OK, that's the last straw. I was just looking at dru's blog and I saw a link to which poem are you? (I've delibarate not made the name a hyperlink to the questionnaire in protest!)
I've now had an idea for an online questionnaire of my own. It's going to be called "Which retarded online questionnaire are you?"
One result could be "You are the 'Which American City Are You' questionnaire which is ill-thought out, quick to jump to conclusions about people and generally not very helpful."
Thursday, May 27, 2004
Tuesday, May 25, 2004
HaloScan - I don't think we're right for each other.
Breaking up is always hard. Especially when I've got so many nice comments people posted in my blog using HaloScan, the commenting system that I'm now retiring in favour of BlogSpot's in-built commenting facilities.
If you've posted any comments on my blog in the past, I'm afraid they're not going to be shown any more. However, you can always comment on my new posts and make up for it! If fact, if you REALLY want to, you can always look through my archives and post comments on things I wrote months ago. Maybe I just need to move on... The old comments are gone but life goes on.
If you've posted any comments on my blog in the past, I'm afraid they're not going to be shown any more. However, you can always comment on my new posts and make up for it! If fact, if you REALLY want to, you can always look through my archives and post comments on things I wrote months ago. Maybe I just need to move on... The old comments are gone but life goes on.
Spiritual Authority!
I was teaching at an Encounter Weekend that the TACF Youth Network had organised this past weekend. I was teaching on the subject of Spiritual Strongholds, a pretty important teaching because we do a lot of prayer ministry and deliverance after this teaching to bring people freedom from the strongholds they have just identified.
I had been warned ahead of time that the enemy would try to distract and confuse people to prevent them from hearing what God was trying to say through me. Well, just before we started the session, a storm started to pick up and there was thunder, lightning and some pretty loud winds as well. When I started my talk I said,
"It's no co-incidence there's a storm outside just now. There's about to be a storm in here as well but you don't need to be afraid unless you're a demon."
Well, part-way into my talk one of the staff of the camp we were using came in and said that there had been a tornado warning and that we should be ready to head down to the basement if anything happened. He also gave us candles in case we lost power.
I instantly remembered the Jason Upton CD, Remember which I mentioned in my blog last week. He rebuked a Tornado and it left. I thought, "Right, here we go. It's my turn to rebuke the weather now. If Jason Upton can do it, so can I!" I waited for the staff member to leave the room and then I prayed. It wasn't overly complex. It was something like this,
"Daddy, I just take authority over this storm in the name of Jesus and tell you storm that you have to leave now. Enemy, we're not impressed with you and we're not going anywhere. Tornado, you are not coming here. I rebuke you in Jesus name and tell you to go. We're not leaving becuase we need to stay here and deal with our demons."
I then went back to my teaching and didn't think any more about it. Well, I don't know how soon afterwards it was that I noticed but all of a sudden it was very quiet outside! I stopped for a moment to listen because I was actually surprised. It really had worked! I took authority over a storm in Jesus' name and it left!
Now, you need to realise something here. I don't pray in tongues for an hour a day. I don't do any special, complex intense devotions each day that give me more authority than mere mortals. No, I'm just a Christian! I'm a child of the King and I recognise the authority that gives me. Authority over the spiritual forces of darkness and all that they control.
It's time for us to rise up and stop letting the enemy push us around! Church, realise your authority and RISE UP! For too long we've been hiding in corners, scared of the enemy. Check out Psalm 18. See how David starts out hiding in God, his stronghold. He is not doing well:
v4: The cords of death encompassed me,
And the torrents of ungodliness terrified me.
By verse 37 he is the one doing the attacking and the enemy is the one on the run:
v37: I pursued my enemies and overtook them,
And I did not turn back until they were consumed.
Too often we live in verse 4 when really, Jesus has done all the work. We're in verse 37 now! Let's live like it!
I had been warned ahead of time that the enemy would try to distract and confuse people to prevent them from hearing what God was trying to say through me. Well, just before we started the session, a storm started to pick up and there was thunder, lightning and some pretty loud winds as well. When I started my talk I said,
"It's no co-incidence there's a storm outside just now. There's about to be a storm in here as well but you don't need to be afraid unless you're a demon."
Well, part-way into my talk one of the staff of the camp we were using came in and said that there had been a tornado warning and that we should be ready to head down to the basement if anything happened. He also gave us candles in case we lost power.
I instantly remembered the Jason Upton CD, Remember which I mentioned in my blog last week. He rebuked a Tornado and it left. I thought, "Right, here we go. It's my turn to rebuke the weather now. If Jason Upton can do it, so can I!" I waited for the staff member to leave the room and then I prayed. It wasn't overly complex. It was something like this,
"Daddy, I just take authority over this storm in the name of Jesus and tell you storm that you have to leave now. Enemy, we're not impressed with you and we're not going anywhere. Tornado, you are not coming here. I rebuke you in Jesus name and tell you to go. We're not leaving becuase we need to stay here and deal with our demons."
