i started using this blog as a sophomore in college... for no reason really.  i just felt like writing about the stuff flying through my head, and blogging seemed like a good way to do that.  and then one day, i received xanga premium as a gift from a friend.  well, finally, xanga premium has run out.  so now, it's time for me to officially move.  i've had this other blog for a lil while now, i just never used it, partially because i couldn't get it to do what i wanted it to do.  but, after reading the faq page on wordpress, i know what i'm doing =).

come visit me at jklam.com. 

stop by and say hello! 

in 2015, if everything goes according to plan, homelessness in seattle will be a thing of the past.  the plan is not just to manage homelessness, but end homelessness. 

check it out. 

"I wrote a book awhile back, and it stays in print primarily because some of the chapter titles are provocative. I guess the one that is most provocative is the simple question, and it sums it all up: “Can a Christian Own a BMW?” I get letters of anger from people on this one. It’s tough to think about it. Here’s a car that costs like $60,000 and is designed to do 200 miles per hour on the German autobahn, when in Pennsylvania, the most you can do is 65 miles per hour. Why would you buy a car designed to go 200 miles per hour when you can only go 65 miles per hour? The answer is quite simple: A BMW is not a car; it’s a status symbol.

When you read the second chapter of Philippians and you realize that Jesus gave up status and took upon Himself the form of a slave and made Himself of “no reputation,” how can you claim to be a follower of that Christ and be buying into the status symbols of our culture? And let’s be honest, a good bit of what we buy has nothing to do with meeting our needs; it has to do with establishing an image. And we are trying to establish status through consumerism, and that is evil, and that is contrary to everything that Jesus is about."

[tony campolo]

Agh, that cuts.  How many status symbols of our culture am I buying into, everyday? 

Nevermind, I don't really wanna know. 

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I should say that this blurb from Campolo wasn't compelling to me because of its critique against luxury cars.  Making checklists of what a follower of Christ can and can't own, I think, misses the point.  Jesus didn't come to bring about a new form of legalism, though perhaps I should take a closer look at his critique since I just got a new Prius -- a new kind of status symbol (especially in North Seattle) that screams, "I'm a tree-hugging hippie!"  Maybe as much as any other car, it works toward "establishing an image."

I know that I buy into a lot of status symbols. I not only pursue these status symbols for myself, but I reinforce the cultural value of these symbols by applauding those who are in possession of them. Practically everyone is complicit in this system of upward mobility and self-importance. Campolo reminds us that Jesus made himself a slave and of “no reputation,” and wonders if it's even possible to be a follower of Christ and buy into status symbols. Is it possible that the people of God have made a new golden calf to worship?