The semester is winding down and summer “break” is approaching. On my to-do list this summer is launch goingtoseminary.com version 2.0.  One aspect of version 2.0 I am really looking forward to is the addition of more writers.  As the comment sections will show, I am not the end-all of seminary information.  There are many seminary students out there who have a wealth of experience and insight that would be tremendously valuable.

So, with that in mind I am now accepting applications for anyone who would like to join the goingtosemianry.com team.   At this time the job is unpaid.  Writing experience, link love, and the warm fuzzy feeling of helping people out is all I really have to offer.  Should the Lord provide some sponsors for the site then I fully intend to share the love with the contributors… but, right now, I can’t promise anything.  That said, here are the details:

Job Opening: Writer
Qualification: Current Seminarian, strong writing skills
Details: The position requires you to regularly provide articles relating to all aspects of seminary life.
How to Apply: Use the goingtosemianry.com contact form to let me know you are interested.  Provide your name, seminary, and a link to your blog if you have one.  In particular, if you’ve written any posts online that you would consider goingtoseminary.com material, please send me a link to that as well.  For those who do not have an example piece posted online, I will need you to send me an example article of something you would write for goingtoseminary.com.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.  I am truly looking forward to this next step in the life of this humble little blog…

OH, and part of the v2.0 launch will be the reveal of who Just a Guy really is… that’s right, for both of you who haven’t figured it out, I will finally reveal my true identity… I know! You can just about cut the anticipation with a knife!

I’ve survived!

This week I had one paper due, two test to take, one group presentation to give, and one quiz (which I failed). However, despite the huge amount of work, I managed to survive. The biggest help in it all is that Just a Gal and the kids were away for the week visiting family. While I missed them a bunch, it is amazing how much less pressure there was on me this week. While I wouldn’t trade my wife and kids for the world, I’ll admit that when I realized how amazingly easy all you unmarried seminarians have it I was a little jealous. Again, I in no way would want to have things differently… but seminary was a completely different experience this week.

Welcome Home

So, I picked the wife and kids up from the airport last night. It really amazes me how much kids seem to change in just a week. Sweet Pea looks like she’s grown so much… but it has only been 7 days (how can that be?). The funniest part about picking up the family was, as I was waiting, I bought some Nutter Butters to munch on. When the fam finally came through the security area the kids ran over to me. As Little Man was running I stooped down and opened my arms. He was smiling and heading right for me and then his eyes caught the cookies. I could see what was happening in his mind… dad or cookies… which shall I choose?

Thankfully, he only stuttered for a moment and then regained his focus on giving me a hug. He gave me a longer than usual hug, which was nice. We let go of our embrace and I asked him how he was doing to which he replied, “Good… hey dad, what’s that?” pointing, of course, to the cookies.

Back to Work

With the week being so full of school I haven’t worked in about a week and a half. This, of course, is bad for the wallet. So, today I am cranking away at projects I put on the shelf. Of course, that includes Going to Seminary. I can’t believe I had a week with no “two cent Tuesday” or “thrifty Thursday.” How, oh how, did you all survive?!?

Well, no need to worry… I’m back to blogging and will have some content up and going this coming week.  Along with that, having the week off from the site gave me some time to think about changes that need to be made to make Going to Seminary a better site. While I’m not going to make any changes immediately, I think Going to Seminary 2.0 will be a project a work on this summer.  That said, feel free to let me know anything you think we could add/change to make the site more useful/better.

Seminary Meme 

Finally, the Seminary meme is spreading around the world. I’m pretty sad that the trackbacks are working as planned. I’m doing my best to keep up with everyone who has entered by tracking them down through a couple different methods. If you’ve filled out the meme on your site, be sure to leave a comment on the post and that’ll ensure that you are 100% entered. Remember, the prize is a $100 gift certificate to Eisenbrauns.

Update: For some reason Technorati and Wordpress are not picking up all the links from everyone’s site who is participating in the meme.  For this reason, please drop a comment on this post after you’ve filled out the meme so we can ensure that you are entered into the comp.

This month’s competition at Going to Seminary is a good (and easy) one. The best part though is that one of our site sponsors, Eisenbrauns, has offered to supply this month’s prize… a $100 gift certificate to their online bookstore!

So, how can you win the $100 gift certificate? Easy:

This Seminary Meme is part of a competition sponsored by Going to Seminary and Eisenbrauns. If you’d like to be entered, simply answer the 7 questions below and tag 5 other people. You’ll also need to post this paragraph (links included) with your answers as the links will be tracked back to your blog and will count as your “entry” into the competition. On April 30th, 2008, one blogger will be selected at random to win a $100 gift certificate to the Eisenbrauns online bookstore.

