Random

...Small family farms are thriving -- if they operate with a different set of values that most farmers are unlikely to adopt.

...Scot McKnight is doing a multi-post review of RT France's book Women in the Church's Ministry.

...¡Viva Border Volleyball! The world's first game of international border volleyball on the beach where the US and Mexico meet.

...Zion Church, a Sheboygan, Wisconsin congregation that left the UCC, has voted to join the Covenant. What a great addition to the mission.

...Christianity Today's article on the recent rise in Calvinism among American young people is now online. I don't see this type of Reformed theology as particularly healthy. It tends to be locked into an overly rigid system -- and if something doesn't fit it gets squeezed in anyway.

...I've added new pictures of my classes and some other campus activity to our Guam blog.

...McSpam -- It's in English but it's definitely an Asian menu. I took this picture at the Tamuning McDonald's a few days ago. For some reason Spam is a very hot item on Guam. The Cost-U-Less has pallets and pallets of it. And it comes in a lot of different flavors.

Random

...Yahoo is making all of its employees take the last week of the year off. A sign of economic trouble or just plain business genius -- shutting everything down on the least efficient week of the year?

...Median house prices on the mainland are taking a dive. That wouldn't be a problem if the housing prices on Guam were taking a parallel dive. But they aren't.

Random

...One thing that is hard to adjust to in Guam is the fact that every time I walk out of the grocery store my glasses steam up and I can't see a thing until I find my way to the car, feel the key into the door and ignition, and then turn the air conditioning on. Other than that the tropical humidity, which hovers at about 90%, isn't too bad.

...One of the many wonderful discoveries that we've made on Guam is Black Chocolate. Other than the front of the wrapper, all the labeling is in Japanese so you don't ever have to worry about calories, fat, or anything else related to nutrition. Because of the English name we guessed that it was dark semi-sweet chocolate when we first spotted it in an Asian grocery store. And we were delightfully correct.

...Things I miss about life in Turlock (other than the obvious -- family, friends, church...): free shipping on Amazon.com books, eating Polish at Costco three times a week, getting my daily Diet Coke at Circle K, not having a place to live (tends to lead to chaos -- we're moving to a new three-week house-sitting gig today), not having a garden (yet). Ah, but we're on a God-driven adventure. No complaints. No home-sickness. After six nomadic weeks I'm still convinced that Guam is a great place to be.

...We've made airline reservations for Kent and Betsy to join us at Christmas. We're still waiting to find out if Kirk's company will give him the time off.

...ClarkHoward.com is reporting that Bank of America customers have now withdrawn over $7 million from the bank in response to their handling of the Matthew Shinnick incident. The bank mistakenly had him arrested and then refused to reimburse him $14,000 in legal fees.

All ethical and public relations issues aside, that sounds like it was a poor business move on their part. Still, it's probably going to take more than $7 million dollars to get the bank's attention.

Clark Howard is a level-headed talkshow host who deals with consumer advocacy issues. He called for his listeners to withdraw their money from Bank of America and after two days they have reported withdrawals totaling over $7 million.

Mystery DX Radio

Silence and static is mostly what you hear on the AM radio out here in the middle of the Pacific. Sure there are the three AM radio stations on Guam but other than that there is nothin' to be heard.

However, this evening the conditions were right for some skip and as I was DXing on the car radio I picked up an ABC (Australian Broadcasting Company) Local Radio station at AM 1550. I only had it for awhile and I didn't hear them mention a city. I can't find an ABC station at 1550 listed on the web. Any suggestions?

Guam is about 2,000 nautical miles north of the most northern portion of Australia.

Discipleship group

Cheryl is part of a student-led discipleship group which meets each Monday morning out under a palm tree.

Jayleen (Chuuk), Alynn (Chuuk), Anisa (group leader -- Chuuk), Helgah (Palau), Cheryl (US).

There is more information about our ministry with Micronesian students on our Guam blog.

Random

...Worth noting -- Dan Clendenin's article this week is about the Christian superiority complex. He's also got a review of David Augsburger's new book Dissident Discipleship.

...My church website of the week -- Adullam in Littleton, Colorado.

...Christmas in September. I noticed last evening that the K-Mart here on Guam has started setting up their Christmas displays -- right next to the 500 pallets of Halloween candy. The Japanese tourists were all taking pictures of the giant bubble which featured a snowman standing in falling snow. They must think we're so weird. Also, Christmasy, KLTY in Dallas has been carrying advertising for an upcoming Christmas show featuring the Radio City Rockettes. Maybe we are just plain weird.

