Is online learning a viable option for public schools?

Is online learning a viable option for public schools? What would be the negative consequences if all public school only offered online learning but still provided extracurricular activities?

Behe vs Darwin

Although Darwin was able to persuade much of the world that a modern eye could be produced gradually from a much simpler structure, he did not even attempt to explain how the simple light sensitive spot that was his starting point actually worked.
Michael Behe

Read more: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/m/michael_behe.html#ixzz1JjNdTsEe

Aldous Huxley vs. Jesus

In 'Ends and Means' (1937), Aldous Huxley confessed that his reasons for arguing against the message of the Bible were not unbiased and objective philosophical reasons. He 'had an agenda':

I had motives for not wanting the world to have a meaning; and consequently assumed that it had none, and was able without any difficulty to find satisfying reasons for this assumption. The philosopher who finds no meaning in the world is not concerned exclusively with a problem in pure metaphysics. He is also concerned to prove that there is no valid reason why he personally should not do as he wants to do. For myself, as no doubt for most of my friends, the philosophy of meaninglessness was essentially an instrument of liberation from a certain system of morality. We objected to the morality because it interfered with our sexual freedom. The supporters of this system claimed that it embodied the meaning - the Christian meaning, they insisted - of the world. There was one admirably simple method of confuting these people and justifying ourselves in our erotic revolt: we would deny that the world had any meaning whatever.

Napoleon and Jesus

Napoleon expressed the following thoughts while he was exiled on the rock of St. Helena. There, the conqueror of civilized Europe had time to reflect on the measure of his accomplishments. He called Count Montholon to his side and asked him, "Can you tell me who Jesus Christ was?" The count declined to respond. Napoleon countered:

Well then, I will tell you. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne and I myself have founded great empires; but upon what did these creations of our genius depend? Upon force. Jesus alone founded His empire upon love, and to this very day millions will die for Him. . . . I think I understand something of human nature; and I tell you, all these were men, and I am a man; none else is like Him: Jesus Christ was more than a man. . . . I have inspired multitudes with such an enthusiastic devotion that they would have died for me . . . but to do this is was necessary that I should be visibly present with the electric influence of my looks, my words, of my voice. When I saw men and spoke to them, I lightened up the flame of self-devotion in their hearts. . . . Christ alone has succeeded in so raising the mind of man toward the unseen, that it becomes insensible to the barriers of time and space. Across a chasm of eighteen hundred years, Jesus Christ makes a demand which is beyond all others difficult to satisfy; He asks for that which a philosopher may often seek in vain at the hands of his friends, or a father of his children, or a bride of her spouse, or a man of his brother. He asks for the human heart; He will have it entirely to Himself. He demands it unconditionally; and forthwith His demand is granted. Wonderful! In defiance of time and space, the soul of man, with all its powers and faculties, becomes an annexation to the empire of Christ. All who sincerely believe in Him, experience that remarkable, supernatural love toward Him. This phenomenon is unaccountable; it is altogether beyond the scope of man's creative powers. Time, the great destroyer, is powerless to extinguish this sacred flame; time can neither exhaust its strength nor put a limit to its range. This is it, which strikes me most; I have often thought of it. This it is which proves to me quite convincingly the Divinity of Jesus Christ.

