Al Mohler on state-sponsored gambling:
The most insidious dimension of the problem is the role of government in legitimizing and promoting the gambling enterprise. Though outlawed until 1964, state lotteries now represent the most popular form of legal gambling. Turning vice into an economic virtue, these states take advantage of their most gullible citizens, while touting benefits the gambling revenues supposedly make possible.
Source: Al Mohler, "When the Accounts Are Called: A Christian Understanding of Gambling" 20 Feb. 2012, Accessed,
http://www.albertmohler.com/2012/02/20/when-the-accounts-are-called-a-christian-understanding-of-gambling/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AlbertMohlersBlog+%28Albert+Mohler%27s+Blog%29
Monday, February 20, 2012
Monday, February 13, 2012
Quote of the Day
I first learned about Jeremy Lin, a Harvard graduate NBA basketball player who's a Christian, last week. I love this observation from a columnist.
"It’s not just Lin’s ethnicity and improbable story that set him apart. There’s a joy to his game. He can’t help smiling after a good play. He’s having fun. The typical NBA player proceeds with a studied coolness. Lin wouldn’t be able to hide his happiness with a lampshade."
Source
Rick Morrissey, "Jeremy Lin bursts through the preconception barrier" Chicago Sun-Times. 13 Feb. 2012. Accessed 13 Feb. 2012. Available: http://www.suntimes.com/sports/10624746-452/jeremy-lin-bursts-through-the-preconception-barrier.html
"It’s not just Lin’s ethnicity and improbable story that set him apart. There’s a joy to his game. He can’t help smiling after a good play. He’s having fun. The typical NBA player proceeds with a studied coolness. Lin wouldn’t be able to hide his happiness with a lampshade."
Source
Rick Morrissey, "Jeremy Lin bursts through the preconception barrier" Chicago Sun-Times. 13 Feb. 2012. Accessed 13 Feb. 2012. Available: http://www.suntimes.com/sports/10624746-452/jeremy-lin-bursts-through-the-preconception-barrier.html
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Combating Poverty - For the Right Reason
A great quote in a Christianity Today article:
"In pragmatic America, we are often enamored of and motivated by
pragmatism rather than simple obedience to Jesus. We are too often tempted to
justify our existence on this planet by doing something
"significant," by "making a difference in the world," so
that we can go to bed at night feeling good about ourselves. But the Christian
message is about a God who judges and loves us in our insignificance—that is,
when our selfcenteredness has sabotaged our ability to make any fundamentally
sound contribution to our lives or to others'. This God speaks to us the frank
word that not only do we not make a difference in the world, day to day
we threaten to make the world worse by our sin. But in Jesus Christ, he has
judged and forgiven us through the Cross, and now he uses even our
insignificant efforts to witness to his coming work in Jesus Christ.
What is that coming work? Among other things, it is the end of poverty.
No,we cannot end poverty, but God can and will. From this perspective we
see that our efforts to stem poverty have significance not because they make us
feel better, but because they point to Jesus' final antipoverty program."
Source: Mark Galli, "The Best Ways to Fight Poverty - Really" Christianity Today. 10 Feb. 2012. Accessed 11 Feb. 2012. Available: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2012/february/best-ways-to-fight-poverty.html
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Building His Church
Russell Moore wrote a fantastic article that the future leaders of the church may be her current enemies.
Whenever I’m tempted to despair about the shape of American Christianity, I’m reminded that Jesus never promised the triumph of the American church; he promised the triumph of the church. Most of the church, in heaven and on earth, isn’t American. Maybe the hope of the American church is right now in Nigeria or Laos or Indonesia.
Jesus will be King, and his church will flourish. And he’ll do it in the way he chooses, by exalting the humble and humbling the exalted, and by transforming cowards and thieves and murderers into the cornerstones of his New City.
So relax.
And, be kind to that atheist in front of you on the highway, the one who just shot you an obscene gesture. He might be the one who evangelizes your grandchildren.
Source:
Russell Moore, "The Next Billy Graham Might Be Drunk Right Now" 2 January 2012 http://www.russellmoore.com/
Whenever I’m tempted to despair about the shape of American Christianity, I’m reminded that Jesus never promised the triumph of the American church; he promised the triumph of the church. Most of the church, in heaven and on earth, isn’t American. Maybe the hope of the American church is right now in Nigeria or Laos or Indonesia.
