Ruth in Stickfigures

So my best friend's church is going through the book of Ruth. They produced the following video to help overview the contents of the book. Enjoy!

The Wisdom of the Desert

A brother asked one of the elders: What good thing shall I do, and have life thereby? The old man replied: God alone knows what is good. However, I have heard it said that someone inquired of Father Abbot Anthony, asking: What good work shall I do? and that he replied: not all works are alike. For Scripture says that Abraham was hospitable and God was with him. Elias loved solitary prayer, and God was with him. And David was humble and God was with him. Therefore, whatever you see your soul to desire according to God, do that thing, and you shall keep your heart safe.

Trace Bundy

This man is well on his way to becoming one of the elite guitar players in the world. I got to see him live this weekend and it was amazing. Check him out.

When The Kids Are Away, The Parents Will Play

So the kids went with Shelley's mom for the weekend so we had 2 complete days all to ourselves...

So whatever shall we do??? Everything.

We were true Portlanders this weekend.

We took the MAX into downtown Portland both Friday and Saturday and played hard. So here's a quick recap of an awesome weekend.

Friday

1st stop: Shoe shopping. Boring, but productive.

NEXT stop Rock Bottom Brewery for Happy Hour where I tried their Oregonic Amber. A decent Amber Ale. Liked it fairly well.

Then it was on to Powell's books which is the largest independent used and new bookstore in the world. Very cool.

Then it was on to Pioneer Courthouse Square where we caught this week's installment of "Flicks on Bricks." They blow up this huge screen on the square and show a movie at dusk. This week it was The Birdcage. Very, very funny. Cool to watch it in a huge crowd too. People were really into this flicks on bricks thing. Lots of people brought chairs or blankets. One couple even went so far as to bring a queen size air mattress and a pump. They even brought a sheet, a comforter and a few pillows. They were set. We on the other hand had not planned to watch a movie at the square and had to sit on the bricks. We were quite ready to stand when it was all over.

After the movie, it was back to the Rock Bottom Brewery where we had dessert. Wow that was good stuff.

Saturday

Got a late start after getting home at 1am. But we made it in time to eat breakfast at Elmers. Btw, turns out going out to breakfast is an old people thing. There were a lot of grey hairs in that building…

Then it was on to downtown again for the Redbull Flutag event. This would have been cool if 60,000 other people didn't have the same idea. If you have not heard of this event before, check out the website. It's where people build impossible flying machines and compete on style, distance, and creativity. They push these things (along with the "pilot") off of a huge ramp and watch them plummet into the river. Unfortunately, we couldn't get close enough to watch it nor even to get a good view of the jumbo screens, so we left.

After wandering around downtown, we were off to Henry's Tavern for another happy hour. This time I tried my first Nitro brew: the "Old Speckled Hen." You would not believe the change in texture. The Nitro brew was soooo smooth. It took me about half the glass to get used to the difference.

After eating more than our fair share of appetizers, we headed off to PGE Park to see the Portland Beavers. Not only did we win 9 to 1, but our pitcher was amazing. He pitched 8 shutout innings, gave up no walks, 2 hits and struck out 11. He was incredible. We even had great seats to watch him. We were only 4 rows back just to the left side of home plate. Very nice indeed.

Sunday, the kids came home and we were happy to see them, but we were a little worn out from our adventures….

Marriage

Have you ever found it strange that pastors are allowed to perform marriages? After all they cannot issue birth certificates, death certificates, state IDs, passports, or any other legal document. So why be able to legally sanction a marriage? The answer seems obvious. After all, marriage is a sacred institution given to man by God Himself. It only makes sense that pastors and ministers be given the authority to perform marriages.

But why then can a justice of the peace also officiate a marriage? After all, this is a sacred institution. Why is a purely secular magistrate able to oversee such a spiritual matter? The answer again should be fairly obvious. From a societal perspective, marriage has a number of very practical benefits. Breaks in car insurance and taxes are the obvious ones. But there are also the added benefits of being considered family when visiting a spouse in the emergency room. Not to mention that a spouse can be the default power of attorney in case of medical incapacitation. Inheritance and property rights are also included in the package.

So it would seem that we have a dual purpose to marriage: One being the spiritual God-ordained union of a man and a woman and the other a pure societal demarcation with which comes numerous social advantages.

So with all of that said, what are we to make of the ever controversial topic of gay marriage? Should the church be against it? My opinion? Yes and no.

The church has a responsibility to hold unswervingly to the teachings of Scripture. As a result it should not officiate a homosexual marriage. However, holding to the teachings of Scripture will also lead one to recognize the need for love, long-suffering, kindness, mercy, and grace. (attributes often forgotten in this ideological battle over homosexual marriage) With these characteristics in the forefront of my mind, I believe the societal demarcation of marriage should not be reserved only for a heterosexual union. A homosexual couple should not be deprived of the same rights and privileges granted to a heterosexual couple simply because it is a sinful union.

Now I recognize that many Christians will instinctively disagree with me, and I can definitely respect that. I admire the courage it takes for anyone to make a strong moral stance. My question though would be this – how far does it go? Are we willing to argue that these basic “rights”, granted by way of marriage, be revoked in certain heterosexual relationships as well? If a man cheats on his wife consistently throughout their marriage, should he have to pay “back taxes” once his indiscretion is made known? What about a man who has fallen prey to pornography throughout his marriage? Should he be stripped of the right to make long term care decisions for his wife after a near fatal car accident? In the interest of being consistent, how far are we willing to extend the argument?

I believe we as a church can make a strong moral stance and still vote in favor of gay marriage. There must be a balance between graciousness and moral purity. It seems that Jesus found this balance when He forgave the woman caught in adultery. Maybe we can too...

Controversy

In case you haven't heard the press coverage, Dobson has made a few statements about Barak Obama as of late. I have become increasingly disillusioned with Dobson over the past few years and it has finally come to a head for me. He seems insistent that the entirety of politics be boiled down to Abortion and Gay Marriage. I'm just not willing to make it so simple.

In his latest claim to fame, he has made a few strong statements regarding Senator Obama and his interpretation of scripture. I think he COMPLETELY missed the point of Obama's speech.

For that reason, I really enjoyed the following site. Here you can read the entire speech and listen to Dr. Dobson's rebuttal on his radio broadcast. The site also gives a breakdown of the claims on both sides: point by point.

I found it very fair, honest, and refreshing. If you'd like to review the issue, I encourage you to check out the site:

www.jamesdobsondoesntspeakforme.com/

Happy reading.

The Mariners Hit a High Note

So the Mariners season has been nothing short of depressing this year. As a result the General Manager, the skipper and the hitting coach have all lost their jobs. The Mariners have scrapped together only a handful of wins and are on pace to have the worst record in Mariners history. So why keep watching? Well every now and then something amazing happens.

June 23, 2008 - Game 1 of a 3 Game interleague series vs the Mets at Shea Stadium. Felix Hernandez (Seattle Pitcher) comes to the plate looking for his second career hit....



An opposite field grand slam. The first time an American League pitcher has hit a grand slam since 1971. Incredible.

He's the one guy we WON'T fire this year.