Trying to make sense of things

Sometimes I find myself lost and confused in a sea of information and data bytes that is the world we live in with its internet and exponential daily growth.  There is no way anyone can keep up with the amount of information that you are bombarded with every day, much less the amount of information that we are missing every day, which is gargantuan.  

Sometimes I feel like I'm searching for all this information, whilst in my peculiar daily philosophical meanderings that I call a search for truth and learning, even one small bit of this sea of information, and trying to grasp onto it, but once I grab hold there is the next monumentally crucial task of knowing what to do with it.  

And once I know what to do with it, there is the next painful task of knowing how it relates to the one I just got done with, and so on until there appears a shape through the fog that all this small bits often seem to be pointing to.  

Sometimes I can feel that I'm getting near some grand truth that signs and quotes and points are pointing me to, but I can never quite grab a hold of it and it slips through my fingers and out of sight, out of mind.  I have nothing much specific to say here, but it is an itch that constantly bugs me, that the scratches of reading and listening and discussing can never quite satisfy.  I guess our knowing is limited and that is that.  But how can we know our knowing is limited?  Maybe we can't, but that would seem to prove the statement anyway.  


Just some more random thoughts.



What the crap...

Wilson vs. Hitchens

Doug Wilson has one of the most entertaining styles of writing, which I enjoy.  I've recently taken delight in his takes on Christopher Hitchens' polemic God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.

Suppose you went to see some fantastic illusionist, and he did something remarkable, like levitate himself. His beautiful assistant with insufficient clothing -- and this might have something to do with the success of the trick -- comes out on stage and passes some metal hoops every which way around the floating body. Jeepers, you think, and head on home scratching your noggin. When you get there, you find yourself in a discussion with your cousin who used to do a small time illusionist act of his own down at the local Ramada Inn, and he explains to you how the trick is done. He doesn't have to be a big time headliner -- he just has to have enough experience to be able to explain how such tricks are pulled off.

I am the Ramada Inn guy, only drop the illusionist aspect now. I write a lot, like Hitchens, and I know how to put a sentence or two together. I believe I also know how to make a metaphor crawl up your back and make an unpleasant smacky noise in your ear. Or, more pleasantly, to get a couple of cute zephyrs to fool around with your hair on a warm spring day. Here, pick a card, any card.

A good quote I heard recently

"Sorry this report is so long, I didn't have time to make it short."

Sometimes it takes more effort to make something simple than to make it complex.

And sometimes it's okay to be a nerd and notice these things and write a blog post about it.  I can smell the comment coming from my wife :)  You know you were thinking it.

Collision: Hitchens vs. Wilson

Here are the first 13 minutes of the upcoming film, Collision, answering the question: "Is Christianity Good for the World?" This looks to be a very well done movie (great music) and one I'm interested in seeing, although I've already viewed the entirety of one of these debates at Westminster Seminary between Wilson and Hitchens on YouTube, which is quite entertaining and beneficial.  I would highly recommend it.  Or you can read the written debates that prompted the creation of this debate tour and book.

COLLISION - 13 min VIMEO Exclusive Sneak Peak from Collision Movie on Vimeo.

via

"The Hand of Hope"

This is a cool story about the baby boy, who's now 9 years old, who was photographed grasping a doctor's hand when a surgery was being performed on him from his mother's womb.  Here's the link for the photos (caution, these are graphic).

Samuel, now 9 and living in Villa Rica, Ga., said the photo likely gave countless "babies their right to live" and forced many others to debate their beliefs on abortion, something he's proud of.
"It's very important to me," Samuel said of the photograph. "A lot of babies would've lost their lives if that didn't happen."

Good quote

If there is a sound downstairs during the night and it might be a burglar, you don’t say to her, “This is an egalitarian marriage, so it’s your turn to go check it out. I went last time.” And I mean that–even if your wife has a black belt in karate. After you’ve tried to deter him, she may finish off the burglar with one good kick to the solar plexus. But you’d better be unconscious on the floor, or you’re no man.

