THURSDAY THINGAMAJIG: Christmas Book List II

Here is a list of various non-fiction books, any of which I would love to find under the tree on Christmas morning.

• Treasury of Daily Prayer, from Concordia Publishing House

• Finding Darwin's God: A Scientist's Search for Common Ground between God and Evolution, by Kenneth R. Miller

• Nature's Witness: How Evolution Can Inspire Faith, by Daniel M. Harrell

• Beyond Smells and Bells: The Wonder and Power of Christian Liturgy, by Mark Galli
  

• Spiritual Formation as if the Church Mattered: Growing in Christ through Community, by James C. Wilhoit

• The Translator: A Tribesman's Memoir of Darfur, by Daoud Hari

• Critical: What We Can Do about the Health-Care Crisis, by Tom Daschle

• Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (and What It Says About Us), by Tom Vanderbilt

• Human Smoke: The Beginnings of World War II, the End of Civilization, by Nicholson Baker

• The First World War, by John Keegan
  

THURSDAY THINGAMAJIG: Christmas Book List I

Here's part one of my annual Christmas wish list for books. We'll start today with the realm of Biblical studies.

Here are ten books about the Bible and biblical theology, any of which I would love to find under the tree on Christmas morning...

• Psalms, 3 vols. (Baker Commentary on the Old Testament Wisdom and Psalms), by John Goldingay

• Old Testament Theology: Israel's Gospel (vol. 1), by John Goldingay

• Old Testament Theology: Israel's Faith (vol. 2), by John Goldingay

• Psalms 1-59 (Continental Commentaries), by Hans-Joachim Kraus

• Psalms 60-150 (Continental Commentaries), by Hans-Joachim Kraus

• The New Testament and the People of God, by N.T. Wright

• Martin Luther's Basic Theological Writings, by Pelikan, Lull and Russell

• Reading the Psalms with Luther, Martin Luther

• Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions—A Reader's Edition of the Book of Concord, by Paul Timothy McCain

• A Case for Amillennialism: Understanding the End Times, by Kim Riddlebarger
  

That's a good start!

THURSDAY THINGAMAJIG: Recommended Podcast

Here's a podcast that I have been enjoying lately. It's the voice of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and it's called, "Grace Matters." The host is the Rev. Peter W. Marty, who is hospitable and insightful as he interviews guests on a wide variety of subjects and then gives a message based on the topic of the day.

I have heard interviews from the field of religion, business, medicine, science, government, and from the lives of everyday people living out their faith in both ordinary and extraordinary circumstances. The show is well-paced and the spirit gracious and irenic.

Highly recommended!

THURSDAY THINGAMAJIG: Phillies win it all

My sister from Philadelphia called last night. She just had to rub it in, didn't she?

First, the Cubs tank.

Then, the Red Sox can't finish the job.

The Phillies outlasted them all, even the Cinderella Rays. Oh well, congratulations. You folks have waited a long time too (though not 100 years).

Another long off-season for this baseball fan.

THURSDAY THINGAMAJIG: Political Humor (Not an oxymoron)

One of the funniest groups around is the Capitol Steps. Made up mostly of former Congressional staffers, they pick on everyone, and as they say, put the "Mock" in Democracy. Let's lighten up today and laugh a little, whaddya say?

THURSDAY THINGAMAJIG: Tragedy beyond words

Today's miscellaneous report comes from conservative news service CNSNews.com. I have known many families with Down Syndrome children over the years and have experienced the blessing of having these special needs people in our communities. However the days of Down Syndrome children in our midst may be numbered. Click HERE to read their report.

If this article is anywhere close to accurate in its numbers, our society may be tolerating hidden genocide of a specific kind through elective abortion.

This is horror and tragedy beyond words.

THURSDAY THINGAMAJIG: A bit o' history

I've been thinking about church history this week...

• We took our youngest son north to Calvin College in Grand Rapids, MI for a college visit on Tuesday. He is interested in studying history and theology. We sat in on a wonderful class tracing history, philosophy and theology through the centuries.
  

• Today I began reading Phyllis Tickle's eloquent new book, The Great Emergence, which gives a big picture framework for understanding periodic major reformations in religion over the course of history.

• We've been attending a Lutheran church lately, and I've been brushing up on my Luther and Bach, too.

