... if I could hear a Hasidic Jew sing spiritual reggae?

Reggae sound sung by a Hasidic Jew? Yes, as it turns out, Matisyahu (born Matthew Miller) looks the Orthodox part and sings like he’s from Jamaica… Wow. Here’s an excerpt from his “bio” on his site:

“Combining the sounds of Bob Marley and Shlomo Carlebach, yet remaining wholly original, Matisyahu's performance is an uplifting, powerful experience for all in his presence. Even the most pessimistic in his audience is inspired by his ability to so honestly convey such a delicate, topic as faith/spirituality. It is his dedication to his belief and openness to others that compels one to respect his artistry and message. It's in that fleeting moment when our skepticism melts and our souls open up, that Matisyahu enters with his booming sound of faith.”

http://www.matismusic.com/ & http://www.hasidicreggae.com/ are two of the sites where you can sample some of his stuff. Here are some lyrics from one of his songs entitled, Exaltation:

Arise, be our help
Place my trust in your kindness
It's a must hoping in the God of deliverance
Since way back when before time began
Existing eternally, everlasting,
Rejoice in the name of his majesty so we sing

I know, I know, you’re saying that this is an unusual post today. I thought I’d try and connect with anyone interested in listening to spiritual reggae music sung by a Hasidic Jew. It’s actually pretty good.

... How the Word Refreshes Me

I had some requests to put part of my sermon from Sunday on my blog so people could see my points about how the word refreshes me and what I can do to help get “more into the Word”, as someone put it. It’s a rather long post, but here it is:

Somebody once asked G.K. Chesterton this question, “If you were marooned on a desert island and could only have one book with you, what would you choose?” Given his reputation as one the most creative Christian writers of the early 20th century, the people that asked that question were expecting the Bible to be his answer. It was not. Chesterton chose Thomas’ Guide to Practical Ship-building.

So, how does the Bible refresh me?

1. It Changes Me - This is my Bible: I am what it says I am; I have what it says I have; I can do what it says I can do. Today, I will be taught the Word of God… I’ll never be the same — never, never, never! I’ll never be the same, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.” “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword…it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Hebrews 4:12
2. It Empowers Me - In the second century, Justin Martyr, a disciple of the apostle John, wrote, “The Scriptures and the words of Jesus possess a terrible power in themselves and a wonderful sweetness. Straightaway a flame was kindled in my soul, and a love of the prophets and of those men who were friends of Christ possessed me.”
3. It Directs Me - Not equipment, but refreshment. “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. I seek you with all of my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” Psalm 119:9-11NIV
4. It Trains Me - But why do I need the Bible? I make fairly decent decisions without it. “Praise be to you, O Lord; teach me your decrees. With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth. I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word. Psalm 119:12-16 NIV
5. It is Useful to Me- I must apply the principals in the Bible to my daily living. That means to put the words into practice. As James puts it “Do what it says.” The Devil does not care if you read the Word of God and if you know the Word of God as long as it does not become an influence on your way of living. Jesus said in Matthew 7:24, that if we put His words in practice we will live a wise life and have something with us that will help us stand up against anything.
6. It Stays With Me - Memorize? Me? No Way! Why? “When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight.” Jeremiah 15:16, NIV. Maybe not this, but Psalm 1 and a few other Psalms talk about meditating day and night. It is good to have it in front of you all the time. Still not convinced you can do it? Rock Song lyrics of 1977!!!
7. It Confronts Me - When we look into his word what do we see? We see our flaws. We see that we are sinners. We see that by believing in Jesus Christ, we can be changed forever. “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17, NIV
8. It Shapes Me - "All I really want in life is for the Word of God to take up residence inside of me and form me into Christ-likeness." We are always asking "What does it say?" and seldom if ever made the step into a deep personal application of "How can that truth take up residence in me?"
9. It Points Me To Jesus - “We have learned Christ.” He’s the teacher; he’s also the curriculum. The ultimate goal isn't to defend the Bible, memorize the Bible, or understand the Bible. The goal is to let scripture point us to Jesus, committing ourselves to him and jumping into the journey of discipleship.

So what do I do now? Now that I know how His Word refreshes me?

