A Life Well Lived
It's been a weekend of mixed emotions. I just got back from Springfield, MO where I went to the funeral of my uncle, Ben Birdsong, who died suddenly at the young age of 54 this past Tuesday (July 20, 2010). He was the closest of my aunts and uncles growing up, being only 12 years older than me, and I always enjoyed seeing him. Although I only saw him once or twice a year in later years, I felt like I still knew him well. I saw his love for Christ, his fun-loving spirit, and great sense of humor. (It was rare that he wasn't laughing when he was with family.) This weekend gave me a much better perspective, one of a life well lived.
Hearing the stories of how God used my uncle was both exciting and convicting. His pastor spoke of how he brought pastors together from churches all over Springfield, across denominations, where now these pastors have formed an organization called Springfield for Christ, and pray together weekly for each other and for the city. My uncle has left but this will continue on.
Others told of how he was constantly telling those around him about the love of Christ. His desire was to see as many people come to a saving knowledge of Christ as he could. He died playing tennis, a game he loved, but also a game he played to reach others with the truth of the gospel, because he loved them as God loved them. On that same note, on the day he died, he recorded this spot for the radio. What great last words.
My aunt and others spoke of his generosity. He read the book, The Treasure Principle, by Randy Alcorn, which changed his life. He gave away much to help others in times of need, some even being strangers. One of the things he did, and encouraged others to do through his radio station, was something called the Drive-thru Difference. He would, when paying at the drive-thru, pay for the meal of the car behind him in addition to his own.
At his funeral, though there was sorrow on the part of those of us who miss him, there was much to worship God for. In fact, with help from the leadership of the praise band from his church, we did worship God. It was fitting, for it was God that worked in him and through him, and it was God that deserved the praise.
I did get to know my uncle much better over the last days. His was a life well lived. My hope is that, by the grace of God, my life will be too.
Hearing the stories of how God used my uncle was both exciting and convicting. His pastor spoke of how he brought pastors together from churches all over Springfield, across denominations, where now these pastors have formed an organization called Springfield for Christ, and pray together weekly for each other and for the city. My uncle has left but this will continue on.
Others told of how he was constantly telling those around him about the love of Christ. His desire was to see as many people come to a saving knowledge of Christ as he could. He died playing tennis, a game he loved, but also a game he played to reach others with the truth of the gospel, because he loved them as God loved them. On that same note, on the day he died, he recorded this spot for the radio. What great last words.
My aunt and others spoke of his generosity. He read the book, The Treasure Principle, by Randy Alcorn, which changed his life. He gave away much to help others in times of need, some even being strangers. One of the things he did, and encouraged others to do through his radio station, was something called the Drive-thru Difference. He would, when paying at the drive-thru, pay for the meal of the car behind him in addition to his own.
At his funeral, though there was sorrow on the part of those of us who miss him, there was much to worship God for. In fact, with help from the leadership of the praise band from his church, we did worship God. It was fitting, for it was God that worked in him and through him, and it was God that deserved the praise.
He was in the middle of Don't Waste Your Life, by John Piper, when he died. I couldn't help thinking, and saying, that he was already living it out.
LIfe-Changing Things You Can Do with the iPhone
With so many I know getting an iPhone for the first time, I thought it might be good to write about some of the many things I use the iPhone for that aren't the obvious ones. The obvious ways to you can use your iPhone besides making phone calls and text messaging are:
Listening to the Radio
Yes, listening to the radio on the iPhone is far superior to listening to the radio on...well, the radio. Why is it superior? First of all, it's digital, and you can get much clearer listening anywhere you have internet access (even over Edge). This makes all the difference indoors where it is often hard to get a traditional radio signal. Second, you can listen to any station that streams it's broadcast over the internet (which is nearly every radio station anymore). This means that you can listen to stations all over the US and even many foreign stations. I can even listen to my uncle when he is on the air on KWND in Springfield, Missouri.
I often at lunch on a weekday will walk around the lakes near my office listening to talk Radio. I also will do this sometimes when mowing the grass.
I recommend TuneIn Radio as the primary radio-listening app. It uses the RadioTime directory, and if you set up a RadioTime account on the website it will keep your favorite stations or shows in sync between the website and the app. There is another app you have to get if you want to listen to any Clear Channel Radio stations. Clear Channel doesn't allow their stations to be listed in RadioTime for mobile devices so you have to use their free app (called iHeartRadio) to listen to a specific Clear Channel Radio station (such as WERC here in Birmingham).