Random

...French Intelligence is reporting that Osama bin Laden is dead. I'm always suspicious of these kinds of reports -- but the fact is that if he isn't already dead he will die sometime. "The length of our days is seventy years -- or eighty, if we have the strength; yet their span is but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away." Psalm 90:10

...Guam is probably the worst place in the world for bird watching -- but I have a new even more fascinating avocation -- fish watching. We went snorkeling again this afternoon and saw critters and colors unbelievable. This is addictive. I'm going to have to get an underwater camera someday.

Random

...Covenant pastor Randy Furushima has been named president of Hawai'i Theological Seminary.

...I've added some new pictures to our Guam ministry site.

...A new version of Blogger is in beta, a version with tags/labels.

...Christ Church Plano has formalized an agreement that allows it to leave the Episcopal Church and retain its property. The church, which was one of the largest in the Episcopal Church (USA) denomination, has temporarily come under the oversight of the Anglican bishop of Peru.

...We had the second day of student sermons in my preaching class today. Everyone who has spoken has been really really good. And we had a couple of women who really shined. My thinking is that the men in the class are somehow giving them special permission to speak so powerfully in their presence. My understanding is that Micronesian women will do a cultural stand-down in the presence of men. But I think that the men have been so encouraging and open that the women are feeling free to preach with authority and conviction. In a sense their success is directly related to the openness of the men in the class.

Random

...Just for fun -- or perhaps profit -- find out what your phone number spells with PhoneSpell. It kept me amused for a few minutes.

...On-the-job injuries have sidelined over 2,000 federal air marshals. I can soooo relate. I get cramps when I have to squeeze into those little seats, too.

...Washington Times: "Extremists called yesterday for an Islamic army to march on Rome because of remarks by Pope Benedict XVI, while a well-known Muslim firebrand said in London that the pontiff should face 'capital punishment.'"

So, let me get this right. These people are mad at the pope because they think that he is suggesting that they have violent roots. As a matter of fact, they are so mad at his insinuation that they are violent people that they want to kill him. Of course, those are the extremists. The others are only burning him in effigy. Ironic.

...Most asylum seekers apply to go to the US. France, Britain, Germany, and Canada are the next most popular destinations.

...There's a nasty looking category 4 typhoon called Yagi, which is currently about 700 miles off the coast of Guam. However, it doesn't appear to be moving our direction. Everything looks normal here for the beginning of fall. The only real indicator of seasonal change is the stockpile of Halloween candy and costumes at K-Mart.

Random

...OOG: The hospital came close to running out of blood the other day. Unlike when that happens on the mainland it didn't have to do with lack of donations but with the fact that the hospital was four payments behind to the Red Cross (which is the provider here on Guam). The hospital's response to the situation was to issue a statement advising people to be careful so that they didn't have any accidents.

I understand that they've now come up with some money and the blood is once again available to the hospital.

...The pope is an extremely intelligent man. But somehow he got broadsided when he quoted Byzantine emperor Manuel II Paleologus during an academic dialogue, "Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached..." The pope was trying to illustrate the historical connection between violence and religion. Certain people looking for an excuse to get everyone riled up yanked the quote from context to make it sound as though the pope were expressing his own opinion. They succeeded.

...Stan Friedman did an interview with Miroslav Volf.

...Bookmark: Foxit, slim, quick-loading .pdf reader

Gas, food, and Internet

...Wait! Don't sell your gas-guzzling SUV just yet. They're saying that gas will soon drop to $1.15/gallon on the mainland. (We're currently at $3.28 in Guam -- but it may drop some here, too.) Well, there goes all the impetus to develop alternative cleaner fuel.

...Upon Melissa's recommendation we got Philly Cheese steaks at the Steaks and Shakes restaurant tonight (Not the same as Steak & Shake in the mainland Midwest). Definitely an island winner.

...A construction crew hit a fiberoptic cable yesterday morning taking down the Internet for a good portion of Guam -- at least those utilizing a cable connection. But amazingly they had it back up within a few hours. There are times when things are at least as efficient here as they are on the mainland. Sometimes -- but often not.

I suspect that most people on Guam get their broadband from the cable company. We do at the school and it works fairly well. On the other hand, at the home where we're house-sitting they have DSL from a company called Talaya and the service has been extremely random. It's literally out of service more than it's on. Tonight it decided to start working again -- hopefully long enough to post this.

I bought some pre-paid dial-up from Talaya's parent company IT&E as a back-up (not too many choices here from cheap dial-up) and when it actually connects the connection is really slow. I should have known it would be this way. When I first got on island someone who was leaving Guam gave me a pre-paid IT&E cell phone with lots of minutes on it. They told me that IT&E had the best coverage on Guam. But it doesn't work at all where we're staying in Dededo -- the most populous village on the island. OOG.

Random

...Ann Richards, the former governor of Texas, died last night. Ann and I were not on the same page politically but I sure enjoyed her style. She was a true Texan.

