M-I-Z-We Own You!

Illinois vs. Missouri (Big Ten Network Highlights)

Illinois vs. Missouri (ESPN Highlights)

8 in a row feels sooooo good! Undefeated against Missouri in my college career!

A Piece(s) of Advice

21 Big Lessons from Little Kids

"3. Asking questions is how you figure things out. Lots and lots of questions.
4. An older, wiser Gordie Lachance says in Stand By Me, "I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was 12." Lachance is right. The trick is to try to be the friend you were when you were 12: fun-loving and loyal, with no strings attached.
5. Playing is work. Approach your downtime with all the seriousness of a 5-year-old with a secret treasure map.
6. Real guys don't dip their toes in the water. They jump right in."

Just Be Yourself: "I have a gymnasium philosophy. Everybody's been in a gym. You look to the right, you see somebody in better shape. Look to your left, you see somebody who's dying to be in your shape. So you have to be happy in our life and know you can always go either direction. It's up to you."

Keeping it Real: Authenticity You Can't Fake It:

"Regardless of what I'm doing, I want to be authentic. That is a real key to success in every walk of life. If you're authentic, people pick up on that, they appreciate that. They're drawn to authenticity...I want people to know my flaws and weaknesses, know that I'm not perfect. I don't want to preach from the pulpit. I want them to know the real person." Mark Schlereth

Christmas and Truth

"The Wise Men from the East brought gifts to the Newborn King. Yet, the babe in the manger offered a gift to the world that marvelously complemented their generosity: the gift of Truth.

The Magi, like the philosophers who were seekers of wisdom, were also seekers.

“Here is the important point,” writes G. K. Chesterton in The Everlasting Man, “that the Magi, who stand for mysticism and philosophy, are truly conceived as seeking something new and even finding something unexpected. ... The discovery is, in this case, truly a scientific discovery.”

The Christmas story is not merely a beautiful and endearing story. It is a historical event and the “scientific discovery” of a truth that discredited all competing mythologies.

It gave religion a new birth, one that was wed to truth. It was also significant that it was born in a cave, a place where truth is not easy to find." The Magi and Their Scientific Discovery

This article was really interesting and it put Christianity into perspective of what Jesus came for to bring Truth and everlasting life for all humanity. It is a gift that many people have been unable to accept for over two-thousand years, yet the Truth still prevails as Christmas shows us each year. God humbled himself by coming to earth born a man in the lowliest of places in a stable amongst the animals as a sign of his love for us. This is the gift that we all should humbly receive into our hearts this Christmas to look on that manger scene with humility and joy for the hope of a new beginning to share with friends and families. To all a very Merry Christmas!

Linus speaks the Truth:

Man vs. Wild

Bear Grylls is the Man! He just knows a lot about nature and can put himself into any situation and get out of it. What I like the most is that he is willing to try anything-like eating raw Goats testicles, building a camel tent, going into an ice crevice on a glacier in Patagonia, etc. he isn't afraid to do anything and knows he can accomplish anything! I think that is one thing that people cannot handle is giving credit to people. They want to find the fault in what people do even if they do something great. There has been speculation that Bear has not "roughed" it as the show claims, but you know what I wanna see the average person who watches the show go out and do what he does. Would you eat raw goats testicles or sleep in a dead camel? How about jump in a mountain pond just to show how to survive in it or run around naked on a glacier to get body warmth back? Ya, he is awesome and one thing that all men should take from it is whatever you do, be awesome at it, work hard, and strive for better!

Laugh, Think, and Cry