WOW

We have one body

“We have one body, and if we would like to successfully fulfill the call of God on our lives, then we need to maintain our temples,” said Dawniqua Linyear a Christian fitness trainer and figure competitor. The conversation was over and she had proved her point. Me, a one time professional athlete was officially out of shape and out of God’s will for my life. I started to think how I got this way. At one time I bench pressed over four hundred pounds; ran a forty yard dash in 4.3 seconds; and had less than 3% body fat. But, now as I look in the mirror I don’t see that man anymore. More of her words started to play in my mind. “You are an athlete why are you so out of shape?” I know she was joking, but there is always a bit of truth in humor. I guess I never considered the spirituality of our bodies. I reckoned keeping the temple “holy” was all that was required of me – since I have never heard a preacher even broach the topic of gluttony. I deduce the reason why I worked so hard to keep myself in shape in the past was a result of my desire to perform on the football field. And, I suppose because I stopped playing, I lost the motivation to stay in shape. I am not saying its right, it’s just what happened. Alright time to confess, I have been out of football ten years now, and currently I am the youth pastor of a larger urban church in the Hampton Roads area. And, when I am asked to minister to youth across the country, the one calling card that opens more doors for me than my education or anointing is the fact that I played pro football. As a result, I am always asked to partake in some athletic event to engage students. But, because I am not in shape and because I know if I were to attempt to participate in any athletic activity, I would not only get embarrassed, but also get hurt as well. For various reasons I did not see being in shape as a part of my Kingdom Calling. Yet, I can vividly remember being in Bosnia Herzegovina, which is located in Eastern Europe, at the Emek Beraka camps ministering to Muslims and being asked to help run some basic athletic activities and having to pull out because I was not in any shape to help out. At the time I thought it was a funny way of getting out of the physical labor, but now I feel convicted and certain that I missed a myriad of opportunities to reach souls for Christ. Additionally, in the fall of 2009, I was a part of a mission’s team that went to Haiti to speak at a leadership conference, distribute goods at a medical clinic, and preach the gospel at several churches. I literally preached 7 sermons in two days and was dead tired; my fatigue was not only a result of the volume of sermons preached but it was because the temperate in Haiti was very high. I remember feeling as though I could not go on. But, after hearing Ms. Linyear’s words I realized I had not been a good steward of my temple, and if I had been, I would have had more energy to minister to the people and build relationships after I spoke. Instead I felt like I had to be whisked away due to exhaustion. Once again Ms. Linyear voice rings in my mind, “People fail to minister in areas that they refuse to practice. It's easy to talk about spiritual maturity and growth in Christ, which takes a certain level of discipline, but the truth is, God has already provided the blood, sweat and tears in this area, we just need to walk in it. Living a healthy and balanced lifestyle is a challenge physically, mentally emotionally and spiritually, and it takes extreme levels of discipline, along with some sweat and tears of our own.” I realized what she was saying was that being in shape is an act of worship! Why had I not seen it before? Being is shape is not just my responsibility or the responsibility of the missionary but it’s the responsibility of every believer. Remember the words of Christ, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!' (Matthew 25:23). When it comes to being physically fit most believers reference 1 Timothy 4:8 and use it as a way of devaluing exercise. 1 Timothy 4:8 reads, “ 8 For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.” What the NASB and KJV translates as “profiteth little” in Greek is translated “for a short time”. in Js 4:14, and could be translated the same in 1 Ti 4:8 The text is not saying that exercise has lesser value in contrast to spiritual exercise because the same adjective is used to qualify both actions. The text communicates both practices are beneficial, but the former practice will only last as long as we have these mortal bodies, and the latter practice will be beneficial throughout all eternity. But it doesn’t communicate that it does not profit us or that it is valueless to the believer. We must understand that our bodies are extremely valuable to us while in our possession. Now if it is true that [w]e have one body, and if we would like to successfully fulfill the call of God on our lives, then we need to maintain our temples… then what a tremendous value a fit body can be to the believer…

I just finished reading Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond

I just finished reading Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond...it was a fascination book. I had to read most of it with a filter though. Especially, when it pertained to his conclusions on evolutionary philosophy and carbon dating. But the premise of it was right on...to summarize... the book was an attempt to dispelled the racial argument that White Europeans came to dominate the world because of intelligence. Rather he proposes the assertion that even though all ethnicities have the same anatomy, they did not have the same opportunity. Diamond suggest that what was need to create a thriving technologically advanced society was the right "package" of conditions: the right type of land that could grow the right types of domesticated plants and food that could sustain the right type of domesticated animals. As a result the philosophy of the people would transition from a hunter gather mentality to a planting a growing society. This new society would result in a denser population and more diseases. Those who would survive the diseases would then move to other vocational fields rather than farming. As the population would grow then wars would begin resulting in an advancements in technology. Thus, if you don't have the right "conditions" the progressive advancement of the society would be hindered.

