Learning from the Revolution

When we think about the American Revolution, we tend to think about the war itself. But as John Adams once wrote, "The American Revolution was a change in the hearts and minds of the people." As Jane Hampton Cook shows in her excellent book Battlefields and Blessings: Stories of Faith and Courage from the Revolutionary War, the change of hearts and minds took place over a period of 25 years before the first shots were fired at Lexington and Concord. There is also no doubt that the Revolution would not have occurred if people of faith hadn't been leading the way.

"What I realized was that there really couldn't have been a revolutionary war without people of faith because part of their Christian duty, their understanding of their Judeo-Christian heritage was that they were to obey their king," Ms. Cook said in a recent interiew. (Click here to listen) "That was part of their responsibility to their faith. But they had to make this change. They ended up realizing and prioritizing Galatians 5:1 which says 'It's for freedom that Christ came, therefore, stand firm for that freedom.' The more they concluded that King George had abdicated his God-given responsibility to protect their God-given rights, the more they realized he had become a tyrant and it was part of their duty by their faith to stand firm for freedom."

Through 365 daily devotions, Ms. Cook provides insight into the hearts and minds of not just our most well know founding fathers but many others who played a vital role in the Revolution. By relying on letters, diaries, and other writings, she is able to provide a window into the minds of these courageous men and women who took up the cause of freedom as part of their Christian duty. We also get a keen insight into their own struggles and find much in their lives that is very similar to our own. The book can easily be read as a novel as Ms. Cook still manages to provide a cohesive overall narrative of the Revolution even though she is working within the devotional structure.

One of the book's greatest strengths is the incorporation of what Ms. Cook refers to as the pulpit perspective. Each week's readings conclude with an entry entitled "Sabbath Rest" that features a sermon from the time period. We get to see how pastors were also struggling with their duty to stand firm for freedom and the impact that their teachings had on the Founders.

Battlefields and Blessings: Stories of Faith and Courage from the Revolutionary War is the most comprehensive history of the Revolution that I have come across. It's devotional style makes it great daily reading for individuals or family study. I highly recommend this book as you will gian a much greater understanding of what motivated the founders to abandon their dreams of a quiet life in order to live loud for liberty.

The Lost Art of Hurling A Knuckleball

At one time it was a more commonly (but not widely) utilized pitch: the knuckleball. Now only one major league pitcher employs it. Sports Illustrated has a great profile of the strangest pitch you will ever see thrown and the one guy who still uses it: Boston's Tim Wakefield.

Hat tip: Jonathan

Baseball Quote of the Week

Ninety feet between home plate and first base may be the closest man has ever come to perfection.

~ Red Smith

Road Trip: National Museum of the Marine Corps

Yesterday we were taking a lengthy road trip along the Interstate 95 corridor south of Washington, D. C. and on a whim decided to drop in on the National Museum of the Marine Corps at Quantico, Virginia. Although we had only a short time to tour the museum, we decided very quickly that it would be worth a longer return visit.

The purpose of the museum is to honor the long history of the Marines. To really do it justice, you have to plan to spend several hours. There are numerous artifacts from the past 200 years of history of the Corps. A timeline allows visitors to see the important events of the Marines alongside important historical events from different eras. Separate galleries have been set aside for the Civil War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Viet Nam War.

The most striking and moving portion of the museum that we saw was the Iwo Jima exhibit. Visitors step into a simulated shipboard briefing room where they are given a simulated briefing of the Iwo Jima invasion. Then you step onto a mock up of a landing craft and watch a five minute film on a 180 degree screen of actual footage shot during the invasion. After the film ends, you step out into the remainder of the exhibit. On the wall is a display of a Marine Corps or Navy insignia for each of the 5,391 soldiers that lost their lives during the battle. This simple exhibit was by far the most moving of any that we saw during our brief visit.

It's fair to say that this is a museum that is not for the faint of heart. Some of the exhibits feature very graphic displays of combat footage. The museum doesn't pull any punches as far as what it takes to be a Marine or the unique role they play as part of the United States Armed Forces. It's also unique in that this is the only museum where I've actually seen profanity engraved on granite. I won't display it here but if you really want to satisfy your curiousity just let the flash introduction play through from the museum website. The quotes they display are the same quotes on the walls of the rotunda of the museum. As a result, this is a museum that you don't necessarily want to take younger children to visit.

All in all, they have done a terrific job of capturing the history and spirit of the Marine Corps. If you are ever in the area, I highly recommend a visit to the Museum. It's a terrific reminder of sacrifices that have been made for the sake of freedom.

Living Loud For Liberty

Jane Hampton Cook, author of the excellent book Battlefields & Blessings: Stories of Faith and Courage from the Revolutionary War, has posted this terrific video as an Independence Day tribute for those who sacrificed so much so that we could enjoy the blessings of liberty.

Baseball Quote of the Week

Baseball is almost the only orderly thing in a very unorderly world. If you get three strikes, even the best lawyer in the world can't get you off.

~ Bill Veeck

Now, This Is a REALLY Dumb Lawsuit

Absolutely absurd.

Trying real hard to scrub the mental picture from my brain......

Hat tip: The Point

Thoughts on the Great Commission

Author's note: I am recycling this post from 2004. As opportunities have been presented this week to meet people's needs where they are the truths contained in this post came to mind.

The Great Commission - Matthew 28:16-20

16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

If there is a single passage of Scripture that would serve as a "mission statement" for Christians then the case could be made that Matthew 28:16-20 is it. It is the passage that most Christians would cite as the passage that explains our primary purpose here on earth. It is also a passage that is probably one of the most easily misunderstood. I've observed many churches that focus their ministry on reaching non-Christians. The predominant theme running through most of the sermons is the Gospel. In other words, the focus is on salvation instead of discipleship.

Mark D. Roberts, a pastor and blogger, has posted a sermon entitled "Sent to a People Beyond Ourselves" that analyzed this passage and presented some applications for the church today. A couple of points he makes really stood out as I read it. He focuses on the phrase "Go and make disciples" in verse 19. He asks whether we need to "get up and go somewhere"? His answer:

"Thus, not only do we not have to go elsewhere to fulfill the Great Commission, but in fact our primary mission is here, right on our doorstep, right across the street, right in our schools, neighborhoods, and offices. "

Opportunities to share Christ are all around us: co-workers, neighbors, friends, family members, and anyone else we encounter through the course of daily living. That is not to say that going out is not important and there certainly is a place for sending out missions workers into the world. But we should not be focused on ministering to the world at large that we miss opportunities much closer to home.

Roberts then turns his attention to another key part of verse 19: make disciples.

Notice, Jesus didn't say, "Make believers," though believing in him is an essential part of discipleship. Nor did Jesus say, "Get people to clean up their lives," though genuine disciples become more holy as they grow in Christ. Jesus didn't say, "Get people to go to church," though faithful participation in the community of Jesus is absolutely crucial to discipleship. Rather, Jesus said, "Make disciples." To paraphrase, this means, "Make people who enter into an intentional, intimate relationship with me and with my other disciples, in which they put their trust in me as Savior, in which they submit their life to me as Lord, in which they allow me to teach them both how to live and how to serve me in the world."

So our mission in this community is not merely to make converts, but to make genuine disciples of Jesus Christ.

I am persuaded that this is what is missing from most of what passes for evangelism in the church today. We have become too focused on salvation and have not focused on discipleship.

I was discussing this topic with my former pastor this weekend who observed that when you have a church that is focused primarily on salvation (and often on increasing the number of people coming to church) that the believers in the congregation tire of hearing a salvation message over and over again. As a result, they become frustrated because they are not growing deeper in their relationship with Christ.

