What is the world coming to? I know.

There's an article I saw today regarding the fact that US Women's Soccer team player Megan Rapinoe has come out of the closet and announced she's gay (link).  While this isn't the first athlete to announce she's gay, I think that this one was more significant to me is because it's the first time an athlete I've been a fan of has made this type of announcement.  It also struck home because we attended a professional soccer game last night and sat next to two lesbians.  This combined with a related article about facebook's ongoing effort to normalize homosexual relationships (link) has me feeling a bit distraught today.

The first thought that comes to mind is "What is this world coming to?" But in fact there's no need to ask that question, because I know what it's coming to.  The Bible clearly tells us that this world will fall farther and farther into sin until it is eventually destroyed.  So really, it's just a matter of time.  My concern is then for my children, and I start to worry about what kind of world they'll grow up in.  There's a part of me that wants to scour the globe to find a nice, safe place where I can raise them.  But I know that's only delaying the inevitable.

So what can I do?  I can tell others about Jesus.  Only Jesus can cure our society of its problems. 
It would take a miracle to change the attitudes of our culture, and only Jesus can provide that miracle.  I can stay involved in the lives of my children.  More specifically, I can tell other children about Jesus, because it's the children of today that will be determining what is acceptable and not in society in the future.

I'm reminded of Isaiah 5:20, which says "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter."  Homosexuality is evil, but the world says it's good.  Calling homosexuality sin is good, but the world says it's evil.

Romans 1:32
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.

1 Corinthians 2:14
The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.

1 Corinthians 3:19
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight.

A commentary on a review of a movie, "In Time"

First, read this: In Time movie review.


I've never heard of this movie until I saw the review, and I'm not even sure if I'll watch this movie at any point.  But it's an premise.  What if everyday you had to do something to contribute to society to justify your next 24 hours.  Maybe if you did something particularly great, you'd get 36, or 48 hours, and then you could take a day off.  But then the pressure would be back on.

We do that in one sense with the paycheck we earn with our job.  But if we don't have a job and run out of money, we don't die.  We still have time to find another job.  And what about work that contributes to society but for which you don't get a paycheck.  Would you get extra hours by being a good parent?

And who gets to decide what contributes and what detracts to society?  Do I get extra minutes by contributing to a philosophical discussion, or do I lose minutes by writing a blog that wastes people's time when they should be working?

If you knew this might be your last day, depending on how you behave, how much time would you waste?  None I would guess.  Free time activities would be a thing of the past.  Who can sacrifice an hour to take you child to a soccer game knowing what you had to do to earn that hour.

Interesting stuff to think about....

S. Korea's President has some strong words

Article:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110121/wl_asia_afp/skoreasomaliapiracy

Quote:

President Lee Myung-Bak, who authorised the operation, said the military carried out the raid perfectly under difficult circumstances.

"We will not tolerate any activities that threaten the safety and lives of our people," he said.

Unless of course, those activities generate from North Korea:
Like this artillery attack last November
Or the sinking of a S. Korean naval ship in March

Lego Creationary

My kids received this game as a gift for Christmas so we opened it up and have played a few times and to summarize, it's been fun.

The game is essentially Pictionary with Legos. You roll a die and draw a card to see what it is you are going to try to build, and the other players try to guess what you're building. When someone guesses correctly, the person who guessed gets points and the person who built gets points.

There are different ways to play, but since we played with young kids and it was important to keep their attention, we didn't take turns guessing, everyone just shouted when they had an idea. We also set a timer so that if it wasn't guessed after 5 minutes, no one got points and we moved on to the next player.

We had players from age 5 on up to 70+, and everyone seemed to enjoy it. My only concern is that after a few plays you will start to remember what's on the cards and it will make the guessing easier. Also, it is sometimes hard to tell what the card is telling you to build. I had one card that showed two buildings with a pool between them. It could have been a hotel, an apartment complex, or an office building. I decided it was a hotel. It would have been nice to label them, even if this might have added to the production cost. Also, my son pulled one card and had no idea what it was supposed to be. It turns out it was a wall plug, but it was a European one that he's never seen since we live in the US.

Like other Lego games, you're encouraged to change the rules to make the game more fun. There are options included for team vs. team games or couple vs. couple. There are different ways you can organize the guessing, and you can always create your own build items using handwritten notes instead of the included cards. It may also be fun to use other lego pieces from other sets instead of confining yourself to what's in the box.

Lego Games

Recently Lego has branched out into a new area, games. I like games. I try to get my family to play games, and I'm only sometimes successful. But if you add Legos, who can refuse?

We have played several of these games and enjoyed all of them. The first one we tried was the Lava Dragon game. My older son had fun putting it together, and once it was ready we gathered around to play. The game was very easy to learn, and my 5 year old had no trouble following the rules. It seems a simple race to the top, but there is a very interesting mechanic in this game in that the die you use change during the course of the game. Every time it's rolled, a colored tile is added so that the next time that side is rolled, the action is different. This makes it very interesting and exciting to see how the die is changing during the course of the game.

The next one we tried was Magikus. So far, this seems to be the simplest of the games. The kit includes some neat figures, so there's fun to be had even when you're not playing the game. In this game, the players simply collect the ingredients for a magic stew. This is definitely more fun with more players. With only two players it really is just the luck of the roll that decides who wins.

