Artifacts of a Life Once Lived

What may conquer the spirit of a man? Not war. Not famine. Not disease. Not death. No, only starvation of love may conquer the spirit of a man. It is not good for a man to be alone. Would it then be safe to say that it is an evil for a man to be alone. Countless stanzas of love starved sonnets line the folios in the shelves of the human soul. Thousands upon thousands of beating hearts can be heard, even in the distant past, as the army of romantics march on into the greatest battle the human soul. Some march into hopeful victory and some march into merciless defeat. Myriads of love songs litter the soul literature of every great and small, past and present, barbaric and cultured civilization. A man deprived of love is as a starved and abandoned infant. Left on the doorstep of some unbeknownst stranger .   H elpless to feed itself, a neglected infant lies in wait for some conscience-bound soul to pity its unfortunate circumstances. Yet, where a child cries in the ...

How do I understand the 1 John 5:7 issue? I think I understand the peer pressure of institutions very well and their selective discrimination in the name intellectual progress/prestige. I have not been taught 1 John 5:7 is inferior, I have been taught that it's not authentic. There is a difference, I think. I was taught the Catholic Church added the text at a later time. From what I have learned there is very little good evidence to support the authenticity of 1 John 5:7 as being original to the writing of the Epistle. If its additional text then it shouldn't be included, should it? I have no problem giving it the benefit of the doubt, but is it not bizarre that it does not show up prior to the 16th century, even in Byzantine Manuscripts (majority text type)? Aside from the textual evidence, I think the strongest argument against its authenticity is the understanding that the doctrine of the Trinity had not yet been hashed out in John's day. The first authoritative claim t...

Justin, Greetings again! I had no idea about the connection with you and Lindsay Barletta. That is wonderful. How in the world does someone in Great Britian go out with someone in the US? Those must be very expensive dates! I am glad to hear it. I do know who she is, though I don't know her well. I knew her brother Zachery better. Her Granda was my 4th grade teacher, if I have the right Lindsay in mind! I look up to you for your industrious attitude given your vision impairment. I admire that in anyone. It makes me feel ashamed of myself, especially when I complain! I will certainly encourage you in your English studies. I also love literature. I did not enjoy English literature as much as I did American literature in college, but I guess its because I didn't really understand Chaucer's English! I love to read widely. I ought to give the English authors another chance. I did read a biography a while back by Edmund Gosse called "Father and Son: A study of two temperme...

Hello Justin, I trust you are well. My father, George Grace, asked me to try and give you some direction concerning some questions you had pertaining to the canon of the Bible and I am delighted to help. The questions you raise are wonderfully difficult questions, ones that have interested me for some time now. I appreciate the opportunity to interact here since it is good for me to think through this a bit myself and put this into writing in a concise fashion. At least I will try. My father tells me you are British? I have always wanted to visit Great Britain, maybe because somehow I feel a sense of origin there given my Scotch-Irish heritage. If I may, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Scott Grace. I am Pastor Grace’s youngest son. I am currently 28 years old and live in Dallas, Texas. Some exciting news though is that after a long time away from home at school I am planning on moving back to Rochester, NY in the middle of this coming May. I have been away for almost 9 y...

Home in FL:   Was originally appraised at $2.6 million pre-construction pending completion.   Currently in foreclosure. Multiple Liens. 97% complete.   Current broker suggested-opinion of value: $1.8 million.   Loss of value: $800,000 – $38,000 (3% of uncompleted hard cost items) = $762,000   TOTAL LOSS (assuming BPO value is accurate): $762,000 [29.3%]    

Sitting, staring, wondering, on the world busily advancing. Things are happening, mysteriously moving, as if without end. For each one has a longing, desperately - even to loathing, but for what cannot fully be told. Age old fables tell of ten thousand lovers whose love found no resting. In hills, in valleys, in deserts, in forests, pined away as captives in their own prison. Folk tales preserve hunters seeking unspoiled treasures, whose incessant search found unhappy ending. In caves, in seas, in distant lands, in islands, died, a single treasure never to behold. All to common is the story's familiar tone. Instantly recognizable in universal speech, it breaks upon the shadowy rocks of our hearts. I Look, but never will I find. For what I am seeking hides in eternal shadows. I Yearn, but never to be satisfied. For the vestige of which I yearn darkens into heavenly obscurity. I Long, but never will I taste for the object of my longing is known only to the celestial throng. 'Then...

I wanted to explain myself, but I don't know how to express what I think very well, but at last, I must try. It is not my nature to be simple. It is rather my nature to complicate where complication is not needed. So please, forgive me. First, you had my attention the minute I met you. I am sure I am not the first, nor will I be the last. There is a beauty that is instantly recognizable, though not every one in the same manner. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." Nonetheless I found a creation that was indeed beautiful, and instantly I was drawn as moth is to the light. Second, not all that is beautiful is desirable. How that determination is made, once again, is different for all. What is desirable may not even be beautiful. I have found that, as concerns the affectionate, something/someone that is both beautiful and desirable is a rare joy to behold worth seeking out, and I found that in you, even if the time was short. Third, there are things in this world that br...

