Despising none: Joe Ball

The Beloit College Mindset List for the Class of 2013

The Beloit College Mindset List for the Class of 2013

   Most students entering college for the first time this fall were born in 1991.

1. For these students, Martha Graham, Pan American Airways, Michael Landon, Dr. Seuss, Miles Davis, The Dallas Times Herald, Gene Roddenberry, and Freddie Mercury have always been dead.
2. Dan Rostenkowski, Jack Kevorkian, and Mike Tyson have always been felons.
3. The Green Giant has always been Shrek, not the big guy picking vegetables.
4. They have never used a card catalog to find a book.
5. Margaret Thatcher has always been a former prime minister.
6. Salsa has always outsold ketchup.
7. Earvin "Magic" Johnson has always been HIV-positive.
8. Tattoos have always been very chic and highly visible.
9. They have been preparing for the arrival of HDTV all their lives.
10. Rap music has always been main stream.
11. Chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream has always been a flavor choice.
12. Someone has always been building something taller than the Willis (née Sears) Tower in Chicago.
13. The KGB has never officially existed.
14. Text has always been hyper.
15. They never saw the “Scud Stud” (but there have always been electromagnetic stud finders.)
16. Babies have always had a Social Security Number.
17. They have never had to “shake down” an oral thermometer.
18. Bungee jumping has always been socially acceptable.
19. They have never understood the meaning of R.S.V.P.
20. American students have always lived anxiously with high-stakes educational testing.
21. Except for the present incumbent, the President has never inhaled.
22. State abbreviations in addresses have never had periods.
23. The European Union has always existed.
24. McDonald's has always been serving Happy Meals in China.
25. Condoms have always been advertised on television.
26. Cable television systems have always offered telephone service and vice versa.
27. Christopher Columbus has always been getting a bad rap.
28. The American health care system has always been in critical condition.
29. Bobby Cox has always managed the Atlanta Braves.
30. Desperate smokers have always been able to turn to Nicoderm skin patches.
31. There has always been a Cartoon Network.
32. The nation’s key economic indicator has always been the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
33. Their folks could always reach for a Zoloft.
34. They have always been able to read books on an electronic screen.
35. Women have always outnumbered men in college.
36. We have always watched wars, coups, and police arrests unfold on television in real time.
37. Amateur radio operators have never needed to know Morse code.
38. Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Latvia, Georgia, Lithuania, and Estonia have always been independent nations.
39. It's always been official: President Zachary Taylor did not die of arsenic poisoning.
40. Madonna’s perspective on Sex has always been well documented.
41. Phil Jackson has always been coaching championship basketball.
42. Ozzy Osbourne has always been coming back.
43. Kevin Costner has always been Dancing with Wolves, especially on cable.
44. There have always been flat screen televisions.
45. They have always eaten Berry Berry Kix.
46. Disney’s Fantasia has always been available on video, and It’s a Wonderful Life has always been on Moscow television.
47. Smokers have never been promoted as an economic force that deserves respect.
48. Elite American colleges have never been able to fix the price of tuition.
49. Nobody has been able to make a deposit in the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI).
50. Everyone has always known what the evening news was before the Evening News came on.
51. Britney Spears has always been heard on classic rock stations.
52. They have never been Saved by the Bell
53. Someone has always been asking: “Was Iraq worth a war?”
54. Most communities have always had a mega-church.
55. Natalie Cole has always been singing with her father.
56. The status of gays in the military has always been a topic of political debate.
57. Elizabeth Taylor has always reeked of White Diamonds.
58. There has always been a Planet Hollywood.
59. For one reason or another, California’s future has always been in doubt.
60. Agent Starling has always feared the Silence of the Lambs.
61. “Womyn” and “waitperson” have always been in the dictionary.
62. Members of Congress have always had to keep their checkbooks balanced since the closing of the House Bank.
63. There has always been a computer in the Oval Office.
64. CDs have never been sold in cardboard packaging.
65. Avon has always been “calling” in a catalog.
66. NATO has always been looking for a role.
67. Two Koreas have always been members of the UN.
68. Official racial classifications in South Africa have always been outlawed.
69. The NBC Today Show has always been seen on weekends.
70. Vice presidents of the United States have always had real power.
71. Conflict in Northern Ireland has always been slowly winding down.
72. Migration of once independent media like radio, TV, videos and compact discs to the computer has never amazed them.
73. Nobody has ever responded to “Help, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.”
74. Congress could never give itself a mid-term raise.
75. There has always been blue Jell-O.

