C.H. Cobb's Blog, page 25
August 13, 2012
Honduras Day 1
It was, I thought, the alarm clock on my cell phone. I groggily reached over, flipped the phone open and shut to kill the alarm. Can’t be time to get up yet!
My alarm was set for 1:30 AM. I stumbled into the kitchen, stared stupidly at the clock on the wall, which was insisting that it was only 12:30 AM. It slowly dawned on me that the sound which awoke me was not my alarm, but an actual phone call.
The good news is that I had one more hour to sleep! The bad news is that I just hung up on someone. Better see who it was. Ah, a Honduras trip team member, calling with a minor matter: can’t find their passport anywhere.
An inauspicious beginning for our one-week mission trip to Honduras! But all went well. The passport was located, and the entire team assembled at 5 AM at Port Columbus International airport: 23 souls and a mountain of luggage.
Jesus said that if you have faith, you can move mountains. I reckon we had faith enough, because the whole mountain moved with us to San Pedro Sula. Every bag, every personal item, and every person arrived safe and sound.
When we arrived in San Pedro Sula, we had a two hour plus bus ride to MEDA, the seminary that will be home base for our trip. The sights along the way were both beautiful and heart-breaking. Honduras is a study in contrasts: poverty and beauty, found both in its landscape and its people. I look forward to getting to know both better in coming days. Perhaps some of the poverty of my own soul might be revealed in the process . . .
My alarm was set for 1:30 AM. I stumbled into the kitchen, stared stupidly at the clock on the wall, which was insisting that it was only 12:30 AM. It slowly dawned on me that the sound which awoke me was not my alarm, but an actual phone call.
The good news is that I had one more hour to sleep! The bad news is that I just hung up on someone. Better see who it was. Ah, a Honduras trip team member, calling with a minor matter: can’t find their passport anywhere.
An inauspicious beginning for our one-week mission trip to Honduras! But all went well. The passport was located, and the entire team assembled at 5 AM at Port Columbus International airport: 23 souls and a mountain of luggage.
Jesus said that if you have faith, you can move mountains. I reckon we had faith enough, because the whole mountain moved with us to San Pedro Sula. Every bag, every personal item, and every person arrived safe and sound.
When we arrived in San Pedro Sula, we had a two hour plus bus ride to MEDA, the seminary that will be home base for our trip. The sights along the way were both beautiful and heart-breaking. Honduras is a study in contrasts: poverty and beauty, found both in its landscape and its people. I look forward to getting to know both better in coming days. Perhaps some of the poverty of my own soul might be revealed in the process . . .
July 28, 2012
In what way is Jesus God's Son?
One of the aspects of the mystery of the Godhead is the Father-Son relationship of the first and second members of the Trinity (ie. God the Father, and God the Son). There are are many terms that can trip you up surrounding this topic, such as only-begotten, or firstborn of creation, aside from the term, Son, itself.
The mistake most people make is to assume that these expressions have to do with physical generation (natural birth) as opposed to Jesus' uniqueness, and His positions of functional submission to the Father, heir of the Father, and the preeminent One over all creation.
Recently a sister in Christ had an encounter with a modern-day Arian (aka Jehovah's Witness), and it spurred her to ask a question. You can read the question, and my answer, here.
The mistake most people make is to assume that these expressions have to do with physical generation (natural birth) as opposed to Jesus' uniqueness, and His positions of functional submission to the Father, heir of the Father, and the preeminent One over all creation.
Recently a sister in Christ had an encounter with a modern-day Arian (aka Jehovah's Witness), and it spurred her to ask a question. You can read the question, and my answer, here.
July 22, 2012
A new review of Outlander Chronicles: Phoenix
A new review of
Outlander Chronicles: Phoenix
has been posted on the Captivated Reading book blog. You can see it here. It's a great review, and the blogger, Christy P., puts her finger directly on the aspect of Phoenix that distinguishes it from other post-apocalyptic novels, which is the presence of hope.
It's a great review, and I encourage you to check it out on her blog. The review will also be posted on Goodreads, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon sometime this weekend.
