Surprised, Kind Of

I have been reading various blogs, as those of you who read this often (mom) know since I have been trying to post a blog of the week.  I have a list that updates each day, I go to the updated blogs, and if it looks like it is something that interests me, I save it to read later when I have a break at work, eat at my desk, or have some extra time at the end of the day.  Today I was going through the list of blogs to read, and I came across a few blogs that were discussing a conversation that took place between Doug Paggitt and some guy named Todd from Way of the Master.

Doug Paggitt is one of the "leaders" of the Emergent Church, which basically has the goal of engaging and reaching a post-modern world.  I think that there is some truth to what is said, meaning that they say a lot of things that would be found true in Scripture, and state a lot of goals that even I agree with.  Way of the Master is a ministry that teaches evangelism, street evangelism, and ways to refute what they consider heresy.  I want to say up front that although I think that some of the Way of the Master things/methods are ok, I am not sure I agree with all of it.

That brings me to what I read about, then decided to listen to for myself.  Bloggers were talking about the interview that occurred between Todd and Doug on the Way of the Master podcast.  I decided to listen to it for myself (and would suggest that you do so as well because it is quite disturbing on so many levels).

First of all, I am very displeased with how Todd conducted the interview.  When engaging in conversation, it is necessary to be gracious and kind and gentle (things I have a hard time doing, so I will probably not ever be interviewing a Doug Paggitt) in order to engage in the conversation Biblically.  Speaking truth without love is probably as bad as speaking something false because both lead people astray.  Todd definitely was speaking the truth, but there was no love in his speech.  His attitude, disrespect, unkind/harsh words to and about Doug are just as sinful and lead just as many non-Christians away from the truth as Doug's false teaching.  That has to be said upfront.  A good example of someone who does engage in conversation in a Biblical way is Dr. Albert Mohler on his daily radio program.  I have listened to Dr. Mohler converse with athiests (for example) in a way that was not condescending, yet speaking in truth.  Love was in his voice.  He may not have convinced the athiest(s), but his words also did not push people away because of the tone in which they were spoken.

I have to say that I was shocked by some of the statements made by Paggitt.  I have been trying to build a foundation of systematic theology in my own studies, but I thought that there were areas that were not up for argument even by people who did not have a foundation in systematic theology.  One such area is the existence of heaven and hell.  Surprisingly, Paggitt doesn't believe in a physical heaven or hell.  One of the core beliefs to even be able to consider yourself a Christian is believing that there will be a bodily resurrection to a physical heaven.  That is an area that we do not compromise on.  Yet, this Emergent Church leader believes in a spiritual (non-physical) reality that will either be an interaction with or an absence of God (if I got that right.  He really didn't put any of his thoughts in a system - another benefit of systematic theology - and was left with very disorganized words that didn't form clear thoughts).  I was also surprised that apparently this man doesn't use methods such as the historical-grammatical method to interpret the Bible.  If you aren't studying the history, what the words meant back then, the context, then how can you interpret what the words mean for the church today?  Sure, what he said sounds good to a people who do not want to believe in the harsh realities of a hell and who only want to believe in a loving God, but that is not the God of the Bible.  Jesus described hell, and it wasn't just the absence of God.  It is and will be a place of desperation, pain, agony, weeping, gnashing of teeth, etc.  If we do not believe in a hell, then what are we really trying to save people from?  

I think that what I learned most from listening to Paggitt's comments is how important it is to understand redemptive history.  There are multiple types of redemption that will occur.  Two of those types seem to be something that Paggitt does not believe in - redemption of our physical bodies (comes at bodily resurrection) and redemption of this earth (meaning, there will be a physical heaven when this earth is distroyed).  I think it is important that we make sure we ground ourselves in doctrine and systematic theology so that we realize that the Bible is "strung together" (something that Paggitt also seems to disagree with) and has a common theme.  

One thing that I was reminded of last night in our 2 Timothy Bible study is that false teachers will start out with a message that sounds good and people want to hear (and even contains truth in it), but they veer away from the truth to prey on the fleshly desires of those who follow.  I, too, wish that I could not believe in hell because I do not want to think of a place as harsh as that.  My flesh does not want to believe in a place of torment for eternity for those that are not believers.  However, my flesh must submit to the Spirit, and I have to realize that if I believe in the God of the Bible, I accept His word as true.  His word is clear on the subject.  It is important to know His word so that we can discern when we hear something that sounds good to our ears (and flesh), but does not line up with the word of God.

