Happiness.

[H/T Andrew]

Today my daughter Bethany, a sophomore in high school, found out that she is currently ranked SECOND in her class of over 800. She's playing it down, but I think that's pretty cool.

I've got smart kids. They get it from their mom.

She also is a copy editor for the school newspaper, and had a byline on two articles published in the first edition, which came out today. One of them was on page 1.

Awesome job, Beth!

Grace (5) just announced at the dinner table, out of nowhere and in response to nothing, "I'm not who you think I am!"

I have a conundrum, and I've done my best to research it on Google, etc, but to no avail. This is a taxes question (note: has nothing to do with the current financial meltdown of everything - I've been wondering this for awhile).

First, a story, then my question, under the fold.

My Story: The first thing to know about me is that I'm brilliant. Here, let me demonstrate: all through the 90s, I worked for an Energy company. Right toward the end of the decade, just before energy really took off, I left the industry and became a computer geek consultant for a dot-com. You remember those, right? You might also remember that this is right about the time that all the dot-coms started melting down. So, with my normal prescient timing, I jumped the sinking dot-com ship and ran back to the Energy industry in 2001.

This was, of course, right before the colossal Enron crash and subsequent crash of the Energy industry.

In other words, I'm a genius. :-)

Finally, while at the dot-com I was presented with a stock certificate, worth a decent sum. Of course, and unbeknownst to me, that certificate was taxable as income, and I painfully paid taxes on it in 2001.

Now, my question (below the fold)
Read the rest of this entry . . .

I'm very much intrigued with the forthcoming 24: Redemption. Here's some info from the show's website:

After sacrificing everything for his country, Jack Bauer (Sutherland) is wanted by the U.S. government and now stands to lose the only thing he has left: his freedom. Working as a missionary in Africa, Bauer is called upon to stop a ruthless warlord from drafting innocent children into his murderous militia. First, Bauer must confront his own torturous past and face an impossible decision that will change his life forever. A decision that will set the stage and raise the stakes for Season Seven, which debuts in January 2009.

Redemption, a two-hour event, will air Sunday, Nov. 23.

Is Being a Stay-at-Home Dad a Sin? (Part 2)

Got one of these today.

Anybody have any experience with these things? Does it work?

The dude at the store said it worked, but, you know, he wanted my $9.95.

Mine is currently "prepping" right now.

Gotta work better than the plastic humidifiers that come with my humidors, I figure.

TULSA, Okla. - A once prominent leader in the charismatic movement has been forced to shut down his church in the wake of a radical change in his theological beliefs.

Eight years ago, Bishop Carlton Pearson's Higher Dimensions Church had about 6,000 members. He served as a guest host on the Trinity Broadcasting Network, was a member of the Oral Roberts University board of trustees, and was among group of black religious leaders who advised President-elect George W. Bush after the 2000 election.

But Pearson then began preaching that everyone goes to heaven, a theology he calls "the gospel of inclusion." Not long after, evangelical leaders rejected Pearson, the membership in his church fell to a few hundred, and the church's property was lost in foreclosure. Its few remaining members have now been merged into a Unitarian congregation.

Pearson now believes that literally everyone goes to heaven. He believes that the blood of Christ pays for everyone's sins. Everyone's. There is no hell in the afterlife. He believes that hell is the suffering that people experience on earth.

Here he is being profiled on ABC News:


Here's Part 2.

And here's the print version of the same story.

Yes, I noticed Ted Haggard on there, and the irony isn't lost on me. I'm not sure about the timeline, but apparently this video was filmed a few years ago, but the church just officially folded this month.

What's interesting to me is that the media seems to be noticing that doctrine matters to Christians. (Shocking, but true.)

"I couldn't reconcile a God whose mercy endures forever, and this torture chamber that's customized for unbelievers," Pearson said.

And he often agonized over the fate of his non-Christian family members. According to his faith, they were doomed to hell.

"How can you really love a god who's torturing your grandmother? And that's what I went through for years."

The more he studied, the more Pearson saw the Bible not as the literal word of God but a book by men about God -- primitive men prone to mistranslations, political agendas and human emotions. And one night, as he watched Peter Jennings' report on the parade of suffering in Rwanda, he had a revelation.

"I remember thinking that these were probably Muslims because God wouldn't let that happen to Christians," he said. "Unbelieving Muslims, little starving babies and that they were going to die and go to hell."

"And that's when I said, 'God, how could you, how could you call yourself a loving God and a living God, and just let them suffer like that, then to suck them into hell?'" he continued. "And that's when I thought I heard an inner voice say, 'Is that what you think we're doing?' I said, 'That's what I've been taught. You're sucking them into hell.' And that voice said, 'Can't you see they're already there? That's hell. You created that.'"

