Fun Email Storehouse

So I have created a new blog for a couple different reasons. This new blog will be a repository of forwarded emails that have funny joke, funny pictures, crazy stories, etc....Sort of an public archive of what some people may call junk mail, but others love and love to forward. I have attached some ads to try to generate some cash flow, though I'm sure it will be minuscule. Go check it out. Its in my links section as Fun Email Storehouse. I there is also an email address on that page that you can forward any "fun" emails to that you want me to consider for addition to the list, or if you know me and have my address you can feel free to send it there. I have already posted the 3 or 4 I have gotten in the last several days. Check it out and let me know what you think.

Strange Delaware - Chicken Fighting

This day in 2006 in the state of Delaware:

Two men were arrested for cruelty to animals near Laurel when thirty-five others gathered at their cockfight. In addition, thirteen fighting cocks were confiscated by authorities.

Some may find it interesting that Chicken Farming is in the top five industries in the state of Delaware. It is highly concentrated in Sussex county and home of many plants ryn by companies such as Perdue and Mountaire Farms. I mention this because it doesn't surprise me to find such a barbaric activity such as cockfighting here. What I find more interesting is that it is apparently illegal to own birds who fight and to hold an event where they fight, but it isn't illegal to gather to watch that fight. What's up with the 35 people who were there? I would imagine that if you held them accountable as well, it would really be hard for would be chicken event promoters (Don "Chicken ala" King) to get people to come and watch such a horrible event. Strange I say.

By the way, there is a funny story about the lady with the chicken above. I may blog about it in the future if people are interested.

The Westminster Larger Catechism Q1

Question 1: What is the chief and highest end of man?

Answer: Man's chief and highest end is to glorify God, and fully to enjoy him forever.

Why did the Westminster Assembly of Divines choose this to be the first question in the larger catechism? Interesting thought, at least to me. I must admit I have not completed enough research or gained enough insight into the actual workings of the assembly to say I know the answer, but I will present some conjecture on my interpretation. Let me start with an examination of the words they used in their documents. I do this because specific words are used for specific reasons. I think that many times modern readers don't quite understand the language of the past and so they just assume certain things. The nuance of language needs to be taken seriously, especially in documents of religious import (though not as important as actual scripture.)

The first question in the Westminster Catechism asks what mans chief end is. The word "man" is not used to exclude women, but is used to identify the whole of humanity. Many today would use this term humanity or perhaps humankind in a politically correct pattern of speech. Regardless, the Divines are saying that we are all included. Those born male and female are part of this discussion.

The phrase “chief and highest end” isn't that widely used in modern day speech, so it could be hard for us to understand its meaning in today’s vernacular. I looked the word "end" up in the Webster’s online dictionary. The definitions that I believe apply are below:

• 2a: c (2) the ultimate state
• 4a: an outcome worked toward b: the object by virtue of or for the sake of which an event takes place

These definitions inform our understanding of the statement above. Man's highest "state" or our highest "outcome, or objective" is what the question seeks to determine. I can remember many examples in books and movies in which this very same concept is explored. It surprises me at how many times this theme is explored in the pages of science fiction. For example, the very first Star Trek movie is a tale that deals with a sentient machine that wants to understand who it is in regards to the universe. What was its chief end? What was its purpose for existence? Many if not most of the time, these authors and storytellers get the answer wrong and look to the internal person for the answer.

In the catechism's first question, the Divines feel that we need to get this out of the way first so that we are not examining the rest of the catechism from a selfish internal point of view. It is rightly establishing from the beginning that our understanding and experience of Christ centered theology is just that, centered on Him and not us. There is no room for self at the center, only the Trinity. Our chief end is to worship God first and then to enjoy him. His purpose is not for us to enjoy Him, and then give Him worship because of that enjoyment. He deserves the worship regardless of our enjoyment, but through his purposes the result of that worship is a benefit to us in enjoyment. The moment we take the Trinity from the center of our focus and place it elsewhere, we have moved ourselves into the place of honor. Then the chief end is to glorify self. Our selfishness moves us away from the truth and helps perpetuate the lie that leads to separation from and inability to satisfy our real chief end...."to Glorify God and fully to enjoy Him forever."

