Linkage – May 20, 2013

In the wake of the IRS scandal, now the IRS will have access to healthcare information on you. We all trust the IRS don’t we? And somehow prayers are essential to tax-exempt statuses for pro-life organizations. I bet if the prayer had “Allahu Akhbar” in it there would be no need for further questions just “Stamp Approved”.

Is Mark Driscoll this generation’s Pat Robertson? I think probably.

Are you a man who doesn’t sing in church anymore? Read this article and find out why.

Is there a reason french kids are diagnosed with ADD at a significantly lower rate than US kids?

Chinese Christians get bibles for the first time!

And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, (1 Thessalonians 1:6, ESV)

Space Oddity

Chris Hadfield, Intl. Space Station astronaut, sings “Space Oddity” by David Bowie.

A Real Paradox

A real paradox is someone who professes to be a christian while attacking God’s word all the time.

But, probably there is no paradox at all.

Wicked River

Bought this (physical copy) at Books-A-Million yesterday.

About 100 pages in and it is excellent!

 

Some quotes from “AWOL on the Appalachian Trail” by David Miller.

From “AWOL on the Appalachian Trail” by David Miller.

My Favorite quote so far is the last one…

When you attempt to capture the highlights without burdening yourself with the tedium, the highlights lose the foundation that elevates them to the status of “highlight.” Analogies abound because a focused attitude defines the quality of all that we do. In playing a game, dieting, or hiking the AT, you benefit most when you commit yourself to it, embrace it.

_________________

Alone, cruising serenely through the woods, is a situation that nurtures emotional liberation. In the bustle of everyday life there is no time for frivolous thoughts. If they come, they contend for attention with thoughts of what needs to be done at work, getting the car in for service, and paying the bills.

_________________

Experience is enriched by reliving it, contemplating it, and trying to describe it to another person.

_________________

Thoughts are the most effective weapon in the human arsenal. On the upside, it is powerful to realize that goals are reached primarily by establishing the proper state of mind. But if allowed the perspective that our endeavors are propped upon nothing but a notion, we falter.

_________________

Anything that we consider to be an accomplishment takes effort to achieve. If it were easy, it would not be nearly as gratifying. What is hardship at the moment will add to our sense of achievement in the end.

Reading right now…

AWOL on the Appalachian Trail by David Miller

Most thru-hikers, when asked, will offer up a single motivation. In part it is the reason currently dominating his thoughts, in part it is the type of answer that is expected, and in part it is the type of answer that is easiest to give. It is not that simple. The reasons for a thru-hike are less tangible than many other big decisions in life. And the reasons evolve. Toward the end, possibly the most sustaining rationale to finish a thru-hike is the fact that you have started one.

__________________________________

I will thru-hike at some point in the near future.

My Wife’s Pick of Free and Cheap Amazon Ebooks -April 21, 2013

As always check the price before buying:

1. Medicine Men: Extreme Appalachian Doctoring by Carolyn Jourdan – $2.99

2. Smoky Mountain Tracks (Raine Stockton Dog Mysteries) by Donna Ball – $4.99

3. Out on a Limb: A Smoky Mountain Mystery by Carolyn Jourdan – $2.99

4. Thief! by Margaret V. Delashmit – $3.99

5. The Ghosts of Varner Creek by Michael Weems – FREE

6. A Hollow Dream of Summer’s End by Andrew Van Wey – $2.99

7. Invisible: An Ivy Malone Mystery by Lorena McCourtney – FREE

Some books you might enjoy.

I have enjoyed reading these books this year and wanted to share them with you.

1. The Inexplicables by Cherie Priest – $8.89
2. The Freedom of Self Forgetfulness by Timothy Keller – $ 0.99
3. A Dance With Dragons by George R.R. Martin – $14.99
4. Fever Season by Jeanette Kieth – $13.19
5. Anabasis by Xenophon -Free
6. Hiking Through: One Man’s Journey to Peace and Freedom on the Appalachian Trail by Paul Stutzman – $9.39
7. Infernal Devices by K.W. Jeter – $4.89
8. The God of the Mundane by Matt Redmond – $2.99
9. Growing Up Amish by Ira Wagler – $7.16
10. Generous Justice by Timothy Keller – $9.99

Jackson by Johnny and June Carter Cash

We got married in a fever, hotter than a pepper sprout,
We’ve been talkin’ ’bout Jackson, ever since the fire went out.
I’m goin’ to Jackson, I’m gonna mess around,
Yeah, I’m goin’ to Jackson,
Look out Jackson town.

