Happy holidays to everyone! I write this post from California, where we are visiting Sarah's California family. We flew here yesterday and will be here through Thursday morning. It is great to be with family during this time, and we feel blessed we're able to do so. I have had a myriad of thoughts whirling through my brain lately.
Perhaps most appropriate to discuss first is how awesome it is to stop and think about what Christmas, the Incarnation, means to us. Growing up, we are taught that the true meaning of Christmas is that God sent His son to earth, where he would eventually die for our sins. We hear this from everyone (family, church, friends, etc.), so much that at times it becomes repetitive to the point of banal. Please do not take
banal in its normal negative connotation.
In no way am I saying that this fact is trivial or to be overlooked -- it is very important! Christ is sent to earth to die for our sins! But I also think there is something more to be reflected on and thought of when it comes to this.
Incarnation, in a theological sense, refers to Christ coming to earth and taking the form of a man. Inherent to this doctrine is a fact that deserves, dare I say demands, our deepest appreciation and awe for the Lord. The holiest of holies, the perfect Creator of Heaven and earth, the omniscient and omnipotent Savior, took the form of a man. He gave up his Heavenly throne and took the form of a lesser being -- humans. How loving, how selfless, how humble. While I'm sure many of you, myself included, have already reflected on this, I still feel that it is a point worth stating. Let us never forget it.
One of the other big ideas whirling 'round my brain lately has been the result of several hours of self-reflection. I have come to realize just how many interests and passions I have, so many subjects in which I have a strong and genuine interest. Almost five years ago, I felt my strongest interest was in Science, so I declared Biology as my major. This was not a mistake by any means. I love the subject, and I loved Taylor's Bio department. Moreover, I think I have found my niche at Ball State. I have enjoyed my first semester there, my assistantship duties included. I love Biology and Science; that's what I want to continue to study in grad school, and it's what I want to teach someday.
But I love other things, too. I would have definitely declared a minor in general studies in college, until I discovered that no such minor existed. I therefore decided to take full advantage of Taylor's general education program and live vicariously through my gen ed classes -- I enjoyed almost all of them. I have spent the last few months trying to devise a way to continue pursuing my non-science interests. I have listened to and written reviews of music, I have read books on theology, and I have tried to write as much as I can to satiate both my desire to write and my passion for English. This very blog, in fact, is one of those efforts. I even read a book on how to write non-fiction.
At this point, I have realized that God has given me copious interests, and I should embrace them and use them. But how? I think English is my second passion, just behind Science. Music is probably my third, followed by theology and philosophy. If I could, I think I would try to study all of these at the university level. But real life and a vocation call my name. I cannot be a student in the classroom forever.
After considerable pondering and prayer, I think I have arrived at a possible solution -- I keep doing what I'm doing now. I finish grad school with a doctorate in Biology, I become a Biology professor, and I pursue my extra-science interests on the side. This seems to be a viable life plan, and one I'm excited about! You may be thinking to what extent or even how I will pursue my extra-science activities. My solution: I will write a book! Easier said than done, of course.
But honestly, what a great way to fulfill my desire to write. The next question I face is what the topic of this book should be. Considering that I probably won't even start this book until after grad school (which is still over four years away), the choice of topic seems to not be a pressing issue at the time. My initial thoughts are that I should just write about my other interests, but we shall see. I think if I had to choose a topic for this book right now, I would end up writing a series of treatises on different topics, an exposition on various parts of this wondrous lifestyle. And I would call the book: Treatise on Life. No, I don't know what I would call it. What I do know is that given my strong interest in English, it would surely behoove me to write. And given my passion for science, I am certain that science will be a topic of this future book.
These are my thoughts so far. I think I am officially making "book writing" one of the items on my bucket list. It's not like I will write this anytime soon given the business of school and how long it takes me to express my thoughts in words. I have spent about 90 minutes on this blog post alone, but thank you for reading it. Who knows, this post -- a not-so-brief attempt to coalesce all my recent thoughts -- may end up being the introduction to this future book. And if this book does take the form I am thinking -- expositions on various topics -- it would be not unlike a blog, separated into different posts.
Any thoughts or suggestions are welcome. Blessings to you all.
Ben
