Once Upon A Time In The North

Post 192

2007-05-11T01:38:00.000-04:00

Post 192 will be my last one on Blogger. I have moved over to WordPress, as I have been told it's easier to use. We'll see how it goes. Click below to go to the new one

Another year...

2007-05-04T12:45:00.000-04:00

The annual moves for the Army in Canada and Bermuda are out today and I'm happy to say that Elliot Lake will be our home for at least another year, which will be year 7 for us here.

If you are interested in the moves click here.

A Llama Eats A Giraffe (And Vice Versa)

2007-05-02T10:26:00.000-04:00

Theological Worldview...revisited.

2007-04-25T11:07:00.000-04:00

I was looking through my archives for an old post when I came across the following quiz that I did about a year ago. I did it again to see what has changed, if anything. There were a few differences, but I wasn't surprised by the results (see last year's results here).

You scored as Emergent/Postmodern. You are Emergent/Postmodern in your theology. You feel alienated from older forms of church, you don't think they connect to modern culture very well. No one knows the whole truth about God, and we have much to learn from each other, and so learning takes place in dialogue. Evangelism should take place in relationships rather than through crusades and altar-calls. People are interested in spirituality and want to ask questions, so the church should help them to do this.

Emergent/Postmodern

89%

Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan

75%

Neo orthodox

54%

Modern Liberal

54%

Charismatic/Pentecostal

50%

Classical Liberal

50%

Reformed Evangelical

29%

Roman Catholic

25%

Fundamentalist

What's your theological worldview?
created with QuizFarm.com

Freedom Writers

2007-04-21T00:11:00.000-04:00

Make sure that you see this movie. One person can make a difference.

Celebrity lookalikes?

2007-04-18T23:42:00.000-04:00

Don't see it myself...

http://www.myheritage.com

No Soup For You!

2007-04-16T19:41:00.000-04:00

I was given season 7 of Seinfeld as a birthday gift last week. Today I watched one of the best episodes ever from that season, 'The Soup Nazi'. It's classic. Here's a couple of tasters:

One of those moments...

2007-04-15T18:59:00.000-04:00

Quite often in our church we have a sharing time during our Worship Service. This morning, just as I was closing ours off, I asked if anyone else had anything to share before we moved on. Cameron, our soon to be 6 years old son, who has autism, put his hand up indicating he wanted to say something.

This is not new and he usually says thanks for something or shares something that he has enjoyed recently. Today I figured that he might like to say something about missing his mom, who is in Toronto for the weekend, or he could want to say something about his old teacher, who is returning to teach him tomorrow after being off for maternity leave. Boy, was I wrong. Here's what he shared:

"Jesus died on a cross, then he lived again, and now he's here."

After taking a little while to compose myself we were able to move on with the service. It was one of those precious moments that will stay with me forever.

Catching Up

2007-04-14T11:14:00.000-04:00

A comment I received from Steve the other day got me thinking that I'm fairly inconsitent with my posting here, so the following is just a catch-up of random things that have been going on recently:

The future of the SA

It seems to me that the SA (at least in the Western world) is dying on its feet, although there are some exceptions to this. Many of the systemic problems in the Army are ignored or reacted to when things have gone too far. About 10 years ago, at a series of lectures at the CFOT in Toronto, Don Posterski gave the warning that the one thing that could cripple the Army as it entered the 21st Century would be the outdated system of hierarchy that it follows.

At a recent officers' prayer fellowship in Sudbury discussion at lunchtime got around to the latest article in the Officer magazine by the General. In this article he basically said that the question of the sacraments would not be reopened during his tenure and that it would be up to TCs and DCs to make sure that officers in their jurisdiction followed the Army line in this. I await my call. Anyway, during the discussion an officer of over 20 years stated that he didn't like the way the 'new breed of officer' were trying to change the Army in the way that they were. Ironically, many of those seeking change are older officers and/or generational Salvationists concerned for the future of the Army. Presumably my colleague is happy at the mediocrity of the Army in our Division and elsewhere.

I had high hopes for the rumoured changes within our Territory, but when they were announced it was quite the disappointment as they were nowhere near as radical as they needed to be. Word is that the man at the top balked at the whole package and offered permission if the plan was shrinked and called a trial. The fact that one person can have that power still baffles me. Gotta love that hierarchy!

For over a year now we have been trying to be proactive in our location, but have continually banged our heads against the brick walls of red tape. We are no further ahead now than we were this time last year and have just been asked to start the whole process over again. Gotta love that system!

Anyway enough of that stuff for now (for a good read on the future of the church in general click here).

Bulgaria

I spent a few days last week fundraising for an upcoming missions trip to Bulgaria. In exactly one months time I leave for Bulgaria for a two week mission with my friend and local pastor, Jeff Harris. We will be spending most of our time in Samokov and a few days in Sofia and Kurdzhali. In Samokov a lot of our work will be in an orphanage there and at a gypsy church, as well as partnering with some local churches. We fly out on 14 May with Alitalia to Sofia, via Milan and return the same way on 30 May. I'm looking forward to the challenge and change.

Movies

With the weather being so lousy lately, I have been watching quite a few movies, both old and new. Some of these, in no particular order, are as follows:

'Babel' - enjoyed this more than I thought I would. Interesting how the connections were made, showing that in some aspects we do live in a small world.
'The Departed' - not for the faint-hearted. I can see why it won the Oscar.
'300' - good guy movie. Short on philosophy, long on action.
'The Deer Hunter' - one of my all-time favourites. Picked up the DVD recently, which is why I watched it again.
'Stranger Than Fiction' - quite funny. Different type of role for Will Ferrell.
'Children of Men' - must see movie. Very thought-provoking. Very different from the book, which is also a good read.
'Little Miss Sunshine' - funny, crude and unpredictable.
'Flags of Our Fathers' - not what I thought it would be, which made it a lot better than I expected. I want to see the other one now.
'Bowling For Columbine' - had seen it before, but bought the DVD and watched it again. Michael Moore is great; Charlton Heston is soooo scary.

Easter

We were asked out for brunch after church on Easter Sunday. It turned out to be more than brunch and better than church. We were asked to our friends', Jeff and Ginny, house along with a number of their other friends. There were about 20 of us there, including children. They do 'church' in their house for their family every Sunday, but wanted to share with some of their friends for Easter. The food was good and the fellowship was excellent. I'd love to be a part of more of this informal type of gathering and it is the kind of thing we had been hoping to move towards with our church.

Sports

What can be said about the Leafs that hasn't been said already? The Raptors are the team to watch just now. The Jays are off to a great start. Rangers should be a force to reckon with next year, as Walter and Ally will get to start off the season.

