Back in 1824, Joseph Niépc took the first photograph ever – a view looking out the window of his home in France. Here it is: That may have been the first photograph, but believe me, it wasn’t the last, though I’d venture to opine many taken since are hardly more interesting. 188 years later, us …
Category Archives: What’s on My Mind
My Life is a Story, But How’s the Scripting?
Life is a story. Yours is. Mine is. (heads up, this post isn’t very interesting, just random musings) One of the dozen or so blogs I follow is Screenwriting Tips. Every day a thought-provoking tidbit is shared on effective scriptwriting. Below are several I appreciated on “Crafting a protagonist (hero)”: At the character bio stage, …
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The Shocking Semantics of Culture Shock
So the powers that be, whoever they are, have determined Culture Shock has four stages. However, I’m not convinced Culture Shock has only four stages, just as I’m not convinced public speeches have only three parts (introduction, body, and conclusion). I’ve heard speeches before that were all body; I’ve heard speeches that were all conclusion; …
Where Are All the Workers?
More than just travelling, I am on a fact finding quest for what types of work God’s people are doing throughout the world. The ministries I have seen so far are numerous, but they all boil down to one common theme: sharing Christ with others. Distributing spiritual bread of life. Some help physically as well, …
Zeitgeist the Movie: Slick Propaganda
Zeitgeist the Movie is a conspiracy genre documentary made in 2007 which shows, among other things, that Jesus never existed (he was supposedly copied from archetypes found in ancient pagan religions), that 911 was an inside job by the US government, and that a group of elite financial bankers hold the reigns of global power. …
Does God Intervene in Daily Life?
During the dead-locked Constitutional Convention in the summer of 1787, Benjamin Franklin had this to say: "The longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth: ‘that God governs in the affairs of men.’ And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire …
Differences
Pop cans here in Israel are made from thicker aluminum than I’m used to. This makes them heavier – this MEANS I always think there’s more pop in my can than there really is. I’m continually disappointed as I go for that laast sip and… nothings there. The can has tricked me again. That’s not …
36 Hour Countdown
Feel like I’m about to go over a waterfall. Can see the drop-off ahead and hear the booming water, but where I am now is still calm and tranquil. Not sure if everything is going to fit into my backpack. Guess I’ll find out tomorrow when I try stuffing it all in. Lot of little …
Christmas, Birth and Death
Boxing up all the stuff in my apartment. The death of one phase, the birth of another. Contemplating. Listening to Christmas music on the radio while working. Loved Michael Buble’s rendition of, “All I Want For Christmas.” I know it’s sappy lovey-dovey, but I like it anyways ‘cus it reminds me the most important things …
DR Update and… Are There Benefits to Being Materially Poor?
I just snapped this picture. It is the view out the double doors in my bedroom: I think it’s technically jungle around here, but it seems to me more like “jungly forest” if there is such a thing. Oh, and I can see the ocean far better in real life than in the picture above. …
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Anxiety Related to Expectations
I’ve noticed the less I try to accomplish, the lower my anxiety becomes. However, it’s usually not enough for me to have just one goal. I often have about ten. Maybe you can’t relate to this, but I don’t usually feel good about myself unless I’m accomplishing things. This trip has been a good example. …
The Power of a Smile
Here in Haiti there is so much need everywhere it is overwhelming… hard to know what would truly help. Not sure if I helped much during my time at the orphanage, but at least I helped put a few smiles on their faces. I taught the kid sitting next to me in the picture above …
Joseph As A Figure of Christ
The message last night was on Joseph. In particular, the message was on self-control and the life of Joseph was used as an example. Some people would debate whether Joseph is a “type” of Christ so we will use the term “figure” instead because there are definitely shadows and allusions to Christ in Joseph’s life, …
Comparison Chart of the Hevenly Signs Described in the Bible regarding the Sun, Moon and Stars
I’ve been trying to figure out where the prophecies in Matthew 24 fit into the flow of end times prophecy in general. I had a hunch the bit about the “signs in the heavens” might yield a clue. Therefore, I put together this little chart. Perhaps someone besi>des myself will find it useful too: Download …
Do Matthew 24 and 1 Thessalonians 4 Refer to the Same Second Coming?
Here is an interesting question, “Is the return of Christ described in Matthew 24 and 1 Thessalonians 4 the same?” Passage #1: Paul Describes Return of Jesus in I Thessalonians 4 “According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, …
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Where Do Spirits Go After Death?
