But if I say I will not mention Him...

Step2 reviews!

2007-05-07T14:52:00.000-05:00

About the middle of last month we launched a reviews service on our website at Step2.com. Armed with our email newsletter subscriber list, we sent out a request for previous customers to come visit the site and review the items they had bought.

The response was overwhelming! Within a couple of weeks we've gathered over 950 product reviews, including over 900 toy reviews. We decided to take a chance and publish both positive and negative reviews, because we feel that this will help moderate expectations. While we do everything we can to make our products completely satisfying, some parents and/or children might not like certain aspects of the products we sell. By helping the consumer get a more "real-world" view of what these products are like, we're hoping that they'll feel much more comfortable purchasing our toys.

After all, there's reviews elsewhere on the web that customers will go to if we're not willing to provide them, and we'd much rather have them learning about our products at our site, where we can respond accordingly if concerns are voiced.

So far, it looks like the program has been a pretty big success. But don't take my word for it--go check out some of our Step2 toy reviews at our site!

It worked! Sweet!

2006-11-23T22:36:00.000-05:00

Heck yeah, BigCrumbs.com is legit! I just got my account credited for $11.50 off a purchase I made at Target.com, which was in addition to the 10% discount that I got at the time of purchase. If you haven't already, I highly recommend that you sign up for this site.

10% off at Target PLUS cash back?

2006-11-20T18:40:00.000-05:00

(I know, sounds SPAMmy) That's what BigCrumbs.com claims. So I tried it, and the 10% off part worked, so it's already a winner situation, and if I get the other cash back will be even better.

If you're going to be shopping at Target.com, you owe it to yourself to give it a try if for nothing else than the 10% off. There's also a ton of other stores on the list including eBay, Macy's, Best Buy, Circuit City, etc.

Moved. Yup, moved.

2006-10-16T22:06:00.000-05:00

This blog has moved to http://www.gopulls.com/blog, and you should be redirected there automatically in a few seconds. If you have this site bookmarked, please update your bookmarks.

Off the SERPS?

2006-10-12T09:18:00.000-05:00

A year ago, you could find the Step2 website page for the Up and Down Roller Coaster on the first page of Google search results. Today, not in the first 40 results.

What happened?

I have no idea. But it is a great toy. I guess this is why Search Engine Optimizers charge $250+ per hour and get away with it.

Movin on up

2006-10-11T22:20:00.000-05:00

I just made the move to WordPress. Holy friggin cow, what an incredibly more advanced blogging tool. If you haven't ever considered the WP, now is the time.

The front end looks pretty similar (see my new blog location), but the backend is fabulous. Categories, easier customization, sweet effects that make you feel like you're ruling the world, etc.

What's not to like?

The coolest part, though, is that you can import your entire Blogger blog straight into wordpress, comments and all.

Heck yeah.

What to blog about?

2006-08-24T07:41:00.000-05:00

Well, I've got so much to say. Kind of. One personal-related thing, and two personal-work related things. Where do I start?

Personal. Tonight I have to give a sort of devotional to the upcoming Navs student leaders at Kent State on Biblical Integrity. Why am I doing this? Because I'm passionate about it.

How do you listen to preaching? On what do you base your theology? Unfortunately, many people just either assume "if it sounds right, it must be true", or "if a pastor says it, it's gotta be true." My dear friends, this is not so. First of all, you're living in America, so what sounds right to you is American philosophy, such as "I deserve to be rich," "if it feels good, do it," "I don't owe anything to anyone," and "whatever you want to do, if you work hard enough you can do it."

I don't have the time to go into all the reasons that these ideas are dangerous and in some cases downright sinful. But if you listen to many preachers out there, that's what they'll say. I dare you to find them in the Bible. (and I mean the whole Bible, not just the half of the one verse that said pastor likes to quote)

So tonight I get to tell these kids that:

#1 The Bible is authoritative, and the only thing that they can pass on and know that others will always be able to come back to. (Your 4 fancy points beginning with the same letter will be forgotten within a day, I guarantee it)

#2 You must know the Bible in order to teach it. Fred Phelps (a Kansan preacher who anually claims that God hates ____ (gay people)) honestly thinks he's preaching truth, but he evidently doesn't know the Bible. 90% of the truth is often the most dangerous thing in the world. If you're not in the Word, you've got no business teaching others what it says.

