Tuesday September 26, 2006

Courses: Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary is offering several courses free online. There are a couple by David Wells that are sure to be especially good.

People: Phil Johnson has begun a new series on TeamPyro and begins with an interesting “word of personal testimony” that describes how he was saved.

Music: I am a few days behind the times here (how am I supposed to know Bob has posted on his site when his RSS feed has stopped working!) but Bob Kauflin has posted some information about the upcoming Christmas album from Sovereign Grace Ministries, including the lyrics to a new song by Mark Altrogge.

Debate: Audio of the “debate” on Calvinism between Al Mohler and Paige Patterson has been posted online.

Monday September 25, 2006

Blogging: On Saturday I went to a blogger’s lunch not too far from here. Someone there mistook me for Frank Turk which seemed to delight James White. Anyways, Carla Rolfe has details and a bunch of pictures. I’d like to point out that, though I’m not smiling in the picture of Carla and myself, I gave it a try. Her husband couldn’t figure out the camera and I could only hold a smile for so long. As soon as I let it go, he snapped the picture. So it’s his fault, not mine!

Calvinism: Tom Ascol mentions a Lifeway survey which concludes that 10% of Southern Baptist pastors consider themselves 5-point Calvinists.

Eschatology: Justin Taylor pointed to some interesting charts that help explain the various ways of understanding the end times.

Weird: Want your child to fall asleep to the sweet strains of “Enter Sandman” by Metallica? Now he can with Rockabye Baby, a new series of lullabye albums.

Friday September 22, 2006

History: Dr. Haykin was kind enough to answer a question I posed to him about the best one-volume church history text.

Books: Looks like Yancey’s new book is going to be a popular one. I posted the review only a couple of days ago and already it has 26 votes (only 12 of which are “yes” votes!).

Blogs: I don’t know how I missed this one, but the New Attitude site relaunched a few days ago with a snazzy new design. Their 2007 conference is on the topic of discernment. You can bet that I intend to be there (not that I endorse betting).

Books Bonus: Anthony Carter mentions a new book by Steve Lawson entitled “The Foundations of Grace: A Long Line of Godly Men.” This is the first in a series of five books. It looks like it will be an excellent series! The books are available only through Ligonier Ministries.

Evangelism: Paul Kaiser posts on The Reformed Evangelist about a recent Great News Network Evangelism Boot Camp. It looks like an incredible and challenging experience!

Thursday September 21, 2006

Books: Monergism Books is having a moving sale. They have lots of great books, Bibles and DVDs available at low prices.

Du Jour: A reader sent me a link to the site of a young Christian woman who could use our prayers. “Bonnie has a mitochondrial cytopathy (a multi organ failure disease), which was diagnosed in Boston in January 2006 and has caused either failure or damage to many of her organs.”

Law: John Mark Carr, the man who claimed responsibility for the death of JonBenet Ramsey, has (as predicted) been offered a deal that would see him walk free without facing any serious charges, even for the child pornography charges against him. That whole confession was merely a ruse to help him avoid paying for his other crimes.

Personal: Fall must be upon us. When I went out for my walk this morning, the thermometer was reading a mere 7 degrees (Celsius). When I got back it was down to 6 degrees. It’s all downhill from here!

Wednesday September 20, 2006

Fundamentalism: Someone else is trying to put the fun in fundamentalism…but it doesn’t sound like much fun. “The beauty of the Edinburgh Fringe and its uncurated philosophy is that it provides a useful annual barometer of the nation’s obsessions. And this year, unsurprisingly, the nation is obsessed with God.”

Du Jour: My sister pointed me to an amazing story. Who but God could help a person go through all of that and have her arrive at the end saying “God is so good.”

Abortion: CNN reports on a story that shows just how far some people are willing to go to kill the unborn.

Driscoll: Mark Driscoll has an interesting post reflecting on the upcoming ten year anniversary of Mars Hill Church. “We’re not a perfect people and this is not a perfect church led by perfect men. But we worship the perfect Jesus and He promises to make everything perfect in its time. These seasons are the means by which He sanctifies us to be more like Him if we lean into them with gladness and trust that God is loving and works out all things for our good and His glory.”

