Well, it was a whirlwind visit by Messy Christian to the Californian Southland. She came through on a media junket for the new Poseidon Adventure. She got to do the celebrity hobnobing with the likes of Kurt Russell, Josh Lucas and Emmie Rossum. And, I got to hobnob with her, which was thrilling enough! Actually getting to catch up with a highly popular blogger, especially one that was, at least initially, shrouded in some mystery, is great fun!

We only had a few hours to catch up before she hopped on a plane back to Malaysia. So, my wife, Liz and I jumped into my car and as we started off, I wondered where we could take her to help make her trip a little more memorable than just the four walls of her posh hotel room, the celeb-overdose and the otherwise concrete jungle of LA. I was hoping that we could give her another face of LA than the one that she might have had over the past couple of days.

As we were driving from Beverly Hills, I was racking my brains as to where we could spend a few hours that could be memorable for a girl who seemingly have seen it all, what with coming from a city with the famous other Twin Towers, tallest twin buildings in the world, and of grand megamalls. Plus, she has also traveled the world. So what could I show here that could at least be “different”?

Finally, I thought of Pasadena, a little city away from the hustle and bustle of LA with somewhat of a character of its own. Hopefully it was a good choice for her for I am not that familiar with this so-called City of Angels. Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: blogger, meet-up, meeting

Recently, I have read other bloggers’ problems with exceeding bandwidth and disk space usage from their respective hosts. I am not sure what their plans give them, but if you have similar problems, I highly recommend that you check out Bluehost.com.

I have been with Bluehost.com for about six months, and I must say, this is the first six months that I have continuous no-problem-whatsoever service from my host. For a mere 7 bucks a month, I get stable, fast, worry-free service. I can have up to six domains on one account (the first domain is FREE). I get 4 GB of disk space and 100 GB disk transfer. If that is not enough there are also other plans available.

But guess what? They have recently announced a better plan and they have provided me with an upgrade for FREE! Now, that is different! Usually hosts do not upgrade existing users for free, but not BlueHost. So as of May 1st, I will get 15 Gigs of disk space, and 400 Gigs of data dransfer. I say that is a deal, don’t you think! So, if you’re still looking for a great host, try BlueHost.com! (And, if you sign up by clicking on my link, I will give you 1000 BlogExplosion credits! Is that a deal or what?)

In my previous post in this series, I explored what Psalm 34: 11-22 says are the practical outworking of fearing God. Surprisingly (or not) this is not merely an emotional response of shrinking away from the presence of God timorously, or a paralyzing forboding of judgment or punishment over our failure to meet the high standards of a holy, angry God.

There is fear, and there is fear…
As I pointed out earlier, having such kinds of fear seems to contradict Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: peace, fear of God, interpersonal, relationships, love, love for neighbor

In an earlier post, I questioned what “the fear of the LORD” really means in practice. Some of my commenters have offered answers. I think their stabs at the answer are in the right direction.

Like them, I believe our relationship with God is multi-faceted, and approaching God in an attitude of fear cannot be done in isolation from the posture of love, gratitude and boldness that the Scriptures also teach as necessary attitudes. I like my commenters say about adopting a rational and wholesome reverence and awe in our relationship to God.

Key to Understanding the Fear of God
Recently while meditating on the Psalms, I found further light from Psalm 34 on this subject. According to this passage, Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: authenticity, integrity, fear of God, truth, reverence, awe

Over at The Owner’s Manual, the #126 Best of Me Symphony featuring Adlai Stevenson is published. The Best of Me Symphony is a weekly Carnival of posts submitted by different bloggers, which are then juxtaposed with appropriate images and quotes by a “Guest Conductor”. The only condition for submission of your post is that it be at least sixty days old. It is a good way to showcase your blog posts and hopefully invite new readership.

To submit your posts to the next Best of Me Symphony, check out this page. To view this week’s Symphony, visit the post here. My submission for this week is What Does Godel Turing and Chaitin Teach Us About Faith?. Also showcased in this week’s Symphony is Christianity and mental illness by Stingray: a blog for salty Christians. It has some good things to say about mental illness, a topic that is close to my heart.

Several weeks ago, blogosphere and the media were abuzzed by news of a piece of social science research that attempted to draw what was obviously an ill-supported conclusion that some kinds of intercessory prayer may be ineffective. When I first read it, I decided to write a short post that simply ignored much of the glaring flaws of the report, arguing instead that we need not defend God. It’s because it was a piece of inconsequential social research. As I earlier pointed out, the underlying assumption that one might be able to test spirituality via scientific methodologies is highly questionable. Putting that suspicion aside, I want in this post, to highlight some other reasons why the research is simply flawed.

It is clear for instance Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: prayer, intercession, intercessory prayer, social science research, research, effectiveness of prayer, purpose of prayer, science and religion, faith, religion, science

Usually, I accept the first bid for my blog rental. However, of late, since I lowered the cost of rental, I have received relatively more bids at a time, so I decided to look through those blogs that bid and choose one. My choice was somewhat arbitrary, and is based on my first impression on the sites that bid, especially if I have not known or come across it before.

Reflections Unlimited is a site that I have come across once or twice before, and is a relatively new blog. According to the description, the blogger “is a student of philosophy whose writing attemtpts and creative work are drawn from his insatiable quest for enlightenment and curiosity about man and the universe.”

The blogger is from China and I can see that he has put up a number posts along with narratives along with pictures about different parts of China, the culture and the history, interspersed with poetry and personal recollections and reflections. What struck me was the glimpses he gives to ancient China. As someone who is facinated by ancient cultures and civilizations (I used to spend hours on the computer game Pharoah and Cleopatra partly because of my love of ancient history), my attention was immediately arrested.