1. Develop a quiet mind – Henri Nouwen said that sometimes trying to settle his mind was like a banana tree filled with monkeys constantly jumping up and down. All our thoughts, like so many chimps, clamoring for our attention: what’s going on today? Why is that person talking to me that way? Will things ever get better? Whoa--- SLOW DOWN. Bonhoeffer said that often we are so burdened and overwhelmed with other thoughts, images and concerns that it may take a long time before God’s word has swept all else aside and come through. He suggests praying first that the Holy Spirit would help us before we read.
2. To get started, Meditate on a Brief Passage or Story – Madame Guyon wrote, “If you read quickly, it will benefit you little. You will be like a bee that merely skims the surface of a flower. Instead, in this new way of reading with prayer, you must become a bee who penetrates into the depths of the flower. You plunge deeply within to remove its deepest nectar.”
3. Ask God to let Scripture work on you – Augustine boiled it down to this command, “Take it and read, take it and read.” But ultimately be open to the possibility that God may be speaking to you through his Word.
4. Take One Thought or Verse with you all Day – What the mind repeats it retains.
5. One Serious Bible Question – If I take this text seriously, what would I have to change in my life? (Jesus teaching on forgiveness)- Randy Harris
6. Read the Bible Wide Open – Not the book, YOU! – Read with a repentant spirit. Surrender everything. Realize that you are reading for transformation not information. Jesus warns the religious leaders of his day in John 5:39-40, “You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.”. What a wonderful ending! What scripture is all about is pointing us to Jesus. That’s what helped God’s people before Christ (all the prophecies pointing to the Messiah). That’s what helped the first century Christians (remember they received Jesus’ teachings in the Gospels with amazing receptivity). That’s what helped God’s people assemble the Canon of scripture pretty much how we have it today (Jesus’ words and the apostles teaching). AND, that’s what drives us today to study God’s word. It points us to Christ, teaches us to follow him on this journey.

... what is really important

(Sorry about no post yesterday; Spring Break; Father here from Canada)

With March Madness in full swing, and UCLA in the Final Four (not my pick – I have none of my picks!) I thought you'd enjoy the following story. I’ve seen this on someone else’s blog but I wish I could remember the original source, so if anyone knows, let me know.
"On the 21st of the month, the best man I know will do what he always does on the 21st of the month. He'll sit down and pen a love letter to his best girl. He'll say how much he misses her and loves her and can't wait to see her again. Then he'll fold it once, slide it in a little envelope and walk into his bedroom. He'll go to the stack of love letters sitting there on her pillow, untie the yellow ribbon, place the new one on top and tie the ribbon again.
"The stack will be 180 letters high then, because the 21st will be 15 years to the day since Nellie, his beloved wife of 53 years, died. In her memory, he sleeps only on his half of the bed, only on his pillow, only on top of the sheets, never between -- with just the old bedspread they shared to keep him warm.
"There's never been a finer man in American sports than John Wooden, or a finer coach. He won 10 NCAA basketball championships at UCLA, the last in 1975. Nobody has ever come within six of him. He won 88 straight games between January 30, 1971, and January 17, 1974. Nobody has come within 42 since. . . .
"There has never been another coach like Wooden, quiet as an April snow and square as a game of checkers; loyal to one woman, one school, one way; walking around campus in his sensible shoes and Jimmy Stewart morals. He'd spend a half hour the first day of practice teaching his men how to put on a sock. "Wrinkles can lead to blisters," he'd warn. These huge players would sneak looks at one another and roll their eyes. Eventually, they'd do it right. "Good," he'd say. "And now for the other foot."
"Of the 180 players who played for him, Wooden knows the whereabouts of 172. Of course, it's not hard when most of them call, checking on his health, secretly hoping to hear some of his simple life lessons so that they can write them on the lunch bags of their kids, who will roll their eyes.
"Discipline yourself, and others won't need to," Coach would say. "Never lie, never cheat, never steal," and "Earn the right to be proud and confident."
"If you played for him, you played by his rules: Never score without acknowledging a teammate. One word of profanity and you're done for the day. Treat your opponent with respect. He believed in hopelessly out-of-date stuff that never did anything but win championships. No dribbling behind the back or through the legs. "There's no need," he'd say.
"No UCLA basketball number was retired under his watch. "What about the fellows who wore that number before? Didn't they contribute to the team?" he'd say. No long hair, no facial hair. "They take too long to dry, and you could catch cold leaving the gym," he'd say. That one drove his players bonkers. One day, All-America center Bill Walton showed up with a full beard. "It's my right," he insisted. Wooden asked if he believed that strongly. Walton said he did. "That's good, Bill," Coach said. "I admire people who have strong beliefs and stick by them, I really do. We're going to miss you." Walton shaved it right then and there. Now Walton calls once a week to tell Coach he loves him.
"He's almost 90 now. You think a little more hunched over than last time. Steps a little smaller. You hope it's not the last time you see him. He smiles. 'I'm not afraid to die,' he says. 'Death is my only chance to be with her again.'
"Problem is, we still need him here."

