100th post (part II)

Here’s the other half of the 100 things I’m thankful for at Biola.

Click here for part I!

51. The Physical Campus

Biola as a place is really pretty. There’s green grass all around and tons of healthy plants, which helps in appearances. What really makes our campus beautiful is the architecture. The buildings are unified by all having red brick in them somewhere (except possibly Calvary Chapel which wasn’t really built by Biola). The red brick gives the campus an east coast feeling in a southern California area. That’s why they filled the Hallmark movie The Class here. The campus is fresh and green, a relief from the dry brown of the areas around us. Biola is always abuzz with crews cleaning, organizing, and maintaining the campus.

Another thing that makes the campus pretty is the lights. The library is a lighthouse that is the tallest building on campus. The new Talbot building has windows with God’s Word on them that are always shining. There are Christmas lights on trees and carnival type lights strung between Emerson and Horton, which are now being placed other places around campus. Biola is a pretty place.

52. Bible Minor

Ok, so I’m a Bible major that doesn’t get to take the normal Bible classes that everyone else takes, so why am I thankful for this> Because it builds community. People are studying God’s Word all the time here and thus conversations about God occur on a regular basis. I may not have these classes, but I feel like I’ve taken them. People have to write out their own creeds about what they believe in Theo II with Thoennes (I’m kinda shooting in the dark about which class). People talk about Jung, Talley, Thoennes, Lister, Oaks, and all the other professors that I may never have, but I know that it is contributing to the community here. Without the Bible minor we become an institution with a faith base, which isn’t bad, instead of the Bible Institute Of Los Angeles. Granted, we aren’t even in Los Angeles, but we’re close and you get the point. Without the Bible major a person could easily go through college without even taking one Bible class. Now, I’m not saying you’re a bad Christian if you don’t take Bible classes or anything like that, no, what I am saying is that it has a profound effect upon the community. People have to study the Bible together in a non legalistic way and this fosters community, with each other and God. That’s why I like the Bible minor.

53. Interterm

Every year we get all of January off, unless you take interterm classes. Either way it’s a win. An extra month at home or hanging out with friends can be well spent. If we didn’t have it i would probably be on my way back already. Instead I’m taking the time off to be home for a little longer. However, there are times when you need to take some extra units, and that’s where interterm comes in. People taking interterm usually only take one class and have the rest of the time to hang out. Yes, there is a lot of homework, but there aren’t other responsibilities. No chapel, no floor events, no meetings, no other classes, just one thing to worry about. I got to take interterm last year and it was great. You get the campus to yourself and you get to bond with your friends there. I watched a few seasons of Fringe till I got caught up and then started watching it live with a bunch of my friends. I recommend that everyone take atleast one interterm at Biola.

54. My Torrey Books

We read through the great books of western thought in Torrey. Each book, whether we agree or not with its ideas, has shaped the world and the way we think. I’ve made it my goal to keep each and every one of my Torrey books, and I’ve been successful so far. Each book brings back different memories: sitting next to somebody in class, staying up till 4am in the SUB, discussing with my mentor, trying to explain the ideas in the book to my other friends, writing papers, and more.

At the end of the semester I move my books, either to my home in Washington or down here in California somewhere. The roughly 76 books (including plays, excluding Bible) are filling multiple shelves, but I’ll hang on to all of them. Each of them has a special place in my life as they’ve played a huge part in my college life. Some people never even open their textbooks for their classes. I get to keep and cherish them. That’s the program that I’m in. That’s what I read.

55. Community Standards

Yes, I am thankful that we have community standards, also known as contract. As Sarah related to us, “it’s where we lay down our personal rights for the good of the community.” That’s what we do. We are on contract to not drink or smoke while we are enrolled in classes (there’s various other rules, but these are the most ‘shocking’). What does this do for our campus? It builds community, which is better than those things. Neither Biola nor myself are saying these things are bad in themselves (although smoking is bad for your health). Instead we recognize that as a campus we want to focus on building community. Yes, you can have community over drinks, but you can also have it over other types of drink. It is nice to be on a dry campus where you don’t have to worry about your neighbor having a wild drunken party next door to you or people making bad decisions under the influence. Now, I’m not saying that every party with alcohol results in this, rather the community standards eliminates this. It isn’t legalistic, but rather life giving. We have breaks where we can do those things, but we choose to lay down those rights while we are in community together at Biola. I am very thankful for this and I know so many others are too… I’m also afraid there are people who think we’re legalistic and we’re just stuck up and they might want to argue with me. Yeah, try leaving a comment (I’ll read it, don’t worry, and respond to it if you’re being rational). And while community standards aren’t for everyone at every school, I am glad that we have them here at Biola.

56. Career Development

Career development is probably one of the most underrated departments on campus. They are a free service to students seeking jobs. This includes connecting with businesses, helping students make resumes, preparing you for interviews, and more. Every student should go get there resume done at least once while they’re at Biola, and hopefully you’re able to go to them multiple times. They help with the fall SOS class and lead us through strengths and resume building. If you’re a student, check them out.

57. My Cousins

I hadn’t seen my cousins since my sister got married over 5 years ago. I hadn’t seen them until this year that is. Finally, I met up with my cousin Ashley and her friends at Disneyland. That started a series of us hanging out for the next several months (typically at Disneyland with her friends, who are super cool btw). Eventually she and David visited me at Biola (David doesn’t have a Disneyland pass). It’s been great hanging out with my cousin and I wish I had done so earlier in my college career. It’s sad that it took me a year and a half to final meet up with her (even if she does live 2 hours away). Sadly, her pass has expired, but that doesn’t mean that our friendship/ family blood has. Now we get to hang out with David more, which is a plus. I just need to make a trip down to see them sometime (they always drive out to see me, and I REALLY need to go see them. I saw Ashley once when I went to Austyn’s house but that’s it).