So, anyways, click over there and spend some time and let him know you were introduced to his site by the bloke!

The following also bid but since I can only accept one bid, I thought I’d give each a plug also:

Emails from Jesus - you need a dose of sense of humor or two to visit this bordering-on-irreverence site!
Winsome Gunning Art - a blog showcasing art and creative expressions.
Vegan Diet - a blog about vegan diet, what else?

Drop in to visit and let them know the Bloke sent ya (but if you are easily offended, please disregard this recommendation about the controversial one above!)

So, the Martian Anthropologist wants to assert. A wikipedia article was his source. Wikipedia by the way is also known as the people’s encyclopedia.

As an aside, if you ever want to have a source to back up whatever it is you want to say, all you need to do is to go to wikipedia.org, sign up and write a post that say exactly that! There! You now have an “encylopedia” article that supports your assertion! I am not saying that is what the Martian did. All I am suggesting that it is possible for anyone to contribute anything and say anything on wikipedia. I know! I have done so myself, although I made sure that whatever it is I write on wikipedia is well supported by external sources, including published and publicly-critiqued and adjudicated ones.

In any case, back to Martian’s little post, titled tauntingly, “The Dumber you are the More Religious You are”. When I first read it, I resisted the temptation to take his bait. While walking my wife’s dog this afternoon, watching him do his business by the side of the road, inspired this comment that I left on his site: Read the rest of this entry »

Often, we take things for granted. As bloggers, we sometimes forget how difficult it was for us when we first got started in this “phenom”. I still don’t know much about the technologies that I use to bring this blog to the internet public. But, one thing I know that is useful is this thing called RSS - Real Simple Syndication. So, for those of you new to blogging, here is an article I came across today while surfing on BlogExplosion that will help you with learning more about RSS and how it will help you to promote your blog.

In fact, I have already gleaned at least one new tip that I will put to practice over here soon, and that is to have a RSS Landing Page. I have always been confused why clicking on that RSS button gets you to a bunch of almost meaningless, or at least confusing, goobledeeguk code. So, as soon as I get less drowsy and have the inspiration and motivation to pretty up pages around here, I will create for myself a nice little RSS landing page too. Gee, I am even using the phrase as if this is my usual talk. Cool! I am becoming a little bit of a blogging geek!

Anyway, if you are new to blogging (or even if you are an “old hand”) and this tip (as well as the rest of the other tips you find on the page I linked above) helps you, let me know will ya?

This article, which reports on the fallout from a smirk on a face of an employee during a staff meeting, brought back memories, and perhaps a little bit of a smirk. Not at the poor guy who “got the sack” as they say downunder, or at the employer who brandished his toxicity in response to what he felt to be a personal threat.

It reminded me of the times I was accused of smirking not a few times while working for my former boss (whom I profiled as a paradigmatic toxic boss). Up until then, no one has ever attributed that kind of action to me, and I honestly didn’t know exactly how to do that. Honestly! Tell, me! How exactly does one smirk?

Those were the days. It surprises me that managers and others who have the responsibility to run people and organizations have the audacity to act as if they deserve unfeigned loyalty and respect without earning them. I hope the pressure that the union and the authorities are putting on the company will bear fruit and justice for all.

NOTE: Previously, I posted on toxic leadership here, here and here. I also mused about what it is about the position of leadership that apparently makes it so unique that not only do leaders think there have a justification for moral deviations, but most of us seem to tolerate these moral shortcomings and some even expect them of our corporate and political leaders. See also this short wikipedia article.

A very well-known verse from Proverbs tells us that “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7). As a teen, I remember being somewhat confused with the teaching of this verse. For, while I appreciate and understand what it says, I could not fathom how exactly to fear God. After all, I bought the message that my relationship with Him is based on love, mercy and forgiveness.

More than that, my confusion stems from my earlier religious experiences. As a child, I had witnessed and participated in various religious observances with my own family, relatives and friends. During religious festivals of various “gods of war” with fierce looking black and red faces, with long flowing robes, dressed up in ancient armory, wielding large swords and looking menacing and threatening, I had attended temples with heavily scented incense and grim looking worshippers. My parents had cautioned that I needed to behaved myself for fear of upsetting these dieties. I had also seen depictions of the ten courts of hell that graphically render the kinds of terror that will strike evil doers and sinners. I had also witnessed rituals where these mean-spirited dieties possessed men who then seemed to lose all self-control, mutilated their bodies, and behaved in manners that appeared to my young mind as intimidating and dangerous. Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: fear God, love God, fear, love, fear, love

Just came across an opinion piece from the Sydney Morning Herald that warns Australia against following the polarization of faith and politics that has taken place in the United States and a recommendation for Australians to strike a balance between the separation of church and state on the one hand and the integration of moral values and public policy on the other. In so doing, the article, which is co-written by Tim Costello, and Jim Wallis suggests politicians will be able to help satisfy “the two greatest hungers in the world today [which] are for spiritual integrity on the one hand and for social justice on the other”. Tim Costello is the chief executive of World Vision Australia, who is also a Baptist minister as well as brother of Australian Liberal Party Deputy Leader and Treasurer Peter Costello. Some choice passages:

It is crucial that religion be ideologically free and non-partisan, maintaining moral independence to critique both the left and the right.

After all, religion does not have a monopoly on morality. The issue is not whether a political leader or party has a personal faith but whether they have a moral compass.

The article goes on to suggest that the marrying of right wing politics with faith and religion has clouded the public morality reducing it to big “hot-button” issues such as abortion and gay marriage. Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: faith, religion, politics, polarization