Lord, help me to realize that my chief end is not to glorify myself. My goal in life is the expansion of Your worship in my own life and the lives of others through to declaration of Your Gospel. Allow me to constantly enjoy you through discovery and rediscovery of the depth of your grace and mercy revealed through worshipping you in my daily life, not just the Sunday service. Be lifted up Lord as we bow down.

New Blog Series

Hello Friends,
I have decided that there are some things that I want to do this year and things that I have to do this year. Here is a quick recap:

1. War on Debt
2. Teach/Lead a program on leadership to our teens at church
3. Loss more weight
4. Continue to grow in my faith and maturity
5. Be more disciplined

And there are many others. To help me with #4 I have decided to work through a study of the Westminster Confession of Faith as well as the Catechism. I constantly want to know what I beleive and why I beleive it (to quote one of my favorite programs "The White Horse Inn"). So I figured I would blog my way through the questions. I'll try to do at least one a week, if not more frequently. If you don't know what the Catechism on the confession are, here is a link to some historic context.

The Blame Game

I had the opportunity to lead worship this past week at church. It is an absolute privilege to do this, but it is also extremely stressful. There are a bevy of details to keep in the air, and I haven't been doing it enough to accomplish this. I have always dropped at least one ball during the morning. This week the ball I dropped was in the responsive reading. I had chosen Psalm 51. We were reflecting on the Lords mercy. We also had a challenging list of songs to practice and I didn't realize until 5 minutes before the service that I neglected to rehearse it. This was a bad thing because we discovered that the slides were missing sever sections that the congregation was to read. The people on stage (who look at the back wall) we reading, but the congregation was silent. I knew immediately what was wrong. What do I do but trudge ahead. This made me a bit frustrated. The person who prepared the slides had made a obvious error and I immediately wanted to express that to them. Fortunately the presence of several hundred people made this an unwise decision.

So as I check my email later that night, the music minister reminded me that the slides were wrong and that as the leader for the morning it was ultimately my fault (since I didn't rehearse them). He was right, but it made me think about how we constantly want to find someone else who is to blame for sins and problems. Even though this person did make a mistake, I shaared in it. It was my mistake too. As sinners we try to minimize out role and maximize another's blame. This is no more clearly demonstrated than when God asks Adam what he has done and he immediately blames the woman God gave him. Adam was blaming Eve and God and totally removing himself from the equation. He may have said it like this, "God, it was Eve who gave me the apple, and remember I didn't ask for her to be here, You thought it was a good idea. If you hadn't created her, this never would have happened. I take no responsibility for this." And so we have all learned this from our father Adam and implemented this winning strategy in our lives. This is so subtle and a sin, and so profound a problem even in our Church's and our families, and our jobs and our relationships. Lord have Mercy on Us/Me.

You Just Never Know ....

So I was recently checking out some stuff on You Tube. I was randomly searching
for things I remembered from my youth and made a discovery that has now made me
really feel.....well ......disapointed. In 1983 I was 11 and I used to love to
watch a show called Kids Incorporated. I loved music and I really loved singing
along with the TV. We didn't have a Disney channel then or cartoon network (dad
didn't believe in cable), so this is the stuff I saw when it was on the local
syndication stations (chanel 17 to those in the Philly area who remember). Watch
these two videos and then I'll explain. WARNING: Cheese factor is
high



Yep, you may recognize one of those kids if you know your eightys music. Thats Martika of the song Toy Soldiers fame, but we all
knew she was on that show. Take special note of the lead singer in this song,
here is where I was surprised.



Cute little girl huh? I don't really know whats up with the broom and the clown, but the eighties was a strange time. So anyway, imagine my surprise when I learned that she grew up to be this!!! The world is strange.
 

 

2006 Year in Review

So I have been asked by some of you for some follow-ups to a few of my past posts, and I feel obliged to answer your request. I'll also throw in some info that wasn't bloged about in order to be thorough. First lets look at some of my posts.

