For those of you that wasted your childhood like I did...

Check this out! It's Tecmo Super Bowl from NES, only someone updated it with current rosters. Incredible. Good thing it's Friday and I have nothing to do at work...

World "Losing Fight Agains AIDs"

BBC currently has an article on their front page about how the world is "Losing Fight Against AIDs" Read the article, it's informative and horrifying. Especially in light of the fact that the problem is worsening in Africa and that Asia is well on it's way to the same infection rates. AIDs is changing what the world looks like. It's hard for me to imagine. The numbers of people dying are so large that I can't wrap my mind around it. Read the article if you've got a minute - it's got some pretty staggering stuff in it. Like:

Only a quarter of the people needing treatment were receiving it, meaning the other three-quarters would continue to spread the epidemic, which was still in its exponential growth stage, Dr Gazzard said.

For every one person that you put in therapy, six new people get infected. So we're losing that game, the numbers game," Dr. Fauci said.

It's a pretty terrible "game" if you ask me. If you're of the mind to pray, go to http://oldnaledi.blogspot.com We keep a weekly update of what's going on with our sister church in Old Naledi there. Clearly AIDs and it's aftermath are something we can't overcome on our own. But as Luke 11 reminds us, we have a Father who loves his children and hears their prayers. So, even if we can't all study, reasearch, give money, or go... we certinaly can and are called to pray. Here's a real tangible way to do that.

Summer Fun

Here's a few pics of the boy having fun at the pool. He loves the pool.

I was right all along...

I've always thought that Jane Austen was pretty much the most terrible author of "classic" literature ever. Apparently, so do most of the major publishing agencies once you change the titles and the names of the major characters. That's pretty funny. Thanks Ruetgers.com

The Old Naledi Church

Hey Friends,

Sorry I haven't updated this too much lately. Mostly, I've just been lazy. I sit in front of a computer half the day bored for work - I'll try to do a better job. Besides, I have some great pics of Eli to post.

Regardless, the Old Naledi church has started to send out a weekly(ish) update of what's going on with them and good ways to pray for them. I'll be posting in to the Old Naledi/Harvest Fellowship Partnership Blog. This would be a great way to find out about the work Erine and I will be joining in and the place we will be living in a year or so. Plus, they value your prayers. So here's the link. Go check it out.

Blessings,
KP

George Bush Sings Sunday Bloody Sunday

This is really funny.

Minnesota Trip

We went to St. Paul, MN over the weekend. Did some fun stuff. Went to a river town, a Twins game, and the zoo. Here are a few pics.

A Christian Society

I've been talking a lot with people about the both the church and the Church universal and how being a part of it should affect the life of the believer. It's tricky because most of us live it out through either 1. trivializing it to a Sunday morning and Wednesday evening 'institution' of sorts or 2. idealizing this unattainable (read Anninia and Siphira) sort of communal living living we see in very small part of the scripture (Acts 4:32-37) and living in constant disappointment. It's pretty interesting to me. Everyone I've talked with (present company included) has a lot more ideas of what the church shouldn't look like than we have ideas on how to change it to be a better reflection of the glory of God. Maybe it's just me. Tell me if I'm wrong.

Anyways, I read this little bit from C. S. Lewis's Mere Christianity this morning and found it to be pretty interesting and relevant. All italics or bolding are my additions.

"The New Testament, without going into details, gives us a pretty clear hint of what a fully Christian society would be like. Perhaps it gives us more than we can take. It tells us that there are to be no passengers or parasites: if man does not work, he ought not eat. Every one is to work with his own hands, and what is more, every one's work is to produce something good: there will be no manufacture of silly luxuries and then of sillier advertisements to persuade us to buy them. And there is to be no 'swank' or 'side', no putting on airs. To that extent a Christian society would be what we would now call Leftist. On the other hand, it is always insisting on obedience - obedience (and outward marks of respect) from all of us to properly appointed magistrates, from children to parents, and (I am afraid this is going to be very unpopular) from wives to husbands. Thirdly, it is to be a cheerful society: full of singing and rejoicing, and regarding worry or anxiety as wrong. Courtesy is one of the Christian virtues; and the New Testament hates what it calls 'busybodies.'
If there were such a society in existence and you or I visited it, I think we should come away with a curious impression. We should feel that its economic life was very socialistic and, in that sense, 'advanced', but that its family life and code of manners were rather old fashioned - perhaps even ceremonious and aristocratic. Each of us would like some bits of it, but I am afraid that very few of us would like the whole thing. That is just what one would expect if Christianity is the total plan for the human machine. We have all departed from that total plan in different ways, and each of us wants to make out that his own modification of the original plan is the plan itself. You will find this again and again about anything that is really Christian: every one is attracted to bits of it and wants to pick out those bits and leave the rest."

-- C.S. Lewis from Mere Christianity

I thought this was pretty interesting. I especially like the first paragraph. I think churches would be wise to follow what this Christian society "would be." Particularly the bolded parts.

No passengers or parasites - after all it is a body right? Everybody's got their part, yet it seems like to many of us are just along for the ride. Worse than that, we suck the life out of the people who are doing their part - because those people are also doing our jobs because we're to busy watching. Nothing about the Christian faith was ever advertised as easy... being a part of the body of Christ is no exception.

no manufacture of silly luxuries and then of sillier advertisements to persuade us to buy them. And there is to be no 'swank' or 'side', no putting on airs. - I think this one explains itself. Do we really need a 250,000 dollar sound system with subs and plasma tv's to put the words to our music on? I think not. Nor do we need to whore ourselves out by pouring all our time into looking 'hip' or 'relevant.' Just be the church. It's a reflection of Christ. That's attraction enough. We don't need dress it up with overdone sound systems and swag events. Seriously...

insisting on obedience - The Church is the hands, feet, and mouth of God (the Body) yes? Then, I don't think it's unfair to argue that God has given it authority unlike any other authority on the whole planet. Yet, the church is afraid to call sin what it is. We like to beat around the bush. Not to say that we should be harsh, unloving, and ungracious. By no means. But we also should not compromise. Yet, look at the church here in the US. There are some shinning examples, but there are also a lot who are becoming more and more tolerant of sin within the body. The church really should insist on obedience, because when we don't we all suffer greatly and more than that look just plain foolish - both in the local church and the Church universal.

cheerful society - this one is my favorite. It really should be. The church should be the utmost reflection of joy. By far we have the most to be joyful about.

Anyways, that's my long winded way of saying that I think it's a pretty interesting bit of writing. I'd love to hear what others are thinking.

KP