Paz referred me to a site the other day about which I would like to make some comments. The site is Dial-the-Truth Ministries. When I first saw the URL - AV1611.org, and read the top of the homepage, I knew that I would have problems with the site. You see, this site does not stand on the sole authority of the Bible. No, it stands "on the sole authority of the King James Bible (AV 1611)." In short, this "King James Only" view is contrary to both history and logic. For more info, see this article and this site. Despite this erroneous view, I was (and still am) willing to consider their writings on other topics when the arguments stand alone.

What interested me most about the site was their wholesale and rigorous attack on Contemporary Christian Music (CCM). In their article Bible Guidelines for Christian Music, they claim that at least 95% of CCM does not "pass [Biblical] guidelines."  While they spend a lot of time attacking the content of CCM based upon their apparant belief that all music should be explicitly Christian worship music, I was more interested in their attack on the musical form of CCM or, as they put it, "rock music." They define "rock music" as music in which "the rhythm or the beat literally takes over the music" or "music in which the bass drum carries the melody." Since scripture speaks of making "melody" when it talks about music, they argue that melody should dominate. And since CCM often emphasizes the rhythm over the melody, it is therefore "noise" not music. Next, they point out that even though the drum was a common instrument in Biblical times (a fact they never really prove but I'm willing to accept), the drum is never mentioned in the Bible. So, they conclude, "one simple guideline for Christian music is NO DRUMS!"

Of course, I fundamentally disagree with their complete rejection of rock music. I certainly think that this style can be misused, but when performed skillfully it can reflect God's beauty in form and therefore be glorifying to God. And just because drums are not mentioned in the Bible doesn't mean they shouldn't be used. Last time I checked, tamborines don't contribute much to the melody, but instead are primarily rhythmic instruments just like drums. I think the key error in their thinking on musical form is their contention that God "refers to music as - MELODY." While the word "melody" does appear in the KJV, I looked up the original Hebrew and Greek words and they don't really mean the primary line of notes. The word translated melody in Eph 5:19 for example, actually means "to pluck off, to pull out" or "to cause to vibrate by touching" clearly referring to stringed instruments. If this word was meant to specifically require a particular music style, wouldn't that mean we should only use stringed instruments? Too bad all you flute, clarinet, and trumpet players! Obviously, by using the Greek word "psallo" when advocating the use of music in worship, the Apostle Paul did not mean to prescribe a particular style or particular instruments in that music. Rather, he was using what was probably the common word for "music" at the time. Is a fugue less "Christian" because it emphasizes the harmony of two or more melodic lines interwoven together? Certainly not. Musical style is important, but it's hard to make a case for the inherent godliness of one over the other.

In the past, I have leaned towards the view that rock music (especially harder forms of rock such as heavy metal) is inherently flawed, and am still not convinced that it cannot damage the brain. However, I do not see a biblical reason to reject it entirely and I recognize a bias in my thinking caused by my general distaste for it.

I do enjoy much of CCM, on the other hand, and believe that whether it is explicitly worshipping God or just communicating truth, music can glorify God. I do not listen to a lot of music done by non-Christians, however I do not discount their ability to reflect God's truth and His beauty even while personally rejecting Him. I acknowledge that if skillfully done, a non-Christian musician could theoretically produce music that is more glorifying to God in it's form than the mediocre music of a Christian who uses all the right words.

There seems to me to be two sides to the issue. On the one hand, you have the work of the musician and whether it glorifies God. On the other hand, you have the heart of the listener and whether it glorifies God. Both are important, but I'm more concerned with the latter right now. I want to be a consumer of good art, but even if I listen to mediocre stuff I can glorify God with my heart. Certainly, both should be emphasized.

Anyway, I found the Dial-the-Truth Ministries site to be full of straw-man arguments, hasty generalizations, context-ignoring (there has to be a better way to say that), and many other logical fallacies. Furthermore, the constant use of capitalizations, exclaimation points, and large colorful fonts hurt my eyes. It did get me thinking about music, however, and I don't expect this posting to be my last on this topic.

Riding a Blessing

I do not hide
that the bus I ride
to work each day
and in a real way
though I have to pay
I'd like to say
that riding the bus
is a blessing because
while the driver is leading
I can be reading
a really good book
or I can look
out the window and stare
at what I see there.

So when I must wait
for a bus that is late
or when as we go
our movement feels slow,
I'll remember my book
and the glance that I took
at the beautiful sky
as I thought with a sigh,
"How blessed am I
by the Lord Most High!"