Family

Pamela is in Toronto this weekend for a course and will be back tomorrow. She hits the big 4-0 in a couple of months time. Emily and Cameron are doing fine and continue to be lots of fun. Everyone in Scotland seem to be doing okay.

Well, that's probably enough catching up for now.

Today

2007-04-10T18:02:00.000-04:00

Easter

2007-04-08T21:34:00.000-04:00

Four words

2007-04-05T22:52:00.000-04:00

Just Not Good Enough

White Easter!

2007-04-05T08:00:00.000-04:00

Well, we didn't have a White Christmas last year, but it looks like we'll make up for it this Easter weekend. This time last week we were beginning to enjoy double figure temperatures. Today we woke up to doubel temperature figures, but this time minus double figures! This morning the temperature was -12C and the wind chill was -22C and it's supposed to snow for a good part of the day as well. Global warming?!?

Can't wait...

2007-04-04T08:10:00.000-04:00

Remember this?

If you do, then click here and be excited!

Put Your Sword Back!

2007-03-13T10:19:00.000-04:00

I read this yesterday as part of my daily reading for Lent:

"Put your sword back! These are the last words - a definitive rebuke - the disciples hear from Jesus before they run away. If ever there was a moment in God's eyes when violence would be justifiable, this is it! But Jesus is clear: Put your sword back! His followers are not allowed to respond with violence. They are not allowed to kill. They are not allowed to harm others. They are not allowed to threaten others. They are not permitted to 'deter' violent crime with the use of violence.

"Why? Because all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. Violence begets violence. Killing begets killing. Nukes beget more nukes. Death begets death. Jesus, the incarnation of the God of nonviolence, stands for life. He will not succumb to the way of violence. Although that he knows that he will perish under the cross's violence, he places his hope in the God of Life and awaits that third day.

"Put your sword back! The command stands as the ultimate reproof of violence."

(John Dear, "Sheath Your Sword", from Jesus the Rebel)

Sweet!

2007-03-12T00:03:00.000-04:00

Jesus and the Sinner's Prayer?

2007-03-07T07:08:00.000-05:00

Read an interesting article on the above at ChristianityToday.com today. The author start with the questions:
"Is it permissible to reopen the question of salvation? If we do, how will Jesus' teachings stand up to our inherited traditions?" Read the rest of it here.

Some You Tube offerings

2007-03-05T18:52:00.000-05:00

'That Time' - Regina Spektor

'Original of the Species' - U2

Office Coffee

40 ideas...a little late

2007-02-28T20:10:00.000-05:00

I wish I'd found this last week. It's a different way of observing Lent, but there are some good ideas in there. Click on the above picture and you'll see what I mean. I am reading the same book I have read for the past few years - Bread and Wine: Readings for Lent and Easter. There's some great writers included in this collection and I find it quite helpful. Even though we are a week into Lent, I may start trying some of the 40 Ideas for the rest of the season.

Just wasn't to be

2007-02-05T08:59:00.000-05:00

We tuned into Super Bowl XLI last night hoping for the Bears to do what they did in Super Bowl XX, but it just wasn't to be. A couple of really bad interceptions in the fourth quarter sealed the deal. Here is the best ad from the night:

Rich young ruler

2007-01-25T15:56:00.000-05:00

poverty is so hard to see
when it’s only on your tv and twenty miles across town
where we’re all living so good
that we moved out of Jesus’ neighborhood
where he’s hungry and not feeling so good
from going through our trash
he says, more than just your cash and coin
i want your time, i want your voice
i want the things you just can’t give me

so what must we do
here in the west we want to follow you
we speak the language and we keep all the rules
even a few we made up
come on and follow me but sell your house, sell your suv
sell your stocks, sell your security
and give it to the poor

what is this, hey what’s the deal

i don’t sleep around and i don’t steal
i want the things you just can’t give me

because what you do to the least of these
my brother’s, you have done it to me
because i want the things you just can’t give me

from Mocking bird - Derek Bell

A classic lesson in self defence

2007-01-23T19:09:00.000-05:00

Difference between knowledge and wisdom

2007-01-23T13:43:00.000-05:00

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit; wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.

A different experience!

2007-01-21T19:54:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure where to start...

On Wednesday we had Corps Council. There was nothing much out of the ordinary - even the awkward silence when it came to evangelism/outreach was there. Just before the meeting my good friend, Jeff, called to see if I was free for coffee. I arranged to meet him at Tim's after the meeting and said that I'd probably need it. We are going to Bulgaria in May on missions trip and still have many plans to make.

I finally got to Tim's just after 9.30pm and the caffeine started working. Six hours later and a few more coffees and we had put the world to rights! As well as centring around our upcoming trip a lot of the conversation focused on what is wrong with the church today, especially in our small city here. There is a severe lack of unity amongst the churches in Elliot Lake along with no real sense of purpose or urgency amongst the people in these churches.

A couple of days later and I'm with Jeff again and another Christian leader in town for a time of prayer together. Again the conversation centres in on the lack of unity and outreach in the churches of Elliot Lake.

After this conversation we got word that this Wednesday DHQ will be discussing our property severance proposal and the impact on the future of our church. We really need to get rid of the building we are in, but enough of that for now.

Later on Friday I was really struggling with the message for this morning. I follow the Revised Common Lectionary and the text for this week was Luke 4:14-21. For those of you who don't know me, I like to get into the pulpit with full script. I get worried about losing my place or getting tongue twisted. I came up with a message about the fact that God allows us to start over, as part of the text was Jesus referring to the time of Jubilee, but I was still struggling to bring it all together. This continued yesterday as I finalised the whole deal.

All of this is backgorund for what happened in our church this morning. First of all, we had to play church tag this morning as Cameron was sick and had to stay home. Living next door means that it is quite easy to play tag like this. So I missed the first part of the service, but Pamela called me after the kid's time and we swapped places. She took the rest of the kids to our house and had Sunday School here as well.

Although this church tag thing works well, I'm not comfortable going in and preaching 'cold', without getting a feel for how the service has gone so far. So, I started preaching and it seemed that my fears were unfounded. Then I got to a point where I was using the verse from the sermon on the mount where Jesus says, 'You are the light of the world.' I added, 'Really? We are the light of the world? Are we really shining out?'

Then it happened. I just stopped and all that had taken place in the previous few days came together and I realised what God had been telling me through it all. I left the script behind and walked off the platform and out the door speaking about everything that had happened in the previous few days (I was wearing a lapel mike!). I stopped walking when I got outside to the top of the disability ramp, but I kept on talking, although it was none of what I prepared. Although I can't remember all I said, the essence was that we need to be outside of our building. It's no use shining inside if we extinguish the light as soon as we leave the building. I eventually came back inside to stunned faces, still talking the words that were not mine.

