Joel's shared items in Google Reader

Taco Stand Fail

2009-07-04T17:00:24Z

Submitted by: dunno source via FAIL Uploader

Soccer Kick Fail

2009-06-23T17:00:47Z

Submitted by Liam H

Reporter Headline Fail

2009-06-10T21:23:21Z

Shared by Joel
This is why you stop when you come to a period while reading out loud.

Submitted by Bobby Joe

DIY Invisible Floating Bookshelves [Weekend Project]

2009-05-08T21:00:00Z

We've covered the invisible floating bookshelf once or twice before, but if you liked the idea but weren't keen on ruining a book in the process, weblog May December Home's got you covered.

In fact, there's nothing special to their guide apart from the fact that they don't affix the required L-bracket to the inside of the bottom book. Instead, they just bought sufficiently large brackets and figured that the limited visibility of the brackets wasn't that big of a deal; having seen the results, we'd be inclined to agree.

While we're revisiting the floating bookshelf, if you're willing to spend a little more (around $10.50, that is), check out the conceal book shelf. It's a middle-ground option that doesn't destroy your book but still conceals the shelf. Thanks funkydude101!

Either way you go, the floating bookshelf is a fun and attractive way to put your books on display.

Invisible Bookshelves [via Apartment Therapy]

Watermelon Salsa, perfect for summer!!! - The Engine 2 Diet

2009-06-04T23:25:33Z

Watermelon Salsa, perfect for summer!!! - The Engine 2 Diet

Source: www.theengine2diet.com

“This terrific book will inspire all who read it to change their lives and optimize their health.” Lance Armstrong

I know what I'm making this weekend!!!

The Ultimate Guide to Setting up WordPress after an Install

2009-06-01T16:00:24Z

There are a few essential steps that need to be taken with any new wordpress install. Obviously not every wordpress blog will be the same but there are some basics that I feel should be done regardless of what kind of blog you're creating.

Here we'll go through 10 steps that are essential to preform after any wordpress install including a list of 10 plug-ins that are a must for blogs of any type.

Step 1 - Change Permalink Structure

When you go to Settings > Permalinks, you'll notice that the default permalink is http://site.com/?p=123. This structure not only isn't a good idea for SEO but it also doesn't tell your visitors anything about the link they're visiting.

I would suggest a custom structure here using only the post title (http://site.com/title-of-article) which will provide some keywords for search engines as well as giving your readers something to go on.

Some people choose to add in the category (http://site.com/category/title-of-article) however, if you want to assign multiple categories to a single post, you will have to work out a way to deal with duplicate links.

To change your permalink structure choose Custom Structure and paste /%postname% in the box. If you want to add the category as well paste in /%category%/%postname%

Step 2 - Set up Authors

Since we want to remove the admin account in the next step for security reasons, it's time to set up the authors of our blog. To do this go to Users > Add New and fill out the form. Be sure to make yourself an administrator, you will then want to set up any other authors that will be writing for your blog assigning them to whatever role and permissions you want them to have.

Step 3 - Fix Security Issues

There are a few minor security issues that need to be dealt with on a new wordpress install. While these aren't major risks, it's good to have every security measure possible in place to keep your blog safe. The last thing you want after taking the time and energy to put your blog together and get it up, is for it to be brought down through an exposed security point that could have easily been avoided.

Disable Remote Publishing: Unless you use an external blog editor I would recommend disabling both Atom and SML-PRC publishing. These settings are under Settings > Writing.

Remove The Admin Account: You'll want to delete the default admin account that is automatically created when you install wordpress. Hackers know that this account is automatically added by default and is automatically assigned ID#1 making it an easy starting point for them. To do this go to Users, mouse over the admin account and click Delete.

Disable Post Via Email: These settings are also under Settings > Writing. If you don't plan on posting via email, don't put any real information in this section.

Create a blank index.html file to hide directories: Put this file in every directory you don't want people to be able to browse. That way if someone loads a directory, they will just be shown a blank white page instead of the contents of the directory.

Alternatively, you can use htaccess to prevent people browsing your directories if you're confident editing it.

Step 4 - Set up Discussion Settings

In this section we'll be focusing specifically on the areas shown in the image below. First navigate to Settings > Discussion

There are a number of areas under the Settings section and most of them are either very intuitive like the General Settings or will just be left on the default settings. However, the Discussions area has some important options that you will set according to your own personal preferences. Let's take a look at each of these options and what each mean.

