Yesterday, I said I felt like Santa Claus, spreading joy and good cheer through gift-giving. Im still kinda surprised no one took me to task for using the name Santa Claus. See, I grew up in a Christian family that...
After yesterday's post, I received a few emails wondering whether masturbation really is a sin. I used to hang out a lot at Christian BBS, an online forum/discussion board that's now part of the Christianity.com network. Questions about masturbation always...
Still on the topic of masturbation: Cody Clark says that this issue gets way too much attention. "If people put this much mental energy into whether speeding (another 'me, me, me' behaviour) was a sin or not, the world would...
Yesterday, I commented on Cody Clark's assertion that the issue of masturbation gets way too much attention, saying that the church hardly ever addresses this issue among the youth. Cody clarifies:I was not saying there is too much attention from...
Scrolling through previous entries, I discovered I have some new comments. Someone reacted to my statement against relativism. I had written,It's frightening how relativism is creeping into the church these days. Sorry, but there is NO place for relativism when...
So I disappear over the weekend, and discover that my last blog entry has sparked off a pretty heavy discussion. :) Sakamuyo writes that our understanding of God's Word is limited: "We can both study from a 'pure, honest examination'...
James Cordrey's blog pointed me to this article on rating praise music. My first reaction was utter horror. Author Dale Meador starts off by saying, "We rate everything," and goes on to postulate, "Now, why not hymns and choruses [also]?"...
"Some brethren pray by the yard; but true prayer is measured by weight, and not by length." So spoke the British Baptist preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon; and he is right! The greatest prayer ever prayed is recorded in John 17,...
Cathy Lynn Grossman of USA Today writes: The color of Christmas may be red ink this year for many of the nation's churches. Experts blame 6% unemployment and sinking investment income for pummeling budgets of congregations great and small, black...
Darren Rowse has a true story of, how shall I put it, an exclusivist church:This story made me angry. It's an extreme illustration of something that I feel many churches today are guilty of - building walls. The pastor that...
A lot is being said about the blogs4God post against Planned Parenthood. It has upset many people, inculding Rachel C., Jordon Cooper, Darren Rowse, Richard Hall, and Richard Bott (can't get into his blog as usual, though). The author has...
Joshua Claybourn comments on Darren Rowse's latest offering: "The focus here should be on Planned Parenthood's evil ways, and none of the critics, besides yourself in this post, have acknowledged that. The blogs4God parody is not offensive. Planned Parenthood is."...
Gregory Popcak responded to my email (see post below):Sunflower, Thank you for your comments. I'm not stupid. I am a therapist. Every day I slog through more pain than you will experience in your entire life I pray. This...
Bryan McAnally has an excellent post on the Planned Parenthood poster parody issue. His is a very balanced view. Several bloggers, including Locdog and Victor Lams, have defended the use of satire in addressing this issue. Victor Lams wrote:"Greater issue:...
Last night I met up with an online friend and his friend for the first time. We sat down over coffee and talked about what I call "God stuff". And it was awesome. There aren't too many people whom I...
(For the purposes of this post, references to the male gender are meant to include females as well. It was just too complicated to keep on writing "him/her"!) Awhile ago, I saw this piece on homosexuality on Avoiding Evil's website....
Jon Davis has written a response to my post on homosexuality yesterday. Among other things, he says:The only way homosexuality can be a sin as the Bible describes is if everyone can be a homosexual. I firmly believe anyone can...
Haloscan restored my "lost" comments sometime last night (after more than 48 hours!), so I caught up on the comments to my Friday post on man-made rules. Quite a conversation I missed there. :) I'm going to try to respond...
(Thanks to Neal for drawing my attention to this article, and Richard Hall for drawing my attention to the other) Follow the crowd mentality Apparently the church is such a fuddy-duddy, it needs to get with the times.The Church of...
I've been having an interesting conversation with Dan in the comments section of my earlier post. Decided to answer him (her? - have to be very careful with this, expecially after reading point #6 on this list of Dan's -...
I've been leaving looooong comments in a few places today and left myself no time for blogging. But those are interesting conversations, so let me share them with you: Darren Rowse links to a lady's reflections on Easter from the...
(Part I here.) I think, as humans, we generally tend to be immoderate (and sometimes irrational) in our likes and dislikes. When I browse blogs, I see people who are talking about the things that have captured their imagination, things...
Religion, they say, is a "sensitive issue". Why must you try to convert me? What makes you think your way is the only way? It's funny really, yesterday I was talking to a friend about some difficulties she's facing in...
The word's out: we're ...
Yesterday I happened to check my site stats and was bowled over by the number of people who have bookmarked my site in recent months. It reminded me once again of the amazing potential I've glimpsed in the World Wide...
While Americans are reeling from the reports of Iraqi POWs abused by US military personnel, Malaysians are reeling from a lady's horrific abuse of her 19-year-old Indonesian maid. The case made news headlines on Thursday. Found by a condominum guard...
