Catch of the Day: Blogroll

Gunny, You’ve been caught! For this piece, which made more sense to me than anything else I’ve read about the VT shooting, I’m going to blogroll you. Thanks man and dude, what happened to the Stars anyway?

Ahem

Now before someone brings up the ‘E’ word. (You know…egalitarian) Go ahead right now and stow it. I’m on my second load of laundry, the kitchen is a wreck from the weekend and as soon as I get this posted up I’m going to take out the trash and run screaming out the door to get kids to school and run a few errands. ‘Stay at home’ is a joke. In other words, I’m not really all that sympathetic to people who stand in judgment of my family because we don’t conform to societal norms. Yes, societal norms—note I didn’t say biblical. Our society has shaped the way we perceive who does what in a family a great deal more than the Word of God has.

So yeah, I stay home with the kids and take care of the house and the family in general. This usually freaks people out. Here is an example: I have spent a great deal of time taking care of babies. A GREAT deal of time. Four kids worth as the primary caregiver—Moms will understand what I’m talking about. Other Dads? Eh. They don’t get it. My general impression—now this is merely my perception of their reaction which is a tricky thing at best…well, most men are pretty transparent about it so its not that tricky. Anyway. My impression of what men think about men who ‘stay at home’ is this: That’s women’s work. That’s not what real men do. You must be a sissy. These are the same people who see all of us out at the same time and act like we brought our Wolf Hounds into the restaurant to feed on human flesh. They are just KIDS! I mean there’s probably more than average…there’s society thing again. “Man” they say “You’ve got yer hands full!”

Whoa! I thought Einstein was dead!

Ahem…excuse me.

I have to say, after much experience, that the first misimpression others have about our family set-up is probably true. I wouldn’t call what I do ‘women’s work’ because I’m the one doing it—and let me tell you it ain’t easy. I’d rather go work construction or be a plumber or a welder or something like that. (Oh, and guys when she’s got fourteen kinds of lotion all over the house its because of the water and the detergent. It’s because diaper wipes and laundry soap and floor cleaner all eat your skin. So lay off if she’s got lavender lotion in one room and apple in another. If you had to do what she does in a day she would come home and find you lying in the floor with the kids rubbing oatmeal on the walls and a little lotion is a small price to pay.) At least I wouldn’t have dishpan hands all the time. There is nothing worse than changing out the fuel lines on a lawn mower with dishpan hands. Ouch!

It seems that she is wired up in a way that would let her handle some of the things I have to deal with in a better way. It seems like she was ‘made’ to do some of the things I have to do on a daily basis. Most of that has to do with nurture and looking after the kids. I mean, I’ve had to work at it. But it has to be done. That’s what men do. You do what you must and what you should and then, if you have time, you do what you can.

And you don’t worry about the jealous goobs who don’t step out and do what’s right even if it doesn’t look that way from the cheap seats.

The Dip

I noticed that there is a regular dip in my blog stats and I think its great. On 8th, the 14th, and the 22nd you guys were all busy doing something else besides staring at little rectangles of light and chuckling or raving to yourself as you type messages to people you’ve never met in places you’ve probably never been. I hope it was sitting in church with your family and doing all those family Sunday things we do as Christians to pass on our values and beliefs. I don’t know what happened on the 15th. Maybe it was just a slow day or something–week after Easter let down.

The point is that we as Christians have a whole lot better things to do on Sunday that stare blogs. We have familes, we have church familes. We have Bibles and study and reading to do. As I mentioned a few days ago, this is not exactly the deep end of the theological pool. It’s more of a step down into the kiddie pool.

Read. Study. Repeat. Take up the Word of God like it means something to you, something more than a book you dust off every third Sunday during the Summer and carry to Church. If thats all it is that you’re the DIP for not taking advantage of being in possession of the glorious Word of God.

So now I hope you’re mad enough to log off and pick up that book…I mean it…go on…

You’re still reading. Maybe out of habit or maybe because you want to see what else I’m going to rant about. Personally, I’m going to take my own advice. “Physician Heal Thyself” and all that.