Cell Phone Saga (Cingular HTC 3125)
I received my new phone a few days after my post. It actually arived the day after I completed my order. Talk about a quick mail time. It certainly wasn't snail mail. The phone itself is GREAT! I love it. Its sleek and compact. It isn't a brick like a blackberry, and I love flip phones. I have just now started to explore its full potential. I just installed Outlook on my computer and have succesfully synched the phone. I've transfered seveal pictures to the phone and they look awesome on the phones large screen. I also transferred some mp3's I had to the phone. I think I am going to remove them though because the music player controls are on the outside of the phone and I have accidentally turned Windows Media Player on while it was in my pocket. This is bad, especially in church or in a meeting. I have my iPod for music and it really isn't neccesary to be on the phone. The camera on the phone is good, but not spectacular. What is the best is that I have entered some much info in the calendar that I feel I am finally getting organized. When I flip the phone open, it displays the next event scheduled and so I always know "whats next." It also gives a reminder message within a preset timeframe. Pretty standard stuff for a smart phone, but it is what I have needed. Of course this phone is not as feature packed or business oriented as a blackberry or a treo, but to run your personal life it is just fine. Sleek, compact, functional and pretty cool looking. Everyone who sees it seems to think its one of the cooler phones they have seen. So far it seems like a good purchase.

LCD TV Update
I did not receive any gift cards to Best Buy for Christmas, and though my plan to accumulate redemtion points on my visa is underway, it will take a while. I have decided in 2007 to declare war on my debt, and so a purchase of this sort just isn't called for at this time. My current TV is more than sufficient. I don't have High Def cable and the room a LCD would save me isn't worth more debt at this time. I still want one, but I need to be smart about this acquisition. In time, but maybe not for quite some time.

Weight Loss
I hit a snag in my plans. It was the Christmas holiday. It was sooooo hard to behave during the holiday, especially when everyone you know gives you cookies and has parties full or treats. I just gave up, but I am back on the horse now. I have a followup appointment with my surgeon in March to see how things are going. I have a goal of lossing another 40lbs before then. I think I can do it, I just need to be disiplined. Pray for me here.

My Computer
I still want a Mac, but as with the LCD I don't need it. With the help of Danny boy I upgraded the RAM on this computer for about $80 and my performance improved dramatically. I also uninstalled MS Office and many other programs I rarely use. I cleaned up the registry and I think I am in good shape for a while. I still want a Mac though. Maybe some day, but for now I just need to stick with what I have. You know, with the war on debt and all.

Missions Trip to Spain
The trip is on. Our music minister sent a letter to the whole church asking for them to support us. There are 8 of us going and we need to raise $2000 each to make this happen and in a short time. The letters just went out, so anyone out there reading this who wants to support this trip or wants more info, just drop me a line. We really need your support

Church Life
My post about the christian marketing philosophy ala Rick Warren started a good sting of conversation. That was exciting, and I appreciate the contributions. I am going to try to write more about issues such as this in the year to come.

Things Not Posted About, But Happend in 2006

• I lots my favorite bath towel at Harvey Cedars Bible Conference on our youth group retreat in October. It was a really great oversized towel (I'm a big guy). Now I find myself using one of the smaller towels I own. Booo
• I've lost 70lbs over the course of the year. Great start, but gotta keep going.
• Made many new friends through the Presbytery singles ministry. That is always a great thing.
• I was appointed to the board of MARK INC Ministries. This is a great privelege, and a challenge as we take a media ministry and navigate the new waters of the Web 2.0 culture to send the message of Christ to the world. The future of media deleivery is changing all the time and we want to be at the front of the curve. I have a presentation to our board and operations committee this month about how to do this.
• I bought a condo. This was a huge step for me. I like it a lot, but everything has room for improvement. I now need to make up my mind on exactly the things to change and then make wise financial decisions about when to do those things.
  

I think thats it for now. I may blog later this week about my goals for 2007. I really want to put some more thought into some of them, because once posted they are something I need to be held accoutable to. I think this will be a great year.

Remembering Who Is The Boss in 2007

Its New Years Eve. The night each year when ordinary people think about the future and how to change it. I'm not talking about a science fiction story or a visit to the psychic friends, I am talking about the very real sense in which we dream about the year to come. Dream? Absolutely, we dream. We dream about how to change things. We dream about our hopes and our fears and our triumphs. The interesting thing is that the roads leading to these dreams are the reflections of our past. We look back at all our decisions, some good and some bad. We see the mistakes and missteps, and the successes and the victories. This is a necessary activity because we learn from experience as well as from being taught.

