Supermoon approaching

FROM ABC NEWS:

"Because it's a full moon at its closest approach, it's going to be big and really bright. It should be noticeably brighter than a normal full moon. I would suggest that you take the opportunity and go out at night," NASA astronomer Dave Williams said. "This is the biggest full moon that you will ever see. You will see this moon again, but this is as big as it gets."

CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL STORY

Popular pastor has provocative perspective

Pastor Rob Bell has prompted some controversial conversation again. His new book challenges the common Christian belief that hell is real. The book is called Love Wins: Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived. Pastor Bell asks, "Will only a few select people make it to heaven? And will billions and billions burn forever in hell?" I have not read the book but it is reported that Bell says this is not the case.

Regardless of how the Right Reverend Rob actually answers his own question, the fact that he raises such a question is controversial enough. A news article has already provided responses suggesting that Bell may be "betraying truth" with "severe consequences." Some have implied that he may be a wolf in sheep's clothing, preaching a false gospel.

And suddenly, we are right in the middle of the really great debate, "What is required of a human to be considered eligible for eternal reward instead of eternal hellfire?"

For those of you who just leaped mentally to your catechism answer to a similar style of catechism question, just hold your horses. I know this seems like a softball being lobbed up to you for a grand-slam easy homerun. It's FAITH!!! Right? Just believe! Right? Some of you may add "repentance" and "faithfulness" or even "sacraments." But I think this issue requires some actual contemplating, not just standard rehearsed answers.

This debate is not about easy answers. The arguments can happen "in-house" and obviously between opponents. And there never is a resolution, so...the answer can't be easy.

Do you have to believe in hell to make it to heaven? Do have to believe in heaven to make it to heaven? Do you have to repent out loud or just in your heart? Is salvation a one-time thing which is permanent, or is it an ongoing conversion experience? Do you have to be faithful all the time or just try as much as you can most of the time? Do you have to believe in a T-shaped cross or can it be the plus-sign cross? What about baptism? What about God as a Trinity? Do you have to attend organized religious church functions, or can your spiritual life be a more personal thing that never involves a church building? Is it okay to believe a whole bunch of wrong things as long as your heart is in the right place? Is it okay to have your heart in the wrong place as long as you believe ALL of the right things?

What about homosexuality? What about abortion advocates? There are a variety of issues that people might say, "You cannot possibly be a Christian, and still do this, or still think that..."

Who gets to provide an authoritative answer to these questions? This is the "heart" of the issue.

People tend to think that their own perspective is the correct and authoritative way of handling these questions. Right? Pastor A says you don't have to believe in hell. Pastor B says denying the existence of hell is a false gospel and you absolutely do have to believe in hell. Pastor A says Pastor B is adding a stumbling block to the gospel and leading people astray. Pastor B says Pastor A is a wolf. Pastor A says Pastor B is a heretic. And on and on and on and on and on.

"The duty which God requireth of man, is obedience to his revealed will." - Westminster Catechism

If you are the sort that likes easy answers, all that needs to happen to settle the debate is for everyone to come to a clear agreement about what has been "revealed" as "God's will."

Armed Truth

This week, a friend of mine posted this quote on Facebook from Martin Luther King Jr.'s Nobel Prize acceptance speech:

"I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality...I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word..." (10 December 1964)

On first glance, I found the quote interesting and encouraging. But something just doesn't feel quite right about it. Of course, the general idea is easy enough, that "good" should be trusted to ultimately win over "bad." But the expression "unarmed truth" is what troubles me.

Can there be such a thing as unarmed truth? Maybe in theoretical terms, but in real life, truth requires interpretation and understanding. Truth is not really it's own thing. It requires delivery by some party, and acceptance by another party. The problem is that utterances described as "truth" are actually delivered by multiple conflicting parties, and then accepted or at least heard by multiple other conflicting parties. So even though no injury is intended, in real life, truth is armed. As someone clever once said, the truth hurts. As some other dude said, the truth is like a double-edged sword.

I don't see the opponent to Martin Luther King Jr's hope being a starless midnight darkness and despair, rather I see the opponent being the natural human difficulty of attaining a uniformed acceptance of "truth."

Cash Flow Considerations

It seems to me that the United States President gets paid a very low salary considering his responsibilities. But on further reflection, I realize that his monthly paycheck doesn't have to cover much. Right? When was the last time you saw a President swiping his debit card at a gas pump? It's not like he is running down to Economy Liquor to grab his own bottle of wine, or haggling with DirecTV about the monthly bank draft for his account. I suspect his landlord doesn't charge rent or make him pay for his own electricity or trash pickup. So, maybe that salary is enough since he is keeping so much of it.