May the Lord bless you richly in Christ and in his Word…

U5K

Just a quick note of thanks to all my readers. Unbound sort of trudged by 5000 hits this week. Of course 1000 of them were spam comments that the WordPress spam filter caught but hey, maybe they stopped long enough to catch a bit of the gospel. Who knows?

Anyway, I appreciate all those who drop by and read and especially those who comment.

Lately I’ve had a lot of hits about rabbits, hunting rabbits, and even one person who was looking for a way to make rabbit traps out of aluminum cans. Sorry about not having those plans up. Someone was looking for a disease you can get from eating rabbit. ‘Tularemia’ is a blood-parasite infection you can get from eating poorly cooked rabbit shot out of season (in the summer). Nasty stuff that.

And for some reason I got a hit on ‘dogs rabbits living together’ which I mentioned in a humorous tone in the rabbit slayer post. Somehow I didn’t think that was as hot topic…

Glory!

It’s kind of funny you should mention that Sherri.

I was thinking the same thing earlier today. It’s weird, but I never really worried about getting older. But I’m doing it. I’ve got push mower that I just bought—eight years ago. And it seems that the older I get the shorter the years are. I took my truck in to have it fixed and I was grousing about how long it was taking and the mechanic said, “Well, on these older trucks sometimes it takes awhile to get parts.” At least I think that’s what he said. I tuned out when he said ‘older trucks’ and realized that the thing was a ’93. That’s fourteen to you and me. But I love that truck.

You see things don’t stay the same and aren’t we glad? I remember head banging back in the day–wasted youth and all, most every one’s got some of it–but we could stay up all night and get up the next day and function. Now I’m—well, forty’s looking pretty good, let’s just leave it at that. Ahem. Now I’ve got a one year old and I’ll tell you what, staying up all night just ain’t nearly as much fun as it used to be.

But that’s the way things are in this old world. A wasting, dying, sickening world where we get old and die or just fade out. I don’t have to detail it: we all know we’re terminal. And in spite of it all God gets the glory.

And I want you to know that the day is coming when we won’t have to put up with it any more. I’m not up on my eschatology so I won’t get really detailed, but I’ll say this: Jesus is coming back to get those who believe and take care of those who don’t.

Glory!

And then we won’t have to worry about our bad knees, backs, elbows and necks ‘cause we’ll have new ones.

13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.– 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 (ESV)

Unbound

Kevin Rhyne from This Bread Always asked a question about a comment I made on Catch of the Day yesterday.

“Very cool on meeting a pastor interested in Nettles’ book in this part of the world. What’s the story there?”

Good question that. It’s a long story.

One of the things that started me blogging to begin with was a general dissatisfaction with the way ‘things’ were done in the church. I’m not talking about grumbling against others. Nor am I talking about grousing about the service or the pastor—we don’t, as a general rule, do that. In fact we have always been quite fond of our pastors to the point of sticking up for them. I have always held to the position that the ministry was for the congregation and the Pastor was to equip them. It’s just not a very popular view believe me. Too many are of the opinion that ministry is something they’ve hired done and once they drop ‘their’ money in the plate they’ve done their part.

But I digress.

The story there, however, revolves around the general dissatisfaction in which I discovered myself about four years ago. All around me I saw thirty-ish folks much like myself who were busy and active with family and other things. Yet there was an incredible lethargy about them with regard to the gospel. They were not interested in ‘visitation’ or ‘discipleship’ or even Sunday School much unless someone was bringing baked goods fairly regularly. In each Baptist program area there was a major lack of manpower.

Having discovered that no amount of pulpiteering, salesmanship, or guilt-tripping could alleviate the shortage of people to fill all the slots in the programs I decided that it had to be God who did it, not me. It had to be a ‘miracle’. After much prayer and brassy skies I slipped into despair which only hardened my dissatisfaction. It’s not a nice place to be as a layman. I was a volunteer in all of my activities. In spite of that all of these whirling pressures eventually forced me and my family to leave our church and find another—in that order. So we went to the other ‘good’ church in town and there we sat uninvolved and distant from the ‘real ministry’ as I saw it anyway.