In a previous post we established people have both a body and spirit. Recapping: “For you are dust, And to dust you shall return." (Gen 3:19) "May the Lord, the God of the spirits of all mankind, appoint a man over this community…” (Numbers 27:16) “As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith …
Prophecies of Jesus Regarding Himself in Mark
“Then some began to spit at him; they blindfolded him, struck him with their fists, and said, ‘Prophesy!’” (Mark 14:65) Ironically, Jesus had prophesied a number of things. Here are some I’ve noticed as I’ve been studying through Mark: Jesus Prophecies His Death and Resurrection 3x “He then began to teach them [his disciples] that …
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The Power of a Soul
I was going to continue this series with The Power of a Smile, The Power of Sin and perhaps the Power of My Brother Seth. However, since those posts seem slow in coming I’ll summarize by saying they’re all three quite powerful, in their own way: Smiles can make old people look new; Sin can …
Changing Lanes
Do you hate change? Most people do. No doubt about it, change is uncomfortable. I’ve noticed most people change things occasionally, some people change things up ALL the time…… then still others rarely make any changes. Case in point: I drove up to Newton this evening and performed a test. I set my cruise control …
The Power of Stick Shift
I got a surprise when I left work the other day: My car wouldn’t start. The battery was dead because I’d left my headlights on at lunch. Who should I call? How long would it take for Dad to show up? How long would it take for Mallikar or Pat to show up? How …
The Power of Space, Part 2
From the mail bag…… here is an excerpt from a letter I received in response to my post yesterday: I’m not convinced that God tells us to go find misery and poverty in the world and then fix it. That would ascribe a God-like omnipotence and limitless resources to us. The Samaritan wasn’t traveling along …
The Power of Space
Will Miller is a friend of mine, though we’ve never met in person. When the tornadoes hit the South, Will was at his home in Tuscaloosa, AL. He writes: Within the last 24 hours, Tuscaloosa was hit with one of the most devastating storms we’ve ever seen. The night it happened, I sat huddled in …
The Power of a Song
With a title like this, I have no option but to start the post off with a song: Ever had a song put you into a trance before? Me either, but this happened to a friend of mine. Or so he says: He was a sophomore in High School at the time, driving with his …
The Power of a Story (plus, 10 things we fear)
Everyone likes stories. I think. "Researcher story-teller" Brene Brown defined story as, "data with a soul." A more stodgy definition is, "An account or recital of an event or a series of events, either true or fictitious." (source) For an example of a brief, well-told story, you might enjoy this short piece about a conversation …
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The Power of Serenity
Last week I visited Botanica Gardens. It’s my favorite local destination here in Wichita and I’ve been many times. In fact, think I’m on my third annual membership. The best time of year to visit is Spring. Right now, in fact, as the tulips are currently in bloom and breathtaking. If you go, I recommend …
The Power of a Sentence
So We Only Use 2% Of Our Brain’s Capacity? My brain never really stops. I used to think everyone was like this, and perhaps they are, but I’m not totally sure anymore. Please help me put this issue to rest by answering the poll to the left. Even at night my brain clacks away. Sometimes …
3,000 Years, Baby
Do you wonder what the #1 watched YouTube clip is? The answer: Justin Bieber’s music video, “Baby.” Over 483 million hits. You know how much time that represents? Imagine someone watching that clip over and over again from cradle to the grave. Now, multiply that by 40. Yep, forty lifetimes of time. Or 3,000 years! …
Who is your authority?
Here are two observations: Everyone believes something Those beliefs depend on what/who we hold up as our authority I recently heard an acquaintance make reference to how doctrinally incorrect it is for Catholics to believe in praying to dead saints. Well, depends on who your authority is. If your authority is church tradition and the …
Asking the Wrong Questions
An engineer I work with likes to say, “Bad requests yield bad data.” Asking wrong questions can lead us in wrong directions. I ran a series of posts about a year ago trying to answer the question, “What makes a church a church?” A Pastor? A Church building? A certain number of people? A religous …
Money the Meaning of Life?
Truth is Truth wherever it’s found, I believe. Jesus said a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. And He said it is more blessed to give than to receive. Self proclaimed minimalist, traveler, thinker, and humanist Colin Wright has come to a similar conclusion even though as near as I …
Onward and Upward
Spinach greens, red peppers, green peppers – for a salad. That’s what my friend Keith brought last night when he came by for supper. I added cheese and pulled out several dressings from the fridge. Sitting down to eat, Keith was about to pour some Italian dressing on his salad when I stopped him, "Hey! …
Prepare Yourself
I have a co-worker who ran into a curb this morning with his car. It slid on ice and bent his rim. He didn’t have a car jack or tire iron, incredibly. He also was only wearing a cotton hoodie though it was 5 degrees out (yes, that would be Fahrenheit). The Boy Scout motto …
Do Women Work Harder Than Men? And Other Gender Issues.
