the view from her

Go check out "a Mother's Day Ditty," a witty little ditty written by my friend Craig over at Get it? Got it. Good. Craig is really one of those ultra-multi-talented people and this particular skill is almost unparalleled anywhere: he writes parody songs. Really clever, funny, touching ones.

He used to create them for holidays at The Local Megachurch, whom you can hear raucously appreciating him in the background. Enjoy.

Did I mention I'm once again living with a younger man? I highly recommend it - as long as you can find a really handsome, funny, dishwasher-running one.

Yes, my nephew has returned from travels abroad. He actually started a successful business in a foreign country because he wanted to do something, you know... challenging. He was successful.

I love being his base of operations. I really do recommend living with someone younger (not your own children) if you can possibly arrange it as you get older. It gives you a different perspective on things and keeps you reasonably up-to-date on new music, and technology, and opinions and what not to wear.

We have an agreement when we are out in public. If we meet someone he knows, he introduces me as his aunt. If we meet someone I know, I introduce him as my friend. Heh.

Scientists in the UK are seeking women to eat chocolate every day for a year in the cause of medical research.

(HT: IWT)

"My child would have been six this year."

"I often wonder if there was something I could have done to help her."

"My wife gets depressed around the anniversary..."

These are the stories of both men and women whose lives have been affected by abortion. A new national outreach is working to increase awareness about the emotional fallout people experience following an abortion. "Abortion Changes You" was started this year to provide a safe place to find information and resources, and connect with the shared experiences of others.

The Guttmacher Institute, an organization affiliated with Planned Parenthood, states that "slightly more than one in five pregnancies ended in abortion in 2005." Our culture has been so focused on the "what" of abortion (is it murder? A choice? A human or a glob of cells?), that we've tended to overlook the "what happens next" aspect of this decision. Abortion proponents hit a snag when they minimize or overlook the emotional devastation that is becoming more apparent and well-documented. Pro-lifers have a unique opportunity to demonstrate compassion as people struggle in hindsight with unexpected and conflicting feelings about their beliefs.

The web site offers a place to tell your story, build a support system, explore emotions, identify and begin grieving losses, and recognize unhealthy behaviors. You can also enter your zip code for support resources in your area. Biola alumnae involved in the project (this story is from the current issue of Biola Magazine, which was not yet posted as of this writing) indicate that the site and its materials were specifically intended to be be open to people of "all faith backgrounds and political perspectives."

A separate web site, abortionchangesyouresources.com, offers information and materials specifically designed for pastors and church leaders. There are probably untold men and women sitting in church every week with a terrible secret. This is a resource that can help them find healing and freedom.

It really might look something like this.

Especially the comments.

I was sitting in my car today, at a red light waiting to get on the freeway, when I noticed the license plate of the car in front of me. The frame said:

"Submission
God's true religion"

I thought about what the intended meaning of that might be. Is it a specific perspective on our faith? - Christ submitted to the Father when He died on the cross, and so we are to live lives fully submitted to Him? Or is it reflecting the Bible's command to submit to each other? I didn't notice whether the driver was a man or a woman - is it a woman affirming the traditional role of a wife submitting to her husband? Or worse, a man defining all faith as his wife's utter submission to himself?

Then of course, because I'm so habitually and possibly quite neurotically analyzing words, I started to wonder what other words might be considered "God's true religion." Love? Redemption? I think I might consider "grace" to be God's true religion.

Of course, the Bible makes its own statement on this issue in James: true religion is to keep a tight rein on one's tongue, to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Wait... does God even have a religion?

A billion dollar U.S. franchise took a definitive step this week in an attempt to upgrade its image to appeal to an even wider, more lucrative audience and increase market share. Unfortunately, the audience liked the product just the way it was, and the backlash now threatens the equity value of the franchise.

No, I'm not talking about "the new Coke." I'm not even talking about a real corporation, exactly. I'm talking about Miley Cyrus, human being and 15-year-old girl. Ms. Cyrus is the star of Disney's wholesome "Hannah Montana," watched by more than 3 million viewers, mostly aged 6 to 14. She recently posed topless for Vanity Fair magazine, though covered by what appears to be a satin bed sheet.

There's a lot of breathless commentary by parents, media, Disney spokes-people, Vanity Fair spokes-people and Wall Street analysts. Here's what I think happened. She's fifteen. It's time to move her into the big money. If she's a billion dollar franchise as a wholesome teen, she'll be a multi-billion dollar franchise as a sex object. It's inevitable, and it's a no-brainer - as a sex object she'll appeal to the lucrative adult audience, plus she brings along all the tweeners and young teens who still want to be like her. In marketing terms, that's a win-win.

The lie, of course, is that it's "artistic," it's "beautiful and natural." This is what always appeals to artists, and young girls who yearn to be considered beautiful. The decision isn't now whether she can maintain her wholesome image. That's over, because in this world the money always wins - even if she manages to hold out another couple of years. The only real question for girls facing hard decisions is, "what kind of person do I want to be?"

And no, it's not just because it was a date with a liberal. These interviews with six conservative women include good first date ideas, bad first date ideas, and some terrible worst date stories (shooting rats at the dump, and having beer poured on your head, for example).

Which of course reminds me of one of my worst dates. It was when I was in college, and he (I can't remember his name, which is ironic as you will soon understand) was taking me to see "A Chorus Line" in Hollywood at the Pantages Theater. We had dinner first, at a very nice restaurant. And the thing was, he repeatedly called me by the wrong name. Several of them, in fact. He called me Joan, and Jean, and Jen, and Jenny, and Jane. I'm not kidding.

Then of course, when it was all over and finally time to go home, we discovered he had locked his keys in the car. When we eventually did make it back to my apartment, he walked me to the door and politely asked, "Can I come in, Ginny?" That was the easiest "No" I think I ever had to say.

