A Guest Post. Huzzah!

Blogger Matt Appling had a contest of sorts for doing a guest blog post. I was one of the people he chose to guest blog for.

Since some of the questions are about religion I thought I'd give you all a picture of me and coolest niece ever, Jalyn, in the heavens. (Also, I really love my new mac and wanted to share one of the pictures we took. We're supposed to be singing in heavenly bliss....)

The gist: I asked him some random questions and these are his answers.

We both hope you enjoy!

Nine Random Questions

*What is one segment I could do that would tie acting and Christianity into a good post?

I’m trying to narrow the focus of my blog to just these topics.

That’s a tough one, as I don’t know much of anything about acting.  It’s nothing I’ve ever thought of.  Interestingly, the Greek word for ‘actor’ was ‘hypocrite.’  An actor is a person who acts like something else – hence, a hypocrite.  So when Jesus calls the Pharisees ‘hypocrites,’ he’s comparing them to stage performers.

*I recently read your post on self esteem, but I’m not sure if I completely agree with you. If we all go around with zero self esteem how can we be the people God made us to be?

That’s a good question, but it’s not that we should have zero self esteem.  We should have LOTS of self esteem because we are created and loved by God!  Our problem comes when we try to get self esteem in all the wrong places, or try to get it without having really accomplished anything worth feeling good about.

*What’s you favorite cartoon?

Well, in high school, all of my friends picked cartoon aliases for each other.  The two guys who were teachers’ pets for a teacher we casually called “evil” were called Flotsam and Jetsam – from “The Little Mermaid.”  Apparently, I was most like “Doug.”  Good show, but I thought “Rocko’s Modern Life” was far funnier. 

“He-Man” just got added to Netflix streaming.  My wife and I watched and episode and spent the whole time cringing, and laughing…for all the wrong reasons.  Just awful, even for a show designed exclusively to sell toys.

*What would Jesus say about the capitalism run amuck? Would He refuse to do work if He wasn’t clocked in?

Without knowing what you mean by “run amok,” I’ll assume you mean that we’ve become a bunch of greedy, capitalistic swine.  With capitalism, humans cracked the code on making more people wealthier than any other economic system we’ve ever discovered.  But it is imperfect for the same reason that communism or mercantilism is imperfect – humans are imperfect, and we love money and security.  Jesus would say to us the same thing he said to people 2,000 years ago - that we love the illusion of safety and security, and he doesn’t offer that.  It is, after all, just an illusion.  We can stockpile and hoard all we want, but we don’t know when our time will come.

*Do you think there’s one person in the world with perfect doctrine?

Nope.  God is a mystery.  The Bible is all that has been revealed, but it hasn’t revealed everything in my opinion.  And I am much more comfortable with that than with a guy who thinks he’s totally figured God out.

*Who would win a cage match – Julia Roberts or Betty White?

Betty White would kick Julia Robert’s butt any day, whether in real life or in acting out a fight scene.  Betty White would never take an acting role that involved getting beat up by Julia Roberts.  (Though if she did, it would be the finest performance in the history of cinema.)  In fact, I daresay Betty White would not take an acting role with Julia Roberts at all, unless there was a fight scene included where she got to beat her up.  I know I wouldn’t.

*Any tips on how to stay sane whilst writing a blog? It seems like they can be a stress at times.

Good question.  It can be a stress, but it shouldn’t be that often.  When I started out, I laid out a schedule I knew I could keep consistently, and I’ve stuck with it for three years.  Once you get into a rhythm, it gets easier.  Also, keep a notebook or some kind of idea list that gives you some breathing room when it’s time to write and you don’t have creativity pouring out of all your head orifices.

*How do I generate more comments to my blog?

That can be tricky.  In general, you can comment on other blogs.  You can respond to comments on your own blog as much as possible.  And you can make it easier for people to leave comments.  I always end blog posts with a couple of questions for readers because I have such a hard time myself commenting on blogs without a prompt.

*Can you be a Hollywood figure and still maintain biblical standard or is the limelight a thing Christ followers should shy from?

I don’t think fame is inherently evil.  There are people who apparently live both lives in balance.  But Hollywood is a funny place and it seems to indoctrinate peoples’ worldviews, like there’s something in the water.  It’s a tough line to walk, but I think Christians can exist almost anywhere.

Here is a link to Matt's blog. He makes some very interesting points. Whether you agree or disagree with him it's always worth a read to get your mind working.

And if you're reading my blog right now you should pick one of the random questions I asked and answer it in a comment! Or second Matt's answer or maybe bring up some opposing view points.