It's been a rough day for me. In fact the entire last couple of weeks have been rough, but today things hit me harder than on most days. I know I'm getting older, but I am having more 'senior moments' than usual. » read more »

These are not all the podcasts I listen to, but the best. Most are weekly presentations. » read more »

It's been way too long since I contributed anything. In August of last year, I started working for a local company that had recently been acquired by Siemens. Having my commute time go from 20 minutes to 45 minutes on an ideal day was just a small part off the problem. I think I bit off more than I chew. » read more »

You may have gathered that I am not a fan of contemporary church music. Well, one of the songs recommended by DailyEncouragement.net has been on my MP3 player for a few months, and I can’t listen to it without tears welling up in my eyes. It’s ‘Jesus Will Still Be There’, performed by Point of Grace on the 1995 album, “Today’s Best Christian Hits”. I’m starting to open up more to that musical style.

And here are the lyrics:

Things change, plans fail
You look for love on a grander scale
Storms rise, hopes fade
And you place your bets on another day
When the going gets tough, when the ride's too rough » read more »

As I finished my third week of the new job, and even as I write this, I am reminded of God's mercy, love, and grace. Seven weeks earlier, I had told my previous employer of my intention to leave, and gave them three week's notice. Even with all the drug, credit, and other background checks, three weeks would have been enough time to verify my employment and education history, and see whether I had committed any felonies or was in financial trouble.

At the end of the three weeks--in fact, as I was leaving the building for the last time, my cell phone informed me that there was a message waiting for me; a couple of hours earlier, the recruiter has left voice mail saying they had to put off my hire date by a week because the verification agency had not given final approval. Now I was looking at a week of unpaid vacation. Did I mention this time off was unpaid? » read more »

"Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." (Matthew 6:34, KJV)

Yes, I know that's what the Bible says, but surely it doesn't mean I should apply that to everything! After all, it also says

"For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?" (Luke 14:28, KJV)

Or, does the passage from the sermon on the mount only apply to evil things?

This morning's missive to my wife, from a Republican Party leader at the county level, warns about SPP (Security & Prosperity Partnership) and connects it to an attempt to merge Canada, the U.S., and Mexico into a North American Union. The hyperbole in the email--"This is the greatest threat..."--is fairly typical of what this individual, and many others, routinely use. Just what I need, another "greatest threat" to add to the list of hundreds that I already have. » read more »

Yesterday, I had one of my more interesting job interviews. Even though my present contract doesn't expire for a few months, I've started to look now because we can't afford to be without income for 3 to 5 months as we have in the past. Actually, we couldn't afford it then, either. But God supplied All our NEEDS. True, we nearly lost the house, but we are on the road to recovery and getting ahead, if ever so slowly.

What made the interview so special? First, that I made it this far is noteworthy. Without a college degree, it is getting increasingly difficult to be considered for a position as a software engineer, even with 25+ years of experience, some patents, and well-known employers. My present employer made a very nice job offer about a year and a half ago, and it went as far as negotiating salary and start date, and me signing the offer letter and sending it in. Two or three days later, I got a call fromn the HR department rescinding the offer because I do not have a degree in a related field. » read more »

Theology Unplugged is a podcast featuring professors from Dallas Theological Seminary in a 3-way discussion. I like the unscripted exchange and frank discussion of both theological and practical issues. This is not stale and dry didacticism. However, there is much to be learned by listening and then studying the Bible to see whether you agree with the positions taken. As a result, the podcast is not intentionally devotional or preachy, but enlightening. I;m finding that this podcast is challenging me to engage the culture and become more involved with people, whether sinners or saints.

The Real Answers podcast is more along the lines of Christian radio from 30 or 40 years ago. » read more »

Mariner's Church, http://www.marinerschurch.org, is located in Irvine, California, and they offer complete sermon series as both audio and video podcasts; I've only listened to the audio. The first I listened to, "Ruth - The Romance of Redemption" is a seven-part series, each sermon being roughly 30 to 45 in length. The pastor, an associate pastor, and the pastor's father--who is also the pastor of a California church, deliver their messages with a thoroughness of exposition that hardly leaves a stone unturned. The doctrine is sound, so I was a little surprised to hear the pastor announce that his 81 year old father would preach one of the sermons, "The Revelation of Ruth", in which he interprets The Book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ in light of the book of Ruth. » read more »

The material I want to present here is not original with me. It comes from several sources--monographs, sermons, and music classes. By way of introduction, let me relate a personal experience.