Thank you, Christy!
It's a great review, and I encourage you to check it out on her blog. The review will also be posted on Goodreads, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon sometime this weekend.
Thank you, Christy!
July 20, 2012
Houston, Tranquility base here. The Eagle has landed!
Forty-three years ago today , Neil Armstrong made that small step for man which was a giant leap for mankind.
Did you know that when the lander settled on the moon, it had but sixteen seconds of fuel left in the descent engine?
Did you know that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were cleared to land, even though an alarm was going off repeatedly, telling them that the guidance computer had a problem?
What an incredible feat of innovation, engineering, science, and raw courage!
What an amazing creature is man! On the one hand, he is capable of conquering space and traveling to earth's satellite, the moon. On the other, he is capable of picking up an AR-15 and murdering total strangers, as we saw early this morning in Aurora, Colorado.
The latter demonstrates that we are fallen creatures; the former demonstrates that even as fallen creatures, the image of God persists in us and God continues to bless His creatures with common grace.
But there is a grace far superior to common grace. Oh, that men would hear of the cross, and the death of Christ, and of His resurrection for their sins, and believe! Forgiveness is available, and the regeneration of the Holy Spirit makes one a new creation in Christ. It is all available through repentance and faith in Christ.
There is a base of Tranquility, but it's not on the moon. It's at the foot of the cross.
[The pictures used in this post may be seen at http://history.nasa.gov/ap11ann/kipps... and were paid for with your tax dollars, if you were old enough to be paying taxes in 1969.]
July 11, 2012
Hot Poker
Okay, we aren’t talking about a game of cards, gang. [I bet I just lost half my audience!]
We’re talking about fireplace pokers, and how you turn a cold one into a hot one. So how do you? You start messing around in the fire with it. You put it next to burning logs. The hotter they burn, the hotter the poker gets.
Now, wasn’t that just an amazing piece of wisdom? Worth every penny you paid for it, wasn’t it? Step right up, folks, there’s plenty more where that came from!
Cynical self-deprecation aside, there is a point to this: hang around people with a passion for something, and it’s catching. This is what mentoring is all about: hanging around people who love Jesus more than you do, in the hopes that it will rub off. Just like the fire makes a cold poker hot.
So, if we take this hot poker motif just a little further we can ask this question: if my love for the Word of God is growing cold, how can I reverse the decline? How can I renew and refresh my love for God’s Word?
You might start by hanging around people who really love the Word. May I recommend someone in particular? Try the writer of Psalm 119. Psalm 119 is a paean, a song of praise for the Word of God. You want to love the Word more? Hang around Psalm 119.
According to Derek Kidner [Kidner, Psalms 73-150, 453-454], the psalmist uses 8 primary expressions in Psalm 119 to refer to the Scripture:LawTestimoniesPreceptsStatutesCommandmentsOrdinances (also translated ‘judgments’)Word Promise (sometimes translated ‘word’)Less common but also used: ways, name (loving God’s name here is equivalent to loving what He has said), and faithfulness (in verse 90 faithfulness stands in a place in the colon that matches it with ‘word’ in its parallel colon in verse 89).
One or more of these expressions occur in 173 of the 176 verses of Psalm 119. Here’s my favorite sample: Psalm 119:97 (NASB) O how I love Thy law! It is my meditation all the day.
Psalm 119 is a highly structured poem, being written in 22 eight-verse sections. It is an acrostic, meaning that the first word in each verse (in Hebrew) in each section begins with consecutive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. In other words, verses 1-8 all begin with aleph, verses 9-16 all begin with beth, 17-24 with gimel, and so on. Some have said that it expresses the psalmist's love for Scripture from A to Z.
C. S. Lewis correctly identifies the passion behind such complex and beautiful verbal choreography:
“This poem is not, and does not pretend to be a sudden outpouring of the heart like, say, Psalm 18. It is a pattern, a thing done like embroidery, stitch by stitch, through long quiet hours, for love of the subject and for the delight in leisurely, disciplined craftsmanship” [Lewis, cited by C. Hassell Bullock, Encountering the Book of Psalms, 221].In other words, the psalmist’s love for God’s Word is not only reflected in the propositional content of the words, but also in the beautifully crafted poetic structure of the psalm.
