Louisiana Students for Life 3rd Annual Pro-Life Conference at Louisiana State University, October 27th-28th

Saturday morning in Howe-Russell hall never felt so good. Ancient archaeological finds and artsy dinosaur bones faded into the background as the lobby was transformed into a multi-table exhibit for the pro-life movement. Students munched on hot, fresh Mary Lee donuts and sipped orange juice and CC's Coffee as they waited for my wife to kick off the conference.

Everyone was ushered into the auditorium. After a warm welcome from Amanda, the first speaker was up. Dr. Michael New of the University of Alabama talked about pro-life legislation (i.e., informed consent, parental consent, waiting period laws) and its statistical effects on the abortion rate and ratio. Next was Dr. John Baker of the LSU Law School to speak on the legal history of abortion. I missed part of his talk to go outside and welcome Cynthia Collins, my long-time friend and spiritual mentor. I introduced her and she seized the day speaking of her own and other women's personal experiences with abortion and the road to recovery. Father Joseph Cazanavette spoke next on the dignity of human life, which I went to pick up a speaker from his hotel.

This speaker was none other than Mr. Steve Wagner of Stand to Reason in Los Angeles, California. I was able to spend a lot of time driving this gentleman around Baton Rouge over a couple days. What an inspirational man and apologeticist for bio-ethics! He spoke after Father Joseph on changing hearts and minds on abortion. After an organization called Crossroads presented, the students attended workshops: Ben Clapper on running an effective pro-life club contact table on campus and his fiancee, Kristen Clark, on effective sidewalk counseling at abortion clinics. Steve Wagner spoke a second time, this time on stem cell research. Of note is the point that there are 1.1 million infertile parents who want to adopt and there are 400,000 "children" (embryos) in frozen storage. Ben Wetmore of Students for Life of America ended the night with talk on how to fundraise for a club.

The next morning was special. Louisiana State Representative Gary Beard and former candidate for Lt. Governor (also, Louisiana Family Forum "Outstanding Family Advocate") gave a talk on leadership in the pro-life movement. With great sobriety, he alluded to Gideon's 300 men and the need for great numbers but individuals dedicated to Truth. Ben Wetmore wrapped up his talk from the previous night and I concluded with a talk on effective campus outreach.

LSU students, there will be a meeting this Thursday, 8 pm in the Caddo Room, 3rd Floor, LSU Student Union. As I told the group this weekend, if you are pro-life, you are not part of a movement. You're not an activist, this is who you are. Be there this Thursday and take a stand; get educated.

Ruth+Relient K+Switchfoot Concert

10.29.07

As I Amanda and I sauntered into the pulsing arena in the Baton Rouge River Center to our third-row seats, we were already greeted by the sounds of the band Ruth. A long-haired thin guy in a red flannel shirt picked up one foot, then the other as he swayed gently with his acoustic guitar. The rest of the band provided a bass drum-heavy and alternative-rock guitar sound reminiscent of The Benjy Davis Project.

After a brief break, the crackling speakers played a mixture of sounds and songs with the “Appetite for Construction” tour theme, as a bouncy Relient K took stage to an unfurling banner behind them. They launched directly into “I So Hate Consequences.” Keeping with the up-tempo heavy rock, Relient K followed with “Devastation and Reform,” from their latest album Five Score and Seven Years Ago. After “The Best Thing” and “Be My Escape,” Matt Thiessen started singing a Tears for Fears song, which led into the fan-favorite “In Love with the 80s.” The tone turned serious with the brooding “Which to Bury, us or the Hatchet?”, which saw some tasteful but somber ukulele action. It was back to the upbeat with the crooned “Must Have Done Something Right” and the piano-led “Forgiven.” Relient K then announced something special from their new Christmas album Let it Snow, Baby…Let it Reindeer: “Sleigh Ride,” complete with falling “snow” at the front of the arena. (I was right on the edge of it.) The sincere and longing “Give Until There’s Nothing Left” was followed by the hate-it-or-love-it “Sadie Hawkins Dance,” during which the band invited a crowd member to come play guitar during one round of the chorus. A bit of a surprise next, with the band asking if the crowd watched the TV show “The Office.” After a little cheering, the band played a made-up song about the show, eventually going into the piano notes that open the theme song. “I Need You” and “High of 75” were followed by the closer, “Who I Am Hates Who I’ve Been.”