Please feel free to modify the question so as to make it appropriate to your situation as a pre-seminarian, seminarian, or seminary graduate (example given on first question).

1. Where do (will/did) you attend seminary?
2. What class do you think has most impacted your spiritual life?
3. What seminary professor has been the most influential while in seminary?
4. What is the greatest challenge you’ve faced in seminary?
5. What has been the greatest reward you’ve experienced in seminary?
6. What are your plans after seminary?
7. How many times have you been asked question #6?

Tagged (almost everyone who has ever left a comment on Going to Seminary): Jeff, Tyler, Shaun, Chad, Jon, tlange, Sovann, Julie, Chris, Jake, Paul, Jason, Terry, Anthony, Mark, Ryan, Jeremiah, Chris, Ben, Nick, Paul, Eric, RC, Raymond, Deb, Shari, and Andy

Ok, enough slacking off… Spring Break is over and it is back to the grind. I hope everyone enjoyed the guest bloggers this past week. I know I enjoyed having the time off. But, now it is back to work.

I’d have to say it is a bitter-sweet return. For one, vacation was great. I actually read NOTHING and did NO work the whole time. It was such a blast to just hang out with Just a Gal, Little Man, and Sweet Pea. Of course, I took almost all my books, but soon realized this just needed to be a vacation. So, that is the sweet part… And it is also the bitter part because I really could have used the time to catch up on some reading. But, nothing I can do now.

Well, just wanted to say “I’m back” and, again, thanks to all those who filled in while I was gone.

So, after sprinting full speed since mid December it is time for a little vacation. Starting Friday the family and I are heading off for some MUCH needed rest and relaxation. I’ve already cleared my work schedule and plan on only taking a couple of my school books. I have decided that I am simply going to go and relax… no pressure to get things done or obligations to fulfill. Now is time to rest.

Now, I know what is going through your mind right now… “Just a Guy, how am I supposed to make it through my week without the sage-like wisdom, insight, and life changing articles that you write every day?”

Well, fear not my friends, I leave you in good hands. Last week I contacted some of the seminary bloggers who frequent goingtoseminary.com and asked them if they would cover the shop while I was out. Not only did they say yes, but they’ve written some really great stuff. So, starting this Friday and going through next Wednesday we’ll be running articles written by our guest bloggers.

Be sure to show them the goingtoseminary.com love and comment on their posts and I’ll see you next week!

With 6 days left in the iPods of March competition we have a very open field. It is truly anyone’s game at this point. Currently the points standings are (this is sad):

1st place currently has 6 points
2nd place currently has 5 points
3rd place currently has 2 points

That means, if you want to win an iPod nano, it is REALLY easy. Also, if you’re not interested in the iPod, I will offer you the option of getting the cash value of any of the prizes via paypal. ($150, $50, $25).

So, I haven’t written a personal post in a while, so I thought I’d catch you up to speed.

HOWEVER, before I do, I have to express my amazement at the underwhelming response to the iPod giveaway. I thought for sure that we’d get a great response from the sweet prize list. At this rate, if you were to scribble goingtoseminary.com on a piece of paper and tape it on a classroom door in order to be in the top 3… snap a picture with your phone and you’ll have a commanding lead over everyone (for 37 seconds of effort). So, whatever, it is an easy win at this point.

So, yeah… I’ve been dizzy for the past several days. My head feels like it is full of water and every time I stand up I feel like I’m going to fall down. It’s been pretty crazy (though it has been a lot better today). In evaluating the situation I’m sure that it is a combination of diet, sleep, and stress. I’m doing my best to keep them all in check, but that isn’t always possible.

The reality is that I’m pretty drained. I’ve been up till at least midnight for the past several weeks and getting up between 5 and 7 in the morning. The kicker is that I don’t stop “doing” then entire time I’m awake. It is either school, reading, studying, family time, serving the church, or work. I can’t really remember the last time I just sat and relaxed for more than 20 minutes. So, it has been pretty draining.

Now, despite the fact that I’m dizzy and drained… I’m delighted. I’m delighted because God’s grace is sufficient. I look at my situation and I am so thankful that I have an amazing church that I can serve in. I go to an amazing school with amazing professors and I get to read amazing books. I have a job that pays great and allows me to work whenever it fits my schedule. I have new clients and projects coming from seemingly nowhere. I’ve made enough money on this blog to buy someone an iPod. And last, most certainly not least, I have a family that is supporting me 100% and on most days I get to see them way more than I did working my 9-5 the past 6 months.

Another thing that I just realized is that I kind of like it when I’m worn out.  I think it is in times like this that I am more aware of my need for God.  Surely, without his grace I would have no hope and be crushed.  Yet, I am strangely comforted by my weakness… knowing that it is his strength that sustains me.