 1 Comments posted by: Joe Ball on August 17th, 2010

Being someone’s somebody different

On the way into work last week I heard an interview with current University of Louisville head basketball coach Rick Pitino.  And as hard as it is to admit as a Kentucky Wildcat fan some of what he said made sense and got me to thinking.  So at risk of someone coming and asking for my Big Blue fan card, here I go.

When asked about one of his players turning pro, against his advice, Coach Pitino said: “It’s the strangest thing, and as a parent I can tell you this. And dealing with other parents who have had children, the one thing is, you’ll take a father, a Jerry West an Oscar Robertson, you’ll sometime meet people of that stature, who’ll say to me, coach will you do me a favor. Can you speak to my son, and give him a little guidance; he’s not listening to me.  Well you’re Jerry West, you’re Oscar Robertson, not just singling those two out, and there have been others, ‘If they’re not going to listen to you, why are they going to listen to me’. It’s the same way in the game of life.  I was always trying to get my oldest in shape when he was young, I’d say why don’t we do this or why don’t we do that, no dad I’m not going to do it, then all of a sudden, he met Short Brown our strength coach or Rock Oliver, and he said oh, I’m definitely going to do it. I said, I’ve been trying to get you to do it for years Michael and you wouldn’t listen to me. And he said oh no, but the strength coach told me to do it. So it’s often it happens in this game of life, who people listen to isn’t necessarily the person with the most wisdom, but the person that is somebody different in their life.”

And that is the phrase that hit home: “who people listen to isn’t necessarily the person with the most wisdom, but the person that is somebody different in their life”. So it got me to thinking about the somebodies different in my life.  And maybe that has more to do with the fact that two of them passed away this past month than with what Coach Pitino said.

One of them I never met.  Dana Key was the lead singer and guitarist for the Christian Band DeGarmo & Key.  Their rich lyrics that were spiritually challenging and their musical style that spoke my heart language provided for me endless hours of soul searching as to what I was to be as a Christian young man.  Their call to not be a “Casual Christian” and a myriad of other songs challenged me in my faith and drew me to scripture. 

The other was Jabe Cravens.  Jabe and his wife Alohana were youth sponsors at Little Flock.  He was a man’s man, a pipe fitter by trade that couldn’t wear a long sleeve shirt because his arms were too big for the sleeves.  Two of their three sons, Butch and Mike were older than me, their youngest Todd was younger.  Jabe had a zest for life, which showed every day. From the softball field to youth events at their house, he loved life and he loved us students.

As a youth minister, I have had the chance to be the somebody different in the lives of students. As a parent I have had the privilege of seeing other adults be the somebody different in the lives of my kids. I have watched my dad, who has been scoutmaster of Boy Scout Troop 20 for over 40 ye ars be that somebody different in the lives of countless young men. The church and our communities are full of teenagers that need somebody different to speak into their lives.

Let us do our part as a church to facilitate putting men and women of integrity in the lives of our students, men and women who maybe can be that “somebody different” in their lives.                       

 0 Comments posted by: Joe Ball on July 13th, 2010

Teens experiencing FaceBook Fatigue

This was posted last week at mashable.com.  A teen media site:

 1 Comments posted by: Joe Ball on July 6th, 2010

Lifelong Learners

For the past few weeks it seems that every week is a report of another graduation. From preschool to PhD’s everyone seems to be graduating.  In youth ministry we tend to focus on the high school graduates, and rightfully so, after all they are our “kids”.  But some of the graduates from Southern Seminary this year that got me thinking about education in a whole new light.  Two of these men are lifelong learners who were not satisfied with the knowledge they all ready had.