A bit of a break, and a large shooting star appeared as the backdrop to a new band to take stage. As the star began to light up in different colors, Switchfoot took the stage to a quirky version of the opening chords of “Meant to Live,” after which Jon Foreman said, “Thank you and good evening Baton Rouge…but it’s not quite time for that song yet.” They launched straight into the wild title track off the latest album Oh! Gravity. There was scarcely breathing room for the next big hit “Stars” with its minute-long intro. Electronic noises filled the air as “This is Your Life” took the stage. This song has really taken me by surprise. It was always a stepchild of Switchfoot songs in my eyes, but they have really done something with it in a live setting. Jon Foreman bent low to sing and yell into his guitar pickups. Next, the band played bits of pop songs that led into the slow-burning “Gone”. An extra-long introduction for the rocker “American Dream” came next, with the band pulling something I’ve never seen before. Right before the last chorus of the song, everyone in the band froze in mid-air. Instruments and limbs were held in frozen awkward positions for nearly 2 minutes until suddenly the band was unfrozen into a frenzied conclusion to the song. The band continued playing some unfamiliar music as Jon Foreman grabbed the high-hat cymbal and started banging on it, swinging it around and strobe flights flashed as the stage threatened to explode. After the chaos settled down, Jon appeared again with an acoustic guitar for the opening of the Western-ish “Dirty Second Hands.” “This next song is about Unity and the fight to achieve it” were the words that ushered “We Are One Tonight” onstage, which led into a remixed and beat-heavy “The Shadow Proves the Sunshine”. Quiet took the stage as Jon Foreman grabbed a new microphone with a cord lit up by Christmas lights and walked out into the crowd crooning the lyrics to the piano-driven “On Fire.” As the song ended, Jon, still out in the crowd, asked the crowd to sing the opening vocals to the imagery-laden “Awakening.” After this crowd favorite, Switchfoot announced a new song, “Rebuild,” which included all the members from Ruth and Relient K on stage to help play and sing. The set closed with the inevitable “Meant to Live” and an encore of “Dare You to Move.”

Summary:
(1) Ruth is a band to look forward to
(2) Relient K is musically very technically sound but better suited to smaller crowds
(3) Switchfoot is the king of arena concerts, with enough bells & whistles but also passionate and genuine moments to make a concert-goer want to listen to their songs for days at a time afterward

Do Not Move

The last post I typed earlier in the day was one born of frustration.

I did not realize how bad my attitude was until I realized how little I was worshiping God.

I even got to the point in the day that verbal expressions of praise from others agitated me. In the weight room today, Patrick analogized this to an eight-year-old who despises the kiss of a married man and woman. I found my attitude had blinded me to the beauty of intimacy of worship.

And there's nothing like a good dose of conviction to cleanse the soul.

Tonight it came in the form of the Book of Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 2:11, Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods? but my people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit. The ungodly are dogmatic and unyielding in their servitude to lust, pride, obscenity, materialism, and the gods of this world. And yet we, who hold the Truth, have turned our backs away from God and apologize for our stance. I believe God would say to us, "DO NOT MOVE!" The world will not move from guarding and defending refuse, so why should we move from defending the Truth?

12:32 Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? yet my people have forgotten me days without number. Would Amanda have forgotten to wear her wedding dress on our wedding day? Would I have forgotten my tuxedo? How could I go days upon end without even venturing into my Savior's presence?

Selah.

We Spend Our Years as a Tale that is Told

Last week I took a mid-term exam upon which I wrote nine pages. Sadly, many of the generalizations I made about Louisiana history between 1717 and 1763 (and which I worked hard to learn from class and the professor's textbook) on the exam will be accepted as proof I have learned a lot about Louisiana history. I miss junior high Louisiana history. I may not have learned high-level statements about demographic growth of the time, but I did learn a narrative full of character stories, battles and glories.

Amanda and I went with Zeke and Cody to Hammond Friday night to have coffees at the Green Bean. This gave me a fellowship fix and reminded me of how carefree, loved and loving I felt when I had long hair, a scruffy and scary beard and wore hopelessly mismatched thrift store articles of clothing with worn out red Chuck Taylor tennis shoes. Afterward we went to the Wesleyan foundation at SLU for one of the most awkward concerts ever. There were a handful of people in a room standing around chatting while a full-throttle guitar act provided a cacophonous background noise. No matter, I glanced at my friends and saw their smiles and was reminded of why I love them so much. As A Soup Named Stew took stage, I couldn't help but giggle and cheer as the likes of "Robot Dentist" and "She Broke Up With Me" reminded me of all those times at Cafe Chi Alpha.

