Japanese Food...

...has always repulsed me. But over the last few weeks I am realizing I can enjoy it. In fact, today I was at Richmond Sushi and I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

Dennis had a vision years ago that I would come to like sushi. He was persistent, and after all those difficult trials, he is finally going to see his dreams fulfilled. So, if you want to go for sushi, I'll actually say yes! (but no rolls, those things make me vomit).

the "stolen" car

i had another dream last night.

one of my youth leaders, marcel, was driving me home after church. as we're driving he tells me,

"my car got stolen last week, but ICBC won't give me any money for it because it was given to me as a gift."

"what a letdown...ICBC! so who's car is this?" I reply.

"well, i still need a car to get to school, so my friend came up with an idea. she had been wanting to get a new car, so she suggested i 'steal' her car and ICBC will give her the money, and i will have a car for myself!"

this didn't sit well in my stomach...i couldn't just sit there and not say anything,

"ultimately it's your choice, but i have to share my opinion. i don't think it's right to do something like that where you are being dishonest. you feel justified in screwing ICBC because they screwed you over, but that's not the way God wants us to live. that's all i have to say."

"wow, you're blunt! yeah, you're right, i guess i'll be taking the bus to school for now." marcel grudgingly said.

then i woke up. after thinking about it in bed i realized how could he get her car insured if she had declared it stolen? logic foils my dreams again! and why do i often act like a moral police officer in my dreams???

The Mysteriously Vanishing Car

i had a dream last night

Ian Martens was driving me somewhere and then for some reason we were driving in separate cars

and then we got pulled over by American police

but i didnt have my license

I told them my license number (cause I have it memorized for some reason) but they didn't care

and they were hassling me and such

and i was like, how did i get in that car anyways??!

and then, i turned around and the car was gone, and the police were like, "im sure you were driving a car", and im like, "i dont think i was, i was with Ian in his car", "but i remember seeing him put the parking break on", says one of the cops

but the car was gone so i guess i couldn't have broken the law

the Lord works in mysterious ways!

The Harrowing of Hell

*BORING ALERT!!!*

(this is just something that has fascinated me from recent readings)

My good buddy Ben Schmidt once asked me (and everyone else he came in contact with), "Where did Jesus go after he died?" Well, guess what?!? I just found out...

He was harrowing hell! According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary harrow means "to plunder or pillage". Jesus wasn't so innocent after all, he was a viking. The doctrine of the Harrowing of Hell is found in the Apostles creed where it says, "was crucified, dead, and buried. He descended into hell." Upon his death, Jesus broke into hell, Hades, Sheol, and liberated the righteous ones who had died before him.


Here are some interesting verses that might just refer to it:

Matthew 27:50-53

And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they entered the holy city and appeared to many.

So according to this passage this is the order of events:
1. Jesus dies
2. The curtain rips
3. There is an earthquake
4. Tombs open up
5. The bodies of many saints were raised
6. TWO DAYS LATER (after Jesus' resurrection) the saints leave the tombs and appear to people.

So basically, they just hung out in their tombs for a couple days, but didn't leave until after Jesus' resurrection...hmmm??!? Could this be Matthew's way of explaining the harrowing of hell into his narrative? Think about it...after Jesus' death he broke into hell and freed the saints. But they couldn't be resurrected yet, because Jesus had to be the first. So symbolically Matthew has them waiting in their tombs until Jesus rises first.


And how does Matthew describes these saints? As those who have fallen asleep. This was the standard way of describing those righteous ones who had died before Jesus. They were not really dead, only fast asleep waiting for Jesus to awaken them. Look at what Paul says in 1 Cor. 15:20: "But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep."

1 Peter 4:6

For the gospel has for this purpose been preached (proclaimed) even to those who are dead, that though they are judged in the flesh as men, they may live in the spirit according to the will of God.

Could this be a reference to Jesus descending into hell to let the saints (who had been judged in flesh) freed so they could finally live in the spirit?

But I know what you're thinking, if Jesus did actually go into hell and free the saints on the Saturday before his resurrection, why isn't it explicitly in the gospels? Well, think about it, if that story was put in, it would steal the thunder from Jesus' commision to spread the gospel. Here we would have Jesus bursting out of the tomb leading a procession of resurrected saints up to heaven, and then he comes back down again and briefly sends his disciples out, then he goes back up to heaven again. All that stuff happened behind the scenes so it doesn't really fit in with the narrative as the disciples experienced it.

And what about the guy on the cross? "Today you will be with me in Paradise." I don't know how the whole day thing works in the afterlife, but couldn't this just mean, "I'm actually on my way to hell now to set people free, so you don't even have to wait that long."


So what is the benefit of knowing about the harrowing of hell? Well...it shows us that the bodily resurrection has already started. This isn't a future event, this is something that Jesus started the moment he died and continues to do. Those who give up everything to follow him, will be raised to new life! This isn't just a future event, it has already begun!

My Transformation

I really enjoy getting my picture taken...


Dec. 16, 2006


Dec. 28, 2006


Jan. 5, 2007


Jan. 14, 2007


Feb. 16, 2007


Mar. 9, 2007


Mar. 11, 2007

Stillwood Idol - Tony Wonder

This performance will leave you paralyzed in wonderment...