Roberts then moves on to this application for the church:

We cannot make disciples in this community unless we are living as a community of disciples, loving one another, bearing one another's burdens, teaching each other, forgiving each other, worshipping together. There is no discipleship without genuine community. And, in our day, there's no effective evangelism without genuine community. Our neighbors, those to whom we have been sent, won't believe the good news about Jesus unless they see this good news fleshed out in our fellowship together. Then, if they accept this good news and become believers, they won't live as disciples unless they can join a community of disciples.

This reflects what the apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:4-5:

4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.

The power of the Holy Spirit is demonstrated in how we live our lives. If we are truly living our lives under the Lordship of Jesus Christ, perfect strangers should be able to see a difference in us. My wife often tells me of the story of the kid who said that if Jesus was living in him He would be "sticking out all over". I remember once in college sitting in one the main areas of campus talking with a friend of mine when someone I did not know came up to me and asked if I was a Christian. I said that I was. He said "I could see it in your eyes". The church should be all about developing a community of disciples who will have Jesus "sticking out all over".

Too often the church falls into the trap of believing that there is a need for more ministries or programs to draw people into the church. What we really need to focus on building the community of disciples, intentionally being involved in each others lives, to hold others accountable so that we can "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have." 1 Peter 3:15

ADDENDUM: I was discussing this idea with a friend of mine this morning who believes that the majority of churches overemphasize discipleship and do not emphasize evangelism enough. I believe that each church is going to have different needs and be at a different place. We both agreed that the important thing is for churches to be able to strike the right balance between discipleship and evangelism, and like seeking balance in our own lives, it's a constant process.

Baseball Quote of the Week

A hot dog at the ballgame beats roast beef at the Ritz.

~ Humphrey Bogart

Quick Takes 6-13-08

A roundup of random links for your weekend enjoyment......

A look at the 2008 election by the numbers.

According to Marvin Olasky, if Obama wins and the Democrats make big gains in Congress it could be 1933 all over again. That's a very scary prospect.

Jim Geraghty on the character of Barack Obama:

But there’s a pattern emerging here: The Iowa ABC reporter was wrong in presuming Obama had forgotten his flag pin. Voters were at first wrong to think
Obama had seen Wright’s controversial sermons, and then they wrongly and
unfairly judged Wright. Then even if they were proven correct in their assessment of Wright, the press was wrong in “caricaturing” the tone of services at Trinity United. Stephanopoulos was wrong to presume that Obama’s relationship with Ayers was of concern to the voters. Vieira was wrong to accuse Obama of mischaracterizing McCain’s remarks.

No candidate enjoys admitting when he or she is wrong. But one of the ways Obama stood out as more than just a freshman senator when he came to Washington
was his warm humanity, his humility, his willingness to express that “pang of
shame.”

The pang, it seems, is long gone.

If Obama fails to win this election it will not be because of one major issue but all of these minor things added together will be enough for voters to decide that he does not represent the change that they really want.

Meanwhile, LaShawn Barber takes a rare break from her self-imposed moratorium on political blogging to weigh in on the Obama nomination:

I feel no “racial pride” that he’s the first black major party nominee or that he’ll be the first black president of the United States, because values trump race in my world. Anyone who believes it’s OK for “doctors” to crush the heads of infants in the birth canal isn’t getting my vote. If you’re black and pro-life but feel “torn” between racial pride about his nomination and disgust for his pro-death stance, shame on you. Get your priorities straight. (Emphasis original)

I couldn't agree more.

A lot of noise has been made about Senator Jim Webb as a possible running mate for Obama but here are some reasons why that would be an awful pick. Personally, I think former Virginia governor Mark Warner would have been a much better pick. However, since he's almost certain to win the Senate seat being vacated by the retiring Republican John Warner it's not likely he would take the VP nod.

How to combine homeschooling and business travel. We're fortunate that we've been able to do a lot of this as a family. As a result, we have lots of great memories to treasure.

This is long overdue but at the same time it saddens me that it's necessary.

Congratulations to friend of this blog, Tim Ellsworth, whose book God In The Whirlwind about the tornadoes that ripped through the Union University campus has just been published.

Mike Huckabee didn't make the cut as a presidential candidate in 2008 but he does have a new job: political commentator for Fox News.

A plea to save fatherhood.

Hope everyone (especially my fellow Dads) has a terrific Father's Day Weekend.

Why Federal Education Programs Fail

The answer lies in the concluding paragraphs of this column by Joel Belz on recent proposals to extend federal education oversight into preschool and daycare programs from the current issue of World Magazine (subscription required):

I've said before in this space, and it needs to be said during just about every presidential campaign, that there is something much more potentially terrifying than to watch the government continue to fail in its efforts to prop up education in this country. Much worse than such a continuing failure would be to watch the government succeed.

Shaping the minds and the value system of our children is simply not the proper function of government—almost certainly not at any level, but especially at the distant federal level. (Emphasis added)

If your child's school chooses never to mention what Jesus calls "the first and great commandment of life"—to love the Lord our God with all we have—all the rest of that school's education will be as hollow as it is shallow. And even worse will be the effort, so often attempted (and sincerely so), to address some expression of the second great commandment—"loving your neighbor as yourself"—without having dealt seriously with the first one. The first provides both skeleton and heart for the second; the second is impossible without the first.

Society needs to understand, and so do evangelical Christians, that the real problem with state education today (and even with much private education) has nothing to do with teachers' salaries or funding levels or phonics or curriculum or how many months of the year or hours of the day children go to school. All those things have their significance and are worth discussing at the right time.

But the right time for that is always after settling what education is really about. Until educators get that straight, they're not going to get anywhere with "education reform." And they have no business talking about stretching the federal government's reach into preschool and daycare—where the best they will ever do is to compound their present clumsiness.

Well said.

Baseball Quote of the Week

We got sunshine. We got fresh air. Let's play two.

- Ernie Banks

TV Preview: When We Left Earth: The NASA Missions

In the past hundred years, the single greatest achievement of mankind is without a doubt our conquest of space. In less than 10 years, the American space program would go from knowing next to nothing about putting a man in space to landing atwo men on the moon and returning them to Earth.

Discovery Channel chronicles the first 50 years of NASA's successes and failures in a brand new documnetary entitled When We Left Earth: The NASA Missions which premieres on June 8 at 9PM EDT/PDT. The series is narrated by award-winning actor Gary Sinise. Over three consecutive Sunday nights, this series will take the viewer on a journey through the history of the space program like no other documentary ever has before.

"This project started out as a preservation endeavor," said executive producer Bill Howard in a recent interview. "We sat down with NASA and explained to them that we wanted to go back through their archives and preserve and remaster all of their original film source material, the film that had been to the moon and had been in space, the real treasures of the NASA archives."


Click here to listen to an interview with executive producer Bill Howard.


What followed was a painstaking process in which the producers viewed more than 500 hours of footage and converting over 100 hours into HD to be used in this series. HD copies were then donated back to NASA.

But they didn't stop there. The producers also went through the process of digitizing the audio archives which also proved to be a monumental task.

"At the time of Mercury and Gemini, they didn't record the audio on the same medium as the picture," explained Mr. Howard. "Film would be shot in space and the audio would be recorded back in Houston on some custom government magnetic reel to reel tape and you go back and you try to access those magnetic tape sources. Some of them are completely degraded and can't be played. Others are fragile and have to be handled with such care that you only get one chance to digitize it."

The result of all this work is a visually stunning series that puts the viewer right in the middle of what the astronauts experienced on these missions. You feel as if you're in the spacecraft alongside these astronauts as they embark on these magnificent adventures. For the first time, mission footage has been synchronized with the audio so that viewers will get to not only see but hear the astronauts during these missions.