But a funny thing happened while I was sitting in that pew not really doing anything. I began to see and hear the church service. I began to listen to what I heard and compare it to what I read in my Bible. Here I was sitting and listening and reading my Bible and occasionally teaching a Sunday School lesson, but that’s all—and thinking. And the times when I would sit in the service with thoughts of ‘what I could have done differently’ or ‘what I could do better now’ spinning through my head got farther and farther apart. But the disillusionment stayed with me. I was still worried about the church, the Southern Baptist Church in general and I still kept asking myself: why is it like this? Why are some things so ineffective and others so pointless? Why is there a decreasing focus on the Word of God?
So I decided to find some answers.

I think I have. But they were not found in a ‘reformed church’. There aren’t any of those around here. If you looked at a map with all the ‘reformed’ and Baptist churches in this area marked you’d see a big hole in this part of the world. Don’t ask me why, there just is. In fact a certain intolerance for Calvinism that I have experienced first hand is one of the things that led me to further study in the first place. The irony in all this is that the man I found to give the book to was the pastor at our original church. Had he began to try and talk to me about ‘Calvinism’ or ‘Sovereignty’ or any of these things called ‘The Doctrines of Grace’ then we would have had a fight. The REAl irony is that the answers I’ve found are the same ones I got from the Bible to begin with.

Isn’t it delightful to know that God is working on everyone at the same time?

Catch of the Day…

This time my delightful Catch of the Day is a little short as I ran out of hooks before I ran out of blogs.

A link I found while attempting to find an old post on the Founders blog where I refute a cynical comment I made. Having optimistically purchased two copies of ‘By His Grace and For His Glory’ I then cynically replied that I would give one away if ‘I ever met a pastor in this part of the world who was interested.’ I did. Glory. So I then read ‘Have we lost the gospel?‘ by Tom Ascol and wondered again if he was right.

On a lighter, thinner note: A paper wallet.

The article on lay ministry. Read it.

Click on the warning tab on this blog–who showed up in my referrers–for a great diatribe about reading at your own risk.

A Carat for Rabbit…

I was driving down the road today and I saw a serpentine belt lying in the middle of the street. You think you had a rough commute. No rabbits to speak of, but a friend of mine hit a large animal and busted her windshield out this week. I know a dear girl who is in the last stages of treatment for Leukemia. (I don’t know how she does it what with the MS and all….) There were at least two boys in my ‘grade’ at school who fought that battle and lost. And when those things happen far away or when we see them happen first hand we are grateful that they haven’t happened to us. We might even feel a little guilty about it but we are so grateful. And when they happen to us and we stand up under the weight of it we praise God for holding us up. But when the hurricanes hit and the tsunamis come out of nowhere and hit these nations that are largely something else—non-Christian nations, you know, like America—where is their comfort? Where is the hope in random circumstance?

I know that when anything happens good or bad that the Father is there and His Spirit is there to pull me through. He has done so on many occasions. I know these things are true because the Word tells me and I believe it. I know that I am secure in the Father’s hand. That he holds those who are his and counts them as his children. We are not wild things, we are tame, we are under authority, we are submitted to the one true God and we are not ashamed to be called by his name.

But what about those others? Those ‘wild’ rabbits? Constantly they are in danger of being gobbled up by this world and all its enticements. Always the threat of death looms over their heads. Death is their constant companion. Whether by hawk, gun, or semi truck—death is always near. But still they dabble in the pea patch. Like Peter Rabbit they must go to the MacGregor garden to nibble on the French beans and browse through the lettuces. Even if they lose all they have even if they know it’s a danger, they still go. They have no choice.

Thank God for his mercy and his protection. Thank God for the rabbit wire of his Word that keeps us hemmed in on all sides and safe and secure. And for all those gloriously true and safe rabbit pellets…

Romans 8 anyone?

