is something we want in a future pastor. Other aspects of PG’s job includes being able to interact and relate with other pastors, not just in our church, but with pastors from other churches in Davis. Often, city-wide initiatives like iCare coordinated between churches start with these kinds of meetings. These are just some of the things that we need to consider as we look for someone to replace our pastor.

To a certain extent, there are unquantifiable qualities I look for in a leader. There has to be a balance between being well spoken and confident and being able to handle him/herself well with other leaders. The best way of summing up what I look for a leader is the Roman virtue gravitas. There is no direct translation from Latin to English, but basically it conveys a sense of dignity, duty, and seriousness, and gives a sense of substance or depth of personality. It's a quality that I can't measure, but it's one that, if I see it, I'll just know.

1 Timothy 3 sets forth strict qualifications for deacons and overseers, pointing out that they ought to be above reproach and worthy of respect. These qualifications are good and necessary, and are there to guide us in finding a leader. Such qualities in a pastor are honorable. I look to my pastor to lead and be an example, but I know full well that he is not perfect. Having a clear understanding of one's own limitations is also a big one for me. While this applies to civic leaders as well, it is especially important for church leaders. Often times we put our leaders on such a pedestal that they seem perfect. This not only gives the leader a false sense of invincibility (which can be a huge stumbling block), but it takes away from what God is doing. There was an 11th century Viking king named Knut (or Cnut) who wanted to show his people that his powers as king are limited, and that he was a mere mortal like everyone else, so he took his people with him down to the sea and commanded the tide to stop rising and go back out to sea. It did not.

I wonder if I'm setting too high a standard for what I'd like to see in a new pastor. While these are characteristics I'd like to see in a pastor, it doesn't mean that if we get someone who doesn't fit these characteristics, that I wouldn't like him. Through this whole process, the best thing to do from a congregational perspective is to pray for God's guidance through the transition period, and trust that God will lead the right person to us. Everything else would just be the icing on the cake I guess.

50 beans | a blender for winter

Am I an odd duck or do other people like an iced drink in the wintertime too? I know…as an espresso man, there’s something about holding a frappuccino that makes me feel a little…well, a little out of place. Couple that with the fact that it’s raining or snowing outside (depending on where you are), and you’d look just downright nuts. So what am I left to do?

I’m currently on the market for a blender, which on the face of it doesn’t seem to be that tough. Just go to Target and pick one up, right? Well, it’s not that simple. A cursory glance at the kitchen appliance aisle will cause any warm-blooded guy to feel light-headed. There are so many options! Some are quite simple…on/off switch and 3 settings. Then there are ones with more levers and switches than a 747. How does one choose?! I swung by Costco the other day for church-lunch shopping, and the blenders there are beasts! It’s a little alarming when a kitchen appliance boasts horsepower. The one that they had on demo was 3HP. For reference, the go-karts we had at RPM in Sac were 9HP. This thing will tear up anything in its path.

With frappuccinos going for roughly $5 each, the desire for a homemade alternative increases. Of course, there are so many lingering questions after the purchase of said blender. What kind of coffee do I use? How do I sweeten it? What happens if the lid flies off mid-blend?! Homemade coffee slushies are not as simple as initially thought…

The actual coffee choice is rather simple. Since the coffee is consumed nearly frozen, subtle tastes are slightly masked by the numbing coldness, pretty much any kind of coffee would work, although I would prefer a v60 pour-over hovering above a pitcher of ice. Then, throw them into ice cube trays and freeze. Coffee ice cubes are supposed to be amazing when blended and don't cause the drink to water down much. Sugar can be used to sweeten, but from what I hear, condensed milk give it a thicker consistency when blended (once I get my blender I must try this…) and it gives it some creaminess too. Of course if the lid flies off mid-blend then I suggesting arming yourself with a few shamwows and taking control of the situation asap.

This blender solution would, of course, be a big upfront investment in a piece of equipment, which means that I would have to really enjoy blended coffee in order to make full use of it (either that or start a road-side slushie lemonade bar). Anything less, and it's not really worth it to get one. Time to pay the blender aisle another visit...

