Kivus’ Neighborhood

I am a consummate time-waster.

Seriously -- I could probably write a book on the art of wasting time.

Lately I've had trouble finding time to read my Bible, work on my Battlefield of the Mind study, read the latest book on my list, etc.

And yet somehow I never seem to have trouble finding time to move my cars multiple times a day in Parking Wars, commit random crimes in Mob Wars, monitor how my crops are growing on MyFarm, rearrange my flair, check the latest Twitter action, etc.

Obviously my priorities are all out of whack.

So I've removed all of my Facebook applications for now. I'm also cutting way back on my internet time, and as of Saturday (the first time slot Time Warner had available), I'll be completely cable-less.

(Which isn't to say I'm swearing off all TV, but all of the shows I watch except two are available to watch free online. And now I won't be tempted to watch anything and everything that comes on as a time-filler.)

Hopefully these changes will be the catalyst I need to get my act together.

Some time ago, I subscribed to this email devotional thing from the American Bible Society where each devotion is from a different musical artist, but honestly, I haven't read many of them. I was all set to delete this morning's until I noticed it was from BarlowGirl.

So I opened it (of course), and it was just really something I needed to hear read. Lately I've been struggling with a few things. Nothing major, but some relationships have changed in a way that I didn't think they would, and there have been times where I've been tempted to change some of my own positions and reactions so that those relationships would continue as they had before (even though I know that I am doing what I need to be doing) just to keep the comforting familiarity there and avoid any type of conflict.

I'm quite sure I'll never actually meet Alyssa Barlow this side of heaven, but this might be, oh, the twelfth time in the past few months that God has used her words specifically to bring me encouragement and comfort.

An excerpt from the devotion:
The Barlow sisters have never been timid when it comes to standing up for what they believe. Stereotypical images of Christians being weak are contrary to the Barlow approach to ministry. “We’re very battle-oriented in our family. I think it may have intimidated a lot of people,” admits Alyssa, the middle Barlow sibling. “As Christians we so often think we’re on the defense and we’re not. We think we’re these weak people that can’t stand up and I think the point we have tried to get across is that we are the offense. Be the one at the front line! Look at the God we serve; He definitely isn’t on the defense. God is the one pursuing. We’ve said, ‘God, we’re going to just stand with You where You’re at and You’re not near the back. You are right up front going forward, conquering for Your kingdom.’ That’s where we want to be.”

I just realized that I haven't really blogged about life in a while. Didn't help that I was sick for three weeks (topped off everything with a sinus infection there at the end) -- I'm finally feeling better. I went down to Ventura this last weekend with my friend Julia, but I want to post about that when I get some photos from her. Other than that, life is chugging along. And I really, really need to do laundry.

I've decided that I would like to run a 5K. I've never been a runner (mostly because I have weak arches that ache and ache, but I finally found shoes and insoles that work), but Julia found a program (below) that will take you from the couch to a 5K in nine weeks, running three times a week. I'm not completely out of shape due to tennis and various other activites (heck, I rode over 20 miles on the exercise bike last night so I can't be that out of shape), so I think I should be able to do it. I just need to figure out how to fit in the workouts now that it's getting darker earlier, and pretty soon the rainy season will start.

We have a shower here at my office, so once it gets too dark to run after work, I might try running on my lunch break. It looks like none of the workouts are more than 30ish minutes long, so that leaves me plenty of time to rinse off after my run and chow down on a sandwich or something. When possible, I want to run after work at our local park with has a decomposed granite jogging track, which is much easier on my joints.

I also need to figure out how to measure yardage. Hmm. 

I am debating starting a separate blog to track my progress. I might just use this blog. We'll have to see.

Starting Monday, I'll be on my way to running a 5K!

The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men...

I used to get angry when atheists like Madalyn Murray O'Hair and Christopher Hitchens would rail against Christianity, insisting that there was no God, and that religion was a crutch to get people through hard times. Hitchens has even written a book called God Is Not Great.

Now I really just...feel sorry for people who live life all alone, convinced that this is it. That there is nothing more. That there is no source of hope, no source of peace, no source of comfort.

How sad it must be to live day after day like that.