I then went back to my teaching and didn't think any more about it. Well, I don't know how soon afterwards it was that I noticed but all of a sudden it was very quiet outside! I stopped for a moment to listen because I was actually surprised. It really had worked! I took authority over a storm in Jesus' name and it left!
Now, you need to realise something here. I don't pray in tongues for an hour a day. I don't do any special, complex intense devotions each day that give me more authority than mere mortals. No, I'm just a Christian! I'm a child of the King and I recognise the authority that gives me. Authority over the spiritual forces of darkness and all that they control.
It's time for us to rise up and stop letting the enemy push us around! Church, realise your authority and RISE UP! For too long we've been hiding in corners, scared of the enemy. Check out Psalm 18. See how David starts out hiding in God, his stronghold. He is not doing well:
v4: The cords of death encompassed me,
And the torrents of ungodliness terrified me.
By verse 37 he is the one doing the attacking and the enemy is the one on the run:
v37: I pursued my enemies and overtook them,
And I did not turn back until they were consumed.
Too often we live in verse 4 when really, Jesus has done all the work. We're in verse 37 now! Let's live like it!
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
This blows my mind!
I just bought Jason Upton's new album, Remember. There's something on this CD that amazed me like never before. I'm being serious here. There's the voice of an angel on the CD! I'm not talking about someone with a nice voice. I'm talking about a supernatural sound that appeared on the recording that could not be attributed to any of the people or instruments present at the recording. In the CD information, Jason Upton explains that when they were mixing the last track, Fly, they found "a soaring voice over the top of the other voices". At first they weren't sure what it was but they discovered that it was only coming through Jason's microphone. It was another source, near where he was.
If you listen to Fly and skip ahead to around 6 minutes 11 seconds (I think it actually comes in just before then) you will hear an amazing voice singing a really high melody. It sounds somewhat like a choir boy's voice. The first time I heard it, the power of God hit me really powerfully. Even now, when I hear it I feel an amazing presence of God. At first when I started thinking about it, I was a bit disappointed that the voice similar to something we know - a choir boy. Then I thought of something else. Why do we get choir boys to sing in the first place? It's because they sound like angels! Or think of movies such as Lord of the Rings where they want to create an "angelic" mood. They have choirs of pure, high, clear voices. This isn't a co-incidence. This is the reason why. People already know what angels sound like.
God is good. He is real. This stuff's not just for Sunday School!
If you listen to Fly and skip ahead to around 6 minutes 11 seconds (I think it actually comes in just before then) you will hear an amazing voice singing a really high melody. It sounds somewhat like a choir boy's voice. The first time I heard it, the power of God hit me really powerfully. Even now, when I hear it I feel an amazing presence of God. At first when I started thinking about it, I was a bit disappointed that the voice similar to something we know - a choir boy. Then I thought of something else. Why do we get choir boys to sing in the first place? It's because they sound like angels! Or think of movies such as Lord of the Rings where they want to create an "angelic" mood. They have choirs of pure, high, clear voices. This isn't a co-incidence. This is the reason why. People already know what angels sound like.
God is good. He is real. This stuff's not just for Sunday School!
Tuesday, May 18, 2004
Pedicures are ticklish
Ok, so I know I might get a bit of flak from the macho among you but I did in fact get a pedicure on Saturday. In fact, I got a manicure as well. I figured I might as well. Both were things I'd never tried before and I was getting my hair cut and I thought I'd go the extra mile, as it were. With my toes being on public display more than ever with sandal weather kicking in, it seems only kind to society to make them a bit more presentable. That and the fact that short toenails are good for climbing, short fingernails are good for guitar and short hair is good for..emm...not overheating in the summer.
So I'm all set for summer now. Except for having pasty skin. Still a bit too Scottish really.
So I'm all set for summer now. Except for having pasty skin. Still a bit too Scottish really.
Monday, May 17, 2004
Friday, May 14, 2004
"The Swan" annoys me
Is anyone else annoyed by all these shows coming out on TV now that smash up ugly people and re-arrange them into something more beautiful?
I mean, ok, there are people who could really use some kind of corrective surgery if they've got some kind of deformity or something like that but so much of it's just ridiculous to me. People don't need new boobs - they need Jesus! It's true! Even with the best body, you're still the same messed up, insecure person inside. (sigh)
The Swan annoys me in particular because they take it one step further. Each week two women are "made over", sorry, re-constructed, and then the judges decide which one of them gets to go in for some beauty pageant.
So, in other words, the loser gets the message,
"Well done! You're beautiful now! Oh wait...no, not as beautiful as her. Sorry, you're ugly again. See ya!"
Grrr....
I mean, ok, there are people who could really use some kind of corrective surgery if they've got some kind of deformity or something like that but so much of it's just ridiculous to me. People don't need new boobs - they need Jesus! It's true! Even with the best body, you're still the same messed up, insecure person inside. (sigh)
The Swan annoys me in particular because they take it one step further. Each week two women are "made over", sorry, re-constructed, and then the judges decide which one of them gets to go in for some beauty pageant.