Learn the Word first, and fancy tricks to make it more easily accessible second.

Blogging for Step2

2006-07-24T07:23:00.000-05:00

Ah, the day has finally come where I can get paid to blog. Well, kind of.

We've started a Step2 blog over at Step2.com, and now part of my job will be blogging. We're excited to put more of a personal touch on the company's image by allowing our personalities (and they are definitely personalities) to be visible in some way.

Rob and I will mostly be talking about stuff Step2 is doing, odd facts about the Step2 Direct program, information about new products that are coming, news about special offers, and possibly some child psychology information that illustrates ways our toys can help your child learn and grow.

Go on, check it out.

Windows Vista is a Memory Hog

2006-07-10T21:31:00.000-05:00

Yes, it's official. I installed the x64 version of the Windows Vista Beta about a month or so ago, and I've been playing around with it. I built a new system specifically for this purpose, as my old laptop just wasn't going to cut it. (Mobile Athlon 2400+, 512MB of RAM, w/ 128 shared to video)

I wanted to build a cheap machine that would be nice nonetheless. After all was said and done, I had an Athlon 64 3200+ (San Diego), 1GB of PC3200 RAM, and an EVGA 7600GS card with 256MB of DDR2 Ram. I also threw in a DVD burner and 19" LCD monitor, and used an old 80GB hard drive I had laying around. I took a dremel to an old Gateway 2000 case my wife had, and viola, brand new "old" computer. I figure that all the parts cost me around $560 (yes, with the 8ms monitor).

I installed Vista x64 without any problems and noticed right away that it was hogging 650MB of RAM. Holy freaking cow. The monitor, motherboard, and ram I bought dropped in price at TigerDirect.com (where I bought most of the stuff), so I called them up and they agreed to credit me the differences as store credit. I happily agreed, and ordered another GB of ram a few days later. (LONG story on the TD credit--their CS is pretty crappy and helpless, and if their management can't fix the mess they made, you'll read about it here)

So I pop in my second gig of ram a few days later, and I boot up Vista again. Now it's using 995MB! Holy crap! You need an entire GB of RAM just to run your OS?!?! Who does Microsoft think they are? And this, after all the talk about using your GFX card for visual effects to spare the rest of the system. I sure hope they're not using 995MB plus my 256MB card...

So I guess the bottom line is this: if they tell you that you can run the x86 version on 512MB, they're probably referring to "running" quite loosely. Like molasses on a January day loosely. When they require 1GB for x64, they certainly aren't kidding. Looks like your best bet is to just buy a friggin Mac. Or install the 4GB of RAM you never thought that you'd ever use in your wildest dreams. Or just keep running XP Pro. (My commit charge w/ the same system in XP Pro? 176MB)

It's like the Matrix, only real. Some geeks are an odd bunch...

2006-07-03T22:30:00.000-05:00

Remember all those people who used to dress up like Neo and go to the latest installment of the Matrix trilogy? They talked about "there is no spoon" and all that jazz, and normal people just shook their heads? Well, despite all their weird musings on the philosophy behind the Matrix, it's really happening. And they're unwittingly putting themselves into the Matrix.

Now what would make you say such a ridiculous thing, you may ask. Simple. It's called MMOG. For those of you not in the know, Massively Multiplayer Online Gaming. The whole idea is that hundreds, or thousands of users across the globe all insert themselves into a totally imaginary world, where they interact as if they were real people in an "real" mythical world. I remember back in my college days when people played Everquest, then there was Everquest 2, and now you've got World of Warcraft, which is obscenely huge, some Star Wars version, and a gazillion other of these games.

It's scary, really, because these people abandon their real, physical lives for an imaginary one in front of a computer screen for hours upon hours upon hours every day. Rather than get out and enjoy the real world, they isolate themselves in their houses (or apartments, or parents' basements) and begin to think of themselves as Ganthor or Mithrand or Yodette or something like that. No, I'm not against gaming, and I love to spend a couple hours each week with a RTS or First Person Shooter game, but some of these people trade in their lives entirely, often spending large sums of real money on imaginary items in a false world.