I’ve heard 2/3rds of the world’s manual labor is done by women. A quick search on Google didn’t substantiate this fact, but I still wouldn’t be surprised if it were true. From my unofficial observations, women DO work harder than men. If you believe the creation account as given in the Hebrew Old Testament, the …
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Challenging Status Quo, from the Bride Rebekah to the Bride the Church
Safety, comfort, and stability are basic goals for all civilizations. Here in America we’ve perhaps attained those goals closer than any other civilization, past or present. Here’s my question, “For Followers of Jesus, should safety, comfort, and stability be our goals as well?” I’ve been struck with how flippantly I treat characters in the Bible. …
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Lifeless Christmas Lights Symbolic of Relational Shallowness in Middle Class Suburbia
Have you ever thought about the three bedroom house, the literal cornerstone of modern civilization? … Today a housing tract of 3,000 houses is planned and built, then 10,000 people come out for the grand opening, buy up the houses and, almost like programmed robots, move in with their matching furniture, draw the drapes, turn …
Hope for Even the Biggest Losers
Can The Worst Become Best? Ever notice how the worst often becomes the best? The kid with worst teeth gets braces, making his the straightest on the block. Saul, the persecutor of Christians, becomes Paul, the Christian Apostle. Granted, sometimes the worst stays the worst. Some kids have terribly crooked teeth with no opportunity to …
Verses Supporting the Trinity in the Bible
Gen 1:26, “Then God Said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness…” So who is the “us” this verse refers to? My friend Jay explained to me the three common positions: It’s a reference to the Trinity It’s a literary technique showing glory through what’s known as a “majestic plural” (yeah, news …
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The Dangerous and Beautiful God
Jay is a friend of mine. He gave a message recently verbalizing a vision of the might and majesty of the God of the Bible and to help us understand better his awesomeness, his mightiness, his beauty, and his fierceness. It’s really worth hearing, listen to it here. If nothing else, listen to the first …
How to Make a Big Difference in This World
I’m going to start with a random question: What makes a story newsworthy? What type of events do the press pick up on? Here’s my answer: 1) Stories that affect one or a few people a lot – Headline Examples: "Hiker falls in volcano" "Miners trapped after explosion" 2) Stories that affect many …
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Being a Follower of Jesus Means Praying
Picking up from yesterday’s post about what Christian’s can and can’t do, I want to suggest that perhaps the foremost activity which should characterize a Believer’s life is PRAYER: "As is the business of tailors to make clothes and cobblers to make shoes, so it is the business of Christians to pray." -Martin Luther For …
Christians Can’t DO Anything? Wrong!
Was talking with an older man recently who was bemoaning the fact there is nothing for Christians to do. "It’s a problem now, it was a problem when I was a kid, it’s always been a problem. If you can’t watch movies, can’t dance, can’t do anything bad, what can you do?" There was a …
Texting Beyond our Limits
Imagine it’s Saturday, 2,000 years ago. Jesus is sitting in the synagogue. His cell phone is laying out on the pew beside him, flipped open. He is following along with the Rabbi, but frequently glancing down at the phone, checking incoming messages. Multi-tasking is no bigee for Him. A coalition of blind beggars are texting …
When is Texting Rude?
Two relevant facts: 1) My actions always speak louder than my words 2) What I spend time on communicates what I find important Regarding text messaging, here are 10 observations: Nearly everyone texts, including my Grandpa (there are around 5 billion cell phone subscriptions out of 6.8 billion humans and more than 2/3 …
Living and Dying
"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." Jim Elliot (1927-1956) What are we living for? Is it also worth dying for? Because if we’re not living for something worth dying for, we’re not living, and we’re not ready for dying either. "Whoever tries to keep …
Rethinking the Standard Testimony
Ever learned a new vocabulary word and then right afterwards heard it used three times in unrelated contexts? Seems to happen all the time. Another example: my brother moved to Oregon and now it seems everywhere I turn there’s an Oregon connection. Works out practically everyone’s brother lives in Oregon. Who’d have thunk? Even today …
Letting Go. Letting God.
Control. What would happen if I let go? Removed every crutch? What would we call someone who didn’t carry insurance, invest in a 401k, or hold money in a savings account? Who gave away every dime he made over that necessary for food, clothing, and supporting his family? Someone who relied on God for everything? …
Are We Too Rich to Enter Heaven?
Ever heard the silly song, "You Can’t Get To Heaven In…"? We don’t sing this at my church as the theology is suspect: Oh, you can’t get to Heaven in an old Ford car ‘Cause an old Ford car won’t get that far Oh, you can’t get to Heaven on roller skates ‘Cause you’d roll …
God’s Waiting to Prove His Love
One of the cool things about playing an instrument is the unique outlet it provides for worship. Sometimes I am able to express best the way I feel towards God while playing the piano. But never fear those who don’t play an instrument because…! singing is another way we can express ourselves: And everyone can …
Another Trial, Anyone?