Wouldn't it be easier if we could just be told what is right, and then we would act on it? It would, but we can't. Its not in our nature to submit to the authority and knowledge of another and especially God. We see this in Genesis when Adam and Eve were told what to do, and they made the decision to not “go with the sure thing.” They decided that they knew what was better. They backed the wrong horse as the saying goes. Satan sat there and fed them lies and they chose to do their own thing. “No thanks God, we got a great thing going here, but we could be like you so we'll see you on our terms.” Dumb.

Now I look back at my life and see all the ways in which I jumped at what I wanted to hear, or what I concocted in my own reckoning was right. I've made mistakes, and I've been selfish. I've made the mistake of being a truth unto myself. Dumb.
Here are some of my favorite Proverbs that remind me that my knowledge is insufficient to the task of running my own life.

Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisors they succeed.
Proverbs 15:22

Counsel and sound judgment are mine; I have understanding and power.
Proverbs 8:14 (I added the emphasis)

For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them; but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm."
Proverbs 1:32-33

Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed is he who trusts in the LORD.
Proverbs 16:20

And from Jeremiah:
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11

These verses are just a few that remind me that God is the boss and that my decisions need to be based on what he desires. As this new year begins and I dream about things to come, I need to make sure that those dreams are in compliance with His will.

The Mind Is A Scary Place

I think I am going to start a semi-regular tag called Strange Delaware. In this tag I will discuss some strange things about the First State and some brief commentary on these events. Below is the first:

Today in Delaware History
December 29, 1983 After complaints of foul odors from neighbors, authorities entered the house of a Millsboro man whose body was found propped up in his bed. His 77 year old blind wife and 59 year old daughter denied that he was dead but said he was only under a spirit's spell. A medical exam found that he had been dead since 1980.


It never surprises me to hear about people that do strange things. Mental illness exists in this broken world and mentally ill people do weird and crazy things. What I find more interesting are the odd things groups of people are found to do. Lets look at the event above. Two grown women live with a decomposing man for three years insisting that he is alive. It is obvious that mental illness was involved here, but who was mentally ill? The easy answer is that both were. What a fascinating dynamic. How did they both come to this conclusion? Was one the leader and the other a follower? The human brain can be a very scary and strange place, and it shows that under the right circumstances and with the right stressors we can convince our of just about anything. Could these women have both been fully functional members of society until the father died? It is scary to think that at some point in your life, things could take such a dramatic twist.

Are You A Christian Or A Christ Follower

OK, I came across this video and it provoked some thought. Tell me what you think.


It brings to mind how many a Christian feels that they have to wear some sort of badge or participate in some activities to be a Christian. They need to read all the latest books, know all the latest catch phrases, and participate in all the latest Christian activities. The "industry" surrounding Christian community and education is just a targeted and profit driven as secular industry. They speak the same marketing language and have the same goals.....to turn a profit. The sad thing is that many people think that because they have read The Purpose Driven (insert noun here) that they are fulfilling their obligation to their commitment to Christ. Just another way to disguise works based salvation. I'm not saying that Christian material is bad, but we need to check ourselves constantly to make sure that we are Christ's disciples and not the disciples of the Pastor at the top of the best seller list that week.

An Exhausting Week

I am tired. I have had a really busy week, and it seems that sometimes the weekends are just as busy. It is so easy this time of year to get caught up in festivities, or even serving the Lord. I tend to pack my days with so many "good things" that I crowd out down time. Down time isn't the only casualty of this crammed schedule. The routine things of life that give us structure get pushed to the side in favor of the festive or the perceived immediate need.

I have shared recently about my desire to exercise more and to avoid sugar. This needs to be routine, but as with many other things it hasn't even made it to "routine" yet It has suffered from my packed holiday schedule like some other important things in my life. My blog is another thing that has suffered. I want this to be routine (in a good way), but running to this place and that has left me mentally drained to the point that when I am home I just want to sleep or veg.

I need to be more disciplined with my decisions on what to do with my time. So all you prayer warriors out there, send one up for me on this.

Is Pneumonia Not Sexy Enought?