Pearson believed that God was telling him hell is the creation of man on earth.

Another interesting thought - Pearson believes that God told him there is no hell. I wonder if this is an example of how a theology that practices and preaches that "God told me" can lead to doctrinal aberration?

From 2003-

TULSA, Okla. - Bishop Carlton Pearson, the nationally prominent evangelical preacher, has already stirred one controversy for preaching the doctrine of inclusion - that everyone is saved no matter what they do.

He’s about to light another fuse.

Pearson, founder and pastor of Tulsa’s Higher Dimensions Family Church, now says he believes “it is reasonable” that Satan himself will go to heaven. It’s possible, he says, that God could have made a mistake in condemning Satan to eternity in hell.

“Is God not big enough to change the devil?” Pearson said in an interview. “I can conceive of the devil bowing down and repenting to God, saying, ‘I competed with You, but I was wrong. I’m sorry.’ “

Asked if that “confession” would be enough for God to forgive Satan and allow him into heaven, Pearson replied, “He (the devil) came from heaven.”

This is not intended to be a "let's blast Carlton Pearson" post, and please don't let the comments become that. Rather I am interested in the wrongness of his thinking, and the subsequent response of other Christians.

Personally, I see him as a victim of a theology that teaches that "God speaks new revelation" and him allowing circumstances and personal human reason to trump the Word of God.

I need help. (Yes, again.)

In the manuscript for my book The Unvarnished Jesus, I include in a chapter called "Jesus the Redeemer" a first person account from a woman whose husband and two daughters were afflicted with a rare, incurable disease. She cared for them to the utmost until they passed. Her story is incredible and inspiring, and it was just the thing I was looking for to illustrate grace in a narrative way.

Two things causing me some discomfort:
I don't know the woman.
I got the story off the Internet.

I would like to replace this story with something similar but from someone I have a closer connection to. I know Thinklings readers tend to be good with words and good at "getting" grace.

Here's my offer:

If you have a story of extreme, self-emptying, incarnational grace in action -- preferably your own but perhaps that of someone quite close to you -- write a first-person account of it (no more than 2 double-spaced pages) and e-mail it to me at jared DOT wilson AT elementnashville DOT org.

I know it may seem kinda weird to brag on your own acts of service and sacrifice, but think of it as an opportunity to testify to the goodness of God in your experience. The point is to talk about how God used the ups and downs to redeem your struggle, pain, depression, stress, etc.

If I pick your story, it will appear in my book.
The only catch, of course, is that you will have to grant me permission to use it. I will credit you of course, but your only compensation will be (Lord willing) seeing your story in a book people can buy at a bookstore.

I will show the "winner" his or her story in the context of the chapter for approval before submission.

Tip:
Write honestly, including your frustrations and emotions during the experience.

Ask any questions in the comments . . .

I've always wanted to visit Japan. Now I know I must get there someday.

There's a tavern north of Tokyo that employs monkey waiters.

Did you watch the debate last night? I actually forgot about it. I've read some debate reax and none of it is surprising. I particularly liked this from Rich Lowry; I think this sums up the entire election pretty well:

I thought McCain was good. It's as passionate and well-informed as he's ever been on domestic policy. His debate briefers did their job well. I think he repeatedly scored points in the first hour, but they were jabs rather then crosses—blows that Obama could absorb. If McCain were running in a year when his party wasn't getting crushed by a series of calamites, he might be winning this race. But tonight obviously wasn't enough. Obama, meanwhile, just has to appear plausible and he did. In fact, he's a kind of genius at appearing plausible. If the Nobel committee had a prize for appearing plausible, he'd win it every time. He carries himself with confidence, he never appears flustered, and he has mastered his material. If he's losing these debates on points (as I think he is), it doesn't matter. Every day the race drifts in the same direction it is now is a day he's closer to becoming president.

Obama is gaining the look of inevitability. So I wanted to list my thoughts on what will be good and bad about an Obama Presidency.

Full disclosure: I'm voting for McCain.

