Dreaming Again

When I was in 8th grade, I asked for a new and intriguing video game for my birthday: Xenosaga Episode I. It was a space odyssey anime full of intriguing characters, vicious aliens, mysterious artifacts, and, you know, the fate of humanity. But it was also full of really sweet mechs. I was hooked. I […]

Late Summer Financial Update

I always want to be cautious providing financial updates because I never want it to sound like bragging. Really, I just want to demonstrate just how possible it is to do this “massive savings” deal, encourage others to do the same, and  celebrate some milestones along my journey. 401k The biggest news item I have […]

Frugality is Not a Competition

…it is merely a strategy. I’ve never had a particularly positive view of competition, probably because I have most often seen it used for selfish reasons. I think of some of the less-reputable athletes at my high school who thought it was fun to dominate those less-athletic in gym class. There are some very good […]

Contributing to Your G-IRA

If you’ve done any research into retirement or investing, you’ve probably encountered several terms: 401k, Roth 401k, IRA, Roth IRA, 403b, 457, and several others. I had never in my life actually taken an interest in tax law until this past year, and it’s a little scary just how much there is to learn. Most […]

Thoughts on Prophetic Giving

Several years ago I read Marcel Mauss’s anthropological classic “The Gift”. It was one of the driest books I have ever read, made what I thought were several inaccurate conclusions, and really left me with a bitter taste in my brain. What it did accomplish, however, was impressing upon me just how complicated gift-giving can […]

The Power of Cash Position

My cell phone bricked itself this morning. Just completely shat itself out. Coma-inducing diarrhea. One moment it was running just fine, the next it was black-screened, and after several half-successful attempts to turn it back on, the damage seemed final. It even feels slightly lighter now, like its soul has leapt from its fleshly bonds […]

Dream Interpretation and Hebrew

The Background Dream interpretation is definitely a more charismatic topic in Christianity. Most of the churches I have been to have ignored the subject entirely, perhaps tacitly admitting that God spoke to people in the Bible through dreams, but largely ignoring the possibility that God still does this. For less than a year now I’ve […]

The Missionary House

At one of my previous churches, there was an older couple who owned a million+ dollar mansion in a rich area of Parker. This was years before house prices began to skyrocket in Colorado. It had several floors, an enormous atrium, an elevator, a spa, a half-court for basketball, some cool outdoor seating areas with […]

Thoughts on Travel

It’s travel season. I know this because my Facebook newsfeed has been blowing up with pictures for the past month. I have mixed feelings about travel. Which is why I’m writing this. Travel and I go back a ways and have a bit of a dark history.       Part 1: The Past When […]

The PlayStation Hunt: A Case Study in Consumerism

Some of my favorite memories from my previous church involve the game nights we used to have. At the time, I was pretty terrible at first-person shooters but managed to learn enough to get into the games and play decently, which helped to make things fun. By far the coolest game “night” was the 10 […]