My Last Day In London - Day Thirteen

I stayed up the night before planning what I would do in London to maximize my stay. But of course, I was worried the jet lag would keep me up again. But guess what???!? With one day left in the trip I finally overcame the jet lag and had an incredible sleep!!! Unbelievable...

I had thought about taking a sightseeing tour on one of those double-decker buses, but I changed my mind and decided to just check out a few things. My first priority was the British Museum. I ended up staying there for about 3 hours.














The Rosetta Stone


















The infamous "Blue Hippo"


















Just playing some ultimate frisbee

After the British Museum I had lunch and then wandered around a bit looking for souvenirs and that football jersey for my brother, Mike. I finally found the jersey in one store but they only had two sizes. One was too big and the other was too small. Not to mention it cost 60 pounds (roughly 140 Canadian dollars). Sorry Mike. Instead I found him some shot glasses. I had a hard time deciding whether to buy him the one with Prince Harry and William on it or the one with Princess Diana. I opted for Princess Di and much to my surprise he loved it!!! Haha.

I decided to check out St. Paul's Cathedral. It was designed by the famous architect Christopher Wren. I loved it inside, it was so beautiful. I wasn't allowed to take pictures. Here is what it would look like if I were to secretly take pictures without the people around me knowing:








When I was in high school, my brother Kevin took me to see a play by Agatha Christie called "The Mousetrap". I remember him telling me it was the longest running show in British Theatre. I knew it must be playing still in London, so I searched it out and got tickets. It was quite fun, but I could sorta remember the ending so I wasn't surprised. Actually, the ending seemed a little anti-climactic. I would say Agatha Christie's play "And Then There Were None" is much better.

One interesting bit of trivia for you: One of the characters in the play is named after Christopher Wren. Funny that I should see the Cathedral he designed and the play with his name in it all on the same day. What you might not know is this...when I originally saw the play with my brother I liked the name Wren so much that I decided I would name one of my future kids that. Except I decided to call him Reynold and then spell it Reyn for short. I will often use this name in video games and it is one of my email addresses. It came close to being my camp name also, but secretly I like to think of myself as Reynold Cooper.

All in all I had a wonderful day in London. It was a little lonely without Robyn there for those last few days, but I still had a good experience. I headed back to the Watts' and fell asleep thinking about all the wild and wacky adventures I had been through. What an awesome trip I had...I cannot wait to go back!

I Walked a Lot - Day Twelve

I regret going to Manchester. I didn't really know what to do there so I ended up walking everywhere. I walked a lot. I tried to find a football jersey for my brother and I went into so many sports stores, but I couldn't find one for the team he wanted. The highlight of the day was watching "Night at the Museum" at the IMAX there....yippee! That evening I caught the train back to London to stay with the Watts' again. That's all I did, I can hardly contain my excitement thinking about it. This post doesn't even deserve a picture to go with it.

Edinburgh Castle - Day Eleven

I had hoped to wake up early and catch as much of Edinburgh as I could in such a short time. Unfortunately I woke up at noon to the sound of the maid knocking at my door. I had totally slept in!!! I was supposed to check out at 11am. I quickly threw all my stuff in my bag and left. I didn't even have time for a shower! Awful...

So now I only had a few hours before my train left and the one thing I really wanted to do was see Edinburgh Castle. After I got inside I realized I was going to be sweating a lot from hauling my backpack around so I changed into shorts. I got a lot of funny looks because it was winter there and quite cold.


The main entrance


Inside the Castle


Edinburgh from atop the castle wall


Mons Meg


Dog Cemetary


Scottish National War Memorial


Lots of swords in this room


A fireplace


Another fireplace

Edinburgh Castle was really fascinating. There were a lot of things to see and they have a number of different museums and exhibits inside. I was so out of it though, because of my sleep, that I would start to listen to my audio tour and realize minutes in that I hadn't been paying attention. This happened at most stations.


Me hanging out with royalty


Stairway to the old prison barracks


Recreated prison barracks

After the castle I walked around for a bit. These pictures are from the main road leading to the castle:






While walking around I remembered what Ingrid Watts had told me when I was in London. In Edinburgh you can apparently get a deep-fried Mars bar. I was curious to know what that was all about so I started asking people if they knew where I could get one. I was quickly pointed to a chippy shop. I went in and saw it on the menu! The lady said I could have a Mars bar or Snickers, so I went with Snickers. I have no idea what she did, because she went into the back to make it, but when she came out, there it was...


At first I wasn't sure what to expect, but I have to say, it was one of the most delicious things I have ever tasted! The chocolate bar is completely melted on the inside and it was total gooey goodness.

My time in Scotland had come to an end. Next time I go there I'll stay for much longer. I got on the train and headed for Manchester. In the rain I found the hostel I had scoped out online. It was a great place...really cheap and very nice facilities. Of course, I couldn't sleep much so I ended up watching tv and using the computer in the common room until 4am. Then I went back to my room with 10 other people in bunk beds and fell fast asleep.