Attempt to notify any blogs linked to from the article - This will notify any other wordpress blogs that you link to in an article with a pingback. I recommend you have this checked since pingbacks can send some pretty decent traffic to your blog.
Allow link notifications from other blogs (pingbacks and trackbacks.) - This notifies you if any other wordpress blogs link to you and adds a pingback/trackback to the comments of the article that was linked to. I also recommend you have this checked for the same reason.
Allow people to post comments on the article - This one is totally a personal preference. If you want to allow comments on your blog check it, if not leave it blank. My personal opinion on this is that comments are a large part of what makes blogs great, however, I know of some great blogs that have comments disabled because the author doesn't have time to keep up with them.
Comment author must fill out name and e-mail - I recommend having this checked to reduce the amount of spam you get in your comments.
Users must be registered and logged in to comment - If you have a site where users can register you would probably want this checked to further reduce spam. However, if, like most blogs, you don't offer registration or don't want to require readers to register to comments, leave it unchecked.
Automatically close comments on articles older than -- days - Some bloggers choose to close comments for older posts so that they don't have to keep constantly going back to check for new comments and reply to them. If you want to implement this strategy check this option and set it to the number of days you prefer to leave the commenting open.
Enable threaded (nested) comments -- levels deep - Threaded comments are a new feature in Wordpress that I haven't had a chance to thoroughly explore. If you want to use nested comments, first you need to make sure your theme supports them, then check this box and set the number to the maximum you want shown on your blog. Any more than the number shown will be hidden and the reader will be given the option to view them.
Break comments into pages with -- comments per page and the -- page displayed by default. Comments should be displayed with the -- comments at the top of each page - If you have a very active blog and get a lot of comments you will probably want to check this option. Using the default settings, if a post has more than 50 comments, they will be split up on multiple pages with the last page displayed and older comments at the top of each page.
Email me whenever - Anyone posts a comment - If you would like to get an email every time someone posts a comment on your blog, check this option. If you have a high traffic blog, you may not want to do this to keep your email down to a minimum.
Email me whenever - A comment is held for moderation - If you would like to get an email whenever there is a comment awaiting moderation on your blog, check this option. I recommend checking this one since most people want to get comments moderated as soon as possible.
Before a comment appears - An administrator must always approve the comment - If you want to have to approve every comment before it goes live, check this option. Some may choose to do this so that they can check for spam or inappropriate comments before they actually show up on the blog.
Before a comment appears - Comment author must have a previously approved comment - This is the option I have chosen on Arbenting. If the comment author has never replied on my blog before, I have to approve it before it goes live. However, if the comment author already has approved comments on the blog, their comments will post automatically.

Step 5 - Update Your Ping List

To update your ping list go to Settings > Writing and scroll down to Update Services. Make sure that, at the very least, Pingomatic (http://rpc.pingomatic.com/) is in your Update Services box. Other than that I would also recommend adding the following list along with any additional services you would like notified whenever you add new content to your blog.

http://api.moreover.com/RPC2
http://bblog.com/ping.php
http://blogsearch.google.com/ping/RPC2
http://ping.weblogalot.com/rpc.php
http://ping.feedburner.com
http://ping.syndic8.com/xmlrpc.php
http://ping.bloggers.jp/rpc/
http://rpc.pingomatic.com/
http://rpc.weblogs.com/RPC2
http://rpc.technorati.com/rpc/ping
http://topicexchange.com/RPC2
http://www.blogpeople.net/servlet/weblogUpdates
http://xping.pubsub.com/ping

Step 6 - Set up Feedburner

Setting up your feed at Feedburner not only gives you more options than you would have with the default, but it also allows you to keep track of your statistics. Go to Feedburner and set up an account if you don't have one already. Then type in the address of your blog and hit next to set up a feedburner feed for your blog.

If you need help setting up your account or just want to learn more about Feedburner's options, Setting Up Feedburner to Syndicate Your RSS Feed is a really helpful screencast on doing just that.

Now anytime you link to your feed, make sure to use your new feedburner address. We'll finish the Feedburner process in step 10 with the Feedburner Feedsmith plugin.