Here's a 46-day summer project for you. Get yourself a notebook, or journal on your computer, thusly: Day 1: read the entire psalm.Days 2-23: read an eight-verse sectionwrite down what the psalmist says about God’s Word. Expand a little in your own words.Day 24: read the entire psalm.Days 25-46: read an eight-verse sectionwrite down what the psalmist says about himself regarding his own commitments or responses to God's Word. Pick out a response in each section that you need in your life, and ask God to develop that response in you. Want to refresh your love for the Word of God? Hang around Psalm 119. It’s really hot!
June 29, 2012
Book Review: Worldliness: Resisting the Seduction of a Fallen World
C. J. Mahaney, ed.
Worldliness; Resistingthe Seduction of a Fallen World
. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2008.
The pastors at Sovereign Grace Ministries have collaborated on this excellent little book on how to (and how not to) live in a fallen world. The topics are very practical and the counsel is thoroughly biblical. The book includes discussion questions in the back, making it quite useful for both private and group study.
After a typically excellent foreword by John Piper, Mahaney opens the discussion with a good definition of the problem of worldliness.
Craig Cabanis next considers the problems presented by media, particularly films and television. Included in his chapter are good questions I can ask myself as I seek to evaluate my watching habits.
Bob Kauflin follows up with a chapter on music that avoids the shallow this beat is evil analysis that so often shows up in examinations of music. It’s a thoughtful consideration of the content, context, and culture-setting aspect of what we listen to.
Dave Harvey has a chapter on “my stuff” that questions modern consumerism and materialism, and includes practical suggestions for escaping the snare of materialism.
C. J. Mahaney comes next with a chapter on clothing and dress, particularly focused on modesty as a reflection of the heart of a godly woman. The book also includes two helpful appendices on issues of modesty. This material alone is worth the price of the book, and should be considered by every woman who desires to honor Christ and to serve her brothers in Christ.
The final chapter is my favorite: Jeff Purswell’s piece on How to Love the World. He develops the chapter in terms that modern postmoderns can identify with, by explaining the grand story (meta-narrative) of redemption, and then proposing that we have three tasks in our calling to love the world as obedient servants of Christ: enjoying the world, engaging the world, and evangelizing the world. He includes practical suggestions as to how we can accomplish these three tasks.
Purswell poses and answers the final question in a memorable one-page summary at the end of the book.
Purswell then lists four specific aspects of the cross that impact how we view the world. But I’m not going to spoil them for you. You’ll have to read the book.
In summary, this is an excellent, popularly-accessible book that addresses a vital question for the believer: how can I be in the world, but not of it?
The pastors at Sovereign Grace Ministries have collaborated on this excellent little book on how to (and how not to) live in a fallen world. The topics are very practical and the counsel is thoroughly biblical. The book includes discussion questions in the back, making it quite useful for both private and group study.
After a typically excellent foreword by John Piper, Mahaney opens the discussion with a good definition of the problem of worldliness.
Craig Cabanis next considers the problems presented by media, particularly films and television. Included in his chapter are good questions I can ask myself as I seek to evaluate my watching habits.
Bob Kauflin follows up with a chapter on music that avoids the shallow this beat is evil analysis that so often shows up in examinations of music. It’s a thoughtful consideration of the content, context, and culture-setting aspect of what we listen to.
Dave Harvey has a chapter on “my stuff” that questions modern consumerism and materialism, and includes practical suggestions for escaping the snare of materialism.
C. J. Mahaney comes next with a chapter on clothing and dress, particularly focused on modesty as a reflection of the heart of a godly woman. The book also includes two helpful appendices on issues of modesty. This material alone is worth the price of the book, and should be considered by every woman who desires to honor Christ and to serve her brothers in Christ.