Ambient Sounds
Not much beats ambient nature sounds (a soft rain, a thunderstorm, surf hitting a beach, a gurgling stream, birds singing in the distance, etc.) for relaxing, either to calm you down and help you focus or to help you sleep. There are dedicated devices for the bedroom that play these sounds that are limited to what they come with and that you can spend a lot of money on...or you can buy an app like Ambience for $2.99. Ambience has a huge selection of free sounds. If you are listening via headphones or simply want a really high quality ambient loop, I recommend NatureSpace Holographic Audio.
Of course if you are going to go to sleep to ambient sounds (or music, for that matter), I suggest you get a clock radio that docks your iPhone that sounds really good. I tested a number of them out and found that those made by iHome tended to sound the best. This was a purchase I made that is well worth it and very versatile. (I can listen to music, radio, ambient sounds, podcasts, or anything that my iPhone can play, all while charging the phone.)
Refilling Prescriptions
The Walgreens app is by far the simplest and quickest way to refill prescriptions.
Checking the Weather
Using an iPhone app, such as The Weather Channel Max (or even the free version) is the fastest way to check the weather, including hour by hour forecasts, the radar, etc. There are a number of good weather apps out there and which one you like the best is a matter of personal taste. You can even track hurricanes with an app called...Hurricane.
Keeping Up with Sports
You could use the browser to keep up with sports but that's far inferior to using a dedicated app such as Sportacular (my favorite) or ESPN ScoreCenter. These allow you to set your favorite teams for easy lookup of scores and set alerts for scores of teams or games you want to keep track of. For example, I received an alert when the U.S. scored against Algeria in the World Cup the other day.
Navigating
It's nice to have a GPS with you at all time, whether the built-in Google Maps, or when driving alone, a turn-by-turn GPS such as Navigon. Tom Tom and others make turn-by-turn GPSs but Navigon is highly acclaimed. When I found myself driving a rental car back to the airport unexpectedly on a business trip, having a GPS was very helpful. I happened to catch Navigon MyRegion on sale for $15, far less than I could buy the cheapest dedicated GPS.
To Do Lists
Calendars are an obvious choice but we often don't think of keeping a to-do list electronically. I do my To Do list entirely electronically because I may leave without the needed paper list and a paper list won't alert you to tasks you need to do so that you don't forget. I use and recommend Appigo Todo. But I don't stop there. It's far easier to enter your to-do list on a full keyboard if you are sitting at a computer so I also use Toodledo, which is a web-based service that Todo syncs with.
Keeping Passwords and Other Personal Information
In 2010, we all have too many logins with passwords, kid's Social Security numbers, and other sensitive information that we need to keep up with. It's impossible to memorize all of these. There are a lot of insecure ways to record these, such as writing them on a sheet of paper and keeping that in your wallet. (That's definitely not recommended.) There are a number of password managers out there that encrypt your information and hide it behind a single password or passcode that you can remember. I chose SplashID for its flexibility and the fact that it syncs to the Mac (or PC). I have also heard that 1Password is good.
Getting to Backed Up Files
If you don't have some kind of offsite backup, you are asking to lose information. I use Carbonite to back up my Macbook Pro. Carbonite has an iPhone app that allows you to get to your files (such as documents), view them, an even email them. Because Carbonite backs up your files immediately, it's a simple way to have access to all your files on the go.
Using Skype
Need to call someone who uses Skype, maybe in another country. (I have a lot of missionary friends.) There is a Skype app for the iPhone. Right now it does voice and instant messaging but it is rumored to be doing video in the future.
Instant Messaging
This is a good alternative to text messaging if you use it anyway, whether Google Talk, AOL Instant Messager, Yahoo! Messager, or whatever, there are apps that will do all of these. I use Beejive.
Other Advice
These are just some of the ways I use my iPhone. There are others that I use apps for such as looking up movie times, finding a restaurant, looking up a business or residential phone number, checking the news, keeping a packing list, finding a recipe, scanning UPC codes to get comparison prices, etc.
If you have Gmail, I highly recommend you use Google Sync. With it you can get push email (like what made the BlackBerry famous), push Calendar, and push Contacts. In fact if you add a calendar entry on Google Calendar, it shows up on your phone shortly thereafter (without you having to do anything). The reverse is also true. This also works with your Gmail contacts. Enter someone's information in one place and it get's "pushed" to the other without your intervention. (It's sort of like the free version of MobileMe.)
By the way, if you don't have Gmail, I highly suggest it. The spam filtering (amazingly good), large storage capacity, and powerful, easy searching make it probably the best out there. And do you really want to have your email address tied to your employer or your Internet Service Provider (e.g., AT&T or Charter) when either of those could change?