58. The La Mirada Park

I love the La Mirada Park. There’s two playgrounds: one for grounders and one for going crazy on (mind you, I haven’t gotten people to play grounders with me yet). The one with the crazy stuff on it is kinda dangerous. Everything spins: metal cages, poles, circles, bucket chairs, you name it. And there’s a three person bouncy chair thing. It’s crazy! La Mirada Park also hosts Splash, our very own water park! Ok, let’s be honest, no one actually goes there unless its the Splash event at the beginning of the year (and that’s mostly new students, SOS leaders, and tons of their friends, which just makes it a cool fest). Splash is a cool event and everyone should go (it’s only $5 and it comes with Chipotle!). The slides are cool, but it’s all about the lazy river. How many of your friends can you get to ride along with you and plog up the thing OR can you make a chain that extends all the way around? It’s really hard, even with everyone trying (I don’t think we ever made it. Anyways, the whole park is HUGE and has southern California’s largest disc golf course. Check it out, but watch out for the birds, ok?

59. Devon and Gio (the triad?)

Ok, these guys get their own section. I spent so much time with them, they deserve it. I’ve done SOS with Gio, MC with both of them, and Devon is in Torrey. We would spend hours together, hanging out, talking about whatever. Late night runs to CVS and Walmart were almost a biweekly tradition (I felt like something was wrong if we didn’t go). I’ve spent so many hours with these guys it rivals my Torrey group (Torrey WAS 9 hours a week for awhile, but really consistent). We did everything together, from Singspo to Masquerade (even if I left early). These two are some of my best friends. Sometimes we would add an honorary 4th to our group to hang out with us for a few weeks (Kyle was the normal one). Sadly, Devon was unable to return to Biola this semester.

Gio and I were bereft of our friend, so we got a temporary friend Emily to fill in for her………. JUST KIDDING! No one can be replaced and no one can be a replacement. Emily just became the third in our group (think Three’s Company with the blond girl changing). Emily is CRAZY and a good friend. We’ve spent hours in the caf together and the three of us are applying to be SOS leaders this next year! It’s going to be crazy if we all get on staff, so if you’re a perspective student get ready to be welcomed to Biola University!

60. Transformation

Look, a nugget of spiritual goodness! But really, God has used Biola to shape my life. Early on in my Biola career I wrote a post on prayer. This year I discovered a treasure at Biola, Torrey’s book How to Pray. Both experiences have changed my life, and blogging has helped me remember them (I would have forgotten the first one if I had not blogged about it). I have filled an entire notebook of sermon notes and personal reminders of God’s faithfulness and have started on another one. I can look back and see God’s faithfulness and how much he has brought me through. No, it hasn’t been easy all the time, but it has been worth it.

One thing I’ve noticed, or at least been told, is that every pastor has their own pet topic. Pastor Jan from Northshore always talked about the Kingdom Message, Johnathan talks about how “our God is the God who creates and recreates for His glory and our good” (he has other pet things too, but this is one phrase he really drives home), DBC likes to talk about having zeal for the Lord. I’ve realized that I’ve begun to find mine and, much to the displeasure of some of my classmates, it does stem from the tripartite soul. I wrote about it for one of my Torrey papers and I alluded to it in one of my posts. It’s the idea that we have four parts: physical, emotional, rational, and spiritual. My paper dived into the depths of how these are talked about in the Bible and how they work together. I do need to do more research before I preach hard core to students, but I think it is important to recognize these four areas and how we relate to one another and God through them. This seems to be my pet topic because I almost always come back to thinking in terms of it (usually in a joking manner, but sometimes seriously).

I’ve also had a transformation in my leadership and communication skills. I feel that I’ve improved in communicating to others, holding my own in conversations. I remember in the past thinking “how can anyone have a one on one with me? I’m not that interesting and I don’t know what to talk about.” Now I have more confidence in myself (I wan’t helpless before, I just thought that sometimes) and I can carry myself well. This has helped me so much in ministry as I look further into what God has called me to do.

The past year and a half I haven’t been involved in a formal youth ministry except summer camp, which focused on kids a little younger than I want to work with. Don’t get me wrong, I loved it and I grew a lot through that experience and I am so glad that I was able to do it. However, I really want to work with junior highers (which I got to for two weeks and I loved it) and high schoolers (the Elites were high schoolers, but I wasn’t a leader really over them). This past week I’ve finally gotten to work with high schoolers and my pastoral heart has been rekindled (like a Kindle Fire). I worked with Ben and Northshore’s New Year’s party, and it was crazy. I got to drive around Drew, Paul, and their two friends all around, and I loved it. My desire to do ministry was in full strength and I felt close to God in doing my role. Now, was I talking about Jesus and His redemption on the cross right then? No, I was living the Gospel. I would love to talk to them about God and theology, that’s one of my deepest desires, but instead I got the chance to act it out and see the need.

Today I had the opportunity to talk to high school students about their futures, specifically college. It was good to be able to pass on the practical wisdom that I’ve learned onto others, even if my experience was different than theirs. I got to talk about coming into college without a declared major, then I led a session about Business, then I went back to choosing a major. I didn’t have a ton of one on one conversations with people, but the ones I did encouraged me. One junior honors student asked me about which paper topic he should write on for his junior research paper (the worst paper in high school). I was able to ask some questions and give him some advice. I didn’t even know him, but the fact that I can help out any high school student and that they would ask for my advice encourages me. I also got pointed questions during the seminars I helped lead since I am a double major. I got questions such as “how do you balance a double major?”, “what is a double major?”, and “why those two majors?”. I was blessed to be able to give some wisdom to these high school students and I was encouraged by my God given ability to do so. This is why I’m double majoring, so I can minister to high school students. Oh, and I guess that helped me make my decision. I think I want to do high school ministry. That’s a huge blessing to know.

61. Friends in majors

I am so glad I have friends in my majors. Business isn’t easy and you need friends to get you through. Group projects happen all the time and it’s nice to be with people you know. From people like Amy and Elisabeth to Nick, David, Alisha, and Danielle, I am so blessed to have so many friends in business. It’s also good to have upperclassmen in the major, like Taylor, Nate, and John. They have all helped in my decisions for which class to take and when.

