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Showing posts from January, 2006

Must We Be a People of Extremes

There are always people on both sides of the issue. Yes, I will endeavor a trip into the well-travelled blog-world of "The End of The Spear." I tread cautiously, as well. I must say I was caught by surprise at the casting of someone of Chad Allen's caliber, or lack thereof. The 'extremes' in the title refer to the reactions I have seen by Christians. You have the 'militant group' who want to rectify the issue by having Allen kicked off the cast, or something like that. I'm not sure for what they are exactly pushing. I made a trip into a Crossway book store today to buy a Bible for a friend I am trying to disciple. Sorry, I went for the Holman CSB. (But back to the real issue.) As I went to check out, I saw that above the register there was a "The End of Spear " display, stocked with t-shirts, posters, and the like. Once again, I am not surprised by this, but maybe a little bit dismayed. This scene always creates a rather painful chuckle on my

When in Rome...

You have heard that it was said, "When in Rome, do as the Romans." I am not sure who goofed, but the Vice President of the USA made a major fashion faux pas while visiting President Mubarak of Egypt. "Uhh, excuse me Mr. Vice President...Mr. Vice President, I don't think your shoes go with your suit."

CHARITY Stripe (you're not kidding)

Clemson and Duke did battle today, in what turned out to be a solid college basketball game. Duke ended up winning the game by 10 to improve to 16-0. (The last time they went 17-0 was in 1991 - Duke's first college basketball title year) The key stat in the game was free throws, hence the title. Duke shot their normal 80% for the game, going 29-36. Clemson, on the other hand, shot a miserable 6-22 for the game. I'm not a profession analyst, but I don't think you'll beat any elite team with that kind of shooting. I'm sure i'll have to endure the usual excuses from UNC fans. (this time i'm prepared !!! Yes, I have this shirt.) NO, you are not allowed to say that if Clemson makes 11 more free throws, they win the game. That is not a valid logical argument. You can't be certain all other factors would remain constant. Regardless, it still helps when a team shoots 27% from the free-throw line. Yes, love was flowing in full force from the charity stripe. But h

Jeff Agoos Reincarnated

For those of you who don't know who Jeff Agoos is, he was a mainstay on the US men's team as well as a perennial contributor for several MLS teams. He was on 5 MLS Cup-winning teams, tops among MLS players. I've been watching soccer since 1999, and the memory that sticks out in my mind the most about Agoos is the 'amazing' own goal he scored against (for) Portugal in the 2002 World Cup. In addition to fouling a player in the penalty area, he lost his mark about as often as the whistle blew. OK, enough history. ( click here for more...very humorous read) This week, DC United defender Bobby Boswell was called into the US training camp because of an apparent dearth of defenders present. This is Boswell's first appearance in the US camp. This call-up follows a season in which Boswell scored 3 times. This is generally good for a defender, except for the fact that all three were OWN goals. Yes, Boswell is strikingly similar to Agoos. He has the distinct ability of ne

Book Review & Recommendation: Not Even A Hint

I suspect that many have read this book by Josh Harris. It has a changed title and cover design than it did when it first hit the shelves. It's now called Sex is not the Problem (Lust is). From what I read on his website that the cover was changed because Max Lucado wrote a book with the same basic cover design as Harris used several years prior on Not Even a Hint . (I guess I wouldn't want my writing confused with Lucado's either.) If you are out of your 20's, you may be tempted to think of Harris as just a teen writer, who is popular because he wrote a dating book. Let me assure you, this guy is solid. This book is, well...frank! He doesn't mince words. He probably is too open and honest to fit in most of the 'solid, fundamentalist' churches where I'm from. That is not a slap on the churches, but rather the type of Christians that seem to exist today. Harris trumpets the theme that without constant dependence on God's grace, you cannot see vic

Right Target, Wrong Focus (Part 1)

This is definitely a post where I am in water over my head, and I am struggling to stay afloat. Yet I cannot help but make a few observations. It is obvious that the word "worship" is being used an awful lot. You cannot look for 5 seconds in a Christian bookstore without the word getting your attention. Morning service is now called by some "worship." Right now, Worship is familiar to mostly all Christians, especially those in more progressive churches. What then is my criticism? Good question! I hope I know the answer. It seems that when the word worship it used, people give it attention. They treat anything with the worship label very differently. Now, it does not bother me that people are concerned about worship, or that they deem it important. However, maybe we are worshiping worship and not really worshiping God. Why do I say this? Lately, I get the idea that some people associate worship with an activity that involves a 'worshiped-labeled' item. Exam

A Long Read...But Worth It

This article contains much information and is quite lengthy, but Paleoevangelical makes some valid points regarding Traditional Fundy's, 'Questioning Fundy's', and New Evangelicals. Enjoy! Click here to read.

Highlights from Christmas Break!

This is mainly for the few friends that I have that actually check my site more than once or twice a year. (Note: that was not an official pity party!) Anyway, I just wanted to recap some of the best moments from the past 3 weeks while I have been home from college. These are in no particular order, for those of you who seek to read into absolutely everything! I drove a 2005 Corvette. It was my first time driving a machine like this. Christmas was on Sunday for the first time in quite a while. It was great to worship the Lord corporately on Christmas day. I went to a Duke basketball game at Cameron Indoor, quite possibly the most prestigious of all college basketball locales. A great friend of mine was too generous and kind in giving me those tickets. By the way, that day, January 2nd, was my birthday. (See "Durham Bound" for more details) The Lord was gracious to allow me to strengthen my relationship with Him. An award-winning essay would not even be close to being sufficie

Durham Bound!!!

If I were not a Christian, I would call this luck. However, since I believe in God and that He is sovereign and good, I call this a blessing from Him. It has been a lifelong dream of mine to watch Duke play in Cameron Indoor Stadium. (For those who don't know, that's men's college basketball) There is some irony that builds this story to its present moment. As I already mentioned, I have been a lifelong fan of the Blue Devils. (By the way, I have no moral qualms about liking a team called the Blue Devils...however, I do have a problem with placing anything-including sports-ahead of Christ -- just for the record!) Having always been a fan, I naturally wanted to see them play in the storied Cameron Indoor Stadium (capacity: 9,314). The tickets are incredibly difficult to get, because the students occupy approximately half of the seats. To make a long story short, this pair of tickets I got from a friend today makes the fourth set I have gotten. However, I was not able to go t

Straight from the Flyleaf

I hope in the coming months to post some good lyrics on my blog. This is the first entry, but hopefully there will be many more to come. I hope that these will be edifying, but also useful in private worship of the Lord. Many times, after spending time in the Word, meditation on a song rich in theology and meaning can be helpful. This song written by Shane Barnard captures the struggle we as Christians fight our whole spiritual life. I've often heard, if a Christian does not struggle with sin, either he's not saved, or he has chosen not to fight (and we won't begin to discuss the problems there). I hope these lyrics will be a help. "It haunts me so This gloomy weight That comes and goes Without a trace A thousand times my flesh embrace A thousand more but if for grace To see the Lord, the promise land Where in sins pearly gates look bland And what was once a pearl now sand That blows away in light of Him When battle lines become unclear And the waging war is all I hear