Tidbits

New Songs and Artists to Check out:

Youtube surfing during midterm season has landed me a couple great vocalists

ClaraCMusic has a deep and rich tone, gentle with pretty awesome acoustic accompaniment

Jason Chen's version of Wedding Dress by Taeyang [english dub/translation] got me through a couple days of hardcore microbio studying. He's emotion in this one may not be as strong as his revision of this song that is also posted here, but his voice comes through more clearly in the original make.

Lastly, one of my friend's pet project of putting study music to great art to help students focus to music...pretty legit.
The best one so far, the others slightly remind me of dramas.

Tissue for a gunshot wound...

An excerpt from "The Authority of the Bible" by Jacob Smith in Modern Reformation (v 19.1.Jan/Feb 2010)

By focusing on application and didacticism, the church has actually helped lessen the authority of the Bible in the eyes of people. The Bible does speak to finances (and it does have a lot to say about sex, often times even too scandalous for your local evangelical megachuch). Yet, when churches focus on "fixing" a part of life, they misuse the Bible to address only our symptoms as opposed to our disease. The idea that scripture is in any way self-help is a flawed premise; rather, the biblical diagnosis of humanity is that we are beyond help. Our mismanagement of money, our flawed relationships, and our failure as leaders are simply the symptoms of the disease called sin. As Luther would say, they are the fruit of a bad root. To offer perople five steps from the Bible to a better you-fill-in-the-blank is like a hospital offering the victim of a lethal gunshot wound a tissue: after a while no one would recognize the authority of the hospital either.

end of winter quarter, and beginning of spring quarter!

Outing with V and J @ Apple Pan: banana cream pie(top), hickory burger (right)
Delicious, although neither has apple in it, but the real banana slices in the pie made all the difference between Marie Calendars and this pie. Hickory burger. Two words 'nuff said. Smokey taste comes through every bite, and lingers in the back of your mouth. Great juicy burger.

Service is a bit brusque. It's a self seating countertop U shaped table. The waiter shuttles and plops down the food in front of you, and you see them work quite quickly. So for long conversations I would save it for another burger joint, but this is the place for a delicious FAST burger.



[photo cred:b.chang]




Senior Trip @ San Diego: Sitting on the bed at the resort (top), Phil's BBQ (bottom)

Overall very eventful trip. Good friends, good food and good fellowship.
Let's talk about the food though. I would say this trip was scrumptious. Hit up Phil's BBQ, in the picture you can see... the massive onion rings along with some remains of ribs and baked beans... somewhere. BBQ done right! Flavor all in the meat, nothing left out. Haven't had that much meat in a while thought.



T's bridal shower: great food... from this plate you can see the variety of tea sandwiches[cucumber, salmon, chicken almond, and chicken curry (counter clock)], pigs in a blanket and sticking through the middle moz and tomato skewers.

Once again, a great day, quite sunny outside, ladies in cute dresses and just overall happy times.

It's the beginning of the end. Spring is in the airrrr...


[photo cred: j.lee]

hm... apparently on our balcony as well... =]

What God has to say about pride and humility

When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. Proverbs 11:2

Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice. Proverbs 13:10

Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18

The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride. Eccl 7:8

In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God. Psalm 10:4

compromise

"Compromise...an inability to deal with the biblical data as God intends us to deal because we are overwhelmed with our own personal desires. And so we substitute ourselves as the one to be pleased rather than God and we learn well the art of compromise." -John MacArthur

How true. How different this was though for Daniel. In his time, as a youth moved from the Judah in the first deportation, he was taken from his family, re-educated, renamed but yet after all this, he stood firm in his knowledge of the Word of God. He stood up against the defilement of his body with the rich but unclean food, most likely sacrificed to idols and other pagan Babylonian gods, as well as the king's wine, the most delicious in the kingdom.

Daniel stood firm, he did not compromise.

But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king's food, or with the wine that he drank. Therefore he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself. -Daniel 1:8

Let us resolve to not defile ourselves, not to allow compromise into our lives. Ones that would slowly chip away at our view of a holy and righteous God. A God who is a consuming fire.