They really do live in a Matrix, a computer-generated world that keeps them blissfully unaware of the pathetic state their real lives are in. Do you MMOG? More than you LITRW? (Live in the real world) Go outside, enjoy the sunshine, talk to a real person, do some good deeds, spend some time seeking after God, who has an actual purpose for you in this real world.

And a totally random thought...

I wonder, how long until we see MMOG missionaries?

The World Trade Center -- Tragedy #2

2006-06-20T13:43:00.000-05:00

It seems that they've found a way to get the WTC memorial closer to a $500 million cap, according to the New York Times. Honestly, this makes me sick.

Yes, 9/11 was a tragedy. Yes, we should remember the dead, and especially the brave people who sacrificed their lives saving others'. But is flushing $500 million down the drain on two huge waterfall pits the best way to do that? Why not erect a simple monument (like the Vietnam Memorial) with their names and the story ingraved in it, put in in a grassy square, and call it good. Then, send the other $499 million to feeding some starving refugees in Africa, or to hurricane relief, or earthquake relief, or tsunami relief, or whatever else is the disaster of the month. Honestly, there is no shortage of truly noble purposes in the world that could really use a couple hundred million dollars of support, and we've got people whining that their deceased relatives' names are going to be inscribed above ground instead of below.

America, wake up. Quit thinking about your own pity party, and help someone else who is alive and in need. And quit wasting money like it's going out of style.

Wii -- a Genius idea. Evangelistically genius.

2006-05-02T15:53:00.000-05:00

Nintendo recently announced that their new gaming console (previously known as the "Revolution") would be called Wii. You pronounce that to rhyme with pee, by the way, and the whole electronic world is talking about how dumb of an idea that was. I have to disagree. It's a remarkably smart decision.

Why? Word of mouth. Many Christians have looked at Evangelism this way for a long time--if you hear something from someone you know and trust, you're infinitely more likely to pay attention. Just as the guy standing on the street corner can be "heard" by thousands of people, he's unlikely to influence more than 1 or 2 (and that may be negatively!). In contrast, if he were talking to one friend, that single friend would at least listen as he finished his thought. So it is with Wii.

As we speak, those outspoken gaming nerds are all asking their Moms/Sisters/Non-Gamers (ie, the Wii's target audience) what they think of the name Wii for the new Nintendo. All those people, obviously, are saying stuff like "What's that? Nintendo has a new gaming system? etc." Then they're all being treated to this diatribe about how Nintendo is trying to get non-gamers to play by...yadda yadda...

So these people who would instantly tune out a Gaming system commercial are getting it first hand from someone they trust to know about gaming. They can't forget the name Wii, (because of course they're thinking "heh, heh, it rhymes with pee!") and they'll probably end up telling their non-gamer friends about it.

Nintendo wisely gave some touchy-feely cheesy reasoning behind the name, which will inflame gamer controversy even more, fueling the free PR fires.

Nintendo, can we have that ad guy? He's got Insight. Genius.

It's all Greek to me

2006-04-30T13:02:00.000-05:00

Sorry I've been gone for so long (over two weeks now!). I've been pretty busy at work, and given the nature of my project (ie, a lot of fun), I've also been working at home a bit. You can see my Wagon handiwork by clicking the 3d demo button underneath the T3 Traveler on the page.

Anyways, enough of excuses. A few things have been leading me back towards the desire to attend seminary sooner rather than later, so I've been doing some digging into what it will take to earn my M.Div (Masters of Divinity) at Trinity. Answer: knowledge of Greek, plus 96 hours of classes and some other stuff (internships and the like). Since Kent State would charge me about $1500 per semester to learn Greek, I'm off to finding a way to teach myself.