But Business isn’t my only major. I’m also majoring in Bible, even if I am only taking Greek, though ONLY is a bad word. Greek is a tough class! We all bond in it through struggling to understand the language. Thankfully I have friends like Nick, Lindsay, Benji, Sarah, Lydia, John, and others to encourage me through it. How else am I supposed to know what a reflexive genitive in apposition that’s masculine referring to the previous noun of the same declension because there’s no article supposed to mean?

62. Costumes

Biola has given me a deeper appreciation for costumes. While I was a kid I would never dress up for crazy things except school spirit days, but those outfits were nothing compared to what I do at Biola. I have an entire drawer devoted costumes that I’ve used or could possibly use. From a full body superman suit to an old grandpa outfit, I have it all. This year at nation ball we dressed up as nurses. We sent out the other floors and waited for the first man to go down. As soon as he did they blew a conch shell and all of GUS came out on the floor in scrubs with clipboards, defibrillators, and other medical equipment. I must say, we put the nursing majors to shame. None of them even came down to help the wounded! Anyways, we lost (of course) but we had fun because we dressed up and EVERYONE loved us. This is just another thing that makes Biola fun. We may look ridiculous, but as long as we go out there with confidence people will love us (though apparently not enough to not throw dodge balls at us).

63. Long friendships

I’ve been at Biola for 2 and 1/2 years and I’m still friends with some of the first people I met. My Torrey group was the first group I really met on campus, and we’re all still good friends. Derek was my SOS leader and Mat was in my group and we’re all really good friends. I can say the same thing for numerous people I’ve met at Biola, Sam, Nick Ca, Nick Ch, Ethan, etc.

The longest person I’ve know on campus is Greg. We go back to since we were little kids. We’ve worked together in youth group, always been in the same small group, been in SOS together, been on GUS together, and so much more. Now Greg is all grown up and Director of SOS. I know him and I know he is doing a good job. It’s an honor to call him my friend and to be called his friend.

Other long term friends include Cassie and Caleb. Cassie and I hung out a lot in high school, but she lives on lower campus, which is different socially. It’s not that there’s no community between upper and lower campus, it’s just that you have to make more of an effort to see people from the other side, and I feel that’s especially true of Hart that has its own deep rooted community. Caleb, however, lives in the same dorm as me. We didn’t hang out much in high school, but now we talk pretty frequently. He’s rooming with Sam, my old roommate, and it sounds like they’re getting along pretty well (there was a time where Sam and I didn’t get along, but we got over that time and now we have a really good friendship).

It was good coming to Biola knowing some people instead of being tossed into this new world without any friends. Even if I didn’t hang out with the people I knew at first, at least I knew they were there and almost literally down the hall.

64. Sambica True, this didn’t happen at Biola, but it did happen during this blog. This past summer I worked at Sambica. I did one week of training then I worked for 5 weeks as a counselor. It took me a few days to get comfortable because a lot of people were returners, but I soon found myself surrounded by friends and feeling super comfortable. I got to work with some middle schoolers and some elementary kids ranging from 2nd graders to 8th graders. I learned a lot that summer and I grew a ton. It was good for me to get back into ministry and lead some kids to the Lord (including a Hindu kid, PTL!). I made some crazy councilor friends and I am so glad I was able to go there.

65.Pictures

Pictures tell stories and capture memories. I love looking back at pictures and remembering fun times and the blessings that God has given me. I have some friends who are really into photography, and it’s cool to see their work. Pictures also associate themselves with story. As human beings living in time we are part of the grand story of creation. Really everything is part of this story. Every book written has a story of how it was written, a story of publishing, and the story of people reading it and their thoughts. Pictures play a part in the story too as we look back and remember those parts of our story in the present. Pictures are a powerful tool to aesthetically bring stories to life.

66. Spontaneous Adventures

Every once in awhile everyone needs to do something spontaneous. Whether it’s as simple as going to a movie on the fly like I did a few weeks ago with Evan and the floor, or driving out to San Diego for a few days. Spontaneity can be healthy and break up the mundane routine and remove the stress of planning (though having a regular routine and planning are good things). God can bless you in these sudden events, like how Austyn and I really became friends when we drove out to his house. Just a few weeks ago I had a meeting with the new logistics coordinators for missions conference. It was supposed to be a half hour meeting but it went for three hours because we spontaneously went to Yum Yums. These little trips help make college life memorable.

67. Awkward Moments

I was famous for these at Sambica. Awkwardness can be really uncomfortable, unless you know how to use it for humor (that’s what I do). Over summer I got the nickname “Awkward Oakley” because I asked a kid an awkward question (I asked him if he liked the worship leader after asking him if he liked camp.He turned around and told me that was an awkward question). Awkward moments happen to everyone, and sometimes they make really good stories, like this one with Princess Aurora at Disneyland. I’m glad I have friends around me who notice the funny ones and bring them up or act awkward so I can know what not to do anymore. Awkward moments help make us who we are.

68. Being near LA

I love being near LA! There’s so much to do and so much to see. LA isn’t as pretty as Seattle and doesn’t have an impressive skyline, but there’s tons of stuff to do. There’s secret cafe’s in hidden alleys, TV spots, cool restaurants, and so much more. One day we got free tickets to see Taylor Swift live in downtown Hollywood. She was shooting her Thanksgiving special that showed last year. A group of us went down and waited for hours to get to our spots because the line was so long. The street was lined with thousands of people.Taylor was a few minutes late, but she came on top of a tour bus, full band and all. The camera swept over us, so I recorded the event a few months later and sure enough we could easily be seen. It was a long wait, but it’s one of those memories that I won’t forget. I’ve been to LA several other times with other friends. I’ve been with my Torrey group a few times, once or twice to the monthly art show with John and whoever goes with him, once with Missions Conference for a photo scavenger hunt, once with my sister, and a few other random times. It’s good to get off campus every once in awhile and go somewhere busy.