Yesterday I woke up with a runny nose, sore throat, sexy hoarse voice -- why is it when that happens I'm never in a condition to enjoy it? -- and decided to scrap plans to attend Bangsar Lutheran Church (hereinafter...
I was talking to someone recently about the way certain quarters of Christianity are always trying to do stuff to make our message appear more "relevant" to today's society, culture and/or young people. Thankfully, the subject's not such a hot...
Last night my housemates & I watched the finale of The Apprentice (Season 2, and yes, I know we are very much behind the times. What can I say? This is Malaysia!). Actually what impressed me most was seeing Kelly...
Two nights ago, during cell group meeting, as usual we discussed pastor's Sunday sermon. I hadn't gone to church the previous weekend (surprised, anybody?) so I got to hear the summary of the sermon from what the others shared. Apparently,...
"You wanna see Cars? There's a press screening tomorrow and they've asked me to invite a few bloggers," said former colleague, Eyeris. Wah, just like the good ol' days. Press screening of new movie. *nostalgia* FREE MOVIE?? Of course I...
Just saw X-men: The Last Stand. I didn't like it. Anti-climatic, and too many people die. Sorry, I like happy endings, but to me, merely getting things resolved and having the good guys win doesn't make for a happy ending,...
We long to find and do work that is meaningful, that makes a difference and needs to be done.—Gordon T. Smith, Courage & Calling This has been my struggle, and, I'm willing to bet, the struggle of many others. In...
I visited Tabernacle of David yesterday morning. Yes, I actually went to church -- mainly coz I needed to pass something to WinsomeOne, who would be flying back to the US together with his family later that night. Towards the...
Ever thought of buying a cemetery plot? I hadn't. In church this morning, the announcements segment was enlivened by a sales pitch for plots in a new Christian cemetery that is being... err... "built" in Subang. (Do cemeteries get built?)...
When I was a journalist, I used to wonder what was the point of my work. People used to tell me, "Oh, you write for a newspaper! Just imagine all those readers reading your articles... you have such influence!" I...
I dunno about you, but whenever I've thought of heaven I've never thought of it as a place where I'd have to work. Although if you asked me what we'd be doing in heaven, I really couldn't tell you, apart...
I vividly remember my schooldays where Mom would say, "Why can't you be like so-and-so? She participates in all those extra-curricular activities, and STILL manages to be one of the top 5 in class!" To which I would reply, "But...
Watch the Transformers movie trailer and you realise there isn't even a hint that they've used the original Transformers theme song; not a good sign. I told my housemate Meera, and she began singing, "Transformers, robots in the sky." I...
Talking about old shows yesterday made me think. Do you realise that most of the old shows featured a hero? Knight Rider, MacGyver, Matlock, Hunter... okay, I didn't watch a lot of tv back then, so these are the only...
Ten of the best discoveries / inventions ever, according to Sunflower: Anti-histamines, panadol, and antibiotics. *AH-CHOOOO!* Yes, I'm having a runny nose and cough. *blows nose* The fan. I would say air-conditioning, but with the greenhouse effect and all that......
It's ironic that we are expected to grow up and be independent, when God endeavours to teach us the very opposite. From the start, we are taught that we are dependent upon Him for our very lives, and that without...
I've been buried under assignments and have finally emerged, extremely sleep-deprived and grouchy, from the pile of textbooks. Next: exams April 17-19. ARRRGGGGHHHHH. Have I ever mentioned that I hate exams? I do, with every fibre of my being. I...
Talking about weddings... Blink said his is going to cost around $15,000. FIFTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS just to get married?!?!?! That's insane!! When I mentioned this to a friend, she said it was pretty low already. What on earth? Apparently the...
Was giving relationship advice to someone (ironic, I know) when it struck me: once married, you're united not just against the world, but against even the problems in your marriage. If you face frequent communication breakdowns or have difficulty resolving...
Every day I get flyers and brochures in my postbox, which I glance at uninterestedly and then consign to the rubbish bin. Every day I get spam in my email inbox, which makes me grumble and wish all inconsiderate spammers...
Is this man cheating on his wife? [Hat tip: Karen]Ric Hoogestraat and Janet Spielman's Second Life avatars married in May 2007. The real Mrs Hoogestraat is not amused: since February, her husband has been glued to the computer for 6...
No one else is at home. It's a quiet Christmas Day. Well, not so quiet... I had lunch with friends, which extended into tea. Now it's 5:30pm and I'm enjoying some time alone. I'm as much a solitary creature as...
Just came back from seeing Prince Caspian. Eyeris might not have wanted to scream at the screen and kill the scriptwriters, but I certainly did!! Of course, it probably didn't help that I re-read the book a week before seeing...
Obligation. Duty. Expectations. Responsibility. They're all part of the same package. Love is optional. Love, if it comes with the package, makes the whole more palatable, easier to swallow. You can have the package separate from love. You can't, however,...