Monday May 22, 2006 Weird: FoxNews has the story of a man who collected some 80,000 empty beer cans in his rented house over the course of 8 years. That means he drank 24 beers every day. Judging by the pictures, he was fond of Coors. The cans were returned and the deposits totalled $800.…
Partial birth abortion, also known by the nicer-sounding “Dilation and Extraction” is one of the most disgusting, nauseating so-called medical procedures in the world. While it may sound inocuous, the details of the procedure are enough to turn the stomach. It is the closest thing to legalized murder I could imagine. A Distant Thunder, a…
When I was younger, I had a friend who seemed to live somewhere in a grey area between reality and fantasy. He was able to deal with reality for periods, but would always slip back into strange little fantasies where he was a ninja or an elf warrior or something else equally strange. He and…
Mark Driscoll is one of those guys I just cannot figure out. Despite being only thirty-six years old, he pastors a church of over 3,000 people, is President of a major church-planting network and is considered one of the fifty most influential pastors in America. I am not the only one confused by Driscoll who…
Friday May 19, 2006 Award: Apparently I’ve been awarded something called a “Bologna Badge.” I can’t say I’ve ever heard of this particular award, but I’m sure it’s prestigious. More here. Gospel: Ligon Duncan posted a roundup of quotes about the gospel that are sure to bless you. Here is a favorite: “When we preach…
The article I wrote yesterday has caused a bit of a ruckus. I intended to answer some of the criticisms this morning, but then I had to try to keep Michaela from crying for two hours, and once I handed her off to Aileen, the phone rang a few times and before I knew it,…
Thursday May 18, 2006 Technology: ESV Blog brings news of an ESV plugin for Microsoft Word. It uses “the ESV Web Service to insert a passage into a Word document.” Sounds useful enough… A La Carte: This is the 200th edition of A La Carte (according to the statistics in Movabletype). That’s not half bad!…
On Monday, Joe Carter, he of Evangelical Outpost fame, posted on his web site discussing an article Andrew Sullivan had published in Time Magazine entitled “My Problem with Christianism.” There is one aspect of Carter’s article I would like to discuss today: the preamble. This is how Joe began: “While I believe that he can…
Wednesday May 17, 2006 Video: In case you missed Katie Couric’s interview with Joel Osteen on The Today Show (and you probably did), Keith has a link to it. Film: “AgapePress” has a good article, written by Ed Vitagliano which reflects on the “End of the Spear” controversy. “Sadly, the result has been a blunted…
How many times have you heard a person claim that he has “accepted Jesus as his personal Lord and Savior?” Have you ever asked him what it means that Jesus is his Lord? Have you ever asked him how Jesus is his Savior? What makes Him his Savior? And what does it mean that He…
Tuesday May 16, 2006 Giveaway: Adrian Warnock is having a small giveaway for bloggers who would like to blog their way through the Together For the Gospel Statement. Music: Kerry, a.k.a. BlackCalvinist, made a bootleg recording of one of the songs sung at the T4G Conference. He did not realize that he was not supposed…
Every now and then I take my van to WalMart for an oil change. I generally try to make these appointments for as early in the morning as possible, for early in the morning, I very nearly have the place to myself. A little while ago I brought the car in and then spent the…
Monday May 15, 2006 Web: “Washington Post” has a list of the most-visited domains in February 2005 and 2006. Unfortunately they only list the first fifty as I’m pretty sure Challies Dot Com would be ranked 51st. Web Bonus: “The Inquirer” has a list of the most dangerous search phrases. Typing any of these into…
Though I have never met him, Gary Gilley has had a signficant impact on my life. He was one of two people who was most influential in my decision to begin blogging and to use this site to review books. His many book reviews were very helpful to me and made me realize that if…
Paul: Apostle of Grace is a DVD presentation that invites the viewer to “experience Paul’s message in its original setting.” Hosted by Ron Kelly of Plain Truth Ministries, the film traces the travels and ministry of Paul from the time of his first missionary journey to the end of his first imprisonment in Rome. This…
Alex Chediak – Alex Chediak has a pretty new web site (AlexChediak.com). I should know because I made it. Alex, who authored (edited?) 5 Paths To The Love Of Your Life (my review) is anticipating the imminent release of his second book, this one co-authored with his wife. It is titled With One Voice and…
Immediately prior to the Together for the Gospel Conference, I had the opportunity to be part of a panel discussing issues pertaining to blogging. In the days following I mentioned on my blog that, due to the brevity of the occasion, I did not have the chance to address some of the “soapbox” issues pertaining…
Friday May 12, 2006 Politics: Justin Taylor had what I thought was a very good reflection on American Pessimism. “What used to be a moral sense that we had done something wrong now becomes conflated with compassion and is a sense that we should feel “guilty” and pessimistic if others are worse off than us.”…
“A potter begins by centering his clay on the wheel. When the wheel starts turning, he can’t just grab the clay. He must carefully but firmly keep the clay in the center of the wheel. He has to work it gently but deliberately, applying just enough pressure to shape it while constantly adding moisture. If…
Thursday May 11, 2006 Music: Bob Kauflin is looking to give away 50 copies of the “Worship God Live” CD, but only to people who meet the following criteria: “You are a pastor or a music minister/worship leader in your local church or ministry; You regularly write a blog (that people other than your family…