The Sound of Forehands Clapping

Wordpress Ate my Blog!

2008-11-12T18:42:00.000-08:00

In a good way that is. I have just transformed my blog from a blogger hosted one to a wordpress self hosted site at:

http://4handsclapping.com

Everything went better then I expected:

Sign up for hosting and get domain
My friend Anthony recommended and I went with dream host. Registration took all of 5 minutes (plus 15 minutes waiting for google to process my payment.)

Install blogging software
Once into the dream host control panel I had Word Press installed within 2 or 3 minutes.

Trasnfer over previous posts
Took me a few minutes googling to figure that built into the Word Press control panel was functionality for pulling over my previous blog posts and their comments. That process took all of a few minutes (I am new to blogging so I have few posts though don't forget)

Transfer over theme
I decided to transfer my theme over as well because I didn't want to have to look for another one. This was the trickiest pat and involved just way too much cut and paste. I actually wound up using beyond compare to view the textual differences between my old home page and my new. That actually worked pretty well. Doesn't look perfect yet, but then again it didn't before either.

If I tallied up all the time I think we'd be looking at maybe an hour to an hour and a half. Not bad.

Right now I am thinking about why I am blogging. Here are the reasons in descending over of importance:

Thoughts -> Text = Good
I need to be forcing myself to write down my thoughts. There are numerous benefits to doing so. One of them for me is that a may think I have a bright idea, but once I start to write it down more of my analytical skills kick in and that once bright starts to seem a bit dim. But maintaining a journal could solve that, so why a blog? Reasons 2 and 3 help answer that.

Exposure to friends and family
I'm sure that those who care about me would be interested in knowing what their buddy is currently thinking about or wrestling with. Putting those thoughts online makes that possible. It also gives them a chance to offer correction or encouragement. I need both of those in equal measure.

And beyond . . .
Finally, maybe, just maybe, my thoughts and idea wrestling will in the vast sea of blogs be of some benefit to someone else out there. Either way, reasons 1 and 2 are good enough for me.

Some outside thoughts on blogging in general or blogging as a Christian in specific?

Fight or Flight

2008-11-11T14:30:00.000-08:00

Last night a friend and I were talking. He was turned inside and out and up and over and all around over a relationship of his that has recently come to an end. At one point he noted how joyful he had been just the previous day and yet now all of that joy was gone and he was left confused and feeling stupid and without hope.

This seems to be an all to regular cycle for my friend . . . and me. I get down and I'll ask God to get me out of it, but I have this aching feeling that my motifor "getting out of it" is not perfectly pure. Do I want to see the glory of God shown in my life that his name might be made much of by those around me? Yes, yes I do. But there is this other part that just "wants to not feel bad."

When that doubt about motivations comes upon me my response tends to be one of not going to him, because "I'm probably just trying to use him."

I popped over to desiring god and looked for some teaching I've read before and found it: How Shall We Fight for Joy? Point number four seemed to speak to this. I am wrestling with how to respond to the truth that within me there is a mixture of both Godly desire and fleshly lust.

The enemy, I believe, would like to tell me "Look you know your motivations for going to God for joy are tainted. In fact your main motivation probably isn't good. Asking God to make you happy for your own sake and not his is sinful. You should leave God out of it till you get that straight."

I know that's not true when I say it out loud, but in the midst of it it gets me. It has that partial truth: My desires are not completely pure. I was saved by his grace and so my only hope must be more of the same. With that in mind I plan on spending some time in Scripture and prayer asking God to lead me in "fight[ing] like a justified sinner."

How Shall We Fight for Joy?
By John Piper January 1, 1995

1. Realize that authentic joy in God is a gift.

2. Realize that joy must be fought for relentlessly.

3. Resolve to attack all known sin in your life.

4. Learn the secret of gutsy guilt - how to fight like a justified sinner.

5. Realize that the battle is primarily a fight to see God for who he is.

6. Meditate on the Word of God day and night.

7. Pray earnestly and continually for open heart-eyes and an inclination for God.

8. Learn to preach to yourself rather than listen to yourself.

9. Spend time with God-saturated people who help you see God and fight the fight.

10. Be patient in the night of God's seeming absence.

11. Get the rest and exercise proper diet that your body was designed by God to have.

12. Make a proper use of God's revelation in nature.

13. Read great books about God and biographies of great saints.

14. Do the hard and loving thing for the sake of others (witness and mercy).

15. Get a global vision for the cause of Christ and pour yourself out for the unreached.

Update!
Just found a book over at desiring god that I'll be checking out:

When the Darkness Will Not Lift
John Piper

Even the most faithful, focused Christians can encounter periods of depression and spiritual darkness when joy seems to stay just out of reach. It can happen because of sin, satanic assault, distressing circumstances, or hereditary and other physical causes.

This book, which is an expansion of a chapter in When I Don't Desire God, aims to give some comfort and guidance to those experiencing spiritual darkness.

Download this book (PDF).

Update 2!
"My friend" would like me to give him a nick name in the post. So how about we just say his name is . . . "James."

Using People to the Glory of God

2008-11-10T15:15:00.001-08:00

I often use people. Say I have something I want to get done, but I know I'll probably never get around to it. What do I do? I convince someone that they need to do the same thing and that we can do it together!!