A pastor friend of mine suggested that I buy "Mounce's Greek," which would teach me pretty much all I need to know, but I love computers and hate spending money. SOOOooo, I dug, and dug, and dug around the internet, and I found an amazing resource by a lady at the University of Houston. Apparently, she has three entire semesters of her Biblical Greek classes posted online, and encourages people like me to work through it and learn for free! Booyeah.

So far I've found that there's a ton of good stuff, from mp3s of pronunciations, to a vary well-organized methodology of learning the language. I'm excited to keep going here, and I highly recommend that anyone who is interested to come learn Greek with me.

Are you feeling Naturally Playful?

2006-04-12T08:25:00.000-05:00

At Step2, we've got this great line of toys that have realistic wood and stone colors and textures, and they've become quite popular. It seems that nobody wants bright yellow and pink in their back yard (or worse, faded yellow and pink). Up until now, though, you had to sort through our entire website to find your options. All that has changed!

Now you can find the whole gamut of Naturally Playful toys at the Step2 Website. I created this overview of the whole toy line for a few reasons--to explore the reaction to a new color scheme, and to ease the shopping process for people who just search for that term on the web.

Check it out--do you prefer the more muted colors, or the old style?

Physical Fitness...a responsibility?

2006-04-01T11:39:00.000-05:00

I started swimming 5 times a week in January, and managed to last two months doing it. Then, the pleasures of sleeping in a little bit later pulled me back into a very sedentary lifestyle. I gained 7 pounds in about a month! So today I'm back at the pool, swimming again, and I wonder--is there any spiritual repercussions for exercising, or lack of exercise? I suppose I gotta be careful here, or I'll end up convicting myself for treating my body poorly...

It's hard to draw the line anywhere--the Bible tells us that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, and that we should treat them with respect. Paul tells us that physical training is of some value, though spiritual discipline has repercussions for eternity. I had a friend tell me that smoking is sinful, but I don't think it's necessarily so--it may be less-than-ideal, but I don't see any clear prohibition in the Bible, except warnings against succumbing to addiction. What do you think?

You mean life isn't just about ME?

2006-03-26T21:48:00.000-05:00

Monday nights I'm part of a Bible Study with some guys from the Kent State Navigators, and we're studying 1 Corinthians. I love that book, and I've gotta say that a lot of what Paul says in this letter could be taken as a pretty strong indictment of America, and American Christians.

The American idea of Freedom --which few will argue is a bad thing-- has come to pollute Christianity. Yes, we are free in Christ, free from the old Jewish law, free from condemnation. Unfortunately, all to often this "freedom" is taken as a license to kill.

The apostle Paul had a different take.

In 1 Corinthians 8 he is talking to the Corinthian church about eating food sacrificed to idols. He first tells them that they are free to do so--eating this food is neither harmful nor beneficial to them spiritually, and thus they should have no qualms over the source of the food. HOWEVER, he then goes on to state:

Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak. For if anyone with a weak conscience sees you who have this knowledge eating in an idol's temple, won't he be emboldened to eat what has been sacrificed to idols? So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. When you sin against your brothers in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall. (1 Cor 8:9-13)

Paul would rather go without eating meat than exercise his "God-given right" to eat this meat. His thoughts are for the benefit of others rather than himself! This theme of loving your neighbor as yourself pops up all over the Bible, but oddly enough those most vehement to point out the Biblical truths regarding freedom in Christ are often the most blatant transgressors of the Biblical truths concerning putting the interests of others ahead of your own interests. (1 Cor 10:24)

Here's a simple rule of thumb: any time you're speaking with someone about the "rightness" of something and they are not convinced, you must refrain from indulging in that action in their presence. If you ever think "but it's my God-given right, and if they don't understand, that's their problem," you are most definitely in the wrong.

Joel Osteen vs. Rick Warren

2006-03-22T18:34:00.000-05:00

So I was playing around with a cool little tool Overture has that allows you to find the number of times that a term was searched for in the last month. (This is useful at Step2 as we look to optimize our website for specific search terms such as play kitchens or racing car bed)

I had gotten a hit from technorati from someone searching for Joel Osteen, so I threw his name in there. It appears as if Joel Osteen had 45,063 searches for his name last month. Out of curiosity, I decided to compare this to a well-known evangelical pastor--Rick Warren, of SaddleBack Church. His results? 8855 searches.