...Tonight Cheryl and I went out to eat at a Mexican restaurant with a promising sounding name and an appropriate ambiance. But the food tasted like it was prepared by Asians. It was as though someone mailed a menu from Mexico to Guam but the people in the kitchen had never really tasted Mexican food. The Mexican rice was really Chamorro rice (which is good rice unless they're trying to pass it off as Mexican rice) and the beans were served cold -- probably because people in this part of the world don't have much experience with pintos.

Without access to Mexican food, this missionary gig is going to be harder than expected.

...A priest from the Church of England who converted to Hinduism has had his Anglican clergy credentials renewed. Truth is stranger than fiction.

...Kent was invited to a meeting with Michelle Bachelet, the president of Chile. He didn't actually get to talk with her but he does have pictures. Now that's a study abroad experience for a poli-sci major.

...They're going to restore the San Joaquin River -- assuming Congress can do their part.

...His protest was justified but disobeying orders and wearing the uniform was not.

Iraq vent

They'd been in Iraq for a year (!) and were packing up when with less than a week left on their tour of duty, the 172nd Stryker Brigade was told that plans had changed and they couldn't go home. They were redeployed to an area of Baghdad where the civil war has been particularly violent.

You can't help but admire the soldiers who are sacrificially giving 110%. Even though I tend to be more on the pacifistic end of the spectrum I have great respect and even admiration for military people and their families. (They understand mission. They are sacrificing their lives for a cause greater than themselves. They understand teamwork better than most.)

At the same time, though, you've just got to roll your eyes at how short-sighted and half-baked this whole Iraq fiasco has been from before day one. Of course, I developed an early bias on this one. I had decided that George Bush was an incompetent leader when we lived in Texas and he was the managing partner of the Rangers and then was elected governor. So I was convinced that he was hell-bent on starting WWIII.

Actually, I try to not rag on Bush too much. Whiners aren't any fun to be around. Besides, it's somewhat pointless since everyone else thought he was doing such a great job that they re-elected him. But there are times when his ill-conceived policies hurt people I actually know and I feel the need to once again let off a little steam.

Stand by, I just took a deep breath and I'm counting to 10.

Random

...They've discovered a new bird in that lives in a remote part of northeastern India near China. Very cool looking critter.

...Speaking of birds, why did the chicken cross the road? Because that's just what chickens do on Guam -- back and forth -- ubiquitous chickens. Since most of the other birds on the island have been wiped out by the invasive brown tree snakes perhaps the chicken should be declared the official bird of Guam.

...Greetings to my spiritual formation students who just figured out that I blog. I'll make you a deal. Instead of writing a reflection paper after practicing a new-to-you spiritual discipline for three weeks, you can create your own blog and for at least three weeks post a daily reflection about the Moravian Daily Text of at least two paragraphs. One place to set-up your own blog is at blogger.com. Send me email to let me know that you've chosen this option.

...Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church gets some pretty positive virtual ink in Salon -- although the writer homes in on the feminist issues.

Random

...Bob Webber, who has through his writing been very influential in my own thinking, has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, according an email newsletter distributed yesterday. Scot McKnight has summarized the info -- along with details on the AEF Call.

...Baylor Religion Survey: Americans are less secular than originally thought. Also, the meaning of the word "evangelical" has not only been lost, it has become a negative. A story in the latest issue of CT (not yet online) is making it sound like there is a major movement to bury evangelicalism so that Calvinism can carry the day.

I'm not a part of it. Calvinism is too rigid of a system -- ultimately trying to reduce the message of scripture to a few powerful themes. If we're Christ-centered, though -- and keep the focus on the center -- it's not necessary to work so hard to artificially squeeze everything on the periphery into the system. It's okay to live with some ambiguity -- if Christ is at the center. But, of course, mine is the line of thinking that marks classical evangelicalism. And for some reason we're no longer in vogue -- at least that's what the survey says.

...Microsoft's new search engine is now live.

...To do: try out Webwag when I get some free time -- yet another start page option.

Random

...Feed your paranoia -- FSBO, comfortable, underground SW Colorado home built to withstand almost any natural or man-made disaster, $475,000.

...Quote of the day: "Because forgiveness can feel like outrageous injustice, it can be a lengthy process rather than a once-for-all event." Kenneth Boa, Conformed to His Image (p. 51)

...My first fully productive day.

...The whole 9-11 anniversary seemed pretty low-key out here in the middle of the Pacific.

...Terry Mattingly has an insightful piece on how eulogies have changed.

...George Barna isn't really breaking new ground with his report that teens, in spite of all of the energy put into youth ministry, are disengaging from local churches when they become 20-somethings. Perhaps we've worked so hard at having a Christianity that is teen friendly that young people associate it too closely with the teen experience -- which like many other teen experiences is outgrown with adulthood. IOW, their experience of Christianity is so tied up with their adolescence that they can't separate the two when it comes time to move on.