That evening Amanda and I would spend curled up next to each other in a twin-sized bed at my parents' house, sleeping in until 10:30 a.m. to be greeted by my Hero, my dad, who would lead us to the polls to vote for the victorious Bobby Jindal. After a family brunch at the International House of Pancakes, my Sunshine, Jessica Frances, cried into her pillow until I asked her what was wrong. Her big brother was leaving to go to college again, just like 3 years ago when I had done that to her the first time.

Back in Baton Rouge Saturday night, Patrick Holly, the kindred spirit and friend who always has something glorious to say, gladly accompanied me to the drunken idiosy known as the student section of Tiger Stadium. We watched some jerk spit ice at his girlfriend, along with the best band of any college in the nation and a struggling football team that pulled back into the lead with one second left in the game. Thirty-two ounce cups of soda pop flew effortlessly across the stadium as the fans threatened to produce a nuclear fusion of celebration. Either the fact that it had been a whole year since I had been in Tiger Stadium or the intensity of the moment prompted me to declare it my best ever moment in Death Valley. As my friend and I sat in his car deadlocked in post-gameday traffic, we talked about things in life that matter, wary of our Arch nemesis, Smalltalk.

But what happened to the Saturdays of meeting up with all my friends who live on campus and tailgating / going to the game together?

At least some things never change, and constancy is realized. As in all past athletic endeavors, I struggled to be non-awkward at my second intramural soccer game last night.

At least, I'm good at speling. One day I'm going to make that an undergraduate degree. Spelling. It would be more useful that most majors out there.

Business Management?

How could I have ever wanted to major in that? How can that be a major? Theorists even debate whether or not management can be taught scientifically. I guess you're not a trait theorist if you choose that major; or you're too apathetic to care what your major is.

<>Wait...no, that would be Accounting. < /self-loathing >

"Ignite the Fight: Students for Life on Air"

Last night's radio show was a grand success! From 7:30-8:30 p.m., Kacie Hampton and I (as well as Jim Fontaine for the first 15 minutes) were on the air with Radio Maria, a Catholic station broadcasting in Louisiana and throughout the world via Internet. Because Ben Clapper was out of town, he had us take over the show for him. We were more than a bit nervous! But everything went smoothly, and we had a great time promoting the LSL conference and encouraging listeners with success stories of how the pro-life movement is gaining momentum on college campuses across Louisiana.

Once again, I would like to remind everyone to go to the Louisiana Students for Life website and register - only $15 - immediately! The conference schedule is posted, and I am very passionate as I know personally and have spoken with several of the groups sending speakers! It an SEC off-weekend, so no football excuses! Be there October 27th and 28th at LSU's campus to stand for our generation, to raise a voice for a group of people that cannot speak up for themselves: The Unborn.

If you need help getting to the conference or if I can in any way assist you, e-mail me at (jclayt4@lsu.edu).

Radio Show: I Need YOUR Help

Friends,

Through my work with Louisiana Students for Life, a last-minute opportunity has come up for a couple of my fellow students and I to be guests on a pro-life radio program tomorrow, Thursday evening, October 4th from 7:30-8:30 p.m.

I will be calling in at 7:30 p.m. via phone. However, I am looking for a land line, as opposed to a cell phone, to ensure a good connection. I would be much-obliged if I could use your phone for that hour. I would also need a quiet room. If you would like to help, email me at (jclayt4@lsu.edu), Facebook me, or respond to this blog post under "Comments" (depending on whether you're reading the weblog or Facebook note version of this).

Thanks!
Bean

Lsatious

The past couple weeks feel like they've been busy, but in a good way. Louisiana Students for Life work constantly beckons: loads of phone calls, lots of officer meetings at the "Hampton inn", and Amanda and I even taking a mid-week trip to Louisiana Tech in Ruston to talk to the pro-life club there (8 hours of driving that day!). I've had several tests recently, as can be expected (you know, the whole college thing). I'm finally back into a meager workout routine of weightlifting twice per week with "the boys", playing racquetball once or twice per week with Amanda and playing soccer on Fridays (and apparently I'm signed up to an intramural team now, as well). We went to Mississippi to visit with my grandparents and to New Orleans to visit Amanda's friends recently. The thing that occupied my mind and energy the most for the last two weeks was the LSAT (Law School Admissions Test). It's hard. No matter how much I studied, the "Games" section always kicked my buttocks (don't let the name of the section deceive you). After over 5 hours at a desk in Allen Hall, I returned home to watch Lord of the Rings with my wife. Ah, life is good. Oh to be LSATious no more.