Step 7 - Upload and Activate your Theme

Chances are you won't want to keep the default wordpress theme. If you're a professional blog you'll probably either want to have a custom theme made or purchase a premium theme.

If your blog is a personal or a hobby blog, you may want to try out one of the many free themes available. Whichever way you choose to go, you will have to upload and activate the theme.

First connect with your host via FTP and go to the folder where you have your blog installed. Go to wp-content > themes and upload your theme. Then, to activate the theme, go to Appearance and click on the theme you want to activate.

This will cause a pop-up window showing you a preview of the theme you are about to activate. Click Activate "Theme" and you are done.

Step 8 - Set up Analytics

Google Analytics is one of the best free statistic tracking services available. To set up your account go to Google Analytics and either log in with your Google account info or in the unlikely event you don't have one, sign up. Now you just need to add your website.

If you don't know anything about Analytics and need help setting up your account, How to Use Google Analytics for Beginners is a great tutorial for you.

NOTE: Don't worry about inserting the javascript into your pages yet, the Google Analytics Plug-in will take care of this for you.

Step 9 - Edit the About Page

By default there is a generic ‘about page’ already in your new wordpress install. However, you aren't going to want to leave this the way it is. Instead you want to personalize it and actually make it about you or your blog. To do this go to Pages, hover over About and click Edit.

I would recommend putting a bit about your blog, a bit of personal information and a photo of yourself if you feel comfortable. Blog readers like to know a little something about you, so adding this bit of a personal touch to your blog is essential, in making this connection.

Step 10 - Install and Activate the Following Plugins

Wordpress is a pretty impressive blogging platform on its own, but add plugins, and you have one of the most customizable blogs available. There are thousands of plugins to choose from that can do pretty much anything you can imagine. The plugins we are going to focus on here are those that I feel are essential to any wordpress installation.

To install these plugins you will need to go to the sites, download and unzip them. Then, via FTP, go to the folder where wordpress is installed and go to wp-content > plugins. Upload any plugins you want to install to this folder.

Alternatively, if you're using WordPress version 2.7 up you can go to Plugins > Add New in your dashboard and search for the plugin there. You can then click "Install" when you find the plugin and it will copy the files to your server for you automatically.

To activate the plugins you have just uploaded go to Plugins and click Activate for each plugin you want to activate. Any plugins with settings will now have it's own section under Settings.

Plugin 1 - Akismet

Akismet is one of the best spam filters available for wordpress and is one of the two plugins that comes pre-installed on your blog, so all you will need to do is activate it. Once activated, it will ask you for your Wordpress API Key. If you already have one for another site, you can use it here, individual keys can be used on multiple sites.

If you do not have a key, sign up for one at Wordpress API Keys. Once you have this go to Plugins > Akismet Configuration, enter your key and click Update Options.

Plugin 2 - Permalink Redirect

Search engines tend to hold it against your site if multiple URLs show up for identical pages. Permalink Redirect makes sure that there is only one URL for each blog entry.

While it is a good idea to install this plugin regardless, make sure to use it if you set your permalinks to blog.com/category/title_of_the_post.

Plugin 3 - All in one SEO Pack

All in one SEO Pack gives you options to optimize your wordpress blog for search engines that the basic wordpress install is missing. For the basic settings go to Settings > All In One SEO and fill in the Title, Description and Keywords for your blog. You will most likely leave the other options on this page set to their default.

The other half of this plugin comes into effect whenever you write a new blog post or page. When you are editing a post or page, if you scroll down to the bottom of the page, you will see a section for All In One SEO Pack where you can add the Title, Description and Keywords of each individual post and page, or disable the SEO altogether for them.

Plugin 4 - Wordpress Automatic Upgrade

While upgrading wordpress is not the hardest thing to do, it can be cumbersome and a waste of time that is unnecessary with the Wordpress Automatic Upgrade plugin. This plugin lets you know when a new version of wordpress is available and allows you to back up your files and upgrade with only the push of a few buttons.

Plugin 5 - Google Analytics for Wordpress

The Google Analytics for WordPress plugin automatically tracks and segments all outbound links from within posts, comment author links, links within comments, blogroll links and downloads. It also allows you to track AdSense clicks, add extra search engines, and track image search queries.