The Good

• Are you tired of the hatred and divisiveness coming from the left the past 8 years? Yeah, me too. When Obama takes office, hopefully that will tone down a bit, since the object of their hatred (GWB) will be safely out of the way at his ranch in Texas. Maybe they'll calm down. I don't expect conservatives to be as unhinged as the left has been these past few years. I remember the angst and, yes, hatred some conservatives felt toward Clinton, but it never rose to the levels, or was as accepted in the mainstream, as what we've witnessed these past few years in what's been directed toward Bush. If Obama is elected, the left will be happy, for awhile. And don't discount that - these people haven't won a Presidential election since 1996. Our liberal friends are going to be ecstatic with joy, and good on them. This will give Obama a nice long honeymoon and, hopefully, give all of us a break from the awful tone of today's politics.
• This will be an historic event. The United States will finally be electing an African-American to the Presidency. This is huge, and I think we should be proud of our country for getting to this point (finally). There will be absolute joy in the African-American community on November 5. They will deserve it, and we should be happy for them. And hopefully, in the years that follow, we will move closer to the day when we quit thinking of ourselves in terms of race-identity and start just thinking of ourselves as Americans. I have a dream.
• There will be joy all over the world if Obama wins. We can't discount this. The world positively, absolutely hates us. I don't think they will quit hating us when Obama becomes President, but at least they'll have one less reason to hate us. To be honest, I have a fear that if McCain wins there will be riots and violence abroad and possibly here too.
• I think it's time the Democrats start proving they can lead, rather than just being the disloyal opposition. Nothing, and I mean nothing, is worse from a governing perspective than Democrats running the congress during the tenure of an unpopular Republican president. They are awful at it, and its disgusting to watch. Republicans have proven in the past that they make a pretty darn good loyal opposition. If we ignore that impeachment business, Republicans actually worked pretty well with Clinton from 1994-1998, and some important, relatively conservative things got done, such as Welfare reform.
• I don't know if there's any hope for our horrible mainstream press to redeem itself after their shameless behavior this election season. But perhaps now that they have someone they support in the Presidency, they'll get back to reporting real news. And some of them will do their jobs and keep the Obama administration honest.
• Finally, this is a chance, just maybe, for Republicans to take a good hard look at themselves and decide what kind of party they really are. There are rising stars in the party (Palin, Jindal, et. al.) with true conservative credentials. The Republican party of today had it all and has squandered it horribly. It's time to regroup and rethink. Maybe something good will come from this. Ford lost in 1976, paving the way for Reagan. Who knows . . .

The Bad

• There is a large potential for giving up our gains in Iraq and Afghanistan, and for the Democrats to overreach and move us even closer to socialism. The thought of Obama, Reid and Pelosi holding the reins of Government is a frightening thought.
• We will now have a pro-choice, abortion-supporting-at-all-stages-of-pregnancy (and possibly after pregnancy) Federal Government, with activist judges being appointed, not just to the Supreme Court, but to all levels of the judiciary. I've seen the liberal vision of America, and it's not a pleasant place. It's particularly deadly for those of us who have not yet been born. For all his elegant smoothness, Obama considers unwanted pre-borns and even unwanted just-borns to be subhuman and expendable. That disgusts me.
• Obama has a bad habit of trying to silence people who disagree with him. For all their talk of free speech, many liberals have a totalitarian bent, and truly feel that the world will be a better place for having them run it. Prepare for a lot of nanny-state, it-takes-a-village-isms coming out of a Democratic government. The Fairness doctrine comes to mind, as do a million other regulations and laws that could be passed "for our own good".
• Class-warfare does not good economic policy make. The economy is already in shambles. Perhaps the Democrats will surprise me, but I've got no great hope of a quick recovery if the industry and ingenuity of the American people is shackled through even more regulation and taxes on businesses. Ironically, where regulation has been needed, the Democrats have stood against it. In general, they tend to get things exactly backwards. Of course, Republicans have not covered themselves in glory these past few years, economically speaking. I guess I'm not sure where to turn now!
• Obama's judgment on how best to prosecute the Iraq war has consistently been wrong. I hope he's learned something during this campaign, because I don't yet trust him to secure this nation. Say what you will about W, he's kept us safe since 9/11. Will Obama do as well? Time will tell, but what a gamble.
• I could go on for awhile in this list, but that's probably enough for now.

Here's my pledge: If Obama wins, I won't like it, but I will be praying for him. He needs to be successful. The country needs a successful presidency, and for various reasons, I believe it's very important that our first African-American President do well. My hope is that those of us who opposed him will put the "loyal" in "loyal opposition" over the next four years. We are all in this together.

Thoughts?

I'd love your thoughts on this. Is God's love unconditional? Why or why not?

This is one of those personal posts... (Warning: each paragraph is a totally different subject. But I did attempt a theme... :)

-My son Joel has Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. He was diagnosed with it in Kindergarten. We have been treating it with a disease-modifying drug. (In other words, more than just the symptoms of swellling and pain.)Here's the good news: He's off the drug now, and the pain has NOT returned. It's gone. There was a 50% chance he would outgrow it in 10 years, but God has seen fit to heal him in two years! God is AWESOME!!!!

-My Birthday is this month.

-I came home yesterday to a GIANT "McCain/Palin" sign on our front fence. It was a surprise from my wife. It's 8 foot by 4 foot. I'm pretty sure that it can be seen from space. It's AWESOME!!!!!!