...How the early church did communion.

...Kent Skyped us this morning from his room in Chile. It sounds like things are going well. Although, he is finding teaching to be a challenge. He has an internship in a Chilean high school class of educational misfits. I suspect he's learning a lot.

...Why am I not surprised that Kevin would be attracted to slacklining?

...Church website of the week: The New City Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Cedric Brown is the pastor.

Random

...There appears to be a correlation between obesity and watching religious television, as well as obesity and being a Baptist. The rest of us have no excuse.

...In many places homeowner's insurance costs more in rural areas than urban areas -- fire protection is the big issue.

...We have a new ministry update on the Guam blog.

...Keith Drury thinks that the Internet has changed how denominations function.

Random

...I've put my simple system of sermon preparation handout online. This is a one-page summary of how to go about crafting a simple sermon or Bible talk. I created it for my introduction to preaching students.

...I gave a brief message in chapel yesterday. Dave mentioned it on his blog.

...Lee Buck, the feisty Episcopal Church lay-evangelist has died.

...The BBC website has quite a piece on world population changes. People still seem to be headed into the cities.

...LifeChurch in Edmond, Oklahoma has made the NY Times. Specifically, their online confession site is generating interest.

...Can Wal-Mart take eco-economics mainstream? If they're serious about integrating environmental stewardship into their DNA they could do it. It wouldn't be perfect or totally consistent but it would go a long way in helping us get past the tree-hugger stereotypes.

...The Australian Football season is wrapping up this month. I caught a game on the Australian channel the other day. And I was able to figure out quite a few of the rules just by watching. Fascinating sport.

Random

...The changing face of religion in Sweden.

...About 2/3 of our cargo container has been unloaded into the spare rooms in the house on campus. And I've been reunited with my guitar and uke. Feels good.

A little busy

We've been burning the candle at both ends out here in the middle of the Pacific but I've got a few new pictures and details over on the Guam side of my blog.

Random

...Cheryl and I both have cell phones now. We're going to see if we can live without a landline. Hers is 671-988-4243 and mine is 671-988-4252. Guam is in the same system as the US mainland so if you're calling from the States or Canada no country code is needed. We are GMT +10. That means, if it is 4 p.m., Sunday afternoon in California, it is 9 a.m., Monday morning in Guam.

...Dave Owen, the president of PIBC, has started a blog.

...Yesterday we worshipped with the Guam United Methodist Church where a fellow Fuller alum, the engaging Daisy Ho, is the pastor. (This is also the church where Cheryl will be the part-time secretary). A couple of things really stand-out about this congregation -- the ethnic and social mix of people and the sense of family all these people have with each other. They have an after-worship eating time each week which is more than coffee and snacks but a little less than a full-blown potluck meal. I suspect that lots of bonding happens there.

...I learned a new word today -- ethnodoxologists. There is even an International Council of Ethnodoxologists.

...Wrestling for Jesus -- No it's not LarkNews.com. But it could be.

...Church website of the week: Circle of Hope in Philadelphia -- one church -- three congregations formed in cells --about 400 people -- 10 years old. I find their approach intriguing.

Guam report

It's been a phenomenal week. Unfortunately the Internet access where we're house-sitting is on the fritz so I'm going through withdrawal. However, here is a quick sum:

...Cheryl now has two jobs. She is the central office business manager for PIBC. I'm not exactly sure what that means but it mostly has to do with the PELL grant money that our students receive. She will also be working for 15 hours per week as the secretary at the Guam United Methodist Church -- just down the road from PIBC in Mangilao. This is a part of the way that we are self-funding a portion of our mission project.

...I finished teaching the first week of classes. It's not easy starting from scratch. But the students are wonderful and the interaction has been good.

...Saturday was the primary gubernatorial election on Guam. I've never seen anything like the campaigning here. Parades, rallies, debates, and signs everywhere. Stateside politicians would be green with envy over the level of community participation, interaction, and lines at the polls. There were hundreds of people camped out across the street from each of the polling sites -- holding rallies, calling to arriving voters over megaphones, waving to passing motorists -- all day Saturday. It's a massive political tailgater. Amazingly, with so much political passion the whole thing is pretty civil.

I would have no trouble voting for either of the gubernatorial candidates who won spots on the November ballot. It's great when you get to pick from two outstanding leaders rather than feeling like you have to choose the lesser of two evils.

...Our Turlock house is still unsold. But that hasn't stopped us from looking around on the north part of the Island. This is not a cheap place to live and there isn't a lot on the market.

...Our cargo container is on Island. We cleared it through customs on Friday and it is supposed to be delivered on Tuesday.