Good morning. It is a cloudy day today. Perhaps we will get some rain soon. That would be good. I am spending most of my time at home reading all the C. S. Lewis I can find. I finished The Silent Planet and am nearly through Till We Have Faces. They are delightfully imaginative and profound as expected. I am also reading Boy Meets Girl by Josh Harris. I have always appreciated his writing and the insights and stories in the book have been helpful as I continue to ponder what it means to love. I especially enjoyed his chapter on being a man.

Yesterday I viewed two of the latest Hollywood productions. First, I saw The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Though the special effects were pretty good, that’s about all that was. The character development was weak and the worldview was pantheistic. But the worst part of all was the destruction of the story of Jekyll and Hyde. By creating a good heart in Mr. Hyde, the writers turned him into a Frankenstein. AAAAH! Overall the movie was unbelievable and dull.

The second film I saw was Pirates of the Caribbean. Now it was definitely entertaining. The characters were interesting, and the humor enjoyable. I liked the sword-fight scenes as well. But the movie was ruined by a terrible message at the end. I suspected throughout that they would idolize the "good" pirate, but kept hoping that the story would shift. Unfortunately, the movie mocked absolute morality and order while upholding the use of evil in doing good (the ends justify the means).

PHC is less than a month away. My excitement and anticipation is growing, along with a level of anxiety. It is something I have looked forward to for so long, and I trust that God will change me the moment I arrive even as he is already changing me now. I will need His help in all areas of my life at college and I pray that I would learn to serve him humbly and love others truly.

"There is no safe investment. To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket - safe, dark, motionless, airless - it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. The alternative to tragedy, or at least the risk of tragedy, is damnation. The only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers and perturbations of love is Hell.

I believe that the most lawless and inordinate loves are less contrary to God's will than a self-invited and self-protective lovelessness... We shall draw nearer to God, not by trying to avoid the sufferings inherent in all loves, but by accepting them and offering them to Him; throwing away all defensive armor. If our hearts need to be broken, and if He chooses this as the way in which they should break, so be it." - from The Four Loves by C. S. Lewis

Read that quote again. And again. And again. And again. I did last night....and God used it to change my mind.

Why did it affect me? Because it hit me square in the face. In the name of safety, I myself have wrapped my heart carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries, avoided entanglements, and locked it up. It has not been broken. But it has begun to change. It has started to become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. Thankfully, I don't think I've reached that point, and I am confident that God can undo the damage I have done.

What am I talking about exactly? When I was about 13, I was introduced to the teachings of a man named Jonathan Lindvall. I listened to his tapes and attended one of his seminars. One of the primary beliefs I accepted from his teaching was that I should avoid and suppress romantic emotions before I make a lifelong commitment with my future wife. Notice that the idea was not that romantic emotions should be understood and controlled, but rather avoided and suppressed. My rationale behind this idea was threefold:

Saving romantic feelings until after commitment would...
1. Make me emotionally pure.
2. Save me (and any women who I would love) from the feelings from the pain and heartbreak of rejection/separation.
3. Ensure that my decision of who to marry would not be based on feelings.

These are ideas that I firmly believed were both reasonable and biblical, until a couple of days ago. Early Monday morning, I got an e-mail from Robin Phillips. He wrote because he saw my website and was interested in my belief in betrothal. Robin is the son of famed Christian author Michael Phillips, whose book on courship/betrothal Best Friends for Life was read and enjoyed by my family a couple of years ago. He directed me to his website, which I have spent the last couple of days reading. On it, he critiques the ideas behind Lindvall-esque betrothal. At first, I dismissed most of his arguments because they were clearly affected by his strong disagreement with both Lindvall and his parents on the issue of parental authority (see his testimony). However, his points about the weakness of Lindvall's biblical argumentation in support of betrothal were very convincing.

As of yesterday, I was still convinced of the basic premise behind betrothal, and still agreed with the three points made above. I was working on writing a response to the arguments Robin made in his articles, and began to critically analyze my own arguments on the matter.

First is the idea of emotional purity. Where does this idea come from? It's not biblical, at least not that I can think of. And when I really thought it through, all it meant was having emotions that hadn't been broken. So it was just an extension of point number two.

Secondly I thought about the idea that the pain and heartbreak of broken relationships should be avoided. Though it seems to make sense at first, especially to the American "safety and security" mindset, it is really a lie. And I recognized the lie when I read Lewis's words in the quote above: "If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one...The alternative to tragedy, or at least the risk of tragedy, is damnation." Tragedy, pain, brokenness, can all result from giving your heart to someone that isn't fully committed to you. But THAT'S OK! "We shall draw nearer to God, not by trying to avoid the sufferings inherent in all loves, but by accepting them and offering them to Him; throwing away all defensive armor. If our hearts need to be broken, and if He chooses this as the way in which they should break, so be it."

