cb.blog

Author: Chip Bennett

  • Flag Burning and Cross Building

    Surely, if we can even discuss whether burning the American flag is a form of protected political expression (not speech), then a church building a cross must be protected religious exercise.

    When it comes to tony Town and Country, some residents like to say there’s an understated character in the city.

    So imagine the response in this enclave of million-dollar homes and manicured estates when a church proposed building an illuminated cross on its grounds adjacent to Highway 40. And not just any cross. This one would be made of glass and steel, soaring 99 feet into the air – a height equivalent to five streetlights stacked on top of each other.

    …

    He claimed that when the church first approached the city with its intention to erect the cross, the city had no such height restrictions, but added them soon after. He called that “an effort to erect obstacles to the exercise of our rights of religious freedom.”

    Hey Town and Country, remember this pesky little line?

    Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

    I’m sure you do so hate it when the Constitution gets in the way…

  • I Knew The Day Would Come

    I almost didn’t post this, because I know she’ll read it; and I don’t want her to feel guilty for having the happiness she deserves.

    I expected it… I prayed for it, sincerely… I knew one day it would happen.

    But I still wasn’t ready for it.

    When it was over, I knew it, and accepted it. I never wanted or asked God to change it – just tried to begin to move on.

    And I want more than anything for her, that she be happy.

    But I wasn’t ready for it – ready to face the reality of her with someone else, having feelings for someone else. And now I’m dealing with the remnant of the hurt: what hadn’t – couldn’t have – surfaced until now, mourning the final vestiges of the deepest human intimacy I had ever known.

    And I’m struggling with it.

    Cast your cares on the LORD
    and he will sustain you;
    he will never let the righteous fall.

    Psalm 55:22 (NIV)

    Surely God is my help;
    the Lord is the one who sustains me.

    Psalm 54:4 (NIV)

  • OYB March 15

    Today´s reading:
    OT: Numbers 22:21-41, Numbers 23
    NT: Luke 1:57-80
    Ps: Psalm 58
    Pr: Proverbs 11:12-13

    Today´s notable verse:

    God is not a man, that he should lie,
    nor a son of man, that he should change his mind.
    Does he speak and then not act?
    Does he promise and not fulfill?

    Numbers 23:19 (NIV)

    I love this characteristic of God: if He says it, it is so; if He promises it, He will fulfill it. We cannot impose our will on God any more than Balak could compel God to curse the Israelites whom He had already blessed. No matter how many times he asked, no matter how many sacrifices he offered, no matter which of the Israelites he desired cursed – God willed that the Israelites be blessed.

    No matter whether the general, unconditional revelation and promises of Scripture (logos), or personal, conditional words of prophecy (rhema), we can trust without any doubt whatsoever that what God promised will come to pass. (This space is too limited to get into the difference between the unconditional Word of Scripture, and words of prophecy contingent upon their conformance with and our own obedience to the Word of Scripture.) Thank God for His faithfulness and trustworthiness!

    The One Year Bible Blog asks:

    What verses or insights jumped out for you in today’s readings?

    For once, Mike and I focused on different verses!

  • Four Things Meme – a Fortnight Late

    So, I didn’t realize until today that I was tagged with the Four Things meme…

    Four jobs I’ve had:

    1. Validation Specialist
    2. Controls Engineer
    3. Engineering Intern
    4. Line Cook

    Four movies I watch over and over again:

    1. Office Space
    2. Dead Poet’s Society
    3. Remember The Titans
    4. Lord of the Rings trilogy

    Four places I’ve lived:

    1. St. Louis, MO
    2. Kalamazoo, MI
    3. Terre Haute, IN
    4. Shelbyville, IN

    Four shows I watch:

    1. (I really don’t watch TV…)

    Four places I’ve vacationed:

    1. Hilton Head, SC
    2. Naples, FL
    3. Gatlinburg, TN
    4. New Orleans, LA

    Four websites I like: (by no means a complete list)

    1. DadBloggers
    2. This Blog is Full of Crap
    3. One Year Bible Blog
    4. LSB’s Fantasy Fiction For Christians

    Four of my favorite foods:

    1. Filet Mignon
    2. Salad
    3. Coffee
    4. anything spicy

    Four places I’d like to be right now:

    1. on a tennis court
    2. in Mexico
    3. in a home I own
    4. with my future wife (whomever she may be) and children

    Apparently, I’m supposed to pass this meme on… do I even have enough readers to recognize that I’ve tagged one of them? How about I make this one an “open tag” meme – if you decide to tag yourself, leave a comment or trackback, and let me know!