Our Wants

ACCEPTANCE – I want to be warmly received without condition.
GRACE – I want something good (e.g., forgiveness) that I don’t deserve.
CONNECTION – I want to be united to others.
COMPANIONSHIP – I want deep, intimate relationships.
SUCCESS – I want to achieve or accomplish something.
SELF-DETERMINATION – I want to have independence and free will.
UNDERSTANDING – I want to be known.
LOVE – I want to feel attractive to others.
VALIDATION – I want to be valued for who I am.
COMPETENCE – I want to have skills and ability that bring success.
RESPECT – I want to be admired and esteemed.
WORTH – I want to feel important.
HONOR – I want to feel like a priceless treasure.
COMMITMENT – I want to have unconditional security in relationships.
SIGNIFICANCE – I want to have meaning and purpose.
ATTENTION – I want to be noticed.
COMFORT – I want to feel a sense of well-being.
SUPPORT – I want to be cared for.
APPROVAL – I want to be liked and accepted.
WANTED – I want to be sought after.
SAFETY – I want to feel protected and secure.
AFFECTION – I want to feel fondness and warmth.
TRUST – I want to have faith in others.
HOPE – I want confidence that I will get what I love and desire.
JOY – I want to feel satisfied and happy.

http://smalley.cc/?s=affection+&x=0&y=0

Thoughts?

Francis Chan is stepping out in faith... from Catalyst on Vimeo.

Salaries

Readers, the employment market is climbing back and your fellow subscribers are landing more and more jobs each month. While I can't include all of the positions accepted last month here at TheLadders, here's a selection of 50 of the job titles and salaries of people who found their jobs through TheLadders in the month of March:

Title		Salary
1.	Account Director	$150K
2.	Account Executive	$105K
3.	Assistant to the President	$135K
4.	CEO	$410K
5.	CFO	$175K
6.	Commercial Development Manager	$115K
7.	Controller	$125K
8.	COO	$110K
9.	Data Manager	$105K
10.	Digital Sales Manager	$120K
11.	Director of Business Development	$150K
12.	Director of Customer Care	$110K
13.	Director of Engineering	$120K
14.	Director of Engineering	$130K
15.	Director of Finance	$135K
16.	Director of HR and Mission Integration	$110K
17.	Director of IT	$145K
18.	Director of Materials	$100K
19.	Director of New Product Planning	$160K
20.	Director of Operations	$170K
21.	Director of Operations	$125K
22.	Director of Sales	$100K
23.	Director of Technology	$120K
24.	EDW Architect	$100K
26.	Federal Sales Director	$120K
27.	Implementation Manager	$103K
28.	International Tax Manager	$120K
29.	Lead Enterprise Architect	$140K
30.	Maintenance and Facilities Manager	$124K
31.	Manager of IT Security and Compliance	$118K
32.	Market Development Manager	$105K
33.	Operations Manager	$170K
34.	Plant Manager	$125K
35.	Principal Product Marketer	$115K
36.	Principal Program Manager	$120K
37.	Process Engineer	$100K
38.	Project Manager	$128K
39.	Risk Group Director	$145K
40.	Senior Architect	$120K
41.	Senior Logistician	$140K
42.	Senior Security Sales Specialist	$110K
43.	Site Controller	$120K
44.	Sr. HR Manager	$150K
45.	Sr. Project Manager	$120K
46.	Supply Operations Project Manager	$118K
47.	VP of Cardiac Services	$210K
48.	VP of Operations	$165K
49.	VP of Product Settings	$250K
50.	VP of Talent Management	$150K

Come to Tulsa with me!

Dear Ministry Partner,

I want to extend an invitation for you to join me at a unique and exciting event coming April 8-10, 2010 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Empowered21: The Global Congress on Holy Spirit Empowerment in the 21st Century. This unprecedented 3-day gathering will bring together Spirit-empowered believers from around the world. In addition to life changing general sessions and powerful times of worship, Empowered21 will include 210 individual Learning Conversations in over 30 Learning Tracks. These informative, interactive sessions will be taught by many of today’s foremost leaders and experts in the body of Christ.