I read an interview with Mark Hall from Casting Crowns in advance of the band's new Christmas CD, Peace on Earth, which dropped yesterday. He was explaining that their purpose in recording this CD was to help people connect with the original meaning in world-renowned classics -- especially when the classics of choice are worshipful in nature.

I've heard "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" a hundred times since I was a kid, but never once was I aware of why it was written. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's lyrics document how hope emerged from a crisis of faith the writer experienced after he lost his wife in a house fire and saw his son crippled in the Civil War.

If anyone had any right to shake his fist at heaven, to declare vehemently that there is no God, it was he.

"He wrote about how every year when these Christmas bells ring, it reminds him that there's peace on earth, good will toward men," Hall said. "But this time around, the reality of the world he lives in at that moment rushes in. The verses change, and suddenly, he's saying, 'But there is no peace. There's war, and there's hate. And this hate mocks the song of the bells.' He's working through his understanding of Christmas. And as the bells keep ringing, he just has this moment when he realizes God is not dead, nor does He sleep. Good will prevail. God is going to save the day."

Not only is the song set to an original melody with a new chorus added for good measure, but Hall & Co. decided to use the Chattanooga Boys Choir to simulate the bells.

"The bells remind us of hope," Hall said. "And when you hear a child sing, it's the same thing. It reminds us today might be dark, but this is what tomorrow sounds like."

I'm uploading their awe-inspiring version of this timeless Christmas carol. I assure you, you've never heard it sung like this.

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

Casting Crowns

The journey from your mind to your hands
Is shorter than you're thinking
Be careful if you think you stand --
You just might be sinking...

I've been thinking about complacency a lot.

It's something I definitely struggle with, and I think there are many people who struggle as well. What I've been learning is that no matter what it is that's important to you, you have to work deliberately at it and choose by an act of will to remain focused and intent on it or it -- again, whatever "it" is -- will start to lose its significance.

After that, it doesn't take long until you find yourself in an unfamiliar place. Doing unfamiliar things. Or, like me, things you always swore you'd never do. Or -- also like me -- doubting things in which you swore you'd never doubt. Believing things in which you swore you'd never believe.

I'm sure you've all heard the illustration about the frog and the boiling water: throw a frog in a pot of boiling water, and of course he'll jump right out. But put him in a pan of cool water and then gradually turn the burner up, and he'll be dead before he even realizes the water's hot.

It's called a slow fade -- people don't crumble in a day.

I've had the words of that Casting Crowns song on my mind a lot lately. My pastor used it as an illustration a few weeks ago, and it was also used in the fabulous movie Fireproof, which I saw Saturday evening. (And what a perfect song for that movie it is.)

The chorus -- "it's a slow fade when you give yourself a way; it's a slow fade when black and white have turned to grey; thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid when you give yourself away..." -- is so heart-tearing because the words are so true.

I've certainly experienced a slow fade at several points in my life and have ended up in water so deep and roiling that I never thought I'd get out -- and when I'd finally been yanked out by the grace of God, I was seriously stunned at how I'd ended up in situations I never would've thought I'd find myself.

I paid the price, and it was high. While I am forgiven, I still suffer the consequences, and so I urge anyone who might be weighing seemingly insignificant temptations and choices -- make sure it's worth the cost. As the song says, "when flattery leads to compromise, the end is always near" and that "empty words and promises lead broken hearts astray."

Morality cannot be legislated, but behavior can be regulated. Judicial decrees may not change the heart, but they can restrain the heartless... -- Martin Luther King, Jr.

I listened to another in Covenant Life Church's "Don't Waste Your..." series. This installment, by staff pastor Robin Boisvert, was entitled "Don't Waste Your Vote."

It is important that Christians do not become politically apathetic. As Boisvert reminded us, God ordained both government and the church, although, obviously one is temporal and one is eternal. Jesus commanded his followers to "render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's and unto God the things that are God's."

In other words, while we as Christians are under a higher authority, we are still to submit to the governments under which we live. There are additional verses throughout the New Testament commanding us to respect authority and those placed in authoritative positions, etc.

Not once did the pastor endorse a particular candidate or party, a position with which I whole-heartedly agree. While I think civic responsibility and involvement is vital for Christians, I also do not think the pulpit should be used as a platform. (Someone should remind Jeremiah Wright of that fact.)