This was really a different experience for me. Nothing like this has happened to me before, not to this extent anyway. It's still all a blur, but it did happen. We'll have to see where it all leads now...

Questions?

2007-01-11T16:33:00.000-05:00

(Rob Bell in Velvet Elvis)

Little Mosque on the Prairie

2007-01-09T06:59:00.000-05:00

It's going to be funny. If you're not in Canada, too bad!

Project 365

2007-01-04T20:33:00.000-05:00

Chris brought my attention to Project 365 just before Christmas. The idea is to take a picture every day for a year and to post them somewhere on the internet. I have started mine here. Hopefully I'll manage to see it through.

Crazy day at Ibrox

2007-01-04T14:56:00.000-05:00

Having had very little opportunity to watch Rangers in the past few years, it is hard to comment on the goings-on at Ibrox in the past few days which culminated today with Paul Le Guen parting company with Rangers after about 7 months in charge.

Lots of rumours abound about who will be the new manager - Walter Smith, Ally McCoist, Graeme Souness, mentioned amongst others - but what is true is that this is a once mighty team in disarray. There seems to be a severe lack of leadership at the moment.

Hopefully something decisive will be done soon to right the ship, so that we can get back to keeping C****c in the place they deserve to be - always in our wake.

Here's some links to recent happenings:

Le Guen & Rangers part company

Rangers end Le Guen reign

Le Guen quit shock

Le Guen exit 'the best solution'

Free Audiobooks (one a month anyway)

2007-01-03T15:28:00.000-05:00

The above website gives away one free audio book per month in mp3 format. Just click on the above logo and sign up for a free account. Then start downloading. You have no choice over the free book, but there are lots of other books to choose from at good prices. This month's free book is Andrew Murray's timeless classic, Absolute Surrender.

Happy New Year!

2007-01-01T10:00:00.000-05:00

A Happy New Year to all! Emily was determined that we would all stay up to see the New Year in. To help she set up a movie marathon. Cameron was the only one not to make it - he gave up at about 10.30pm. The movie marathon consisted of: 'Ice Age', 'The Ant Bully' and 'The Shaggy Dog'.

Today is lousy weatherwise. We had some snow on Saturday, but it seems to have rained all night and it is now kind of a slushy mess. We're off to Sudbury after lunch and will stay overnight. We're taking the kids to see 'Charlotte's Web' tonight, followed by swimming at the hotel.

Merry Christmas!

2006-12-25T21:14:00.000-05:00

I hope you had a good day. We had a (kind of) quiet day at home by ourselves. The big hit of the day was 'Captain Bones Gold' (see below).

There's something wrong here...

2006-12-24T15:41:00.000-05:00

It's Christmas Eve and I took this picture outside today. What's wrong with this picture?

'Sir' Bono

2006-12-24T08:20:00.000-05:00

Read about it here.

At last...

2006-12-20T21:28:00.000-05:00

We finally put it up tonight!

Just a thought...

2006-12-19T07:37:00.000-05:00

(Picture is La madonna del presepio by William Congdon)

Coming to a Christmas stocking near you (but hopefully not mine)...

2006-12-18T19:08:00.000-05:00

Everything you don't want for Christmas - find more last minute ideas HERE.

5 Things

2006-12-18T08:30:00.000-05:00

Chris tagged me, so here goes...

Five things that I think many people wouldn't know about me:

1. I turned down a scholarship to study physics and instead became a Postman - something I did for almost 11 years before emigrating to Canada.

2. The first album I bought was Showaddywaddy's greatest hits. My tastes have changed a little over the years!

3. One of my unfulfilled ambitions in life is to drive a Zamboni.

4. The first two initials of my son's name are the same as the first two initials of my favourite author.

5. I can't skate, but I once played on the ice at the Maple Leaf Gardens.

That's it. Pretty mundane, I know, but I wasn't able to come up with anything else. If you haven't been tagged and would like to join in, then be one of my five tags.

Busy, busy, busy...

2006-12-17T20:44:00.000-05:00

Crazy days just now. Hardly time to catch your breath! I can't wait for the 25th to come around so I can get off the merry-go-round.

This month has been a blur. Every day since late November (apart from Sunday) has been Christmas kettles and all that goes with that. They are doing as well as last year. Last Wednesday was Cameron's school concert. Tomorrow night is Emily's. On Friday I finished off a Psychology course. Tuesday was packing Christmas hampers and a Food Bank board meeting. There is the constant ringing of the church phone people looking for help, as well as those offering their help. Three weeks ago Moose FM, our local radio station, called us to ask if we would like to be one of the recipients of their Christmas Radiothon. We would get all the money raised in Elliot Lake and the North Shore/Algoma and another group would get all the money raised on Manitoulin Island. This took place on Friday and Saturday of this weekend. It was unexpected, but we were glad to be thought of.

I met with Bob Alexander, who is one the main DJs/announcer at the station. He told me that this was something that his management had said they had to do, as all the northern stations affiliated with Moose were doing it. He said he chose us for all the work we do at Christmas, making sure that the children have a good Christmas. He did warn me, though, that in the past couple of months they had done three high profile Radiothons and that his fear was that the people of our area were all Radiothoned out. We figured that if we got about $2,000.00 that would be great.

On Friday I didn't have to spend much time at the station, but I was there for the arrival of the police cruiser that was to be filled with toys and for the raising to the roof of the other announcer, Dave Chisholm, who had decided to spend as much of the Radiothon on the roof of the station. He said he would come down when the total reached $10,000.00. Everyone figured the guy would be up there for good, but more of that later.

On Friday the Radiothon commenced at 6am and ran until 2pm. When I got to the station just before 10 the total was already over $2,000.00. Maybe we had estimated a little low, but we'd just have to wait and see. At 3pm the police cruiser arrived at the church. It was packed with stufeed toys - maybe 500 as a rough estimate. They are in our church basement now and we will endeavour to get them all our by the end of this week. At the end of the first day the total was over $10,000.00! Dave Chisholm decided to stay on the roof until 24 hours was up. In the end he came down after 26.
We spent all day Saturday at the radio station, along with a number of volunteers from our church, as well as others from the community. Things got off to a slow start on Saturday and Bob and I put it down to Friday going so well. We had local singers and choirs coming on both days to sing on air and it was all a very festive time.

By lunchtime on Saturday the total was at close to $13,000.00 and we figured we might be fortunate to reach $15,000.00 by 4pm, but even now things had gone beyond our wildest dreams. All day we were able to eat some great food donated for the Radiothon workers and volunteers by M&M Meatshops and the Pizza Gallery.