A storm breaks in upon the musty streets, sharp lightening flickers on the horizon revealing the thick blanket of hovering clouds, and the smell of rain on the bone-gray asphalt informs the senses that all is not well in this pretentious little society. The sound of city life lends to anxiety upon anxiety; the passing of frequent speeding wheel, the thumping of deep bass, the howling of city dogs, the thundering of jet-powered blasts approaching touch-down, the squeaking of metal on metal as the tires slosh to a halt near streets end. The familiarities of the city fail to comfort the unsoundest of love-starving hearts. From my balcony, the well-lit tower, or should I more accurately describe, fortress of imagined wealth, crowds in on the saturated horizon of florescence and dust reminding me that all is not well in our most advanced of civilization. All to frequently a speeding yellow transport clogs the stillness of quickly settled air, meanwhile a random youth clogs her way alone dow...

A seminary friend emailed a few of us, and at one point in my life I would have tried to tackle these questions head-on, but with the seasons, my thoughts have changed. Here’s what she asked: How do God’s predestination and foreknowledge fit together? Is God’s predestination based on his foreknowledge? Or is his foreknowledge based on his predestination? But, I don’t see why, practically, these questions are good/important. They seem academic, and I don’t see how the answers affect my daily walk, or how they affect my ministry to others. I suppose if you’re purpose in trying to wrap your finite mind around infinite, intangible, anagogical, abstract principles is to know and love God more, it’s worth the headache. I think there is a danger in it though, simply searching for some end or some solution as if you are going to solve the problem of God, as if God is first, a problem; and second, comprehendible to the human condition. God hide...

Words. I love you. I miss you. I care about you. You're fat. You're stupid. You're annoying. You. You. You. I. I. I.

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The nature of this blog has taken a somewhat unexpected turn. Unfortunately my cynicism may not be well received by some. What I have said in past posts may not be wise things to share publicly. It's better to think something, and never say it at all, lest regret come with sharp sword. Where this blog will go is still mystery. I may never post again, keeping my thoughts to a well-hidden private journal. Let's just say, that for now, I am unsure. Though, I cannot see complete silence. Writing here is an outlet. Somethings must be said, but I must now discern and judge wisely the shared contents of the blog.

They killed Simon and the killed Piggy. They became savages

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Why do we remember some of the things we do? There are certain events, happenings, thoughts, images, or whatever it may be that I remember like I remember my first kiss. At least this is true of myself. For example, Fire In The Sky , an alien abduction movie, is burned into my mind like a brand into the hide of a steer. The year was 1993, I would have been twelve years old at the time. That was sixteen years ago. The movie changed me. Evening after sleepless evening had me seeing visions of aliens descending on my house, opening the window to my bedroom, and transporting my helpless body thousands of miles away for experimentation. It has haunted me to this day. I probably believed in aliens when I was twelve, but I don't any more. I am convinced that the reason I no longer believe in aliens is because I don't want to be abducted. So then, if I believe it isn't true then it can't happen to me, right? Interesting how the mind works. When I was a youth I had weird thought...

 

Most Sunday's I find myself drawn to the beautiful sanctuary of one of Dallas' wealthiest PCA churches. We (PCPC and I) have a love/hate relationship. I attend, and am only that - an attender. I am somewhat ashamed, but not really. I assuage that guilt by teaching a bible study for 9th graders at one of Dallas' wealthiest PCUSA churches. I guess I love rich people. The worship at PCPC is formal, yet lacking hollow formalism. The music is passionate, yet lacking the shallow insincere sentimentality of impersonal mega-churches. The teaching is thoughtful, yet heart-driven because of the gospel. The church follows an order of service like most liturgically-minded denominations, yet she is not subject to rigidness's rigidity for the sake of order. For these I love her. Yet, the congregation, when gathered together, might possibly be mistaken for giant designer clothing fashion show; the parked cars would cause a frugal man to pause and simply consider the insurance premiums...

 

 

A follow up to yesterday’s post about Seeing Gray . How do I use good judgment and discernment in knowing what I believe? Context : I know my context. We 21 st century Western, American, Evangelical, and Conservatives have been cursed with the baggage of the rationalist-spirit of the enlightenment. “I think therefore I am.” Faith in man’s ability “to know” is our battle cry. Reason, rationalism, certainty, science “will save us” it was declared. But it hasn’t. Nor will it. Faith is a process, not an end. Know thy context. Know thy self.  Faith seeks understanding. Humility : I know this: I am certain of very little. Actually, not much is certain, except death and taxes. I learn to accept that I will never fully understand anything. Because we cannot fully understand, we cannot fully know, however that does not negate discerning and judging what is best based upon a contextual understanding, a community understanding, and ...