Government Employees > Manufacturing Employees :(

From WSJ in 2011.

If you want to understand better why so many states—from New York to Wisconsin to California—are teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, consider this depressing statistic: Today in America there are nearly twice as many people working for the government (22.5 million) than in all of manufacturing (11.5 million). This is an almost exact reversal of the situation in 1960, when there were 15 million workers in manufacturing and 8.7 million collecting a paycheck from the government. . . . Don't expect a reversal of this trend anytime soon. Surveys of college graduates are finding that more and more of our top minds want to work for the government. Why? Because in recent years only government agencies have been hiring, and because the offer of near lifetime security is highly valued in these times of economic turbulence. When 23-year-olds aren't willing to take career risks, we have a real problem on our hands.

 A real problem, indeed.

Ron Paul on Homeschooling and Free Society

"One of the last American Congressmen to argue for a reduced role for the state retired in 2012. In his farewell address, Congressman Ron Paul stated, 'Expect the rapidly expanding homeschooling movement to play a significant role in the revolutionary reforms needed to build a free society with Constitutional protections. We cannot expect a Federal government controlled school system to provide the intellectual ammunition to combat the dangerous growth of government that threatens our liberties'" (Kevin Swanson, Apostate: The Men Who Destroyed the Christian West, 115).

Listening Well

"Every day is an opportunity to listen and to learn--and to pass along what we learn that might be helpful to others" (Quentin Schultze, An Essential Guide to Public Speaking: Serving Your Audience with Faith, Skill, and Virtue, 46).

Reading Notes: Disciplines of a Godly Man by R. Kent Hughes

Reading Notes for Introduction and Chapters 1-5.

Reading Notes for Chapters 6-9.

Reading Notes for Chapters 10-13.

Reading Notes for Chapters 14-18.

Reading Notes for Chapter 19.

Reading Notes: Disciplines of a Godly Man, Chapter 19, by R. Kent Hughes

Reading Notes for Introduction and Chapters 1-5.

Reading Notes for Chapters 6-9.

Reading Notes for Chapters 10-13.

Reading Notes for Chapters 14-18.

Chapter 19 - Grace of Discipline

• The author talked about the "rich etymology" of the word "discipline" -- that it includes both divestment (casting off) and investment (see page 223). The dynamic discipline of divestment-and-investment is a life-long practice as the Lord progressively sanctifies us.
• Christian Living from start to finish is a matter of grace - Sola gratia. "Salvation is by grace alone, and living the Christian life is by grace alone also. . . . As we tackle the disciplines of a godly man, we must remember it is a matter of grace from beginning to end" (p. 227).
• Thus, "there is no contradiction between grace and hard work" (p. 228).
• The author has been helpful and practical throughout the book with the constant refrain that "training in righteousness" is not a passive affair: godliness requires that we work hard, that we break a spiritual sweat, and this means we need to pro-actively assess our spiritual condition.
• One way the author recommends to assess our spiritual condition and to discipline ourselves without being legalistic (see quote below and the table): 

Review the seventeen disciplines studied in this book [divide them into separate lists--a list of those areas in which you are doing well ("+") and another list of the areas where you need help (" - ")], then prioritize them in relation to your own life -- the abilities and interests God has given you, the opportunities before you, your own level of spiritual understanding and maturity, your willingness to move forward (p. 229).

Discipline of . . .	+	-	Priority
Purity
Marriage
Fatherhood
Friendship
Mind
Devotion
Prayer
Worship
Integrity
Tongue
Work
Perseverance
Church
Leadership
Giving
Witness
Ministry

Against Restlessness of Mind

"A mind on wheels knows no rest; it is as a rolling thing before the tempest. Struggle against the desire for novelty, or it will lead you astray as the will-o'-wisp deceives the traveler. If you desire to be useful, if you long to honor God, if you wish to be happy, be established in the truth, and be not carried about by every wind of doctrine in these evil days, 'be ye steadfast, unmovable' (Spurgeon's Sermon Illustrations, 78).

Right. And a will-o'-wisp is this.

