Friday, October 27, 2006
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
737 Cafe
So there I was, at the Zach Vinson/Tide/Some other band concert... I was surrounded by all these trendy people and suddenly felt the desire to update my blog. So here I am. Doing it.
No one even checks this thing anymore, I bet. At least, no one besides Rachel and maybe Michael just to spite me.
I think Mass Media is going to be the death of me. (For those of you who are just joining us, Mass Media in Society is a class I'm taking.) Today, Professor Anderon talked about the need for people to go into the movie industry to change it. People that have a drive to make a difference there. He said that he hoped that this class would provide the opportunity and drive and connections necessary for some Cornerstone students to make a difference in the media industries. That's what he views as his mission. He almost cried, I think. And so did I.
Since I was young, all I ever wanted to do was make video games. It started as an interest, something that I thought would be cool. In third grade, I drew out Mario world levels for cryin out loud! By 7th grade, I was trying to make up Zelda games. In 8th grade, I started what would be my first original world. Since then, I've given spare moments of thought to developing that world and the characters in it.
When I started out with video games, I only cared about the Marios and Zeldas, fun little games with little deeper meaning, but as I got older, I found depth in the Final Fantasy series and other RPGs. I went from just wanting to make games to wanting to make games that are deep and throughtful, with character development, a moving plot, and themes that are thought provoking and possibly even challenging. I wanted to tell life as it is through the medium of a world that isn't. I wanted to deal with real life complexities through virtual living. (And not in a creepy, "let's all play World of Warcraft all day" kind of virtual living.) I wanted to create video games that are counted art as much as literature or film.
But my life has not led me down this path. I love people (something that is compatible with every profession), and I feel compelled to do something about it. I love teaching the Bible. I love using my spiritual gift (shepherding, for those who don't know). I think God has opened up many more doors to develop these gifts and callings than he has for video games. I was given the chance to speak to a 70 student (maybe?) youth ministry on a Sunday morning as a junior in high school. God used a small group I started to affect 20 or more people for him, drawing them closer and deeper into relationship with our God. I've been given a charge to shepherd a group of 13 freshmen. Tons of my friends, mentors, and acquaintances have given me very positive feedback about my skills as a future youth pastor. God has really been good to me.
Coming back to my original assertion (that Mass Media is going to be the death of me), when I leave that class, I feel inspired to be a game designer again. I feel the powerful tug to tell stories that cause people to think and be changed. I start thinking about my dreams and my plans, hoping that God will use a class project to lead me back to game design. I start thinking that it would be okay to be a volunteer in a youth ministry, to have a small group, to still affect positive change on adolescents with my spiritual gift (and besides, how cool would it be for a high school student if their small group leader designed video games?). I could do that. I would be happy. It would be the best of both worlds. Mass Media makes these thoughts go through my brain and makes me dissatisfied with where I am and where I think God is leading me.
I'm so thankful for the peace that I still have that I'm in the right place, though. Over the summer, God gave me this massive peace, like he was saying, "It's okay, Kemp. You're supposed to be at Cornerstone. There's something there you need to have before you leave and you don't have it yet." I still have that peace. Without that, I'd be pulling out my hair.
That is why Mass Media is going to be the death of me.
No one even checks this thing anymore, I bet. At least, no one besides Rachel and maybe Michael just to spite me.
I think Mass Media is going to be the death of me. (For those of you who are just joining us, Mass Media in Society is a class I'm taking.) Today, Professor Anderon talked about the need for people to go into the movie industry to change it. People that have a drive to make a difference there. He said that he hoped that this class would provide the opportunity and drive and connections necessary for some Cornerstone students to make a difference in the media industries. That's what he views as his mission. He almost cried, I think. And so did I.
Since I was young, all I ever wanted to do was make video games. It started as an interest, something that I thought would be cool. In third grade, I drew out Mario world levels for cryin out loud! By 7th grade, I was trying to make up Zelda games. In 8th grade, I started what would be my first original world. Since then, I've given spare moments of thought to developing that world and the characters in it.
When I started out with video games, I only cared about the Marios and Zeldas, fun little games with little deeper meaning, but as I got older, I found depth in the Final Fantasy series and other RPGs. I went from just wanting to make games to wanting to make games that are deep and throughtful, with character development, a moving plot, and themes that are thought provoking and possibly even challenging. I wanted to tell life as it is through the medium of a world that isn't. I wanted to deal with real life complexities through virtual living. (And not in a creepy, "let's all play World of Warcraft all day" kind of virtual living.) I wanted to create video games that are counted art as much as literature or film.
But my life has not led me down this path. I love people (something that is compatible with every profession), and I feel compelled to do something about it. I love teaching the Bible. I love using my spiritual gift (shepherding, for those who don't know). I think God has opened up many more doors to develop these gifts and callings than he has for video games. I was given the chance to speak to a 70 student (maybe?) youth ministry on a Sunday morning as a junior in high school. God used a small group I started to affect 20 or more people for him, drawing them closer and deeper into relationship with our God. I've been given a charge to shepherd a group of 13 freshmen. Tons of my friends, mentors, and acquaintances have given me very positive feedback about my skills as a future youth pastor. God has really been good to me.
Coming back to my original assertion (that Mass Media is going to be the death of me), when I leave that class, I feel inspired to be a game designer again. I feel the powerful tug to tell stories that cause people to think and be changed. I start thinking about my dreams and my plans, hoping that God will use a class project to lead me back to game design. I start thinking that it would be okay to be a volunteer in a youth ministry, to have a small group, to still affect positive change on adolescents with my spiritual gift (and besides, how cool would it be for a high school student if their small group leader designed video games?). I could do that. I would be happy. It would be the best of both worlds. Mass Media makes these thoughts go through my brain and makes me dissatisfied with where I am and where I think God is leading me.
I'm so thankful for the peace that I still have that I'm in the right place, though. Over the summer, God gave me this massive peace, like he was saying, "It's okay, Kemp. You're supposed to be at Cornerstone. There's something there you need to have before you leave and you don't have it yet." I still have that peace. Without that, I'd be pulling out my hair.
That is why Mass Media is going to be the death of me.
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