2010 - San Diego, CA
Trains are whistling shrill morning tunes outside of Santa Fe Depot. I am downtown, at a coffee shop in San Diego, shooting off a dispatch before catching the noon flight to Utah. I'll be teaching photographic workshops and catching ultra violet kisses by the lake, from what I hear. Anyway, I have a ritual of saying some final words whenever I fly. Let these be them, should providence and poor engineering take the wings off.
We might not have all we want of earthly enjoyments in this life, but we may have all we really desire of Christ. I do not doubt that if we wanted more of His comforts and presence, the Spirit would provide these in due time. But I confess wanting Christ with clauses. My love is often impeded with the cloggage of material cares and temporal passions. Praise God, the flow is sustained through all seasons by that Fountain of living waters, yet at times the movement becomes sorely reduced with illuvial worries and wants. From heaven's vantage, such distractions are certainly excessive and silly; so much mire and debris clouding the water.
During an August of the soul, once-overflowing hearts may be shrunk to a paltry trickle. Mouths are parched, wearied spirits pant like deer in dry lands. Looking to their legal performance, which ebbs and flows, saints run nearly dry. Let us have recourse instead to that secret supply, the deep table-current flowing constant over bedrock. The pilgrim's well in the wilderness is meditation upon grace received freely in Christ. By faith we delve beyond shifting sands to the firm slab of gospel truth. Here springs spill perpetually from the promises secured for us by Jesus. An eye fixed upon one's self is a scouring sun that burns the heart to brittle cracks. Upturned eyes find shade and dew in the mercies surely bequeathed by election and adoption in Christ.
Meditating upon the benefits assured to believers through the New Covenant precedes spiritual rains. These showers replenish the headwaters of the soul and foster fruitfulness. If the drought would end, we must prostrate ourselves in faith as Elijah, watching expectantly for the hand of God to spread across the barren sky. Though we pray six times, let us pray a seventh, for then comes the flood, pregnant with grace and love! Let us ask ourselves, Whose cup does the Lord fill? Whose feet does Christ cleanse with pure water? "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." "Not for righteous deeds which we have done, but by His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration." God's healing river was opened upon a stiff necked nation, and follows them throughout their wanderings. Divine blessings are heaped high as Jordan upon ones who many times since have drawn swords of mad self-will to fight against the Savior's wise counsels. Still His mercy falls freely as rain. "He restoreth our souls." If we would cease thirsting, let us sip at the gospel truths to which we are rooted. Let us draw from the sure promises of the Vine to which were are grafted. Let us drink from the still waters of our free acceptance in Christ.
Trains are whistling shrill morning tunes outside of Santa Fe Depot. I am downtown, at a coffee shop in San Diego, shooting off a dispatch before catching the noon flight to Utah. I'll be teaching photographic workshops and catching ultra violet kisses by the lake, from what I hear. Anyway, I have a ritual of saying some final words whenever I fly. Let these be them, should providence and poor engineering take the wings off.
We might not have all we want of earthly enjoyments in this life, but we may have all we really desire of Christ. I do not doubt that if we wanted more of His comforts and presence, the Spirit would provide these in due time. But I confess wanting Christ with clauses. My love is often impeded with the cloggage of material cares and temporal passions. Praise God, the flow is sustained through all seasons by that Fountain of living waters, yet at times the movement becomes sorely reduced with illuvial worries and wants. From heaven's vantage, such distractions are certainly excessive and silly; so much mire and debris clouding the water.
During an August of the soul, once-overflowing hearts may be shrunk to a paltry trickle. Mouths are parched, wearied spirits pant like deer in dry lands. Looking to their legal performance, which ebbs and flows, saints run nearly dry. Let us have recourse instead to that secret supply, the deep table-current flowing constant over bedrock. The pilgrim's well in the wilderness is meditation upon grace received freely in Christ. By faith we delve beyond shifting sands to the firm slab of gospel truth. Here springs spill perpetually from the promises secured for us by Jesus. An eye fixed upon one's self is a scouring sun that burns the heart to brittle cracks. Upturned eyes find shade and dew in the mercies surely bequeathed by election and adoption in Christ.