The final chapter is my favorite: Jeff Purswell’s piece on How to Love the World. He develops the chapter in terms that modern postmoderns can identify with, by explaining the grand story (meta-narrative) of redemption, and then proposing that we have three tasks in our calling to love the world as obedient servants of Christ: enjoying the world, engaging the world, and evangelizing the world. He includes practical suggestions as to how we can accomplish these three tasks.
Purswell poses and answers the final question in a memorable one-page summary at the end of the book.
“How are you and I to view our existence in this world? Through the prism of Christ’s saving work on the cross. The cross transforms all the categories of our lives. It answers the central questions of the human predicament” [170].
Purswell then lists four specific aspects of the cross that impact how we view the world. But I’m not going to spoil them for you. You’ll have to read the book.
In summary, this is an excellent, popularly-accessible book that addresses a vital question for the believer: how can I be in the world, but not of it?
June 21, 2012
New Review for Outlander
Finally! Someone has written a new review of Outlander Chronicles: Phoenix, and posted it on Amazon.
Okay, time for the disclaimer: he's a good friend of mine, Dr. John Marshall. He has a PhD in History, and teaches at Eastern University in Philly. His specialty is Western intellectual history.
I am honored that he reviewed my book, and doubly honored by what he had to say about it:
Okay, time for the disclaimer: he's a good friend of mine, Dr. John Marshall. He has a PhD in History, and teaches at Eastern University in Philly. His specialty is Western intellectual history.
I am honored that he reviewed my book, and doubly honored by what he had to say about it:
“This is a well paced voyage into a future devastated by biological warfare. The survivors are divided between those who seek to retain a moral code and thereby rebuild civilization, and those who don't. Combining thought-provoking dialogue and brisk action, this book is a must-read for anyone who wants a peak into what the world could become if the west's moral force continues to erode.”Many thanks, John!
June 16, 2012
Autopilot
We're talking about gardens, by the way, not airplanes. My garden is on autopilot, which means whatever God has programmed those green things to do, via their plant DNA, they are doing. And I like what they are doing.
Did not think my lettuce would grow, but, here it is.
Sharp eyes will spot two snakes. They are for public consumption; the public being squirrels and birds. Moderately successful deception. Normally they just scare me.
And, likewise, I did not think my sugar peas would grow, but here they are. Not quite sure what to do with them, but they have begun to produce pods. Amazing. Truly, these plants are on God's autopilot.
Doris's roses are between blooming cycles right now, but there is one blossom out. So fragrant I could smell it from eight feet away.
And my lillies continue to produce.
Can't wait for my tomatoes. Can taste 'em already.
Did not think my lettuce would grow, but, here it is.
Sharp eyes will spot two snakes. They are for public consumption; the public being squirrels and birds. Moderately successful deception. Normally they just scare me.
And, likewise, I did not think my sugar peas would grow, but here they are. Not quite sure what to do with them, but they have begun to produce pods. Amazing. Truly, these plants are on God's autopilot.
Doris's roses are between blooming cycles right now, but there is one blossom out. So fragrant I could smell it from eight feet away.
And my lillies continue to produce.
Can't wait for my tomatoes. Can taste 'em already.
June 13, 2012
Creative Writing update
Thought I'd provide an update on my writing efforts (aka works in progress).
Psalm 90: A Prayer of Moses the man of God.
I've been working on re-assembling my sabbatical project into 13 study sessions of roughly equal length, so that it is suitable for a Sunday School quarter. It has proven to be more difficult than I first imagined. I am presently working on Session 11, which will take me through verse 15 (of 17) when it is complete.I hope to finish the structural part of the re-write in the next three weeks. Then it will go into final editing. Still have not done the cover design. Realistically, it will be early fall before it is published (by Doorway Press , of course).
Outlander Chronicles: Icarus
The only thing I am actively doing for the second book of the Outlander series is research and plot formation. I recently completed reading The Industrial Revolutionaries by Gavin Weightman in order to get a notion of what the Phoenix folks will be up against as they seek to resurrect technology. I will continue to do reading research, but will not do any significant writing until the Falcon series is published. I'd say we are at least three years, maybe four, out before serious writing on this project resumes. However, I enjoy the characters in this series and can't wait to involve them in their next trials and challenges. I will give you a hint of what is coming: familiarize yourself with the myth of Icarus, and it will give you an idea of from where the troubles of the Phoenix group will come.