Charles

**since the elections are over, we now return to our regularly scheduled programming**

Tonight during small group, a discussion question from the study on the last chapter of Tim Keller's King's Cross brought back to my mind a vivid story of a little buddy named Charles. While at the time, I didn't feel it appropriate to bring up the story, it's still a story I'd like to share with you. Before I dive in, here's a little background on Charles.

couldn't find a picture of Charles, so here's Chris feeding the successor

Charles was a hamster that lived in the AΓΩ house for two and a half years. He was a Christmas gift to us from ΑΔΧ (the christian sorority) in 2004. Charles enjoyed spending much of his time in random people's pocket curled up into a little ball. He was a trooper, surviving two summer breaks and three Christmas vacations, countless evenings of being passed around for everyone to hold and even having to be cut out of Levi's couch because he found the only hole to get to the underside. He survived in the AGO house for longer than anyone expected, by two years.

One afternoon in the spring of 2006, we got a distraught email from Keith Shively, one of the guys at the AGO house. He went into the active room to check on charles and fill up his water bottle when he noticed Charles wasn't moving and felt cold to the touch. Kieth tried numerous resuscitate the creature and even tried splashing water on him. After about 30 minutes, nothing worked, and it seemed Charles had finally gone to meet his maker. Kieth then proceeded to take the cage (along with Charles) out to the dumpster to in front of the house and they parted ways. Later that evening, I wrapped up my 6-8pm class and was walking back to the AGO house. As I was rounding the corner, I heard an oh-my-goodness from near the dumpsters. I walked over to check it out, and I see one of the neighbors from the sorority next to us gaping into the dumpster. Apparently she had heard some squeaking from the dumpster when she tossed out her garbage and decided to look inside. I walked over and peered inside: there was Charles, in his cage, jogging on his squeaky hamster wheel as if nothing had happened.

While Keith swears Charles came back to life, a lot of us were a bit more skeptical. Whatever kept Charles alive, we will never know, but we sure were glad he was able to be with us for another year.

daffy for president

were you expecting another long election post? meh...i'm not gonna bend your ears anymore. happy election day. now go vote!! =) **but check out this clip first...** 

Let’s clear something up…

Before you close this window, I want to point out that if you’re voting, this info is important. I know, it gets a little boring with all these election related posts these days, but I want to clarify something about Proposition 30 (tax increase for education funding) from a budget point of view. Now, I’m not coming out in support of, or against, this measure. I just want to clarify the concept behind it.

Ok, here goes: there is no guarantee that this tax will mean more money for education.

I know, on the measure it says that the money goes to fund education. Technically, yes. Let me illustrate (fictional numbers):

Basically, education is funded by a few different areas, including the General Fund of the California budget. In this example, assuming Prop 30 revenues of $50m, it will go to education, as it is earmarked for education, but that doesn't mean education spending will go up by $50m. All it means is that that particular $50m will go to education. General Funds can go to anything, so it opens up the $50m from the General Fund to go somewhere else. So, while on the face of it, Prop 30 may help increase much needed education funding, it might not actually do that. No guarantees.

Does that mean we should all come out against Prop 30? Well, not necessarily. That’s a decision you’re going to have to make on your own. Would California be better off getting more tax revenue to fund spending or would it be better off trimming here and there to get in line with spending? That’s a call you, as the voter, gets to make. I just want to clarify the budget murkiness surrounding this measure.

o Lord your sea is so great and my boat is so small...

Last night's bible study on Identity in Salvation left me tossing and turning for a bit, so I figure I might as well put some thoughts to paper. The question was: What is significant about the fact that God has chosen us? Would it be different if we were randomly selected by God? Now, this sparked a discussion in my small group (and later in large group) about whether we are predestined for salvation or not. It was never my intention to argue that point.

