SuperStippy.com

Watch My Mouth

superstippy — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 02:12:25 +0000

If you’ve had the pleasure of being around me at all you’ve probably noticed that I will take almost any opportunity to make a snarky comment, give you my opinion on someone, or throw in a colorful word for effect. I know…these don’t say great things about me. But. I’ve recently begun to spend time talking with God about it.

First of all, as I said, those things don’t say great things about me as a person. Those characteristics used to describe anyone don’t say great things about whoever they’re used to describe. But to put on top of that that I claim to have a strong belief in the Bible and what it teaches…I’m not doing a lot for the image of others who claim that same thing. So I began to wrestle with this, and try to work it out.

I’ve been reading through the book Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Prophet, Martyr, Spy, and came across a line that challenged me quite a bit:

Another aspect of this “life together” that proved quite difficult was Bonhoeffer’s rule never to speak about a brother in his absence.

I love to get in on discussion on what’s the latest with who, or who did what stupid, and so on and so forth. And I don’t think it’s something I can allow myself to continue to do. In addition to that line from this captivating book, there’s a host of biblical reasons not to do so. I’ve drawn for myself a line between what’s harmless, and what’s gossip…but I don’t know that I can rightly say there is one.

Another great motivator for me came from a conversation with my sister where I quoted Ephesians 4:29 in my accusation of myself. It says:

Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.

(NASB)

For someone who loves a good shock value curse word, or getting a laugh at the expense of someone else…this verse cuts out a lot of what I’m able to say. Which, for most of you, could be a great thing. But what it has done for me in the last few days as I’ve been trying to internalize this, is make me think more about my words, and choose what I say more carefully.

James (of the Bible) has a ton to say about what we say. One of the best is from chapter 3 verse 5:

So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire!

So…as I make an effort over the next several weeks and months, do me a favor, and watch my mouth. Tell me when I’m not doing these things. And…maybe join me if it’s something you feel like you need to do.

Grace & Peace,
Stippick

Finish List # 6

superstippy — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 19:09:01 +0000

The sixth item on my Finish List is to read 12 non-fiction books this year, basically one a month. I love to read, and I read a lot, but quite a bit of what I read is fiction, and because I read several things at a time I have this bad habit of starting a lot of book but not finishing many. I think I finished maybe 4 books last year. Here’s what my reading list looks like so far:

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Prophet, Martyr, Spy by Eric Metaxas
Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
Leaders Who Last by Dave Kraft
The Great Divorce by CS Lewis
Veneer: Living Deeply in a Surface Society by Timothy D. Willard and Jason Lacy
The Church Can Change The World by Jimmy Seibert

I’m looking to add one more biography, and it’s between the Tina Fey, Jane Lynch, and Rob Lowe ones right now. I also want to add two more “classics” along the lines of The Great Divorce. Lastly, I’m looking to add three business leadership books. So. If you’ve got ideas for any of those, let me know. Thanks!

Grace & Peace,
Stippick

Finish List # 5

superstippy — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 22:00:44 +0000

So. I haven’t posted in a week. But. I’ll still meet my goal of posting three times a week. Now onto goal number five.

I want to write a semester of curriculum for the college ministry I work with. This seems like a lofty goal to some, but I feel like I can do it. I want to do this as part of my job someday, so I figure why not get some practice in when I’m in a great learning/trial and error environment.

That’s about all there is to that. Today’s post is short. I’ll be finishing up my Finish List explanations over the next few days, and kicking off some great stuff on the blog starting Monday! Have a great weekend!

Grace & Peace,
Stippick

Finish List # 4

superstippy — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 01:11:08 +0000

The fourth item on my Finish List might actually be my most difficult: Get an A in Intermediate Algebra (The equivalent of High School Algebra 2, which I have to take before I can take College Algebra). This may seem like an easy enough task, but for me. It may not be. This will be the third time i have attempted to take the class in as many semesters. The first time I tried it, about halfway through the semester it became clear that there was nothing I could do to pass the class. So I dropped it failing. This past fall semester I was in the class for three days before I decided I didn’t have the determination to see it through.

