Rally Point: What the heck is it?

Here's a Q&A with myself regarding Rally Point (RPM)...

What the heck is Rally Point?  It's a ministry.

Wise guy, eh?  Can you elaborate a little bit on that?  Who is Rally Point for?  Well, Rally Point seeks to minister to young men ages 18-25ish.  That's really the only restriction.  Anybody meeting that criteria is welcome, doesn't matter who you are or where you've been or what you've done. 

Where does Rally Point meet?  We currently meet at Dunkin' Donuts on Abbe Road in Elyria, across the street from the college, Sunday nights at 7pm. 

So you started a ministry that meets in a donut shop?  Who would've guessed that?  So what is this, some kind of donut church or something?  Rally Point is not a church, isn't affiliated with any church or denomination, and isn't meant to be a replacement or alternative to going to church.

Alright, geez.  It's not a church.  So if Rally Point isn't supposed to be an alternative to church, why have it?  Why is it needed?  Or is this just about the donuts?  There are a lot of young men that, for whatever reason, aren't involved with a local church and don't want to be, and the Church (as a whole) has not been effective in reaching them.  It's my belief that just because a young guy won't go to church doesn't make him unreachable.  For years, the Church has been talking about America being a mission field, and I concur.  Do missionaries go into a foreign land and build a church and just expect people to show up?  No, they get in on the ground and try to reach people where they are, and young adults today aren't in church.  What's more, this generation is highly skeptical of church, and the American church has largely earned it's reputation, unfortunately.  So RPM is here to reach guys that aren't going to be reached by conventional church ministry.

Man, you're a hater.  So are you planning on starting your own church if you think the Church really sucks like that?  Are you paying attention or just asking questions and then eating donuts while I answer?  I didn't say the Church sucks, I said this generation thinks it does.  I think the Church is important, and I will be encouraging young guys to get in one and get involved.  The objective is to direct guys into a real relationship with Christ and mature spiritually as a man, help them find out what they're calling is and then inspire them to go out and do it.  The belief is that as young Christians grow, the Lord will reveal to them what He has for them to do in life and He'll direct and guide them to the place where He wants them to serve.  Young guys are looking for direction, and RPM wants to help them find it.   

I'll give you that.  So what does RPM actually DO or is it just some theoretical concept you've devised to justify meeting in a donut shop on a weekly basis?  Our weekly meetings on Sunday nights usually consist of a bible study or discussion that seeks to find practical answers to real life issues.  This generation doesn't want high theological debates or complex expository sermons, it needs something real that they can apply to their lives, and the Word has those answers.  We also do occasional activities and events.  Guy stuff that is easy to invite the bros to.  We eat a lot and don't apologize for it, either.   

Amen to that, Reverend Raven.  So what is the inspiration behind the name Rally Point?  Reverend Raven is my cousin's blues band in Chicago.  I'm not a pastor and don't really have any plans of being one.  But to answer your question... In battle, the rally point is a designated place to meet in the event that your outfit gets scattered.  You meet back at the rally point and regroup for the next phase of battle.  The youth and young adults of America have been scattered by the enemy, and we seek to provide a rally point for the wounded, scattered, and lost to regroup, get healthy, and move on to victory in life.  That rally point is Christ.  Also the initials for Rally Point Ministries is RPM, which I think is pretty cool.

That is kinda cool.  I like it.  But do you think this is actually going to work?  Beats me, but I felt the Lord calling me to decisive action and strong commitment, so I'm rollin' with it.  I certainly think RPM has potential to make a difference in the lives of young men and I'm excited about that.  It's probably going to be tough going with plenty of ups and downs, but so far, so good.  We've got a good core group of guys that I think highly of and we're gettin' down to business.  We believe that if we're faithful and obedient, God will meet us at the Rally Point and do some awesome things this year. 

Wing Wars: Buffalo Wild Wings vs Quaker Steak and Lube

What God-fearing American guy doesn't love smashing a plate of wings?  With wings, you get to eat meat, you get to eat that meat off the bone, and you get sauce all over you hands and face with no regard for etiquette.  Eating wings is a celebration of masculinity.  Here in my area, there are two major competing chains of wing places... Buffalo Wild Wings and Quaker Steak and Lube.  While there are well over 600 B-Dubs throughout the country and only 35 Quaker Steaks, there are an equal number here in Lorain County (2).

With both places, if you're looking for a steak or ribs, or even a burger, I'd go elsewhere.  These are wing places first and foremost, and the rest of the food is pretty average.  So when examining the merits of these two, we will mostly focus on the wings.

In my experience, I've found the wings at Quaker Steak to be larger than those at BW3.  I work for a pizza company that serves wings and the size our wings are very inconsistent week to week, but I've been to both of these places enough to say that Quaker's are consistently larger.  This, however, is of little importance.  It's the sauce that makes the wing.

Both places have a long lineup of sauces.  Honestly, though, I've been disappointed with each sauce that I've tried at BW3.  The last time I was there, it was actually difficult selecting one I really wanted.  The sauce list at Quaker is more varied and better than BW3's all across the board.  A few Quaker sauces are of particular note to me:  Louisiana Lickers (Hot, Cajun, Garlic, BBQ mix), Arizona Ranch (spicy ranch flavor), and the Thai 'R' Cracker (Sweet Thai flavor with chili and garlic).  I don't think BW3 has anything that can compare to these.  I'm not much for the extremely hot sauces, but both places offer some hot stuff.  I did try a small taste of BW3's hottest sauce, Blazin' (70x hotter than a jalapeno).  It actually tasted pretty good for about a second before the burning began.  Quaker now has the Triple Atomic sauce (500,000 Scoville Heat Units, or 100x hotter than a jalapeno).  Try it if you want, dummy.  Of course if you really want to, you can find significantly hotter sauces than this in some sadistic corners of our society.