... How God Transforms Us.1

I have a friend who is struggling with “changing” his life around. He has struggled on and off with things for most of his adult life. Part of the problem is bound with how he is wrapped, his personality. Medication, when it is prescribed corectly, seems to help with some of that. But, part of it is a spiritual problem at its core. It’s now all come to a head. Call it midlife; call it whatever you want. His main struggle right now is believing that God can help, that God can change (I prefer the word: transform) him, and how God can do that. God can help. There are thousands of examples in scripture and history of just that aspect of God: his helpfulness. He changes people, transforms them. It is up to us to trust, like a little child does when jumping into daddy’s arms. We know we’re going to be caught.

This is a challenging, yet hopeful place to be. Challenging because it seems like a daunting task, this recreation of you. Hopeful, because well, God is God, and, to start with, he is the one that created us in the first place. Remember Genesis 1:26 does not say, “Let’s try out a creation of something that is sort of, kind of, like us and we’ll see how that goes.” No, it says, “Let us make human beings in our image, make them reflecting our nature” (The Message). Once upon a time we looked like God. He looked down at Adam and saw himself looking back up at him. Over time we have decimated, destroyed, and devalued that image.

The bottom line is this: Jesus is the incarnation of his Father. Our whole emphasis on sin, and how it separates is from God, and Jesus died on the cross to bring us back into relationship with him is fine, BUT only if we realize that his dwelling here, his incarnation, was designed to transform us back into his likeness. This takes an initial turning around, a confession, a beginning, but it also takes time. God isn’t finished with us yet; we will only be perfected when Jesus comes again. In the meantime, we are being changed, molded, and shaped (or whatever other word you want to use there). Maybe we need to get the process started. If so, jump!

... about amazing discoveries

At the Gold City Gem Mine in Franklin, North Carolina customers pay a small fee for a "bucket of dirt" out of the mine, the dirt contains rocks, usually worthless, the joy of treasure hunting and occasionally a real gemstone out of the mine. In July of 1995, a third-grader name Griffin McCurry, paid for just such a bucket of dirt. As you might expect it didn’t look as if there was any hidden treasure, but there was a rock in it that the boy kept just because he liked the shape. People magazine reported that it was a saleswoman from the Jewelry store at the mine who noticed the rock and gave it a closer inspection. As it turned out the 1104 carat sapphire had a value of approximately $45,000.

Everybody likes a good treasure story, and the story of the discovery of the Law in the Temple during Josiah’s renovation is about as good as they come, because God’s word is a treasure that is priceless.

But this is more than just a story of lost and found; this is a story about God choosing to reveal himself. The Law wasn’t just found accidentally, God chose to reveal his Word, which is to say that God chose to reveal himself to Josiah and the nation he led. God could have made that choice at any time in the previous kings’ reigns, Yet he chose to reveal it to Josiah. Why? Because he was already working obediently and he was willing to do what it took to be faithful. Are you working in his kingdom and are you willing to be led by God? Maybe he’ll lead you to some amazing discovery in his Word as well!

... what Jesus would say to us today

I read “what the Spirit says to the churches” (Rev.3:22) in Revelation chapters 2 & 3 over the weekend. Some powerful stuff there. What would he say to us? Would we be commended for being the kingdom of God like he wanted us to be? Or would we be Laodicea? Yikes!

Jim Martin of Crestview Church of Christ in Waco, Texas, recently wrote about what Jesus might say if He was to appear in your church this Sunday. Martin suggests:

“What would he say? I wonder if he would evaluate things differently than we do. He might say something like the following:

You do not evaluate your lives the way I do. I am more concerned about whether or not these people love God and people than anything else.

You do not evaluate your church the way I do. I am more concerned about you being my presence in this community rather than whether or not you may be happy with the way things are going. . . .

You do not evaluate truth the way I do. Sermon messages are not good if they seem to pass the popularity contest. There were times when I spoke and people walked away, wanting nothing more to do with me.”

