I read an interesting article the other day that reminded me bout the phantom Bible verses that people sometimes quote. The article is "Actually, that's not in the Bible" by John Blake of CNN.
The premise of the article is that most Christians have never read the Bible, nor are they well versed on what the Bible actually says.
He makes a strong case by pointing out a number of phrases which people usually believe are Biblical--but which do not appear anywhere within the Bible:
Some of the most popular faux verses are pithy paraphrases of biblical concepts or bits of folk wisdom.
Consider these two:
“God works in mysterious ways.”
“Cleanliness is next to Godliness.”
Both sound as if they are taken from the Bible, but they’re not. The first is a paraphrase of a 19th century hymn by the English poet William Cowper (“God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform).
The “cleanliness” passage was coined by John Wesley, the 18th century evangelist who founded Methodism, says Thomas Kidd, a history professor at Baylor University in Texas.
“No matter if John Wesley or someone else came up with a wise saying - if it sounds proverbish, people figure it must come from the Bible,”
He later writes about another popular non-Biblical phrase: spare the rod and spoil the child, which is often quoted in an effort to support physical punishment.
The bottom line for me after reading this article is to remind me that not everyone who quotes the Bible actually has read what they are quoting AND that that I need to continue to diligently question every teaching and check it against the source document for accuracy not only in word but context.
Christians also need to actually read the book that they haul around to meetings and church--what a concept. Open the cover and read and question and search the pages for the actual words of God.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Heroes who walk among us
Did you ever think about the person behind you in line at the grocery store?
Or the person driving the car in the lane opposite you on the highway?
There are heroes among us who we never, or rarely, acknowledge.
Who am I writing about? Well--there are many different categories of heroes--but today I'm especially sensitive to cancer survivors. I have been face to face with many cancer survivors--I call at least three of them friends, and this weekend after I saw the scars of the battle on my nephew and witnessed his "it's not gonna beat me" attitude I realized that cancer curvivors are truly special people.
They are members of a very special fraternity.
Cancer is destructive--we all know that, but these heroes who take the full brunt of cancer's assault in their bodies which leaves them disfigured--but alive, know it far better than we who only read about cancer or talk to the survivors.
There is no living with cancer--no armistice. Cancer is either growing or gone.
And the threat of a new assault is always there.
The battle, the struggle for life after cancer is an all or nothing proposition. There is no just living or coexisting with it.
It is a life or death struggle--beat it or die. A person I respected greatly knew she could not win the battle the second time around a few years ago--and decided to cross over into eternity. But she had thought she had already beaten this insidious killer once before.
And so to the heroes in my life--Sue, Mary, and Fran; I shout out to you. I am in awe of how you live your lives every day under the shadow. And to Troy--you so impressed me this past weekend with your spirit and you courage. I wasn't sure what I was going to find when I arrived at the hospital on Friday--but I found a fighter who is facing the worst that life can toss at him and is still smiling.
Good on ya!
Or the person driving the car in the lane opposite you on the highway?
There are heroes among us who we never, or rarely, acknowledge.
Who am I writing about? Well--there are many different categories of heroes--but today I'm especially sensitive to cancer survivors. I have been face to face with many cancer survivors--I call at least three of them friends, and this weekend after I saw the scars of the battle on my nephew and witnessed his "it's not gonna beat me" attitude I realized that cancer curvivors are truly special people.
They are members of a very special fraternity.
Cancer is destructive--we all know that, but these heroes who take the full brunt of cancer's assault in their bodies which leaves them disfigured--but alive, know it far better than we who only read about cancer or talk to the survivors.
There is no living with cancer--no armistice. Cancer is either growing or gone.
And the threat of a new assault is always there.
The battle, the struggle for life after cancer is an all or nothing proposition. There is no just living or coexisting with it.
It is a life or death struggle--beat it or die. A person I respected greatly knew she could not win the battle the second time around a few years ago--and decided to cross over into eternity. But she had thought she had already beaten this insidious killer once before.
And so to the heroes in my life--Sue, Mary, and Fran; I shout out to you. I am in awe of how you live your lives every day under the shadow. And to Troy--you so impressed me this past weekend with your spirit and you courage. I wasn't sure what I was going to find when I arrived at the hospital on Friday--but I found a fighter who is facing the worst that life can toss at him and is still smiling.
Good on ya!
Monday, June 6, 2011
Monday Musings - June 6, 2011
1. Happy D-Day--please pause to remember the sacrifices of those who served to protect our freedom and the brave men who stormed the beaches of Normandy to secure freedom for Europe from the oppression of the Nazi's.
2. OK--his name is Jackson and he is a movie critic--and he was on the Today Show. I recommend him for family movie reviews. Family Movie Reviews
3. If you want a laugh--check out Nicole's random quotes of the day in her blog: Our Crazy Family
4. Family gatherings bring out the best and the worst in all of us. It reminds us why we like to get together and and also why we live apart!
5. Space, the final frontier seems to be slipping farther and farther from us when once we embraced it as the new frontier.