There was a editorial from the science section of the New York Times in the last couple of days. It focused on Pneumonia and how it kills more people each year than Malaria and Aids around the world. There was an interview included with a Dr. who is part of an organization to raise money to increase vaccinations for children. The story really brought to light the lack of awareness of the effect of this disease and how if gets little press. This Dr. uses an interesting method to prove his point. He compared the number of deaths from a particular disease to the number of Google searches for that diseases name. What you see is an interesting correlation between the two. As the mortality rate for a disease increases, so would its Google searches. He had a chart that illustrates this very powerfully. The most interesting thing is that as you go up the mortality rate death toll and find Pneumonia, you see the Google searches drop dramatically.
My conclusion to this? Pneumonia isn’t political enough to have activist! AIDS is attached to a political movement closely associated with homosexual causes and they get a lot of press. Malaria is the bane of under developed countries where many human rights and poverty groups have their pet countries that they are trying to help. Is it possible that Pneumonia just isn’t interesting enough or it doesn’t have a big enough “hook” for the news networks to bother with? Pneumonia kills mostly children and the elderly, not people our society seems to value any longer. Now if only more celebrities and sports stars would contract Pneumonia, maybe we would actually see how this killer is more of a threat to the world than the AIDS virus.
Just to be clear, I am not saying that we should ignore AIDS or Malaria, I’m just saying that we should focus a little more on Pneumonia and its possible devastation of civilization. A pandemic is not our of the question.

Hanging With The Girls

Last night I had the privilege to sing at the annual Ladies Christmas T.E.A. at my church (GRPC). T.E.A. stands for Tuesday Evening Away and is a pep rally of sorts for all the women’s ministry that happens at GRPC and an evening for moms and daughters. Men in the church serve tea and deserts on china that table hosts bring and set up form their own china collections. There were about 400 women there last night. Not bad. This was the 16th T.E.A. event we have had and I have been privileged to be involved in many of those over the years. What can I say, the women of my church love to invite me to their events. I joke that the WIC committee hopes that the more they expose me to mass numbers of ladies, the more chance I will get married. It hasn’t worked yet, but if this is their sinister plan I applaud the effort.

The Not So Incredible Shrinking Me

As many of my family and friends know, I had Gastric Banding on 3/23/06. At my max weight I was at 430lbs and as I weighed myself this morning I am 364lbs. This gives me a net loss of 66lbs since the surgery. Not to shabby, but also not what I want. Why am I revealing something so personal about myself to the world? That would be because I am tired of the stagnation. I effectively stopped losing weight at the beginning of July. This isn’t because the surgery failed, but because I have been cheating the system. I lost the lions share of the weight in the first 4 months, and have be bouncing around in the same ten pound range ever since then. After the initial change and restrictions of post surgery, I started to do the one thing that is a no no in this process. I began to consume sugar. That’s right, the Great Satan of body weight management. I do have the ability to consume less overall food than before, but the food choices are the problem. Cakes and candy and Arnold Palmers with sweetened lemonade, these are the things that are stopping me. But wait, these aren’t the only issues; I also have not been exercising. I was encouraged to walk, just walk after the surgery. I haven’t seriously done this. I do have a legitimate issue with pain in my hip, but it should be overcome and not used as an excuse. So I am cutting the sugar and I have begun to walk on my treadmill. Last night I did 12 minutes and broke a good sweat. I’m shooting for 15 minutes tonight, and my ultimate goal is 45 minutes 5 days a week. I will be posting regular weight loss updates and ask you to pray and ask me how things are going. I need the encouragement.

RAV

Take a Bite Out of the Apple

I am rapidly approaching a point in which I will be forced to purchase a new computer. Now I have a laptop provided by my employer that I can use to work from home on occasion, and I have my desktop. My desktop crawls. I had it wiped and reloaded and it is still a dog. I just finished an online course provided by cnet.com on how to tweak you XP computer for speed and I have seen very little difference in the changes I have made. Its frustrating to me. So here is my dilemma, to Mac or not to Mac? I have become captivated with the Mac and am seriously thinking about going to that platform. Below is a list of things that I do regularly with my computer. Blog Use itunes. Surf the web Check my email Download pictures form camera and phone Use Skype Use Microsoft Office
All these things seem to be easy to do on a Mac just as with a PC. What to do….what to do? I am thinking sometime in February this will have to happen. Thoughts? Anyone?
I am also a little bit nostalgic for the very first computer I ever used....the Mac SE. I used this in highschool to learn how to use pagemaker for layout and design. WOW have things come a long way. It didn't even have a color screen. Check out these pictures.