In totally unrelated news I just reasoned with a friend of mine that he should start reading theology. Figured J.I. Packers Knowing God would be a good starting place for the guy. I even offered to read the book along with him - Man what a helpful guy I am . . . MUHAHAHAhahaha! :D

Group Bible Study

2008-11-10T14:46:00.001-08:00

My friend and I have been kicking the tires on a plan for the next time we lead a bible study. Some notes here. Pretty basic stuff - We're under no illusion that we're "doing something new" except with regards to our personal experiences. In both of our past groups our personal bible study practices have been all but absent when it comes to participating in a group study. Our unspoken way of thinking has gone "well a group study is a completely different animal then personal bible study and so it should be approached in a completely different way as well." We are wondering if that is (or I should say has to be) necessarily true though.

So we're imagining what it would be like to go through a group study slowly, carefully, focusing on vocabulary, being careful with importing things, not making sub points the main points, working through propositional relationships, etc. We threw down some notes and took the baby for a spin (with my wife, him and I.)

It went pretty well. My wife was some what uncomfortable at first. "Why do you take the passage to mean that?" . . . "No, I wasn't asking you to restate how you took it, but why you took it that way honey." The endeavor was undertaken with gentleness and kindness and patience and in the end we all attested to leaving the study with not only a clearer picture of what God was saying in the passage, but also of having been affected by it.

So that was good and we are going to kick the tires some more. The biggest hurdle we believe won't be having the study be fruitful for those who already understand and embrace the Bible study methods and principles that we use, but that it will be convincing the uninitiated to give it a try in the first place.

Next pilot run should invovle someone who isn't obligated to follow me (i.e. my wife) :)

I know, I know

2008-08-18T12:21:00.000-07:00

First rule of blogging is: blog. I fail. I know.

Two blogs I've been planning to write (come on, that's similar to writing them isn't it) are:

Questioning My Assumptions on the Variance of Common Grace in Regards to the Creation of Male and Female With Respect to Headship in Marriage and Eldership in the Church, or something 'er other like that.

And, I can't remember the other one. Sheesh, Maybe I should schedule weekly time to write.

Short Circuit Sweded

2008-06-27T11:53:00.000-07:00

The clip above is the result of our initial effort at sweding Short Circuit. Please do compare the opening scene of the original with our version.

If you are unfamiliar with sweding it is a unique form of cinematography, musical scoring and special effects popularized in the movie Be Kind Rewind. Here are some examples of sweding:

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Never Ending Story

Back to the Future Trilogy

To see more sweded works just search "sweded" at youtube.com.

As our production of Short Circuit continues I'll post new scenes. :D

Random Thoughts on the Bible and Confrontation

2008-06-13T13:09:00.001-07:00

Part of what I'll use this blog for is to collect random thoughts that I can't attend to immediately, but that seem important to give time to when I have it. With that said . . .

My friend was talking about a friend of his who is a bit off on his theology. I felt uncomfortable as I thought about being in that spot. Confrontation irks me, but then a thought came into my mind that I want to wrestle with later and let the Scriptures examine:

Our confidence in confrontation can not be grounded in our "rightness" but in our sincere love for the one that we are confronting.

I just read the first part of a pamphlet, or small book, by Pastor John Piper on Biblical Exegesis. I've been lax in going to Gods Word for a while. As most Christians I know that "this is a problem" and that "I should read the Bible more." In the first page of the first chapter Piper said:

I believe that the Bible is God’s Word. Therefore I must define the ultimate goal of exegesis so as to embrace the heart as well as the head. The Scriptures aim to affect our hearts and change the way we feel about God and his will. The exegete, who believes that this aim is the aim of the living God for our day, cannot be content with merely uncovering what the Scriptures originally meant. He must aim, in his exegesis, to help achieve the ultimate goal of Scripture: its contemporary significance for faith. It is the will of God that his Word crush feelings of arrogance and self-reliance and that it give hope to the poor in spirit.

I needed that. I need to have that view of Scriptures. Just joined a new small group and we're going through Ephesians. I was excited about joining this small group as I knew it would force my hand to read the Bible more. In reading the beginning of this pamphlet though I found my aim shifting from "being good" to wanting my flesh crushed so that I can get a good view of my Father. I want to be vigilant to examine myself and my purpose for reading the Scriptures.

The Fire Pit

2008-06-11T12:00:00.000-07:00

I probably should have started out with a posting about our housing arrangement, but I will get to that later. We are new home owners who have decided to put a fire pit in our back yard. Here is a little photo tour to bring you up to date with the work:

Rotatilling the Area

Laying a Weed Barrier

Spread Sand Around

Pour Concrete Into Molds

Pour More Concrete Into Molds

Take Breaks

Acknowledge that Yes you could beat me up

Admire Progress

Joy Begins Work on Stained Glass Portion

Time to Dig the Actual Fire Pit Hole

Sand Fire Pit Hole

Pour Concrete for Bottom of Fire Pit

Smooth it, then let it dry

Pour Concrete for Wall Base

Admire Joy's Finished Work

Work in Progress
We actually have done a bit more (laying the first row of bricks, getting most the stained glass pieces in place and starting to sand in between all the stones) and have pics to go with it. This blog post will be a work in progress.

Update - The Final Photos at Last!

family, faith, life, etc

2008-06-11T11:11:00.000-07:00

I just need a place to capture these thoughts. I've never journaled, but should. I forget things really easily. Which kind of makes rediscovering them exciting, but more often I think they just vanish.

Right now I have some house projects going on, just starting a study of Ephesians, just started at a new church, have 4 awesome kids from 6 years old to almost 5 months old, and the list goes on. I think I have enough stuff to stuff the blog. We'll see. :)

Style

2008-06-11T10:51:00.001-07:00

Must master blogger look and feel modding.