6. Highway driving can be exciting and boring. I'd rather it was boring.
7. I've had the chance to drive through long stretches of rolling green mountains during the past couple of days--and it reminded me how much open space there really is out there that we need to protect.
8. Ugh. My coffee pot continues to give me fits. Nothing puts a damper on a morning more quickly than coffee pot problems.
9. I visited some Finger Lakes wineries yesterday. Part of me would love to have a vineyard--but I'm sure the mystique of owning and trying to run it would soon wear off.
10. Driving home yesterday, we saw many old cars on the highway. It was fun to look at them and think of the era gone by and how far our cars (and our highways) have come in terms of MPG, safety, and comfort.
2. OK--his name is Jackson and he is a movie critic--and he was on the Today Show. I recommend him for family movie reviews. Family Movie Reviews
3. If you want a laugh--check out Nicole's random quotes of the day in her blog: Our Crazy Family
4. Family gatherings bring out the best and the worst in all of us. It reminds us why we like to get together and and also why we live apart!
5. Space, the final frontier seems to be slipping farther and farther from us when once we embraced it as the new frontier.
6. Highway driving can be exciting and boring. I'd rather it was boring.
7. I've had the chance to drive through long stretches of rolling green mountains during the past couple of days--and it reminded me how much open space there really is out there that we need to protect.
8. Ugh. My coffee pot continues to give me fits. Nothing puts a damper on a morning more quickly than coffee pot problems.
9. I visited some Finger Lakes wineries yesterday. Part of me would love to have a vineyard--but I'm sure the mystique of owning and trying to run it would soon wear off.
10. Driving home yesterday, we saw many old cars on the highway. It was fun to look at them and think of the era gone by and how far our cars (and our highways) have come in terms of MPG, safety, and comfort.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Sunday trips home
The problem with weekend trips is the return trip home. The adrenaline of the departure day just isn't there and traveling so much in such a short time is hard.
We need to make it more fun. But then we are usually so anxious to get home that we don't stop along the way.
Today we make the return trek from Ithaca to Elkridge. I look forward to getting home only to be confronted by the unmowed yard and everything else I failed to do around the house this weekend. Even the newspapers at the street will be there. Unmoved and unread.
But we have enjoyed the brief visit and I really appreciate everyone dropping their loves to accommodate our quick trip.
It will be good to get home.
Sent from my iPhone
We need to make it more fun. But then we are usually so anxious to get home that we don't stop along the way.
Today we make the return trek from Ithaca to Elkridge. I look forward to getting home only to be confronted by the unmowed yard and everything else I failed to do around the house this weekend. Even the newspapers at the street will be there. Unmoved and unread.
But we have enjoyed the brief visit and I really appreciate everyone dropping their loves to accommodate our quick trip.
It will be good to get home.
Sent from my iPhone
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Rhododendron in NY
One thing I have been noticing is the multitude of blooms on the rhododendron's around the area. They are just magnificent.
Even against the gray and rainy skies.
This one was at my parents house. Bit they seemingly are everywhere one chooses to look.
Even with the rain it is a good day for visiting and I have been doing some odd jobs around my parent's house as well as catching up.
I do miss the 90's of last weekend though.
Friday, June 3, 2011
Leaving New York
Traffic is bad!
We just left the hospital and are headed out of the Big Apple.
On the Road to NYC
Oh yeah. Let's go O's
Surfboard Poppop
The other evening I learned all about another great aspect of begin a grandfather. I became an underwater surfboard for my six-year old grandson Ethan.
Funny as it sounds--he spent most of Wednesday evening standing on my back as I crawled along the pool bottom imitating a slow speed surfboard.
I am told he was really getting into the idea of surfing on Poppop's back--although since I was underwater I really could not appreciate his enthusiasm until I surfaced.
We spend more than an hour with me crawling along the bottom for a bit and then backing up to get him off so I could surface for a breath.
I learned a couple of things: he has sharp toenails, he has sharp fingernails, and he is tireless when it comes to surfing Poppop's back.
I do have a few scratches as reminders of times when he lost his balance.
It was a beautiful afternoon and I decided to take him to our pool rather than spending the afternoon at his house watching Phineas & Ferb.
We also worked on his swimming skills and he is finally at least breathing when he swims and can almost reliably swim the length of the pool.
What a great way to spend some time after work--working with the grandsons.
Funny as it sounds--he spent most of Wednesday evening standing on my back as I crawled along the pool bottom imitating a slow speed surfboard.
I am told he was really getting into the idea of surfing on Poppop's back--although since I was underwater I really could not appreciate his enthusiasm until I surfaced.We spend more than an hour with me crawling along the bottom for a bit and then backing up to get him off so I could surface for a breath.
I learned a couple of things: he has sharp toenails, he has sharp fingernails, and he is tireless when it comes to surfing Poppop's back.
I do have a few scratches as reminders of times when he lost his balance.