- John Piper, This Momentary Marriage

via

Kicking Caffeine

Like most people I know I have been addicted to caffeine for a while to where I will get a back headache if I don't have it.  This article offers a generally insightful take on the matter stating that we're a culture obsessed with feel-good food and drinks and use caffeine to feed our overly busy lifestyle, although it does offer some slightly whacko solutions at the end, like rubbing your chest, clapping your hands above your head, and even talking to yourself with nonsensical selfish affirmation (Stuart Smalley-esque).  I've for the most part weened myself down to about half a coke in the morning and I'm fine the rest of the day.  Hopefully I can eventually stop drinking them every day and only enjoy them every once and a while.

Just how did we manage to get addicted to caffeine? There are numerous reasons as caffeine often seems like a harmless quick-fix when we are not getting enough sleep and not making the time in our busy lives to fulfill our emotional and physical needs. Addiction also includes our over-identifying with products and images that are socially accepted and encouraged. It has become noble to always be on the run. "Busy" has come to be seen as important, secure and fulfilled, but is it really? Perhaps the biggest hook of all is that we have bought into the myth ourselves that we need caffeine to wake us up and to keep us going, and have thus become slaves of habit. 

Putting Kindergarteners to the Test

This New York Times article explains that kindergartens today are starting to put little kids through a rigorous testing program.  I share Voddie Baucham's analysis in that we should just let kids be kids while they can:

Many of our children (especially boys) are being drugged by their parents and teachers in an effort to make them sit still for all of this teaching and testing when all they want to do (and what God put in their hearts to desire) is to run and play.  Don’t buy the lie.  Our children are behind in math and science because our system is broken, not because we aren’t starting early enough.  Slow down.  They grow up fast enough.  Enjoy the kindergarten years.  You’ll never get them back.

Anyone heard of this?

Hilarious Craig's List resume

I was just curious and this was one of the first ones that popped up.  Will gladly fight Samurais!  I don't think there's anyway this is real, but this is priceless:

I am a longswordsman in search of a bodyguard position. Student of the lichtenauer tradition. Will provide for own weapon. Will fulfill a variety of duties including protection of clients (may include pre-emptive protection). Ten years worth of protection experience. Expect payment in the form of gold bullion but rates are negotionable. Will gladly fight Samurais. 

Member of the CCCP (conservative conquestador party) 

• it's ok to contact this poster if you are a potential employer or other principal
  

• Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job seeker.
  

• it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
  

My Idea for a Song: Thug Jesus

I can think of few images in all of literature more striking and provocative than that of Jesus in Revelation 19.  I can't write songs for crap, but if I could I think I would write about Jesus in Revelation 19 on a white horse with his title "King of Kings and Lord of Lords" written (or tattooed perhaps?) down his leg, or as has been termed cleverly before, Thug Jesus:




Why haven't there been worship songs written about this text?  I'm aware of none.  Not to denigrate anyone's preferences and likes/dislikes because I respect them and can identify with some of it, but I think an understanding of this text and the picture it paints of Jesus in the reality of his glory and righteousness would change our perception of some of the cheese (my opinion) that's put out a lot of times in the name of Christian music.

Revelation 19:11-21:

11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in [4] blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, “Come, gather for the great supper of God, 18 to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, [5] both small and great.” 19 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. 20 And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence [6] had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. 21 And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

Watching TV is expensive

There is a lot of time we devote to watching TV, surprisingly.  This post makes an interesting and good point that we could be immensely more productive if we would watch less and that it's costing us in the long run.  I should reevaluate my time.

Writing cheesy Christian songs

This is a funny post by Josh Harris (all in good fun) with the 22 essential words for writing cheesy Christian songs, and some funny comments as well:

1. Mountain
2. Love
3. River
4. Ocean
5. Amazed
6. Imagine
7. Valley
8. Believe
9. Waves
10. Running
11. Deep
12. Shout
13. Stillness
14. Moment
15. Arms
16. Tears
17. Walk
18. Hills
19. Reaching
20. Waters
21. Joy
22. Peace

My answer as a religious relativist to people forcing birth control on cultures with large families that are "overpopulating the world" and "not being green"

How dare they impose their religious worldview on other people!!!

Did Jesus rise from death?

Yet another explanation from Mark Driscoll on the resurrection of Jesus.  Overload yes.

Resurrection Q&A

Mark Driscoll answers questions at the end of this sermon on the resurrection of Jesus.