69. In-N-Out/ Yum Yum Donuts/ Late night food

College students are hungry people, and sometimes we need something late at night after dinner. This can be tough because some places close early, but late night restaurants are always available to solve that problem. In-N-Out is a classic place to go. They close at 1 or 2am, so you have plenty of time to go there late at night. It used to be tradition to go to Disneyland till it closed then stop by In-N-Out for dinner on the way back. If you’re not hungry for burgers or you just want something fast, Yum Yum Donuts is open 24/7! The late night guy is great and he loves Biola students. He’ll joke around with us and sometimes dance if no one else is ordering food. The donuts there are pretty good and fresh. The closest Yum Yum to campus is located on Valley View by Imperial. If those don’t work for you, there’s always Denny’s, Norm’s, or even Del Taco (which isn’t open 24/7 but they are open late). Late night food runs are great times for community and deep conversations. I went to Yum Yum with Liv, my friend and one of my first SOS students, one night and had some good conversation.

70. VBS

Yet another thing that didn’t happen at Biola, but during this blog. Two summers ago I got to work in VBS as a teacher (I also got to do it the year before). That year the theme was “Temple of the Lost Gems”. We studied five parables over the week and played games with the kids. I was one of the younger teachers and the only male one. Since I’ve worked with junior highers, I knew a few of the helpers so i got to hand pick my team. Last year I worked with Matt and Tyler O, but Matt lives in Ethiopia now so he wasn’t an option. Instead I chose one of his best friends Andrew (not as a second choice, but as someone I wanted to work with). I also asked for Tyler O again as well. My two other leaders were Tyler S (who’s like a little brother to me, and everyone loves him) and Naomi (I didn’t know her as well, but I knew she was good and she provided a calming spirit, which was much needed). We decked our room out with a temple around the whiteboard, a market look to the tables, fabric hanging from the walls and the ceilings, and a home made cave. The cave was probably the most impressive part of the room. It was covered in butcher paper inside and out. Kids would crawl in and head to the back where there was a lantern and the “Holy Grail”. Inside the grail were gems the kids would get if they said their memory versus. The kids loved the cave and it helped make the week special for them. By the end of the week a few kids came to Christ (PTL) and all of them had a blast learning about parables.

71. Premieres

Since I’ve been at Biola I’ve been to three premieres. While I could have gone to most of them while home in Washington, it’s special to go out and see them with friends. The first premiere I went to was with Sam for Toy Story 1 & 2 in 3D. Sam thought it was going to be super packed, so we headed over a few hours early. When we got to the theater in Downtown Disney there was no line and we were the first people to buy tickets. We decided to look around the stores for awhile, but there’s only so much two male college freshmen can look at (I didn’t have a pass yet, so we couldn’t go in the parks). Eventually we decided to go in early and sit in the theater. We went in right as Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs was showing for the last time in 3D. It was amazing! We ended up seeing three movies in 3D for the price of one, and since we stayed to late the parking attendants were gone so we didn’t even have to pay for parking! My second premiere was the Lost Finale in downtown LA. I went with a group of girls, but they sat in the balcony while I got the 7th row from the front! They had some unimportant characters from the show there (one of the pilots, young Ben, Rose who never even watched the show). They were all arrogant, which was funny because no one even cared about them. Then Michael Emerson came out. He played Ben on the show and is one of the most humble actors I’ve seen. He was so great to the audience of Losties there and was humble about his role in the show, even though he was a huge character. Eventually the show started and it was great seeing it with hundreds of Lost fans. My third premierwas for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I. I went to the theater on Imperial and the line to get in went all the way around the building! I went with some of my friends from Torrey and we happened to find a gap in the line near the front so we took a seat there (good thing too because I had a ticket to the wrong theater room and would need to sneak into the same one as my friends). I hadn’t read the book, so to get us ready Kaleigh started reading it to us in her English accent (it’s funny because she just spent this past semester in England). The movie was great and I’m so glad I went.

72. That my parents can come down so often

I am so blessed to have parents that are able to come down so often. They literally come down almost every month or so (it helps that my sister goes to grad school here now). They’ve been able to come to the Christmas tree lighting the past two years and some other Biola events. They graduated 30 years before me and now they’re reinvesting in Biola. They take interest in my education and what I’m doing. They’ve even come to a Torrey session every year! I am so thankful and blessed to have parents like mine.

72. Friends who make good movies

I have a lot of film major friends and they make good movies. It’s fun guest starring in them or even being the main person. This past semester Emerson had a film festival. I guest starred the two that got first and second place and was mentioned in a third. Yeah, that’s really vain, but I’m thankful that I get to be in movies. I love helping my friends make them and seeing myself in something that’s put together really well (the credit goes to these film majors who have God given gifts, so ultimately God). I’ve had parts in other films, but its fun to see other students make good movies and watch them.

73. Torrey Community

The Torrey community is a special community on campus. For the most part, everyone knows each other in their year, either personally or at least their name. Now that I’m a junior, Torrey groups are getting mixed up and I’m having classes with other friends like Ryan L, AS President Janine M, Will H, and others (there were about 9 new people in my group this year and I’m good friends with many of them). A few years ago I got to go camping with some of the people in my house. We went up to Big Bear and read all of Dante’s Divine Comedy out loud. It was cool because Dante mentions stars at the beginning and end of each segment and we were able to look up at the night sky and see them there. We had fun reading, taking a short hike, looking at the stars, forming a wagon circle with our cars, and just hanging out. The Torrey community is made up of both students and faculty. Dr. Henderson brought his family with us as we went camping. He provided much needed insight and historical background to the reading experience and knew how to run the trip (along with Janine and Johnathan our coordinators for the trip). Torrey professors are really involved in our lives. I’ve been over to several of the professors houses for extra sessions or for coffee with other Torrey students. Torrey has events throughout the year including plays and concerts. It’s good to have a community for the honors students instead of breaking them up into separate classes and isolating them. We have to see more Torrey students at lectures too, so we have some sort of community no matter how involved you are in it.

