Monthly Archives: November 2008

Gimme

LOL

thankstaking

Seriously.

HT: Locomotive Breath 1901

Pimpin’ ain’ Easy

HiScrivener has a post on health-and-wealth crazies. Though the topic is very sad and makes me angry, I enjoyed his use of sarcasm and wit in the post.  My favorite: “Jackleg fools.”  Priceless.

Nothing New Under the Sun

H. Richard Niebuhr, writing many moons ago (in the 1930′s), gave the following summary of the liberal Christianity popular at the time:

“A God without wrath brought men without sin into a kingdom without judgment through the ministrations of a Christ without a cross.”

I find this a nifty summary of *parts* of the Emergent movement (the revisionist part).  Funny how there really is nothing new under the sun, even when its packaged as the new and fresh.

Around the Blogosphere

Michelle Malkin points to an absolutely hilarious news item: seems that sock puppets want in on the bailout action now, too.   True story.  All kidding aside, it does make a good point: when will the madness end? It seems like every 2-3 days, someone new is knocking on Big Bro’s door, prophesying doom and gloom if the government doesn’t bail them out. Malkin has seen this coming for quite some time. At first, I thought she was just being alarmist, but I gotta admit, I’m listening now.

Speaking of Malkin, she’s really on it today: she reports on another resignation due to support of proposition 8. This time it’s L.A. Film Festival Director Richard Raddon. I ask again: when will the madness end? I usually try to avoid using loaded words, but the phrase “witch hunt” is starting to sound like it actually applies. Someone just needs to stand strong and stare the bullies down. They are going to keep doing this until someone refuses to cower.

Here’s something that’ll wrap you around the axle: evidently, the crusade for diversity has now reached diseases. Political correctness has jumped the shark (as if it didn’t actually do that a long, long time ago).

Patterico reports about a hazing incident involving a high school cheerleading squad in Texas. The incident has resulted in criminal charges. A quote from the defense:

“ ‘Do teens sometimes use bad judgment?’ ” asked defense attorney Robert Fickman, who represents Garner, the varsity squad’s former mascot. ‘Sure they do. We all did. But sometimes bad judgment does not equate to a crime.’ “

I cannot judge as to whether or not the accused should be punished with criminal charges. Perhaps suspension of the cheerleading program for the remainder of the year is a fitting punishment. Actually, assuming that all the relevant information is being reported, it sounds fitting. However, here’s one thing that is conspicuously absent from the news report: accepting responsibility.

Well known by now: terror attacks in India.

This is horrifying to watch…for the moment, I can’t add any comments, though, so I’ll leave it at that.

Before I go, here’s a question for discussion: what do you think about Newsweek comparing Obama to Lincoln?

A Man who Changed the World

Albert McMakin, a 24 year old farmer, had just given his life to Christ the year before. He heard Dr. Mordecai Ham was coming to speak at a tent meeting. He was so exited that he invited countless friends and family members. Many of them agreed to come…except Billy.vegatable-truck1

Billy was the handsome, big-man-on-campus at the local high school. He didn’t have much interest or time for Jesus. Albert, though, was smarter than your average bear. He borrowed a truck from a friend and asked Billy to drive it. “You don’t even need to stay for the meeting,” said Albert, “just drive me to and from.” Since Billy didn’t have a vehicle of his own and desperately wanted to drive, he agreed to Albert’s proposition.

Billy stayed outside in the truck during the whole time, but he listened to Ham’s words. By the end of the tent meeting, though, Jesus had his hooks in him; young Billy Graham walked forward during the alter call and gave his life to Jesus Christ.

Yes, Billy Graham is a man who has changed the world; but that’s not who I’m referring to in the title of this post.

You’ve probably heard of Billy Graham, but have any of you heard of Albert McMakin? Chances are, the answer is no. However, his is no obscure name in the ledgers of heaven, for his enthusiasm and willingness to share the Good News of Christ to anyone willing to listen (and some, like Billy, who weren’t willing to listen) has rippled through eternity in a grandiose way.

How different would the world be had McMakin kept the Good News to himself?

Do you have an Albert McMakin in your life? I do. I actually have several, and if you take even one of them out of my life, the trajectory of my steps goes in a very different direction. I am eternally grateful for each one of them: Mr. Wenger, Travis, Steve, Matt, Yohan, and Darwin (Isn’t that ironic that one of the men who helped lead me to Christ is named “Darwin”! Ha! Take that, Richard Dawkins.).

Though sometimes fear and apathy get the best of me, It is men like these and stories like McMakin’s that keep me intent on speaking of Jesus whenever I can. May you be encouraged by his story in the same direction.

Linkapalooza Part II: My Favorite Blogs

Here are a list of my top 10 favorite blogs, with a link to a recent post I’ve enjoyed.  I’m on these folks sites almost every day:

10) Al Mohler:  this guy is a top notch evangelical intellect and he says it like it is.   He never, ever minces words, yet his comments are measured and thoughtful.  He’s always had very poignant commentary about our culture’s slide towards Gomorrah in our sexual ethic.

