May 15, 2012

1. I think President Obama has achieved a feat I had never previously thought possible. With his statement supporting gay marriage, he has evidently inspired millions of Catholics and evangelicals to passionately support—a Mormon for president.

            Some folks have sent or forwarded several interesting items to me since the President’s pronouncement. Here are a couple: http://danbouchelle.blogspot.com/2012/05/plea-to-christians-about-our-response.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9vQt6IXXaM&hd=

             The different writers I have read do not necessarily agree on everything, but they have been thought provoking in their words.

            I’ve got friends who plan on voting for the Democrats (most oppose gay marriage), friends who plan to vote for the Republicans (need I say how they feel about gay marriage?), and friends who plan to not vote (most oppose gay marriage); I love them all, and this year should prove interesting to our nation.

            At the end of the day, I think I join President Lincoln’s sentiments… if I may paraphrase: I am not so concerned about God being on my side; rather, my concern is that I am on God’s side.

            God is at work. He has got a lot to do. I want to join Jesus in being about the Father's business.

2. I found out a there is a lot of debate out there as to whether or not Abraham Lincoln said these words. About.com says the two earliest quotes that come closest were quoted by Rev. Matthew Simpson at a funeral service for Lincoln on May 4, 1865:

To a minister who said he hoped the Lord was on our side, he replied that it gave him no concern whether the Lord was on our side or not "For," he added, "I know the Lord is always on the side of right;" and with deep feeling added, "But God is my witness that it is my constant anxiety and prayer that both myself and this nation should be on the Lord's side."

            and from Francis B. Carpenter's 1867 book, Six Months at the White House with Abraham Lincoln, page 282: No nobler reply ever fell from the lips of a ruler, than that uttered by President Lincoln in response to the clergyman who ventured to say, in his presence, that he hoped "the Lord was on our side."

3. Judy, Haleigh, Abby, and I just completed watching the movie THE LIGHTKEEPERS. This was a classic case of a movie that probably looked good on paper but was poorly transformed to the screen. Richard Dreyfuss and Blythe Danner starred in this film about two men who hate women and keep a lighthouse going on Cape Cod in 1912.

            Richard Dreyfuss, in an interview, had a different take. To hear him talk about it, you would have thought these two guys saved the world for democracy before Woodrow Wilson.

            The movie was clean, and I cannot remember a bad word. Moreover, the scenery was nice.

            Sadly, did you catch the phrase “just completed” in the first sentence of number 3? That is because it took us several nights to watch the movie: we kept falling asleep.

            In other movie news, my daughter Abby recently read the novel THE NATURAL for school. We then watched the movie together. I have never read the book, so I found it interesting that she claims the novel is much darker and cynical than the movie.

4. I’ve got another book to recommend from my prep work for “Seven Life-Affirming Virtues" and the 7 deadly sins. This one is entitled GLITTERING VICES by Rebecca Konyndyk DeYoung.  

5. I heard an interesting quote last week from ESPN’s Tony Kornheiser, “Football is over as we know it.” On the heels of the tragic suicide of Junior Seau, Kornheiser was addressing the immense problem the NFL is dealing with concerning concussions.

            He compared football to boxing, which at one time was America’s most popular sport. Today, boxing is way down the list of well-liked sports.

            The popularity of football, Kornheiser says, may descend slowly. However, it has peaked. It's arc will steadily decline.

*Thanks to Peter King for the inspiration for this blog's title.

May 8, 2012

 1. I ran in this blog a couple of weeks ago a blurb about Salman Khan. He has created a website designed to help teenagers with their education. My interest was in the subjects of math and science, because that is where I am of little help to my kids.

            Khan came up with this idea trying to help his teenage cousin solve algebra problems. Since she lived far away, he attempted to help her online. He succeeded.

            I have found this site very helpful.