This is also where you will put in the javascript for Google Analytics keeping you from having to edit your theme. Go to Settings > Google Analytics and paste the legacy urchin.js script into the box.

NOTE: It is very important that you use the legacy urchin.js script and not the ga.js since this plugin will not work with the ga.js script.

Plugin 6 - WP Super Cache

WP Super Cache is probably not essential for a brand new blog, but since most people start a blog with the intention of it growing, this plugin may become more of an asset as this progress occurs. The plugin generates static html files from your dynamic WordPress blog. This allows for quicker page loading for your readers, as each additional time the page is accessed, the more compact and less memory intensive static page it has generated will load rather than the fully scripted WordPress one.

Plugin 7 - Google XML Sitemaps

Google XML Sitemaps will create a Google sitemaps compliant XML sitemap of your wordpress blog that you can submit to any search engine. While there are some settings you can change for this plugin, it pretty much just works on its own.

Plugin 8 - No Self Pings

Chances are you are going to want to reference and link to past relevant blog posts in your current ones. By default, when you do this, the post you link to will get a pingback from the new post. No Self Pings keeps wordpress from sending pingbacks from your blog to your blog.

Plugin 9 - Feedburner Feedsmith

Now we can complete the last step to getting your Feedburner feed set up. Install and activate the Feedburner Feedsmith plugin, then go to Settings > Feedburner. All you need to do here is put in the Feedburner feed address you set up in step 6 and click Save. The plugin will now detect all ways to access your feed and redirect them to your FeedBurner feed.

Plugin 10 - WP DB Backup

Always back up your data! The geek's mantra. This holds true for your wordpress databases as well. Imagine suddenly losing a years worth of blog posts and not having a back up. The thought brings tears to my eyes. WP DB Backup allows you to easily back up your wordpress databases.

Bonus: Delete The Hello Dolly Plugin - This is really an insignificant step but one that I always feel the need to take just to keep my folders as clean as possible. Hello Dolly is a useless plugin that puts random lyrics to hello dolly on your dashboard. It comes pre-installed and since I've never had any reason to activate it, I always delete it.

Wrap Up

So that's my must-do list, the routine I got through after every wordpress install. What are the essential steps you take with your new installs?

Video: Texting While Driving A School Bus? Are You Serious? | Blogging & Technology | So You Want To

2009-05-09T19:39:49Z

Video: Texting While Driving A School Bus? Are You Serious? | Blogging & Technology | So You Want To

Source: www.soyouwanttoteach...

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy I gotta come clean. I've texted while driving. Quite a bit. I saw this video this

If you've ever texted and driven, this is the video you need to watch. You heard me, all of you iPhone people...

Late Night Snack Fail

2009-05-09T19:50:59Z

Shared by Joel
I need to find me a wife like that...

Submitted by Maria L

Maze Fail

2009-05-05T14:00:49Z

Submitted by Caleb C

spit & vinegar

2009-05-03T16:29:15Z

writes matt in los angeles: “i went to get some of the 2% milk i keep in our communal work fridge for my coffee, and BAM! — front and center was this lovely.”

the international brotherhood of daves

2009-04-16T20:35:37Z

writes joe in van nuys, california: “dave has been upset because people have been drinking his tea. apparently, he was unaware of other potential daves in the office. next time, maybe he should clarify?”

related: who’s the smartass?

Bacon Cinnamon Roll (via lifeisafeast)

2009-04-14T16:00:00Z

Bacon Cinnamon Roll

(via lifeisafeast)

The Slayer A pile of fries topped with a burger, chili, cherry...

2009-04-15T16:00:55Z

The Slayer

A pile of fries topped with a burger, chili, cherry peppers, andouille, onions smothered in jack cheese.

(submitted by Marty via kumas-corner)

John Piper: The absolute sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man

2009-03-31T01:04:08Z

John Piper takes on:

The “antimony” (from J.I. Packer)/’paradox”/”apparent contradiction” viewpoints on God’s absolute, exhaustive sovereignty and control over man’s decisions, for which man is held morally accountable,
The objection raised to preaching to sinners who fall under the Reformed doctrine of Total Depravity, and
Objections to Augustine’s prayer of, “O God, command what you wouldst, and grant what thou dost command,”

All in three and a half minutes. Further documentation of the above items is shown below the video.

