Sooner Sports

Well, I think the transition is finally over. Last week I found myself rooting for the OU Sooners over the OSU Cowboys in round two of this year’s Bedlam series. Many of you know that I grew up an OSU fan and have always rooted for them to win. This was especially true in basketball because they were almost always pretty good (at least) in basketball. Football was always an up and down thing. They’d be good for a few years and then bad for a few. So I never got too attached to their football program, but still always rooted for them to be OU each year. Their basketball program, on the other hand, I was much more attached to.About a year and half ago I started a Ph.D. program at OU and found myself rooting for them more and more. I decided that I had no real reason for rooting for OSU but had plenty of reasons to root for OU. Growing up I pretty much liked to annoy my older brother so I started pulling for OSU. It eventually stuck. Now that I’m getting paid by OU to get my doctoral degree and live a mile from campus, it’s hard not to root for them. The first year was difficult to root for OU against OSU in football, but the national implications of the game made it a bit easier to do so. I couldn’t bring myself to root against OSU in basketball though, but that all changed this year. I started watching the OU/OSU game and just found myself cheering when OU would hit a shot or make a defensive stand. It was amazing. I really don’t know what happened. I guess it’s just that Sooner Magic wearing of on me.I know many of you Cowboy fans are greatly disappointed in me. Well, I’m sorry. I don’t know what to say. I didn’t really intend to start rooting for the Sooners, it just started happening. Maybe this is an example showing that our beliefs are not under our direct voluntary control.Go Sooners!

My conversion story

Many of you know this about me already, but after emailing a friend the other day I decided to publish a story about my conversion experience. To set the stage, it began approximately 8-9 months ago, but has really taken hold of my life in the past 2-3 months. I know, I know…you thought that I was ‘converted’ several years ago, back in high school. Well, this is a conversion of a different kind. What follows is the email I sent my friend Steve (who, you will see, is a former graduate of Miami University), I hope it explains a bit more about who I am.

How’s it going man? Things are going well out here in OK, but I have a confession to make. Most of my life I have pulled for OSU (but never really wanted OU to lose, unless they were playing OSU). After a lot of soul searching, I decided that I have more reasons to be an OU fan than I do to be an OSU fan. I’ve been wooed. I know I know, this is unthinkable for you, but remember I was never a ‘die-hard’ OSU fan in the same way you are a die-hard Miami fan. If I liked OSU as much as you like Miami, I would probably wear a “THE SOONERS SUCK” shirt everyday, but I’m not. I thought, they’re paying for my school, they’re paying me a yearly stipend to go to school, and my wife is a full time employee as well…it’s hard to not start pulling for them. We spend more of our time on the OU campus than we do off campus, and let me tell you, Sooner Magic isn’t just alive when OU’s trailing a game. There’s something about being on campus, I’m sure if I attended OSU, I would have much different feelings. In reality, the only reason I started pulling for OSU was to piss off my brother. So, there you go…rip, ream, and make fun all you want. I feel like I’ve ‘come out of the closet’, but now have a clean conscience. 

So, this may be shocking to you, but it does feel nice to get it off my chest. Well, now you all know that I am a University of Oklahoma fan. It’s still hard to call myself a Sooner, for now I’ll just stick with being an OU fan. The ‘Sooner’ will come someday, just not today.

First Semester Complete

I just finished my first semester of the Ph.D. program at OU. It’s kind of hard to believe that I was just able to write that. I mean, this is the guy that had to retake English 1 and College Algebra. How sad is that? It’s amazing how we begin to change as we begin to know our true selves. When I left to go to college at SAGU, I thought the only thing I wanted to do was be the pastor of a church. Getting an education was only a means to that end. Now, many years later, I have realized that education is much more than a ‘right to work’ and it goes further than helping us get better paying jobs.One thing that really disappoints me about the denomination that I am affiliated with is that I don’t feel they do enough to promote the idea that education is inherently good. Knowing more about what God has created, the people that he has created, and the works that those people have created gives us precious insight into aspect of God himself. I pray that we realize God has given us more than the Bible, though that is a treasure beyond comparison. He has decided to us his creation to reveal his glory. Spend a weekend on a mountainside and you’ll begin to catch a glimpse of that.When I got home last night, I was overwhelmed thinking that I’ve made it this far. I still have 3 more semesters of coursework and then 3 years of writing, but I’m making progress. Isn’t that what we all look for in some way? Progress. Progressing toward a deeper relationship with Christ. Progressing toward meeting a spouse. Progressing toward rebuilding relationships. Progressing toward life goals and dreams. I am thankful that our Lord knows us, what we can handle, and exactly how to assist us in conquering our fears and fulfilling our dreams.