74. Twitter

Hashtags, retweeting, trending topics. They’re all part of the social site called Twitter. Now before I go on, I know it sounds vain to have this on my list, but really I like Twitter. It’s fun to think of funny one liners or take pictures you can put up. I love tweeting during Biola events. At Punkin’ Pie this year I tweeted each act that came up and was the first one to post the winners, even beating the Chimes! But one of my favorite things to tweet about was #dtrweek.  Last February we had a series of chapels called DTR Week. It was full of good opportunities to tweet funny comments, and that’s what I like to do on Twitter. I also like tweeting more profound things, like quotes from R.A. Torrey or CS Lewis. Twitter gives you the flexibility to tweet a wide variety of things and see what other people are tweeting. I don’t get too wrapped up in Twitter, but it’s fun seeing the things other people post. If I could, I would like more things on Twitter than I do on FB. If you want to follow me on Twitter, my handle is @jrgowin.

75. My Senator

Chris is the Emerson Senator this year, and he’s been doing a great job. This year AS had its senators make weekly newsletters for their dorms. Chris jumped on the project and made the Emerson weekly filling it with AS info, jokes, riddles, inspiring verses, and a Gentleman of the week. Chris has a heart for Emerson and the men who live in it. He is dedicated to listening to the opinions of everyone in Emerson and connecting with various people. During the Christmas season he got AS funding to put on a door decorating contest for Emerson. The money went to seven prizes of a bucket of popcorn. Our floor had several entries and other floors got in the action too. Kevin, our RD, was the judge. There were a lot of good doors, but Luke and I lured him into our room with Christmas music, a yule log, and a reading of A Christmas Carol. Our efforts were rewarded as we won first place! Chris did a good job of organizing this dorm wide event and getting the word out so everyone had a chance to enter. But Chris is more than just a senator, he’s my friend. Chris and I hang out all the time in my room, talking about various things from TV shows to deep spiritual and emotional things. We’ve had multiple late night Walmart runs, yogurt land trips, and other adventures. Chris is a good friend and I am so thankful to be living on his floor.

76. The Christmas Tree Lighting

I’ve mentioned it several times, so I might as well write about it specifically. Every year Biola puts on a Christmas tree lighting ceremony. Biola alumni come from all over the world. We celebrate Christ as we sing Christmas carols, read scriptures, and hear stories about our various alumni. Every year we invite a special guest to flip the switch and light the tree. We’ve had the mayor of LA Mirada, Anna Bell Cook (President Clyde Cook’s widow), and this year we invited an elderly Biola couple who had a unique story. They had met at Biola some 60 years ago. The woman went back to her home country and got married while the man stayed in America got married. Eventually they both became widows. Somehow they met back up and the man almost immediately proposed to her upon her return to America. They had been married only a few months when they flipped the switch at Biola. If you’ve never been, you should try to come to it next year.

77. Bieber Fever

What? Why am I putting this on my list? Have I gone crazy or run out of things to write? Yeah, I probably have and probably did, but there’s some truth to this. Bieber became popular sometime during my freshman year at Biola. Over the years, when I would get really crazy, I would dress up like him and walk around the floor (as a joke). One or two of my friends calls me Biebs as a joke. I even played him in the SOS skit this year. The funniest thing about Biola and Bieber fever was the rumor that got spread around campus last year. During the spring semester people got ‘leaked’ information that his name was in the registrar. The hype was crazy. People were debating about if they wanted them here and what they would do if he came. Some people didn’t want him here while others believed it would bring much needed publicity to the campus. A few days later, after almost every one had heard of the rumor (though many didn’t believe it), the chimes exposed the rumor as a hoax started by four guys from heart. The Chimes was able to quell the rumor on campus, but the rumor was much bigger than the Chimes. As people went home from summer and told people they went to Biola friends would ask “Isn’t that were Justin Bieber’s going?”. I got asked that by one of my friends from Sambica who had no previous connection to Biola! That’s how fast rumors can spread. Of course he isn’t coming to Biola, and may not even be going to college, but it was fun anticipating a celebrity coming to Biola. Also, can we just acknowledge that I made a collage of myself compared to Biebs? I think that I’ve gone a little overboard.

78. My Soul Group: Sons of God

Over the past two years I’ve had the privilege of leading a small group of guys through Romans with Mat. There’s usually about 3 guys that come regularly, all of whom were roommates. Now they’re spread around campus and one is leading a soul group of his own. The other two are still coming regularly and another one has joined as well this semester. We’ve had some others come and go over the years, some of them coming pretty constantly. The group is pretty consistent and in the past two years there’s only been one or two weeks where no one has shown up without us knowing ahead of time. We’ve managed to only get through a chapter a semester. We go pretty in depth in each chapter of Romans. But that’s not all we talk about. Every semester we start by catching up on what’s going on in our lives. Sometimes on the regular weeks only one guy shows up so Mat and I have a two on one with them and have some really deep conversations. I am blessed every week that I get to meet with these guys and lead them through studying God’s Word.

79. Northshore

Again, not something that happens at Biola. Every time I come home I get to return to Northshore, my home church since before I was born. This is where the bulk of my friends at home go. I have endless memories hanging out with friends like Greg, Geoff, Mallory, Julia, Zack, Amanda, Samantha, and others at my house. We came over almost every week. In fact, when the crew leaders returned from summer last year Greg said his downer for the summer was finding out that I moved because my house had been a hangout place for us for years. That’s not bragging, that’s just stating the community that I’ve had with my friends at Northshore. Besides people my own age, it’s great coming back and seeing people older and younger than me. I love being welcomed by pastors like Johnathan, Ben, Andy, and others who still know me personally and know what I’m doing in college. Ben lets me help with the new year’s eve party every year when I ask, and this past year was great! There were hundreds of kids hanging out, so many that I had to drive a car of them around, which really brought me back into ministry. That was a fun night.