While I feel that I was meant to be a Christian, I don't think I would (or more importantly, should) feel any differently were I randomly selected vs hand-picked by God. I don't feel like I'm qualified to argue about predestination, but I do know what I believe, and I do know how I feel. Would it be different if we were randomly selected by God? Should it be? As a Christian who knows the power of what God's done for us, what Ephesians would characterize as having loved us and given Himself up for us, shouldn't our hearts ache for those who don't know God's love for us? Should that heartache be any different if the circumstances surrounding how we were chosen were any different? It's not like I can begin to understand the vastness of God and the details around how or why I was chosen to be a Christian. You can’t conceive, nor can I, the appalling strangeness of the mercy of God, says Graham Greene.

Last night, as I was tossing and turning, I was reminded of just how much of God I don't understand. When we do bible studies, when we have discussions about salvation and sin and God's will for us, I look to Isaiah and I'm reminded of the vastness of God and His universe and I wonder if it's even possible to comprehend even the smallest part of Him. Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Where will my resting place be? Has not my hand made all these things, and so they came into being? declares the Lord. (Isaiah 66:1-2) One of the girls in Acacia pointed out an analogy a few years back that stuck with me: Imagine God's influence as a 3D hand, and our world and everything we understand as a 2D surface. When the fingers of the 3D hand touches the 2D surface, all we see are the five circles where the hand impacts the surface. Everything else about the 3D hand, we can't even experience, let alone understand.

There's an old French poem called the Breton Fisherman's Prayer that has a quote I'm particularly fond of:

Thy sea, O God, so great,

My boat so small...
Save as Thy goodness opens paths for me,
Through the consuming vastness of the sea.

full faith and credit...

Howdy. Let's talk about marriage. Why? Marriage is an important topic for people these days. I don't think I've talked about or heard about marriage as much as I have over the course of this past year. But this post isn't about my friends getting married or my parents giving me crap about getting married. This post is about the future of marriage; but before we can go there, we should at least explain what marriage is. While I'm sure I could cobble together something that describes marriage, I'd rather defer to the following for a definition:

Haven’t you read...that at the beginning the Creator made them male and female...For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate. (Matthew 19:4-6)

Since 2008's firestorm over California's Proposition 8, an argument in which many lawn-signs were created, and in which many fights (verbal and physical) have broken out, there has been a debate in this country over how marriage should be defined. Some argue that it's not up to government to legislate marriage, that it's a religious matter. Some argue that you can't tell people who they can and cannot marry. And yet others argue that such a measure is an assault on the institution of marriage.

While this is measure isn't on the ballot in California come November 6th, it will be making an appearance in some shape or form in the states of Maryland, Washington, Maine, and Minnesota. Historically, every time this topic shows up for vote via a popular referendum, it has met with defeat. Currently, six states and the district of columbia permit same-sex-marriage (via legislature or court judgments); however this measure has never had success at the hands of the popular vote. Political pundits and polls reveal that this year, for the first time, a referendum on this topic may pass a majority vote. This, would of course have an impact on the entire country. Why? Art.IV sec.1 of the constitution: Full faith and credit shall be given in each state to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state. In other words, if you're married in Maine, it must be recognized in California.

This brings me to a question of: what happens when my faith and society differ on how marriage is defined? While a passing referendum won't change my definition of marriage, it represents a shift in how society views something as fundamental as marriage. Take the case of the state of Maine. This isn't the first time this state is voting on same-sex-marriages. As a matter of fact, voters in Maine rejected the same referendum in 2009. In three years, polls have shown that the opinions of the state has shifted on this topic. In three years!! Society (in the case of Maine) has shifted in it's view on marriage in three years! While society and public opinion changes with the seasons, I think this serves as a reminder that our faith needs to be anchored in what God says:

Haven’t you read...that at the beginning the Creator made them male and female...For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate. (Matthew 19:4-6)


**I do have to point out that it feels very odd for me to post about marriage without discussing love - I sometimes have a hard time putting in words a good definition of love, but I think John Steinbeck puts it quite nicely**