A gun I'd like to have

Oh, gosh, I confess that I am childish and nerdy.
I'd just love to get my hands on this thing.
Pity (or perhaps good) that they don't sell it in Australia (and they don't ship it outside the US, I think. Don't inform me if you know otherwise!).

A normal Christian life

An extremely challenging post about your career, no, your job, no, no, really it's about whole of your life as a Christian. And that as a "normal" Christian.

Tony Payne says:

Here's the test: someone who has denied themselves, who has taken up their cross and who wants to serve the gospel of Jesus makes their decisions in this order:

1. What's the best gospel work for me to be involved in?
2. Where do I need to live in order to share in that ministry?
3. What sort of job do I need to fund living in that place in order to do that ministry?

Let me be provocative and say that if you're making your decisions in the reverse order (i.e. 1. Which job? 2. Which house? 3. Which ministry?), then you haven't grasped the radical nature of the normal Christian life.

Read the whole thing, and I found the discussions that followed quite helpful too.

(Updated: Reformatted Tony Payne's quote)

Sanctification

Just happened to stumble upon two blog posts talking about Christian sanctification.
One from Ray Ortlund over at Christ is deeper still.
Another from Dan Phillips from Pyromaniacs.
Both are short and brief, but offer much to think about.

Sons of Korah

Sons of Korah is a group of Christian musicians from Australia who puts tunes to the Psalms and sings them. I have to be honest and say that initially I was sceptical of their effort because I didn't like the idea of Christian music concerts (and I still don't quite get it). However, after listening to some of their CD's, I must say that they really do it well in singing Psalms. It will be difficult to sing along with them, but it sure will open up the Psalms to you by helping you meditate on the words of Psalms and getting the main message across. If you are like me, you would have found Psalms difficult to understand and meditate on. At times I found them too dramatic for me to relate to, and at other times I simply did not understand the meaning of the psalms. Sons of Korah helped me to overcome these in several Psalms, and Psalm 73 is one of them.

Interestingly, Psalm 73 has been my favourite Psalm for a while (among just a few Psalms that I thought I understood anyways), but it was only recent that, through listening to the Sons of Korah singing Psalm 73, I realised that I liked it for a wrong reason. You see, I liked the Psalm because in its beginning part, the psalmist shows his jealousy over other wicked, yet prospering people and brings his case against God. I really liked that part because I could totally relate to the psalmist. However, in their music, Sons of Korah only sings the later part of the Psalm where the Psalmist praises and claims the truth about God and His reality. I was initially disappointed about it, but as I kept on listening, I started understanding the real message of the Psalm, which is a joyful repentance before and towards God once he encounters God's majestic glory in the santuary.

Here's what Sons of Korah themselves had to say about the Psalm 73:

Psalm 73 represents possibly one of the most important spiritual breakthroughs portrayed in the psalms. The writer has an experience which is similar to that of Job and Habakkuk. If we can understand this movement, if we can grasp the point where the writer arrives by the last section of this psalm (which is the section we have recorded) in contrast to where he begins, then we have understood the essence of biblical spirituality.
...
But the most important thing [the Psalmist] had be senseless and ignorant to was this: He had not realised to any extent of what God had given him. He had expected to see God’s goodness manifest in such shallow materialistic ways and yet such things are incomparable with what he now sees before him. It seems that at this moment, as he waits in the presence of God, he sees what his portion in life really is. It is God.
...

Read the whole thing at their site (once at their site, click on STUDY section to see different Psalms explained), and I recommend you to buy their CD's and listen to them. It'll help you meditate on Psalms.

Star Wars in text (ascii for those geeks)

Oh, wow, ascii-fied Star Wars.

Protecting the weak and the helpless

... was shot and killed in front of her child by ...

Where do you think that line comes from? Or more pressingly, where and how do you think this happened? In an act of genocide? In a war, perhaps? If not, maybe in America where people own guns, or Europe with strange drug laws?

Sadly, this kind of things probably happen in the places I mentioned above, but it also happened in Australia this year.

By no means it is more terrible because it happened in a country where I live in than somewhere far removed from myself. But it hit me hard and grieved me, perhaps more than other times when I heard about these kind of things, because all seems well and fine in this country, at least around me most of the time.

I must pray for this country and the people who live in it. I must pray especially for the protection of the weak and the helpless. And with prayer, some actions...

James Fong Update - 21-Nov-2008

James has recovered a lot compared to a few months ago. He can even go to gym and exercise now. Please continue to pray for his full recovery.

As an elder, as a pastor, as a youth leader, as a bible study group leader, as a father, as a mother, as a husband, as a Christian leader...

Andrew Barray shares a snippet of the Anglican Book of Common Prayer (1662) that has to do with an ordained elder (presbyter). Yet, he says with a small modification, it applies to pretty much any Christian who is in a position of leadership/responsibility of others.

It is forceful as it should be (albeit the language may be a bit old). I thought it worth sharing the whole quote here.
Have always there printed in your remembrance, how great a treasure is committed to your charge. For they are the sheep of Christ, which he bought with his death, and for whom he shed his blood. The Church and Congregation whom you must serve, is his Spouse, and his Body.

And if it shall happen that the same Church, or any Member thereof, do take any hurt or hindrance by reason of your negligence, ye know the greatness of the fault, and also the horrible punishment that will ensue. Wherefore consider with yourselves the end of the Ministry towards the children of God, towards the Spouse and Body of Christ; and see that ye never cease your labour, your care and diligence, until ye have done all that lieth in you, according to your bounden duty, to bring all such as are or shall be committed to your charge, unto that agreement in the faith and knowledge of God, and to that ripeness and perfectness of age in Christ, that there be no place left among you, either for error in religion, or for viciousness in life.

May I strive harder for God's glory and the benefit of His people. God help me.

(HT: Gordon Cheng)

Calvinism: keeping the tension in the bible

I've been thinking for a bit lately that the Arminian theology was a result of a rationalised approach to the Scriptures, and that is where it fails to be the most biblical understanding of God and us. Not that we are to give up our reasoning capacity all together, no way, but to give up the tension the bible maintains doesn't give us a better understanding of God, in fact, it does the opposite.

Micheal Patton over at the Parchment and Pen explains how Calvinism is not as rational as Arminianism, and he does it so well. It's worth reading.

A warning for us all from the book of Job

A short, yet excellent reflection on the book of Job from Andrew Barry.
The warning Andrew finds from the book may not be something you'd expected.

Be sure to read it.