Month: May 2009

1 Corinthians verse 1 – Personal Bible Study

NOTE: This personal Bible Study, as I read and think through 1 Corinthians 1, is study not be be taken authoritatively.

Having read some of the Introduction in my ESV to 1 Corinthians, the book seems to start out with a greeting tht seems to double as a call for unity. The introduction notes pointed out that the Church at Corinth was going trhough some divisiveness.  1 Corinthians begins:

1 Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes,

2 To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:

3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians ESV Bible (online)

Notice how the first 3 verses point to God? For me, having read the ESV Study Bible’s introduction saying that the Church at Corinth was suffering through division caused by more arrogant members this greeting subtly says “Stop arguing amongst yourselves and get back to God”, or possibly “Stop worshipping yoursleves and get back to worshipping God!”

Next, in verses 4 through 9 Paul gives thanks as he again seems to be reminding the Corinthians from where eveything flows. Love and affection is apperent in the vocabulary chosen, he is not being harsh.

Verses 10 through 17 Paul gets right to the root of the reason for this letter, the divisions amongst the members at Corinth. These verses do contain some sarcasm and slight agitation. Again he reminds them, however that they are to be followers of Christ, not man and to stop looking in amongst themselves and to look heavenward.

Verses 18 to 31 serve as a reminder that  Christ is power and wisdom and the one through whom all flows – creation, power, wisdom and that God calls all to him. The message of Christ crucified is the power of God for his chosen, and dually a reminder that to those who are not saved this word is nonsense.

SUMMARY: Don’t be arrogant, and don’t follow man. Depend on and follow Jesus because it is his work that has become your salvation.

What does canonical mean?

What does canonical mean (Wikipedia):

 A Biblical canon or canon of scripture is a list or set of Biblical books considered to be authoritative as scripture

What does canonical mean (Dictionary.com):

  • the body of ecclesiastical law. 
  • the body of rules, principles, or standards accepted as axiomatic and universally binding in a field of study
  • a fundamental principle or general rule
  • a standard; criterion 
  • the books of the Bible recognized by any Christian church as genuine and inspired
  • any officially recognized set of sacred books
  • any comprehensive list of books within a field

From these definitions, from a biblical standpoint canonical is scripture that is considered authoritative and possibly specifically scripture that lays out rules, principles and standards. Canonical will need to be revisited later with more depth and authority (no pun intended).

Water heater Kit A

I just noticed this yesterday. These are 2 of the enhancement Kit A’s that were installed in our water heater. In this photo you can see I’ve added 2 red squares around the windows you see through to check the pilot light to see if it on. On right you can see through to the other kit. On the one on the left you cannot see through it because there is soot covering the window.

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Click to Enlarge

In this photo I’ve turned the enhancement kits around and you can see the full extent of the soot. There must have been a LOT of flame!

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Click to Enlarge

Now look at that last one again, and you can see the casing has been burned off of on of the wires (inside red box I drew).

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Click to Enlarge

Brittany and Lane – Prom 2009

Lane picked our beautiful daughter Brittany up about 5:45 for the prom, which is being held in the Omar Shrine Temple in Mount Pleasant. Here are the photos we got after he arrived, before they left.

Brittany and Lane, arrival

1. Brittany and Lane, arrival
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 Brittany and Lane, on the way out

2. Brittany and Lane, on the way out
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Brittany and Lane, leaving

3. Brittany and Lane, leaving
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 Brittany and Lane, leaving

4. Brittany and Lane, leaving
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Brittany and Lane, getting in SUV

5. Brittany and Lane, getting in SUV
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 Brittany and Lane, getting in SUV

6. Brittany and Lane, getting in SUV
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Brittany and Lane, getting in SUV

7. Brittany and Lane, getting in SUV
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Kutless – Shut Me Out

More edgy music from a Christian Band, very awesome! This is one of the 5 songs also burned to CD for my wife during that “rough patch” we went through. That rough patch drew us closer together, so here’s the chorus…

There’s nothing you can say
That will take me away from this life
There’s nothing you can do
To shut me up when I’m speaking the truth

Here’s the YouTube… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_2TE7dldGs

The Afters, Never Going Back To Okay

I heard this one day on AOL Radio’s Christian Rock channel and it reminded me of mine and my wife’s walk. It was one of 5 songs I burned to CD for her a couple of weeks back when we were going through a rough patch…

This song is about not going back to the old life you had before becoming a Christian. Because once you are a Christian, you realize your old life was just “okay”…

The Afters, Never Going Back To Okay