Lil T and the Christmas Tree

I put up my Christmas tree on Friday.  Knowing how much Lil T dislikes change, I figured he would have a problem with the Christmas tree taking over his dining room.  I let him out of the kitchen expecting him to protest at the very sight of twinkling lights and shining things and a tree indoors.  Lil T ran right past the tree.  Paid it no attention whatsoever.  He eventually sniffed the tree after about two hours of running around the living room, but that is it.  YAY!!!  Now Lil T does not have to stay confined all December long in the kitchen.  The pictures are of Lil T playing on the couch and loveseat when I first let him out to play expecting him to protest at the sight of the tree.

We are also in the process of crate training.  So far so good.

Sanctification

Sanctification is becoming what we already are in Christ.

We are already alive in Christ, but we must be alive spiritually.

Our sinful flesh is dead in Christ, so we must constantly put the flesh to death.

We are free from sin in Christ, so we must continually work to keep ourselves free from sin.

We are righteous in Christ, so we must become righteous in the things that we do.

We are in the Spirit in Christ, so we must walk in the Spirit each day.

Sanctification is not a work that we do to obtain salvation (because we are redeemed in Christ already), but is a work that shows we are the recipient of salvation.

Blog of the Week - Under the Dome

It has been a while since I did a blog of the week.  This blog is the blog of the state representative from the Arkansas side of Texarkana.  Steve Harrelson is also an attorney in town (and a good one in my opinion).  His blog not only addresses things that would be of interest to his Arkansas constituents, but to Texarkana as a whole by addressing various issues in Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma as well.  Listening to Steve speak makes me wish that I had him as a representative in Austin instead of the Arkansas side having him as a representative in Little Rock.  He does a great job of keeping the public informed about what is going on so that you feel like you have a bit of a say.  Granted, Arkansas is a lot smaller than Texas, and so he does have more say than what our representative on the Texas side does, but I am still impressed about how committed he is to keeping his constituents informed about what is going on.  He updates his blog many times a day with different things that are of interest.

Wreck

Yesterday I was involved in a wreck.  Not my fault and no one was injured.  I was stopped at a red light on Olive at the intersection with 14th.  My light turned green.  I started to go.  I heard the screeching of brakes.  I stopped a little ways into the intersection.  The other car slammed into the front part of my car.  He had a red light.  His brakes screeched for a while before hitting me, so I am thinking the guy wasn't paying attention to the fact that he had a red light.  Simple, right?  Well, a witness who could not see his light wanted to say that both lights were green at the same time.  Although he originally said when he got out of the car that his light was red, by the time the police got there, he said the accident was his fault, but that the lights were green at the same time.  Plus, his insurance didn't have a policy number and instead said pending, which has started a nightmare of an interaction with his insurance company with them saying it could take up to a month to determine whether I get a rental car.  Frustrating!  One adjuster even told me that since I am an attorney, I can afford my own rental car (I have since requested a new adjuster).  I was informed that I have a duty to mitigate my damages, meaning I have to turn this in to my own insurance company or I run the risk of being out the cost of storage at the wrecker service that had to tow my car.  That also means that I am out my deductible for a period of time (meaning I now can't afford a rental car) while they try to sort things out.  Fortunately, now my insurance company is the one that has to deal with them except for rental car reimbursements.

Above are some pictures.  The pictures look like minor damage, but part of the frame/axle/something that is on the other side of the tire is screwed up because I couldn't turn my wheel after the accident and there was a horrible grinding noise as we pushed my car into the parking lot nearby.

The Notebook

What I am about to say will probably anger a large percentage of the female gender who has seen this movie, but I hated The Notebook.  The movie had come highly recommended by females of various ages, so against my better judgment, I decided to give it a try.  Big mistake.  The acting was flat.  The story was predictable and cliche.  There was no blood although they showed a war (important because it shows that the story is not realistic).  It was a waste of my time.

Ryan Gosling was just a pretty face, but there was no depth to his acting.  It is like watching Joey Harrington play football.  Yeah, he is hot, but he can't quarterback worth a flip, so his hotness decreases to the point of being un-hot in my book.  What good is a pretty exterior if there is nothing going on in the interior?  That is how I felt about Gosling's acting.  He was obviously chosen for his looks (and baby face) instead of his skill.  Therefore, there was nothing left but a pretty face, and that doesn't cut it for me.

As for the storyline, I knew the ending within the first three minutes of the movie.  I mean, come on, it is a romantic drama, and it isn't hard to figure it out.  Therefore, I was bored within the first 15 minutes of the movie.  Plus, the story line is disturbing at times.  We are watching two seventeen year olds strip and start to have sex.  Isn't that child porn?  Don't let the PG-13 fool you -- this movie probably should have been rated R because no 13 year old needs to see that (or anyone else for that matter, but that can be saved for another blog).  Plus, like all other Nicolas Spark movies, it did not make me cry (why do people cry at them?  you know what is going to happen.).