Falcon Down
I'm really excited about this first book of what will be four in the Falcon series. I am within shoutin' distance of one-quarter of my word count for the first book (planned word count is 80,000 - I am currently at 17,000+). I have a complete, three-part novel of 200,000 words, unpublished, that will be carved into three books, and which will comprise the final three books of the four-book Falcon series. Falcon Down is functioning as a prequel.
The series is set in the Cold War era in 1986, and is a military/espionage thriller with lots of action and plot twists. The first and fourth books take place largely in the Soviet Union, the second and third are concentrated in Alaska. There is a great deal of research going into the project, down to such trival matters as the tail numbers on the aircraft I am using, or the construction of aircraft fuel-level senders. To be sure, you the reader are not subjected to such mind-wearying details; I am just ensuring that the tale, the plot and subplots, and the action are as authentic as possible.
I'd love to imagine that Falcon Down would be done in time for Christmas, but I think that's a little optimistic, probably by about six months. So lets say, June of 2013.
And what about Outlander Chronicles: Phoenix ? How is it faring in the market?
It's selling, veeery slowly. I think I've given away more than I've sold at this point, but that's to be expected. An advertising piece for the book is being stuffed in the convention bags for the Christian Home Educators of Ohio conference that will be held June 21st-23rd in Akron. We hope to get a bump in sales from that. We had an excellent book-signing at Bread of Life bookstore here in Greenville in March, as well as a good author-interview on JoyFM at the end of February. But marketing is not my forte, and until I do better in this area sales will remain sluggish. We've gotten a lot of very positive reader comments. To this point, we've gotten no big-name reviews.
Psalm 90: A Prayer of Moses the man of God.
I've been working on re-assembling my sabbatical project into 13 study sessions of roughly equal length, so that it is suitable for a Sunday School quarter. It has proven to be more difficult than I first imagined. I am presently working on Session 11, which will take me through verse 15 (of 17) when it is complete.I hope to finish the structural part of the re-write in the next three weeks. Then it will go into final editing. Still have not done the cover design. Realistically, it will be early fall before it is published (by Doorway Press , of course).
Outlander Chronicles: Icarus
The only thing I am actively doing for the second book of the Outlander series is research and plot formation. I recently completed reading The Industrial Revolutionaries by Gavin Weightman in order to get a notion of what the Phoenix folks will be up against as they seek to resurrect technology. I will continue to do reading research, but will not do any significant writing until the Falcon series is published. I'd say we are at least three years, maybe four, out before serious writing on this project resumes. However, I enjoy the characters in this series and can't wait to involve them in their next trials and challenges. I will give you a hint of what is coming: familiarize yourself with the myth of Icarus, and it will give you an idea of from where the troubles of the Phoenix group will come.
Falcon Down
I'm really excited about this first book of what will be four in the Falcon series. I am within shoutin' distance of one-quarter of my word count for the first book (planned word count is 80,000 - I am currently at 17,000+). I have a complete, three-part novel of 200,000 words, unpublished, that will be carved into three books, and which will comprise the final three books of the four-book Falcon series. Falcon Down is functioning as a prequel.
The series is set in the Cold War era in 1986, and is a military/espionage thriller with lots of action and plot twists. The first and fourth books take place largely in the Soviet Union, the second and third are concentrated in Alaska. There is a great deal of research going into the project, down to such trival matters as the tail numbers on the aircraft I am using, or the construction of aircraft fuel-level senders. To be sure, you the reader are not subjected to such mind-wearying details; I am just ensuring that the tale, the plot and subplots, and the action are as authentic as possible.
I'd love to imagine that Falcon Down would be done in time for Christmas, but I think that's a little optimistic, probably by about six months. So lets say, June of 2013.
And what about Outlander Chronicles: Phoenix ? How is it faring in the market?