Cubic Zirconium - Cheap or Beutiful

I was listening to a podcast on my way to work this morning in which the hosts were talking about how Apple has submitted a patent for a possible use in a rumored iPhone case made of Cubic Zirconium (CZ). OF course during the course of the conversation, one of the females on the show talked about how she would dump her man if he gave her a CZ ring. This made me wonder.

A CZ is definitely man made (except in very rare occurrences in nature), but it is also mega beautiful and has many of the same properties as a diamond. In actuality a CZ has more fire than a diamond does. So why would a woman dump a guy who gave her one? I would guess there are multiple reasons, some good and some bad. I think the culprit is that we as a culture have connected love and money. We have place value on love. The diamond industry has successfully integrated into our culture the notion that true love requires a monetary investment to prove itself. If you love a girl, then you buy an expensive piece of jewelry to prove it to her. Does this pervert love at its core? Does this valuable expression actually devalue love in some way? Diamonds were given because they were beautiful and precious, they still are beautiful but they are widely available. Now a CZ is arguable more beautiful, but less desirable. Just makes me wonder. I guess I need to set up a savings account specifically meant to buy a diamonds so that some day I don't get dumped.
RAV

Why They Think We Are Idiots

Its taken me a week to really focus my thoughts on a meeting I attended from a group that purports to train individuals on defending the creationist position. I have to say that I was less than impressed. Perhaps I caught them on an off night, perhaps not. My biggest frustration is that if this is the caliber of argument that a Christian is expected to present when confronted by an evolutionist, it is no wonder they think we are idiots (see cartoon )

The meeting started with what I am sure is a well meaning God fearing older gentleman sharing a testimony on an article he read in the paper the past week. This article talked about the orbits of certain planets and their location in comparison to the sun during a rare eclipse. His proof that the Big Bang was false could be found in the precision of the orbits of the planets. Why? Because the big bang was an explosion and something as orderly as the orbits could not come form an explosion. That's it....nothing about gravity and the attraction that large dense stars exert. This is anecdotal evidence at best. Now I am not saying that I believe in the Big Bang, but I am saying that if you are going to get into defending a biblical 7 day creation position, you can't use sentimentalism. You need to talk in facts and theory based on good assumptions. The proponents of the Big Bang would say that from a gravitational singularity there was a big bang that continues to expand the borders of the universe. They say this happened 13.7 billion years ago, and that over that time the gravity of larger objects have pulled smaller objects into orbits. From a scientific point of view this is compelling, but you can't defend against it by saying that order can't come from an explosion. If you take dynamite and stick it into a hill and detonate it you will get chaos....for a time. Then the dirt settles and you get structure, maybe different that before but order has been restored. I have no doubts the Big Bang is flawed, but this defense will never cut it if we want to actually compete in the realm of ideas.

The special guest speaker for the evening was a gentleman who was an associate pastor from the Philadelphia area. He wasn't an academic, and he wasn't a scientist. He was a theologically trained pastor. He had recently written a book on evolution and he was "exposing it for the fraud it was." I was hoping that this man would present the scientific approach that was needed to enter the intellectual discussion on the topic. I was disappointed. His presentation was an overview of his book, and it was again full of information where it was obvious that good research techniques were not done or the information that was presented was to evoke a emotional response. One example was a recent discovery of what looked like human skeletal remains of two hands. These remains were fossilized (a rare find). They were also found near some dinosaur fossils, another rare occurrence. Some scientist have theorized that they weren't human hands but large sea turtle fins. This pastor bragged about how he used a google picture search to find human skeletal hands. He then used this picture to convince us that they were human. What would have really pushed this point home was if he had shown us the a picture of actual sea turtle fins, but he didn't. Perhaps they were sea turtles, but because of the point he wanted to make, he only searched the evidence until he found what he wanted. He interspersed his talk with slides of school children and their learning evolution in public schools and a program to take these kids for an hour a day and teach them creationism and how they are coming to Christ as a result. That's great, but how does it expose evolution as false. His biggest argument spread throughout the presentation was that evolution was a natural promoter of racism, and because Hitler, and Stalin were racist, that evolution was barbaric....ergo false. His logic was impossible to flow on some of his points and it felt like he was trying every way to emotionally convince us that evolutions were completely evil. What really peeved me was the way he continually used scripture out of context to support whatever slide he was on. He was eisegetically preaching on creationism and doing the scripture a disservice.