Interspersed with the archival footage are present day interviews with both the astronauts and some of the flight directors. Viewers will get a greater understanding of the character of the men and women who undertake the challenge to explore space.


The first episode, entitled "Ordinary Supermen", begins with the earliest days of NASA. The Soviets have already launched Sputnik to begin the Space Race. NASA is working feverishly to try to catch up. They recruit the best pilots they can find to become the first astronauts. Out of 110 who qualify, only seven will become Mercury astronauts. Interviews with the two surviving Mercury astronauts, John Glenn and Scott Carpenter, are included to provide insight and personal recollections from their missions. In order to make it into space, NASA has to invent completely new technology. As flight director Gene Kranz puts it, learning to fly into space was like "learning to drink from a fire hose".


Episode two, "Gemini-Friends and Rivals", provides rare footage of the recruiting and training process and focuses on the steps that must be achieved to make it to the moon. Ed White's inaugural space walk on Gemini 4 is stunning to watch in HD. Another highlight is Gene Cernan's space walk on a later Gemini mission. For the first time, we get to hear Cernan's struggle to work in space with the mission audio synchronized to the film. Cernan also provides present-day recollections that add to the drama.


The third episode, "Apollo-Landing the Eagle", opens with the first major tragedy of the space program: the Apollo 1 launchpad fire that killed astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee. NASA bounces back to a few months later launching Apollo 8 which was the first mission to achieve lunar orbit. The footage from this mission (including shots of the stages of the Saturn V rocket separating) is absolutely incredible. The episode concludes with the Apollo 11 landing and NASA's greatest achievement to date.


Episode 4, "A Home in Space", begins with Apollo missions 12-17 and the near-disaster of Apollo 13. Astronauts Jim Lovell and Fred Haise and flight director Gene Kranz put us right in the middle of the drama with their recollections of the ill-fated mission. As the Apollo program winds down, NASA decides to take the leftover hardware to create Skylab, the first attempt to put a space station into orbit.


Episode 5, "The Shuttle", brings us to the next great chapter of NASA's history. Astronauts John Young and Robert Crippen share their memories of the first shuttle launch which holds the distinction of being the first time that NASA will test a new vehicle with astronauts aboard. Both Young and Crippen tell us what it's like to ride a thoroughly untested spaceship. Another highlight is the footage from astronaut Bruce McCandless' untethered spacewalk which was the first time it was ever attempted. The episode concludes with the Challenger explosion and includes some specially declassified material of the solid rocket boosters being destroyed following the explosion of the Challenger.


As episode 6, "A New Space Age", opens, NASA is reeling from the Challenger disaster and scrambles to get the shuttle flying again. Their next great endeavor is the Hubble Space Telescope. But after deployment, they discover huge problems with it that require a daring repair mission that is documented here. After the successful repair of Hubble comes the Columbia disaster which, as the mission footage shows, might have been avoided. The onboard footage of the crew as they begin re-entry is eerie to watch. As with the other missions, the film is remarkable to watch. The series concludes with the construction of the International Space Station and the next great chapter of space exploration.


Unlike other documentaries about space, this series focuses more on the men and women of NASA than the technical achievements.


"What we tried to do is look at it as an adventure story: real heroes, real stakes, and relal jeopardy," said Mr. Howard. We gave it a theatrical score and built it as we would build an adventure movie and I think that's our effort any way to make it relevant to people now by putting it in a medium they understand: high definition television with a full theatrical score."


When We Left Earth: The NASA Missions certainly accomplishes that objective. It is our greatest adventure.


When We Left Earth: The NASA Missions will air on the Discovery Channel at 9PM EDT/PDT on June 8, 15 and 22.


This article was originally published at Blogcritics.

Missing: Bold Leadership

This week I've had the privilege to preview a new series that will debut on the Discovery Channel on Sunday, June 8th entitled When We Left Earth: The NASA Missions (click here to read my review). The six part series traces the first fifty years of NASA's missions to explore outer space.

While watching the series I was struck by how we no longer consider the exploration of space as something that is important for our country to invest in. It does not seem to hold the same interest for us as a nation as it did when I was a kid growing up in the late 60's and early 70's. Perhaps that is because we don't have bold leadership any longer in Washington.

On May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American in space by piloting his Mercury spacecraft on a twenty minute sub-orbital flight. A little less than three weeks later, President John F. Kennedy declares before a joint session of Congress that the United States will land a man on the moon before the end of the decade. At the time, many in the space program thought Kennedy was crazy to make such a suggestion. But as audacious as his boast may have been, he inspired thousands of individuals associated with the program to work harder to ensure that his goal was met.

President Kennedy said it best in another famous speech that he made about why we must explore space:

We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.

We need a leader who is willing to challenge us to do hard things.

Baseball Quote of the Week

I love doubleheaders. That way I get to keep my uniform on longer.

- Tommy Lasorda

Now that's what I call a great work ethic.

Quick Takes - 5-30-08

Been on the road all week but still managed to gather up a few random links for your consideration:

Based on the results of the West Virginia and Kentucky primaries, it looks like Senator Barack Obama hasn't been able to put the Reverend Jeremiah Wright problem to rest. I think that's at least part of his problem and may prevent him from being elected in November.

Joel Belz agrees with my previous assertion that recent judicial activism in California will be an issue in November.

Enviromentalism is the new religion of America. I consider myself more a conservationist. God created the Earth. We are only stewards of his creation.

An interesting fact: the road has been unusually unkind to baseball teams this year.

Why people love to watch House, M. D. Count me as one of the faithful viewers.

I've always been a fan of space exploration and the potential that it holds for mankind. But ever since the end of the Apollo program we haven't really had any real goals for space. It's too bad none of our current presidential candidates have been willing to step up and share a future vision for NASA.

Speaking of space, this year is the 50th anniversary of NASA. The Discovery Channel will mark the anniversary with a brand new series entitled When We Left Earth that premieres on June 8th. I just received a preview copy in the mail this week and it looks like it will be a terrific series. Stay tuned for a review here next week.

Four generations of Eagle Scouts met with President Bush this week. Amazing.

Carol Platt Liebau on Scott McClellan's new book: "The fact is that when you offer two versions of the truth, you make it clear, at least one time, you were lying." Well said. Based on what his former colleagues are saying, it sounds like he may be lying now. Of course, the fact that McClellan's publisher is a far-left liberal outfit may explain what's going on. And I tend to agree with Matt Lewis that this endorsement doesn't improve one's opinion of McClellan.

Have a great weekend.

DVD Review: National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets

The intrepid treasure hunters from National Treasure are back for a second adventure. But this time it's not just treasure that is at stake. This time, the Gates family must clear their family name just as they were starting to receive respect in the academic community.

The film opens on April 14, 1865. The Civil War has just ended. Two men walk into a saloon to meet a man who can help them solve a puzzle: a playfair cipher that provides a clue that leads to Cibola, the lost city of gold. The man is Thomas Gates, the great, great grandfather of legendary treasure hunter Benjamin Franklin Gates (Nicholas Cage). Thomas Gates quickly discovers that the men who approached him were members of the Knights of the Golden Circle, a secret society that wanted to continue the efforts of the South to secede from the Union. Gates quickly burns the pages that were given to him and ultimately is killed for it.

Fast forward to present day where Ben Gates and his father, Patrick (Jon Voight), are giving a lecture on the diary of John Wilkes Booth, President Lincoln's assasain. At the end of the lecture, Mitch Wilkerson (Ed Harris), comes forward with what he claims is a portion of one of the missing pages of the diary. The page, Wilkerson contends, lists Thomas Gates as one of Booth's co-conspirator's in the assasaination.