I will be leading a learning conversation session entitled The Future of the Church, Youth and Sports: How the Church Can Impact Youth in a Culture of the Athlete as part of the Empowered for Today's Urban Challenge learning track. I would love to have you join me at Empowered21 and participate in the conversation I am hosting. You can get all of the details about this unique gathering, including a full listing of speakers, worship leaders and learning tracks, on the web at www.empowered21.com or by calling 877.473.2010. Registration for all 3 days is as low as $59/person with even lower rates for groups. Check it out and prayerfully consider being a part of Empowered21.

I look forward to seeing you in Tulsa!

Don’t Miss It!

Anthony Bass

You can view exciting details and most of the Learning Conversations in the 12 page digital preview guide at www.empowered21.com/preview_guide.

CARPE DIEM

You know if I died right now, I would be satisfied with my life. I have done so much and seen even more. I am so thankful for the life the Lord has blessed me with. I can not do enough to show my appreciation for what God has done for me and through me. I never thought I would be where I am today. Yes, I do have regrets, but overall I know I have accomplished much. But, the beautiful thing about my life is this. It not over. I still have goals and dreams. I believe the attributes that have enabled me to live this life to the fullest are faith, perception, and discipline. This is not a formula for success. I am simply describing what qualities I believe have helped me live a full life up to this point. Faith was key because the alternate fear would have stopped me from taking any risks--and receiving life's real rewards. Perception has been invaluable because without it I would have missed how to take advantage of all the opportunities the Lord presented me with. And, finally, discipline was essential because without it I could have never mastered myself in order to push off gratification and embrace long term satisfaction. I don't know if I will be remembered 100 years from now. But, I can truly say everyman dies, but I have truly lived. With Christ help - Seize the day!

My discussions with author "Steve Pressfield"

Recently, I wrote a review of a book entitled "Gates of Fire" from my new favorite author Steven Pressfield. My post must have caught the eye of his publicist because she emailed me back inquiring if I desired to ask the renowned author a couple of questions. Of course, I was flattered, and I agreed. To my suprise she even sent me a copy of his work entitled "The War of Art." My good friend and colleague Ben Komanapalli informed me there was a lot of buzz in leadership circles about this book. At this point, I was giddy with joy. Having received the book in the mail, I decided to wait and read it on may way to Haiti. By the way the mission trip to Haiti was awesome. The country is in need of one thing --Leadership training. Anyway, when I settled in on the plane leaving JKF I picked up the book and could not put it down. The book was so engaging. I read it from cover to cover in 2-hours. The book was awesome; and here are the questions I asked Steven after reading it:

In your book “The War of Art” you address the opposition we face in attempting to “completing our creative goals” could you explain why this monolithic internal opposition is so prevalent in humanity?

In The War of Art, I say that it's a clash between the Higher Self and the Lower Self, the small Ego. That's the closest I can come to something that satisfies me. It may be a little too "mystical" for others.

I think that we humans inhabit, as Shakespeare said, a realm somewhere between animal and angel. We're pulled in both directions. I believe that certain "laws" obtain on this earthbound dimension (death is real, individuals are separate from each other, time and space are real, the most powerful emotion is fear) that do not apply on the dimension above us. In that dimension (where the Greeks would have said the gods live), death is not real (the gods live forever), time and space are malleable (the gods travel "swift as thought") and the predominant emotion is not fear but love.

Though we are all here in this material, timebound dimension, I believe we somehow retain "memories" or "visions" of that higher dimension--and that a part of us, our best part, aspires to return there somehow. That's why, when someone in this earthbound dimension acts in accordance with the laws of the higher dimension (a soldier, say, who throws his body onto a hand grenade to save his buddies), we are moved profoundly by that act and we bestow our highest awards and honors on the person who performed it.

So, by this theory, our better parts aspire to rise to higher levels, to write the novel we know is inside us, compose the symphony, fight the good fight against evil ... but at the same time we are opposed by our baser, cynical, self-centered selves. Of course the lower will always resist the higher. If the higher wins, the lower is not only out of a job but is disgraced and rendered meaningless.