Tuesday September 19, 2006

Blogspotting: My pastor thinks Josh Harris must be confused. Take a look and see if you agree.

Education: ESV Blog pointed me to Biblical Training, a site that offers online courses by a wide variety of notable Christian teachers. Looks like there is lots to learn there!

People: Snopes.com, the Urban Legend Reference site responds to an email that buzzed around the Internet claiming that Steve Irwin became a Christian shortly before his death. To this point the status of the story is “undetermined” but sadly it seems unlikely to be true.

Bible: Bible Explorer is giving away version 4.0 of their product with some Bibles and Reference books including Talking Strongs Greek and Hebrew Dictionary. They’ll be adding a new book every week including some solidly Reformed works.

Books: Grace and Truth Books is offering a great deal on one of my favorite books, Bruce Ware’s “Father, Son and Holy Spirit.” They have it on sale for only $9.50, far less than any other place I’ve seen. There are a limited number available so grab a couple now!

Monday September 18, 2006

Books: Derek Thomas has an glowing review of J.I. Packer’s latest book “Praying.” Somehow this one escaped my attention but it looks like one I may need to add to my reading list.

Abortion: FoxNews has an article about a new strategy used by pro-life organizations: buy the properties being used by clinics and then deny them the ability to renew their leases on the premises.

Humor: Carolyn McCulley has a Monday morning laugh waiting for you at her site.

Humor Bonus: I’ve been waiting months and months for the Thirsty Theologian to actually post a joke that was funny in his “Saturday Stupidity” column. And finally he has done it.

Friday September 15, 2006

Church: Mark Driscoll has written an excellent article about Church Smith Jr. and Sr., using the rift in their relationship to encapsulate the wider rift between generations of evangelicals.

Weird: Is your dog zen? If not, you’ll no doubt want to get him some zen dog treats. “ZenPuppy Treats are formulated with specific herbs, botanicals, and other natural ingredients to help promote your dog’s wellness; Beauty, Energy, Smarty, Agile, and Peace.”

Music: I’m still listening to that new Jars of Clay album. If you haven’t heard it yet, you should give it a listen. Alternatively, you could watch the video for one of the songs.

Driscoll: So many people are writing about Driscoll, I’ll just give him his own category. Thabiti Anyabwile has jumped on the bandwagon affirming his respect for the guy. I think. “In the immortal words of Snoop… Mark Drizzle is the schnizzle. That’s my nizzle. Wes’ side!”

Thursday September 14, 2006

Travel: Fox reports on how hotels, car rental agencies and others are reacting to the new rules banning liquids from flights. “Some marketing experts see the new carry-on restrictions as a business opportunity. And they say businesses should not miss the boat.”

Art: Reformation Art, a company whose art work adorns the walls of my office, is now offering an extremely rare engraving (see it of the Synod of Dodrecht where the five points of Calvinism were formulated. “I am going to have a limited run of poster-sized prints made at an impresive 20”X30”. In order to do so, I will need to have 60 pre-order commitments to purchase one of these posters at $25 (plus shipping).”

Creation: Ever wondered what the inside of a cell looks like? Neither have I. But you can see anyways by watching this movie called “Cellular Visions: The Inner Life of a Cell.”

Church: Salon.com has a lengthy article on Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church.

Wednesday September 13, 2006

Blogging: “World” magazine has an article on “Six homeschoolers [who] are using blogs to rebel against rebellion. Unfortunately subscription is required to read the complete article.

Weird: There is great joy in Kenya after the world failed to end as a particular cult had predicted it would. “Residents of Nyandarua village in central Kenya are full of relief, after a local sect’s doomsday predictions failed to materialise.” What is the overall record now for predicting the world’s demise? Not too good, at any rate.

Blogging Bonus: Adrian is looking at the Proverbs and asking “Are Bloggers Scoffers?”

Purpose: Everyday Mommy has posted an interesting cartoon drawn by her husband.