Why such a difference? Why are people flocking to his church so rapidly? After seeing his "sermons" on TV a few times, my best guess is this: there's no conviction. After listening to Joel, it's easy to feel like you've almost got it right. You're just a step away from being perfect, from having that "best life now". Flashy sayings like "God always causes me to Triumph" (take from his website) encourage you to believe that being a Christian means you'll be on cloud nine.

In contrast, The Wall Street Journal had this to say about Rick Warren's philosophy, as seen in "The Purpose Driven Life":

Life is not about you, your dreams, and your individual self-actualization. It's about God and finding your own life's purpose in him

I am reminded of a passage in 2 Timothy that says

In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. (vv. 1-4)

Draw your own conclusions, and feel free to leave comments if you feel I've misrepresented either side!

Clarification on Bible believers

2006-03-22T18:15:00.000-05:00

I recently posted on the fact that it's hard to find people nowadays who are hungry for Scriptural accuracy. Maybe I should clarify: some of the most vehement "Bible-believers" have got it all wrong. They search the Bible for verses that they can take out of context in order to condemn others or glorify their own position. I do not condone this.

If anyone ever claims that any one translation is right and all the others wrong (ie the KJV, NIV, Good News Bible, etc), you may summarily discount anything else they have to say. The Bible was not written in English, nor did God write it with fallacies that would only be cleansed of x-many translations. It was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic, and the best way for us to truly understand the word would be to become anthropologists, historians, and fluent speakers of the ancient forms of those languages. As this is not going to happen, I recommend that those trying to make any theological statements from the Word of God look at a few translations, as well as one or more of the many wonderful commentaries written by anthropologists, historians, and students of those languages.

I am not claiming that everything they say will be untrue (indeed, many things they say will be true). I just recommend that you get it from another source who's willing to get a better, broader look at the Word.

my dear friend the Word

2006-03-20T17:57:00.000-05:00

Lisa and I were discussing yesterday how much it saddens us that it's hard to find people passionate about the Word of God. There's people on every street corner who try to be ~~good,~~ good enough, and there's a lot of people who want to be a Sunday School teacher, or youth leader, or member of a Bible Study. But how many of us can claim, as Jeremiah did, "When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart's delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty" (Jer 15:16)?

All too often I see people who read the Bible as if it were a story. People who, as they read it, only really listen to the parts that match up with their thinking. People who read without understanding, without really critically examining it. It saddens me when someone reads a passage of scripture quickly, then makes a claim that it says something totally unfounded, or merely assumes that the meaning of it all is "be nice to people." In a "Chicken Soup" world, we've forgotten what a treasure God's Word is, turned off our brains, and started living a Joel Osteen brand of Christianity--where it's all "good advice" and heartwarming stories, and no real scriptural wisdom.

If you want more than that, ~~I have two steps~~ start here and ask God to change the way you view scripture:

Memorize and Meditate on Scripture
Study Scripture

Study Scripture with a Study Bible if you like, but I highly recommend downloading e-Sword (it's free) and taking advantage of the zillions of translations and commentaries that you can download and read side-by-side to help you come to a deeper understanding of the wealth of wisdom contained in the Word of God.

What do I do all day?

2006-03-17T08:50:00.000-05:00

When I'm not criticizing the latest stupid idea (sigh, I need to be more positive), this is the kind of stuff I like to do at work--build landing pages for SEO and PPC reasons. Currently, these wonderful pages aren't getting crawled well, so I'll link to 'em to give them some love, as well as demonstrate what my job is like to all those people who are always asking.

Play Kitchens

Stock Car Bed

Sand and Water Table

Children's Wagons

Climbing Toys

Communion. Finally I Understand.

2006-03-13T13:16:00.000-05:00

About a week or so ago, our church had communion. We practice open communion--if you believe in Christ as savior and have repented of your sins, we welcome you to partake with us, regardless of denominational affiliation. At the service I was at, they set out the juice and crackers on tables to let us spend time in prayer/meditation and then shuffle through to take communion at your own pace.