(Click here to read the full article.)

Have a great day serving Christ.

... about the Madness that is March

Home bound today. Snow storm. School cancelled. I hope it clears a little so I can pick up Laurie this evening at the airport.

Let's do a post about March Madness. The first round of the NCAA Tourney is done and, like every year, we watched our share of upsets. My bracket is a mess. I only have two teams left that I picked to go to the Final Four. Megan and Cameron both have me beat so far. Oh well, it's fun watching the games. Underdogs are great to cheer for. Cameron picked Bradley to beat Kansas so this post goes out to Cam!


















(You've won the battle Cam but I'm still going to win the war with my pick to win it all!)

... about "Loving the Storm-Drenched"

I have been reading some really good stuff on faith and culture recently. But I am noticing what I believe to be a un-Christ-like trend. All of the authors (the ones I read recently anyway) seem to fall into one category. I’ll call it the “US vs. THEM category. Everyone just cries and moans about how bad culture has gotten, how nothing is worth watching on TV anymore (some of these I can’t disagree with)… and on and on it goes. Now don’t get me wrong, I want to be able to point out when something is bad and say it is bad, I just don’t feel we need to set up camps. Pop culture, Hollywood, The “media” are not the enemy. “The Enemy” uses all sorts of things to drag us away from God, and if we set up camps, the “lost” may be in the “other” camp and therefore become- by our work, unreachable.

One article that stood out was by Frederica Mathewes-Green (one of my favorite authors) and it is entitled: Loving The Storm-Drenched. In it, she talks about how we may not be able to change the weather (pop culture, Hollywood, those influenced in a bad way by the media), and we may be wasting our time, energy, and resources trying to do so. But we need to (and she believes we are called to) love the ones who are drenched by the storm.

She’s much more articulate than I am so her article is worth a read. Have a good one.

... about Canada and the USA

As a Canadian, I pride myself in very few things. Canadians just don’t do that pride thing very well (maybe a little when we beat the US at something). We keep to ourselves, we’re a reserved bunch, only to come out when it’s winter and there is a hockey game, curling bonspiel (that’s what it’s called, really!), or enough snow to go sledding. We may get riled up when some intolerance raises its ugly head. While the leadership of Canada is often very liberal- borderline Socialist as far as I’m concerned, when you talk to Canadians they tend to be pretty conservative. We tend to be the oft-ignored, further north, isn’t-Canada-like-another-state, sort of place. And for the most part, Canadians are OK with that.

As a Christian, who happens to be Canadian living in the US, well, things get a little dicey when talk about patriotism comes up, or politics (although my politics have certainly changed in the last twenty years of living here). Let me tell a story: my second day living in the US, in Abilene, TX, at ACU, I was confronted with all of this stuff. Opening day chapel, balloons, large American flag being revealed, pledge recited, all that pomp and ceremony. I stood when everyone stood; I was respectful (although I didn't recite the pledge). In those days at ACU, we all had assigned seats. You had to sit where you were assigned 'cause they took pictures of each section, and if your seat was empty you were absent. We all prayed for some girl to be next to us so she could bring her boyfriend with her to chapel and he would sit in your seat! Then you could go sit anywhere you wanted (hey, I know what you're thinking: I ducked out of chapel at that point to go take a nap or play video games or ping pong or take a nap! I didn't do too many of those things, really).

But I digress. Opening day chapel- very patriotic. I thought it was neat. Canadians just don't do that. We didn't even have a flag that was ours or a national anthem that was ours until the 1960's I think. I have to say that my assigned seat that year was in the nosebleed row of section "D" in Moody Coliseum. So there really wasn't any chance I had of someone sitting in my seat anyway becuse there were only two of us in that entire row that semester! OK, chapel is over and I see the other person in my row making a beeline towards me (I thought initially he was being Texas friendly- because he was a cowboy-looking guy complete with cowboy hat, starched Wranglers, snakeskin boots, and the belt buckle that could double as a plate). He proceeds to get in my face. Then he starts asking me questions like, "Aren't you patriotic?", "Don't you love your country?", and "Why didn't you recite the pledge?" I let him rant until he was done, staying calm- although I wanted to deck him, and then I said, "Did you stop to think that I might not be from this country? I am Canadian". It was over at that point. I felt bad for him, because it was really embarassing. But it was a weird second day in the country.

