Father Knows Best?

This is an amazing little video from our "cousins across the pond" displaying both the folly of government controlled education and the usefulness of sarcasm/satire. Enjoy. HT: Jeff Myers/Mark Horne

How to "Man Hug"

And now for something completely different...

Philosophers' Soccer

Pardon me, but your worldview is showing...

I recently received a letter from Planned Parenthood (read Planned Not-Parenthood) requesting funds for their tireless efforts to disconnect sexual activity from conceiving children and unwanted children from their mother's womb. Although the support letter abounds with irony, the opening line was a real howler. It asked the question, "What kind of America will our daughters grow up in?" Imagine that, PP concerned about our daughters! But not the ones in the womb, or even the ones half way out of the womb. Just the ones magically transformed from "fetal tissue" into "daughters" by their passage through the birth canal. Puh-leeze!

Pray for the Church in Russia

We now have three sister CREC churches in Russia. Please watch this video, and remember to pray for our brethren there.

If I Ever...

If I ever start to do this, you have my permission (in the spirit of Christian love) to "whack me upside the head."

Travelogue VII

On Thursday we drove our little Renault (Pachito) up to Todos Santos (All Saints.) This sleepy little town was a wonderful change from the hustle and bustle of touristy Los Cabos. Near the center of Todos Santos is the church called "Nuestra Señora del Pilar de Todos Santos." I stood in the front of the sanctuary and facing the rear of the church sang the "Apostles' Creed." I counted twice and determined that the room had a five second decay/reverb. In other words you could still hear my voice a full 5 seconds after I stopped singing. Enthralling, actually. Maybe we can arrange to have a Trinity Church psalm-sing there somtime.

Travelogue V

Wednesday: We rode horses along the beach near San Jose del Cabo. Our wrangler (whose name I could neither discern nor pronounce) was from Poland of all places. We had a nice little chat about Polish towns, mature versus immature cultures and European architecture. But the really amazing thing about the horsie-ride was that I did not have any near-death experiences. Not even close. Sore knees and buttocks, but no “Wow, that horse has never, ever done that before!” Gracias Dios.

In the evening we went on a dinner cruise that took us around the Cabo San Lucas bay and out towards the Pacific Ocean. At dinner, we shared a table with a nice couple from Regina, SK, Canada. It was fascinating to hear their takes on the current presidential campaign, the oil boom in Saskatchewan, as well as the pluses and minuses of the Canadian health-care system.

Mexico Travelogue IV

Here is a picture of our rental car. We had a Ford Exhale (Expectorate, Exhume, Examine, Exfoliate???….whatever) booked, but they gave us this instead. I haven’t driven a European car for awhile, so it’s been kinda fun. It’s small inside, but it gets pretty good gas mileage.





No, silly. It’s not the yellow Porsche in the foreground, it’s the little copper colored Renault in the background. Did you really think?...Fugitaboudit!!!

Travelogue III

Los Cabos Pics: From our balcony, around Misiones (our condo), and at the beach in Cabo San Lucas. To view, click any picture once and then click the arrow.

Travelogue II

Friday: We (Ellen and I) flew non-stop from SeaTac to San Jose Del Cabo, BCS. As we were leaving the airport we were accosted by a gentleman (Luis) who (according to him) was there to help us find our rented car. It turned out Luis worked for a large resort and gave us a great deal on a car-rental ($85 for the week) in exchange for listening to a time-share sales presentation (at the close of which we said, "Thank you, but no.")

Saturday: The Pueblo Bonita resort was breathtakingly beautiful, the presentation very interesting and the sales pressure very high. But we politely said “no thank you”, grabbed our vouchers and vamoosed.

Sunday: We worshipped at an English-speaking church recommended to us by our salesman at Pueblo Bonita. As always it was great to be with the LORD’s people on the LORD’s Day. The communion meditation, given by a layman, was a brief but poignant summary of the life of Christ and brought us both to tears. The sermon almost brought us to tears for an entirely different reason. As Dave Barry likes to say, “I am not making this up.” Instead of a Bible the pastors used, what he even termed “props”: beach-balls, golf clubs, umbrellas, fishing poles, etc. The message was, “Remember folks, church attendance is optional. We’re under grace, not law. So, this summer when you’re out golfing or fishing on Sunday morning, just remember to take Jesus with you.” We met and greeted several of the brethren during and after the service and are truly thankful to have done so. It’s so wonderful to have family wherever you travel! But we left the storefront sanctuary aching and praying for the starving sheep of this fold, and trembling for what that pastor will have to explain when he is called to give an account for the souls in his care (Hebrews 13:7ff.)

Monday: Toured around town. In addition to the globally ubiquitous “McDonalds” and “Subway” stores, Cabo San Lucas also has a “Costco”, “Sam’s Club”, “Office Max”, “Radio Shack” and yes, even a “Wal-Mart.” It’s getting harder and harder to leave the US when you leave the US.