Meditating upon the benefits assured to believers through the New Covenant precedes spiritual rains. These showers replenish the headwaters of the soul and foster fruitfulness. If the drought would end, we must prostrate ourselves in faith as Elijah, watching expectantly for the hand of God to spread across the barren sky. Though we pray six times, let us pray a seventh, for then comes the flood, pregnant with grace and love! Let us ask ourselves, Whose cup does the Lord fill? Whose feet does Christ cleanse with pure water? "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." "Not for righteous deeds which we have done, but by His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration." God's healing river was opened upon a stiff necked nation, and follows them throughout their wanderings. Divine blessings are heaped high as Jordan upon ones who many times since have drawn swords of mad self-will to fight against the Savior's wise counsels. Still His mercy falls freely as rain. "He restoreth our souls." If we would cease thirsting, let us sip at the gospel truths to which we are rooted. Let us draw from the sure promises of the Vine to which were are grafted. Let us drink from the still waters of our free acceptance in Christ.
Labels:
comfort
2010 - Oceanside, CA
In this electrified country there is a premium put on undiminished starlight. I project the market for it will continue to go up with the increased rarity. If you can afford to get your hands on a share of pure night sky, do so and do not sell it for anything.
A life lived for oneself is only a narrow line stretching further with time; a wiry plane of selfishness. Such lives may be measured for length, but are without breadth or depth. They are unsubstantial. When we live for others our lives begin extending outward, upward, downward; we gain dimensionality and perspective.
If only agendas were interested in facts.
No subject addressed in scripture is entirely peripheral. At the cost of bloodshed, God counted the whole text worth preserving and every topic therein. Disservice is done whenever we minimize the importance of rounded education in the various matters addressed in the word. Whether obviously paramount or seemingly less significant, from the propositional gospel, to the roles of government and livestock in the lives of believers, all of it has place and purpose in Christian curricula.
With the intention of "focusing on the gospel," well-meaning but short-sighted persons have at times stabbed the Christian religion with reductionist knives. Zealous to promote Christ, they have, as it were, torn out all pages lacking sufficient red ink. I believe there is a place for discussing the many panes which together comprise the colored window of our Faith. While worldliness ought to be shunned, developing one's world-view should not.
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In this electrified country there is a premium put on undiminished starlight. I project the market for it will continue to go up with the increased rarity. If you can afford to get your hands on a share of pure night sky, do so and do not sell it for anything.
*__*__*
A life lived for oneself is only a narrow line stretching further with time; a wiry plane of selfishness. Such lives may be measured for length, but are without breadth or depth. They are unsubstantial. When we live for others our lives begin extending outward, upward, downward; we gain dimensionality and perspective.
*__*__*
If only agendas were interested in facts.
*__*__*
No subject addressed in scripture is entirely peripheral. At the cost of bloodshed, God counted the whole text worth preserving and every topic therein. Disservice is done whenever we minimize the importance of rounded education in the various matters addressed in the word. Whether obviously paramount or seemingly less significant, from the propositional gospel, to the roles of government and livestock in the lives of believers, all of it has place and purpose in Christian curricula.
*__*__*
With the intention of "focusing on the gospel," well-meaning but short-sighted persons have at times stabbed the Christian religion with reductionist knives. Zealous to promote Christ, they have, as it were, torn out all pages lacking sufficient red ink. I believe there is a place for discussing the many panes which together comprise the colored window of our Faith. While worldliness ought to be shunned, developing one's world-view should not.
Was this post helpful? Please share it with others. Thanks!
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The Nightstand
2010 - Oceanside, CA
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I would like to discuss with you what I believe is the proper way of interpreting the biblical book of Proverbs. Before doing so, here's a question: have you ever mulled over a crossword puzzle, trying hard to decipher the author's deeper meaning and use of metaphor, meter, or rhyme? Probably not. We analyze crosswords in one way, and poetry in another. Again, would you consider it worthwhile to read an allegory in the same wooden literal manner as if it were a technical manual? No, at least not if you wanted to make sense of the author's message! Whether one approaches a newspaper or a haiku, most of us are aware that words are often used in different ways, and understanding an author requires us to interpret his or her writing according to its intended usage. We call these different types of usages genres.