On top of that, there has always been this tension for me about Christianity and America, or the USA being a Christian nation. It’s not a bad tension. It’s just an odd feeling. American Christians that have never traveled overseas cannot relate to this feeling. Those of you who have lived and traveled extensively around the world know what I’m talking about because you’ve probably had someone talk to you about it.

Let me get to my real point today: Lynn Anderson has a great article on his web site entitled, "Waving the Red Flag." It is actually a speech he gave at an ACU luncheon in February. Some of it is about what I talked about above. He is very strong and passionate in his beliefs on this stuff (Lynn tends to be that way with everything he speaks about – I’ve always appreciated that about him). Lynn has a unique take on this stuff because he is Canadian as well. Reading this may make you a little uncomfortable, but it may let you in on some feelings this Canadian has experienced over the last twenty years of living in the USA. You can access it by clicking on the word article above or this link: http://www.lynnanderson.org/content.asp?CID=88768

Have a great day, eh!

... about the Bible.1

I’ve been doing a lot of study recently ABOUT the Bible: how we got it, interpretation, translating… I hope to blog more about this over the next few days. This paragraph below reminded me that I need to remember to include study OF it as well (and how it “studies” me):

David Jeremiah talks about a well-known Old Testament scholar who spent the summer in Jerusalem as part of a team of scholars working on a new translation of the Bible. When he returned to the classroom in September, he told his students it had been a carnal, spiritually dry summer. His students were shocked. Weren't they studying God's Word all day? He replied, "It became a project instead of a passion. We became so familiar with the intricacies of the text that we stopped seeing its grandeur."

Jeremiah adds, "Is it possible to study the Bible in a carnal fashion? Apparently so. Maybe when you read the professor's testimony, you said to yourself, 'That's happened to me.' You don't have to be a scholar or translator to lose sight of the inestimable privilege of reading God's Word. It can happen when you become so faithful with your quiet time that it becomes a routine -- something to check off your 'to-do' list for the day." As you pick up your copy of God's Word today, take time to meditate on its power and its unique value. Take time to thank God for allowing you to handle His precious Word, and ask Him to help you discover new riches in those remarkable pages.

Barbara Brown Taylor says this about scripture: “The word of God turned out to be plenty strong enough to withstand my curiosity. Every time I poked it, it poked me back. Every time I wrenched it around so I could see inside, it sprang back into shape the moment I was through. In short, the Bible turned out not to be a fossil under glass but a thousand different things — a mirror, a scythe, a hammock, a lantern, a pair of binoculars, a high diving board, a bridge, a goad — all of them offering themselves to me to be touched and handled and used.” (found on Mike Cope’s site today – http://www.preachermike.com/)

As A.W. Tozer said, "The sacred page is not meant to be the end, but only the means toward the end, which is knowing God Himself."

... who would have guessed that naming a moose would be so popular?

According to a May 2 AP story, the small Norwegian town of Vegaarshei wanted to put radio tracking collars on 25 moose, so they could study their movements for two years. But the project was too expensive, at more than 400,000 kroner ($60,000).
That's when they decided to let donors name their moose. For a 5,000 kroner ($740) donation, the team will name a moose for a sponsoring company, organization or individual. That idea has proven so popular that the town is about to run out of moose. "We have four or five left, but they are going fast," said Helge Sines, head of forestry for the township in southern Norway.
As part of the deal, moose sponsors can track their namesake on the Internet, although personal meetings are not on the agenda.
"We leave the moose in peace," said Sines. "We do not take people to visit the moose. We don't want to do anything to stress them."

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20060302/D8G3FP5O0.html
(go here to read the whole moose story.)

I wonder if they had some guidelines to keep people from naming their particular moose with a comical name. We wouldn't want "all of the other moose to laugh and call him/her names" or never let him/her join in any moose games". Oh wait; wrong animal, sorry. Still, we wouldn't want any teasing.

How about this: Mountie Moose?

... about How to Maintain a Healthy Level of Insanity

Hey, these are good. I robbed them from a pastor's website that I get every month.
Nothing too serious today. And I shouldn't have to say this but don't take these seriously...

