McManus on Calling Ourselves Christians

J.D. Grear, quoting Erwin McManus:

Jesus' first followers did not call themselves Christians; outsiders did. They simply followed Jesus and the world called them Christians; now we call ourselves Christians and the world calls us hypocrites.

SIU in Sweet Sixteen Again

For the second time in five years SIU has advanced to the Sweet Sixteen.

And Kirk Wessler, of the the Peoria Journal Star, points out something that makes me smile, and ought to be faxed to every member of the selection committee to shame them for withholding bids from Missouri State and Bradley:

SIU is the third Missouri Valley team in the last two seasons to advance to the Sweet 16. That's the same number as the ACC and the Big 12, two more than the Big Ten.

And the MVC did it with far fewer teams in the field.

Internet Access? Yes! Play-by-Play and Color? Disappointing.

I love the fact that I can choose to watch any tournament game in its entirity instead of experiencing the crapshoot coverage over the television.

However, I am underwhelmed with the coverage the announcers have provided thus far. For example, would someone please send a memo to CBS to let everyone know that SIU has already played VaTech this season, and won. Maybe someone has pointed it out when I wasn't paying attention, but so far I've heard comments like, "We'll see if a team like Southern can hang with an ACC team like Virginia Tech, a team that has beaten the likes of Duke and North Carolina."

Hello? Do you do any homework at all before you make these comments? SIU HAS ALREADY BEATEN VIRGINIA TECH ONCE THIS YEAR!

0-1 So Far

Well, I picked FL A&M to win the play-in game but that's only because I didn't know a thing about either team, and since I live in Florida I figured I'd pick the homer...but some kid named Clif Brown dropped 32 on the Rattlers to send them back to the Sunshine State.

1st Game

Cars

How Do You Arrange Your Books?

Ok, here's the deal: I have twelve bookshelves in my study and I'm pretty much out of space. They're, for the most part, full. When I get a new book and then try to fit it on the shelf, I have a hard time finding room for it without transferring other books on other shelfs (to keep them in order). So I'm considering a reorganization of my library to make it easier.

I currently have the following sections in my library:

1. Commentaries
2. Bibles and Greek Helps
3. Systematic Theologies and Dictionaries
4. Current Resources: Books I currently refer to for my current preaching and writing tasks; these are culled from the other sections, then put back.
5. Theology: These are put in the order that systematic theology is typically done.
6. Favorite Authors: Books by Piper, MacArthur, Sproul, Stott, and Lloyd-Jones
7. Biographies
8. History
9. General: in alphabetical order (this is my catch-all category with everything from The Reformed Pastor by Baxter to Dare to Discipline by Dobson.
10. Attractive Sets: think sets like "The Works of Benjamin B. Warfield"

How have you organized your library?

The Way Our Hymns Have Changed

Over at the Together for the Gospel blog (accessible by clicking on the link to the right b/c I'm too lazy tonight to embed it in this text!) Mark Dever makes an amazing observation about how we American Evangelicals have a decreasing interest in thinking about the afterlife:

In my own denomination's hymnals, hymns about the afterlife drop in number from over 100 in the late 19th century to about 15 in the latest Baptist Hymnal (1991). Remaining hymns are neutered. The Baptist hymnal (1975 & 1991) both omit the wonderful 5th stanza from Cowper's great hymn "There is a Fountain". If you have the 1956 Baptist Hymnal you can still find it. "When this poor lisping stammering tongue Lies silent in the grave, Then in a nobler, sweeter song I'll sing Thy power to Save." Our reluctance to sing about the grave in church on Sunday only reveals how much our hopes have been entrusted to this life--and we do not wish to conceive of them being lost. Our treasures have been put too much in this world.

Sola Hawaii

Of our 50 states, Hawaii alone saw an increase in church attendance from 1990 to 2000.

American Idol: Doolittle

If Melinda Doolittle is not the last female standing on this season's American Idol, then I don't put much stock in the judgment of the American people. She is head and shoulders above the competition, with only Lakisha Jones even in range.

Who do you think is the best among the ladies?