At a secluded pull-off along the Seward Highway in Alaska, there stands a mute and blaring testament to the human attitude toward authority.  We may assume that it was once a stark black-on-white Parks Department sign, stating in block letters, 'NO TARGET SHOOTING'.  Now, it sports rebellious marks of human witchcraft, and those etched piercingly into its thick metal:  the terse statute is now punctuated by bullet holes.  Yet the character difference between the law-makers and the law-breakers has been heightened rather than diminshed by the vandalism.  As I gaped at the shredded metal, I both chuckled at the irony, and shivered at the implications, of this cairn to criminality.  I would be afraid to use an AK-47 to thumb my nose, but someone obviously was not.Read more

Is it just me, or is 2008 flying by faster than normal? Where has it gone? I feel as if my time is spent before I am even able to start whatever it is I am doing. Maybe I’m just getting older. I do have a 2-1/2 year old son… that may have a lot to do with it. Anyway, in the spirit of how fast this year is going, here are some random thoughts.Read more

Ben Witherington, a well-regarded professor at Asbury Seminary, reviews The Shack in some detail.

Click here for the whole article.

CULTURE AND COURAGE

We are both part of and a product of our culture more than we care to admit.  A year ago I thought Facebook was silly; now I have a Facebook page and think it’s great.  I cannot imagine life before cell phones, online airline reservations, weather.com and text messaging.  But there was life before these things, and there will be life after. As to my thoughts, five years ago they were saturated – because it was all anyone was writing about – on terrorism and the place of the United States in a post-9/11 world.  Today the “new hotness” is climate change and green energy.  It seems like yesterday it was all about the (Red) campaign, “The Passion of the Christ” and the new Narnia movie.  Now, I am not sure of the cause to which I am supposed to rally friends.

On one hand, then, Andrew Fletcher’s statement, “[l]et me write the songs of a nation and I don’t care who writes its laws,” rings true.  Culture is upstream from politics, it is upstream from us, it is the river we swim in without even knowing it.  I am shaped by it.  Our generation is increasingly self-aware of this, we know the upstream culture can be shaped (or manipulated) to bring about certain results downstream, and so we aim to do so.  I want to be at that culture-shaping place.  Yet at the same time, who am I to be there?  I am as much a product of my culture as anyone, I cannot step outside, I am not immune from its effects.Read more

On Monday I spent the day doing some work around the house. One of the projects that I took on was assembling a set of bookshelves we had purchased at a local retail store. This was one of those pieces of furniture that promised ease of assembly and did not even require any tools. I am not much of a carpenter, so easy assembly and no tools sounded perfect. When I opened the box, I took out all of the pieces and the instruction booklet. The first thing that struck me was how thick the instruction booklet was. I figured that it must have several short sections in different languages. I was wrong. The instruction book was 47 pages long, with 74 “easy steps” to follow.Read more

Who doesn’t complain about “busy-ness”? We’re plagued by it. Whether it is due to your vocation, your children, traffic. Whenever I am around a group of mom’s with young children talking about the Christian life, there is the consistent and pervasive frustration of just not having the time or energy to give to their spiritual life. Almost daily, I will be struck by how distracted I am. How come I can’t remember to pray for the woman in our church whom i found out just yesterday who has a tumor on her head? I mean, I’ve already forgotten. How? No real mystery- I get sucked into myself, my worries, my day.Read more

I teach at a private school in a large city where the majority of students are quite wealthy and extremely sharp.  Having grown up in a small rural town and having attended public school all my life, until college, these experiences have provided some interesting contrasts.  One thing I’ve learned is that no matter how blessed we are there is always someone else more blessed than us and that’s who we tend to compare ourselves to.  In other words, we point out all they have to legitimize all we have.  I think the reason we do this is very simple - we are addicted to feeling better about ourselves.  Enough said on that point. 

Growing up, this translated into me saying things like, “her parents bought her that car,” or “they’re members of the country club,” or “they have cable.”  Now I hear things like, “she drives a brand new BMW,” or “they’re members of that country club and another one,” or “they have a private jet.”  I just sit back sometimes and have a little chuckle with Jesus.  Because I’ve finally been around the block enough times to know - and I mean to really know - that no matter what people have or don’t have all they really need is not a what at all but a who.  That and my wife’s parents bought her a car, I played golf at their country club this morning, and I’m watching ESPN right now. Read more

Vacations bring out the worst in me. I get to have all of the things that I love, and I get them in abundance. Vacation provides for lots of leisure time, good food, no work, no email, no phone calls to return, and no sermons to write.

But, having those things is not good for me.

There is a secret to be learned by the Christian (see Philippians 4:11). Getting the things that I want is dangerous. It only reveals how deeply idolatrous my heart really is. I worship leisure, pleasure, and comfort. They should be just means to the end of enjoying God, but I make them an end in and of themselves. That's not good.
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Lately I have been pouring over quite a gem, The Collected Works of John M. Frame, Volume 1: Theology, available on CD-ROM or DVD-ROM. As an RTS/ Orlando alum, I had the distinct privilege of being taught by Dr. John Frame, and I certainly cannot imagine going through seminary without his considerable contribution to my formation. Dr. Frame is one of the most brilliant Reformed theologians of our day, and also one of the most gracious men I know. So when I heard about this software, I knew I must get it!

Dr. Frame defines theology as the application of Scripture to life. One cannot walk away from Frame’s writing and teaching without a much clearer grasp of how to do precisely that. Frame’s wisdom, graciousness, insight, clarity and winsomeness will leave you hungry for more. And you’ll have plenty to feast on here. Included in Volume 1 are the full versions of several of Frame’s books on theology, including The Doctrine of God, The Doctrine of the Knowledge of God, Salvation Belongs to the Lord, and No Other God: A Response to Open Theism in addition to many of his shorter works on theology and audio files for 70 hours of lectures on various theological topics. Read more

With all the turmoil in today’s financial markets, crashes in the stock market, layoffs in corporate America and pain every time we fill up our cars at the gas station, the topic of financial management comes up more often than usual these days. While the name of the game for those deemed “successful” over the last few years has been aggressive investing and speculation, the person who holds esteem today is the one who conservatively saved for times such as these.

Through it all though, the most common theme I hear through these conversations is a goal of financial independence. It seems like the true American goal : to build up enough money or a secure enough income source that if all else failed, you would still be able to meet your needs, (and hopefully most of your wants). The whole idea of retirement is based on this principle. But is the ideal of “financial independence” even biblical? Clearly we see principles of wise savings from Proverbs, but we’re also warned in Jesus’ parables of the dangers of idolatry and hoarding of wealth to bring security.

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