This was the clincher for me. The concept was introduced to me when I read Desiring God by John Piper a year ago, that the definition of love was delighting in the delight of another. Dell Cook taught this same concept at WVA AZ this year. I guess what I never fully believed about this concept was the truth that real love always involves emotions. And therefore love without emotions is not real love at all. I realized last night that avoiding or suppressing my emotions is never a good idea, because they are an integral part of why God made me.

So I was left with point number three. The fear here is that if emotions are part of a relationship prior to commitment, then the decision to get married will be adversely affected by the presence of those emotions. In other words, emotions can cloud our thinking. Responding to this argument, Robin's section in his book called "Is Love Blind?" points out that "love on the deepest level [is] love that sees deeply to the intrinsic person." He quotes Peter Kreeft who stated "[Love] is the supreme vision, the supreme wisdom, the supreme enlightenment. God is love, and God is not blind; therefore, love is not blind. When we say 'love is blind', we may be thinking of selfish love, or animal love, or puppy love. That may be blind. But agape love is not blind." The emotion-filled love that should precede commitment is not irrational, as long as it's true.

Additionally, there is the concern that if a couple's relationship is based on emotions, then when the emotions are lost, the relationship will be abandoned. But it is a false dichotomy to say that a relationship is either based on commitment or emotions. Why can't it be both? Aren't married people supposed to cultivate and share deep emotions for one another? And can they not, at the same time, be fully committed to one another? Sure there is the danger that emotions will fade and the relationship will lose its vitality. But that doesn't mean we should abandon emotions entirely! The answer to infidelity is not subtracting emotion, but rather adding commitment to the emotion.

Let me be clear. Neither I nor Robin advocate recreational dating. That is, I still believe it to be extremely unwise to approach relationships with the opposite sex with a cavalier, selfish, and "anything goes" attitude. Young people who are not seriously seeking to get married should focus on developing their relationship with Christ and serving both their brothers and sisters in love. I have still "kissed dating goodbye," to borrow the saying.

What has changed is that the process by which I choose my wife will no longer be devoid of emotion. It will be full of emotion, and risks will be taken for the sake of love. However the change of my mind extends beyond my view of pre-marital romance, into my view of love in general. It's one thing to intellectually assent to the concept of delighting in another's delight. But to believe it deep down and act upon that belief is a completely different thing. Though I've still got a long way to go, I think that God has started unlocking my heart, and I trust that He will redeem the years I've spent trying to keep it intact. I pray that God would help me to "throw away all defensive armor" and that He would make me willing to have my heart broken. May my love be dangerously passionate!

Thank you Robin for writing from your heart the things that God has taught you. Thank you God for transforming my mind and continually conforming me to the image of Your Son.

Happy Independence Day to all American patriots!

Let us remember the people who started this great country and the principles they stood for. Declaration of Independence

This Lawrence v. Texas decision (pdf of majority opinion) has got to be one of the worst in US Constitutional history. I'd say it's up there with Dred Scott and Roe v. Wade. Effectively, the court decided that laws based purely on moral principles are irrational and therefore invalid. So Santorum was right. Not surprising. As Scalia pointed out in his blistering dissent, the majority's decision is completely based on support for the homosexual agenda and not based on any good reasoning or constitutional jurisprudence. What a sad day it is.

The opinion lacks even a hint of original intent analysis, at least that I can see. And the worst part is that only three justices dissented. Bush is going to have to successfully appoint two good judges to the bench before the country will be released from the tyrannical whims of the majority. Wow, is next year's election important!

Part 3 - Northern Arizona University

After camp was over on Friday the 13th, we packed up the vans. Half of us headed west while the other half went east. Randy and Bill drove the two vans going west and we made it to Amarillo by about midnight. We stayed in a motel that night which had a fairly good continental breakfast in the morning. We drove all day Saturday and made it to NAU late that evening. Everyone got settled in the dorms and went straight to bed.

Sunday morning the 15th, we had a church service and then I helped set up the meeting room. During registration in the afternoon, I directed traffic to the guys and girls dorms. Sunday evening I met with the guys in my small group, who were 13 and 14 years old. Unfortunately, by Sunday night I was feeling pretty badly. I had major sinus pressure and a cough which I'm still getting over right now. Despite my health, however, the Arizona camp went very well. I played a lot of Mafia during free time and enjoyed discussions with the guys in my small group. Witnessing on Wednesday was another miraculous experience for the camp. God saved at least 5 or 6 people, using the kids to communicate the message. Two campers were saved as well! A good time was had by all throughout the week. A highlight for me was when the staff beat the students in ultimate frisbee. I'm glad I felt good enough to play. I think that the guys in my small group were impacted by the Lord and will apply what they learned to some extent. That is my prayer. Most of them are coming back next year, so I look forward to then.