80.My.Biola and Biola Gmail

Over the past year or two Biola has updated its interior computer systems. We used to run off an old campus system called “portal” that we used to register for classes, look up the student directory, see grades, ect. It was a good system for when it was built by Biola’s IT, but it was getting dated. A few years ago Biola invested in a new enterprise system called Banner. This has everything from our finances to every class students have registered for in the past 100 years at Biola. We now use a program called my.biola to access our information. It’s clean, slick, and customized. They’re still developing the way we interact with it, bringing in students for focus groups to improve its usability. We’ve also improved out email capabilities. We used to run on a program called ‘first class’ with our own name ‘BUBBS’ (Biola Bulletin Board System). It was good for conferences and groups, but it only allowed you to store 20mb of emails. That isn’t very much and we would often have to go through and delete them. BUBBS was finally shut down all the way this past year as we switched over to Google Apps for Education. It gives us the usability of Gmail with some added applications. We’re able to use Google Calendar across departments like Chapel Programs and Torrey. It’s also nice to be able to type a person’s name in and find they’re email instantly. These new programs have helped communications all across campus.

81. Reunions

Every season comes with its set of reunions. Whether it’s coming home from school or returning for a new semester, I’m always reunited by old friends. Occasionally these reunions are few are far between. This is the case for some of my friends who don’t go to Biola anymore. Devon wasn’t able to come back to Biola this past semester and it was a long time before Gio and I saw her again. I’m still waiting to see Fernando (#82) who I haven’t seen since a few years ago. This past summer I got to see my friend Matt and his sister Amy at her wedding. I was so glad I was able to be in Washington while they were here so I could go to the wedding and see both of them. Matt goes to school in Kenya so he doesn’t come home very often. Amy goes to college in Texas and doesn’t come to Washington often since her family moved to Ethiopia. It may be another year or two before I see them again (unless Matt comes to Biola, but I have no idea what schools he’s looking at). Reunions are important events in our lives. In just a few days I will be reunited with my friends back at Biola while saying goodbye to my friends here in Washington.

82. Fernando

Fernando lived on my floor the first semester I was at Biola and helped me through my transition into college. He would come into Sam and my room almost every night and stay till the late hours of the night. Fern is full of wisdom and insight. He values people and their opinions and makes sure you aren’t too narrow minded. After that semester Fern left Biola and I’ve really only seen him once or twice since. I miss him and I am waiting to reunite with him and catch up on all that’s happened since I’ve been here.

83. Target

Target is probably one of my favorite stores. Ever since my fashion changed from Washitonian to Californian I have been buying tons of stuff there. Yeah, that sounds vain, but I never go by myself. Target is just another place for me to have community with friends. I’ve gone with people like Gio, Devon, and Emily and done some crazy stuff. Devon would always give me fashion advice telling me what color I should get and what shirts definitely don’t go with what I’m wearing (plaid and plaid don’t mix). Emily likes to go crazy in the aisles and draw attention to herself with her shenanigans (that’s a Washington word). Gio and I have some good memories in Target. We went to the Target in La Habra for my first Black Friday experience. The line to get in wrapped all the way around the building! It was insane, but it moved faster than lines in Disneyland, so we were in pretty fast. Once we got in we found our stuff and got in line… in the back of the store! It took half an hour to get to the front, but we saved some money and had an adventure. 

84. Safe trips home

As often as I go home, I pray for safety. God has given me safety every time, even if I was delayed. Last year I got delayed coming home for Thanksgiving. The three hour plane ride took 18 hours. After sleeping in the airport, getting transferred to Portland, and getting a layover, we finally got home. Read about the experience here.

85. CPCS

After graduating 2 and 1/2 years ago, I still remember the lessons I learned at CPCS. The school has its flaws, as any school does, but the education I gained there has continued to help me through my college experience. Teachers like Mrs. Raynor and Mr. Ian prepared me for classes I would face in the future. Mrs. Raynor grilled us on MLA formatting, and although I don’t use MLA in school, it taught me how to learn formatting and what to look for. More importantly she had me read great books that I’m now reading in Torrey. The advantage of having already read the books is inestimably. From reading the Iliad in Mrs. Cross’ class to Pride and Prejudice and A Tale of Two Cities in Mrs. Raynor’s, I am blessed to have read good books in high school. They also taught me how to write papers. Mr. Ian taught me how to understand math. This past summer I had to take a despondence business calculus class. That means I had to teach myself the work and send the lessons by mail without help from professors. Thankfully Mr. Ian taught me so well that I was able to remember how to do the problems and re-teach myself the ones I forgot. I got an A in the class thanks to him. Last week CPCS invited the alumni back to speak about college to high school students. I was so honored to talk about selecting majors and the Business major. It was nice seeing how CPC is developing and investing in both students and alumni. Most of the students were pretty attentive, but some were uninterested (understandably since some were freshmen with college a long ways off) and it was enough to have their respect. It was great being back though and passing on practical wisdom with my fellow alumni to prospective students.

86. Beaches

I am not a beach person. Let me start with that. BUT I do like the feel of sand under my feet and I can enjoy hanging out at the beach. Each year we go for SOS a few times and I like hanging out by the ocean. It’s one thing California is famous for. This past year I was in charge of reserving the beaches for the SOS event, so I had to go early. Well, I may or may not have put on enough sunscreen. My face was the same color as my shirt by the end of the day. When I was yelling things out people asked me if I was ok because they couldn’t tell if I was angry (though I didn’t realize that till a few weeks later). So, if you love the beach or you’re going to it anytime ever, wear sunblock!