-All day yesterday and today, I was out visiting shut-ins. A deacon and I took the Lord's Supper to them and celebrated it with each of them as they sat up in bed proclaimed the Lord's death together. (I Cor. 11:26) That too was AWESOME!!!!

-Our church has not had a motto, a logo, or a website. Currently I'm working on all three, and for me, it's harder than dirt. I am NOT creative.

-I have been speaking at a local daycare for chapel twice a month. I do it again in the morning. I have no idea what it's gonna be about. It's not easy coming up with a bible message for 3 and 4 year olds...but they are awesome!

-I'm preaching through Habakkuk on Sunday mornings and am amazed at how relevant it is. Habakkuk is awesome.

-My son Joel (age 7) is now the biggest football fan in the world. I think he knows more than me. I'm gonna have to catch up...

-My family is awesome and God is AWESOMER!!!!

For years Dan Edelen over at Cerulean Sanctum has been warning about a financial meltdown in the U.S. I admit that I, cockeyed optimist that I am, have in the past thought that he (and most other economy naysayers) were taking too dim a view of things.

Well, it looks like I was wrong. I don't know how bad or how long the current downturn/recession/depression will be, but I have to give Dan his props. He was right.

Read his latest when you get a chance: Meltdown, U.S.A.

I'll always be a Texans fan, but it's days like today that make this relationship hard.

A friend at work, who's a big Cowboys fan, asked me if I had watched a Cowboys game recently. I said, "No, I've only got time to follow one team, and it's the Houston Texans." He proceeded to tell me how sad it was that the one team I chose to follow had to be the Texans.

What I told him is what I'll tell you: I didn't choose the Texans. The Texans chose me.

You guys did so good with your recommendations last week (Bill, I'm using the "Unbreakable" clip you suggested -- good stuff), I have to open it up again.

I need recommendations of clips from a movie (or a TV show available on DVD) that illustrates the differences between men and women. Can be humorous or dramatic or both.

In the past we've used an argument scene from "The Break Up" (the post-party scene near the beginning), which was both funny and heavy. But something entirely light would be fine too.

Ideas?

Anybody familiar with Nancy Alcorn and Mercy Ministries (based in Nashville)?
Beck and I actually looked into pursuing adoption through this organization a year or so ago.

Big expose on Mercy Ministries' (alleged?) mercilessness in The Nashville Scene this week.

Saw it on the newsstand leaving a restaurant today.

If true, very sad. For all involved.

And folks like Point of Grace, Barlow Girl, Titans' coach Jeff Fisher, and Titans' player Kevin Mawae should stop supporting this outfit.

My latest at SearchWarp:

Is Being a Stay-at-Home Dad a Sin? (Part 1)

What did you think of the VP debate last night?

Some quick reactions:

Both candidates seemed competent and confident.

Sarah Palin was supposed to be Dan Quayle last night. That was the script she was supposed to follow before sinking down into irrelevancy and taking McCain with her. But she didn't follow that script. She did quite well. And, due to the lowered expectations thanks to the MSM, she won.

All politicians spin. But Joe Biden just makes stuff up. This has been a consistent aspect of his character for as long as I've known about him, which is around 20 years. The dude, with a straight face, spins tales out of whole cloth. One quick example: Last night he said that John McCain voted to cut off funding for the troops in Iraq.

Is this based on anything? If it is, I'll post a correction. But I cannot imagine that this is true. Jill conjectured that perhaps at one point some bill was introduced that contained funding for something the troops need (maybe body armor or something) but that was also stuffed with pork having nothing to do with the war effort. Maybe McCain voted against something like that. I dunno. But the idea that McCain voted against funding the troops seems unbelievable.

This statement by Biden isn't a gaffe. This is a lie. And I like Biden, basically. He's kind of like a charming uncle (who drinks . . . a lot). This is one reason that I thought Obama's choice of Biden was a poor one.

On a side note. I think Alaska must be a lot like Nebraska. my ancestors hailed from Nebraska and Sarah Palin reminds me of a woman who comes from that great state. And I've known a lot of them. She sounds like one, thinks like one, lives like one. And that's one reason I like her; because Nebraska women rock. My great great grandmother (who lived to be a hundred), my great grandmother, my grandmother, and my mom. Nebraska women are built of tough, optimistic, hard-working stock. (Unfortunately, I think my mom's voting for Obama. But in a cute, cockeyed-optimist way).

Update: Gateway Pundit has some great pics of the debate after party. Two examples, below.





This second one is of the media section. GP's caption: "The media looked like they wanted to cry. Stunned silence. Disappointed"

Macy (7) and Grace (5) are at the table, working on their homework.

Grace says to Macy, "I love Daddy. He's so cute."