Between 2 and 3pm things just started to go crazy again. At one point Bob asked me make some comments live on air and I was practically lost for words. At 4pm when the Radiothon went off the air we had just broken the $20.000.00 mark. The breakdown was about $6,000.00 for the Manitoulin group and $14,000.00 for the Elliot Lake SA. The whole experience was overwhelming and Bob says we will definitely be doing it again next year.
Today was our Church Christmas Lunch, which took place after our Worship this morning. Thankfully, we have two couples in the church who take on the task of organising this each year. It was very enjoyable.

This week will continue to be all go, go, go. Tomorrow we will start working on the tax receipts from the Radiothon - everyone who donated $10.00 or more is entitled to a tax receipt. Also tomorrow we are taking last minute applications for those who missed the Christmas Hamper applications in November. They will get their assistance on Wednesday, whilst the hampers will be given out on Thursday and Friday (220+ families at the last count). Tomorrow I will be back at the radio station to pick up the pile of toys that were brought in over the 2 days of the Radiothon, followed by a couple of runs to the TD bank to get the toys that have been donated by their customers and clients. Thankfully we now have a minivan! On Tuesday we will be getting the toy hampers ready for giving out on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. In between all of this I will have to work out getting some toys out to some of the communities along the north shore. There's also the small matter of 2 church services toprepare for next Sunday. The one at night is our annual Christmas Eve Candlelight Service, which I always enjoy.

Whilst all of this has been going on, we have also been getting the floors in the quarters (our house) replaced, which involved lots of packing of things during the latter part of last week. They started on Friday and will finish up on Tuesday, hopefully. The kids are a little ticked, because we have not been able to decorate for Christmas or get our tree up becuase of this, but that will happen either Tuesday or Wednesday night.

Once Christmas day comes around we will finally be able to relax.

The Snowman

2006-12-04T17:51:00.000-05:00

Another classic from Irn Bru...

Addictive...

2006-11-29T20:52:00.000-05:00

This game is fun and challenging, plus it is addictive. Click below and give it a try...

Dumb question?

2006-11-29T19:22:00.000-05:00

When you go shopping do you ever get sick of being asked the question "Did you find everything you were looking for?" when you get to the checkout? I generally just answer, "Yes, thanks," because I can't be bothered.

Today Pamela and I were in the line-up at our local Zellers when the lady in front of said that she hadn't found everything and mentioned something from the flyer that she hadn't been able to find. Not being used to this answer (or so it seemed) the cashier just said "Oh" and shrugged her shoulders. At this moment a wry smile passed Pamela's face...

When our turn came Pamela emphatically said, "No." Then, without giving the cashier an opportunity, she went on to ask the cashier why she even asked the question.

The reply, "Because I'm trained to."

Not willing to let it go Pamela pressed on to explain that she meant "what is the purpose of the question".

The cashier replied that she didn't have a clue. Customer service?!? That was pretty much the end of things. We paid for our stuff and headed for home.

I'll probably just continue to say that I found what I needed and not put too much stress on the cashier's already taxed mind.

Ho! Ho! Ho! (again)

2006-11-26T08:37:00.000-05:00

Just under a month to go now. Friday night was the Santa Claus parade in Elliot Lake. almost a perfect night - but no snow! Our little angel is in the first picture and you may recognise the wise person in the second one. No parade would be complete without the guy in the third picture.

Ho! Ho! Ho!

2006-11-23T21:36:00.000-05:00

First day of kettles was today. Only a month or so to go. Ho! Ho! Ho!

Free Album

2006-11-23T20:42:00.000-05:00

This has been available free since September 1, but I only found out about it tonight. The controversial Derek Webb has made his 'Mockingbird' album available for free download. It's a great album - so download it now! Click the above picture to go to the download page.

Here is why he has offered it free:

"i love music. i have grown up with music as a close confidant. and i believe in the power of music to move people. there's something remarkable about the way a melody can soften someone to a new idea.

"as an artist (and often an agitator), this is something i am keenly aware of. my most recent record 'mockingbird' deals with many sensitive issues including poverty, war, and the basic ethics by which we live and deal with others. but i found that music has been an exceptional means by which to get this potentially difficult conversation going. and this is certainly an important moment for dialogue amongst people who disagree about how to best love and take care of people, to get into the nuances of the issues.

"one of the things that excites me most about the future of our business is how easy it is becoming to deliver music to people who want to hear it. i heard a story once about keith green caring so much that people were able to hear and engage with his music that he gave it away for free, which was a very difficult and expensive thing to do at that time. it's actually never been as simple as it is today to connect music with music fans. and i want people to have a chance to listen to mockingbird and engage in the conversation.

"so this is why, on september 1st, we're launching freederekwebb.com, a place where anyone can go online and not just hear but actually download, keep, and share 'mockingbird' completely for free. In addition, freederekwebb.com will give you an opportunity to invite your friends to download 'mockingbird' in order to get them in on the conversation as well.

"we hope this bold campaign will provide a jumping off point for conversations about all of these issues, and communicate my commitment to playing my part in starting them. so please help us spread the word: on september 1st, 'mockingbird' will be set free!"

Enough to make me sick!

2006-11-21T21:23:00.000-05:00

I sat down to watch the Manchester United vs Celtic match today in the hope of seeing a loss for the Parkhead team. Alas it was not to be and I discovered that 12 years away and I still can't stomach them winning anything. Not only was Saha missing the penalty hard to take, but the brilliantly taken Celtic goal was just too much, especially as the free-kick was given for a gold-medal worthy dive (i.e. it definitely wasn't a foul). Oh well, at least I won't have to read about it all in the papers tomorrow.

U218

2006-11-21T20:07:00.000-05:00

Out today...
This was released today. I tried to get the deluxe version (with the live DVD) in Elliot Lake today, but to no avail. Hopefully I'll be able to get it when I go to Sudbury next week. I settled for the DVD today instead.

Remember

2006-11-11T13:56:00.000-05:00

The Hour - one of the best shows on TV!

2006-11-02T19:40:00.000-05:00

'The Hour' with George Stroumboulopoulos has been back for a few weeks now. For the first time the show is now on the CBC network as well as CBC Newsworld. So far he's had some great guests, including Viggo Mortensen, Alice Cooper, Ricky Williams, the Killers, and many others. If you are able to, check it out. If not, at least check out the website, where many of the interviews are archived.

Of course, George's biggest flaw is that he is a Habs fan. The following video shows what happened when he came up against the mighty Leafs...

Another missed concert...

2006-11-02T19:17:00.000-05:00

This has been the year of missed concerts. I haven't made it to any yet so far this year and the clock is running out. Next week I will miss MuteMath in Toronto. Their new album came out at the end of September and I hope to have that soon. Anyway, here is 'Peculiar People' (live). Hope you enjoy it...