There’s three major reasons this is such a difficult class for me:

1: I’m bad at math. I just am. 2+2=4. I get that. 2×4=8. Yep. 32x(4-9+3)=78y+3(27-8). Uhhhh…I don’t get that. I just don’t. I sit in class and learn the principles, and formulas, and think I get them. I try to apply them to a problem? Nothing. I get it wrong.
2: Because I’m not great at it, I have a mental block to it. This just makes me being bad at it worse. Now I’m bad at it and I don’t care to pay attention to try and learn anything new, because they’re building on things I don’t understand. I get scared of 38 problem homework assignments, because I don’t get it. So I end up just not doing them )This? Will make you fail a math class. I don’t recommend it).
3: I’ve got to be honest with you. I don’t see the point. I can do basic math. Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Those are all things I can take on. Basic things like that are vital to have in your everyday life (Thank God for cell phone calculators, am I right?!). But…why on earth do I need to know how to graph a parabola? I’ve never been given a good answer to that question (or others like it). I know that a big part of math is problem solving, and logic, and blah, blah, blah…but. I’ve got those things. I don’t need to learn them in a class that uses math beyond what my profession will ever require of me. I’m smart enough to know my limitations in math to know when I’ll need someone else to help me out with something. So, because I see absolutely no value in the class itself, I find it very hard to make it a priority in my life.

And those, ladies and gentlemen, are the things I’m up against this semester in my quest to get an A in this class. I don’t think it will be easy. I’m anticipating several attempts to give up. But I will not be allowed to do that this time. This year, I will FINISH my formal mathematical education.

Grace & Peace,
Stippick

Finish List # 3

superstippy — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 21:16:34 +0000

In addition to wanting to publish a Kindle Single, I also want to publish a full length book this year. I would publish it with the same Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), but would also use amazon’s system that allows you to publish in print when someone order’s it.

I’ve had a few ideas of something I might write for some time now, and am going to be discussing them with a friend in the near future to flesh them out a bit and see where I should focus my energy. One of the things that I know has held me back from doing this in the past is that I’ve asked myself a form of the question “Who am I to write that?”. Today though, I read an encouraging tweet from Jon Acuff:

Do you feel wildly unqualified to write the book that’s on your heart? Congrats, you feel what every author feels. Write it.

And that’s exactly what I intend to do.

Grace & Peace,
Stippick

Finish List # 2

superstippy — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 17:25:32 +0000

The second item on my Finish List for this year is to turn a blog series into a Kindle Single.

A Kindle Single is a short book written specifically for the Kindle. I want to write a book someday. I’m incredibly scared to do this. So I decided a great way to get my feet wet would be to take something I’ve already written, expand it a bit, and make it a short book and publish it digitally. Amazon has made this an incredibly easy process, and I am really excited about the possibility.

I’ve already decided which series of posts I’ll be using, and I look forward to telling you all more about it as it comes closer. Part of this process is going to take quite a bit of discipline from myself to be motivated enough to work on this until it is finished. So, feel free to ask me about it when you think to.

When it’s finished? Get a copy and be sure to tell your friends.

Grace & Peace,
Stippick

Finish List # 1

superstippy — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 22:59:14 +0000

This first thing on my Finish List is to blog at least 3 times a week. I hope to do more than that, but I figured for a commitment, I can guarantee making time for 3 a week.

I love blogging. I love having a space where I can share thoughts and ideas, and my family and friend, and even complete strangers can see those things. I get nervous about it sometimes though. That I’ll say the wrong thing, or offend the wrong person.

More than that though, I have a fear of saying the right thing. I have a fear that someone is going to mistake me for someone who actually knows what they’re doing, or talking about. Because most of the time I don’t. I’m sharing something that may be of particular annoyance to me, or something that I believe God has put on my heart to share with others.