Jesus will be King, and his church will flourish. And he’ll do it in the way he chooses, by exalting the humble and humbling the exalted, and by transforming cowards and thieves and murderers into the cornerstones of his New City.
So relax.
And, be kind to that atheist in front of you on the highway, the one who just shot you an obscene gesture. He might be the one who evangelizes your grandchildren.
Source:
Russell Moore, "The Next Billy Graham Might Be Drunk Right Now" 2 January 2012 http://www.russellmoore.com/
Friday, January 13, 2012
Gambling Away Reality
Drag our Leaf Icon above to your taskbar to bookmark TGAM in Internet Explorer 9.
Drag our Leaf Icon above to your taskbar to bookmark TGAM in Internet Explorer 9.
The local residents who expressed concern on the radio about the casino were mostly worried that traffic levels would increase. Perhaps. But there's a whole lot more at stake than congestion.
The Globe and Mail had a live chat with an expert on gambling from the University of Lethbridge. I was pleased he pointed out something that the people worried about more cars (and also the politicians who support revenue generating proposal), probably hadn't thought of.
"It is true that all government revenue is used for the good of the people. However, the important thing to remember about gambling is that it is a type of industry that simply involves a transfer of wealth, not a creation of weath (e.g., as you would have in a manufacturing industry). Hence, all this new revenue and employment has to come from other parts of the Ontario economy. The primary economic losers would be a) neighbouring casinos and slots at racetracks, b) other retail businesses in the Toronto area, and c) the citizens and city of Toronto, if the revenue contributed is not returned in equal measure in terms of provincial services. Furthermore, although there would be some economic gains for the very local area, this transfer of wealth creates social costs in terms of increased rates of addiction and a small increase in crime."
He continues,
"Only last point I would want to make concerns where the money is coming from. Governments always correctly point to where the money goes (i.e., to support education, heatlh care, infrastructure, and other good causes). However, we cannot ignore where the money comes from. Research shows that 1/3 of Ontario govt gambling revenue comes from gambling addicts (a much higher percentage just for casinos). Thus, raising money in this way become a potentially ethically problematic enterprise"
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Lost in Translation
From the weatheroffice..I think something was lost in translation..
11:19 AM EST Tuesday 27 December 2011
Winter storm warning for
Natashquan continued
We expect 20 to 40 centimetres of snow over these regions beginning this evening. Moreover, strong winds will accompany the snow and will create generalized blowing snow over the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean and north coast areas.
A new low pressure system with an explosive development is presently building over Kentucky. This system will move to Northern New England this evening and will reach the province of Quebec Wednesday morning.
The snow will affect the Southern Quebec areas beginning on this evening. Over the Eastern Townships and the Beauce, the storm will give a mix of precipitations. The heavy snow, strong winds and blowing snow which accompany this system will reach several regions of Central and Eastern Quebec beginning tonight, leaving a more than significant amount of snow. These bad conditions will persist through Thursday.
Please refer to regional public forecasts for details pertaining to each region.
http://www.weatheroffice.gc.ca/warnings/report_e.html?qc25
11:19 AM EST Tuesday 27 December 2011
Winter storm warning for
Natashquan continued
We expect 20 to 40 centimetres of snow over these regions beginning this evening. Moreover, strong winds will accompany the snow and will create generalized blowing snow over the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean and north coast areas.
A new low pressure system with an explosive development is presently building over Kentucky. This system will move to Northern New England this evening and will reach the province of Quebec Wednesday morning.
The snow will affect the Southern Quebec areas beginning on this evening. Over the Eastern Townships and the Beauce, the storm will give a mix of precipitations. The heavy snow, strong winds and blowing snow which accompany this system will reach several regions of Central and Eastern Quebec beginning tonight, leaving a more than significant amount of snow. These bad conditions will persist through Thursday.
Please refer to regional public forecasts for details pertaining to each region.
http://www.weatheroffice.gc.ca/warnings/report_e.html?qc25
Monday, December 12, 2011
Good Question!
On the bus this morning a young girl asked her mom why a man was wearing a Santa hat. Good question! I wondered why as well.
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