After a Sunday morning service at my church, I complimented that morning's soloist on the choice and delivery of the song he sang in the 'special music' portion of the service, which immediately precedes the sermon. He thanked me, and then went on to castigate himself over a couple of artistic elements of the solo. I reminded him that those minor faults were really of no importance; what mattered is that he delivered the message clearly and plainly. He thought about it, and then expressed his agreement and appreciation for the words I had said. » read more »

My MP3/4 player is a Creative Multimedia ZEN. As of this writing, their 'ZENcast' directory has 5854 entries in 5 major categories, subdivided into 28 individual categories, with the top 10 being:

Music 1006
Science and Technology 539
Comedy and Humor 531
Movies and Entertainment 420
Religion 354
Variety Shows 353
Business and Finance 338
Sports 281
Educational 244
News 244
Government 205

It is interesting to me that Religion is in the top 5. This says nothing of the number of active subscribers, but even so, it is obvious that many want to share their message with others. And these are all free downloads, some of which are videocasts, that you can play or watch on a computer, as well as your MP3 or MP4 player. » read more »

Recently, I've been listening to some really good daily devotional podcasts. Words of Hope, woh.org, has a smooth, professional sound and fairly traditional style. Each installment is exactly two minutes long and usually contains a reading of Scripture, a personal illustration, application, and challenge. You get a good amount for being so short. The organization--based in Grand Rapids, Michigan--has been putting out devotional materials and messages for over 50 years, and you can read their mission statement and what they believe on their web site. I was attracted to this devotional because of its affiliation with HCJB, a long-time shortwave radio station in Quito, Ecuador (I'm a former DX'er, if you know what that means), and because Grand Rapids is known as a center of conservative Christian educational institutions and the like. » read more »

[Perhaps I should consider changing my onlne persona to "Rogue Elephant"--something fitting my size, party affiliation, and thinking--or "Lose Cannon"--at least I think I am aiming at particular targets, but I know my voice is not that strong. So, with the usual disclaimer of "that's his opinon, we welcome yours", read on.]

Our present involvement in Iraq is an ongoing fiasco (read failure) worse than Vietnam. The U.S. had no business invading Iraq recently (okay, so it was 5 years ago), and even less of a plan, purpose, or pretext than in Vietnam.

Even the triumphal entry into Baghdad following the 'shock and awe', which was accomplished faster than anyone expected, and certainly faster than Tariq Aziz would have Iraqis believe, was a failure, in my opinion, because it constitued fraud--promising something one cannot deliver. The former President Bush also committed fraud in that certain Iraqis were led to believe that the U.S. would back them up if they were to try removing Saddam Hussein. » read more »

Some people just don't get it; they take temporal things way too seriously. I am thinking of things like promotions--at work, in an organization, at school; traffic situations; sports; politics; health--that part which is beyond one's control; in short, anyplace where the word "fair" might be used. I can't help but think that Americans are the ones who offend God the most in this matter. This is not only unwise, at best, showing one's lack of maturity. "The discretion of a man deferreth his anger; and it is his glory to pass over a transgression." (Proverbs 19:11, KJV)

"Going to bat for" someone where the offense is personal is in the same category. Asking, one time, politely and respectfully whether certain factors were considered is not what I mean; though that, too, could. Asserting that one "should, or should not, have done a thing" is another way of asserting an injustice was done. "Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (Genesis 18:25, KJV) » read more »

[Author's warning: long-winded, rambling ranting and raving of an aging sinner, saved by grace, ahead.]

I regularly eat lunch with some colleauges who are more than a little right of center. Invariably, politics and social issues of the day discussion start before even leaving the parking lot or deciding where to dine. Perhaps this is because Neil Boortz's radio show is blasting my sound-sensitive ears--I have tinnitus--and industrial ear plugs don't help.

If it's not Neil Boortz, then it's Rush Limbaugh. If I complain about the commentator, the content, the topic, or the volume, the radio get switched to one of the Christian (nearly in name only) rock stations. Admittedly, with the departure of the only decent Christian radio station in the early 1970's (I think it may have been WAVO or something close to that), there hasn't been radio station I could recommend to anyone interested in Christian music. But, I digress. » read more »