Daily Links 12-26-13

In today's roundup of links: productivity tips from the book of Proverbs, things Christians should stop saying, being careful about what you share on the internet, and more.

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This is interesting: a list of 22 productivity tips from the book of Proverbs. (Hat tip: Aaron Armstrong)

The Book of Proverbs has a lot to say about productivity. Not only does it teach us how we can be more productive, it teaches how we can be more biblically productive. 

Some of these principles you can find in secular productivity literature today. (Indeed, many of the proverbs can be found in secular ancient Near East literature, verbatim.) But seeing them in God-breathed Scripture reminds us to adopt those principles with a God-centered perspective. Other principles in the list don’t get as much ink or pixels in productivity books or blogs. Let us consider how to incorporate those in our mindset and our workflow, so that we can glorify God all the more in the work that we do. 

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A list of five things that Christians should stop saying. I agree with every single one especially #1 and #3.

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A warning to be careful about what we share on the internet:

It can happen to any of us. It does happen to almost all of us. 

We see a story online that shocks us and seems just true enough. 

Normally, we check things out before we share them, but this is so unbelievable we need to get the news out as soon as possible. 

We post it on Facebook or retweet it. Before we know it, others have shared the story.

Only then do we find out the truth – it was fake.

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Some enterprising Arizona State University students have converted retired food trucks into bookmobiles. What a great idea. (Hat tip: Book Riot)

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Why C. S. Lewis still matters fifty years after his death.

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The delightful love letter from Mark Twain to his wife on the occasion of their sixth wedding anniversary.

Daily Links 10-8-13

What happens to retired school buses, secret passageway bookshelves, Walt Disney, Winston Churchill, and more in today's roundup of links.

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Ever wonder what happens to school buses when they are retired? Well, wonder no more.

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A collection of 10 really cool secret passageway bookshelves.

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Arguments continue over baseball's current one-and-done wild card game. Peter Gammons is the latest to weigh in and he's arguing that the system worked the way that it was supposed to. I am inclined to agree. (Hat tip: Right Field)

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Why Walt Disney chose to build a theme park on swampland.

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One of my all-time favorite Winston Churchill quotes:

More here and here.

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Mark Twain's advice to young girls of 1865.

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Free audio versions of the Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis.

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Could it be that we're spending too much time with earphones in our ears?

I had an earphone wake-up call the other day when I was being one such bad mom. I vaguely noticed the traffic policeman talking to himself and smiling and thought, “Yikes they let crazy people direct traffic?” About two blocks later it hit me: He was talking to me. Whoops.

I felt like a total jerk. I also realized that I am probably missing a lot of spontaneous verbal interactions with the other human beings that populate this earth, and that while perhaps my iPhone makes my dull afternoon walk feel a little more gangster or a little more like I’m in some cool movie, I’m missing a whole dimension of life.

We don’t need a poll or statistic to tell us that people are spending an enormous amount of time with their headphones on. We see it everywhere. The family out touring while the sullen teenager slumps along, hand in pocket, smooth, white nuggets blocking out the world. The eerie silence on the subway as everyone stares blankly ahead, iPhones cradled in their palms, the awkward elevator moment where you say “Hello!” only to realize your fellow passenger didn’t hear it, the muffled screechy wails of music interspersed with breathing on busses.