I might be dizzy and I might be drained… but I am so delighted that God would not only allow me the chance to do it all, but that he would sustain me in it all.

Press on friends… press on.

This year there is no need to “beware the Ides of March.” In fact, quite the opposite! This year you can look forward to the Ides of March to find out if you are the winner of a brand new 4GB iPod Nano from Going to Seminary… or other cool prizes:

1st prize - 4GB iPod Nano
2nd prize - 1GB iPod Shuffle
3rd prize - $25 iTunes gift card

Just as Rome was not built in a day, neither will this competition be won in a day (unless you’re really good). This one will take some effort, which is why I’m dropping the coin for the cool prizes. So, here are the rules:

This competition will be run on a point system. On March 14th the person with the most points wins. Winners will be announced on the Ides of March (the 15th).

So, how do you get points? Points will be awarded for various tasks you complete - see below. For some of these I will need you to report your activity to me, so I am trusting that no one will cheat or lie (seriously, that would be very uncool).

The Point System:

1 Point - Post a link to Going to Seminary that has seminary related words as the link text. (1 point limit PER DAY)
EXAMPLE:
- This is a cool site about going to seminary. (1 point)
- Check this out. Visit here. (0 points)

1 Point - Create a Going to Seminary flyer and post it somewhere on your campus. (1 point per flyer - 10 point max)
- for this one you need to email me (justaguy [AT] goingtoseminary [DOT] com) and let me know how many you posted and the name of the campus on which you posted them. You are welcome to use any graphics or images found on Going to Seminary for your flyers

3 Points - Add a Going to Seminary badge to your site (scroll down to get the code)

5 Points - If you email me a picture of your flyer hanging somewhere on campus (picture phone images are fine). Please include the name of the campus

10 Points - If you make a verbal announcement before the start of a class about the website (email me the name of your seminary and the class in which you made the announcement).

15 Points - Get your seminary to include a link to Going to Seminary on their next mass email to students (most seminaries have a regular email to students with announcements and events, etc). I’ll need a copy of the email to confirm

20 Points - Get your seminary to post a link to Going to Seminary on their website.

25 Points - For the most creative way you get the word out about Going to Seminary. (I reserve the right to give away more than one of these if you all get really creative)
Example:
- Getting a Going to Seminary tattoo
- Make a Going to Seminary t-shirt and wearing it to class
- Stand on the street corner with a banner with the site URL on it
- Get a skywriter to write the URL over the sky above your seminary
- Get creative… Get the points.

50 Points - The big daddy… Get a seminary (or, heck, anyone) to become a site sponsor.

So, there you have it. Go get some points and I’ll start tracking the results.

Wow… it is 2:56 a.m. and it is finally finished. If I wasn’t so exhausted I’d explain how INCREDIBLY difficult this conversion was. Well, I hope you like the new digs… I’ll be tweaking it here and there over the next couple weeks, so feel free to let me know what you think.

…sleepy time…

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.
James 5:16a

Well… I feel dirty just saying it… I took my laptop to class today.

Despite my outspoken advocacy of Vintage Notes, I broke down and took the mac to campus. Now, before you break out the stones and begin tossing them at me, allow me to give my reasoning:

1. Access to the Greek and Hebrew - I’m currently taking a class on the book of Hebrews and the professor often encourages us to look at the Greek… I haven’t taken Greek yet, so looking at it does nothing for me. However, having the computer there allows me to pull of the original language and look at it and better understand what is going on… well, a little bit at least.
2. I’m a tree hugging hippie - Well, not really… but two of my professors offer their lecture outlines online and I hate wasting the paper to take them to class to write notes on them… especially when I plan on taking them home and entering them into the computer. It just doesn’t make sense.

Now, let me make a couple observations as one who was a pure Vintage Note taker until today.

1. Temptation - I never knew how INCREDIBLY tempting it was to get online, check email, set system preferences, organize my folders, download notes for other classes, set new wallpaper image, etc, while in class. It drive me crazy when I see people doing it, and yet, today I had to concentrate not to do it. It was a challenge to say the least! I think I did a good job for the most part, but I don’t know… it is HARD to not do anything but take notes and use my bible software.
2. Repentance - Paper is better! Seriously, I really do think it is better. I found myself getting a bit lazy when I had the professors notes sitting right in front of me… essentially all the important stuff was already there. So, I just sat and listened (trying not to go online). Conversely, when all I have is my notepad in front of me I am forced to think about what is said and what I need to remember. Also, I really do like being able to write all over the page and draw lines, arrows, circles, and other visual clues to my notes… but that might just be me.

Conclusion - I’ll probably continue to take my computer and use it as a support tool, however, I intend to keep Vintage Notes as my primary approach to note taking.

Whew… I feel better now that I’ve got that off my chest.