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I would like to discuss with you what I believe is the proper way of interpreting the biblical book of Proverbs. Before doing so, here's a question: have you ever mulled over a crossword puzzle, trying hard to decipher the author's deeper meaning and use of metaphor, meter, or rhyme? Probably not. We analyze crosswords in one way, and poetry in another. Again, would you consider it worthwhile to read an allegory in the same wooden literal manner as if it were a technical manual? No, at least not if you wanted to make sense of the author's message! Whether one approaches a newspaper or a haiku, most of us are aware that words are often used in different ways, and understanding an author requires us to interpret his or her writing according to its intended usage. We call these different types of usages genres.
Labels:
hermenuetics
2010 - Oceanside, CA
"Reason is a whore, the greatest enemy that faith has." - Martin Luther.
Here is one of those quotes demanding context! Let it be said, Luther was no opponent of being rational. This much is obvious to any person who
has read his introduction to the epistle to Romans or Galatians, let alone his logical ball-park slam, "Bondage of the Will."
If I recall, Luther's point in the above quote is that human knowledge may come to the limit, where God has either spoken so clearly or refused further comment, and yet man says, "I demand more," as if God's revelation is insufficient. It may even be that man has all the facts but wants another answer, one that fits his own agenda, and so uses rationality as a cloak for insurrection. The issue in that case is not intellect, per say, but hubris for not submitting to the bounds which God sets upon human knowledge and understanding. God says, "I will not tell you," and man retorts, "damn you." In this way, reason prostitutes her beauty to human pride, giving a veneer of credibility to what is actually wicked insubordination.
"Reason is a whore, the greatest enemy that faith has." - Martin Luther.
Here is one of those quotes demanding context! Let it be said, Luther was no opponent of being rational. This much is obvious to any person who
has read his introduction to the epistle to Romans or Galatians, let alone his logical ball-park slam, "Bondage of the Will."If I recall, Luther's point in the above quote is that human knowledge may come to the limit, where God has either spoken so clearly or refused further comment, and yet man says, "I demand more," as if God's revelation is insufficient. It may even be that man has all the facts but wants another answer, one that fits his own agenda, and so uses rationality as a cloak for insurrection. The issue in that case is not intellect, per say, but hubris for not submitting to the bounds which God sets upon human knowledge and understanding. God says, "I will not tell you," and man retorts, "damn you." In this way, reason prostitutes her beauty to human pride, giving a veneer of credibility to what is actually wicked insubordination.
2010 - Oceanside, CA
Haiti in 360o Video - This is some of the most innovative news footage I have ever seen! Viewing in all directions allows me to infer more for myself, instead of relying on the photographer to pick the "correct" news angle. Just wait until movies do this!
How that Gorgeous Iceland Volcano Time-Lapse was made - see it and find out here.
I used to have a long board as my primary means of transport, basically all of high school. These guys make it seem elegant. Maybe I'll have to get back into it?
Snails look a lot like blood hounds when you speed up their activities. Check out the video.
Against the Cult of the Amateur - An interesting, short read. But first, an excerpt:
Haiti in 360o Video - This is some of the most innovative news footage I have ever seen! Viewing in all directions allows me to infer more for myself, instead of relying on the photographer to pick the "correct" news angle. Just wait until movies do this!
How that Gorgeous Iceland Volcano Time-Lapse was made - see it and find out here.
I used to have a long board as my primary means of transport, basically all of high school. These guys make it seem elegant. Maybe I'll have to get back into it?
Snails look a lot like blood hounds when you speed up their activities. Check out the video.
Against the Cult of the Amateur - An interesting, short read. But first, an excerpt:
What the Internet, by providing virtually limitless access to information, has done, is made us all feel that we are in some sense experts, at least on any subject that is not so technical that even the most self-congratulatory cannot seriously pretend to real knowledge. Thus young policy wonks in Washington, who have never heard a shot fired in anger, except, perhaps as distant background noise during a fleeting 'Condel' to a theater of war, discourse with seemingly perfect self-assurance on U.S. military counterinsurgency doctrine, and bloggers with absolutely no scientific training believe that they have the right to an opinion about global warming one way or the other. But what this belief that we are all experts illustrates is not the democratization of knowledge, but the Second Law of Thermodynamics.
Labels:
webscavations
2010 - Oceanside
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I was asked by a very honored guest for my views on carrying firearms, particularly while backpacking. I've written a response here.
Listen to this post:
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I was asked by a very honored guest for my views on carrying firearms, particularly while backpacking. I've written a response here.
Labels:
violence
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