In order to clear the Gates' family name, Ben and Patrick must solve the clues to prove that the story of the Knights of the Golden Circle seeking Cibola is true. The clues eventually lead them to the Book of Secrets which is a book written by Presidents for Presidents which contain all of the nation's most closely guarded secrets. To get to the book, Ben Gates must get to the President. His grand plan: kidnap the President and hope that he will be allowed to see the book.

Like the first installment in the series, National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets intersperses history into the story. The writers go to great lengths to incorporate numerous facts into the narrative which adds to the credibility of the story.

The other remarkable thing about these movies that in an age where it's easy to generate locations through computer animation the producers insist on filming at actual locations as much as possible. This is a much bigger film than its predecessor in part because of the locations used in the film: Paris, London, Washington, D. C., the Librayr of Congress, and Mount Rushmore. One of the most exciting parts of the film is a car chase actually filmed on the streets of London.

In addition, all of the principal characters from the first movie, both in front of and behind the camera, are back in this movie. The on-screen chemistry is evident throughout the film.
There are also a couple of notable additions to the cast. Ed Harris makes a terrific villian in Mitch Wilkerson. Bruce Greenwood makes a terrific and thoroughly believable President of the United States. But the best addition is Helen Mirren as Emily Appleton, Patrick Gates' ex-wife and Ben Gates' mother. The chemistry between her and Jon Voight is wonderful and it's thoroughly believable that they were married.

Disney has, as with earlier titles, offered a 2-disc collectors' edition that offers additional bonus features not available on the single disc. It's absolutely worth the extra money to purchase the 2-disc edition as the wealth of bonus featurettes add to the enjoyment of the movie. In the featurettes we learn how different aspects of the film were completed including the extensive City of Gold sequences as well as the aforementioned London car chase.

National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets does a terrific job of picking up where National Treasure left off providing another exciting bit of cinematic escapism. In many respects, National Treasure 2 is a bigger adventure with more exciting locales than the first film. Watching the movie again made me hope that we haven't seen the last of the Gates family adventures. These movies may be the best movies ever made but they are certainly are a good way to spend a couple of hours. Let's hope that there are more of these films to be made.

This article originally appeared at Blogcritics.

Baseball Quote of the Week

Baseball is the only field of endeavor where a man can succeed three times out of ten and be considered a good performer.

~ Ted Williams

Quick Takes - 5-23-08

A few random links for your consideration:

What will be the fallout from the recent same-sex marriage ruling in California? I'm not sure whether the state will go red but the Supreme Court sure made the job of California Republicans a lot easier. Related link: Rick Santorum doesn't regret sounding the alarm on marriage in '03. Also, Senator Obama still hasn't figured out how to win votes in the heartland.

I had been meaning to post a review of Prince Caspian (we saw it last weekend), but this review sums up my thoughts about the movie much better than I could.

Memo to Maxine Waters: the word you are looking for is nationalize, a la Hugo Chavez. Pretty scary stuff.

This is no surprise: a Texas court ruled that the state had no right to remove 400 children from a polygamist cult's compound. Once the dust settles and the courts figure out what to do with all the kids, expect numerous lawsuits to be filed against the state.

Instant replay in baseball? Say it ain't so!

VP Sweeps: the candidates begin looking at possible running mates. I'd be willing to get Obama doesn't offer Hillary the spot no matter how hard she tries to muscle her way onto the ticket.

Finding hope in the aftermath of natural disasters. And tragic events. Our prayers go out to those affected by these recent events.

Finally, a reminder of what we celebrate this weekend. Here's one way to support the troops.

Have a great weekend.

Not Ready For Prime Time?

I'm not a fan of Barack Obama and certainly don't intend to vote for him in November. But I can't help admire him for what he has been able to achieve: to rise from political obscurity to becoming the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee to (quite possibly) the next President of the United States in just a little over a year. That is a remarkable achievement for any candidate. Yet I keep getting the feeling that despite all that the Senator has achieved, he is not ready to be President.

Yesterday, the Senator lashed out at the Tennessee GOP for posting a video that criticized his wife, Michelle Obama, for saying "For the first timein my adult life, I am really proud of my country." The Senator said to them, "Lay off my wife" in a television interview.

As a husband, I understand that you're first impulse is to protect and defend your wife when she is criticized. I respect him for his desire to protect Michelle. But implied in his response is that his wife is "off limits" and that it would be wrong for anyone to criticize her.

Traditionally, political spouses have remained in the background in campaigns. If they came out to make a speech, it would usually be no more than simply encouraging people to vote for their significant other. That political dynamic changed in 1992 with Bill Clinton's first campaign for the White House. By voting for him, voters were told that they were getting "two presidents for the price of one" and that Hillary would be as central a figure in a Clinton administration as Bill would. We certainly saw this when Bill appointed Hillary as head of his health care task force in 1993.

When politicians' spouses start making political statements such as the one Michelle Obama did when she said that for the first time in her adult life she was proud of her country, they insert themselves into the campaign and become fair game for criticism. Theresa Heinz Kerry learned this lesson the hard way in 2004 when she said that Laura Bush had never held a real job.

Senator Obama is a very gifted politician and perhaps one of the most talented to come along in a long time. His meteoric rise has been due not only to his extensive skills but also to a fawning media that has been willing to give him a pass on tough questions. As a result, the Senator seems to have become used to being treated with kid gloves on the campaign trail. His reaction yesterday to criticism of his wife gives further evidence that he is perhaps a little too thin-skinned to be President. After all, if you want to be elected to the toughest job in the world, you need to be prepared to deal with the criticism that comes with it.

Two Different Candidates With The Same Problem

2008 is shaping up to be an odd election season. For the first time in recent memory, both parties' nominees for President will have secured their nominations without winning an overwhelming majority of their respective parties' votes. Both Barack Obama and John McCain will have a lot of work ahead of them to unite their parties. But they also share another similarity: both of them may need to select a running mate more conservative than they are in order to win the election.

According to National Journal, Barack Obama is the most liberal member of the U. S. Senate. As last week's resounding defeat in the West Virginia primary showed, Obama is weak among values voters and middle-class workers. He's also had trouble winning votes among women. In order to win over the center and right of his party as well as appeal to independents, he would be well advised to select someone more conservative than he is. Obama's inexperience will also be a liability and so he may want to look for someone with more experience. Of course, he can't rule out the possibilty of selecting a woman as his running mate to help his appeal among women.

Meanwhile, John McCain has his own set of problems. Throughout the primaries, more conservative members of the Republican party gravitated towards Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, and Fred Thompson. McCain has long been perceived as having too much of an independent streak to suit Republicans. His age also becomes an issue. So picking someone who is younger and more conservative would be a wise move for McCain.

While the Vice-Presidential nominee normally doesn't add much to the ticket, 2008 could prove to be an exception to that rule. With both parties' nominees carrying significant weaknesses into the fall campaign, the choice of running mate could be the most critical decision these two candidates make during this election season.

Baseball Quote of the Week

I think about baseball when I wake up in the morning. I think about it all day and I dream about it at night. The only time I don't think about it is when I'm playing it.


- Carl Yastrzemski

Appeasers and Activists

Yesterday was a big news day with two unrelated events occurring that will each have an impact on this fall's elections. While on the surface the two may seem unrelated both spell trouble for Democrats.

President Bush, speaking at The Knesset in Israel, used the opportunity to launch an unmerited attack against Senator Barack Obama. At least, that's what Senator Obama, aided and abetted by the left-leaning media, would like voters to believe. Here's the paragraph that got Democrats' collective undies in a bunch from the transcript of the speech:

Some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals,
as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along.
We have heard this foolish delusion before. As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in
1939, an American senator declared: "Lord, if I could only have talked to Hitler, all this might have been avoided." We have an obligation to call this what it is -- the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history.