Mexico Travelogue I

!Hola from Los Cabos! First, a little geography lesson: Baja California is the thousand mile peninsula that extends south below San Diego, CA. The Baja Peninsula separates the Pacific Ocean (to the west) from the Sea of Cortez (to the east.) The lower 500 miles of the peninsula is the Mexican state of Baja California Sur (a.k.a. BCS) whose capital is the city of La Paz.

At the southernmost tip of Los Cabos (the cape) is the bustling tourist town of Cabo San Lucas (the Cape of St. Luke.) Los Cabos receives about three inches of rain per year, so the water for the city is desalinized sea water, done so via a process called “reverse osmosis.” This means the water in this part of Mexico is very safe to drink and makes it near impossible to contract the dreaded “Montezuma’s Revenge.”

Workers for the thriving tourist industry are imported from all over Mexico and, for the most part, are well-treated and well-paid, keeping crime to a minimum. One resort we visited, gives imported workers free housing for two years and after that helps their employees to purchase their own homes.

Greetings from Los Cabos

!Holah! Ellen and I arrived safely here in Cabo San Lucas last Friday evening. We have a nice little studio condo over-looking Monument Bay (one of the prime surfing beaches in the area.) The weather is great (low 90's) during the day and cooling off at night. We are here to celebrate our 25th anniversary and have had a marvellous time recounting God's blessings upon our union. So far we're up to about 1988.

No pictures just yet (I forgot the camera/USB cord at home!)

!Adios!

Little Will

"The amazing thing is, he knotted the tie himself!" said the grandfather exaggerating for effect.

My Oh My!

See more funny videos at CollegeHumor

Four of a Thousand

God's promises are so vast and amazing that the only way to embrace them is by faith. Neither reason nor Kierkegaard's "leap into the void" will do. Only resting in what God has declared in His most holy Word.

One of the promises "too glad to be true" is God's covenant to bless His people "unto a thousand generations." Pictured below are four of such. Little Will is the only and firstborn son of Josiah, the eldest and firstborn son of Gene, the eldest and firstborn son of Verle, the eldest and firstborn son of Harold (not pictured) who was himself the eldest and firstborn son of John (not pictured.)

Looking at this picture I am near moved to tears as I am reminded of the blessings that I enjoy both up and downstream. And this is but 4/1000ths of what God has promised to those who believe what He has revealed about His extravagant love for the world.

Immortal Until the Day Appointed

After a particularly fierce battle, General "Stonewall" Jackson was asked by a subordinate how he could remain so calm in the presence of so much danger. He replied, "Captain, my religious belief teaches me to feel as safe in battle as in bed. God has fixed the time for my death. I do not concern myself about that, but to be always ready, no matter when it may overtake me." He added, after a pause, looking the soldier full in the face: "That is the way all men should live, and then all would be equally brave."

I wonder if the people in this video lived "equally brave"?

In Deed and In Truth

First the creative fiction, and then the cold, hard facts:

Creative Fiction (as displayed upon the bumpers of liberals): “Better a Bleeding Heart Than None at All,” “The Moral High Ground is Built Upon Compassion,” “Arms Are For Hugging,” “Jesus is a Liberal,” “God Wants Spiritual Fruits, Not Religious Nuts,” “The Road to Hell is Paved With Republicans,” “Republicans Are People Too – Mean, Selfish, Greedy People” and so on. You get the idea.

Now, for the cold, hard facts about conservatives (as noted in “Who Really Cares: The Surprising Truth About Compassionate Conservatism”, by Arthur C. Brooks):

* Although liberal family incomes average 6% higher than those of conservative families, conservative headed households give, on average, 30% more to charity than the average liberal headed household.

* Conservatives also donate more time and give more blood.

* Residents of the states that voted for John Kerry in 2004 gave smaller percentages of their incomes to charity than did residents of states that voted for George Bush.

* Bush carried 24 of the 25 states where charitable giving was above average.

* People who reject the idea that “government has a responsibility to reduce income inequality” give an average of four times more than people who accept that proposition.

* In 2000, Vice President Al Gore gave 0.2% of his family income (one seventh of the average of donating households) while remaining steadfastly committed to giving our money (via taxes) to collectively support those he declined to support personally.

As always, it’s much better to actually do good than to merely talk about it. As St. John put it, “My little children, let us not love in word (or bumper-stickers for that matter), neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.”

For you, little Will...

For you, little Will, Jesus Christ has come, he has fought, he has suffered.

For you he entered the shadow of Gethsemane and the horror of Calvary.

For you he uttered the cry, "It is finished!"

For you he rose from the dead and ascended into heaven and there he intercedes — for you, little child, even though you do not know it.

But in this way the word of the Gospel becomes true. "We love him, because he first loved us." (HT: Derek Hale)

More Wiliam J Pics

To view, click any picture twice and then click the arrow button.