Today in Elliot Lake...

2006-10-12T19:37:00.000-04:00

It's too early!

Youtube offerings...

2006-10-08T22:57:00.000-04:00

I love YouTube. You can find almost anything there! Here's a few things I found tonight that you may or may not enjoy:

Great song from Hawk Nelson

Historic! Wish I'd been at Hampden yesterday.

Rick Mercer - what more can I say!

Bono and Pavarotti - 'Ave Maria'
Ave Maria
Where is the justice in this world?
The wicked make so much noise, mother
The righteous stay oddly still
With no wisdom, all of the riches in the world leave us poor tonight
And strength is not without humility
It's weakness, an untreatable disease
And war is always the choice
Of the chosen who will not have to fight
Ave Maria
Gratia plena
Maria, gratia plena
Maria, gratia plena
Ave, ave dominus tecum

What a difference a day makes!

2006-10-06T08:08:00.000-04:00

After the opener on Wednesday night I was kind of worried about watching the Leafs play the Senators again last night, especially after last season's lacklustre performances (Ottawa took 7 out of 8 meetings last year). But as the old song goes - 'what a difference a day makes'. Raycroft looked great in a shutiut performance and he got lots of support in front of him. 6-0 more than makes up for the poor 4-1 loss 24 hours earlier.

Fall!

2006-10-04T21:51:00.000-04:00

Emily and her friend were really proud of the job they did on Sunday of clearing up the back yard of leaves.

Then today we woke up to this and we start all over again!

If you think your job sucks...

2006-09-25T15:19:00.000-04:00

...click on the picture below and stop whining!

Food for thought?

2006-09-22T20:17:00.000-04:00

A video miscellany...

2006-09-14T22:23:00.000-04:00

It's 9/11...again

2006-09-11T14:18:00.000-04:00

The events that occurred in the US on September 11, 2001 were horrendous. Nobody expected such a brazen attack. Too many innocent lives were lost. It's proper, and important, to take time today in remembrance of the losses suffered by many.

Equally, what has happened in our world in the ensuing 5 years is also horrendous. Although it's important to remember the 9/11 losses, what really bugs me is that there seems to be ignorance and indifference to the countless thousands of innocent lives that have been lost since - a large percentage of which have been lost in the so-called 'war on terrorism' and the Iraqi conflict. Many of these deaths may not have happened if it hadn't been for the 'fabrication' of eveidence that was used to try and connect Iraq with the whole thing.

A large percentage of the people killed in the American bombings were 'regular' people like those killed on 9/11, going about their daily lives, but who remembers them or mourns for them?

Rather than being a safer place now, I believe that the events that have transpired during the past five years have made our place a scarier place to live - one full of paranoia and mistrust, amongst other things.

I, for one, am glad that US Presidents can only be re-elected once, although how that happened with the present one is beyond me. I should emphasise that I don't dislike the American people. A few bad apples don't spoil the whole barrel, which could also be applied to the Moslem community, which is another debate altogether.

When I went to Detroit last October to see U2 in concert I spotted the following bumper sticker, which touches on some of my feelings concerning the events since 9/11:

Vertigo in New Orleans

2006-09-11T10:02:00.000-04:00

Super Grandad!

2006-09-11T09:38:00.000-04:00

When Damon Allen got injured on the first day of the CFL season this year, it looked like it was going to be a disappointing year. But after missing a few terrible Argos performances he recovered and got back in the groove. Since he returned the Argos have turned arotund what looked like a losing season into their present 7-5 record.

Last Monday Allen passed Warren Moon's 70,553 career pro-football passing record during a 40-6 trouncing of the Hamilton Tiger Cats in Hamilton. He's 43 years old and a grandfather, but he doesn't show any signs of slowing down yet.

On Saturday, prior to another Argos victory against the Ti-Cats, he was presented with an SUV during a special ceremony at which Warren Moon was present. Damon's older brother, Marcus, the former super bowl MVP, was also in attendance.

Check out some of 'Super Grandad's' career highlights here.

Go Argos!

Touchdown!

2006-09-09T09:47:00.000-04:00

The NFL starts again this weekend, so I tought it was time for a football themed e-mail.

It probably won't happen, but what would you do if your church had a spare $250,000.00 kicking around? Well, the above 'creation' is what the congregants of Solid Rock Church in Monroe, Ohio came up with. Nothing like getting value for your money!?! Perhaps the following picture was their inspiration:

Aggressive Christianity - an oxymoron?

2006-09-04T20:34:00.000-04:00

In the most recent issue of The Officer magazine Stephen Poxon, an SA officer in the UK, wrote the following in a letter:

"...I struggle quite a bit with what is referred to as aggressive Christianity...the aggressive bit of it sometimes seems to me to be scary and, at worst, off-putting. Can I make a plea for the concept of charming Christianity? On balance, I would prefer to be charmed into the Kingdom of Heaven than pushed there by some well-meaning but charmless aggressor."

I almost wish that I'd written those words. I just find this whole 'aggressive Christianity' thing to be oxmoronic. On another blog (I wish I remember where) I read, where one aggressive type was defending the whole concept, the following words (as close as I can remember): "You don't get it, aggressive Christianity is all about bringing in God's Kingdom by force." Forgive me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Jesus against the whole idea of force (turning the other cheek, loving your enemies, etc)?

The same day that I read the above letter, I read the following quote, by Brian McLaren:

"Human kingdoms advance by force and violence with falling bombs and flying bullets, but God's kingdom advances by stories, fictions, tales that are easily ignored and easily misunderstood. Perhaps that's the only way it can be." (from The Secret Message of Jesus)

Sounds pretty good to me (and less oxymoronic, too)!

A few holiday snaps...

2006-09-01T11:01:00.000-04:00

Put the camera away, dad...

2006-08-20T07:55:00.000-04:00

...and I'll start using my pointing finger!

underoath - Toronto, Sept 23 at Kool Haus (can't go though!)

2006-08-11T10:34:00.000-04:00

It was just announced that underoath will be playing the Kool Haus in Toronto on September 23. Unfortunately, it is a Saturday, so there's no way I'd be able to get back in time for church on Sunday. There's always next time!

Here's 'It's dangerous business walking out your front door'. Enjoy...

The view from here...

2006-08-08T12:16:00.000-04:00

As you may have guessed, this is not Elliot Lake. Just enjoying a few weeks break at my parents' place in Orkney, Scotland (this is the view from their front door). Haven't had much time for any updates lately, but will probably post a few more pictures soon.

Finally!