In case some of you are wondering whether I am anti-chick flicks, let me share a bit about my taste in chick flicks.  I do like some chick flicks.  I am a fan of Pearl Harbor (more chick flick than war movie, so it qualifies), Sabrina, Breakfast at Tiffany's, an Affair to Remember, Gone With the Wind, Legends of the Fall, In Love and War, to name a few.  I guess you can see a bit of a common theme in the movies.  I like the classics when actors knew how to act instead of just look pretty or there has to be some blood and guts to outweigh the mushiness.  As for those that think I don't cry at movies (because everyone who had a heart would cry at the Nicolas Sparks three I mentioned), I do.  It is just that those also have common themes.  Some that I cry at -- Remember the Titans, Rudy, Miracle, The Patriot, In Love and War, Tombstone (sometimes).  Basically you have to win something big or have some blood and guts then dying.  I do like my fair share of romantic comedies (even though those are usually pretty cheesy).  So I think that I am going to stop watching romantic dramas that were made after 1970 unless there are some blood and guts.  Plus, no more Nicolas Sparks.  He thinks women are easily entertained by cliche love stories packed full of emotions, and unfortunately he is right (except for this chick).

Samsung Blackjack

I have now learned to work my new cell phone with my laptop and my computer.  This is important because I do not have Internet at home, so I was typing my blog while at work.  Often I did not have the books that I wanted to use to write, such as my Bible that has my notes in it or even my Precept study notes. Now I can type the deeper (meaning not just my coffee break thoughts), hopefully more meaningful blogs from my laptop and hopefully transfer them to be uploaded from work.  In fact, if you are reading this, it is because I have been successful.  Hahaha!

Now that I have had my phone for a week, I feel that I am now able to express my opinion about my phone.  I now am the proud owner of a Samsung BlackJackphone.  It became apparent during some of my travelling to take depositions or attend hearings that I needed to purchase a phone with e-mail capabilities.  I looked at what was available (and cheapest) when the time for my upgrade passed.  I asked Kory Browning, who has had both a Blackberry and a Blackjack, which he would suggest, and the Blackjack came highly recommended (thanks Kory!).  I placed my order, waited on the phone to arrive, and began playing with my new toy.

First, here are the things that I don't like.  The manual and online support that supposedly teach you how to use the phone were not written to teach you how to use the phone.  In fact, they don't teach you anything.  They are very poorly written, do not address most of the questions that a normal person (if I can be considered normal) would ask, do not explain important things, and are really disappointing.  I couldn't get the Internet to work, and there was no troubleshooting section on the Internet.  I couldn't find the music that I had put on there, but there was no section informing you where music that is transferred to the phone is automatically stored.  I wanted to lock the Internet and/or the keypad, but there wasn't a section telling you how to do that either (or at least that I found).  You get the picture.  Speaking of locking the Internet, it appears that it cannot be locked and it is easy to accidentally open the Internet, so that is another thing that I do not like.  Working with teenagers (both here and in NO), I like to lock the Internet because it costs so much when you go over my allotted usage each month.  I also don't like how complicated the phone is to learn to use (but that kind of goes along with the whole lack of a good manual thing).

Finally, here are the things I like.  My previous phone was a Motorola Razr, and I did not realize how unclear the Razr's calls are until I started using this phone.  I don't know if it is because the Blackjack has a better internal antenna or just because the volume is better on the Blackjack, but the call quality is definitely improved.  Although I thought I would not like it, I love the keyboard.  I do miss the one-touch ability to text where my words were completed on the Razr (although when the wrong word was chosen, it could be quite strange or hard to decipher),but I am learning to type almost as fast on the keyboard.  The keyboard is nice when typing long messages instead of having to mess with one-touch.  I just wish that it would give me an option on long words.  The contact list (although a pain in the rear to set up) is much better because all the numbers for the same person can be entered in one place.  I just don't like that it is organized by last name, then first, so my list has everyone's first and last names as their first.  I have looked up in the manual about how to change that, but that was one of the areas not addressed.  I am very pleased with the e-mail capabilities (once I got it set up, another manual issue) and love how the e-mail and text messages appear when reading them.  The camera is pretty good as is the video recorder.  The video is pretty grainy when you watch it on the computer, but that is to be expected.

I am grateful to Kory who has been answering my questions as they come up since the manual doesn't.  Overall, I am very pleased with my new phone.  I would highly recommend the Blackjack (so long as you have someone who can answer your questions because the manuals do not).