Quaker is a cool place to eat if you like cars and bikes.  The automotive theme is everywhere, and they do have car shows and meets.   BW3 has more large TV's and loud drunk kids.  I really don't care much about cars or drunks (cars AND drunks is different story).  But I do care about wings, and to me, Quaker Steak and Lube provides a much better wing than its competition at BW3.

Some random observations from the last week...

• If Super Bowl Sunday is going to be an American holiday, it needs to start acting like one. 
• Christina Aguilera predictably butchered the national anthem.  The singing of the Star-Spangled Banner before sporting events is supposed to be a moment when we as Americans take time to honor America and our freedom that allows us to enjoy our way of life.  Choosing a self-promoting former pop star to perform inevitably led us to the result that followed--an unworthy rendition.  For an event as big as the Super Bowl, the national anthem should be stirring and inspiring and there is no shortage of people who can make that happen.  The NFL should look to this year's NFC Championship game in Chicago for an example.  Now that's what I'm talkin' about.  
• The halftime "entertainment" was one of the most ridiculous spectacles I've ever seen.  I honestly don't know or understand what I saw, but I do know that Zak Johnston believes in aliens again.
• Many people watch the Super Bowl for the commercials.  I am now considering starting an advertisement agency, because I know I can put together a group of friends of mine that can come up with something better for each company that spent millions on that nonsense in a matter of hours.  Ask yourself what commercials you remember and why you remember them and if you can remember what the commercial was advertising.  I remember seeing Ozzy Osbourne speaking in unknown tongues for some unknown company, a guy feeding Doritos to dead goldfish, an endless barrage of movie trailers that solidifies 2011 as the Year of the Nerd, and Roseanne getting plowed over by a log (loved that one).  Either the ad people are idiots, the ad people believe we the public are idiots, or we the public actually are idiots. 
• The Rite was an interesting flick.  It's an exorcist movie, but not your typical one.  I thought through much of the movie that they were aiming to make a certain point, but it ended up being something completely different (I like movies that at least maintain some sense of uncertainty throughout or offer some surprise ending).  Anthony Hopkins was brilliant, as usual.
• I also saw The Mechanic this week.  This is a movie about killin', pure and simple, and predictable.  Didn't do anything for me. 
• I ate at two restaurants I've never been to last week.  I tried Fiesta Jalapenos in North Ridgeville Saturday night.  As far as Mexican places go, this is one of the best I've been to (disclaimer:  I do not frequent Mexican restaurants and despise refried beans).  The Chimichangas were good.  I also tried the new Asian World Buffet on Cleveland Street in Elyria.  We arrived at 7:00 PM (they're open until 10PM) and there was very little left on the buffet.  The food doesn't compare favorably with any similar restaurant in the area, but try it if you must.  It did give me a greater appreciation for the New Chinatown Buffet in Sheffield. 
• I enjoyed Only in America with Larry the Cable Guy on the History Channel last night.  Looks to be an interesting and entertaining new show about things that are uniquely American.  Last night's episode was about making and running moonshine and how that birthed NASCAR, an etiquette lesson from the descendants of the lady who wrote the book on etiquette, and frog jumping.  Next week he'll be eating in a swamp, goes undercover with the clowns at the circus, and races in the soap box derby.  America has a long history and heritage of being, at its core, hillbilly, and there's nothing wrong with that.

Movie Review: True Grit

I braved last night's impressive display of global warming to see True Grit.  I've seen the 1969 version with John Wayne at least a dozen times.  No one will ever compare to the Duke, and my initial reaction to hearing that True Grit was being remade was shock and outrage, and a demand to know who was playing the role of Rooster Cogburn.  When I found out that it was Jeff Bridges, I couldn't wrap my mind around the Big Lebowski playing this role or any role played by the Duke.  Having said that, I thought the original True Grit was one of John Wayne's weaker movies in the latter part of his career.  The Duke's performance saved the movie from some odd casting and a relatively lame plot.  In retrospect, it was probably fitting that John Wayne received  his only Oscar for this movie, because he never had to do more to carry a movie.   Despite my apprehension, I was determined to keep an open mind going into this.

I must admit that there is much about this remake that I like better than the original, mostly the supporting cast.  While I don't like Matt Damon, I thought he fit the role of Texas Ranger Leboeuf much better than Glen Campbell.  How did John Wayne ever get saddled up with Glen Campbell as a sidekick?  More importantly was the selection of Hailee Steinfeld to play the head-strong teenager Mattie Ross.  She did a terrific job with the role, far superior to the unwatchable Kim Darby from the original.  The other supporting roles were also well chosen and performed.  Now, if you leave John Wayne's previous legendary performance out of it, Jeff Bridges played a credible Rooster Cogburn.  Bridges rendition was cruder and offered less personality, but it didn't lack in the "grit" department.  I'm not really sure there's another actor right now that could play this role.   

Much of the movie offers the same lines as the original, although there are several new scenes and a different ending.  Younger audiences are going to have to pay close attention to the dialogue in this film.  The vocabulary and proper nature of the wording is something that most movie goers won't be used to.  I enjoyed it, though.

After watching True Grit, I was actually glad the Coen brothers remade it.  Hollywood rarely makes westerns anymore, and that is a shame.  Hopefully this movie introduces the traditional American western genre to a new generation and that more will follow.  The success of True Grit ($150 million to date) suggests that there is a market for it, and I would recommend it to anyone, but especially to younger audiences that haven't seen many westerns.