            If you have teenagers, it will be helpful to you as well. The site is free, and here is a link http://www.khanacademy.org/

2. I think the new DICK’S SPORTING GOODS commercial-“Untouchable”-is one of most inspirational of all time. It features music from the movie RUDY, and shows athletes in the state of preparation for their particular sports. The ad’s culmination features the athletes competing in their respective events. I showed the commercial on YouTube to my four kids. Four out of four kids surveyed said they found the commercial highly inspirational. Here’s the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abd1OYiAcGQ

3. I'm glad to see vocational education is making a comeback. Guess where this quote came from:

            “Over time… public schools cultivated the theology that every child should go to college (a four year liberal arts college at that) and therefore every child should be required to pursue a college prep course in high school. The results have been awful. High school dropout rates continue to be a national embarrassment. In most high school graduates are not prepared for the world of work.”

Answer–TIME Magazine May 14, 2012 (Here’s a link to the article: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2113794,00.html)

            I agree with TIME. Too many students are destroying the integrity of high schools because they are being pigeonholed into something that is so disconnected from their temperament and future lives, they are willing to sabotage all school activity around them—and potentially their own lives as well.

            I knew that we have a deficiency of welders in the U.S.; I did not realize we're also running out of qualified auto mechanics.

            I hope vocational education in schools is trending up.

4. I recently started a new series at Shiloh that I am calling “Seven Life-Affirming Virtues.” The genesis of this idea came as I thought of doing a series on the seven deadly sins. After some study and reflection, I moved the framework for the series toward a more positive direction.

            I chose seven fundamental virtues that describe the location where one can find God. I decided to address the sins and the flanking either side of each virtue. For example, last week we looked at humility, which is a spot one can find Jesus (See Phil. 2:1-7.)

            On one side of humility is thinking too high of oneself; on the other side of humility is thinking too low of oneself.

            It so happens that in each one of these sermons, one of the corresponding vices comes from the list of seven deadly sins. Consequently, I have read several books on the Seven Deadly Sins as conversation partners.

            One I have found helpful is an older book that you may have read. SEVEN DEADLY SINS was written by Tony Campolo back in the 1980s. In this book, Campolo is typically thought-provoking, occasionally outrageous, and often practical.

            Another book, for those who would enjoy a more scholarly and classical treatment, is THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS by Solomon Schimmel. His perspective is Jewish, and it was written when he was serving as a professor of Jewish education and psychology at Hebrew College in Brookline, Massachusetts. What intrigued me about this book is the way he draws from classical, Jewish, and Christian traditions.

5. I like San Antonio, but for my Mavs’ sake, I am pulling for Oklahoma City or Miami to win the NBA championship. Dallas wrote off this season before it began. OC and Miami is bound to win a championship; why not let them get it out of their system this year?

*Thanks to Peter King for the inspiration for this blog's title.

May 1, 2012

1. I saw in this month’s SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN an article entitled “A Unified Physics?

New Efforts to Unite Quantum Mechanics with Einstein's Relativity.” Interesting–scientists, like people of religion, try to find a point of unity in the midst of intense personal belief.

2. Book reviews are being churned out across the planet about Robert Caro's new book PASSAGE TWO POWER. This is his fourth installment on the life of Lyndon Johnson. This volume covers a brief period: from 1958 through 1963, and concludes when Johnson becomes president after JFK’s assassination. I've got to admit I cannot wait to read it. Caro is 76. Here’s hoping he has the strength and good health to complete his work. There have been famous examples of biographers who were unable to do so. Two who come instantly to mind are Douglass Southall Freeman in his series on George Washington, and, more recently, William Manchester and his biography of Winston Churchill.

3. Guilty pleasure: I have now finished the first two seasons of the FX TV series JUSTIFIED. I checked out all of the DVDs from our local public library, which made it nice in that I did not have to use up my selections at Netflix. Timothy Olyphant always makes a great lawman, but in the second season, Jacksonville, Texas native Margot Martindale

steals the show. No wonder she won an Emmy. The series was intense enough to make the hours on the treadmill pass by rapidly.

