Source Tis the season for annoying bug bites, but a surprisingly simple remedy exists that can eliminate all of the itch within minutes. All you have to do is heat up a metal spoon under hot tap water for a minute or so, then press it directly against the bite. Hold it tight against your skin for a couple of minutes, and when you take it off, the itch should be gone for good. When mosquitoes bite you, they inject... Read more
From Megan Garber: Substances like alcohol are regulated according to four criteria. For a government to take that big step on behalf of its citizens, a substance must: 1. Be ubiquitous 2. Be toxic 3. Be addictive 4. Have a negative impact on society There is, according to Robert Lustig, a substance that fits the bill times four — save for the fact that it is not currently regulated. And that is sugar. Specifically,fructose. In a conversation with The Atlantic‘s Corby Kummer at the... Read more
Quote of the week, by Erik Ainge on Mark Sanchez, Jets QB: “I’d know as good as anybody — what Mark does off the field is child’s play. He’s dumb about it. He’s stupid while being stupid. You have to be smart while being stupid, and he’s dumb while being dumb.” Ethnic diversity marks the American experiment, especially in the 20th Century, so this collection of photographs from Ellis Island of immigrants in cultural garb and expression tells in some ways... Read more
Source: Valuable for pastors. A recent RadioLab podcast, titled The Bitter End, identified an interesting paradox. When you ask people how they’d like to die, most will say that they want to die quickly, painlessly, and peacefully… preferably in their sleep. But, if you ask them whether they would want various types of interventions, were they on the cusp of death and already living a low-quality of life, they typically say “yes,” “yes,” and “can I have some more please.” Blood transfusions, feeding tubes,... Read more
Many of us were asked somewhere in our education to read Dante’s Divine Comedy, or at least part of it. Mine came as a 1st year college student, if my memory serves me right, and I was so intensely focused on my girlfriend (now my wife, Kris), my own studies in Bible and theology, playing basketball at Cornerstone, and buying books to build my library that I barely recall reading it… just that Dr Portfleet somehow got us all to read... Read more
From Michelle van Loon: Does your church provide grace for those in middle life who find grace through regret? Regret may be the gateway into midlife for some of us. It has to do with consequences of our actions. At midlife, the consequences are more pressing and inescapable. Our souls recognize that there is no do-over when it comes to our life choices, and we must find a way to reconcile with that reality. Regret and remorse are two different... Read more
The Pastor as a Father In the last post you heard from my daughters as they gave you a peek into being raised in a pastor’s family. In the next post you will hear from Julie about the “pastor’s wife.” Perhaps Scot McKnight could solicit a post from “the pastor’s husband,” too. While by no means an exceptional father, I tried to allow the girls to have as normal a life as possible. By that I mean I did not... Read more
I read a piece by Steven Harrell in Relevant Mag about the Bible Verse Arms Race, which could be called being right without being biblical, or being right without being good. Here’s a brief clip: I like to call this exercise a “Bible Verse Arms Race.” The key to winning is to pile up as many verses on your side of the argument as you can while simultaneously discounting your opponent’s verses because they aren’t reading them in the correct... Read more
From WSJ, but only a selection: 1. The best Fourth of July Wiffle ball games do not start on time, ever. The Wiffle ball game that’s supposed to begin at 3 p.m. begins at 4:30 p.m., the 5 p.m. game begins at 6:45 p.m., and the 8 p.m. game never winds up happening because….well, mojitos…. 3. Some people play Wiffle ball without running bases. But running bases is entertaining. So is getting an out by hitting the runner with the... Read more
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