- Listening to music on the iPod and Pandora.
- Checking email.
- Surfing the web.
- Checking Facebook or Twitter.
- Playing games.
- Taking pictures.
- Taking video.
Listening to the Radio
Yes, listening to the radio on the iPhone is far superior to listening to the radio on...well, the radio. Why is it superior? First of all, it's digital, and you can get much clearer listening anywhere you have internet access (even over Edge). This makes all the difference indoors where it is often hard to get a traditional radio signal. Second, you can listen to any station that streams it's broadcast over the internet (which is nearly every radio station anymore). This means that you can listen to stations all over the US and even many foreign stations. I can even listen to my uncle when he is on the air on KWND in Springfield, Missouri.
I often at lunch on a weekday will walk around the lakes near my office listening to talk Radio. I also will do this sometimes when mowing the grass.
I recommend TuneIn Radio as the primary radio-listening app. It uses the RadioTime directory, and if you set up a RadioTime account on the website it will keep your favorite stations or shows in sync between the website and the app. There is another app you have to get if you want to listen to any Clear Channel Radio stations. Clear Channel doesn't allow their stations to be listed in RadioTime for mobile devices so you have to use their free app (called iHeartRadio) to listen to a specific Clear Channel Radio station (such as WERC here in Birmingham).
Ambient Sounds
Not much beats ambient nature sounds (a soft rain, a thunderstorm, surf hitting a beach, a gurgling stream, birds singing in the distance, etc.) for relaxing, either to calm you down and help you focus or to help you sleep. There are dedicated devices for the bedroom that play these sounds that are limited to what they come with and that you can spend a lot of money on...or you can buy an app like Ambience for $2.99. Ambience has a huge selection of free sounds. If you are listening via headphones or simply want a really high quality ambient loop, I recommend NatureSpace Holographic Audio.
Of course if you are going to go to sleep to ambient sounds (or music, for that matter), I suggest you get a clock radio that docks your iPhone that sounds really good. I tested a number of them out and found that those made by iHome tended to sound the best. This was a purchase I made that is well worth it and very versatile. (I can listen to music, radio, ambient sounds, podcasts, or anything that my iPhone can play, all while charging the phone.)
Refilling Prescriptions
The Walgreens app is by far the simplest and quickest way to refill prescriptions.
Checking the Weather
Using an iPhone app, such as The Weather Channel Max (or even the free version) is the fastest way to check the weather, including hour by hour forecasts, the radar, etc. There are a number of good weather apps out there and which one you like the best is a matter of personal taste. You can even track hurricanes with an app called...Hurricane.
Keeping Up with Sports
You could use the browser to keep up with sports but that's far inferior to using a dedicated app such as Sportacular (my favorite) or ESPN ScoreCenter. These allow you to set your favorite teams for easy lookup of scores and set alerts for scores of teams or games you want to keep track of. For example, I received an alert when the U.S. scored against Algeria in the World Cup the other day.
Navigating
It's nice to have a GPS with you at all time, whether the built-in Google Maps, or when driving alone, a turn-by-turn GPS such as Navigon. Tom Tom and others make turn-by-turn GPSs but Navigon is highly acclaimed. When I found myself driving a rental car back to the airport unexpectedly on a business trip, having a GPS was very helpful. I happened to catch Navigon MyRegion on sale for $15, far less than I could buy the cheapest dedicated GPS.
To Do Lists
Calendars are an obvious choice but we often don't think of keeping a to-do list electronically. I do my To Do list entirely electronically because I may leave without the needed paper list and a paper list won't alert you to tasks you need to do so that you don't forget. I use and recommend Appigo Todo. But I don't stop there. It's far easier to enter your to-do list on a full keyboard if you are sitting at a computer so I also use Toodledo, which is a web-based service that Todo syncs with.
Keeping Passwords and Other Personal Information
In 2010, we all have too many logins with passwords, kid's Social Security numbers, and other sensitive information that we need to keep up with. It's impossible to memorize all of these. There are a lot of insecure ways to record these, such as writing them on a sheet of paper and keeping that in your wallet. (That's definitely not recommended.) There are a number of password managers out there that encrypt your information and hide it behind a single password or passcode that you can remember. I chose SplashID for its flexibility and the fact that it syncs to the Mac (or PC). I have also heard that 1Password is good.