J.I. Packer: From Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God (Chapter 8), with John Piper’s written response.

Augustine: Confessions. (different translation than what Piper references)

Preaching to the dead, commanding them to obey: Ezekiel 37: 1-14:

1The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. 2 And he led me around among them, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley, and behold, they were very dry. 3 And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, you know.” 4 Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. 5 Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. 6 And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord.”

11 Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are indeed cut off.’ 12 Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will open your graves and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will bring you into the land of Israel. 13 And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people. 14 And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the Lord.”

7 So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling, [3] and the bones came together, bone to its bone. 8 And I looked, and behold, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them. But there was no breath in them. 9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.” 10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army. (ESV) and,

John 11:38-44:

38 Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. 39 Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” 40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” 41 So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” 43 When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 44 The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

God’s absolute sovereignty and man’s personal responsibility being a mystery, as described by Piper - Romans 9:

1 I am speaking the truth in Christ-I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit- 2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh. 4 They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. 5 To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.

6 But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, 7 and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” 8 This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring. 9 For this is what the promise said: “About this time next year I will return, and Sarah shall have a son.” 10 And not only so, but also when Rebekah had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, 11 though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad-in order that God’s purpose of election might continue, not because of works but because of him who calls- 12 she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” 13 As it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”

14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means! 15 For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” 16 So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” 18 So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.

19 You will say to me then, “Why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will?” 20 But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?” 21 Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use? 22 What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, 23 in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory- 24 even us whom he has called, not from the Jews only but also from the Gentiles? 25 As indeed he says in Hosea,

“Those who were not my people I will call ‘my people,’
and her who was not beloved I will call ‘beloved.’”
26 “And in the very place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’
there they will be called ‘sons of the living God.’”

27 And Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: “Though the number of the sons of Israel [3] be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will be saved, 28 for the Lord will carry out his sentence upon the earth fully and without delay.” 29 And as Isaiah predicted,

“If the Lord of hosts had not left us offspring,
we would have been like Sodom and become like Gomorrah.”

30 What shall we say, then? That Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained it, that is, a righteousness that is by faith; 31 but that Israel who pursued a law that would lead to righteousness [4] did not succeed in reaching that law. 32 Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were based on works. They have stumbled over the stumbling stone, 33 as it is written,

“Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”

Facebook Meets Wisdom

2009-03-31T10:00:25Z

I’m on Facebook. You’re on Facebook. Your kids, mom, youth group, and dog hang out in Facebook world. The site can be a useful tool, allowing you to chat with friends, post pictures of your “Anakin Skywalker” themed birthday party, and send little notes to your pals like, “Haha, LOL, C U L8TR” (I’m being a bit sarcastic – I do like the site).

But Facebook (or Myspace, Twitter, etc.) also poses unique temptations, and we must think biblically about how we and our children use the site. Each of us needs to answer the question: How do I use Facebook for the glory of God?

Here are three major categories to think through in evaluating your use of Facebook:

Relationship with God

Facebook is a source of everlasting entertainment. It’s so easy to bounce from page to page, game to game, photo to photo. It’s mindless, distracting, and somewhat fun. Without self-control, a quick dip into Facebook can turn into a two-hour Internet safari.

Is it wrong to spend two hours on Facebook? Not necessarily. But it has the potential to drain the vitality out of our relationship with the Lord. Can you relate?

Try these questions on for size:

- Does using Facebook result in me spending less time with the Lord?

- Does it result in me being more distracted in my devotional times?

Relationships with Others

We were made for real, person-to-person relationships. Superpoking, chatting, and throwing snowballs at each other doesn’t constitute biblical fellowship. God created us to “bear one another’s burdens” (Gal. 6:2), “meet together” (Heb. 10:25), “rejoice with those who rejoice”, and “weep with those who weep” (Rom. 12:15) This doesn’t usually happen in a meaningful way on Facebook.

So…

- Do I invest more time in Facebook relationships than face-to-face relationships?

- Does using Facebook take me away from my family, friends, church, etc.?

Temptation

Just like television, music, and movies, Facebook is a loaded gun when it comes to temptation. Flirting, sexually immoral applications, sensual sidebar ads, inappropriate pics uploaded by friends – it’s all possible. Can it be avoided? Sure. But the fact that it exists should put us on guard every time we log in.