It really shouldn't surprise me. Since the days of Finney the church has been using emotional arguments and sentimentalism to forward its agenda. Whats worse is that the only agenda the church should have is to declare the gospel. I can't help but feel that all these side issues are Satan's way of distracting us from that goal. We get so stuck on extending the general grace of the church to society that we forget to be the messengers of God's special grace to individuals. I know that their are intelligent men and women who are out there debating the position of creationism with fervor and intelligence, but people such as those I saw last week are hurting us more than they are helping.

Mission Alert - Spain

I am a bit excited and nervous. I have been asked to join a team of musicians that will be going to Spain in February. We will be ministering at a missionary women's conference. What a privilege to have an opportunity to use music to minister to those in the mission field. I don't have to many of the details at this time, but I do know that I will have to raise support for the trip. I will most likely have to raise somewhere in the neighborhood of $1500 - $2000. If any of my faithful readers want to contribute, send me a note.

I'll post more details as I discover them, and please pray for me. I am not afraid to fly for the most part, but I am nervous in flying post 9/11. The world is a crazy place. So please pray for me on this. Also pray that the team would be united in spirit and purpose, and that we would be a blessing to those we will minister to.

Phone Saga Update

Our mail room guy just brought my new phone up. I feel like a kid with a new toy, but grrrrrrr I have to charge it for 8 hours before I use it. That is frustrating. Oh well, at least I can watch it charge at my desk the rest of the day. Just a random thought, MC_Shann (link to his blog on my links) and I are hanging out tonight at Starbucks with our crew. That should be fun. Last night we went to a meeting of a local group that defends creationism. I have some strong feelings on this that I am definately going to share, but its too much for this little update. Check back for it soon.

My Quest for a Flat Panel TV

I purchased a one bedroom condo back in January. Why not a condo? I’m busy and single, so not having to care for a yard, and having limited space aren’t my biggest concerns. I just need enough room for me, and the occasional visit from friends. I am also extremely anti-clutter and at least once a year I perform a ritual that involves throwing lots of stuff out (although lately I have a business arrangement with a friends wife to sell this stuff on eBay.) Because of my space constraints, I am constantly adjusting furniture placement and space usage in search of that mythical sweet spot of functionality and style (as much as a man can have style.) To this end, I have determined that my 32-inch Sony Wega TV is just too darn big for my space. I have had it about 1 ½ years and it has served me well, but I need the space. I have determined, after some research that I desire a 32 inch LCD flat panel TV. The front-runner in this quest is the Sharp AQUOS 32" Flat-Panel LCD HDTV. Take a look:



My speed bump in this process is that I am a bargain hunter and I don’t like to buy things, unless their coolness factor overpowers my better judgment. So I have come up with a brilliant (or mad) plan and that plan is…….Christmas! No, I am not asking for the TV for Christmas, but I am asking that those who usually give me gifts give a Best Buy gift card. I know that this will in no way total the cost of the TV, but I have a 2nd part to this plan. That is reward points. My bank checking account provides me with reward points for every purchase. At different point levels I earn different rewards. My bank offers this for free so it cost me nothing to participate. The redemption level that I am interested in is 20,000 points. That would earn me a $200 gift card to, yes that’s correct, Best Buy. I have 4500 points accumulated so far. I just need to use this card the entire Christmas season for my own purchases to build the point total up. My third part of this plan involves convincing my friends who may have large Christmas purchases to make, to allow me to make them for them and then they reimburse me. This will increase the money flowing through my checking account and thus increasing my points total. It’s a brilliant plan. Now if only I can make it happen. I’ll update my TV posts as we go along. My goal is to acquire this TV sometime in January. Check back faithful readers.