What about you? Come on... let's hear it.

(Via Althouse)

This should explain why there was no blog posting earlier today.



Don't be a hater.

Weird Christian Dating Sites is just one in a long list of Stuff Christians Like.

"...like a lot of things in society, alongside match and eharmony, Christian versions have emerged. You probably have a favorite, but based on the 978 radio commercials I've heard in the last week, I'm going with the site, "Equally Yoked."

I think this is probably a good site. They sincerely seem dedicated to helping Christians meet other Christians and it looks like a safer dating alternative. In fact, this is one of the benefits they talk about, "You are meeting proactive people with criminal background checks, sexual offender background checks, who want to be contacted!" Can you imagine if your friend set you up for a date by saying, "He's a proactive person with a sexual offender background check. And he's good with animals."

I don't have any issue with the site except the name. Being yoked just doesn't sound like an awesome experience. I know it's a biblical term and important. I believe that my wife are yoked and that yoking is all around cool. But have you ever in your life said to a friend, "I think it's time I settle down and get my yoke on."

If you haven't discovered this site yet, be prepared to not get anything else done the rest of the day.

Religion and science are the two reasons I read Sun and Shield. Because I really do want to know The Religious Implications of the Second Law of Thermodynamics. Don't you?

Martin says, "The implications have to do with the resurrection, with human diet, and with a great deal more." Admit it. Aren't you just a little curious?

I know this has nothing to do with any of the topics I normally discuss here, but seriously. Martin has one of the most unique and interesting blogs going.

Via email, I recently received "The Importance Of Correct Punctuation":

Dear John:

I want a man who knows what love is all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when we're apart. I can be forever happy--will you let me be yours?

Jane

Dear John:

I want a man who knows what love is. All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men, I yearn. For you, I have no feelings whatsoever. When we're apart, I can be forever happy. Will you let me be?

Yours, Jane

I'm thinking maybe that should be called "The Power of Punctuation." Heh. More Punctuation Perspectives here.

I went out to dinner Sunday night with The Girlfriends. Our conversation included: buying a pair of pants off the rack that actually fit, some funny mishaps at someone else's wedding, a recent video at The Local Megachurch, new pajamas, birthday presents, tatoos on firefighters, and the Church of Body Modification. We're just that broadly informed.

Apparently, Mrs. S, who works in Human Resources, had heard a story of a Costco employee terminated because of body piercings, who sued on the grounds of religious discrimination. Because body modification is her religion. Apparently, there is some question about whether or not the Church of Body Modification is actually a church. The court apparently had doubts, too.

The skeptical Miss L wondered, "So...can you just believe anything and call it a religion? Like - I'm just going to start a church of... used cars?" I don't think that's exactly what she suggested, but it doesn't really matter because we all were immediately thinking of topics you could make into a religion. Chocolate was the early favorite. We all have a chocolate-shaped hole deep inside us. We want to share chocolate with all our friends. It brings meaning to our lives. The Church of Chocolate.

Or...personally, I might start a Church of Napping. Because it would be cool if your employer couldn't fire you for taking a little refresher every afternoon. And talk about making you a new person.

Joe Carter over at Evangelical Outpost has announced an open call for participation in the 2008 EO Symposium. Joes says,

"Every year I host a blog symposium on a topic of interest to Christian bloggers in the hopes of fostering an engaging and fruitful discussion. The topic this year is: "If the medium affects the message, how will the Christian message be affected by the new media?"

The top four posts chosen by our panel of judges will receive:

(1) A full tuition scholarship for a Christian high school student of the winner's choice to Wheatstone Academy. [A $950 value]

(2) The 'Quintessentials' from Stand to Reason, including the Ambassador Basic Curriculum, Tactics in Defending the Faith DVD, Decision Making and the Will of God CD set, and a signed copy of Greg Koukl's new book Relativism: Feet Firmly Planted in Mid-Air. [A $150 value]

(3) A full-tuition scholarship to the upcoming GodBlogCon (September 2008). [A $150 value]

(4) A two-year subscription to Touchstone Magazine. [A $59.95 value]

Putting together the symposiums takes a huge amount of work but I've found it to be a great way for the Christian blogging community to discover new voices and to join together for serious discussion."

Submissions will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. EST on Friday, April 25th. It's a great topic and should provide some very thought-provoking discussion.

I forgot to mention that at "Q," they gave us a gift bag full of books. Literally. What follows is a summary of books I've recently received that I need to read or at least look at. (And I'm sorry, but I'm not taking time to link to them all.)

Q Bag O' Books Reading List:
I Became a Christian and All I Got Was This Lousy T-shirt - Replacing Souvenir Religion with Authentic Spiritual Passion, by Vince Antonucci
The Faith - Charles Colson
Finding Our Way Again - Brian McLaren
Building a Healthy Multi-Ethnic Church - Mark Deymaz
Finding God Beyond Harvard - Kelly Monroe Kullberg
Every Monday Matters - Matthew Emerzian
And a sampler of Andy Crouch's new book Culture Making - Recovering Our Creative Calling, due to be available August 2008.

And then, based on my two favorite "Q" sessions, I just had to order Dr. Francis Collins' book The Language of God, and Shane Hipps' The Hidden Power of Electronic Culture: How Media Shapes Faith, the Gospel, and Church.

Plus, my boss just gave me Death By Meeting, and The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, by Patrick Lencioni, Simple Church by Thom Rainer, and we're having discussion groups on Our Iceberg is Melting, by John Kotter.

I'd love to know if you've read or heard of any of these. Anyway, it appears my current reading list totals 13. (Who says books are a thing of the past?)

I'll keep you posted on how that's going...