Do feel all fundamentals lack creativity? What about the great artist and thinkers who have come out of the fundamental camps – C.S. Lewis, Francis Schaeffer, J.R.R. Tolkien? Are they anomalies?

2) I would disagree with you that C.S. Lewis, Francis Schaeffer and J.R.R. Tolkien are fundamentalists. On the contrary, they are highly cultured, highly individuated artists who have thought deeply about the problems of the human condition and have arrived at their philosophical and spiritual positions through a long and rigorous process of investigation, meditation and rumination.

The fundamentalist (as I define him, anyway) does the opposite. He stops thinking. He surrenders his free will and his capacity for reflection and deliberation. Instead he swallows whole some externally-derived doctrine or belief system (Communism, fascism, free-market capitalism, etc. etc.) and becomes an unthinking robot in its service.

I admire the hell out of the three artists you've cited above.

Do you feel satisfied once you overcome hindrances to writing/our goals? Would you term this self-actualization/purpose or is this just a step on the right path?

3) Great question. I do feel satisfied. In fact I would say that no other act is truly satisfying other than that. And to me it's a step along the way. I'm not sure where the way is going, but it does seem to trend, I think, toward greater awareness of one's own self and the potential within oneself--but with the paradoxical element that what we learn about our individual selves brings us closer to other people, so that the more we become the unique individuals we were born to be and the more we produce the unique contributions that only we can contribute, the more we admire others on the same path and the more communion we feel with them.

The wisdom of the intrigue

The world teaches us there is wisdom in concealing your hand. In this interview, Lebron can not honestly answer most of the questions posed to him transparently because it would affect his contract negotiation leverage and endorsement appeal. This wisdom comes from living in this fallen world. I am not singling Lebron out because we All fall into this trap. The trap of playing games with our actions and words in order to hold power. However, this wisdom does not come from God. 1 Corinthians 3:19-20 says, "The wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight. As it is written: "He catches the wise in their craftiness"; and again, "The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile." God asks us to be wise, but our wisdom is a heavenaly wisdom, and it does not originate from a sense of power, but it originates out of a sense of reverence for God. Do you trust him? Well if you do who cares what cards you hold; He is in control of the game anyway!

Technology + Spirituality = New Heros!

As America changes so does it's ideal and ideas of what a hero is and what they should look like!

Baptism Video!

2008 Orchard Baptism Video from The Orchard on Vimeo.

This is a interesting format that could crystallize the baptism experience!

Great Music!

See...

I think one of the most beautiful things about being a Christian is that you have the vision to see the extra-ordinary in what other's think is mundane!

ab

Afro-American

It is interesting to see what other countries deem valuable about your culture.

WHY DID JESUS FOLD THE NAPKIN??

            This is one I can honestly say I have never seen circulating in the emails so; if it touches you, you may want to forward it.   Why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His resurrection?  I never noticed this....

            The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin, which was placed over the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave clothes.  The Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was neatly folded, and was placed separate from the grave clothes.  Early Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance.  She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved.  She said, 'They have taken the Lord's body out of the tomb, and I don't know where they have put him!' 

Peter and the other disciple ran to the tomb to see.  The other disciple outran Peter and got there first.  He stooped and looked in and saw the linen cloth lying there, but he didn't go in.  Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside.  He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus' head was folded up and lying to the side.  (John 20:6-7)  Was that important?  Absolutely!  Is it really significant?  Yes!  In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day.  The folded napkin had to do with the Master and Servant, and every Jewish boy knew this tradition.  When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it. 

The table was furnished perfectly, and then the servant would wait, just out of sight, until the master had finished eating.  The servant would not dare touch that table, until the master was finished.  Now if the master were done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth, and clean his beard, and would wad up that napkin and toss it onto the table.  The servant would then know to clear the table.  For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, 'I'm done'.  But if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table, because..........  The folded napkin meant, 'I'm coming back!'

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