The truth hurts, doesn't it? The reason there was such wailing and gnashing of teeth among Democrats yesterday is because President Bush made it clear that he thinks they are appeasers of terrorists, which of course, they are. Senator Obama didn't help himself by making such a big stink about it, either. Trying to refute the charge that he's an appeaser merely reinforces the idea in the mind of the voters.

The second event was the decision yesterday by the activist judges of the California Supreme Court to overturn the ban on gay marriage that was enacted by voters back in 2000. A move is already afoot to get a constitutional amendment on the ballot in California in November and supporters shouldn't have any problem getting the required signatures.

While most Democrats no doubt applaud the court's decision they surely must hate the timing. This will put traditional values back in play as an issue in the election and the decision will no doubt motivate Republicans and other values-voters to turn out in huge numbers both in California and elsewhere.

All of this, combined with the continuing bloodbath that is the Democratic nomination process, means that November is looking better for Republicans every day.

Podcast: Interview with Hans and Nathaniel Bluedorn

I had the privilege to chat with Hans and Nathaniel Bluedorn, founders of Christian Logic and authors of The Fallacy Detective and The Thinking Toolbox. Nathaniel also just published Hand That Rocks The Cradle: 400 Classic Books For Children (which I reviewed here). We covered a wide variety of topics and I hope you will find the interview enjoyable. Click here to listen.

Baseball Quote of the Week

Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona.


~George F. Will, Men at Work: The Craft of Baseball

New Review Posted At Blogcritics

Check out my latest review at Blogcritics on the new version of Sense and Sensibility now available on DVD.

Seeking Balance

Author's note: This is a post from November 2004. As I was glancing over it I realized how much I still need to learn now what I was struggling with then.


A few years ago, I subscribed to a wonderful magazine (now defunct, unfortunately) called Life@Work Journal. The magazine was a Christian publication geared towards believers in the marketplace. Each issue would focus on a particular subject. One of the most memorable issues was the issue on balance.


In an article entitled "Juggling Life" (Life@Work Journal, November/December 2000), authors Thomas Addington and Steven Graves contend that we operate on an incorrect definition of balance based on ranking priorities of God, family, church, work and leisure. They contend that "balance is the ability to continually recognize and juggle the multidimensional assignments and opportunities of life". When we feel overwhelmed or stressed out because there isn't enough time to do everything on our "to do list" it's because our life is out of balance.


They go on to explain that balance is not a static issue. In other words, it is something we have to constantly strive towards. We also cannot do it alone as we each have blind spots that prevent us from seeing the total picture. As a result, we need accountability from family, friends, business associates, fellow church members, and others to help us see where we are out of balance.


They also contend that each individual has five multidimensions of life: family, community, church, work, and self. Each of these dimensions competes for our attention and energy. These are the balls that we have to juggle. Within each of these dimensions are assignments and opportunities.


An assignment is "something that we have no control over or that we cannot say no to without violating a Scriptural command or principle". For example, I am a father and husband. I'm also the breadwinner for my family. As a believer, I also must be involved in a church. These are all assignments that I have been given. Assignments are not necessarily the same for every person. Opportunities, on the other hand, are optional items. They are things that I can choose to do or not to do. Sometimes an opportunity can help someone fufill an assignment. For example, if I go to a parenting conference it should help me be a better father. However, an opportunity can become a problem if it interferes with my ability to fufill my assignments. A good example would be spending so much time watching football on television that it takes away time I should be spending with my family. As a matter of fact, one of the reasons I don't spend much time watching sports anymore is because it takes too much time away from my wife and children.


When my wife and I were first married we moved to suburban Chicago. While we were there I got involved in a golf league with some of the guys at work. At least every other Saturday (and sometimes more often) I would be off playing golf with the guys at work and leaving my wife at home alone. Although it was a great opportunity, my marriage suffered because I was not devoting time to my wife and our marriage the way that I should have.


Juggling assignments and opportunities is not easy. It requires constantly evaluating where time and energy are being spent. It also takes a willingness to sacrifice my own desires in order to meet the needs of my family.


My wife once did this in a very practical way by taking Post-It notes and putting up on the closet doors everything she was doing. She started by putting every one of those notes on the left side of the doors. Then she would move the notes over to the right that represented the opportunities she was involved in. Once she was finished she realized she was involved in far too many opportunities and it was interfering with her assignments as a wife and mother. After praying over those opportunities for a number of days she decided to make some changes.


The bottom line is this: in order to keep our lives in balance we must first grasp what assignments God has given us. Then each activity we are involved in needs to be examined closely. We should be asking ourselves whether the opportunities we are pursuing are interfering with our assignments. If an opportunity is keeping us from completing our assignments then it's an opportunity we don't need to pursue.

Baseball Quote of the Week

I see great things in baseball. It's our game -- the American game. It will take our people out-of-doors, fill them with oxygen, give them a larger physical stoicism, tend to relieve us from being a nervous, dyspeptic set. Repair these losses, and be a blessing to us.

- Walt Whitman

Baseball Road Trip: Fenway Park

PORTSMOUTH, NH - I've been up here the last couple of days on a business trip but last night afforded me a wonderful opportunity: to see my first game at Fenway Park in Boston. If I wasn't such a devoted Cubs fan, I would have become a Red Sox fan after their dramatic win last night. Wrigley Field is still my favorite ballpark I've ever visited but Fenway is a very, very close second.


When we left Portsmouth yesterday to make the hour drive to Boston I wasn't sure we had a chance to see the game. It had rained continuously here for three days. In fact, it was pouring rain until we got to Boston. The closer we got to Fenway, the more the rain tapered off. An on-time start looked more and more likely. We had no idea what we were in for once we got to the park.


Before I elaborate on last night's drama let me just say this: if you are a baseball fan you really need to see a game at Fenway if at all possible. It's worth whatever you have to spend to get there. It is a unique park and one that every fan should experience.


The Red Sox ownership has wisely decided to close off Yawkey Way prior to each game to allow a place for vendors to sell their wares prior to the game. It adds to the wonderful atmosphere of the park.


When you first walk in through the gate you're immediately confronted with the age of the park. The place looks and feels old. It's crowded. It's clear that it is showing it's age. But once you walk through the tunnel to your seats it's a whole different feeling. Looking out on the field you realize that you are about to step into a park steeped with history. The Green Monster looms larger in person than it does on television. The park is also a whole lot smaller in person than on television. The quirks of the outfield are much more obvious and far more charming.


We were fortunate that our seats were at field level just 10 rows away from the action. From our vantage point just to the first base side of home plate we got a terrific view of the pitches that you don't get watching games on television. Watching a game from the centerfield camera vantage point you really don't appreciate how hard major league pitchers throw or far a curveball actually curves. I know baseball has been rocked by steroids allegations in recent years but after seeing this game I have a whole new appreciation for anyone who can make contact with major league pitching on a regular basis. It's just not that easy.


When my friend called to say that we had tickets to the game and the opponent was going to be the Toronto Blue Jays I thought this is not an ideal matchup. I was figuring it would be an easy win for the Sox. I couldn't have been more wrong.


Jon Lester started for the Sox and immediately showed that he was going to be tough to hit. In fact, he allowed only one hit over eight innings. Maybe Lester knew he was going to have to step up and pitch a fabulous game to beat Toronto starter Roy Halladay. Halladay's complete game performance was his fourth consecutive nine-inning start. Anyone who follows baseball knows how rare one complete game is much less four in a row.