1. At lunch time, sit in your parked car with sunglasses on and point a hair dryer at passing cars. See if they slow down.
2. Page yourself over the intercom. Don't disguise your voice.
3. Every time someone asks you to do something, ask if they want fries with that.
4. Put your garbage can on your desk and label it "In."
5. Put decaf in the coffee maker for 3 weeks. Once everyone has gotten over their caffeine addictions, switch to espresso.
6. In the memo field of all your checks, write "For Smuggling Diamonds."
7. Finish all your sentences with "In Accordance With the Prophecy."
8. Don't use any punctuation
9. As often as possible, skip rather than walk.
10. Order a "Diet Water" whenever you go out to eat, with a serious face.
11 Specify that your drive-through order is "To Go."
12. Sing along at the opera.
13. Go to a poetry recital and ask why the poems don't rhyme
14. Put mosquito netting around your work area and play tropical sounds all day.
15. Five days in advance, tell your friends you can't attend their party because you're not in the mood.
16. Have your co-workers address you by your wrestling name.
17. When the money comes out of the ATM, scream "I Won! I Won!"
18. When leaving the zoo, start running toward the parking lot yelling, "Run for your lives -- they're loose!"
19. Tell your children over dinner: "Due to the economy, we are going to have to let one of you go."
20. And the final way to keep a healthy level of insanity . . .


With some of us having more stressful and demanding jobs than others, these funnies bring up an interesting question to consider: how do you get through your day? Humor? Prayer?

... how Canada beat the US in baseball? Baseball?

Here's a link to the news story in case you didn't hear. A bunch of minor
leaguers and one or two major leaguers...

http://www.cbc.ca/story/sports/national/2006/03/08/Sports/canada-wbc060308.html


Hey, if we can't win gold at hockey in the Olympics, let's take over another sport!!

O Canada, eh?

... what puts you in a good mood?

Here’s a good one for today. Sometimes we just need some motivation for getting motivated; some encouragement to get moving; some prompting to have a good day. Maybe this will get your brain going. One question, ten answers.

List ten things that are guaranteed to put you in a good mood
(assuming that sometimes our moods, outward appearance needs to be improved upon- not that this ever happens to me or anything).

Here are my answers (in no particular order – except 1 & 10). I expect to hear yours.

1. Golf. Anywhere, anytime.


2. Uninterrupted reading time (1 hour minimum).


3. Hearing a good story.


4. Eating good food.


5. Getting mail with checks inside.


6. Playing with my kids.


7. Seeing God work in someone’s life


8. Getting mail, email, or a phone call from an old friend.


9. Seeing someone overcome something.


10. Did I mention golf?

... why so many people are saying they visit the blog but I get very few comments?

OK, you get two posts today. I know you're saying "Woo-Hoo" to yourself, but I can hear you. Here's the question: Is the reason there are few comments on this blog because of lack of instructions on how-to, or is it because there's nothing to say ('cause if it is this reason, I can change my writing topics). Let me know by way of posting a comment. Here's the deal - I know I left instructions when I started this thing back in November. Maybe they were wrong or incomplete. Here's the skinny on how to leave a comment.
1. At the bottom of this "post" there will be a line that says "posted by Jim MacKenzie at______ (a time, about 10:00am, probably)", then a few spaces and "0 comments" (it's usually 0, believe me).
2. Click on the word "comment".
3. A new window opens with a box where you can leave a comment. It can be anonymous, I don't care. You can register and leave your name and info. Whatever you want to do. Follow the instructions on this window on posting a comment. You have to type a few random letters into a word verification space. This keeps spammers out. Finish by clickin gon the "log-in and Publish" button. You're done.
4. The bottom line is that I just want to know who's reading, or that someone is reading at all (you see, if you've been reading this blog, I wrote about that need for approval last week I believe). React to something I said; agree; fuss with me; doesn't matter...

OK now, let's try it... I embarked on this thing to make it interactive...

… about the translating, interpreting, and reading of the Bible

Just lately, for classes and lessons, I have been doing what seems like plenty of discussing and reading in this area so here are some of my findings (and wonderings):

1. Many scholarly people (read: way smarter than me) have disagreed for years about how we do this (translation). We've been working on this for hundreds of years! Here's an example – if it was just as simple as learning the original languages and quickly converting all it over to English, well, we would have had no disagreements; Period. Taking ancient languages (Greek, Aramaic, Hebrew), and making it fit to today’s English is no small feat. It makes me appreciate those (again much smarter than me) who attempt to do this for us all.