My heart is still, in a sense, at WVA. It was difficult to leave the staff last Friday, and when I staff next year I definitely want to do the whole summer. What I came away with was the experience of leading a small group, a better understanding of what it means to think God's thoughts after Him, and a desire to maintain an attitude of gratitude to God in all that I do. May these and other nuggets of wisdom I received not be lost or wasted.

Part 2 - Baylor University

Monday night the 2nd, Staff Training began. Throughout that week we 40 or so staff members were trained in the WVA curriculum, youth protection, witnessing, how to lead a small group, and ultimate frisbee. :) We also did a lot of packing/inventory work for the products that WVA sells. The highlight of the week for me, and probably for most of the staff was the Galatians study each night. As Brandon led us through the book, he beautifully explained how it was relevant to us today. He showed us how to communicate the essence of the gospel, which is the primary message WVA tries to spread. It was very enlightening and encouraging. Staff training as a whole was a successful week of gearing up for camp and getting to know each other.

On Sunday the 8th, 200 students from all over (mostly) Texas arrived at Baylor for camp. During registration, I assisted with luggage at the girls' dorm. At about 5, everyone got together and after the opening competition, the students split up into small groups. I co-lead a group of 15/16 year old guys with another staff member named Rick. The guys in our group were each unique but they all sought to be godly men and grew during the week. As staff, one of our primary goals was to get to know the guys by hanging out with them during free time. So I spent a lot of time playing billiards and bowling with the guys. It was fu...joyful. ;) Rick led the small group times in the evenings in which the guys shared stories from their lives and discussed Biblical manhood. The lectures by Bill Jack, Jeff Baldwin, Randy Sims, and Mike Schutt were dynamite as always. On Wednesday, the kids went witnessing and I ended up talking with a liberal Vietnam veteran for around 30 minutes. It was a somewhat depressing, but interesting conversation. God did save a few people on campus through the witnessing efforts of the students and Wednesday evening one of the campers trusted Christ. PTL!  The food at Baylor was fairly good; I ate a lot of bean tacos, pizza, and pasta. The campus at Baylor was beautiful and I especially enjoyed the "echo chamber" and the bears.

To be continued...

For the last three weeks I have been away from work, away from home, away from the internet. But now I'm back, so I'd like to tell you where I've been and what I've been doing.

The short story:
I went to Worldview Academy Staff Training, staffed the Baylor camp, and staffed the NAU camp.

The long story:
On Sunday June 1st, I took a flight from Phoenix to San Antonio along with Andrea Lambros. It was a pretty short trip and I didn't do much on the plane. After we arrived and got our luggage, we met Liv Booth, Brandon's wife. She took us to the curb. Brandon drove up with a 15-passenger van and we all got in. We drove from San Antonio to New Braunfels and I saw signs for Boerne which was exciting after studying the Boerne v. Flores case in ConLaw. We got to the home of Randy Sims and I met their family, along with some other staff members that had come in early. Randy took us all on a tour of New Braunfels and we saw the new WVA headquarters as well as Schlitterbahn. As an aside, I just went to http://www.schlitterbahn.com/ and I am sure that I see nearly all of Randy Sims's family on the main homepage picture. Anyway, we got drinks at Sonic and went back to the Sims home. I was the only male staff member there so far, so I hung out with Brian and Travis for the rest of the afternoon. Mrs. Sims prepared a delicious meal of lasagna for all of us and we had a great time playing silly games in the back yard. Some of the girls and the Sims kids went swimming in the neighborhood pool, while the rest of us just watched and talked. Around 9pm, Randy, Brian, and I drove back to San Antonio and picked up Ben Applewhite at the airport. When we got back to the Sims home, the girls were watching "First Knight" so we saw the end. I slept in Travis's room that night and early Monday morning (like 2am) the crew from Oregon State came in.

I woke up and after eating a good breakfast (thanks to Mrs. Sims), I woke up the other guys. Needless to say, they were not ready to get up. But we loaded up two vans around 9 and drove over to the Sims's church. For most of the morning, I went with a crew to clean one of the vans inside and out and get its oil changed. We came back to the church and ate pizza for lunch. A few other staff members from Texas had arrived and it was about 1pm when we prayed together and left for Waco. It was a pretty long drive, but sometime Monday evening we drove into Baylor University in Waco, TX, my home for the next two weeks. We ate dinner at Pizza Hut that night and the rest of the staff met us there (they had flown into Dallas). We all got to know each other and checked into the Alexander dormatory.

