Weekend Reading

I am still pretty worn out from DST (as John Locke or Daniel Faraday would say, “When am I?”) and my road trip (2000 miles/30+ hours in four days).  Trying to rest and get things together.  Maybe I will blog more next week.  Or maybe I am in one of those blog-valleys, which is fine.  I am not a slave to the blog.  I do it for fun.

My boy turns 5 this weekend.  Snowman party on Saturday with a house full of kids–Birthday Observed. My crafty wife has been making a snowman pinata.  Cool. Pictures will be forthcoming. Official birthday on Sunday.

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This guy makes some bleak predictions about Christianity in America, but you never know.

This guy makes comments on the first guy’s thoughts.  Are churches of Christ in the same ark?  What do you think of his “Evangelical Bailout Package”?

This guy never has an off day (blogwise). Always makes me think.  Always writes great stuff.   An excerpt to whet your appetite:

The culture wars are one example of the resulting massive failure. For instance, teen pregnancy is a serious issue, but have we addressed it systemically? Or have we fought  it with slogans, exhortations, and targets?

This is amusing.  And does point out some differences in our culture and Biblical reality.  Of course, I love satire. “If Galatians had been written today“.

Speaking of satire, can’t remember if I have linked to this before, but you should read it.  If Jesus had a blog.  Plus, he adds bogus comments that poke fun at (stereo)typical commenters.

The first three are heavier reading so let’s just leave it at that for this week.

Have a great weekend and an even better week beginning!

Weekend Reading

I usually would have done this on Friday, but Fridays are dead and I was busy.  I know that there isn’t much action on the weekends but I really need to clean-up my bookmarks.  So, here they are:

Deadspin is a site that has non-sports news about sports figures.  Expect a lot about A-Rod.

Socks dies and a nation snores, er, I mean mourns.  Who will take a stand to respect the lives of sick kitties? How can we sleep with Jack Kevorkians at every Vet’s office?!  OH! THE FELINITY!!

I enjoyed this psychological analysis of the President.  Not because I believe he is a Narcissist, but because I think I recognized some people I know by these symptoms.

Persecution in China.  It’s a woman writing.  Kate, they need you!

If this is totally true, I am worried: “Your Congress has voted to spend almost $790 billion of your money on a stimulus package that not a single member of either chamber has read.”

This is my favorite dessert at the Indian Food Buffet I frequent as often as I can afford.  Galub Jamun

Apparently, everyone else already knew about www.hulu.com.  I have been watching old Three Stooges eps for FREE.

This is a little heavy on the toes but a good point: The Sin of Prayerlessness

If someone wants to buy me this toy, I would let you.  I know, it’s sad.  But he is my favorite soccer player ever.

This is sad and awful.  Christians need to stand up and speak out against this. If you think he got what he deserved, you are not a Christian.  And, yes, I do believe homosexuality is a sin.

10 Worst Habits of Preachers (watch out Trey, this guy is messing with your territory)

John Mark Hicks’ blog never lets us down: I am a Patternist

Why Most Churches Suck (pardon his french)

I haven’t seen Fireproof yet but it is still making waves (good ones)

The dangers of “smooth preaching” (don’t think I have ever been accused of being smooth)

Greek and Hebrew in the Pulpit? william mounce

Bobby V has been on a roll of late, blogging about baptism and sectarianism.  Make sure you check him out.

These next few were from Time’s top 25 blogs list:

• Zen Habits:  organization
• Slashfood (wendy, definitly check this out):
• Detention Slip:  Education news

Doc Jensen at EW recap of Lost “316″

Here is an excerpt.  Read the entire article HERE.  There is more about the Bible, Christianity, Kierkegaard, Ulysses, and Narnia in the article.

Watch the videos someday, as well.  They are funny.

It was certainly an episode explicit and implicit with deep thoughts and wild possibilities, but they were all in service of an ironic mission: Bringing Lost back down to terra firma after five episodes of challenging, far-out time-travel storytelling. ”316” — that was the title, and for many more reasons than one — was a proverbial pilot episode for a whole new chapter of the show. It effectively returned the series to a place where all fans — the in-too-deep geeks like me who want meaty mythological disclosures, as well as the normal people who just want powerful, character-driven stories — can find some common-ground appreciation. By reuniting the castaways in the setting we all know and love, and by conspicuously omitting key details from various character arcs (Why did Hurley change his mind? Who was that woman with Sayid? How did Ben get roughed up?) that will surely require some traditional flashback storytelling in order to fully reveal, Lost’s time-traveling, time-looping, Back to the Future fifth season has now gone all Season 1 on us.

-Jeff Jensen, ew.com

Preachers and Sex (updated)

Lots of people have been blogging about it, lately.  And it is infinitely more interesting than division, fellowship, arguments, progressives and traditionalists.

Maybe it’s the answer.  If more preachers got more sex, they wouldn’t be online all the time and might be in a better mood to discuss important matters in a more relaxed atmosphere.

We do need to preach the good, bad and ugly about sex.  Okay, maybe I don’t know what I mean by ugly…at least the positive teaching of Scripture along with the dangers of abusing the gift.

Here’s some reading:

Problem of Internet Pornography (wouldn’t it be great if there were as many articles on the web exposing the dangers and evil of porn as there is porn itself?)

A Preaching on Why Preachers are Susceptible to Adultery

Preachers Blogging about Sex

Preachers Preaching about Sex

Preachers Upset about Other Preachers having Illicit Sex (Warning:  Explicit and Adult.  Righteous Indignation will often cause us to speak frankly.  And that’s okay.)

Satan Blogging about Preachers having Illicit Sex (thanks, Trey for the link): Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Weekend Reading

The weekend is almost over, but I wanted to share some interesting stuff on the web.  Much of this was found and recommended by others on Twitter or somewhere.  I bookmarked them, then forgot who found them.  Sorry.

A Wonderful Illustration for the Process of Sanctification

The Dirty Word of Modern Evangelicalism

An Amazing Blog by a sister who has been through a lot and is brave and humble enough to even blog about her own abortion.

Missing Atheist Sign: Maybe I am alone here among Christians, but in America shouldn’t atheists have rights to display stuff?

What Grievers Don’t Want/Need to Hear

Weekend Readings

Read your Bible. Assemble with Christians on Sunday. Have a great weekend!

A little something for everyone today. More variety than usual.

I don’t know if you have to be an English major like me to enjoy this, but here:
Idiom Shortage Leaves Nation all Sewed up in Horse Pies

Another good piece of the Onion mocking Starbucks:
Starbucks opens in Restroom of Starbucks

Gallup, Religion and The Election 2008 from USAToday.com

All the Fuss about Orpah’s Religion/Church
Oprah’s Soul Series (Too bad it’s not about Jackie Wilson and Marvin Gaye)
Table of Contents and opening pages of Eckhart Tolle’s book, A New Earth

Laugh? Cry? Stare off into space? I don’t know how to react to this study that says being spanked as a child leads to aggressive and inappropriate sexual behavior as an adult. Abuse, sure, but Biblical Discipline? At the least the foto is amusing.

Buddhist monks flirting online. This was just bound to happen.

Fake responses to the news of Favre’s retirement. My fav was Cameron Diaz.

Yet another naturalistic explanation for the amazing things in the Bible. Moses was trippin’ on Mt Sinai.