For eight innings it was a duel of two terrific starting pitchers. In the top of the ninth, the Sox brought in their stopper Jonathan Papelbon to shut down the Blue Jays. Except for a two-out double he surrendered to Scott Rolen, he was perfect striking out three. Remember what I said about how hard pitchers throw? Watching Papelbon pitch I realized that everything that has been said about how great a pitcher he is was absolutely true. He throws extremely hard and is even more formidable than he appears on television.


But it wasn't just about pitching last night. There were also a number of great defensive plays as well including Dustin Pedroia's diving stop in the top of the ninth on a Vernon Wells ground ball that would have scored Scott Rolen and given the Blue Jays the lead.


Then it was the Red Sox turn to try to put it away. The top of the order came to bat and if you tried to script a Red Sox win you couldn't have written the story any better. Coco Crisp and Dustin Pedroia were both retired quickly. Then David Ortiz who is Mr. Clutch Hitter (he's had 16 game winning hits in his career) came to bat. The crowd was expecting a big hit from Ortiz. He did crush one ball down the right field line that was only a few feet away from being a game winning home run. Still, Ortiz managed to draw a walk and that brought up Manny Ramirez. Ramirez has been on a home run chase of his own. As the banners above the Green Monster told everyone, Manny was sitting on 496 career home runs. Would Manny be the big hero? He managed to single advancing Ortiz to second and bringing up another fan favorite, first baseman Kevin Youklis. It was Youklis who would be the big hero as he also singled to drive in Ortiz and win the game for the Sox. It was an incredible finish to a fantastic game.


Last night was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Don't be surprised if these Red Sox are back in the World Series this year. Last night they showed that they have the stuff to win the tough games. I don't think anyone could have asked for a better game. Anyone who loves baseball should make the trip to Fenway. It's worth it.

Baseball Quote of the Week

Every player should be accorded the privilege of at least one season with the Chicago Cubs. That's baseball as it should be played - in God's own sunshine. And that's really living.


~ Alvin Dark, Chicago Cubs third baseman, 1958-59

Quick Takes 4-25-08

It's Friday and time for another roundup of random links for your consideration:

Some startling statistics that show the consequences of couples living together prior to getting married. It doesn't always work out as well as the couples think that it will. (Hat tip: Jonathan)

Blog tip of the week: How to link to other blogs.

Some sage advice on how to raise chaste teenagers in a sexually immoral society.

Could this year's election mark the end of the two-party system as we know it? Probably not, but both parties could look much different after November.

Nashville highlight #1: Earlier this week I made my semi-annual jaunt to Music City. I stopped off at this used book store which has quickly become a favorite. It's not in the best part of town but definitely worth the trip. The Knoxville store is also pretty good and a little bit easier to get to off the interstate. I've now got about three dozen books sitting on the shelf "to be read". I really should stop picking up books but when they're free or almost free (trade credit is wonderful), how can you resist?

Nashville highlight #2: The other treat in going to Nashville is the abundance of great dining options. Our big trip out was to The Loveless Cafe which is a Nashville institution even though it's outside of the city a little ways. The fried chicken, country ham, and fried catfish were all terrific. The biscuits, however, left a little to be desired. Maybe I'm just biased because I think my wife's biscuits are better.

Some thoughts on a troubling aspect of the Texas polygamist compound case. When the story first broke, I wondered whether the child protective services agency had overreacted. Now I'm sure of it. Though I don't support the FLDS and what they stand for, I agree they are entitled to protection under the Constitution.

Hillary Clinton's win in Tuesday's Pennsylvania primary did nothing to stop the Democratic bleeding. It's looking more and more like John McCain will win in November regardless of who his opponent is.

What it really means when you say you're a Protestant.

This means I might have to start watching CNN more often. (Hat tip: The Corner)

One of the interesting aspects of the Democratic nomination battle between Senators Clinton and Obama is how much better the Republican nominating system looks by comparison. Having winner-take -all apportioning of delegates seems to make more and more sense. Maybe folks will finally realize that we shouldn't tinker with the Electoral College, either.

I'm disturbed, too. I thought Newt was supposed to be a smart guy. Now I'm not so sure. Seeing Pat and Al together in the other spot didn't make me feel any better.

Have a great weekend.

Developing a Christian Impact on Society

Author's note: I've been travelling this week and haven't had as much time as I would like to devote to posting new material so I am recycling this post from December 2004.

*************************************************************************

These are my notes from a lecture delivered by Dr. John Stott on November 4, 1986 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill entitled "Developing a Christian Impact on Society". For more on Dr. John Stott, see this post.

What values or standards are going to dominate our national culture? Most countries are increasingly pluralistic. It means that many things are competing for the soul of America. It's partly an evangelistic question but it's also a social and cultural question. Do Christians have a social as well as evangelistic responsibility in the community?

Look at Matthew 5:13-16:

13 You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. 14 You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

Salt was used as an antiseptic and a preservative in Jesus' day. Jesus meant at least four things by these models:

1. Christians are radically different from non-Christians.
Jesus contrasted Christians to the rest of the world. We are to be the light for a dark world and the salt for a decaying world. We are called to be radically different from the rest of the world.

2. Christians are to penetrate non-Christian society.
Though morally distinct we shouldn't segregate ourselves from society. Jesus commands us to let our light shine into the world. The salt can't do any good unless it is rubbed or soaked into the meat. The application of this is what Christians decide to do for a career. Ministry is a generic word and does not merely refer to the pastorate. Through whatever career we choose we can be a minister for Christ. There is a wide variety of ministry.

3. Christians can change non-Christian society.
When you switch on a light a room is no longer dark. When you rub salt into meat bacterial decay stops. If society becomes corrupt society is not to blame because that's what happens when fallen men are left to themselves. We have to ask, "Where is the church?" We also must accept the role Christ has given us to be salt and light. Society cannot be perfected but it can be improved.

How does social change take pkace and how can Christians make an impact? One way is prayer. Prayer is an effective weapon in asking for help for our national leaders. The second weapon is evangelism. We have to be socially active Christians and that's not possible without evangelism. The third weapon is example. Humans are very imitative. A good example can have an enormous effect on society. The fourth is argument. Legislation can reduce evil in our social structure. We have to get into the public debate and argue the goodness of God's law. The fifth weapon is action. We need to be willing to take action.

4. Christians must retain their Christian distinctiveness.
Salt is no good if it loses its saltiness. If light loses its brightness it is no good. We must retain our Christian standards, values, and lifestyles without compromise. The differences are listed in the Sermon on the Mount.

Christ calls to the narrow road of life as opposed to the wide road of death. We must repent of our compromises and ask Christ to be Lord of all of our life. We also must repent from our pessimism. We don't have any reason to be pessimistic. We need to be salt and light so that people can see Christ in us through our good works.

Baseball Quote of the Week

There is always some kid who may be seeing me for the first or last time, I owe him my best.


- Joe DiMaggio

Is Our Gospel Too Big?

Marshall Shelley, editor of Leadership Magazine, shares some observations from this week's Together For The Gospel conference. He focuses on Mark Dever's address on evangelism that raises some questions work considering.



Also, Justin Taylor links to the audio streams from the conference.

Looking for Loved Stories

Lori Smith, author of the wonderful book A Walk With Jane Austen, is looking for stories for a new book project she is working on. Check out the details at this post and if you have a story to add, let her know.

By the way, I had the pleasure of interviewing Lori recently and will be posting about our conversation and her wonderful book soon.

Developing a Christian Mind

Author's note: I'm in the midst of several writing projects at the moment so I'm taking the liberty of recycling this post from December 2004. We were discussing the issue of developing a biblical worldview following our Sunday morning worship this past week and this post came to mind.

*******************************************************************************

The following is my notes from a lecture given by Dr. John Stott entitled "Developing the Christian Mind" presented on November 3, 1986 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. See my previous post for more on Dr. John Stott.