Polite Birds

I'm not quite sure but it seems that the birds in my backyard are politely waiting each morning until I wake up before they start singing. It's almost like my alarm is also waking them up. Maybe instead of singing, they are chatting about my alarm going off too early.

Relocating to the City

We moved between Christmas and New Year's last week! We've been actively trying to make it happen for a little over 3 years! Well, it was on again / off again over that time, but we had been seriously on the market with an agent since March 2010. So....we're very very pleased. All is completely settled with regard to the two transactions, selling our old home and buying our new home. We still have a lot of unpacking to do, but we are unpacked enough to already feel at home in our new place.

Loving Little Rock

I hope that you regularly click on the links in my sidebar to the right. Particularly, I hope that you browse the Little Rock and Arkansas related links often. Here are a few more I'll be adding:

InArkansas.com

An excellent online guide to Arkansas from the Arkansas Business Publishing Group. (The editor, Karen Martin, is married to Philip Martin who has hit the fan group lottery by being linked in my previous post.)

Holidays In Little Rock

"The warmth and fun of the holiday season will be especially joyous this year in Arkansas' capital city with the incredible array of activities, festivals and attractions that decorate Little Rock."

Witt Stephens Jr Central Arkansas Nature Center

"The 16,232 square foot building on 3.4 acres in Little Rock, overlooks the Arkansas River and is within the Julius Breckling Riverfront Park."

Philip Martin's note "The voice inside..."

I have no idea if this link will work, but it appears that the Facebook profile is open to public viewing so I'm giving it a shot with potential non-Facebook readers here. Philip Martin is a columnist and movie critic for the Arkansas Democrat Gazette. I have often enjoyed his writing and have also heard him in a regular guest gig at Little Rock's 103.7 The Buzz radio station.

In this Facebook note, he advises us to pump our brakes on the topic of trusting our inner voices:

CLICK HERE TO READ "The voice inside..."

Philip Martin also keeps an active blog called "blood, dirt & angels" which he points out is "two parts organic and one part transcendent: Of the body, of the place and of the spirit." CLICK HERE

Boundary Drawing

This is a fascinating article which highlights two very different ways to look at one "really important" issue. For those of you who never fail to read and absorb my ruminationisms on this site, you are in no need of my prefatory remarks on grasping the heart of the article without being distracted by the provocative particulars mentioned in it. You may skip to the next paragraph with my profound thanks. For the rest of you, please take some time to browse my other posts before clicking on this link. I need you to put your thinking caps on and be prepared to read an article which includes ideas you may vehemently oppose. Rather than allowing your mind to dwell on the fact that this guy is in a different camp from you, please try to consider the bigger picture.

When you establish boundaries or when you adopt other boundaries as your own, the obvious implication is that you have some reason to determine who is inside with you and who is outside and unlike you. Whether this involves an athletic team, a country's citizenship, or a church tradition, there is a desire to know who is in and who is not. As referenced in the article linked here, sometimes the regulations and definitions of inclusion have very important consequences. And "important" scenarios involve great tension if a group of outsiders are determined to tear down the wall.

So what boundaries interest you? Which walls are you concerned to preserve, ensuring resistance to opposition? If a group of outsiders is making serious progress on upsetting your boundaries, do you consider this "the end of the world?" Or do you ponder the possibility that your boundaries may not have been rightly placed and may not be needed after all for the world to carry on existing?

CLICK HERE:

"For them, the erasure of traditional boundaries does indeed threaten the boundaries upon which their archaic civilization is built."

Pumpkin Patch

On Saturday, we visited Motley's Pumpkin Patch & Christmas Tree Farm for the first time. They've been around for years but we had not tried them out before. I was very impressed with their setup. We picked pumpkins, cheered at the pig races, and toured the Christmas tree area via hayride. The children fed a donkey and some goats and rode the "cow train" (painted barrels being pulled by a tractor). It was a fun time. I would recommend it for a family outing. Here is the link: CLICK HERE

Observations in Crisis

You've encountered the question so many times: If you could invite 5 people to dinner, dead or alive, who would you invite? It's a fun little exercise that might reveal your favorite author, favorite world leader, favorite spiritual influence, most valued ancestor, etc.

But suppose that in real life, you are stuck in a collapsed mine in Chile for more than two months and you receive a message from the rescue team: "Choose no more than 3 people to meet you here when we pull you out." Dead presidents and Ben Franklin and Martin Luther King Jr are not eligible. Who are those 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th close friends or family members to just miss the invite list to the rescue party at the top of the mineshaft?