4. All right, how many of you put money down that the Texas Rangers would be leading the Anaheim Angels of California by nine games by the end of April? On top of that, who would've imagined that Albert Pujols would not have a homerun in the entire month of April. Just for the record, he will start hitting soon. I feel confident that by season's end, he will have his fair share of home runs.

            b. It makes me nervous that the consensus of the experts of baseball is that the Rangers are MLB’s best team.

            c. I like it that the Cowboys traded up to select Morris Claiborne as the sixth pick in the draft. If the Cowboys secondary stays healthy, and they get good play out of their offense line play, they might have a shot to make a nice run in the playoffs.

            d. The Mavs are 0-2 in their series with Oklahoma City. This does not concern me because I have already written this year off. I hope they can make some healthy signings in the off-season.

            e. I used to be a huge fan of the Dallas Stars. Are they still a franchise?

            f. The Cleveland Browns did Colt McCoy a huge favor by drafting Brandon Weedon. Lacking a good offensive line and quality receivers, the Browns can fail offensively with Weedon for a while. Trent Richardson notwithstanding, Weedon (who is a few years older than McCoy) will not succeed until the other offensive needs of the Browns are met. By that time, it might be too late. McCoy, healthy and competitive, will be ready to lead the way.

5. I’ve never seen an episode of the TV show COMMUNITY, but from what I read, it sounds like another metaphor for the church as described by the New Testament.

*Thanks to Peter King for the inspiration for this blog's title.

April 24, 2012

1. Disappointed to read I did not make Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people in the world this year.

2. I did read something there that caught my attention and gave me hope. A fellow named Salman Khan has created a website designed to help teenagers with their education in subjects such as math and science.

            Khan came up with this idea trying to help his teenage cousin solve algebra problems. Since she lived far away, he attempted to help her online. He succeeded.

            Bill Gates wrote that this idea has morphed into an amazing service covering a multitude of subjects. I decided to check it out myself. In five minutes, Khan taught me how to do logarithms. Folks, you have a better chance of teaching my pet dogs to talk than Khan did of teaching me logarithms.

         If you have teenagers, what I about to give you will be very valuable to you. It is a link to Khan’s website…. http://www.khanacademy.org/

3. Great line from ESPN’s Colin Cowherd… To paraphrase – What a week in sports when a player named Meta World Peace gave another NBA player the worst elbow to the head in memory, and a team called the Saints are anything but.

4. Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez announced his retirement last night at Rangers’ Ballpark. Believe it or not, no “expert” ranks him the greatest catcher of all time. Are you kidding me?

            Look at some of his stats—Gold gloves: 13, the most by a catcher in MLB history; Silver Slugger Awards: 7; All-star selections: 14; 1999 American League MVP; .296 career batting average (Mickey Mantle’s was .298); 311 career home runs; threw out 45.68% base runners… a MLB record.

            This guy was an offensive gem and a defensive stud. He played in two World Series, winning one. He was the MVP of the 2003 NLCS.

I think, in time, he will move up the list.

5. RIP Charles Colson.

*Thanks to Peter King for the inspiration for this blog's title.

April 17, 2012

1. TIME magazine had a fantastic cover story in this week's issue. It is called “The Worlds Most Exclusive Club” and is taken from a new book written by Nancy Gibbs and Michael Duffy called THE PRESIDENTS CLUB.

            The article highlighted several fascinating insights into the relationship of the current president and the ex-presidents. Two of the highlights for me are: 1) President Clinton and the Bush family have not only overcome the bitterness of the 1992 presidential election, they have grown so close that Clinton has vacationed with George H. W. Bush, raised money with George W. Bush, escorted Barbara Bush at the funeral of Betty Ford, and received the nickname from the Bush family “Brother from Another Mother”, and 2) President Clinton would often call President Nixon late at night to consult with him about foreign-policy matters and other presidential issues. Nixon sent Clinton a letter shortly before he died in 1994. The letter assisted Clinton so much that he makes it a practice to read the letter every year.

2. I agree with many I've heard on talk radio, who wonder why in the world New York fans booed Tim Tebow the other night at a New York Yankee ballgame. As “Mike and Mike” said yesterday morning, why take your time booing somebody who is building hospitals for orphans and auctions off opportunities to spend the day with him as he ministers to children in children's hospitals–with the hundreds of thousands of dollars raised going to charity.