2. Then we have the whole “interpretation” issue (big word: hermeneutics). Mike Cope wrote in his blog today that he grew up hearing: God said it; I believed it; that settled it. He basically concluded this way: if it were only that simple…(I agree)


3. Really it’s the “living out” in my life what scripture says that is the difficulty, no matter what translation we’re using.


4. Tom Olbricht in his book from a few years ago, Hearing God’s Voice, concludes with this: “In a real sense hermeneutics (interpretation) is the interpreting of God to those who wish to be his. Even God did not propose to do that by a few simple rules. He did not offer rules, but a Son. “No one has ever seen God. It is God, the only Son, who is close to the father’s heart, who has made him known” (John 1:18). If God can best explain himself in person, we can best explain him too in his body, that is, his living church.”


5. So… keep reading, keep studying, and keep discussing… to see what God will give you; to see what he will reveal to you; to see how his word will change you… Live your life following the Son...

Peace.

...Why?

…Why? What would make someone do this? We live in a fallen place...
(taken from Yahoo news page)

Two prosthetic legs stolen from a 16-year-old California girl have mysteriously turned up in her mother's van, the second time in three months that an artificial limb belonging to the teen has been taken and then returned, police said on Friday.
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Sgt. David Austin said investigators dusted the slightly damaged limbs for fingerprints and had interviewed a "laundry list" of people but were baffled by the thefts.
"We're treating this as a crime," Austin said. "We have a residential burglary to deal with. This is grand theft and burglary and if we find out who's responsible we'll take appropriate action."
The two legs, which were taken from Melissa Huff's bedroom in February, were found on Wednesday in the back of her mother's van, Austin said.
"Mrs. Huff had the van at Arcadia High School (for about two hours) and when she drove away she heard some rattling and ultimately found the two legs that had just recently been stolen had been placed in the back of the van," Austin said.
Melissa, who lost her right leg in 2003 when a car struck her outside the school, uses a $16,000 prosthetic limb to play softball and also has a $12,000 artificial leg for everyday use.
Thieves also broke into the Huff residence in November and took Melissa's prosthetic leg. The teen's prosthetist and a local real estate company donated about $16,000 for a new limb.
In January, the old one was discovered in her back yard, apparently thrown there by the thieves.

... about talking to someone who has never read the Bible about God

OK, I found a great book the other day. It’s been out a while, but I just stumbled onto it. Someone had told me about it but I had never checked it out. Well, I have now and it is good. Some of you may know about Mike Armour’s, A Newcomer’s Guide to the Bible, but let me explain a bit to those who do not know.
Right from the start it’s interesting because Armour did not write this book with American readers in mind. He was approached by Dr. Vladimir Skovorodnikov, at the time minister of education in a large region in Russia. Following the fall of Communism, he was one of the Russians that pioneered the reintroduction of Christian thought and themes into the Russian classrooms.
The problem was that most of his teachers had never seen a Bible before, much less read one. So Skovorodnikov asked Armour to find an introduction to the Bible for someone that knows absolutely nothing about it. Armour couldn’t find one that was basic enough, so he wrote one .After writing it for the Russians he was bombarded with requests for a translation in English (funny, usually the rest of the world is asking for stuff in their languages, now- the other way around).
The best thing about this book is how he deals with the story of the Bible in a uncomplicated manner, without having to research all of the technical difficulties that surround certain portions of the Word. He lets the story be the story; which is a wonderful way to read the Bible, by the way. This is a good book, especially if you know someone who knows nothing about the Bible. Which, I believe, will become even more familiar to us the USA in the coming years.

... good, clean fun

Don Knotts. He also died this week. Where do we start? He was just funny looking at him. Forget the forgettable roles he took like “The Love God” and “Three’s Company”, and think of Barney Fife (http://www.worldofcheese.org/knotts/audio/nipit.wav). What a lovable, frustrating character he was. But if only we could learn half the lessons he learned on the Andy Griffith Show. Think also about The Ghost & Mr. Chicken (“atta boy Luther!”), The Incredible Mr. Limpet, The Shakiest Gun in the West, and The Apple Dumplin’ Gang. Just good clean fun! He had the funniest face. I remember appearances on Scooby Doo and other cartoons. He had the perfect face to animate. Like I said: good, clean fun. It’s a wonder that he and Tim Conway could keep from laughing whenever they filmed stuff. It’s just good to laugh. To have someone make us laugh. Like yesterday: Let’s keep paying for those reruns!