Frankly, I've become weary of politics, especially in the manner in which they've been rammed down our throats the past few months. I wasn't happy about John McCain's winning the nomination, and until he announced Governor Palin as his running mate, I was basically going to vote for McCain because I'd essentially be voting against Obama.

Sarah Palin has restored my hope in true conservative politics, the kind we haven't seen since Ronald Reagan was in office, and if you disagree or find her BFF material but not VP material, may I suggest that you stop watching SNL? Tina Fey is an entirely different person. I promise.

One of the things that Pastor Boisvert urged each Christian to do is examine the positions of both candidates and avoid voting based on soundbites or popularity. He also suggested we order issues based what is most important, and then see how each candidate lines up.

I did exactly that, which is why, even though I agree with Senator McCain only about 65% of the time, I agree with Sentor Obama exactly none of the time. None. Zip. There is not a single, solitary issue on which I agree with him. (Of course, I agree with Governor Palin about 97% of the time, which made putting the McCain/Palin bumper sticker on my car easy.)

Also, while there are many issues that are important to me, I am essentially a one-issue voter. That issue is abortion.

Respected pastor and theologian John Piper sums up his one-issue political stance, which I share, in the following excerpt:

One-Issue Politics, One-Issue Marriage, and the Humane Society
By John Piper
January 1, 1995

Investigating dog life in Minnesota has solidified my decision to vote against those who endorse the right to abortion. So then what is my response to the charge of being a one-issue voter?

No endorsement of any single issue qualifies a person to hold public office. Being pro-life does not make a person a good governor, mayor, or president. But there are numerous single issues that disqualify a person from public office. For example, any candidate who endorsed bribery as a form of government efficiency would be disqualified, no matter what his party or platform was. Or a person who endorsed corporate fraud (say under $50 million) would be disqualified no matter what else he endorsed. Or a person who said that no black people could hold office—on that single issue alone he would be unfit for office. Or a person who said that rape is only a misdemeanor—that single issue would end his political career. These examples could go on and on. Everybody knows a single issue that for them would disqualify a candidate for office.

It's the same with marriage. No one quality makes a good wife or husband, but some qualities would make a person unacceptable. For example, back when I was thinking about getting married, not liking cats would not have disqualified a woman as my wife, but not liking people would. Drinking coffee would not, but drinking whiskey would. Kissing dogs wouldn't, but kissing the mailman would. And so on. Being a single-issue fiancé does not mean that only one issue matters. It means that some issues may matter enough to break off the relationship.

So it is with politics. You have to decide what those issues are for you. What do you think disqualifies a person from holding public office? I believe that the endorsement of the right to kill unborn children disqualifies a person from any position of public office. It's simply the same as saying that the endorsement of racism, fraud, or bribery would disqualify him—except that child-killing is more serious than those.

When we bought our dog at the Humane Society, I picked up a brochure on the laws of Minnesota concerning animals. Statute 343.2, subdivision 1 says, "No person shall . . . unjustifiably injure, maim, mutilate or kill any animal." Subdivision 7 says, "No person shall willfully instigate or in any way further any act of cruelty to any animal." The penalty: "A person who fails to comply with any provision of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor."

Now this set me to pondering the rights of the unborn. An eight-week-old human fetus has a beating heart, an EKG, brain waves, thumb-sucking, pain sensitivity, finger-grasping, and genetic humanity, but under our present laws is not a human person with rights under the 14th Amendment, which says that "no state shall deprive any person of life . . . without due process of law." Well, I wondered, if the unborn do not qualify as persons, it seems that they could at least qualify as animals, say a dog, or at least a cat. Could we not at least charge abortion clinics with cruelty to animals under Statute 343.2, subdivision 7? Why is it legal to "maim, mutilate and kill" a pain-sensitive unborn human being but not an animal?

These reflections have confirmed my conviction never to vote for a person who endorses such an evil—even if he could balance the budget tomorrow and end all taxation.

* * * This article is from A Godward Life, Book I: Savoring the Supremacy of God in All of Life by John Piper (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), pp. 279-280.