It was a beautiful afternoon and I decided to take him to our pool rather than spending the afternoon at his house watching Phineas & Ferb.
We also worked on his swimming skills and he is finally at least breathing when he swims and can almost reliably swim the length of the pool.
What a great way to spend some time after work--working with the grandsons.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Endeavour's Final Touchdown from Space
As the era of U.S. manned space flight draws to an end, I need to comment about the final landing of the space shuttle Endeavour yesterday morning.
There is so much history caught up in the closing of the era of U.S. manned space--after the Atlantis mission in July, I do not reasonably expect to U.S. to launch a manned mission into space for at least the next 20 years.
And so--as the era of the Space Race comes to a close and we cede to the Russians and the Chinese the ability to place people into orbit--a sad day is coming. Manned access to space will no longer be possible form the United States. The source of national pride--which I was once able to witness in person, will no longer ply the vacuum of space carrying the US flag on its side and the Canadian Maple Leaf in the shuttle bay.
I have become so accustomed to our frequent missions into space that the loss may not be apparent for a long while. But at some point, we will wonder why we lost our adventurous spirit and become so entrenched in the mundane aspects of living that we have forgotten to refresh ourselves with the excitement and wonder of discovering the unknown and pushing the envelope of knowledge.
A bit of history about this shuttle from Wikipedia:
The orbiter is named after the British HMS Endeavour, the ship which took Captain James Cook on his first voyage of discovery (1768–1771).[5] This is why the name is spelled in the British English manner, rather than the American English ("Endeavor"). This has caused confusion, most notably when NASA themselves misspelled a sign on the launch pad in 2007.[6] The name also honored Endeavour, the Command Module of Apollo 15, itself also named after Cook's ship.
Discovery, exploration, pushing the edges of knowledge--all characteristics of the vessels named Endeavour!
And characteristics that used to define the United States.
Good-bye Endeavour--you served us well!
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Bring on the Heat
I have heard people remark about the temperatures soaring from the 60's to the 80's and 90's without really visiting the 70's during the past couple of days. And it truly seems like we are enjoying those mid-July type temperatures for a bit.
Last evening after I finally made it home through some of the worst traffic I have experienced since the last three day weekend after being soundly spanked on the racquetball court, I fully appreciated my oasis in Elkridge. The pool was already in shade but the sky above was clear and blue. The trees were full and green standing tall against the sky. Every time I see the leaf filled crowns of the trees I remember the barren branches of the seasons past and I appreciate the trees and their leaves all that much more. The temperature was 90-something and the water was warm and inviting--almost too warm.
Chris and I sat in the humid evening talking about the day and the continuing struggles of life, and then I was onto a floatie in the pool with a glass of wine for some unwinding.
So--yea, when people talk about how hot it is, I sometimes forget that I am blessed with an oasis in the middle of suburbia where I can sit under palms (literally) and enjoy tropical hibiscus flowers while sipping an evening glass of wine before firing up the grill to cook the catch of the day.
My oasis is surrounded on three sides by tall and very green trees which separate us from the noise and clamor of life occurring around us. The house shields us on the fourth. Our solitude is pierced only by the incessantly repetitious noise of the ice cream truck--which I have to admit if I had the means, I would consider reducing it into a flaming pile of rubble. The sounds that single machine creates are the most offensive to my solitude that can ever be imagined. And the noise of the ice cream truck continues in my mind long after it has departed the neighborhood.
But I do so love this time of year--these first real days of summertime heat.
Bring it on--enjoy it. We all will too soon be wishing for summer again when the temperatures drop below 40.
Last evening after I finally made it home through some of the worst traffic I have experienced since the last three day weekend after being soundly spanked on the racquetball court, I fully appreciated my oasis in Elkridge. The pool was already in shade but the sky above was clear and blue. The trees were full and green standing tall against the sky. Every time I see the leaf filled crowns of the trees I remember the barren branches of the seasons past and I appreciate the trees and their leaves all that much more. The temperature was 90-something and the water was warm and inviting--almost too warm.
Chris and I sat in the humid evening talking about the day and the continuing struggles of life, and then I was onto a floatie in the pool with a glass of wine for some unwinding.
So--yea, when people talk about how hot it is, I sometimes forget that I am blessed with an oasis in the middle of suburbia where I can sit under palms (literally) and enjoy tropical hibiscus flowers while sipping an evening glass of wine before firing up the grill to cook the catch of the day.
My oasis is surrounded on three sides by tall and very green trees which separate us from the noise and clamor of life occurring around us. The house shields us on the fourth. Our solitude is pierced only by the incessantly repetitious noise of the ice cream truck--which I have to admit if I had the means, I would consider reducing it into a flaming pile of rubble. The sounds that single machine creates are the most offensive to my solitude that can ever be imagined. And the noise of the ice cream truck continues in my mind long after it has departed the neighborhood.
But I do so love this time of year--these first real days of summertime heat.
Bring it on--enjoy it. We all will too soon be wishing for summer again when the temperatures drop below 40.
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