Sunday, November 9, 2008

Media PC part 1

Like most things in life it's a lot harder than it looks.



I have this desire to make a media center PC. I watch most of my media online anyway so it makes sense, right? I can hook a PC up to my television and watch videos just like I was watching a normal TV broadcast. I forgot to take into consideration that I actually know very little about computers.

I managed to get a free computer from work, it was gutted, meaning no hard drive or RAM. I have taken hard drives out of computers before so I though that would go relationally easily. I bought a hard drive but it was a newer technology. (Sata not IDE for any geeks out there.) And the RAM I bought was not compatible either. After a bit on online searching I find out that I really need, so I make my second trip to the computer store. It turns out that they don't have the RAM I need and they don't have any SATA to IDE converters.

So now I have bought the RAM and the converter online and have to wait until they are shipped to me. I also found out that connecting a PC to a TV is not the easiest thing to do. I haven't really figured that out yet. With any luck the software side will go smoother than the hardware side.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

More thoughts on Church

Yesterday I attended the 5 year anniversary of Quincy St Missional Church in Dorchester. I always enjoy attending a service there because it is a humbling experience, and I always come away encouraged. And as usual, yesterday I learned a couple of things.

The value of the elderly:
During the service an elderly woman, using a walker, went up to the front of the garage, also known as the church, and sung a wonderful song. An Acapella Spiritual. She talked about how although she was in her 80's and had seen many hard days (she hadn't been able to come to church for a while because she was so sick) God was going to get her to 100. One day less would not be enough.

As I was moved by her song I though of how this experience is unique for a church. In most evangelical evangelical churches you see the young on stage. Usually men with lots of hair gel. This is in sharp contrast to an old woman with a walker wearing knee high stocking. What would it look like for your church or community to have people of all ages. And to have there voices and perspectives heard by all. To give up valuable "stage time" to them. The church looses valuable perspective when the voice of the elderly are overpowered by the sound of distorted guitars.

God works through the weak:
I get a little voice in the back of my head that says "really?" every time I hear a church planter talk about how God is working to through their church. Really, is it all God? Doesn't your pastor have a divinity degree? Don't you have a person on staff who is a professional graphic designer. Don't you have a large yearly budget? Didn't your worship leader go to Berkley College of Music, and aren't they working on there first solo album?

The polished glean reflecting off the modern church is a little overwhelming sometimes. Not so at Quincy St. a church who's matriarch is a poor illiterate black woman. Although they have has some help over the years the church's leadership is made up of the types of people that the world does not value or expect much of. The small success that Quincy St has had in comparison to its other modern Evangelical churches may not look like much, but to me it is a better picture of God working through people to accomplish his mission. We sometimes don't see when we are working through out own strengths, when God wants to work through our weakness.

Our goal is nothing more than to be like Jesus:
To listen to most church services you might think that our goal is to save the world. Or be better people by not sinning. Next weeks sermon has five points about how to have a better marriage, maybe that's the goal?

Every time I see Ma Siss (the matriarch of Quincy St.) I am reminded of Jesus. She always greats everyone warmly, and is known by the neighborhood as someone who would do anything for you. They share a meal after the service, because she wants everyone to have something to eat. They have a thrift shop because she wants everyone to have clothes. If you can't pay for a loaf of bread she will let you have it for free, because that's just the way she it. I want to be like that. I want to be like Jesus.

You can read more about the 5 year anniversary here. (click)