I purposely avoided planning anything major this weekend, preferring to keep my plans low-key and allow plenty of time to catch up on Battlefield of the Mind (which I have, sadly, neglected the past few days). I also plan on finishing Do Hard Things and starting I Kissed Dating Goodbye, and I need to get some mundane chore-type things done as well.

Plus rest.

I tend to go a million miles a minute, even when I'm not at work, and then when the next Monday rolls around, I wonder why I'm so exhausted.

I've got a couple movies from Netflix that I'm looking forward to watching:

Also, I'm most likely going to go see Fireproof tomorrow evening.

I'm so excited that it's doing well -- it came in fourth at the box office on its opening weekend last week, but its performance was the equivalent of finishing only behind Eagle Eye since it was shown on under 1,000 screens. It's just refreshing that there are movies still produced that are family-friendly and that celebrate marriage. (Plus Chick-fil-A gets a shout-out.)

Sunday's church and lunch with the family, and then I might go swimming with my nieces and nephews -- I can't imagine that there will be all that many more days hot enough to swim, even in Texas.

This goes hand-in-hand with my last post.

I forgot to add that I would also like to start reading the biographies of dynamic individuals.

Any recommendations? (Please take into consideration my positions on certain issues. For example, while individuals such as Madalyn Murray O'Hair and Barack Obama are certainly influential, I have absolutely no desire to read about either of them.)

So far on my list:

• Dietrich Bonhoeffer
• William Wilberforce
• John Newton
• Theodore Roosevelt
• Abraham Lincoln
• David Livingston
• Jim Elliot

Two years here, friends! That is all. You may now commence with your well-wishes for me.

I posted earlier this month about all the books I was planning on reading, and I uploaded them to my book section.

Since I have proven woefully inconsistent in keeping track of what I've read this year (I think I managed three months), I've decided to reorganize my approach.

I deleted that post and have taken the books out of my book section. Below will be a list of books that I want to read. Then, as I read them, I'll post some sort of review, even if it's only a paragraph, and then will upload it into the book section. That will help me keep track much more efficiently.

James 1:5 says that if anyone lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who "gives generously to all." That is one of the things I've been praying for in earnest lately, and I believe that consistent and intent studying and reading and listening to teaching will help in this endeavor.

Therefore, I've compiled the following list of books, gleaned from recommendations from friends, although the majority of the titles I've taken from Alex and Brett Harris' reading list, as published on their Rebelution blog.

I'm sure I'll add more, but here's what I have so far, in no random order (the titles are not italicized; sue me -- I copied/pasted and really don't want to go through each line):

• The Radical Reformission -- Mark Driscoll
• The Reason for God -- Tim Keller
• Total Truth -- Nancy Pearcey
• The Enemy Within -- Kris Lundgaard
• Knowing God -- J.I. Packer
• When I Don't Desire God -- John Piper
• Humility: True Greatness -- C.J. Mahaney
• The Tipping Point -- Malcolm Gladwell
• Pro-Life Answers to Pro-Choice Questions -- Randy Alcorn
• Systematic Theology -- Wayne Grudem
• Don't Waste Your Life -- John Piper
• Evangelical Feminism -- Wayne Grudem
• Emotional Purity -- Heather Paulsen
• Soul Searching -- Christian Smith
• Forbidden Fruit -- Mark Regnerus
• A Return to Modesty -- Wendy Shalit
• Girls Gone Mild -- Wendy Shalit
• Words That Work -- Frank Lutz
• Living the Cross-Centered life -- C.J. Mahaney
• Boy Meets Girl -- Joshua Harris
• Stop Dating the Church -- Joshua Harris
• I Kissed Dating Goodbye -- Joshua Harris
• Worldliness -- C.J. Mahaney
• Sex Is Not the Problem (Lust Is) -- Joshua Harris
• God's Pursuit of Man -- A.W. Tozer
• The Pursuit of God -- A.W. Tozer
• How Now Shall We Live -- Chuck Colson
• The Grace and Truth Paradox -- Randy Alcorn
• The Purity Principle -- Randy Alcorn
• All of C.S. Lewis -- Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, A Grief Observed, The Great Divorce, The Problem With Pain, etc.