Getting to Backed Up Files
If you don't have some kind of offsite backup, you are asking to lose information. I use Carbonite to back up my Macbook Pro. Carbonite has an iPhone app that allows you to get to your files (such as documents), view them, an even email them. Because Carbonite backs up your files immediately, it's a simple way to have access to all your files on the go.
Using Skype
Need to call someone who uses Skype, maybe in another country. (I have a lot of missionary friends.) There is a Skype app for the iPhone. Right now it does voice and instant messaging but it is rumored to be doing video in the future.
Instant Messaging
This is a good alternative to text messaging if you use it anyway, whether Google Talk, AOL Instant Messager, Yahoo! Messager, or whatever, there are apps that will do all of these. I use Beejive.
Other Advice
These are just some of the ways I use my iPhone. There are others that I use apps for such as looking up movie times, finding a restaurant, looking up a business or residential phone number, checking the news, keeping a packing list, finding a recipe, scanning UPC codes to get comparison prices, etc.
If you have Gmail, I highly recommend you use Google Sync. With it you can get push email (like what made the BlackBerry famous), push Calendar, and push Contacts. In fact if you add a calendar entry on Google Calendar, it shows up on your phone shortly thereafter (without you having to do anything). The reverse is also true. This also works with your Gmail contacts. Enter someone's information in one place and it get's "pushed" to the other without your intervention. (It's sort of like the free version of MobileMe.)
By the way, if you don't have Gmail, I highly suggest it. The spam filtering (amazingly good), large storage capacity, and powerful, easy searching make it probably the best out there. And do you really want to have your email address tied to your employer or your Internet Service Provider (e.g., AT&T or Charter) when either of those could change?
Labels:
iPhone
Cinco de Cuatro (Remix)
Two years ago I told you the story of Cinco de Cuatro, a story that has its start on May 4, 2001. This year, I found something from a year ago. The first few seconds of the video speak for itself but don't hit play or read further until you've read the original story.
It's good to know I wasn't alone in this mistake. Maybe the President was imitating me?
I also found out from Laura today that another holiday is now competing with Cinco de Cuatro, "Star Wars Day". Of course, I needed an explanation. She gave me one: "May the 4th be with you."
Labels:
Humor
Social Justice is Not Love
There is a lot of talk about "social justice" on the political scene and I'm afraid, out of perhaps good intentions, it has made itself into the church. Wikipedia defines the term "social justice", in the sense that it is used in a modern context, as follows:Social justice as described here requires that an outside force create this concept of justice, and that by force. That kind of force can only be applied by a government.
Social justice is also a concept that some use to describe the movement towards a socially just world. In this context, social justice is based on the concepts of human rights and equality and involves a greater degree of economic egalitarianism through progressive taxation, income redistribution, or even property redistribution. These policies aim to achieve what developmental economists refer to as more equality of opportunity and equality of outcome than may currently exist in some societies.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_justice
Many in the church have been advocates of social justice out of a desire to help the poor. While the Bible advocates that we, as a church and individually, help the poor (see Matthew 25:37-40 and James 1:27 for example), this is different than social justice in that it compelled by the love of Christ, not by any means of force. Social justice, as administered by a government, is going to be inferior to a love-based heart toward giving and helping the poor in many ways:
- It takes no love, no compassion, to want money to be compelled from one person for the benefit of another. Giving of one's own means is the more likely expression of compassion (though I acknowledge that even this can be done for wrong motives).
- When a church or an individual Christian sees someone in need, there is freedom to meet both real and felt needs. When a person needs food, you can give food. If a person needs financial counseling, you can help that person find the right counseling. A government can only treat everyone the same, regardless of real needs.
- A government requires a major bureaucracy to administrate helping those in need. This siphons off a good portion of the money that is brought in. A church or individual can help people more directly, without the huge administrative cost. Churches, and even other non-profit charities, while they always have some administrative cost, will have no where near the bureaucratic expenses a government will.
- Bureaucracies designed to help people tend to breed corruption. Those in charge have millions or even billions of dollars they work with on a regular basis and it comes in regularly regardless of outcome because it is compelled from taxpayers.
- There are always unintended consequences when the government gets involved in charity. Programs designed to help those out of work encourage many who are out of work to give up looking. "Free" health care leads to over-utilization. Requiring banks give loans to those who can't pay them back leads to bankruptcy and foreclosures. Subsidized poverty leads to more poverty.
