I don't want a lot for Christmas.

I was just thinking how funny it is that people get upset about the commercialization of Christmas, and yet they buy still go out and buy gifts... If you are upset that Christmas has become more about selling and buying goods than the Christ Child, then maybe you shouldn't add to the problem. I personally don't expect the world to stop. Stories of babies come to save the world do not put as much cash in your pocket as ipods & Wii's. Sometimes I think Christians hurt the cause by whining and complaining and trying to change the rules instead of trying to change hearts. Christmas is going to be commercialized until Christ comes back and we don't need it anymore, or until we as Christians get busy about sharing the gospel with those who are lost in this world without a savior...

Author's Intended Meaning?

I was reading a book for my greek tools class last night and the gentleman (Alan Black) was discussing doing good exegesis. One of the things that he was stressing, as all good bible college professors do, was the need to find the Author's Intended Meaning (AIM). I have always struggled with this idea. I struggle because there seems to be a dichotomy between our means of interpretation and our stance on the source of biblical literature. What I mean is this. When we talk about scripture, defend it, etc. we express the idea that these are not man made works but Spirit of God driven, divine masterpieces. Yet when we study them our goal is to find out what "Paul" or "Matthew" meant. We would argue that they are divine in origin and yet study them as though they were any other piece of literature. I guess the question I am struggling with, is if the Spirit of God is big enough to create within the scripture itself nuansces that even the hand that was writing them did not fully grasp. Is it possible that Paul was being carried along by the Spirit and wrote things that amazed him? If so, what would his intended meaning have to do with anything? I hope this makes sense.

21

Romans 12:21
"Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

Vongo

I recently signed up for vongo, free 14 day trial... It is a movie download service. So far the quality of the movies is pretty nice, we will see if it is worth the $10 a month or not. If so, it may be better than netflix... Although you can't get TV shows which is a major draw back. The nice thing is that you don't have to wait two days for your movie...

Oil Ecology?

What part do you think oil plays in our ecosystem? What major effect will it have to remove it from the crust of our earth? My new crazy theory is that the removal of oil from the earth's crust is causing global warming, not emissions...

Turkey & The Speed of LIght

Hey everyone, first, I just want to wish anyone who looks at this a happy Thanksgiving. I thank God for all of my friends, their faith and families!
Second, I was thinking this morning when I woke up about the speed of light. Is it possible to create slow light? I mean does all light have the same speed? What gives it it's speed. The same with sound, are there slow sounds and fast sounds? Do different frequency's travel at different speeds?
I was laying there at 6 in the morning thinking how cool it would be if you could figure out a way to slow down light enough that you could see it move...

Anyway, happy Thanksgiving!

Age & Assurance

Boy, as I grow older and gain more knowledge, I seem to loose more assurance. Not assurance in the important things of life, but more in my ability to be the thing that I have envisioned myself as. I have always thought I would one day be mature, intelligent, successful - a shinning star of sorts. The problem as I see it, is that the closer I get to that old reality of myself, the further I realize I am from it really being true. My thoughts seem so elementary to me as I compare to great thinkers, my intelligence is diminished by the lack there of and success is but a whisp of smoke. It is a very scary, humbling reality - to realize ones place in this universe. It is also a very exciting position to do business from. There is so much more out there, I am a mere student among students.