It's a fascinating thought, kind of like attending a funeral and hearing the eulogy and thinking, "If I died today, what could be said about me by the people who knew me best? What do people think that I care most about? How would the eulogist finish this statement: If he could be standing here in this moment, he would want you to know...yada yada yada..."

In crisis, reality takes center stage while pretenses are cleared away. You may really like your favorite beer-drinking buddy, but when selecting 3 really important, highly valued people, that dude may not make the cut. One miner's experience may renew and strengthen his religious faith, while another miner's experience may cause him to completely drop religion. After two months in a collapsed mine, one fellow might declare that when he is free, he will immediately make changes to spend more time with loved ones. Another fellow might decide to take an indefinite sabbatical and live on the ski slopes of Colorado until his money runs out.

What sort of reality would emerge for you? What pretenses would fall away?

It's Hammer Time, Put On Your Gloves

Religion. Politics. Parenting. Name your issue that prompts strong opinions. Whatever it is, everyone reading my blog can relate to the concern of being “right” about something and wanting to help someone who is “wrong” to see the light.

Some of you will recall that I referred you back in the Fall of 2009 to the “Can You Hear Me Now?” series of articles by Dale McGowan. The prompting for this post also comes from McGowan, but the meat of it is actually the work of Phil Plait. Both individuals possess and encourage ideas which are offensive to some of you, but the point of the post is to remind us all to be more receptive when our prized opinions are challenged, regardless of the colors on our jersey. So, be challenged and respond appropriately, whether you are actively religious, casually atheist, compassionately conservative, flaming liberal, homeschooling father of 12, public-school mother of 1, whatever.

Here are a few teaser notions from the piece:

“How do you convince someone that they are not thinking clearly when they’re not thinking clearly?”

“If a person’s self-identity is wrapped up in what they believe to be true, it is understandable if they are reluctant to permit challenges to their perception of truth.”

“When hammering a nail into a wall, it’s important to pound the nail without destroying the wall.”

“It is difficult to be rational and introspective when an attack has you on the defensive.”

“When we are trying to persuade other people, we are not at war and therefore do not need to be warrior-like, we need to be diplomats.”

“Entrenched belief can mask itself as rational thought and then you find people unwilling to question themselves. If people are not willing to question their own stances, hubris may creep in while logic is left by the wayside.”

“Communication is key. The best idea ever thought of in the history of humanity is useless unless someone communicates it.”

Dale McGowan recommends Phil Plait...CLICK HERE.

My previous suggestion for the Can You Hear Me Now series: CLICK HERE

November 2009 “Community Division” post at this blog: CLICK HERE

Racial Diversity...oh no he didn't!

Thomas Sowell is concerned with a "mentality that turns statistical differences into grievances." He says, "The time is long overdue to throw this race card out of the deck and start seeing it for the gross fallacy that it is." Sowell is responding to an article which appeared in the New York Times earlier this week. The suggestion was that a statistical disparity in the skin-color of third-base coaches vs. first-base coaches reveals lingering racism in Major League Baseball.

Sowell disagrees that there is any cause for concern as the NYT writers are making a mistake with a misguided notion "that nobody can demonstrate is taken as a norm, and any deviation from that norm is somebody’s fault!"

Anyone reading the NYT article without a critical eye might be tempted to buy what the writers are selling. And as Sowell points out, "as long as we keep buying it, they'll keep selling it."

But with the aid of an opposing article, who can argue with Sowell's observation about the unreliability of these sorts of statistical disparities? "Anyone who has watched football over the years has probably seen at least a hundred black players score touchdowns-and not one black player kick the extra point. Is this because of some twisted racist who doesn’t mind black players scoring touchdowns but hates to see them kicking the extra points?"

The Arkansas Democrat Gazette ran Sowell's column yesterday. The title was "Bean Counters and Baloney" for those of you reaching for your hard copy.

Here is an online copy of "Bean Counters and Baloney" (CLICK HERE)

Here is an online copy of the original New York Times article (CLICK HERE)

Here is Thomas Sowell's homepage (CLICK HERE)

The Monkey Business Illusion

Count how many times the players wearing white pass the ball. This is a cool YouTube video from Dr. Daniel Simons, co-author of The Invisible Gorilla. Check out the video and then the book.