2006-07-18T16:36:00.000-04:00

I pre-ordered the new underoath album, 'Define the Great Line' from Tower records as I knew there was little chance of getting it in Elliot Lake. On the day it was released (June 20) I got an e-mail from Tower saying that there would be a delay as they had to back order it. I thought the purpose of pre-order was to make sure that You would get a copy. To say the least I was a little unhappy. My free 7-inch single came a couple of weeks ago, which was fine, but I don't have a working turntable!

Anyway, my CD, with the free DVD, finally arrived yesterday - one day short of 4 weeks after the release day. At least I have it now and it was worth the wait.

Here's the video of 'Writing on the Walls', which is a track from the new album. Hope you enjoy it!

Russian Lullabies

2006-07-13T17:14:00.000-04:00

Chances are that you have never heard of the above pictured album, 'Russian Lullabies' by the Havalina Rail Company (or Havalina, as they were also known), but it's one of the best albums of the '90's (in my opinion, anyway). The album is available for free download here, so you can't go wrong. There's also a 26 song retrospective, called 'We Remember Anarchy', which is also available as a free download.

Havalina played their last gig on March 17 last year, but some of the members have re-emerged in 'Matt Death and the New Intellectuals'. They have an album out soon called 'Death on Pacific'.

In the meantime, download 'Russian Lullabies' and enjoy!

For your enjoyment, here is 'Sellout' by another now defunct band, the Halo Friendlies (the connection is that Judita from this band is married to MattWignall of Havalina fame):

Why, Zizou?

2006-07-10T13:54:00.000-04:00

One 'theory' here. In spite of all this he still won the Golden Ball.

27,000,000

2006-07-08T00:51:00.000-04:00

Twenty-seven million? 27,000,000 what? That's almost the population of Canada.

It is estimated that 27 million people are in modern-day slavery across the world. Most of us probably go through our day without giving the reality of slavery a thought. It's a global multi-million dollar industry. Human trafficking is the third largest source of money for organised crime, behind drugs and arms.

You might ask what can I do? Check out the resources in my links at the left-hand side (a newly created list - 'the scourge of our world'). Or click the above picture which will take you to one of these sites. Contact your MP; pray; let your friends and family know.

These people need our help and our attention. We can remain silent no longer.

Caption contest...

2006-07-01T18:55:00.000-04:00

Best one wins a ticket to England's next game of the finals (well, that won't cost me anything!).

I'll start with: "No, don't tell me Ashley, let me guess for myself."

Happy Canada Day!

2006-07-01T17:17:00.000-04:00

Sweet!

2006-07-01T17:06:00.000-04:00

Move over Bono, here's Dubya

2006-07-01T09:59:00.000-04:00

Check out this video, I don't think that Bono has much to fear. Thanks to Lurch for this one.

K Car...revisited

2006-06-29T21:49:00.000-04:00

Five years and counting...(2)

2006-06-29T21:11:00.000-04:00

Quote...

2006-06-29T15:01:00.000-04:00

(William Easum in Sacred Cows Make Gourmet Burgers)

If you don't give my football back...

2006-06-28T21:21:00.000-04:00

Enjoying the World Cup? I didn't know what to do with myself today. It'll be the same tomorrow. The games will be back on Friday!

I'm driving them all mad here singing 'If you don't give my football back I'm gonna get my dad on you'. That adidas ad is on here all the time. If you haven't seen it here it is in its full version (warning: the second one is a parody that some may find offensive):

Joke

2006-06-28T21:02:00.000-04:00

What's the difference between Jurassic Park and the Church of England*?

(*insert your own church of preference)

One is a forgotten world ruled by dinosaurs and the other is a blockbuster movie.

(from The Salvationist, 17 June, 2006)

Five years and counting...

2006-06-28T15:18:00.000-04:00

It hardly seems like it, but we arrived here in Elliot Lake 5 years ago on 28 June, 2001. Emily was 2 years old and Cameron was born the next day. There's been many good times and many challenges, but we're still glad to be here and would like to have many more years here yet. That's not our decision, we have to leave that up to God and the S.A.

(our house and church are visible in the bottom right hand corner of the above photo)

Released today...

2006-06-20T18:04:00.000-04:00

I knew I wouldn't be able to get it in Elliot Lake, so I pre-ordered it and will receive a limited edition 7" vinyl single free as well. Hopefully I'll receive it by the end of the week. Order yours now!

Father's Day Shirts

2006-06-20T10:08:00.000-04:00

I got the following couple of shirts from the kids on Sunday:

Scots invented the beautiful game

2006-06-14T15:02:00.000-04:00

Amongst many other great inventions (click here for more) it has become apparent that football was also a Scottish invention. The fololowing was in today's The Scotsman:

Scots invented beautiful game
(EBEN HARRELL)

Newly discovered book suggests that Scots invented football.
Passage is said to describe "players passing the ball forward and attempting to score past a goalkeeper".
However, we're still not in the World Cup.

Key quote:
"The English are quick to claim they invented football. I think this book proves they didn't. Alas it is small consolation, considering we aren't in Germany to compete for the World Cup." - Alan Duncan of the Tartan Army

SCOTLAND may not be at the World Cup, but the country can at least lay claim to having invented football, following the translation of a book written almost 400 years ago.

In 1633, more than 200 years before the Football Association was formed in England, David Wedderburn, a poet and teacher at Aberdeen Grammar School, described a match in his pocket-sized tome Vocabula.

While there are older descriptions of ball games involving kicking, historians say the Scottish manuscript, written in Latin, is the first to report on players passing the ball forward and attempting to score past a goalkeeper. A section of the book marks the kick-off: "Let's pick sides. Those who are on the outside, come over here. Kick off, so that we can begin the match ... Pass it here."

(click here for the rest of the story)

Actias Luna

2006-06-11T20:20:00.000-04:00

This large moth was attached to our house for the past few days. Apparently it is a luna moth. It is gone now. This is the second year that I have seen one now. The one I saw last year was about nine inches across and it kind of freaked me when I first saw it (see below). I'm sure they have some purpose to life, but I've no clue what that is.

Who says Scotland's not going to the World Cup?

2006-06-09T07:17:00.000-04:00

It starts today...

2006-06-09T06:58:00.000-04:00

...without Scotland, again. Sixty-four matches in 31 days. In true Scottish fashion, I'll be shouting for whoever England are playing against. Of course, Trinidad and Tobago are the Scottish favourites, who in true Scottish form won't make it beyond the first round. I'd like to see the Dutch win, but who can beat Brazil?

Here's a compilation of Scottish goals, including the unforgettable Archie Gemmill goal against Holland in the '78 finals. Enjoy them!