Key verse: Brothers, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults. (1 Corinthians 14:20)

The mind is important because the use of our mind is glorifying to God. He is a rational God, has made us rational and has given us a rational revealing about Himself. We ought to approach Him rationally.

A proper use of the mind enriches our Christian life (in particular our discipleship). We cannot worship God worthily without using our minds. See Psalm 105 - To worship is to glory in God's holy name.

A proper use of the mind strengthens our witness. The apostles reasoned with people over the Scriptures. The Holy Spirit brings people to conversion because of the evidence when He has opened their mind to it.

A Christian mind is the mind of a Christian. It could also be defined as the mind of Christ. A Christian mind has a Christian mindset or a Christian perspective on things. A Christian mind is searching for the will of God.

The Christian mind focuses on two things: the reality of God and the paradox of man made in the image of God. The Christian mind is a godly mind and God is in all his thoughts. There are two implications of this. The first of these is the definition of wisdom. The Christian mind gives meaning to life. The second of these is humbleness. Since God is in the mind then it should be humble. The Christian mind is a godly mind and refuses to honor anything that is not glorifying to God.

The second focus is the paradox of man made in the image of God. The paradox is we have dignity and depravity. We are able in one moment ot be like God and in the rest turn around and be as unlike God as any human can be.

How do we apply the paradox? One of these ways is the self-image. We need to have an accurate self-image. Developing a balanced self-image requires remembering who we are and who created us. Another application is dealing with political ideology. It is unwise to try to support one political system and say it is the absolute right ideology. Christians exist on all parts of the political spectrum.

We want to be a Christian who is integrated. All parts of the body are intergrated into the lordship of Christ. We need a heart that feels deeply with a mind that thinks clearly. A mind without a heart is nothing.

Baseball Quote of the Week

One of the greatest speeches ever written about baseball from the movie Field of Dreams:

Getting Ahead of God

Author's note: This is a post I originally wrote in January 2005. I'm recycling it because the message is worth examining again.

In a previous post, I included this valuable piece of advice from Tod Bolsinger:

"Don't just do something, stand there."

This statement got me thinking about how easy it is to get ahead of where God wants us to be. In other words, we are so busy pursuing our own agenda that we don't seek what God wants for us first. Recall Jesus' command in Matthew 6:33:

"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be
given to you as well."

Therefore, our first priority in everything is to seek God's desires. So often we fail to do that and often with devastating results.

Perhaps on of the most vivid examples I can recall of getting ahead of God in my own life was right after I graduated from college. All of my friends had gone their separate ways after graduation and I quickly lost contact with them. I was floundering in my career and was not doing much better in my walk with Christ, either. I was dating someone at the time and that did ease my loneliness to some degree. But it was not the type of relationship that God wanted for me. Of course, I didn't come to that conclusion on my own. One of my former housemates, Jeff Johnston had come into town and we talked at some length about this relationship I was involved in and the problems I had with it. He helped put my situation in perspective by telling me that I was "snacking on poundcake" and then proceeded to share the following illustration:

Imagine that a woman has invited you over to your apartment for dinner. When you arrive, there is a poundcake sitting on the coffee table. She is in the kitchen fixing dinner. You can smell the dinner and it smells good. You are hungry. You also see the poundcake and it looks good. You want the poundcake. If you eat the poundcake you will not have any appetite for the dinner. If you eat the poundcake you miss out on the blessing of the dinner.

I was getting ahead of God's plan for me. I was missing out on the "dinner" that God had in store for me. Just a few short months after Jeff challenged me with that illustration I was in a new city, in a new job, and met the wonderful woman who would become my wife and mother of my two beautiful children.

Sometimes getting ahead of God's plan doesn't just mean missing out on the "dinner". Sometimes our choices have dire consequences. One of the best examples of this that the Bible offers is Abraham. God promised to make a great nation from his offspring (Genesis 12:2-3), specifically promised his offspring land (Genesis 12:7) and that his offspring would be of greater number than the stars in the sky (Genesis 15:5). There was just one small problem: his wife, Sarah, could not have children (Genesis 16:1-2). Rather than relying on God to fufill his promises, Abraham (with encouragement from Sarah) come up with another plan: Abraham would sleep with their maidservant, Hagar. Their plan worked. Hagar became pregnant (Genesis 16:3-4). Rather than being a blessing, the son that was born to Hagar, Ishmael was father of the tribes that eventually became known as the Arab nations that were and are still enemies of Israel.

The challenge to "Don't just do something, stand there" is a difficult one. It requires a different mindset. The world teaches us to rely on our own wisdom, our own knowledge, and our own reasoning. We are to be self-reliant. But the apostle Paul reminds us:

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will." (Romans 12:2)

Rather than reacting reflexively to whatever comes our way, we should follow the advice of Brother Lawrence:

"We ought to give ourselves up to God with regard both to things temporal and spiritual and seek our satisfaction only in the fulfilling of His will."

What's Ailing The Church

Chuck Colson, speaking yesterday at the 19th Annual National Conference on Preaching, hits the nail on the head in describing what's wrong with the churches today: they don't know what they believe. (Hat tip: WorldMagBlog)

“Of course we care about the world. Of course we care about everything happening in society, including politics, but we better get our own house in order because what we see in the cultural collapse of America around us today and in the Western world is exactly on our doorstep,” argued Colson, who was a top aide to former President Richard Nixon before being jailed for the Watergate scandal.

Colson believes the root of the church’s problem is that Christians don’t know what they believe in.

“I think that is at the heart of the problem of the church – we replaced truth with therapy,” he said.

“Most people are basically ignorant,” he said referring to believers’ lack of knowledge on their own religion.

It's time for churches to return to the Bible, examining it, understanding what it says and how each of us need to apply it. As Colson remarked at the conclusion of his speech:

“We cannot defend our faith nor can we live it if we don’t know what it is,”
Colson concluded.

Interview: Mark Frost, Author of The Match: The Day The Game Of Golf Changed Forever

Mark Frost has had a long and successful career as a novelist and screenwriter. Among his best-known creations are Twin Peaks (which he co-created with David Lynch) and Fantastic Four. But he's also a golfer and his love of the game has led him to write about the sport.

Hearing the story of Francis Ouimet during coverage of the 1999 Ryder Cup at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts (the same course where Ouimet beat the odds and won the Open) led Mr. Frost to write The Greatest Game Ever Played which he would later adapt for the screen. The success of that book led to The Grand Slam: Bobby Jones, America, and the Story of Golf, which documents the career of perhaps the greatest amateur to ever play the game. In his latest book, The Match: The Day The Game of Golf Changed Forever, he has managed to document yet another pivotal moment in the history of the game.

"The game had always proceeded along two parallel tracks: the amateurs who were the gentleman players who played for the love of the game and not to make a living; and the pros who for the most part worked at golf clubs, who made golf clubs, gave lessons, and who kind of scratched out a living from the game," said Mr. Frost in a recent interview.

Click here to listen to the interview with Mark Frost.

The match started out as nothing more than a simple wager. Eddie Lowery, the self-made millionaire who got his start in golf as the 10 year old caddie for Francis Ouimet during the 1913 U. S. Open, had been on the lookout for the next great amateur. He would routinely hire golfers to work in his car dealerships as salesmen and help them pursue a career in golf. In 1956, when the match takes place, he has working for him two of the best amateurs of the day: Ken Venturi and Harvie Ward. While at Pebble Beach for the 1956 Crosby Pro-Am he makes a boast that Venturi and Ward can beat any other pair of golfers in a best-ball match. When fellow millionaire George Coleman asks if Lowery's golfers are wiling to play professionals Lowery says yes. Coleman then goes and gets two of the greatest pros of the day to play: Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson. Thus the stage is set for a golf match like no other that had ever been played up to that point or since.