All this reminded me of a book on my shelf that I've neglected. I hope to peruse it this evening. It is by Mark Noll, called Turning Points: Decisive Moments in the History of Christianity. In this book, Noll identifies twelve key times in history when Christianity experienced important changes and transitions.

Could you name them?

I will list these turning points below, and it will be our assignment together to learn more about them, OK?

1. The Fall of Jerusalem (70)
2. The Council of Nicaea (325)
3. The Council of Chalcedon (451)
4. The Rule of Benedict (530)
5. The Coronation of Charlemagne (800)
6. The Great Schism (1054)
7. The Diet of Worms (1521)
8. The English Act of Supremacy (1534)
9. The Founding of the Jesuits (1540)
10. The Conversion of the Wesleys (1738)
11. The French Revolution (1789)
12. The Edinburgh Missionary Conference (1910)

Note: Extra points if you can identify the subject of the picture above!

THURSDAY THINGAMAJIG: It was the worst of times

(Photo from ChicagoSports.com)

"That wasn't good baseball. In fact, the last two games were probably the two worst games we played all year, from a walking and errors standpoint. It wasn't fun to watch, I can tell you that."

(Lou Piniella)

Superstitious fans will be invoking cosmic phenomena once more, and frankly, who can blame them? One of the best teams in baseball has completely fallen apart in the playoffs. The Cubs would have had a hard time beating a Little League team, the way they played in the first two games of the NLDS. And it wasn't just the walks and errors, painful and inexplicable as they were. It was also an uncharacteristic total lack of discipline at the plate and the absence of any kind of resilience or energy to fight back when down.

Folks, we're reduced to praying for miracles now.

THURSDAY THINGAMAJIG: Random Rants

Today, some random rants and reflections on various subjects...

• I'm a die-hard Cubs fan and Carlos Zambrano is scaring me.

• Have you watched the news on TV lately? Really? Where did you find it? I've been looking and can't seem to find anything that resembles it.

• Starbucks needs to get back to doing what they do best--introducing people to a wide variety of good coffees.

• Contemporary Christian music is mostly awful. However, the David Crowder Band's "Remedy" is exceptionally fresh and exhilarating. And Bob Kauflin at Sovereign Grace Music is a gift to the church.

• When it comes to the culture wars, I am a conscientious objector.

• If the political ads are any indication, this election will change nothing about the fact that we are being led by idiots who think we are idiots.

• Thomas Friedman is correct. In the light of our various energy crises, we have one of the greatest opportunities in history for creative innovation and progress. Who will seize the day?

• A huge Bronx cheer to Lifeway Christian Stores for their decision to pull from display a magazine featuring women pastors on its cover. Are you kidding me?

• TVLand has been airing "best" episodes of The Cosby Show this week. What fun. That was our young family's favorite show and we still enjoy it together.
  

• 700 billion dollars. Speechless... Someone will be held accountable, right? RIGHT?

THURSDAY THINGAMAJIG: What is the Real Prosperity Gospel?

iMonk does it again—hits the nail on the head with a perceptive post on where the false teachings of the "Prosperity Gospel" hit most of us.

You don't want to miss this, and you don't want to fail to think and pray about this.

Read it HERE. Let it sink in.

THURSDAY THINGAMAJIG: Random Thoughts on Manual Labor

Over Labor Day weekend, at our house, we labored, Gail and I. Out with the sedentary! On with the strenuous!

We prepared, cleaned and painted our three-level deck (at least one year overdue for refurbishing), shoveled and wheeled and lugged dirt to areas in our back yard where we are trying again to make grass grow, carried bricks and used them to mark off an area for plants and ground cover and then set them in the ground, hoed weeds and raked soil, sowed grass seed, hauled straw, chopped down most of an old apple tree that had died in last summer's drought, and trimmed bushes grown wild and high and all convoluted through neglect.

Sweat constantly blurred my glasses and soaked my shirt. Blisters, cuts and scrapes appeared on hands and legs. At night the muscles in my lower back screamed at me. I'm sure I drank gallons of iced tea. After showering at night we collapsed into bed. I can't speak for Gail, but I continued to haul dirt all night in my dreams, back and forth, back and forth, tossing and turning in the bed with each barrow full. Next morning, somehow, we dragged ourselves from under the covers and went at it again.

Nothing has felt so good in a long time.

"It is not possible to devalue the body and value the soul."
(Wendell Berry)