9) Boundless: Boundless is where I go when I need some perspective on the craziness amongst the unmarried. The comments alone are often worth the price of admission.

8) Flowrestling: their wrestling videos are a constant source of motivation for me as a coach.

7) Doug Geivett: his philosopher’s mind is able to get to the bottom line with ease.  He can smell loaded language from a mile away. I appreciate his ability to bring out key questions on issues in the media, questions that I often miss.

6) Hugh Hewitt: let’s face it; Hugh’s the man.  He has a vast amount of authority in the political sphere. I have benefited greatly from a few of his books.  He’s interviewed Christopher Hitchens a lot.  I don’t know how he does it.

5) Evangelical Outpost: like the quote to the side says, the blog is like Dante for those with ADD.  A few contributors from Biola…huzzah.

4) Michelle Malkin: she gets to news stories sooo quickly and regularly calls the MSM out on their bias.  I often see news from her before I see it anywhere else.  Her coverage of the anti-prop 8 madness has been stellar. She’s been pretty tough on the bailout stuff going on.

3) Scriptorium Daily: John Mark Reynolds’ writing style is friendly and penetrating.  He puts complicated arguments very succinctly.  (no link here…sorry folks.  The webpage was down at posting time…just click on it on my blogroll.)

2) Stand to Reason: I’m a Koukl clone.  Melinda, the blog’s main contributor, does a very good job of bringing apologetics and philosophy into the news of the day.

1) The Public Discourse: Robert George’s article on Obama’s abortion extremism woke me up to the high stakes of the election.  His argument was and is powerful, and I don’t see how any pro-lifer can disregard his arguments.

GAH!  Can’t reduce it to just 10.  LaShawn Barber’s Corner is another blog I’m on continually.  Like Mohler, she minces no words, but she has her own style.  I appreciate her backbone. Unlike most people today, she has one.  i also enjoy her perspective as a black female conservative.  She might (or might not) bristle at such labeling, but gals like her are rare where I work.

Here are a few that I’ve recently discovered.  Who knows, with time, perhaps I can become a regular on these too:

Patterico:  great level-headed perspective on politics.  He uses irony and sarcasm well.

Sister Toldjah: a perennial finalist for the Weblog Awards.  She routinely links well in her posts.

The Writing on the Wall: lots of thought on the intersection of faith and politics

Living Journey: I’ve only been on it for a little while, but like I told her recently, there’s a lot of meat in her posts

Koka Sexton: his posts have helped me a lot as a new blogger.  I’ve pestered him with lots of questions, and he’s been gracious in lending me a helping hand.

Between Two Worlds: “A mix of theology, politics, and culture.”  Now that’s a volatile mixture!  This post is particularly startling.

Ken Fleck:  it’s impossible for my good buddy Ken’s passion for Jesus not to rub off on you.

Visit a few of these sites and give them some love…tell em I sent ya.

Needs Vs. Wants

My Ride

My Ride

My students keep asking me, “Mr. B, why don’t you just fix your car? (My car door panel fell off last week. See the full story here.)” They ask it with almost the same incredulity as “Mr. B, why don’t you eat some food?”

To them, you gotta put up a good front. How am I gonna get chicks (or keep the one I got?), afterall? No girl is gonna wanna ride around in that piece of junk.

Most Californians (including yours truly) tend to think this way.

That made me ask myself: why, exactly, won’t I just get the car fixed? This brought up a lesson I keep having to learn from time to time: there’s a big difference between needs and wants.

Needs are the things you can’t live without: God, people, a roof, food, and a few other things. Wants are the things you *think* you can’t live without; computer, a (nice) car, etc. The thing is, most Americans confuse the two. Most people think a good looking car that preserves your image and comfort is a need, but its not. I tend to think that way too, and this whole shpeel is stripping me of that confusion.

I don’t need to fix my car. Door panel: not a necessity. Good brakes: necessity. What I’m missing is just aesthetics, and that’s not a big deal. I’m saving up money for another car down the road (paying cash…its the right thing to do), and fixing my car so I won’t get weird looks on the freeway and at work really isn’t a priority now.

Steve, a mentor of mine in college, bought a nice looking SUV during my sophomore year. A bunch of us were gawking at the vehicle: “Steve, nice SUV dude!” “Sweet ride, bro!” His response? “Fellas…one day, its gonna burn.”

He’s right…see the quote below my blog name, as well as the words of Jesus.

I’m pretty much the talk of the school. A fellow colleague came into my class and poked fun at me in front of my whole class today. Frankly, it doesn’t bother me at all; gotta let it roll off the back, cuz lets face it, one day, its all gonna burn…only three things will last.