June 1, 2012
2 Comments
Not long ago I was part of a rather heated conversation about light bulbs. One member of my family was arguing that the mandated use of CFL bulbs is a restriction of freedom and a threat to people’s health. It is true that CFLs contain small amounts of harmful chemicals including mercury. It is also [...]
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May 22, 2012
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Since politics is on the minds of many, it is time for me to tackle some hot political topics . . . For many, the issue of gay rights is very simple. Some say that absolutely no legal distinctions should be made between heterosexual relationship and homosexual ones. On the other hand, some say that [...]
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April 17, 2012
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A review of Red Letter Christian by Tony Campolo Red Letter Christians is a book about a Christians response to political issues. The title refers to the red letters used for the words of Jesus in many Bibles. Dr. Campolo implores his readers to follow the red letters of Jesus rather than aligning our political views [...]
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April 15, 2012
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It seems that anytime there are terrible disasters in the world, someone attributes them to God. It is probably no help that our insurance companies have always referred to natural disasters as “acts of God.” “God Himself could’t sink the Titanic,” is perhaps one of the most infamous historical comments regarding the famous ship. It [...]
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March 15, 2012
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Several years ago I read two books that completely changed the way I understand the Christian life. The first was Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell, and the second was Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller. Blue Like Jazz is a bit like of a collection of essays that together tell the story of the authors journey of faith. [...]
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March 4, 2012
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Do you remember the feeling of coming up with a thought that you thought to be totally original? I think this happens to most of us as teenagers. We come to some kind of profound realization, and we are sure that no one has ever considered it before. We excitedly share our new found revelation with friends, [...]
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March 1, 2012
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We have a lot of badges that we use to declare our devotion to the faith. Some badges we use to display our faith to heathens and push back the forces of darkness (Christian t-shirts, Jesus bumper stickers, the Bible we carry everywhere, light-up manger scenes, Testa-mints). Other badges are the secret code we use to [...]
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February 6, 2012
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There are a few types of movies that I don’t like: movies about animals, movies about babies, slasher movies, and movies about boats. There is another type of movie that I don’t want to like, but I just can’t help it: sports movies. How can you not get fired up by We Are Marshall, Remember [...]
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February 3, 2012
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A review of Insurrection by Peter Rollins I really do not know how to describe this book. It is a book like few others that I have ever read. It is certainly not simply informational, but it is an experience. The title is intended to connect the concept of Insurrection with resurrection. The book offers a radical understanding of [...]
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February 2, 2012
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A recent issue of Christianity Today featured the headline “They Like Us” on the cover. The issue went on to talk about the fact that most people think favorably of the Christians that they know. Many of us find this hard to believe because we have been so bombarded with the idea that the world [...]
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January 22, 2012
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It seems that there is much complaint these days over politicians who are “too moderate.” According to the dictionary moderate means modest, temperate, mild, reasonable, and sober. These seem like quite respectable qualities to me. Also, did you know that one of the definitions of “conservative” is “moderate.” Interesting. Furthermore, the dictionary definition of “liberal” [...]
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January 10, 2012
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Do you remember the days when we all lived in beautiful small towns where every house has a white picket fence, the sun always shone, and the milk man always gave a cheery greeting as we passed him on our way to school? I don’t remember those days either. It is sad to say, but [...]
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January 6, 2012
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We have a problem. The problem is that we lump everything (and everyone) into one of two categories. You can choose the category of . . . Pro-Abortion Environmentalist Support Social Programs Vegetarian Education Yoga Occupy Wall-Street CNN ONE Campaign Oprah Conserve Energy Recycle Social Justice Civil Rights Art Evolution Stem-Cell Research Science Separation of [...]
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December 31, 2011
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A review of Jesus for President by Shane Claiborne & Chris Haw If you watch television news at all, you should know that the presidential election is quickly approaching. Potential candidates are wrestling for the top spot, pundits are speculating, and the rest of us are trying to sort though the exaggerations and hyperbole to discern who we [...]
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December 28, 2011
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It seems that many of us get the impression that God’s role is to continually test us. We believe that He plopped us down in the middle of a world sinful temptation that would continually try to pull us down the wrong path, and the only way to prove our faithfulness is the stay on [...]
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November 28, 2011
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If I were limited to one word in describing the new Muppet movie, it would be “nice.” The Muppets is a refreshing departure from PG-13 comedies that make you feel a little bit dirty and kids movies that are full or pop culture references and pop music hype. The Muppets knows that it is a bit [...]
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October 31, 2011
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We are bombarded with fear. It’s not just scary movies and Halloween decorations, it is all the time. Politicians tell us to be afraid of terrorist attacks, rising health care costs, declining educational systems, and global warming. Religious leaders convince us to be afraid of rampant immorality, the influence of Satan, and hell. News pundits [...]
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October 17, 2011
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Most biblical scholars agree that wine is representative of the Holy Spirit or the blessing of God in the Bible. Perhaps this means that a little understanding of wine will give us a little more understanding of God. A wine connoisseur is one who understands the flavors, subtleties, and distinctions of wines. The connoisseur is [...]
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Pro-Life Environmentalism
New Solutions for Gay Marriage
Red Letter Politics
Did God Sink the Titanic?
Blue Like Jazz
Separating Jesus from the Rules
Politics and Duty
New Solutions for Gay Marriage
jasonwiedel: A 13 watt CFL produces the amount of light equival...
Abandon TV: "....Over its lifetime, a CFL will produce 1.6 mil...
jasonwiedel: I agree. But it is humanity's job to interpret wha...
Art Nelson: Sin is defined by God, not by you or me....
jasonwiedel: Every one of us has the right to define sin howeve...
Pro-Life Environmentalism
New Solutions for Gay Marriage
Red Letter Politics