  • OYB March 14

    Today´s reading:
    OT: Numbers 21, Numbers 22:1-20
    NT: Luke 1:26-56
    Ps: Psalm 57
    Pr: Proverbs 11:9-11

    Today´s notable verses:

    That is why the Book of the Wars of the LORD says…

    Numbers 21:14 (NIV)

    What is the Book of the Wars of the Lord? From Wikipedia:

    The Book of the wars of The Lord, or The Book of the wars of Yahweh, is one of several books referenced in the Hebrew Bible, of which no copies are known to exist. It is mentioned in Numbers 21:14-15, (verses 13-15)… Amongst academics, it is generally thought to be a collection of victory songs/poems, although some non-academics have proposed it may be a prose military history.

    The Book of the Wars of the Lord is only one of a few “lost” works we will encounter this year.

    Israel captured all the cities of the Amorites and occupied them, including Heshbon and all its surrounding settlements.

    Numbers 21:25 (NIV)

    The Israelites occupied the erstwhile Amorite cities, and settled there. Was this settlement permanent – did some of the Israelites never enter the promised land – or was it temporary – only until the assembly moved on?

    The One Year Bible Blog asks:

    Proverbs chapter 11 verse 11 is a great reminder to each of us to be good citizens – “Upright citizens bless a city and make it prosper.” Are you striving to be an upright citizen blessing your city and helping to make it prosper?

    Reading this verse, I was struck by how part of our witness of Christ is that our cities – our communities – are to be blessed through us. This blessing is to be especially in contrast to the curse that the wicked bring to a city/community. I wonder how often the body of Christ is recognized – or, worse, even recognizable – as a blessing to our community? This thought is certainly sobering. I pray that God would use His church to bless the cities in which His believers live – starting with me!

  • OYB March 13

    Today´s reading:
    OT: Numbers 19, Numbers 20
    NT: Luke 1:1-25
    Ps: Psalm 56
    Pr: Proverbs 11:8

    Today´s notable verse:

    10 In God, whose word I praise,
    in the LORD, whose word I praise-
    11 in God I trust; I will not be afraid.
    What can man do to me?

    Psam 56:10-11 (NIV)

    Anyone who has kept up with the events of my life over the past several days will understand why these verses have special significance to me, especially right now.

    The One Year Bible Blog asks:

    What verses or insights jumped out for you in today’s readings?

    Noted above… I apologize for today’s brevity; things are rather hectic!

  • Arizona Now Has The Edge

    According to the Official Arizona Cardinals web site, Edgerrin James, formerly of the Indianapolis Colts, has agreed to a 4-year contract:

    The Arizona Cardinals Football Club has agreed to a 4-year contract with running back Edgerrin James. In accordance to team policy terms of the deal were not disclosed.

    This deal is important for me for a couple reasons: one, obviously, as a Colts fan, I am disappointed to see one of the team’s best running backs (and a decent person all-around) leave, and two, living in Saint Louis, I’ll be very interested to see what this move does for the hometown team’s NFC West Division. Kurt Warner, with a good receiving corps and now one of the game’s best RBs – along with a good defense – could mean that a new sheriff could be coming to town in the West. We’ll see…

    I’ve always been in the school of thought that the Colts’ offense is as balanced, diverse, and potent as it is because of the caliber of James’ play: running, receiving, and blocking; few RBs can do all three as well as Edge. But, I’m sure the Colts’ management knew this day was coming (as with the Faulk trade that brought James to Indy in the first place), and have a plan in mind to deal with it.

    Some people are upset that James would leave Indy to go to a supposedly non-contender like Arizona, simply for the money; however, the owners view all aspects of football as a business, and why shouldn’t the players? In modern professional sports, we are long past the era of the true “franchise” players. Rare is the player – especially the super-star – who starts and ends his career with the same team (in any sport).