And so we ask…

- Is using Facebook causing me to be sexually tempted?

- Am I taking the appropriate, biblical measures to fight against these temptations?

I don’t have this all figured out. I wrestle through these issues on a regular basis, and I would encourage you to wrestle through them as well. Parents, talk to your kids about these things. As you learn to use Facebook for the glory of God, teach your children to do the same.

Should we abandon Facebook because of these temptations? I don’t think so. But we need to think carefully and biblically every time we logon.

Here are a few articles that I found to be particularly helpful:

Facebook Turns Five: Thoughts on Social Networking – Al Mohler

Facebook Faceoff – Tim Sweetman

–

Connect with me on Facebook or Twitter

Questions for Fellowship

2009-04-02T20:23:00Z

Once a month our men and women meet separately on a Wednesday night to study and pray and encourage each other in manly and womanly kinds of ways. Last night I distributed this sheet that is a re-formatting of what we elders use to guide our Elder Visits. I encouraged every man to meet with another man and work their way through the questions. The ladies did likewise.
If fellowship is the sharing of lives, then that demands we learn how to ask questions - the right, god-centered, Christ-exalting, Spirit-empowered questions.
It was a great night for us so I thought I might share the joy!

Your Spiritual Life
1. Describe your spiritual health (growing, stagnant, stuck, joyful, strong, etc).
2. Are you reading the Bible? What are you currently reading?
3. Are you regularly praying? Do you pray for the members (use the directory)?
4. In what areas have you discerned God’s grace changing you?
5. Are there particular sins you are finding it difficult to repent of or that seem to keep tripping you up?

Your Life in the World, but Not of the World
1. Are you handling your money in a way that glorifies God?
2. How is your time management? Too busy? Lazy?
3. Are there any New Testament commands that you know you should obey but you are not?
4. Has anyone addressed sins in your life recently? How did you respond? What changes have taken place in your life since then?
5. When is the last time you evangelized someone?
6. Have you been guilty of sins like gossip, outbursts of anger, lying, cheating, or taking pleasure in evil?
7. If you work outside of the home, would your co-workers consider you to be just, honest, faithful, God-glorifying and hard working?
8. Are you living the life of a good citizen; paying taxes, fulfilling societal obligations, serving your neighbours, etc?

Your Life at Home
1. Describe your home life. Is it a happy place to be? What changes would improve your home life?

Husband:
1. Are you leading your wife? Are you romancing her and wooing her? Are you loving her as Christ loved the church?
2. Have you been leading your wife/family in some form of devotions?

Father:
1. Do you know the spiritual condition of your children?
2. Are you shepherding their hearts?
3. Are you teaching your children the Gospel and calling them to turn to Jesus?

Wife:
1. Are you following your husband in everything?
2. What are some areas that you find it difficult to submit to him?

Mother:
1. Do you know the spiritual condition of your children?
2. Are you shepherding their hearts?
3. Are you teaching your children the Gospel and calling them to turn to Jesus?

Singles:
1. Are you content with being single?
2. Do you have any habits or living patterns that are not conducive to spiritual growth?
3. How are you building strong Christian friendships with others?
4. If you desire marriage, how are you preparing for that gift now?

kerux noemata - the blog of pastor paul w. martin thanks for reading!

The Fifth Third Burger A 5/3 of a pound beef patty with lettuce,...

2009-03-28T22:26:38Z

Shared by Joel
WARNING: Don't look at this blog if you happen to be fasting. Not sure what you'll throw up, but it won't be pleasant.

The Fifth Third Burger

A 5/3 of a pound beef patty with lettuce, tomato, salsa, sour cream, chili and Fritos on an eight-inch sesame seed bun.

(via CNBC)

From Eric Williams

2009-03-10T01:00:23Z

“If they had twitter in 1865. HonestAbe: i declare, this ‘our american cousin’ is a hoot. hang on, some1’s at the door.”

Read Eric’s Twitter feed at @EricWilliams1

This tweet was posted Mar 2nd, 2009

Reason for the season fail

2009-03-25T11:00:19Z

Submitted by Kayla R

Meat Fail

2009-03-26T14:00:14Z

I guess I’ll just eat some ramen.

Submitted by rcav8r