Let's go save the world!

A lot of my friends and family members like to play games like "World of Warcraft," "Axis and Allies," and "Age of Empires," but for some reason I never got into those games. I was thinking about why that is, and about the kind of things that I like. My first passion is to follow Christ and live to please Him, and in that to be a good husband for Angie, but I know that most of my friends and family share that kind of passion. One can be a Christ-follower and still fantasize about conquering the world if he/she is into that, but that's not really me.

I really like superhero comic books, mostly DC Comics, because for the most part these are heroes who want to save the world, but they will not kill the bad guys. I came to the conclusion that it is my desire to save the world, not to conquer it. Either way, that's a lot of responsibility!

The truth is, I'm the one who needs saving, and Jesus is my Savior. [Read ch. 7 of Wild at Heart by John Eldredge.] I'm actually pretty useless on my own, but Jesus Christ died on the Cross to take the punishment for my sin, so I am no longer guilty. He came alive again, defeating death, so He can give me the power to live for God's glory. When I try to do things in my own strength I mess up every time, but when I give up God will use me. (Sometimes He still uses me when I mess up because He is that great, but it is better when I give myself to Him!)

Paul was talking about how he had a weakness that he wanted God to take away from him, but 2 Corinthians 12:9 reads, "Each time he said, 'My gracious favor is all you need. My power works best in your weakness.' So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may work through me." (NLT)

As I said, I'm useless on my own, but God is powerful enough to use me when I yield to Him. (Still, it's fun to imagine I have superpowers and can save the world!)

Honor the king

"My son, fear the LORD and the king, and do not join with those who do otherwise, for disaster will arise suddenly from them, and who knows the ruin that will come from them both?" (Proverbs 24:21-22 ESV)

Even though in the United States of America we call our Commander-in-Chief the "President," for all practical purposes he is our king. Whether or not we agree with everything he does or if all his motives are godly, God has appointed him to be our leader for the present time, so it is not for us to rebel against him. We have the right to state our views and convictions, and it does make a difference, but we are obligated to obey the law. The only time to disobey the law is when it requires us to disobey God, and for now we are able to live godly and obey the law. Sure, people get away with things that are ungodly, but they must stand before God for the choices they make.

Blankets by Craig Thompson

Blankets is a graphic novel by Craig Thompson that is marketed to young adults and is in the Young Adult section of our library, but I decided not to put this review on the Young Adult Book Reviews blog, because I do not think it is really appropriate for teens. It is about a young man who grew up in a fundamental Christian home and how he dealt with worldly influences and personal decisions. It is a well-written story, and I found that I could identify with much of what the protagonist was going through. Unfortunately, he ultimately made the wrong decision, but every individual must decide for himself/herself, so it is a very real story. I would say the reader must use great discretion because the book is perhaps too real in places (i.e., there are some drawings of naked people), but it does address some good things to think about, so I thought it was still a valuable read. I was 29 when I read it, and I don’t think I would have been ready for it when I was any younger, so be warned. However, be careful not to dismiss everything because of certain elements you find inappropriate. In other words, don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. Young people, let your parents censor what you read, because they are your parents!

Review by David Dunkerton

Heroes 2.1.10 "The Wall"

I've been a fan of Heroes ever since the show began a few years ago. I don't like it as much as Smallville or Chuck, but it's about people with superpowers, so how could I ignore that? I liked how Pastor Trent Kirkland introduced his overview of Revelation on Sunday with comments about why people like superheroes. Whether it's the Greek gods or the Justice League, people like imagining heroes who are kind of like them, but more powerful. Superheroes are flawed individuals, and even though they defeat the supervillains one day, the supervillains always come back to pose another threat. From the beginning people have tried to make God into their own image, but God is Holy, without fault and totally different from us. Jesus is the only Hero who will completely and finally defeat the enemy, and that is what Revelation is about.

Last night's episode of Heroes, "The Wall," stood out to me as having a great message. Peter had gotten a glimpse of a future in which Sylar, a super-powered killer who had murdered Peter's brother Nathan, had a part in saving thousands of people. The story itself is complicated, but Peter and Sylar were trapped in Sylar's mind and couldn't get out. There was a brick wall that they knew they needed to break through, but no matter how many times they hit it with sledgehammers, nothing happened. Through this we see that Sylar had repented and didn't want to be a killer anymore, but Peter felt he could not forgive him for killing his brother. In time Peter admitted that Sylar was no longer a killer, and it was implied that he had forgiven him. The next time Peter hit that wall it started to break apart! That was a clear message that it was his unforgiving spirit that kept him trapped, but after he forgave Sylar the wall was broken.

Superman 2010

Superman = Santa Claus?

I had an interesting thought today. Superman is very similar to Santa Claus! They both live at the North Pole, can travel around the world at tremendous speed, and are seemingly immortal. Superman and Santa Claus are probably equally well known around the world, too. Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster were Jewish, so they probably didn't celebrate Christmas or think about Santa much, but I thought those were some interesting parallels.

The Horrendous Kablooie!

In The Days Are Just Packed! by Bill Watterson, Calvin is discussing the origin of the universe with Hobbes. His reasoning is that if scientists could imagine all the molecules of the universe coming from something the size of a pinhead, why couldn't they come up with a better name for it than "The Big Bang"? I loved how he put that!

So many people have bought into the concept of the Big Bang Theory (which is also a funny TV show about nerds) because scientists thought of it and everyone assumes they know what they're talking about. Don't get me wrong--I am a very rational thinker and have a high opinion of science that is done right. I love watching Mythbusters because they test everything scientifically, which must involve repeatable results. They cannot test the creation or evolution myths (and "myth" does not necessarily mean it's not true) because it is not repeatable!

There is evidence of some Natural Selection, which fits perfectly with the biblical accounts of Creation and the Flood, but no evidence that convinces me of everything coming from an amoeba. Natural Selection doesn't take millions of years, either--my nephew has blue eyes because his mom and dad both have blue eyes. It doesn't take millions of years for a canyon to form--it took a couple days after the eruption of Mount St. Helens. An approximately 7,000-year-old Earth makes a lot more sense to me than an Earth that is billions of years old. When archaeologists discover bones of dinosaurs and people, how do they know how old they are? Carbon-14 dating is inconsistent in its results, but we don't hear much about that. We don't hear much about the bones of 12-foot giants that have been found, either.

On Fox & Friends this morning they were talking about how there is an app on the iPhone that will translate a baby's cry for you, and that scientists have done research and found that you can tell exactly what a baby wants by the sound of its cry. How consistent are their findings, and are you going to buy that? Don't believe everything you hear, no matter who says it!