Scored by: #1 Gordon McQueen (England 1-2 Scotland, 4 June 1977); #2 Kenny Dalglish (England 1-2 Scotland, 4 June 1977); #3 James McFadden (Scotland 1-0 Netherlands, 15 Nov 2003); #4 Gary Naysmith (Iceland 0-2 Scotland, 12 Oct 2002); #5 Darren Fletcher (Scotland 1-0 Lithuania, 11 Oct 2003); #6 Kenny Miller (Scotland 1-1 Italy, 3 Sept 2005); #7 David Narey (Scotland 1-4 Brazil, 18 June 1982); #8 Ally McCoist (Scotland 1-0 Switzerland, 18 Jun 1996); #9 Kenny Miller (Scotland 1-1 Germany, 7 June 2003); #10 Ally McCoist (Scotland 2-1 Romania, 12 Sept, 1990); #11 Kenny Dalglish (Wales 0-2 Scotland, 12 Oct 1977); #12 Don Hutchison (England 0-1 Scotland, 17 Nov 1999); #13 Ally McCoist (Scotland 1-1 Norway, 15 Nov 1989); #14 Neil McCann (Scotland 3-1 Faroe Islands, 6 Sept 2003); #15 Neil McCann (Germany 2-1 Scotland, 10 Sept 2003); #16 Donald Masson (Wales 0-2 Scotland, 12 Oct 1977); #17 Kenny Dalglish (Scotland 3-1 Czechoslovakia, 21 Sept 1977); #18 John Collins (Brazil 2-1 Scotland, 10 June 1998); #19 Paul McStay (Scotland 3-0 CIS, 18 June 1992); #20 Brian McClair (Scotland 3-0 CIS, 18 June 1992); #21 Christian Dailly (Iceland 0-2 Scotland, 12 Oct 2002); #22 Kenny Miller (Norway 1-2 Scotland, 7 Sept 2005); #23 Kenny Miller (Norway 1-2 Scotland, 7 Sept 2005); #24 Archie Gemmill (Scotland 3-2 Netherlands, 11 June 1978); #25 Darren Fletcher (Slovenia 0-3 Scotland, 12 Oct 2005); #26 James McFadden (Slovenia 0-3 Scotland, 12 Oct 2005); #27 Paul Hartley (Slovenia 0-3 Scotland, 12 Oct 2005); #28 Spain Own Goal (Spain 1-1 Scotland, 3 Sept 2004); #29 Ally McCost (Scotland 1-0 Greece, 16 Aug 1995); #30 Stuart McCall (Scotland 2-1 Sweden, 16 June 1990); #31 Kenny Miller (Austria 2-2 Scotland, 17 Aug 2005); #32 Archie Gemmill (Scotland 3-2 Netherlands, 11 June 1978); #33 Chris Burke (Scotland 5-1 Bulgaria, 11 May 2006); #34 Joe Jordan (Scotland 1-3 Peru, 3 June 1978); #35 Ally McCoist (Scotland 3-0 Malta, 17 Feb 1993); #36 Garry O'Connor (Austria 2-2 Scotland, 17 Aug 2005); #37 Paul Dickov (Scotland 3-1 Faroe Islands, 6 Sept 2003); #38 James McFadden (Scotland 3-1 Faroe Islands, 6 Sept 2003); #39 Ally McCoist (Scotland 2-0 Belgium, 14 Oct 1987); #40 Ally McCoist (Scotland 3-0 Malta, 17 Feb 1993); #41 James McFadden (Scotland 5-1 Bulgaria, 11 May 2006)

Belated birthday gift

2006-06-05T22:18:00.000-04:00

I celebrated my 40th birthday in April. On Saturday I received my final, belated gift. Here it is...

For Dave and Trista

2006-06-05T19:43:00.000-04:00

My blogging buddy, Dave, blogs at A day in the life...TSA Officership. Last week he posted a rather amusing story about a 'moth' his wife, Trista', discovered in their sons' bedroom (read it here). We found a moth in Cameron's room this evening. Here is a picture of it for future identification confusion:

Here is 'Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me' (theme from 'Batman Forever') by U2 in dedication to Dave and Trista's departed 'moth':

A borrowed quote

2006-06-02T22:19:00.000-04:00

Just read this quote over at South Meadows and couldn't resist borrowing it for here. What comes to mind (if anything) as you read this?

Here's what often happens: Somebody comes along who has a fresh perspective on the Christian faith. People are inspired. A movement starts. Faith that was stale and dying is now alive. But then the pioneer of the movement - the painter - dies and the followers stop exploring. They mistakenly assume that their leader's words were the last ones on the subject, and they freeze their leader's words. They forgot that as that innovator was doing his or her part to move things along, that person was merely taking part in the discussion that will go on forever. And so in their commitment to what so-and-so said and did, they end up freezing the faith.

~Rob Bell in Velvet Elvis

Peter Garrett

2006-06-02T21:43:00.000-04:00

I miss Midnight Oil. They were a great band, but it was obvious that Peter Garrett would end up in politics, although he gave the band 26 years. He is now the Labor Member for Kingsford Smith (in Australia) and is the Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Reconciliation and the Arts.

I just added a link to his website to the panel on the left, so I thought I'd post the video for the classic Beds Are Burning as well. Enjoy...

Video Code provided by VideoCodeZone.Com

anberlin

2006-05-29T21:25:00.000-04:00

Believe it or not the following song, 'Ready Fuels', is Emily and Cameron's favourite at the moment. They always ask to play it in the car, but to them it is know as 'The Zappy Song'. If you have a copy of Tooth and Nail's 'the nail - Tooth and Nail Video Volume 8' then check out the bonus material and you'll find out why. Anyway, enjoy the song...

READY FUELS (Anberlin)

Video Code provided by VideoCodeZone.Com

Blackfly!

2006-05-29T20:17:00.000-04:00

Summer is here, but so are the blackfly! Got some major bites in the last week. I can't stand the smell of the bug spray, but I gave in today and sprayed some on. It's a hot one today: 31C with a humidex of 37C. It's supposed to be only 28C tomorrow.

Here's a song you may know (especially if you are a fan of NFB animation):

Dream come true...

2006-05-23T15:52:00.000-04:00

Growing up all I ever wanted to do was play football for Rangers. By the time I was ten I pretty much knew that would never happen. Well, today that dream came true, if only in name anyway:

Rangers recruit French youngsters

(From BBC Sports) Rangers have signed up promising French 20-year-olds William Stanger and Antoine Ponroy from Rennes. Midfielder Stanger and defender Ponroy have no first team experience in France but new Ibrox manager Paul Le Guen believes they can blossom in Scotland. "I believe we can improve their level and we will try to help them do that," Le Guen told the club website. "Now they have the chance to develop at Rangers and I'm sure they will progress by working hard every day." Le Guen had a spell at Rennes before moving to Lyon and is currently in Portugal with assistant Yves Colleu watching the Uefa U-21 Championship. The French signings follow the recruitment of South African teenager Dean Furman and experienced Czech midfielder Libor Sionko.