"As you zero in on this day in 1956 when they play (two young amateurs against two seasoned professionals) the 'who is going to become the dominant force in the game' is still up for grabs," said Mr. Frost. "the fact that in the immediate aftermath that both Venturi and Ward nearly win The Masters in separate years, I think, gives some weight to that argument that, yes, even as late as this game occured in 1956, there were still amateurs around who could play with the greatest pros in the world, play them toe-to-toe, and beat them if necessary."

In 1956, the PGA Tour was not nearly as lucrative as it is for today's professionals, as Mr. Frost was quick to point out.

"The PGA Tour struggled through those years as a way to make a bare-bones living for club pros. I foung that it was through the hard work and persistence of people like Byron Nelson and Ben Hogan that the Tour became anything it all. It really wouldn't have had they not been such extraordinary personalities in their own right."

It is the personalities of all four of the participants that really makes up the heart and soul of the book. The golf action is, in and of itself, compelling drama but it's the players and their connections to one another that really propel the story. But as the title suggests, this match, though not well-publicized until now, marked a watershed event in the history of the game.

"Now what's about to happen in the aftermath of this day in '56 is two things: the advent of televised sports coverage and golf in particular which is going to bring a whole new level of interest to the game; and the arrival of the extremely charismatic Arnold Palmer who we now know is the king of the sport," said Mr. Frost. "When he arrived he had a very Tiger Woods-like impact on the middle clas interest in the game around the country. He galvanized people and brought them to the game like no one since [Bobby] Jones and suddenly the pro game no only became a viable way to make a living but a way to make a killing. Very soon thereafter there was no percentage at all for a gifted player like a Jack Nicklaus who was about to come along (who briefly flirted with the idea of staying an amateur) to resist the temptation to turn pro and to embrace all the financial opportunities that were to come their way."

Part of what made this match possible, in addition to the pro vs. amateur tension and lack of 24/7 sports coverage, was the Crosby Pro-Am itself, a golf tournament like no other in history.


"There was something kind of magical about that event," said Mr. Frost. "It was the first professional/amateur event in any sport, really, and golf is the only sport where you could stage something like this where because of the handicap system guys can play on an equal playing field more or less. The Crosby was a unique blend of these entertainment personalities who loved the game of golf and played with various degrees of skill and the top professionals who, through [Bing] Crosby, having a foot in either world. were able to rub shoulders with movie stars and titans of industry and for a week all those names and ranks and considerations were forgotten and everybody was thrown out on the golf course to compete. Apparently it was more fun that humans should be allowed to have."

"Over time, as Crosby stepped back from it and it became a corporate event it became less and less about the fun of the week and the camaradarie and just embracing the joy of playing this game and it became about television and getting Bill Murray to do something funny, promoting CBS' sitcom stars. The magic of the event has sort of faded over time as well and that is something I also wanted to try to recapture because it is a unique chapter in the history of American sport."

No one could have done any better than Mr. Frost in not only capturing the atmosphere of the event, the incredible action of the match itself, and the portraits of four of the greatest players the sport has ever known. Much more than a history of one of the most amazing matches ever played, The Match is a wonderful history of a turning point in the history of golf as it is on the cusp of becoming a major part of not only sports but American culture.


This article originally appeared at Blogcritics.

A Goat No More

The Boston Red Sox held their first home game yesterday at Fenway Park with a ceremony honoring the 2007 World Champions. Among those in attendance were many legendary Boston sports figures and one who had up until now been considered something less than a hero: Bill Buckner. (Hat tip: WorldMagBlog)

The year was 1986. Game Six of the World Series against the New York Mets. It's still considered one of the classic World Series games ever played. In the bottom of the 10th inning at Shea Stadium the Red Sox lead the series three games to two and were ahead 5-3. The Mets managed to score a run and had the two on with two out when Mookie Wilson came to bat. A wild pitch scored the tying run. Then Wilson hit a ground ball down the first base line towards Buckner. The ball rolled between Buckner's legs and allowed the winning run to score. The Mets would then go on to win the Series in Game 7 the next day.

For years Buckner was blamed for losing the Series. But yesterday Boston fans displayed their forgiveness by honoring Buckner with a four minute standing ovation yesterday before the game. Buckner told the New York Times that returning to Fenway was not easy:

“It was hard for me to do,” a teary-eyed Buckner said about returning to Fenway.

When the Red Sox first invited Buckner, he said he figured he would decline. But he said he prayed about it and decided to accept. Two titles in the past four years for Boston have lessened the sting of what happened in 1986.

“I really had to forgive, not the fans of Boston per se, but I’d have to say in my heart I had to forgive the media for what they put my family through,” Buckner said.

Hats off to Bill Buckner and the Boston Red Sox fans for giving us a wonderful picture of what forgiveness looks like.

Book Review: Hand That Rocks The Cradle by Nathaniel Bluedorn

Our family loves to read. Since my kids were young I have read aloud to them as well as encouraged them to read independently. When we travel, we always pass the time listening to our favorite audiobooks. So it's safe to say that books are an integral part of our family life.

This is exactly why we were so excited to get the brand new book Hand That Rocks The Cradle: 400 Classic Books for Children by Nathaniel Bluedorn. In this slender volume is a concise reference of the best books to read together as a family or for your children to read independently. Each entry includes a brief summary of the book, the time period in which the story takes place, geographic setting of the story, publication date, and the reading level. There is also a topical index in the back that makes it easier to identify books on various subjects. In addition, the book has been cleverly shaped to make it an easy reference tool to carry to the bookstore or library when looking for new books.

Most of the selections listed tend to be older books. Mr. Bluedorn states in the introduction that his family is more conservative and so the selections tend to reflect their preferences. However, he has also included a few more recent books that may come as a surprise to a few readers.

When the book first arrived in our mailbox, my youngest daughter, who is 10 years old, immediately started going through to see what books she had read were included on the list. On her very next trip to the library she started checking out books that she had seen listed in this book.

These days finding suitable books to either read to children or to let them read on their own has increasingly become a challenge. With this book, Mr. Bluedorn (and his parents, too) have done a tremendous service to families everywhere. Homeschool families will also particularly benefit from this book as it will make selecting appropriate books to incorporate in their curriculum a much easier task. I highly recommend Hand That Rocks The Cradle as it is one of the best resources I've discovered in quite a while.

Baseball Quote of the Week

"Whoever heard of the Cubs losing a game they had to have?"

Chicago Cubs first baseman/manager Frank Chance on the eve of the replay of the Merkle game against the New York Giants that would decide the 1908 National League pennant. The Cubs defeated the Giants 4-2 and then went on to easily defeat the Detroit Tigers in the World Series. Ironically, this would be the last time that Chance's observation could be made about a Cubs team. They haven't won a World Series title since 1908.

The War on Fathers

Dr. Albert Mohler has an interview posted today with Dr. Stephen Baskerville, author of Taken Into Custody: The War Against Fatherhood, Marriage, and the Family. Be sure to check it out.

A Solution for Democrats?

Richard Bond, writing at Opinionjournal.com, presents an intriguing solution to the Democrats' presidential primary problem: name Hillary Clinton as Senate Majority Leader. For this to work two unlikely events would have to occur: Harry Reid would have to step aside and Mrs. Clinton would have to abandon her futile attempt to secure the Democratic nomination, be willing to accept the position and bide her time until 2012 to try to run again.

Rather than doing what's best for her party, Mrs. Clinton continues to help Democrats snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. No matter how appealing Mr. Bond's idea might seem it's still not likely to happen.