The last one that we've tried is Ramses Pyramid. This also is a race to the top game, but it does have some twists, physically that is. On certain die rolls the player actually twists the different levels of the pyramid, and this can change the path that a player has to take to the top. This game has proven to be the most popular so far, with everyone in the family getting involved. This kit also includes some really neat pieces like mummies and scorpions that are fun outside of the game.

What's great about these games is that just like normal Legos, you can modify and create your own games with these sets. Optional rules are included in each of them, and you're encouraged to make up your own. Even my 5 year old has made up different ways to play Ramses Pyramid, changing the way you win and changing what the symbols on the dice mean. Now when we play he asks, "Do you want to play the normal way or my way?" I do have to remind him that he's not allowed to change the rules in the middle of the game, but overall it has really encouraged the kids to be creative.

My older son actually went to a birthday party where they played several of these games as part of the party. They can generally be done in 30 minutes to an hour, with additional players making the games longer. There are several others that look fun, including a recently released Harry Potter game. Here are the others that are out right now:

Books for my 9 year old boy

My 9 year old is an avid reader. Sure he likes video games and tv too, but he spends most of his time reading. He's also a very advanced reader for his age, which presents a problem. The books that are at his reading level contain content that he is not quite mature enough for. So we've been struggling to find books that are appropriate but still challenging enough to hold his interest.

He's been interested in Harry Potter since the video game came out, so he wanted to read this. My wife and I were a bit hesitant at first, so I did some research online and my wife read the first one before we let him get started. So after reading the first four, in general I would say that they are appropriate for his age, with a few caveats. Obviously, they involve magic and wizards and witches. So if that's a problem for you, avoid these. I would point out that the Lord of the Rings and Chronicles of Narnia also include many of these story elements, but no one seems to have a problem with that. In the fourth book, a few minor curse words are mentioned (the d word, that also relates to obstructing water:), and my wife tells me this is the case with the fifth book as well. As Harry gets older, there are some subtle hints of his feelings for one of the girls in the school, but it's very subtle and probably went right over my 9 year old's head. I'm not sure how much more there is later. But because of these two issues, I can only wholeheartedly recommend the first three books.

My wife also read "The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan, and she deemed it acceptable. My son has gone onto to complete that series as well as the first book in a new series by Rick Riordan, "The Red Pyramid". I'm currently reading "The Red Pyramid", and while there aren't any elements that are horrible, it does have a stronger element of early, awkward teen romance, and several inappropriate uses of "God". These books are based on mythology, so obviously those references are fake, but "God" is often used as an exclamation when things go wrong or when the character is angry, which obviously isn't the way I want the word used.

Being a Star Wars fan, I've also read many of the Star Wars books for kids, and there is really nothing objectionable in them. There are several series. I've read the Jedi Apprentice, Jedi Quest, Boba Fett, and Last of the Jedi series, and I would let my son read any of those. Combined, that's about 45 books, so that should keep him busy for a while. The first one, which he's already read, is "The Rising Force".

But knowing how quickly my son reads, I know that it's only a matter of time before he finishes those. I looked into other series I'd heard or seen, such as the Warriors, Artemis Fowl, or Daniel X, but had issues with those. I then decided to check out christianbook.com to see what they had, and was pleasantly surprised to find many series that I think my son, and maybe even myself, would enjoy. The links below don't take you to christianbook.com, but this way you can see the covers along with the names of many of the series I've found. All of these are the first in a series, and I haven't read them so I can't personally vouch for them, but based on the reviews I've read on the christianbook.com website. I'd be comfortable with my son reading them. Just the fact that christianbook.com lists them assures me that they most likely do not contain content that I would object to.

Safelite Auto Glass Repair

It started raining here a few days ago for the first time in over a month, and that's when we noticed the leak in the roof of our SUV. Upon further inspection, I noticed that the windshield was actually sliding down the front of the cabin. There was about an inch gap between the top of the window and the weather stripping on the SUV.

I've never had to have this kind of work done, and with more rain forecast, repairing it couldn't wait. I heard an ad for Safelite on the radio on my way to work, so I called them that afternoon and they recommended I come to their shop. They told me on the phone that if they could just repair it, it would only cost about $150. But if they had to replace the glass, it would be significantly more.

I arrived at the shop the next morning prepared for the worst. I really didn't want to spend a lot, because the truck is rather old and there are other repairs that need to be made to it. The spacious waiting area was very nice and clean, and included a muted TV and a few toys for the children. The people who worked there were very friendly, and I was relieved to find out that even if the glass had to be replaced, it would only be about $20 more than their $150 quote. They explained that whoever installed the glass (Huffines Ford of Lewisville) had not primed the glue, so it dried out and that is why the windshield was coming off. They also said the work could be finished in 45 minutes. Relaxed, I settled myself in for the wait.

In addition to coffee, a gentleman also brought in warm donuts and kolaches for the customers who were waiting. I was also offered a soft drink or water. There was a crisp newspaper available for reading. It was all very comfortable and nice. I was also pleased to notice the free wifi connection when I started my laptop.

About 45 minutes the technician came back and informed me that my truck was ready. The windshield was cleaned and even the floorboards of the front seat had been vacuumed. They even gave me a free can of window cleaner.

Overall, I was absolutely amazed by the service and friendliness of this staff. If I ever need and auto glass work done again, this is the only place I will call. If you're ever in need of this type of work, be sure to call the Safelite shop in Plano, and they will take good care of you.