Quote...

2006-05-20T16:10:00.000-04:00

(Frederick Buechner in Peculiar Treasures)

To see or not to see...that is the question

2006-05-20T15:15:00.000-04:00

So, the Da Vinci Code finally opened this weekend (but not in Elliot Lake for another week or two). The question is will you see it or not? What do you think of it all? After all the build-up and controversy, it seems that there are mixed reactions to the movie:

"...a small, surprisingly ordinary movie." (Ty Burr, Boston Globe)
"How can a film contain so many clues yet remain utterly clueless?" (Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune)
"...an unwieldy, bloated melodrama." (Kirk Honeycutt, Hollywood Reporter)
"...a dreary, droning, dull-witted adaptation..." (Pete Travers, Rolling Stone)
"Dan Brown's novel is utterly preposterous; Ron Howard's movie is preposterously entertaining." (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times)
"The film is faithful enough, but it's hard to imagine it making many converts." (Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly)
"The most startling revelation in the movie version of The Da Vinci Code is the way it soft-pedals its provocative premise and borders on tedium." (Claudia Puig, USA Today)

A Vatican cardinal has called for a boycott of the picture, and the Indian government said it would show the movie to Christian groups before clearing its release. In the mainly Catholic Philippines censors gave it an "adult only" rating. Such action probably guarantesds that more people will want to see it (was nothing learned from similar things happening around the release of The Last Temptation of Christ, The Life of Brian, etc., etc...).

In France, the Catholic Church was trying to stay above the fray. "It's only a film. There are more serious things happening in the world," said Bishop Jean-Michel di Falco, head of the communication council of the Conference of French Bishops. He added that the church was against any violent protest action against the film and declined to admonish or approve the feature. "I'm not going to talk about the film before I see it," he told AFP.

Ron Howard and Tom Hanks defended the film at a news conference, saying it was a piece of fiction. British actor Alfred Molina, who plays a Machiavellian bishop in the movie, blamed the media for creating controversy where there was little or none.

I don't think, as Christians, that we should ignore the movie or just dismiss it out of hand. It is a great opportunity for conversation and discussion. If we believe it is fiction then we should be ready to share what we see as the truth, not in a confrontational way, but by joining in the discussion. It also gives us the opportunity to re-examine our own beliefs, which is never a bad thing.

Cup Fever!

2006-05-14T14:59:00.000-04:00

Yesterday in the UK was Cup Final Day. There's nothing quite like it. When I try to explain it to people here they just don't get it. Both games were decided on penalty kicks after extra time, and it seems that both games were very exciting. I managed to listen to the Scottish Final on Radio Scotland on the internet, as there were no tv channels covering it here. I could've paid $20.00 to watch the English final on pay-per-view, but I chose not to.

West Ham figured they had done enough to win the English final being 3-2 up with little time to go before Liverpool equalised in the last minute. After a goal-less extra time Liverpool took the cup in a penalty shoot-out.

The Scottish final was a David vs Goliath affair, but many were predicting that Goliath (Hearts) would hammer David (Gretna). The game turned out to be a nailbiter with it finishing at 1-1 after extra time. Hearts did go on to win on penalties, but Gretna can hold their heads high for making a real game of it. At least my Dad, who is a long-suffering Hearts fan, is very happy!

(Click on the winning pictures above for match reports from both games)

New coach

2006-05-12T15:24:00.000-04:00

As most people expected, the Leafs announced that Paul Maurice will be their new coach. For the past season he has been coaching the Toronto Marlies and took them to the first round of the play-offs. In the past he coached the Carolina Hurricanes, taking them to the Stanley Cup final in 2002, losing out to Detroit.

Next season will be interesting and it would be good to see the cup back in Toronto after a 40 year absence.

Well, wouldn't you know it!

2006-05-11T21:54:00.000-04:00

I was checking the underoath website last night to find out if their latest tour was coming any where near Elliot Lake (I don't think they have a large enough fanbase in EL!). I discovered that they will be in Barrie and Montreal in the middle of August, but we'll be in Scotland then! Oh well, there's always next year (hopefully)!

Anyway, here's a clip of what I'll be missing. Enjoy...

A BOY BRUSHED RED LIVING IN BLACK AND WHITE (LIVE) (UnderOath)

Video Code provided by VideoCodeZone.Com

6744

2006-05-11T21:20:00.000-04:00

If you live in Canada then you will have heard about the Windsor police officer, John Atkinson, who was gunned down and killed in the line of duty last Friday. Today was his funeral service in Windsor.

The service was shown live on CBC and I caught some of it at lunchtime. There were literally thousands of police officers there from all over North America. The whole of the Windsor police force was able to attend as 200 police officers from London volunteered to stand in for them. The fellowship and camaraderie between police from all over never ceases to amaze me. This is only matched by firefighters.

The funeral service was very moving. As I watched I was humbled and reminded of the many men and women who daily put their lives on the line so we can enjoy the freedom that we have. Police officers often are criticised, but we should remind ourselves that there are not many of us who when we leave for work are uncertain about whether we will return home safely at the end of our time there. We should be thankful that there are people who are willing to do this every day.

6744 was John Atkinson's number and many of the officers at the funeral wore black armbands with this number on it as a mark of respect.

The Bible - an easy read?

2006-05-09T17:04:00.000-04:00

How often do you read the Bible? Do you find it easy to read and understand? Some of it seems pretty straightforward, but if we are honest there are parts of it that just seem to be baffling.

I got the May/June issue of Relevant in the mail today. It has a great article in it about reading the Bible, called Swords, Science & Steps to Success: How Not to Read the Bible. Jason Boyett, who wrote the article, has just written a book called Pocket Guide to the Bible.

Here's a quote from the article:

The Bible contains powerful moral authority, but it's not just a weapon. The Bible points to a fulfilled life, but it's not just an advice manual. The Bible tells us where we came from, but it's not a history or biology textbook. The Bible addresses many of life's biggest questions, but it's by no means an easy read. To reduce the Bible to these ways of understanding is to spotlight little truths at the expense of the big Truth.

The big Truth of the Bible is Jesus...The purpose of its thousands of words is to point us to God's final Word: Jesus Christ...Jesus is the pointof the Bible, and to read it in any way that distracts from that message is to miss the point.

There's no online link to the article yet, but there is an excerpt from the book at the Relevant website. If you are struggling with your reading and understanding it might be a good place to start.

Outstretched hands?

2006-05-07T15:56:00.000-04:00

(Johann Christoph Arnold - Why Forgive?)