Christmas Canceled! And it’s your fault! Well, that’s what you can tell your friends by inserting their name in a news report at this website. Cute!
“It's Christmas, and we want to reach our nonbelieving family members….Here are a few tips to help you follow the leader this Christmas and help make a difference for all eternity.” (story)
In "The Advent of Humility," Tim Keller says that Jesus is the reason to stop concentrating on ourselves.
James Martin reminds us to remember Joseph when we reflect on the Christmas story. Slate's usually not a resource to turn to if you're looking for authors confident in the Bible's accuracy, so this article was a surprise.
Why Do We Have Christmas Trees? The history behind evergreens, ornaments, and holiday gift giving.
Free instrumental Christmas music
Forty Years ago, Christmas Eve 1968: "That evening, as families finished their Christmas Eve dinners, the astronauts [of Apollo 8] pointed their camera out the window and beamed home a grainy, gray view of the alien world they were circling. Everywhere on the planet, viewers tuned in, making up what was then the largest TV audience in history. Borman, Lovell and Anders had been instructed to do whatever they felt was appropriate to mark the moment. A friend of Borman's had suggested they read from the book of Genesis, and so its first 10 verses had been typed up on a piece of fireproof paper before the crew left Earth. They took turns reading aloud. When they finished, Borman, as the skipper, concluded the broadcast: 'And from the crew of Apollo 8,' he said, 'we close with good night, good luck, a merry Christmas, and God bless all of you, all of you on the good Earth.'" (Time magazine recounts the first trip to the moon)
Other Links:
The 6 Coolest Things You Can Do With Your Dead Body: Being part of a fireworks would be cool.
The Economist.com says the divorce rate has gone down recently, and we have the recession to thank for it. According to Market Watch, couples are choosing to stay married when they consider the prohibitive cost of running two households on the money it currently takes to run one.
The WSJ reports that church buildings on the auction block during these economic tough times. (HT: Of Sacred and Secular)
"How does our commitment to the primacy of the gospel tie into our obligation to do good to all, especially those of the household of faith, to serve as salt and light in the world, to do good to the city?" Tim Keller answers.
"Research has shown that the average American family pays anywhere from $50 to $150 extra a year on wasted energy costs from plugged-in electronics that aren't being used, such as DVD players and TVs that are ostensibly 'off' and cellphones that are fully charged but whose chargers continue to draw a trickle of electricity from the wall outlet." (Wired, announcing a new "smart plug" to address the issue)
"Despite 9/11 and dozens of equally pitiless massacres, some journalists, Mr. Marshall says, are reluctant to accept the 'fundamental religious dimension' of jihadist motives. Such journalists concentrate on 'terrorist statements that might fit into secular Western preconceptions about oppression, economics, freedom and progress.' When terrorists murdered Christian workers while sparing Muslims in the offices of a Karachi charity in 2002, Mr. Marshall observes, 'CNN International contented itself with the opinion that there was 'no indication of a motive.' Would it have said the same if armed men had invaded a multiracial center, separated the black people from the white people, then methodically killed all the blacks and spared all the whites?'" (From a WSJ article about journalists who don't "get" religion)
I ran across this list of recommended books defending the dependability of the scriptures. Check them out.
"James Mumford is a well-dressed 27-year-old from the posh London neighborhood of Pimlico. He holds degrees in philosophy from Oxford and Yale and, like many of Britain's elite, spent a post-graduate stint working in London's finance industry. But tonight he wants to talk about how he came to accept the Lord Jesus Christ into his heart. 'I don't mind talking about my faith,' he says, sheepishly. 'But it's a touch embarrassing. Just don't brand me as a mindless evangelical.'" (Opening paragraph of "Finding Jesus in London." Read the rest here.)
Shane Raynor explains why his church (Granger Community Church) doesn’t openly identify its denominational affiliation (United Methodist). Do you agree?
At 85, More Peaks to Conquer and Adventures to Seek
The Legend of Cliff Young: The 61 Year Old Farmer Who Won the World’s Toughest Race
“On January 4, my sins will be told to the church, publicly, with my children sitting in the church and my friends.” That’s a Florida woman making public her objections for her church making public her behavior. So, let’s see: claims she’ll be horrified that her children and friends will hear at church about a sexual relationship she’s discussed with the press. Got it.
Scientists have discovered why older people tend to view the past through rose-tinted spectacles.
Set in Our Ways: Scientific American explains why few of us are able to make major changes after our 20s.
In last Sunday’s message, I mentioned the Popular Mechanics cover story, “The Real Face of Jesus.” You can find the article (and the image) here. (HT: Herb)
World's First Computer Rebuilt, Rebooted After 2,000 Years
“The Right should have had the wit to fight, and the Left should have had the will to fight. Both failed.” (Mark Helprin in the WSJ, criticizing both the execution of the war on terror and the opposition to it.)
President-elect Obama is “a late-wave boomer, a child of the 1970s -- as are half of the two dozen people he's selected thus far to help him lead the country….And their shared experiences offer insights into how they may govern: They tend to be less ideological than early boomers, more respectful of contrary opinions, more pragmatic and a lot less likely to get bogged down by the shibboleths of the 1960s, according to historians, marketers and pollsters.” (LA Times, talking about my generation, the one that gets inaccurately lumped with Boomers. I’ve written about Generation Jones before.)
Southern Baptist evangelism plan facing setbacks (USA Today)
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