My point though, has to do with the internal workings of communion. Specifically, that Sunday I felt guilty partaking: part of me didn't want to at all. I hadn't had a very "holy" week. I'd struggled with a few areas of sin, messed up a couple times, and generally had a very selfish/self-serving time of things. I was just thinking that I didn't deserve to take communion when it hit me...I was in a better position to benefit from it at that point than a lot of people who were glibly crunching those soup crackers and sipping their grape juice. (by this I don't mean I was better than them by any means, but that the Holy Spirit had just revealed to me a glimpse of the whole meaning behind the action--read on and you'll see)

You see, it's only in light of sin that the phrase "do this in remembrance of me" really makes sense. It's not a time to pat ourselves on the back for how well we're doing, (because really, compared to the perfection we suck) nor a time for us to condemn ourselves for how miserable we've been (See Romans 8:1). It's a time to remember Christ, and how his sacrifice means that our sins have been forgiven, and that He was willing to go to the cross to purchase our forgiveness--while we were yet sinners. My remorse over my sin was good, but to condemn myself for it was not. That Sunday I took communion remembering that Christ died for me knowing fully well that I'd never get it quite right here on earth. I thanked Him for Grace, and humbly (yet joyfully) asked for the strength to press on.

You don't have to be perfect (or think yourself to be "a good person") to take communion. In fact, if you do find yourself thinking that you're worthy, I'd say you missed the whole point. Next time you take communion, rejoice in the fact that it's a reminder that you're not going to face judgement for the times you've failed.

What a breath of fresh air to a weary soul.

Christian Radio and Fluff

2006-03-07T12:54:00.000-05:00

My wife and I are sometimes frustrated by the local Christian Radio station here. It used to be because they play a lot of Amy Grant--from the 80s/early 90s. Then they started playing Seal about three times a day. ("I Believe I Can Fly") Honestly, I change the station every time those choices come on the air. (Makes me want to gag)

But recently, we've been irked by the addition of John Tesh. Now, I don't know him (or of him) very well, and I won't make any judgements of his character/beliefs. But I will say this: 99% of what he talks about is fluff.

Take last night, for instance. I get in the car to hear him promising to reveal the one thing you can do when you're stressed out and need to find peace. [remember, Christian radio here] Instantly, due to past experience, I know that the one thing he's surely not going to say is pray. So I wait patiently until he reveals the secret: humming. That's right, hum. What the crap!? Forget Philippians 4:6-7, and hum.

Good grief. He calls his show "intelligence for life," but squarely misses the most important of all wisdom. Since they've started playing him on the Fish, I have yet to hear him mention a single tidbit of wisdom from the Bible. It's all "the experts this" or "a study that" or "an article I read." Now, I don't mind some good scientific facts/advice. But if you want to help people live happier, more productive lives, you're going to have to use some of God's wisdom at some point. In an effort to be more accessible to the masses, he's abandoned the most important thing of all.

Now, 1 Corinthians pretty clearly tells us that the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight, and that the world will see God's wisdom as foolishness. Offering Christian wisdom means that sometimes you're simply going to have to say stuff that non-believers don't understand/ think is stupid. Johnny boy, please--cut the fluff some time and give us some real meat.

The Amazing Race is Back!

2006-03-01T21:05:00.000-05:00

Ah, the Amazing Race is back on TV, and it's looking to be much better than season 8, the much-loathed "Family Edition." (Their tag-line could have been get the whole family together for a nap! or some such nonsense) It's looking like it could turn out to be an interesting season, but all the adrenaline involved in me sitting on the couch watching it with Lisa just makes me wish I could be on the Amazing Race myself.

Ah, yes, it's getting to late to still harbor hope, but if you're a CBS producer, it's not too late to call Lisa and I up and have us come interview. I swear, we'd be way more exciting even than BJ and Tyler--AFTER ALL, I DO HAVE FOUR....but this is a family show, right?

(If you're shaking your head, obviously you're not one of my close friends, or high-school co-workers, or CBC campers/co-counselors....)