    James has done nothing but produce on the football field for the Colts, and had done so quietly and without glory-hogging. For that, I will be eternally grateful and will always have great respect for Edge. He has always demonstrated that his desire is to provide for his family and to give back to his community, while maintaining his ability to enjoy his life after his football career is over. This contract is likely his last, and if going to Arizona will allow him to continue to pursue his goals, then I say: more power to him, and best of luck with Arizona.

  • OYB March 12

    Today´s reading:
    OT: Numbers 16:41-50, Numbers 17, Numbers 18
    NT: Mark 16
    Ps: Psalm 55
    Pr: Proverbs 11:7

    Today´s notable verses:

    He stood between the living and the dead, and the plague stopped.

    Numbers 16:18 (NIV)

    I read this line and immediately thought of Christ. God had sent a plague to deal with the rebellious and grumbling Israelites. Aaron took incense into the midst of them to make atonement for their sin – just as Christ became the atonement four our sin; the plague stopped – just as we are saved from the plague of sin in our lives.

    The next day Moses entered the Tent of the Testimony and saw that Aaron’s staff, which represented the house of Levi, had not only sprouted but had budded, blossomed and produced almonds.

    Numbers 17:8 (NIV)

    God here is either demonstrating a lack of ambiguity to the point of absurdity, or else revealing a glimpse of His sense of humor/irony. Either way, He made His will obvious, and left no room for doubt or contention. I just find humor in the imagery of Aaron’s staff sprouting, budding, blossoming, and bearing almonds!

    Cast your cares on the LORD
    and he will sustain you;
    he will never let the righteous fall.

    Psalm 55:22 (NIV)

    Just a continuation of my thoughts from yesterday. I thank God that He has proven these words to be so true in the circumstances of my own life!

    The One Year Bible Blog asks:

    What verses or insights jumped out for you in today’s readings?

    As has become usual, Mike and I focused on the same verses!

  • Polls: As Worthless as the PDFs They’re Written On

    So, I keep hearing this Bush 37% approval rating number thrown around.

    Yeah, about that: it comes from an AP-IPSOS poll (.pdf file) taken 6-8 March. The poll has some interesting internals (I’m particularly fond of the cluelessness revealed by the 77% who believe it “likely” that civil war will break out in Iraq), but the telling number is this demographic (found on page 10 of 13):

    Total Republican: 39
    Total Democrat: 51

    Now, I can’t find the actual numbers from, say, the 2004 elections with respect to votes cast by party affiliation, but if I remember correctly, registered voters were evenly split (and Republicans may have even had a slight advantage). Still wonder why that approval rating number looks so low?

    Via RealClearPolitics.

  • OYB March 11

    Today´s reading:
    OT: Numbers 15:17-41, Numbers 16:1-40
    NT: Mark 15
    Ps: Psalm 54
    Pr: Proverbs 11:5-6

    Today´s notable verse:

    Surely God is my help;
    the Lord is the one who sustains me.

    Psalm 54:4 (NIV)

    When my engagement ended, of all the things I went through emotionally, the one constant I knew without a doubt was that I was sustained. Through it all, I always knew that God was with me: helping me, sustaining me. As life went on from that moment, I never faced depression, or despair; I couldn’t describe my state of being in any other way than that one word: sustained. I had absolute peace that God was in control, that He had a good plan, and that He would work out even this situation for good. While there are still several things that I don’t understand, I am content knowing that I may never understand – and I know that understanding isn’t the desired end, but rather faith. I thank God for – at the very least – using this experience to develop in me absolute and utter reliance upon Him, and Him alone, to sustain me in every circumstance.

    The One Year Bible Blog notes:

    “Trial By Fire” – ever hear this term? I think this term may have gotten its genesis here in Numbers chapter 16. Korah’s rebellion caused Moses to explain how this true trial by fire would go down in verses 4 through 7

    I am reminded of Paul’s words: that our lives – what we have “built up” – will be tested by fire, and we willl all pass through. Either we will come out with the testimony of our lives refined as precious stones or precious metal, or else that testimony will be burned up like so much chaff and we will escape with naught but our salvation – our foundation of Christ:

    10 By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13 his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. 14 If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15 If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.

    I Corinthians 3:10-15

    This day will be our own “trial by fire.” May what I am building be revealed to be worthy!