Hidden Valley Farm

When I was a teenager, my family had a tradition every Fall, that after attending a weekend retreat at Ferncliff, we would drive just around the corner on the Sunday to Hidden Valley Farm's Pumpkin Patch. It was quite magnificent for a pumpkin patch, or at least it seemed grand to me, and it was very popular despite the distance from the city. A few years ago, we took our children to the farm and brought home several pumpkins. It turns out that we caught them in one of their final years as a pumpkin patch, quite possibly the last year. Yesterday, after Ella Kathryn's birthday party at Chuck-E-Cheese, we ventured out to the farm again to pick blueberries (having only just missed the picking season for blackberries and raspberries). A young lady came out to greet us (I believe it was the farmer's daughter) and I asked her about the pumpkins. She said they stopped doing it a couple of years ago because the production had grown to a point that it was more than the farmer wanted to continue handling. So for now, they only do the berries, but she did say they are considering watermelons, canteloupe, and cucumbers for next year.

Small Engine Repair

It is not my best or most important accomplishment, but replacing the starter rope on my lawnmower today is certainly now among my favorite accomplishments. I don't know how I've made it to the age of 31 without having done this before; I feel sure that several of you will have successfully tackled this task and thought little of it.

For me, having the starter rope break and recoil under the hood of my mower is all the excuse I would generally need to trash the 3-year-old mower and go buy a new one. But me and this mower have spent a lot of time together and have worked through some hard times, and I resolved not to give up easily on it. I did not use an instruction manual and I did not receive advice from any kind of toll-free service line; I just worked it out and yes, I'm proud of myself.

Choosing not to fight an addiction

I’m no neuro-scientist, but I suspect that there is some legitimacy to the findings in the link at the bottom of this post (Addicted to Love). One bit of my own anecdotal evidence seems to agree with the researchers’ work.

I was born and raised in Arkansas; it has always been my home. I moved away (to Louisville, KY) for three years and learned then how much I had taken my love of Arkansas for granted. This state was all I knew for home until I was 21, and I had not realized how addicted I was to the comforting feeling of living in this great place. I enjoyed Louisville and there are quite a number of other places I have visited, where I think I could really enjoy living (Boston, NYC, Southern California, Virginia, Florida, Tennessee, London, San Antonio, Cincinnatti, just to name a few). But ultimately, Arkansas is home. I’m hooked on loving it.

READ THE ARTICLE: ADDICTED TO LOVE? IT’S NOT YOU, IT’S YOUR BRAIN

Recently Finished and Certainly Suggested

I've neglected the blog for a while, but you can anticipate that I'll have a few things to share soon. I tend to be inspired to write when I've been admiring good writing by others. I have recently finished two books that I recommend to you:

Stone Cold by David Baldacci

The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand

Lock It In...or Else?

When I was a slightly younger man learning to be a lender at a bank, interest rates were on the way down (2001). By the time I was actually giving advice to people about serious loan decisions, rates appeared to be about as low as they would go. At the time, the home mortgage market was incentivizing Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) loans by offering an even lower rate if you didn't mind taking a gamble that in 5 years, your rate might adjust up a couple of percentage points. Since statistically, young adults are extremely likely to relocate every 3 to 5 years, I advised people to take the lower rate ARM option instead of locking in the 30 year fixed rates.

Today, I received a letter from our mortgage company. Somehow, we've managed to stay put for a full five years. Our ARM is now adjusting. Oops. The first couple of lines look like bad news. BUT WAIT...rates are miraculously better now than they were five years ago. Our rate is dropping from 5.125 to 3.25! Celebration! I'm so happy I took my own advice and didn't lock in the 30 year fixed rate.

Envoys Event

Last night, the Envoys were given a special preview of the new expansion tower of the Winthrop P Rockefeller Cancer Institute. The hard-hat tour was led by the Institute's director, Dr. Peter Emanuel. The new facility is already beautiful and there is still plenty more construction work yet to be completed. I'm looking forward to seeing the finished product in a few months.

Serve the Rock

Thursday, March 18th - 5pm to 7pm - War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.

Create Little Rock is launching an event showcasing the region's nonprofit organizations. This will be an opportunity for nonprofit exhibitors to connect with new volunteers in the area, and it will give the event's guests an opportunity to learn more about the wide variety of ways to be engaged in serving the community.

One of Create Little Rock's goals is the retain a strong workforce in the region. This event was inspired by the recognition that building relationships through service to the community increases the likelihood a person will stay and thrive in the region.

Food and beverages will be provided. The atmosphere should be a cross between a social event and a job fair for volunteers.

Learn more about Create Little Rock (click here)

Learn more about this event and see the growing list of exhibitors, Serve the Rock (click here)