So, in other words, the loser gets the message,
"Well done! You're beautiful now! Oh wait...no, not as beautiful as her. Sorry, you're ugly again. See ya!"
Grrr....
Thursday, May 13, 2004
ب پ ت ث
Well, I'm making really slow progress with my Dari lessons. I'm about 1/2 way through lesson 2, to be precise. So far in this lession, I've looked at the letters be, pe, te and se. (Or bey, pey, tey and sey)
Here's what I've got. They're all written the same except for the number of dots and they're pretty simple as far as the different forms. (initial, medial, terminal and detached)
Initial form: بابا
Medial form: سبزه
Final form: واجب
Detached form: ب
So there you go. More fascinating discoveries of this new language are no doubt just around the corner.
Here's what I've got. They're all written the same except for the number of dots and they're pretty simple as far as the different forms. (initial, medial, terminal and detached)
Initial form: بابا
Medial form: سبزه
Final form: واجب
Detached form: ب
So there you go. More fascinating discoveries of this new language are no doubt just around the corner.
Having your own climbing shoes helps
It's really true. It helps a lot to have shoes that fit your feet rather than the rental ones at the climbing gym. That said, if you're only going to go a few times, $6 a pop is maybe a better investment than the $100 + whatever you spend on your own.
Me being me, however, I figured the best way to force myself to commit to a sport is to spend some money on it. That way I feel a financial obligation to climb, even if I don't want to. As it stands just now, though, I do still want to climb so that's cool.
So yes, my new equipment. I went on a sort of climber's hajj to the Mountain Equipment Co-Op in Toronto.
I climbed this mother of a wall while trying out my new shoes on Saturday.
So I know you're all dying to know what I bought. Well I'm dying to talk about it at least so that's always something.
First up, I got a harness. I got a Black Diamond Focus Harness which is pretty comfortable. Well, as comfortable as you can expect with all these straps around various parts of your anatomy.
Once I got the harness sorted, I spent forever and a day trying on different shoes and consequently abusing my feet quite a bit. I ended up getting the La Sportiva Cliff Rockshoes. They were the best fit for the shape of my toes. Funny how something as hitherto trivial now has pretty serious influence. I was just thinking as well that since I climb AND play guitar, I have to keep my fingernails AND toenails nice and short. Ah, what a blessing for my future spouse. Anyway, I digress...
I got a nice wee chalkbag all of my own as well. To be more precise, it was a Sickle Retro Sport Chalk Bag. Not that exciting really other than the fact that it's mine and I won't need to keep borrowing one when I go to Rockhead's.
I also got a re-fillable chalk ball, a chalk bag strap and a water bottle but I'm starting to bore even myself at this point and I'm almost 1/2 hour late for lunch so this is a good time to run along.
Me being me, however, I figured the best way to force myself to commit to a sport is to spend some money on it. That way I feel a financial obligation to climb, even if I don't want to. As it stands just now, though, I do still want to climb so that's cool.
So yes, my new equipment. I went on a sort of climber's hajj to the Mountain Equipment Co-Op in Toronto.
I climbed this mother of a wall while trying out my new shoes on Saturday.
So I know you're all dying to know what I bought. Well I'm dying to talk about it at least so that's always something.
First up, I got a harness. I got a Black Diamond Focus Harness which is pretty comfortable. Well, as comfortable as you can expect with all these straps around various parts of your anatomy.
Once I got the harness sorted, I spent forever and a day trying on different shoes and consequently abusing my feet quite a bit. I ended up getting the La Sportiva Cliff Rockshoes. They were the best fit for the shape of my toes. Funny how something as hitherto trivial now has pretty serious influence. I was just thinking as well that since I climb AND play guitar, I have to keep my fingernails AND toenails nice and short. Ah, what a blessing for my future spouse. Anyway, I digress...
I got a nice wee chalkbag all of my own as well. To be more precise, it was a Sickle Retro Sport Chalk Bag. Not that exciting really other than the fact that it's mine and I won't need to keep borrowing one when I go to Rockhead's.
I also got a re-fillable chalk ball, a chalk bag strap and a water bottle but I'm starting to bore even myself at this point and I'm almost 1/2 hour late for lunch so this is a good time to run along.
Wednesday, May 12, 2004
New Blog Layout - woohoo!
Yes, it's true! I may only have been in the blogging business for about 4 months but that doesn't stop me taking advantage of the sweet new templates that blogger has available now!
For all (both?) my atom feed readers, lay your text-only preferences aside for just a moment to marvel at my new blog in all its majesty!
Oh, how I love stylesheets.
For all (both?) my atom feed readers, lay your text-only preferences aside for just a moment to marvel at my new blog in all its majesty!
Oh, how I love stylesheets.
Monday, May 10, 2004
Apparently I am Windows 2000 SP3.
Which OS are You?
It seems there are a lot of quizes out there these days based on the formula. "What [groupname] are you?" such as "What dog are you?", "What country are you?" etc. I even saw a link to "Which Nigerian Spammer Are You?".
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