Well, you get the idea. This might be corny but its true.

The word of God is not bound…are you?

Banjophoria

Banjophoria: adj. 1. The feeling of joy and detachment from the world at large that overcomes a banjo player when he enters a banjo shop. 2. That feeling of happiness that occurs in some people when a banjo player starts playing and in everyone else when he quits.

Trust me on this one. You either like it or you don’t.

I have reason to be thinking about banjo’s today. They are delightful instruments and even I picked one up and made some music the first day. I’ve still got one I change the strings on about twice a year. I’ll clean it up and play all the songs I know. I’ll do it the next day or every day for a week or a month. Then I get busy. I have to skip a day or two. I have other things to do. Then it goes back in the case.

It’s a beauty. Deering Standard five string. Nothing fancy, just pure sound and that fabulous Deering neck. Wow. I bought it new fifteen years ago and it still sounds great. The frets probably need to be filed up top ‘o the neck but for the most part it’s a good jo. (jo, banjo, banjer, etc.) You should be jealous. Charles Shultz noted in one of his cartoons that every boy should be issued a dog and a banjo at birth. I tend to agree.

In case you are one of the ones with ‘onset’ Banjophoria—as opposed to the kind that happens when the music stops–here are a few guidelines for purchasing a banjo of your very own.

One. Go to a good instrument shop, one with a good selection of banjo’s and acoustic guitars and sit and just pick it. No you won’t know anything about them, but that’s OK. Even Earl Scruggs picked up a banjo for the first time some time. The best and only way to figure out if you like them is to go make some noise. You will for sure clear the room but that’s OK. The store will understand.

Two. Think about it and if you want one, spend as much as you can afford. When I bought mine it was in the $1200 dollar range. It’s gone WAY up since then but you can get a really good banjo for around three to five hundred dollars.

As a general rule a first Banjo should be comfortable. It should fit your hands and body and feel good when you strap it on. It should also be, regrettably, disposable. You may play for six weeks and hate it and want to sell the thing. The reverse of this is that you may love it, may be a natural, and may end up toting the Banjo to every bluegrass festival and jam session you can get into. If its the former, you’ll regret a huge investment if its the latter, you’ll want something better and therefore more expensive pretty quick. Most people fall somewhere in the middle.

Three. Remember, you probably know zilch about banjos. Since you’re going to need someone to pick with anyway, find someone who can help you out. Find a good banjo shop with a banjo tech who will let you pick his brain. Most will—not just because they want to make a sale. Banjo pickers are generally a laid back lot and love to talk shop.

Four. Buying an instrument without handling it in person and playing it is risky though, but websites are great for seeing what is available. I’ve used Janet Davis and First Quality and they are both just pretty top-notch. Chances are if you call Janet Davis Music you’ll get to chat with someone who knows a great deal about banjos.

I’ve bought banjo heads and strings from Janet Davis (wouldn’t shop anywhere else) and a nifty little old wood bridge (Desert Rose). I ordered a great digital tuner from FQMS. Both are pretty much top-notch. I don’t know about buying a banjo online. Personally, I would rather buy a banjo that I have handled and played but even in most dealer showrooms you are not going to buy the display model. You’re going to get one from stock after they give it a tune up. If you know exactly what you want and you want it new then by all means go for it. Just be careful.

Bottom line: If you like it, it sounds pretty good to you, feels pretty good to you, get it. I used to say two hundred bucks was a great deal for a decent beginning banjo. Make it three fifty or four hundred. I have played a Deering Goodtime 2 and its both playable and affordable and there are other varieties in that price range for newbs.

Five. I think lessons would be great but if nothing else, get a good banjo book and play until your fingers fall off. Not that they’ll actually fall off…. The first night I had my first banjo I played the thing until my index finger started bleeding and I broke a string. I only had what was on it so I had to wait until the next day to pick some replacements up. Oh the long night! Anyway…

Catch of the Day…

I thought this was a great post from Pulpit about secret sin. Its well worth a read.