87. Seattle

The Emerald City. Seattle is one of the prettiest cities around, and I had to go to LA to figure that out. The beach cities in California are pretty, but Seattle is a tough contender. It has a unique skyline that fills up the sky with beautiful lights (unlike LA’s). There’s actually mountains and the ability to see them in Seattle, whereas it’s rare to see mountains in California unless there’s an unusual level of visibility. As I get older, I’ve developed a deeper appreciation of the city. I like going downtown and exploring. Things like Pike Place and the Seattle Art Museum interest me. I really want to explore for little bookstores, my newest thing to do. There’s a few in Redmond and I expect that there are plenty in Seattle. I also want to find all the secret coffee shops that started the whole hipster movement. I’ve been told that hipsterism found its beginning in Seattle and that’s where all the behind-a-corridor-up-the-alley-in-the-attic-of-the-back-shop coffee houses are located. I am thankful for my home city and all it’s beauty.

88. Inside Jokes

Everyone has them. They help break the ice for new friendships, perpetuate old ones, and add fun to deep ones. Inside jokes and jokes in general are key to getting through the day. I have jokes with tons of different people (though sometimes I think they’re jokes and the other person forgets and thinks I’m being dumb). Inside jokes are a way I relate to people. For example, John hates hipsters, so I pretend to be one. Sarah and Derek have their quirks that I always joke about. Luke can fall asleep anywhere and sometimes talks in his sleep, which makes great jokes. These may be bad in some cultures, yes, but in the culture I live in it’s a form of bonding. Jokes, as long as they have boundaries and don’t tear down, and helpful and bring joy and laughter.

89. Facebook/ Other Social Media

Again, this sounds vain, but social media IS something to be thankful for. Facebook can be used for good. People can post pictures on it and share memories, connect with friends, or set up events. Facebook is a tool to help maintain relationships. Note that I say “help maintain” as friendships need real in person interaction, but sometimes this isn’t possible for a long period of time. Sometimes someone is far away at college or doing a study abroad or even a missions trip. Blogs, Facebook, Google+, they all help connect us with them while they’re gone and we can respond to them. We are invited to look through a window into their life where they are now. It’s how engagements are announced publicly (no one is going to tell their best friend they’re engaged over Facebook, but it’s for the multitudes of other friends so that they can find out from you first). God does use social media to connect people. If we think it’s evil then we need to claim it for Christ who gave man the ability to create and use it. I don’t mean claim it in the sense of the Crusades, but in a sense of dedicating it to God. Not every post has to be a theological or spiritual thing, but you should at least talk about it. Another way to reclaim it is in how you use social media. Are you bringing others down or posting things you shouldn’t? Rather we should consistently be posting things we don’t have to be ashamed about. Don’t get in arguments online. They’re funny to read because the people commenting look childish. Instead use grace when using Facebook (you could even call it Gracebook).

90. Worship at Biola

Biola has good worship. Our worship teams aren’t just slapped together with people that change out every week, but dedicated and legit. They usually stay around for a few years, leading several chapels each semester. This really makes worship good. Now before you jump me and say that we shouldn’t worry about the music, think about it. It’s hard to worship when the leader’s doing something weird. We’ve all experienced worship leaders who do something funny, and really it can be a distraction. Worship leaders are there to lead you into worship. God gave gifts of leadership to certain people. Even in the Old Testament He anointed certain leaders for worship. Now that doesn’t mean our focus should be on the worship leader, for again, they wouldn’t be doing their job. But Biola has good worship leaders who play well and know their place as musicians leading us to worship God. And they do a good job of that. That’s why Singspo, the all worship chapel on Sunday nights, is one of the biggest chapels of the week. People truly worship God at Biola and it’s good to be able to do it with my friends. I am truly thankful for the worship we have here at Biola.

91. RD’s

Since I’ve been in Emerson I’ve had two RD’s, Kyle and Kevin. Kyle was the Emerson RD for my first two years I lived there. He was active in putting together events like Mount Emerson, Emerson’s Got Talent, and more. This year he got married and moved in with his wife, an RD in Horton. That’s when we got Kevin. Kevin is married to the only woman who’s allowed to live in Emerson, Lindsay. They have been great this past year (even with us walking up the stairs right above them every day). They’ve made food for us, put together events, and been involved in the life of us residents. I’ll admit, I’ve never really spent to the time to get to know my RD’s. I just know a lot of people and it’s hard to get to know everyone. I am always glad to see them and know that I am known. They have always been intentional with the men of Emerson, and I’m glad they’re here. I know the community is better because of their service.

92. That Biola is an “Up and Coming” University

Biola has been listed as an “up and coming” university two years in a row by U.S. News & World Report. This list considers different schools including Harvard, Stanford, and other household names. The “up and coming” category represents “institutions that have recently implemented the most promising and innovative changes in the areas of academics, faculty, student life, campus or facilities, according to the rankings guide” (Biola Now Article). Biola is being recognized on a national scale! This isn’t only good for Biola as an institution trying to draw attention to itself, but for us as students as well. Biola is actively improving our college experience through making innovative changes to the university. There are focus groups for SOS and My.Biola, evaluations for every class and every professor, building projects being conducted constantly, a staff and faculty dedicated to higher education, and a God who has been faithful to us as we have continued to grow for over 100 years. Biola University is an truly “up and coming” institution.

93. Alone Time

I may seem like I’m always around people (I hardly write about EVERYTHING I do), but somewhere in the middle of it all I find some down time. I am an introvert, so it’s good for me to be by myself every once in awhile. I’m thankful that I’m able to do this. While the floor can be busy and crowded, I can almost always escape to my room, close the door, and have some peace. Luke is really good about respecting my space when I need to be alone (another reason he’s a really good roommate). Alone time gives me the space to rest, de-stress, blog (which I haven’t done so much of lately), talk to God, zone out, whatever. This is the time that keeps me relatively sane. Though my room is the most frequent place I go, I also find alone time in my car, library, prayer chapel, or secret places on campus. As I write this blog I’m experiencing alone time at my house as my parents sleep. Alone time. Find some.