To be continued...

I leave in the morning for three weeks of Worldview Academy, so don't expect to hear from me for a while.

Later,
Paul

I had an enjoyable long weekend. Saturday night we had a Teenpact alumni party, Sunday afternoon I went to my 1yo niece's birthday party, and yesterday was my brother-in-law's birthday party. Now it's back to work...and studying for my ConLaw final this weekend...and looking forward to Texas on Sunday...:)

"For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome." - 1 John 5:3

What are these commandments? Do they include the moral law in the Old Testament (Ten Commandments)? Or are they limited to "new covenant" laws?

The commandments we should keep are the totality of God's Law, in both the Old Testament and the New. Matthew 5:18 - "For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished." Yes, Christ fulfilled the symbolic portions of the law and the prophets. But the principles of morality and justice found in the Law cannot be brushed aside because we live in the "age of grace." Was grace nonexistant before Christ? Surely not. Salvation has always been by grace through faith. But what is salvation if it is not the forgiveness of sin? And what is sin if the Law no longer applies?

The Law does apply today and should be kept, but Christians will continue to violate God's Law in this life. Thanks be to God that our lawless acts are forgiven by Christ! Only by His grace can we glorify Him by forsaking sin and growing in love. That's gospel-driven sanctification. That's the Christian life.

Memorizing: Titus 1:5-7 "This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you- if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. For an overseer, as God's steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain,"

I got a package from PHC this weekend which included the "technology options" that they are requiring. Basically, I need a new computer. Now the question is whether I should get one through the college, or buy one from my brother or Dad (they work at Insight.com). The Dell computers PHC is selling are more expensive than the ones Insight has, but if I buy through PHC, they will support the computer for four years. I think I'll take my chances with the support, especially since my brother is offering me a really good deal on a really nice laptop. I'm excited about getting a new machine.

Memorizing: Titus 1:1-4 "Paul, a servant of God and apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by the command of God our Savior; To Titus, my true child in common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior."

Hey all you AIM and MSN Messenger users - Have you ever wanted to keep a log of your chats? Yes? You need to download these two programs:

For AOL Instant Messenger: DeadAIM

For MSN Messenger: MSGPlus

Both of these work great on the newest versions of the IM programs and include lots of great features besides logging. Oh, and here's the best part: They're FREE! OK, you have to give the DeadAIM guy $1.50...big deal.

For some reason, I've been finding myself forgetting things lately. Just this morning, I got off the bus at Intel and forgot to take my scooter. (That's the last time I'm setting the scooter behind the back of the chair.) I realized that I had forgotten it right as the bus pulled away, so I ran after it. Even though I stayed right behind it through the Intel parking lot and waved my arms whenever I could see the rear-view mirror, for some reason the driver didn't see me. I guess he wasn't looking for a well-dressed guy with a backpack sprinting behind his bus and waving his arms. Anyway, about halfway to Chandler Blvd, my lungs started reminding me that I am out of shape. But I finally made it, huffing and puffing up to the side door of the bus as he waited at the red light. He let me on and I got my scooter. My heart is still pounding and my lungs are still aching 45 minutes later...

I guess I need the "sound mind" of Titus 2:12 and the "bodily training" which is of "some value" in 1 Timothy 4:8.

I had a good weekend. Saturday night was a Worldview Academy pre-camp get together and I was encouraged by the quality and quantity of kids coming to the camp at NAU in June.

Yesterday, Naomi and I did our best to make Mom's day special. She said it was a great day, so we accomplished our goal. I am so thankful for her. She sacrificed 20 years of her life to raise, care for, teach, and pray for me. What a blessing!

What's been going on -

Sadly, I was released from jury duty on Wednesday. It turned out to be a blessing, however, since Dr. Farris was visiting AOP and I was able to have lunch with him. He spoke at the first annual Alpha Omega Academy graduation, which I attended and enjoyed. Last night, I went to the symphony and heard both Mozart's Symphony No. 41, "Jupiter" and Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5, "Emporer." The piano was played by Orion Weiss. It was beautiful.

I've started reading these blogs. They are really good.

Doug Phillips

George Grant

"I will make myself yet more contemptible than this, and I will be abased"
- King David on worshipping the LORD. (2 Samuel 6:22)

A recognition of sin leads to brokenness and guilt before God. 
Then the cross takes away the sin and guilt producing gratitude overflowing into worship.
God is glorified when we delight in Him, so worship is the pursuit of the highest pleasure.