Well, go on down to Jackson; go ahead and wreck your health.
Go play your hand you big-talkin’ man, make a big fool of yourself,
You’re goin’ to Jackson; go comb your hair!
Honey, I’m gonna snowball Jackson.
See if I care.

When I breeze into that city, people gonna stoop and bow. (Hah!)
All them women gonna make me, teach ‘em what they don’t know how,
I’m goin’ to Jackson, you turn-a loose-a my coat.
‘Cos I’m goin’ to Jackson.
“Goodbye,” that’s all she wrote.

But they’ll laugh at you in Jackson, and I’ll be dancin’ on a Pony Keg.
They’ll lead you ’round town like a scalded hound,
With your tail tucked between your legs,
You’re goin’ to Jackson, you big-talkin’ man.
And I’ll be waitin’ in Jackson, behind my Jaypan Fan,

Well now, we got married in a fever, hotter than a pepper Sprout,
We’ve been talkin’ ’bout Jackson, ever since the fire went out.
I’m goin’ to Jackson, and that’s a fact.
Yeah, we’re goin’ to Jackson, ain’t never comin’ back.

Well, we got married in a fever, hotter than a pepper sprout’
And we’ve been talkin’ ’bout Jackson, ever since the fire went…

Always trust your instincts.

Important lesson to remember Derek. Always trust your instincts.

Some personal thoughts on the Boston tragedy.

Some thoughts on Boston:
1. No matter who the culprits are don’t let them curtail more liberties in the interest of “security”. All we get are grannies being groped by TSA agents.
2. If Muslims are involved let’s not jump on the “war wagon”. Let’s just try to get them like we did Bin Laden.
3. 10+ years of war have not made us safer. In fact, all the ground we gained has been lost. Iraq is a satellite of Iran now and Afghanistan will probably go back to Taliban rule when we leave.
4. Why is it that Muslims, right-wing extremists, and “lone wolf nuts” are being considered, but not left-wing extremists. Weren’t some Occupy nuts going to blow up a bridge in Cleveland last year?
5. If Muslims are involved, then let’s have a national discussion on whether we should be giving these countries money and on tapping into our own oil reserves to lessen their ability to fund things like this.
6. Pray for all those affected by this tragedy.

The Body Fashioned Anew: Morning & Evening, Charles Spurgeon

Reblogged from More Than Coping:

Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body. (Philippians 3:21)

Often when we are racked with pain and unable to think or worship, we feel that this indeed is "the body of our humiliation," and when we are tempted by the passions which rise from the flesh we do not think the word vile at all too vigorous a translation.

Read more… 184 more words

Doxology

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;

Praise him, all creatures here below;

Praise him above, ye heavenly host;

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Amen.

10 Free ebooks from Amazon- April 10, 2013

Remember to check the price before buying as prices can change:

1. The Last Trail- Zane Grey

2. White Fang- Jack London

3. The Scarlet Letter- Nathaniel Hawthorne

4. Wuthering Heights- Emily Bronte

5. Mansfield Park- Jane Austen

6. The Prince- Niccolo Machiavelli

7. The Republic- Plato

8. Walden- Henry David Thoreau

9. Heart of Darkness- Joseph Conrad

10. King Solomon’s Mines- H. Rider Haggard

Linkage -Wednesday, April 10, 2013

On today’s Linkage: A petition for persecuted christians, Pres. Obama and gun control, Carl Trueman, all ur kids r belong to us, and the US Army being tools!

A petition from Persecution.org to end forced Church closures in Indonesia. Go sign it now!

President Obama’s use of dead children to hype gun control.

Contrary to Obama’s implication, the question is not whether preventing the murder of children is desirable but whether the policies he supports would do that. Instead of explaining, for example, how background checks can thwart mass killers, who typically do not have disqualifying criminal or psychiatric records and who in any event can use guns purchased by someone else (as Lanza did), Obama simply assumes his plan will work and insinuates that anyone who opposes it does not care about children as much as he does.

Been reading a little at a time in Carl Trueman’s book “The Wages of Spin”. Here is a little quote from it.

Acknowledging that God works in history means that we acknowledge that he has worked in the past; and acknowledging that he has worked in the past means that we acknowledge that we may not ignore that past as if we today had all the answers.

All ur kids r belong to us! Melissa Harris Perry telling you what she thinks.

US Army equates Catholicism and evangelical Christianity with Al-Qaeda and Hamas. Tools!