- Even more than food to eat or water to drink in this life, people need the gospel, a truly free gift. (Romans 6:23)
Why I'm Done with the Republican Party and Only Want True Liberals in Office
If you know me, I'm sure that got your attention, but I'm serious. The time is right to see true liberals in Washington, DC. I don't mean the kind of liberals (i.e., progressives, socialists, and, in some cases, Marxists) that are there now. I mean liberals in the classic sense, like our founding fathers, the kind of liberals who were defined by a belief in liberty. These were men who built a republic, and who wrote a Constitution that was meant to protect liberty. They recognized the dangers of a large and powerful government, believed strongly in private property, and believed in a free market.
Unfortunately, the Republican party, with few exceptions, has strayed from much of this. They have, for the most part, supported larger government, with a slightly different favor of pork. They're campaign materials brag about federal monies they got for local causes. Some of them fight against progressive causes but on the wrong grounds. Take the healthcare issue. Most of the Republicans in Congress are trying to make the healthcare bill somehow more "conservative" rather than fighting the premise that the constitution doesn't give the federal government the authority to even be in healthcare.
I want candidates who believe in the Constitution, who believe that the federal government has only the authority that is enumerated in the Constitution, and who would only support justices that uphold the Constitution. Do you sense a common theme here? Don't get me wrong; I would support a Republican like this. But I'm no longer voting straight Republican just because they are "more like" what I believe in. I want true liberals.
I'm encouraged because I'm not alone. I think you see a shift that is evident in the Tea Party movement, in the 9/12 Project, etc. Who is with me?
Labels:
Politics
The "Evils" of Capitalism and Why Christians Should Support It
It has been a long time since my last post. This post is somewhat a continuation of my last post, There Are No Greedy Corporations, in that it follows some of the same themes. This post, however, addresses how I believe the church should approach capitalism.
There has been much said in the media, and even in discussions I've heard or been a part of, about the "evils of capitalism". First let me say that there is much evil that is done in the name of capitalism. It wasn't that long ago that Enron and, locally, HealthSouth, were both involved in accounting scandals that hurt thousands.
Before we address these "evils", let's look at what capitalism is. According to Merriam-Webster, capitalism is defined as "an economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods, by investments that are determined by private decision, and by prices, production, and the distribution of goods that are determined mainly by competition in a free market".
Given that definition, does this economic system bring out the best in man, or the worst? Does it make man selfish and greedy? Let's address that.
No system can make man selfish and greedy because that is actually natural. We start out that way. Selfish ambition characterizes our lives. We are filled with greed. No one is good. (Only through Jesus Christ, can we be delivered from this.)
If this is what man indeed is like, then what economic system is good? There is no economic system without the corrupted men who drive it. There are sinful, greedy, selfish men at the head of socialist governments just as there are sinful, greedy, selfish men at the head of corporations. The major overlooked thing that differentiates economic systems is incentive.
On the issue of incentive, the question is: Can evil, selfish men be incentivized to do good things? In any system where the power is centralized among the few, there is no incentive for good. There is simply incentive for more power.
In a capitalist system, there is competition. (See the above definition.) Where there is competition there are choices rather than a centralization of power. For the most part, the owners of a business must provide goods or services at fair prices that benefit others to get monetary reward in return for them. If they don't, customers will seek goods and services from others whom do a better job or ask a better price. Workers who don't own the companies they work for are incentivized to do good also. Workers that don't work or are dishonest are often fired.
Adam Smith, in the Wealth of Nations, acknowledges this:
Every individual...generally, indeed, neither intends to promote the public interest, nor knows how much he is promoting it. By preferring the support of domestic to that of foreign industry he intends only his own security; and by directing that industry in such a manner as its produce may be of the greatest value, he intends only his own gain, and he is in this, as in many other cases, led by an invisible hand to promote an end which was no part of his intention. (The Wealth of Nations, Book IV Chapter II)
There are exceptions to these things (e.g., Enron and HealthSouth) but those who don't do good (even for selfish reasons) for those they serve typically have justice catch up with them eventually.
The problems with other economic systems such as socialism or communism is that there is no accountability and, therefore, no incentive for good. What incentive is there for good? I'm not making the arguement that capitalism is a great system, just that it is the best we have or will have until the return of Christ.
So what should Christians do with capitalism? Given that it is the best system we have, we should support it. But should it's rewards be our incentives? Not at all.
God equates greed with idolatry. He desires that we be generous rather than selfish. What does this all mean in a capitalistic system? If we either own a business or simply work for one, we should work diligently to provide something good, not to gain but demonstrate what God is like. With what we earn in the process, we should be generous, helping those in need, not for how it makes us feel or the praise of men, but to demonstrate what God is like. That is what we should do with capitalism.
Labels:
Capitalism,
Economics
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)