Future Tripping and the Presence of Joy (Peace)

Future Tripping and the Presence of Joy (Peace): "Future Tripping and the Presence of Joy (Peace)"

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BHT
The Shack author's blog has a great little article on peace and joy in the face of future planning. Very well written. We have talked about the mystery of being close to God in times of distress, times when we feel out of control, when things are not going the way we planned. I've been in times of distress and been far away from God also. So distress, disaster, discomfort only reveals the path to God. Arriving close to God is not automatic. We still have to walk the path of acceptance. Maybe that beautiful path God built to Himself is more distinctly visible when all the roads we have built are seen in their true light, full of pot holes and cracks and leading nowhere.

It always irritated me when people tagged "Lord willing" onto future statements. I've started adding it myself. Not to sound pious but "Lord willing" feels more descriptive of reality. "I will do this thing tomorrow ... Lord willing." It all sounds terribly weak in our culture of achievement, un-American almost.

Many of us Christians identify with Abraham, Moses, Paul ... not as much with their faith in God but in the great things these great men achieved. Then we live our lives in frustration in our own paultry achievements. Lately I identify more with the demoniac of Gadara:

"As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. Jesus did not let him, but said, "Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you."

We don't all defeat the Kings of Sodom, part the Red Sea or evangelize the world. Some of us just stay home and tell the story to the locals.

Sun-like Stars May Have Low Probability of Forming Planets

Sun-like Stars May Have Low Probability of Forming Planets
Written by Nancy Atkinson

The Orion Nebula shines brilliantly, as it is packed with over 1,000 young stars in a region just a few light-years wide. With all those stars, there's probably the potential for thousands of planets to one day form from the dust and gas surrounding these stars, right? Actually, according to a new study, fewer than 10 percent of stars in the Orion Nebula have enough surrounding dust to make a planet the size of Jupiter. And that doesn't bode well for the planet-forming abilities of most stars, at least in forming planets the size of Jupiter or larger. 'We think that most stars in the galaxy are formed in dense, Orion-like regions, so this implies that systems like ours may be the exception rather than the rule,' said Joshua Eisner lead author of the study from the University of California Berkeley. This finding is also consistent with the results of current planet searches, which are finding that only about 6 percent of stars surveyed have planets the size of Jupiter or larger."
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BHT doesn't mean to be on a kick of some kind but we see a trend developing.

Amazon.com: Rare Earth: Why Complex Life Is Uncommon in the Universe: Peter Ward, Donald Brownlee: Books

Amazon.com: Rare Earth: Why Complex Life Is Uncommon in the Universe: Peter Ward, Donald Brownlee: Books: "Rare Earth: Why Complex Life Is Uncommon in the Universe (Paperback)"
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BHT has not read this but it appears a couple of scientists with no religious act to grind have some skepticism about life spreading randomly across the universe. So "billions and billions" of stars may not be as determinant in panspermia as Carl Sagan would suggest. Either way we are cool with it, theologically speaking.

Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly

Doc. 11297
8 June 2007

The dangers of creationism in education

Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly: "Draft resolution"

1. "The Parliamentary Assembly is worried about the possible ill-effects of the spread of creationist theories within our education systems and about the consequences for our democracies. If we are not careful, creationism could become a threat to human rights, which are a key concern of the Council of Europe."

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BHT finds intresting that the EU sees creationism as a grave threat to the state. Reading this resolution is just plain creepy. We suggest you read the entire resolution for full effect.

English schoolboys get detention for refusing to pray to Allah as part of their schoolwork

English schoolboys get detention for refusing to pray to Allah as part of their schoolwork Two schoolboys were allegedly disciplined after refusing to kneel down and “pray to Allah” during a religious education lesson. A spokesman for Cheshire County Council said ‘Educating children in the beliefs of different faiths is part of Cheshire’s diversity curriculum’" -- Read the whole thing ... cultural diversity training!

Dominionism

Brushing up on Dominionism is healthy for today's Christians.
Tom Horn interview on PID Radio
http://rnnradio.com/2006/10/14-1 Horn starts about half way through.
http://rnnradio.com/2006/10/14-2 Fast forward some to get to interview.
http://rnnradio.com/2006/10/14=3

Many Christians are hearing God giving clarity on how His children should approach political attitudes. More of us are seeing (again) the futility of taking over the political (world) system. So I guess when Jesus said His kingdom is not of this world He really meant it.

We in the USA fall easy prey to a Dominionism theology because of our history. Didn't God lead the pilgrims to our shores to escape the oppressive state churches of Europe? Didn't God have a glorious plan to set up the perfect society, one lead by God Himself in the new land? At least some pilgrims believed this. Many Christians even now feel that God may have personally led our revolution (slight overstatement).

Just saying this out loud creeps me out. What Biblical reference supports this type of thinking? What scriptural pattern models this behavior?

The Finger of God

Darren’s Blog: "Darren’s Blog
Welcome! I will try my best to keep you up to date on what is happening with the film here, as well as give you insights into what I am working on next. Feel free to contact me with questions or comments, and I’ll try to get back to you as soon as I can."
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BHT has "discovered" some new info on Miracles, God style. This is very exciting of course because if Jesus is returning in, well, September (for lack of anything more specific), one would expect that some unusual things would be going on. Here is a guy going around filming these unusual things, miracles perhaps. And if things go beyond September (perchance) life may become even more thrilling.

BHT while visiting China many years ago had the privilege of meeting Dennis Balcombe (mentioned in interview). Gratuitous name drop. It was a Bible transfer kind of thing, if you know what I mean.

View a 2 part interview with Darren Wilson:
Interview 1
Interview 2