The fact of the matter is that I don’t need to worry about any of those things. God has compelled me to write. In whatever way that may be. I have responsibility to be obedient to that. I don’t need to worry about the way someone else is perceiving what I’m saying as long as I know I’m sharing what God has asked me to, in the way He’s asked me to.

I look forward to sharing with you at least 3 times a week during this Finish Year.

Grace & Peace,
Stippick

The Finish Year

superstippy — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 22:04:25 +0000

A few weeks ago blogger/tweeter/author Jon Acuff challenged people to join him in what he is calling “The Finish Year”. Here’s a quick description from him, but click the link for the full post:

This year, let’s finish things. Let’s finish writing our books or our business plans. Let’s finish paying off our debt. Let’s finish losing that extra 10 pounds. Let’s finish saying, “I want to go to Italy someday” and actually go. Let’s finish thinking about volunteering at a local homeless shelter and do it.

So I’m participating in the Finish Year. Today I’ll post my finish list, and over the next few day, I’ll be talking a little more about each goal.

My Finish List:

1- Blog at least 3 times a week.
2- Turn at least 1 blog series into a kindle single.
3- Publish a book through amazon/kindle.
4- Get an A in Intermediate Algebra. (This is my third try in as many semesters. Time to get it done.)
5- Write a semester of curriculum for my ministry.
6- Read 12 non-fiction books.
7- Re-Learn the clarinet.

Check out the post on the Finish Year, and let me know if you’ll be joining me and countless others as we stop starting things, and start finishing them.

Grace & Peace,
Stippick

Reasons I Like Going To A Small School: Part 2

superstippy — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 17:55:07 +0000

Guys. I’m going to be honest with you: I’m kind of lazy about a lot of things. One of those things is being physical…in any way shape or form. I don’t like to walk back and forth to the car after a grocery trip, so I’ll bring in as much at a time as I can; I don’t like to have to get up from my spot once I’ve started watching tv, so I get all the stuff I think I’ll need before I sit down. This also means that I don’t want to walk 20 minutes to have to get to a class, or be somewhere so big that I have to take a bus (Howard Payne does have a bus…it goes one place and then back. Not a lot of schedules to memorize.)

I like going to a small school, because it has a small campus. My youth minister graduated from HPU and the other day a lady told him she drove through Brownwood and saw part of the campus, he informed her that she’d actually seen all of campus. I can stand on one end of the campus and see the other end it’s great. Outside of a class at the Academy building, or Newman (The only two off campus buildings, where I no longer have classes), it doesn’t take me more than three and a half minutes to get to class. It’s great. Everything is right close to where I am. There’s honestly no way I would have survived at a bigger school. I would never have gone to class because ti would have been too far away.

I work literally across the street from campus, and I’m looking for a place to live off campus that I can still see campus from. I don’t want to have to work to get to where I’m going. It’s as simple as that. I’m lazy. A small school provides me the environment I need to feel like I’m doing great to be somewhere on campus on time.

Grace & Peace,
Stippick

What are your thoughts?

superstippy — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 21:57:16 +0000

Today, my boss posted this paraphrase of a thought from the book “You Lost Me”:

One of the biggest reasons why Millenials/Mosaics (people aged 18-29) are leaving the church (not faith, just the institution) is that they beleive the church is no longer relevant and does not effectively interact with modern/post-modern culture.

This was my response:

I agree to an extent. I also believe that people in our age bracket tend to be very entitled, so when things don’t happen how we want, we leave to do our own thing. If we’re not careful, in 40 years, our children will be just as disillusioned with our version of church as we tend to be with what is around today. We ought to commit to staying with a local body of people who believe the same things and work on reconciling our stylistic desires to further the kingdom of God.

What are your thoughts? On the quote, or my response?

Grace & Peace,
Stippick