But I digress. So far this season is lacking a dedicated Christian couple (the "glamazons" praying because they were "closer" to God in a helicopter doesn't count), and I would love for Lisa and I to be that couple on the next season. If you agree that Christians should be known by their love, sign our petition and let us be that way on TAR 10!

MySpace, Meep, and AdSense

2006-02-23T16:28:00.000-05:00

What do they have in common? Nothing, really. But a while back I posted a comment on a blog entry detailing how to get into MySpace in school via a Proxy service. I ended my (short) comment with the standard "meep," and I've been getting 10+ hits a day off of it.

All that for saying "Meep." (Who the heck clicks on links in blog comments?)

So today I posted Adsense on the page it points to. It's too bad Google thinks the page is about T-Shirts (it's not), and so it's plugging T-Shirts in the ads. Oh well, maybe I'll make a buck or two.

Meep

Swearing isn't bad?!?

2006-02-21T21:56:00.000-05:00

Today I read a post by a youth pastor (Matt Schultz) about 5 things we tell youth that we shouldn't. The first four were OK points, (maybe I wasn't totally in accord with all of them, but at least I could see where he was coming from, and couldn't too much harm in his claims.)

Then I hit #5.

~~I'm sorry, but I gotta disagree with him.~~ Quite frankly, I'm appalled at this statement, and I can't just be quiet about it, especially after our Bible Study examined the responsibility of the church to hold its members accountable to their profession of faith. (1 Cor 5)

The fifth thing he's telling us that we should not teach our youth is that "SWEAR WORDS ARE BAD." He claims:

Scripture does tell us to use our words wisely and not to harm people. But it does not specify a vocabulary. The word "suck," when used by teenagers in particular, carries with it no harmful intent other than to characterize something as sub-par (i.e., ÂI suck at baseballÂ). Other words are used equally as casually. If the word is not used to hurt, then I believe we should turn a deaf ear.

Are you kidding me, Mr Schultz? Are you even kidding me?!? Maybe he got too carried away with a more "complex thinking and interpretation" of Ephesians Chapter 4-5. I guess the whole part about "no unwholesome talk" and this little matter in Chapter 5 of:

(1)Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children (2)and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (3)But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people. (4)Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. (5)For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy personÂsuch a man is an idolaterÂhas any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.^[a] (6)Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient. (7)Therefore do not be partners with them.

Now I don't claim to be perfect, nor that I've never partaken in coarse joking. I also agree with him in regard to the word "suck"--it holds none of the meaning it may have held 20 or 30 years ago. I remember the first time my mom ever over-reacted to it, and I was left wondering "what's wrong with that word, and what does she think that it means?"

However, we must not encourage our youth to take a trivial view of holiness. If using the F-bomb can get a movie rated "R" by a very liberal society, it is evidently still a sign of impurity/coarseness/vulgarity, and there is no way that its use could be received by God as a fragrant offering. We should be looking for ways to encourage young people to try and exemplify holiness, not trying to make excuses for their straying towards sin. While we should not excommunicate a youth for letting a vulgarity slip, we should definitely teach them that such behavior is not ideal, and ultimately leads to greater and greater compromise.

I'm sure that the Corinthian individual in 1 Cor 5 didn't jump into bed with his father's wife the day after Paul left, but rather a culture developed that kept allowing more and more questionable, then sinful behavior.

My biggest problem, though, is lightheartedrded way the people throw around "Oh my god!" "good god!" and "Christ!" Even if you can try to talk your way around the pretty stringent guidelines Paul lays out, you can't deny the commandment in Exodus 20:7 "You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name." (or if you prefer KJV, "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain")

Get a clue, Mr. Schultz. The last the God wants is for us to water down his Character until being a Christian is a comfortable transition from being in the world. We are to be "set apart," not one of the gang. I ~~hate~~ have to be so vehement about this--if there's anything God is serious about, it's his Name, his Holiness, and his People: let us encourage his People to properly reflect his Holiness, and revere and bring honor to his Name.

Let us not fall into a trap that we've been warned of in Romans 1:

Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. (29)They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, (30)slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; (31)they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. (32)Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.