It's selling, veeery slowly. I think I've given away more than I've sold at this point, but that's to be expected. An advertising piece for the book is being stuffed in the convention bags for the Christian Home Educators of Ohio conference that will be held June 21st-23rd in Akron. We hope to get a bump in sales from that. We had an excellent book-signing at Bread of Life bookstore here in Greenville in March, as well as a good author-interview on JoyFM at the end of February. But marketing is not my forte, and until I do better in this area sales will remain sluggish. We've gotten a lot of very positive reader comments. To this point, we've gotten no big-name reviews.
June 7, 2012
Book Review: Creation Regained
Wolters, Albert M.
Creation Regained: Biblical Basics for a Reformational Worldview
. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1985.
Wolters advocates building a worldview founded upon the three categories of Creation, Fall, and Redemption. All of reality can considered under one or more of those three rubrics. He concludes that Creation consists of creative acts in three realms, (1) the creation of the physical cosmos, (2) the creation of natural laws, (3) the creation of norms, or normal behavior within the various spheres of the creation. The Fall has corrupted creation in its three parts. Redemption redeems, not just man, but all of creation.
Wolters then advocates that the Christian’s role is to promote redemption in all three of the realms of creation. He proposes doing this by looking at the world through the grid of “structure” and “direction”. Structure has to do with analyzing something to see what part of it is part of the original good creation. What part of it is creational? Direction has to do with trajectory, discerning how the Fall (or Redemption since the Fall) is influencing it.
Wolters firmly believes that it is the job of the Christian not to wholly reject any portion of the creation, but to rather bring redemptive direction back to it, ie, to redeem it.
His categories and analysis are fascinating and very provocative. Of particular note is his argument that there are “norms” in creation, norms which have been perverted and warped by the Fall. There are also a few weaknesses to the book: it really does not engage the cataclysmic destruction of the earth and world systems contained in Revelation. His eschatological view appears to be probably post-millennial or a-millennial; hence, in his viewpoint the kingdom just continues to advance. His view of spiritual gifts is a little weak (what part of miraculous healing, for example, is creational?). At a few points he contradicts himself (no one human institution is above another; but government creates laws to regulate business).
But these are minor issues; on the whole the book is excellent in providing a path to form the right questions (this is how Wolters puts it) to properly analyze modern cultural issues. I recommend it highly. At just 97 pages its probably the best-in-class short book on worldview out there.
Wolters advocates building a worldview founded upon the three categories of Creation, Fall, and Redemption. All of reality can considered under one or more of those three rubrics. He concludes that Creation consists of creative acts in three realms, (1) the creation of the physical cosmos, (2) the creation of natural laws, (3) the creation of norms, or normal behavior within the various spheres of the creation. The Fall has corrupted creation in its three parts. Redemption redeems, not just man, but all of creation.
Wolters then advocates that the Christian’s role is to promote redemption in all three of the realms of creation. He proposes doing this by looking at the world through the grid of “structure” and “direction”. Structure has to do with analyzing something to see what part of it is part of the original good creation. What part of it is creational? Direction has to do with trajectory, discerning how the Fall (or Redemption since the Fall) is influencing it.
Wolters firmly believes that it is the job of the Christian not to wholly reject any portion of the creation, but to rather bring redemptive direction back to it, ie, to redeem it.
His categories and analysis are fascinating and very provocative. Of particular note is his argument that there are “norms” in creation, norms which have been perverted and warped by the Fall. There are also a few weaknesses to the book: it really does not engage the cataclysmic destruction of the earth and world systems contained in Revelation. His eschatological view appears to be probably post-millennial or a-millennial; hence, in his viewpoint the kingdom just continues to advance. His view of spiritual gifts is a little weak (what part of miraculous healing, for example, is creational?). At a few points he contradicts himself (no one human institution is above another; but government creates laws to regulate business).
But these are minor issues; on the whole the book is excellent in providing a path to form the right questions (this is how Wolters puts it) to properly analyze modern cultural issues. I recommend it highly. At just 97 pages its probably the best-in-class short book on worldview out there.