3. I still don't know where we are going to get all of the money to pay for what the federal government spends in a year.

4. Mark Bergin wrote last week of an incredible plan by Oklahoma State University that backfired. The board opted to purchase life insurance policies on 27 elderly boosters back in 2007. Each policy was valued at $10 million. Two years later, there was a problem. None of the boosters had died. During that time, OSU had paid out over $32 million in premiums. In 2009, OSU canceled the policies and sought litigation to recover a portion of the money they had paid in premiums. Not only did they lose in court, the judge ruled that OSU had to pay the insurance company for the cost of litigation.

5. Charles Colson is recovering after falling ill at a conference and undergoing surgery a few weeks ago. The founder of Prison Fellowship had surgery on March 31 to remove a clot of blood from the surface of his brain after he had an intracerebral hemorrhage. Colson has shown some encouraging signs. I’m praying for you, Chuck Colson.

           

*Thanks to Peter King for the inspiration for this blog's title.

April 10, 2012

1. Last week was a whirlwind for the Edge family. We drove Thursday to Harding to see our daughter Haleigh perform in Spring Sing. (Spring Sing was neat!)

            Friday morning we drove to Dallas for the LEADERSHIP TRAINING FOR CHRIST convention. Our daughter, Abby, drove part of the way on the interstate. That was good experience for her and she did well. I would say that was the highlight, but maybe I should give that honor to being stuck for an hour and a half in traffic on I-635 in lovely Richardson.

            LTC ended Sunday morning with a worship service, and we returned home. I usually have to return home on Saturday night in order to preach Sunday. This year I was able to stay with my family, which I appreciated greatly.

2. I came across an intriguing summary of Walter Isaacson's recent biography on Steve Jobs this week. It was from the April 9 issue of FORBES; I found it interesting to see the business magazine’s take on Jobs’ impact on our culture:

 
 
The Macintosh which begat the home computer revolution popularized graphical user interfaces.
 
Toy story another Pixar blockbusters, which opened up the miracle of digital imagination.
 
Apple stores, which reinvented the role of a store in defining a brand.
 
The iPod, which change the way we consume music.
 
The iTunes store, which saved the music industry.
 
The iPhone, which turned mobile phones into music, photography, video, e-mail and Web devices.
 
The App Store, which spawned a new content–creation industry.
 
The iPad, which launched tablet computing and offered a platform for digital newspapers, magazines, books and videos.
 
The iCloud, which demoted the computer from its central role in managing our content and let all of our devices sync seamlessly.
 
And Apple itself.

The Apple II, which took [Apple cofounder Stephen] Wozniak's circuit board and turned it into the first personal computer that was not just for hobbyists.

            To me, the most intriguing statement was that the iTunes store “saved the music industry.”

3. This also from FORBES—this week’s issue. Now that Steve Jobs has passed away, Amazon's Jeff Bezos is being called America's number one CEO. The magazine credits this to his obsession with customer service.

            There are symbolic actions performed everywhere by Bezos to drive the mission of customer service home to his employees. In every meeting Bezos leaves one chair empty. Symbolically, the customer sits there.

            Another interesting tidbit, of the top five officers in the company, none earned more than $175,000 a year. I would suspect they were given stock options, although I did not read this.

4. I have been listening to the recordings of Jacqueline Kennedy (Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis), which her daughter Caroline recently released to the public. These consist of several hours of oral interviews conducted and recorded by the historian Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.

            The idea was to obtain an oral history from Mrs. Kennedy while the events of her husband's life were fresh on her mind. The recordings began in early 1964, just a few months after her husband’s tragic assassination.

            I have listened to a few of the sessions, and I cannot help but be initially impressed with the normality of Mrs. Kennedy as a human being. Time had not interspersed itself between the assassination and the point where Mrs. Kennedy would become a cultural icon. Consequently, it is easy to spot the humanity of Mrs. Kennedy, her husband, and their family.