What is Going On

I have a sinus infection that doesn't seem to want to leave me alone.  Other than the pressure in my head and the lack of voice that I now have, I appear to be feeling fine.  However, when you have no voice, people automatically assume that you are sicker than what you really are.  On a different note, I get to do my first hearing without a voice today, so that should be interesting for the court reporter.  Maybe it will come back enough for me to talk.  Or better yet, maybe the two parties will agree and only the other side will need to put on a witness.  It is too soon to tell.

I cooked a real meal last night.  In spite of the sinus infection, or maybe because of it, I decided to cook a real meal.  By real, I mean that it didn't come entirely from a single box, can, or package.  I made meatloaf, spinach with parmesan sauce, and mashed potatoes (although those did come from a pouch).  I love meatloaf, and decided to try a recipe that I found online because it looked easy.  I hate to admit this (in part because she is one of the only people that reads my blog), but I liked it better than mom's.  That is saying a lot because I love my mom's meatloaf.  Not only was it a simple recipe, but it was a good recipe.  I want to make it clear that the flavor of the meatloaf had absolutely nothing to do with the skill of the cook.  It really was that easy.

1776

I finished reading the David McCullough book 1776and I highly recommend this book.  I enjoy McCullough's writing style as he makes history entertaining by telling a story instead of just facts.  This reminds me of the Greek historians (although some of them were not relating facts but myths).  He shares the story of the first year of the Revolutionary War with particular interest in Washington, and how he learned from his mistakes to become a great general.  It is incredible to see the steadfastness of nature that the commander in chief exhibited in the face of what I would have considered complete defeat.  McCullough writes in a way that makes the fact seem like a good fiction book yet stays true to what really occurred (if the 50+ pages of bibliography is any indication).  He uses letters written by the main actors to provide insight into what was being thought inside the heads of these men that we have learned about since elementary school.  Because of the ease of read, I believe this book to be the pleasure read of fiction while tapping into my love of history.  Therefore, I highly recommend this book for all people who like war fiction, non-fiction, or just a good read.

One Night with the King

My most recent Netflix movie was One Night With the King.  It is the story of Esther and Xerxes.  The last time I tried to watch it was with a group of youth who were not interested in the movie whatsoever, and it was a disaster.  I finally had the opportunity to view it without interruption (except the occasional barking by my dog).  It was a pretty good movie.  The sets and costumes were incredible.  Some of the acting was a bit cheesy or unskilled or something (Xerxes had a really strange accent that annoyed me), but the movie was a good movie in spite of that.  It was just nice to watch a movie that had violence and a love story without blood and skin.  Definitely entertaining and something that won't make you blush when watching as a family.  I hope to add it to my expanding DVD collection at some point in the future (although I have to admit that I spend so much less on DVDs now that I have replaced TV with books for the most part).

Future Posts

Well, I have been thinking about several different topics that I want to write about that should be coming in the next few weeks.  The study on 2 Timothy is going really well, and has me wanting to write about entrusting the things in the Bible to faithful men, meaning it can't be watered down.  Some self-evaluation things have led me to wonder about walking contradictions.  I am nearing the finish of several books that are outstanding.  I have more books that I have bought (I have come to the conclusion that it is an addiction, hahaha!).  I just wish that at some point I could shut off my brain and stop thinking because my brain seems to work non-stop.  Maybe I will have more of an opportunity to post soon since my cell now doubles as a pda, meaning I can write on it or maybe even on the laptop to easily transfer to a computer that has internet. I haven't played with it enough yet to see if that will work.

Lil T's Least Favorite Holiday

Last night I found out that my wonderful little dog hates Halloween.  He is a Halloween scrooge.  He does not like little kids talking cheerfully and giggling uncontrollably walking past his house.  He barks at every single last one of them.  I wonder if that contributed to the no doorbell rings or knocks while I was home.  He was finally happy when things calmed down around 10, which, conveniently is his bed time.

Blog of the Week - Tominthebox News Network

I haven't taken much time to post anything this week because I bought a new phone and have been playing with it (Samsung Blackjack, very nice, but also complicated), but I will take a few minutes to suggest a blog for this week.  I love dry humor and satire, mainly because there is a mix of truth to it, so I love this blog.  Tominthebox News Network (or TBNN as it likes to refer to itself in the blogs) has some of the best religious satire that I have read.  Some of it is just nonsense type writing, i.e. this article about a guy that wanted to be a missionary to Krakozhia.  Some of it is so close to the truth that it would not surprise you to be reading it on CNN or Fox News tomorrow.  All in all, very entertaining although some of it may not make sense if you are a follower of TV preachers (especially the ones who are "incredibly good-looking" to quote Zoolander, I think).