94. My Double Major

I am thankful to be double majoring in Bible and Business. I’ve gotten several comments on it. People occasionally ask me if I want to be a Bible salesmen, which is sometimes funny. When I first started school I would only say my majors and people would ask “What’s the Bible for?” I would proceed to tell them that God has called me to be a youth pastor. They then follow up with “Then why the Business major?” Practicality. I love both of my majors for so many reasons. Whenever I walk out of my Business classes I feel empowered, like I could take on the world because I do well in them. Theology is so much fun for me that I’m looking forward to taking my Bible major classes.

There is one inspiration for my double major that I don’t talk about very much. It’s related to my grandma. When I was growing up my grandma used her house to host missionaries from overseas that didn’t have homes in America. There was plenty of room for them to comfortably live and be ministered to by my grandma. Since then my grandma has moved into a retirement center, so she can’t do that anymore, but her ministry affected me. When I grow up I want to be able to use my house for ministry. I want students and friends to be able to come over and study God’s Word or have a sort of place of refuge. I don’t know exactly what it’ll look like, much less if my wife will approve. But this ministry is a part of my double major. It gives me the opportunity to minister to kids through housing them and feeding them. The other day my dad told me a few stories about when he was a youth pastor. He was able to take kids out boating and feed them dinner because he was a pastor and businessman. I want to be able to do both, I just don’t know what it’ll look like yet.

95. Staff and Faculty

From Deans of students to the custodian that keep our bathrooms from being bio-hazard zones, Biola has a dedicated staff and faculty that makes sure the campus runs smoothly and that we as students are nurtured and taken care of. I personally know the Dean of Students Danny P and the Assistant Dean of Students Matt H not because I get in trouble, but because they invest in the students of Biola. They have several students underneath their care so they strategically invest in leaders to affect the largest group of people possible. That’s why they’re involved in SOS. But they also invest in different areas of Biola. Matt helps out in the male weight lifting class each semester. He even leads an optional Saturday morning workout so that we can get our extra time in. He isn’t paid to do it and the only benefit he gets out of it is working out with us. This is just the quality of faculty that we have at Biola. Danny is involved with other students, pouring into their lives because he cares. This spirit of nurturing is seen in all levels of Biola workers. I’ve worked with facilities, IT, and other departments and experienced the same thing. I most consistently see our custodian Jose. Jose has worked on GUS for years and he is so humble. He is a head pastor at a local church and it’s evident by the way he serves. Every time I see him he has a smile on his face and asks me how he’s doing, and he genuinely cares. I always ask him back and he always says good. There was only one time he said fine, and I felt like something was wrong, but I wanted someone who knew him better to ask him. I should have said something then to him, even though I mentioned it to someone else. I am so thankful for him and the joy the exudes from him. He is a blessing to Biola as much as any staff or faculty member is.

96. My Phone/Skype/Communications

I’ve had three phones since I came to Biola and I am so thankful that two of them have been smart phones. Once you have a smart phone the way you interact with the internet changes. You are accessible 24/7 and you are able to get the information you need anytime you need it. It has been so helpful to have Torrey lectures and their locations available at my fingertips whenever I needed them. Reading and writing emails on the fly has been a huge blessing. I am so thankful that my parents have gotten me these phones and paid for the internet and texting. They are all tools to help relationships (again, I say tools to help, nothing more). Skype is another communication blessing. I’ve been able to Skype my parents multiple times since I’ve been at Biola, Skype my whole family as we are scattered across the west coast, connect with crew leaders, and just keep in touch. I see Facebook messages all the time of people setting up Skype dates. It is a technology that we should be thankful for. I think it’s amazing the God has created physical distance and the ability to cross them digitally to connect with one another. Praise the Lord!

97.That I’ve made it this far and I am where I am today

I’m over 21 and I’m a Christian at Biola who God has protected my entire life. I have been lead through Christian schools since I was born, been sheltered from evil yet not naive about the evils around me. I have been given smarts, wisdom, and physical abilities. God has made me the way I am and He has blessed me so much. Being at Biola is crazy for me. Even now there are days when I think about the greatness of being at this school, a school that is special because God has been faithful to it and blessed it. My parents met here and got engaged on my mom’s graduation day. There is so much tied up for me being at Biola. I’m halfway though and I somehow ended up in Torrey, having a double major, doing well in my classes, having good friends, good roommates, good floors, good relationships, good experiences, and a good life. No, it is not ‘somehow’, but God’s divine plan that I am here where I am today and I am so thankful for all of it.

98. Endless Blessings

Besides these 100 things, I have experienced endless other blessings. My brother-in-law had his back healed after his accident, I made it to the ER safely when I was sick, I have endless friends who should have been mentioned that are spread all across campus (if you’re one of them, know that I love you and I’m thankful for you. Heck, I’ll even add more to this post if you say something), random and intentional acts of kindness or correction, numerous events that I couldn’t even begin to list, and so much more. God has truly given me a lot since I’ve been here at Biola, since I was born, since before the world began. Although this post is over 20,900 words, it barely scratches the surface of what I should be thankful for.

99. My Readers

Over the years I’ve had thousands of views. Why, I have no idea. But thank you for being so loyal and spending your time to read my blog about my life. I am truly blessed to have people who love me enough to read so much. After 2 and 1/2 years more and more people still read my blog. I am sorry for my inconsistency and for the length of this post. It may take you a few days to read this, but it took me since Thanksgiving break to write it (almost 2 months!).I will try to be more consistent and concise in the future, and thank you for giving me a hope of writing for a future audience. So thank you all for your dedication and willingness to read.

100. This Blog

Lastly, I am thankful for this blog. It serves as an Ebeneezer or reminder for me of what I’ve done in college. I can look back on it and see endless memories of friends, good times, and God’s blessings. Working on it has been a great joy. As I am half way through college, and possibly halfway through my Biola experience, this may be the halfway point of this blog. It has served me well through all the changes it has endured and all the events of life that it has recorded. With that I present to you my 100th post on Richie’s Biola Biography!