            Retrospection also offers perspective on just how sudden President and Mrs. Kennedy rose to such a prominent place in the spectrum of world events. In 1951, a young college graduate named Jacqueline Bouvier met a handsome young senator from Massachusetts. Ten years later, at the age of 32, she was the first lady of the United States.

            She was a first lady with enormous influence. Reflecting upon her commitment to the restoration of the White House, I was able to gain new insight into what an achievement that was. To bring groups together and to raise funds for such an unusual (at that time) endeavor was an enormous achievement. However, coming from a young housewife and mother, who was committed to her family, I consider this to be an amazing accomplishment.

            I look forward to hearing more of these recordings.

5. Yu Darvish gives me hope for the Texas Rangers’ pitching staff. Joe Nathan gives me doubt. Darvish recovered last night from a horrific first inning to pitch well. Nathan has thrown one pitch this year—a home run ball, which won the ball game for the Chicago White Sox. Tonight, Naftali Feliz makes his debut as a Ranger starter. This will be an important start.

April 3, 2012

1. Today I am having a study day at the Baptist Missionary Association Theological Seminary library in Jacksonville, Texas. This morning, I attended their chapel service to hear Albert Mohler, the well-known president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary lecture on “The Fall of Man & the Christian Message.”

            I am of the acapella tradition when it comes to public worship. Consequently, in the chapel service, I could not but be reminded again that the chief battle in Christian worship is not over acapella vs. instrumental. The combat is over reserved worship vs. expressive worship and old hymns vs. new hymns.

            The seminary chapel service was instrumental, with a piano providing the accompaniment. The hymns sung were the old classics, most of which I grew up singing. The only “expression” displayed by the participants was smiles. I thought of the number of Baptists I know who would have howled had they attended that chapel service.

            There are people in my church tradition who think that brining an instrument in would bring peace. I can assure you, it would not.            

            I have often wondered why this is so. My guess is that public worship is so intimate and so personal, when one attends an assembly that does not match up with his worship style, it is the equivalent of going out on a Sadie Hawkins date with a girl he does not like. He wants to be nice, decent, and civil to his date, but the date is more of an event to be endured than a relationship to be celebrated.

            There are good people on both sides of the issue. I wish everyone the best.

2. Incidentally, Albert Mohler’s lecture on the “Fall of Man” was very good. He is one of the better public lecturers I have heard. With his intellect, his commitment to scripture, and his ability to communicate, I can see why he is a darling to the evangelical Christian world as well as a “go-to guy” when GOOD MORNING AMERICA and other media sources desire a quote or response from the evangelical community.

3. AMC’s TV series MAD MEN returned last week. Several magazines have run cover stories on the event, including NEWSEEK. You may be asking, “Why all the fuss?” My guess is the characters fascinate people because they (the characters) are so flawed. Thus the popular culture finds them authentic.

            Perhaps the best quote I ran across concerning the series came courtesy the keyboard of Rob Sheffield of ROLLING STONE. Addressing MAD MEN’S man character, Don Draper, Sheffield wrote, "Every American wants a clean slate, but nobody wants to lose what they've got."

            I have found this observation to be spot on. Sheffield, in one sentence, has summarized the challenge facing Christianity in American culture.

            A religion, who’s founder states that for one to be saved he must die to self, will always face obstacles in a culture where no one wants to lose what he has got.

4. Surrounding the death of former MONKEES’ singer Davy Jones, I came across an interesting little factoid: by the late 1960s, Davy Jones had become so famous, a struggling singer/songwriter named David Jones decided he had to change his name. He did; he changed it to David Bowie.

5. The past few days have reminded me why I never fill out a NCAA tournament bracket. I missed every pick I had made for the Men’s Final Four. (In “Five” last week, I had selected Louisville over Kentucky, Ohio State over Kansas, and Louisville over Ohio State in the championship game.)

            I am sticking with the Baylor girls though. They’ll beat Notre Dame tonight and go 40-0.

*Thanks to Peter King for the inspiration for the title.