Mount Cardigan in Orange, New Hampshire isn't terribly tall, peaking at 3,121 feet. Additionally, the main trail is a short hike of 1.3 miles. However, a good portion of it has a sharp inclination, especially as the trees thin and the granite becomes prolific. It was perhaps three quarters of the way up the mountain…
Year: 2011
Osama
Last night, just before turning my iPad off and going to sleep, it really felt like I should set my Facebook status based on the death of Osama bin Laden. This is what I settled on: ”Say to them, As I live, declares the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the…
Running on Empty
Last week I mentioned the sermon's title, "And Then There Were None," was unintentionally the same as a book by Agatha Christie. This week, I chose "Running on Empty" fully well knowing that there was a song and record by Jackson Browne with the same name. Now, that's not my favorite Jackson Browne song—if I…
The Invisible Fire Engine
Heading into town today to fix a friend's laptop, I was partway down Elm Avenue when I noticed one of our neighbors had a large old firetruck parked off to the left. I commented to Michelle that it was kind of cool, and she replied that it had been there quite a while. Now, it's…
Wolf Control
A little earlier this year Rob Bell, the popular founding pastor of Mars Hill in Grandville, Michigan, set off a bit of a web explosion by releasing a video trailer promoting his soon-to-be-released (at that time) book, Love Wins. The video didn't specifically say anything heretical, but it implied quite a bit in its questions…
Review of “Greener Grass Conspiracy”
About a month back a tweet came through offering to send a copy of The Greener Grass Conspiracy to the first 100 bloggers who would agree to review it by April 30. I’m a big fan of Crossway‘s efforts, so I put my name in the hat for Stephen Altrogge’s most recent book. Unlike any…
And Then There Were None
Agatha Christie & Martin Niemöller Little did I know when I chose the title, “And Then There Were None,” for this sermon that Agatha Christie actually wrote a book by that name. It is a mystery where ten unpunished murderers are invited to an island where, one-by-one, they are knocked off. I can’t really say…
The Demons Shudder
The belief of demons This sermon is going to be both normal and abnormal. Normal in that we'll return to looking up a good number of scriptures together—abnormal in that we'll spend quite a bit time talking about demons. As a whole I don't think it's good to focus on the Devil and his angels….
X-Ray Vision
Younger readers probably won't appreciate how when (growing up) I really would have liked a pair of the x-ray glasses that were advertised in various comic books. Now, I wasn't gullible enough to actually think they worked, but what a cool idea! Or even better, how about having Superman's x-ray vision? I think not being…
Ockham’s Razor
Explanation #1 Starting off today’s sermon, I would like to explain how this tan metallic cabinet beside me got here. About a month ago, the owner was transporting it in the back of his truck while driving to Keene and hit a frost heave on Route 31, causing it to bounce out of the back…
Are both Satan and Jesus the morning star?
I have been the webmaster for a religious publisher since 1998, so I get email with questions now and then. Generally I point them to our e-mail discussion group, but today I got a query I figured I’d go ahead and try to answer myself. My response is below (minus names, correcting one tense, and…
50 Reasons to Question God
What would you ask God? If you had the opportunity to ask God anything…and He would definitely answer…what would you ask? What if you could ask Him only one thing…what question would be most important to you? Would it be personal? Why something awful happened to you or someone you love? Would it be scientific?…
Then I Met Marty
A couple weeks back you may have also cringed when you heard, on national news, that a New Hampshire state senator suggested we ship the mentally ill to Siberia to die. I cannot remember if the story stated his party affiliation, but even if it didn't I would have assumed he was Republican and figured…
A Little Creeped Out?
This past week, to make the time on my Concept2 Rower pass more quickly, I listened to talk shows on Internet radio (well, the Internet streams of "real" radio stations). On one show they interviewed the founder of Voyurl, a service which "allows you to share your clickstream and find out who is looking at…
You Can’t Just Pray in Jesus’ Name
Town Meeting While in Rick and Diane's last week, I received a call from our town Moderator, Bob Flanders, asking if I could give the invocation at Thursday's town meeting. I was honored at the request, and said that since Mikey's Pops Concert was the same night I'd have to confirm time coordination with Michelle,…