James wrote, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perserverance, and perserverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." Sounds good on paper, but who likes trials in real life? In …
Think Globally, Act Locally
The Red Cross has a slogan, “Think Globally, Act Locally.” In other words, keep the big picture in mind while not letting that stop you from doing the work which needs done here in the present. It’s been nearly two years since I helped with Red Cross, but I remember being surprised at the beginning …
Am I Content?
I often wonder, “What does God have for me today, right now?” I frequently chafe at the daily grind, wishing to do something more exciting – or at least more important. Yet I firmly believe God has me exactly where I’m at for a reason and a purpose – even if what I’m doing isn’t …
Indictments, Confessions, and Following Jesus
I notice precious few go against the grain. At least not in a significant way. And this would include me. But aren’t we Christians above all people called to go against the grain? For example, Jesus said, “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will …
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Going Against the Grain
Going against the grain is difficult. Especially to do so in a significant way. But aren’t we Christians above all people called to go against the grain? For example, Jesus said, “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.” (Matthew 16:25) This advice …
Light bulbs, Luxury, People Hurting and an Inspirational Story
Do Light Bulbs Shine Brighter in the Dark? Of course not, light bulbs shine just as bright regardless of where they’re located. And this is a silly question, but think, “If you were a light bulb, would you prefer to be in a miner’s headlamp or the headlight of a riding mower?” Don’t know about …
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Following Jesus is Lifestyle, not Academic
“The spiritual life is first of all a life. It is not merely something to be known and studied, it is to be lived.” -Thomas Merton, Thoughts In Solitude “Superficiality is the curse of our age… The desperate need today is not for a greater number of intelligent people, or gifted people, but for deep …
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Did Paul claim to be Authoritative?
How many times have you heard someone quote 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness…” and thought to yourself, “Did Paul really mean for us to consider the very words he was penning to Timothy Scripture as well?” It’s an interesting question and got …
To whom did Paul write his letters?
A question I’ve had recently is, “Were Paul’s letters written to me or others?” I’ve wondered, “Am I reading someone else’s mail or are Paul’s writings general information relevant to all believers?” Let’s start with who Paul himself said his letters were written to: Romans 1:7 To all in Rome who are loved by God …
Are There Temptations Stronger Than We Can Bear?
The problem with temptations is that they are so tempting. C. S. Lewis once wrote, “A silly idea is current that good people do not know what temptation means. This is an obvious lie. Only those who try to resist temptation know how strong it is…. A man who gives in to temptation after five …
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Elders, Deacons, & Church Leadership
How many leadership offices were there in the 1st century church? How were these offices appointed? What were the differences in duties and qualifications of these offices? And what’s more Biblical anyways: Pastors or Elders? These were only some of the questions we looked at in a recent Bible Study I attended on “Leadership Within …
The Impact of Our Thought Lives
Perhaps you’ve heard the pithy ditty: “Sow a thought, reap an action. Sow an action, reap a habit. Sow a habit, reap your life. Sow your life, reap your destiny.” These days I’m becoming increasingly convinced of the truth behind that saying. Of course, Jesus made the same observation 2,000 years ago: “For out of …
Are We Listening?
It’s easy to talk. It’s harder to listen and I think even harder to ask good questions. As a Math Tutor in the public schools I am reminded over and over the importance of listening. A student asks me for help so I kneel next to him, look over the problem they’re struggling with and… …
Not Being a Hypocrite
Lesson 7 from Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18 Here is the question this weeks’ study starts off with: “Which of my words or actions might a person find hypocritical?” For me, reflecting on that question is convicting. Jesus says we are not to: do our acts of righteousness before men, to be seen by them announce our …
Fellowship of the Unashamed
I just ran across this “pep talk”. It is really inspirational. It is attributed to Bob Moorehead, former pastor of Overlake Christian Church in Seattle. Ironically and unfortunately, Moorehead stepped down in 1998 due to the surfacing allegations of improper sexual conduct. Who knows if the allegations were true or not. Regardless, this should get …
Mental Health & Weighted Jackets
I learned in this education class I’m currently taking that children suffering from certain mental issues (such as autism) can benefit from wearing a “weighted vest” or sleeping under a “weighted blanket.” This gives them what is called Deep Pressure Touch Stimulation (DPTS). Ok, got it: Autistic kids can find comfort in the touch stimulus …
Am I Ready to Die?
I was just reminded I have to be prepared to die anytime. A woman in her 20s was killed in an auto accident about fifteen minutes after I drove by the exact same spot this morning. One person was killed this morning in a three-vehicle crash on I-135 by the First St exit, emergency dispatchers …
Should I Be Living More Comfortably Than Jesus Did?
Are you familiar with the song I Have Decided to Follow Jesus? The lyrics are attributed to S. Sundar Singh. They go like this: “I have decided to follow Jesus; (3x) No turning back, no turning back. Though I may wonder, I still will follow; (3x) No turning back, no turning back. The world behind …
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First Post – Am I Denying Myself Daily?
If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.