The first was, Steve Coleman, the Minister of Students at First Baptist Church in Richmond. As I watched Steve and that chest length goatee walk across the stage, I thought of the sacrifices he and Sula made so he could go back to school. When asked about what made him decide to go back, Steve said, “as a lifelong learner,” having “read books on youth ministry, culture, and studies on scriptures.” And “being a veteran youth worker, there was very little that I haven't dealt with over the years. However, as I read about many things, I realized that I knew much of these subject matters but felt I may be missing something in the biblical texts and studies.”

Coleman continued, “I wasn't sure that I could do school and still be involved in ministry, home, and all the other activities that I was involved in but I tried it to see. My first class was on Monday morning at 8am in Louisville, a 3 hour drive away and I lost an hour! I had not gone to school in over 25 years! I wasn't sure I could do it. I was afraid and not sure if I could pull it off. My wife was so supportive and just knew that I could do it. She helped me in so many ways. There were things around the house that I normally did and she did it in my place. The sacrifices that she made while I was reading, studying, writing or researching were priceless. When I was down, unsure, and wanting to throw in the towel, she was the one that came along side to help get me back on track. I am not sure that I could have done it without her!~ Once the first semester was over and I had read lots of books, written several papers, taken mid-terms and final exams I had my first grade report on the screen and I had passed both classes. I was on my way.”

The second was Nick Stamps, Associate Pastor at Post Oak Baptist in Russellville. When asked about his experience Stamps said, “my first inclination was that I was “out of my mind” to think that a guy in his late thirties (38), with a wife and three daughters, and a full-time ministry position could even think about going back to school.  I mean, it had been over 16 years since I had even had to take notes, much more take a test in a classroom setting”.  

But Stamps continued, “Throughout this whole process my wife and our three girls have been absolutely incredible.  They have been the ones who have sacrificed the most, but also been the most supportive and unbelievably understanding.  I am so thankful for them.  There were many, many times that I just wanted to give up and quit, but Julia was always there to encourage me, support me, love me, and yes even check the grammar of most all of the papers I wrote.  She has truly been my “help mate and I thank God for bringing such an incredible lady into my life.”

Stamps concluded, “While attending, I was so blessed to walk through that experience with five other guys who have become some of my dearest and closest friends.  We actually called ourselves the “Seminary Six,” and it has been such a blessing and honor to travel this road with them.  So, if I could encourage anyone considering seminary or additional education I would tell them to fi nd a friend to walk with them, make friends while there (some o f the best friends you will ever find), and don&r squo;t travel this road alone.”

Congratulations you two.  You are trailblazers. May your tribe increase.

 0 Comments posted by: Joe Ball on June 14th, 2010

R.I.P. Dana Key

Somewhere about 1980 I went to see Amy Grant in concert at I think Louisville Gardens.  She was the hottest thing in Contemporary Christian Music  at the time.  She was on the tour where  “Amy Grant, In Concert, Vol . 1 (Live)” was recorded. While that concert was amazing it was there that I was exposed to DeGarmo & Key.  They were her backup band for the tour and the recording. And that exposure to Christian Rock Music and particularly that band changed this guy forever.

Other than scripture, and at time I am ashamed to admit even more so, nothing else had a greater effective on my spiritual formation than the music of DeGarmo & Key.  The great lyrics in a musical style that was mine. I went out immediately and bought the LP “This Ain’t Hollywood”, and I was hooked for life.

Their double album “No Turning Back Live” I wore the groves out of listening to over and over and over.  Songs like "Long Distance Runner” and “Jericho” rocked out and then when Dana spoke the truth of scripture as it related to the story of Peter walking on the water with Jesus it hit home. That story lead up to their rendition of “I have decided to follow Jesus”. That song became for me that go to song I had to listen to when this Christian walk got to tough.  I would go back, pop the needle onto that track and listen over and over. I still do when I can get the record player to actually play.

I counted it an honor to be a part of the followers of a Christian Band that was refused airplay on MTV because their content was too controversial.  (The song 666 was band from MTV).

So when I read the news today that Dana Key passed away last night, I was taken aback.  Part of my childhood is gone, no hope for a reunion tour, no chance for any new music.

R.I.P. Dana Key you influenced and entire generation with great lyrics and music that spoke the language of our hearts.

 0 Comments posted by: Joe Ball on June 7th, 2010