J.R.R. Tolkien and The Beowulf

At present I am reading J.R.R. Tolkien's 1936 paper "Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics." (The volume I am reading is from 1972 by Folcroft Library Editions, Folcroft, PA. Oddly, the copyright page says "Limited 100 Copies"?!?)

Originally presented in 1963 for the Sir Israel Gollancz memorial lecture, the paper is replete with insight and Tolkienism-humor, e.g., from the second paragraph - "I have, of course, read The Beowulf, as have most (but not all) of those who have criticized it." In this lean talk, Tolkien takes a bunch of ne'er-do-well Beowulf critics to task. Tolkien's initial thrust and parry against the teaming Beowulf censurers is presented by way of allegory.

I would express the whole industry in yet another allegory. A man inherited a field in which was an accumulation of old stone, part of an older hall. Of the old stone some had already been used in building the house in which he actually lived, not far from the old house of his fathers. Of the rest he took some and built a tower. But his friends coming perceived at once (without troubling to climb the steps) that these stones had formerly belonged to a more ancient building. So they pushed the tower over, with no little labour, in order to look for hidden carvings and inscriptions, or to discover whence the man’s distant forefathers had obtained their building material. Some suspecting a deposit of coal under the soil began to dig for it, and forgot even the stones. They all said: ‘This tower is most interesting.’ But they also said (after pushing it over): ‘What a muddle it is in!’ And even the man’s own descendants, who might have been expected to consider what he had been about, were heard to murmur: ‘He is such an odd fellow! Imagine his using these old stones just to build a nonsensical tower! Why did he not restore the old house? He had no sense of proportion.’ But from the top of that tower the man had been able to look out upon the sea.

An allegory, indeed.

In any case, The Beowulf was an early and life-long love of Tolkien, and now his literary estate is releasing his own translation of Beowulf. Beowulf: A Translation and Commentary is comprised of a translation of Beowulf constructed from three Tolkien translation-manuscripts, and the commentary is derived from Tolkien's lecture notes over Beowulf. Tolkien's translation, however, does not aim to be alliterative-poetic, it is only a modern/plain-prose translation. Recently I have been thumbing through Howell Chickering's dual-language translation, and very much looking forward to reading Tolkien's now that it is available.

Mental Map of World History: Maps, Globes, Literature, Art, Music, Architecture, Etc.

"A child needs to form an increasingly focused mental map of history and of the world in order to comprehend his place in space and time; physical maps aid this tremendously. In all his studies, use timelines of history, use maps and globes of the world, and use pictures (of art objects and architecture, etc.) from other places and times" (Wes Callihan, Preparing Younger Children for a Great Books Education, 13).

Modern Life and Football

"You might imagine sports being developed on farms or in country towns, but pro football was popular in big towns from the start, its field following the contours of two things that define modern life: the city block and the TV screen" (Rich Cohen, Monsters: The 1985 Chicago Bears and the Wild Heart of Football, 295).

Education: History

"An absolutely critical role of classical education is teaching a student the relevance of the past. Knowing God depends on knowing history—what God has done for His people as recorded in the Scriptures, and what He has done for them in the last two millenia. And knowing oneself also depends on knowing history--where we came from and why we are who we are. The twentieth century has decided that the past is irrelevant, and in an excess of mind-boggling arrogance it considers our age to be the definition of reality, truth, and value. Education must oppose this in the strongest possible manner" (Wes Callihan, Preparing Children for a Great Books Education, 12).

The Economic Future

Three cheers for the division of labor.

Chicago is America

"New York has one foot in Europe. Los Angeles is a collection of suburbs. Miami is cafe con leche. New Orleans is drunk. Seattle wears flannel. San Francisco is beautiful vistas and empty streets. Boston is ancient. But Chicago is America. The '85 Bears seemed to symbolize the city in its resurgence, the reawakening of the beast after a funkadelic slumber. It was not the fifteen wins--it was how they were achieved, the smash-mouth style that seemed to capture the spirit of the town" (Rich Cohen, Monsters: The 1985 Chicago Bears and the Wild Heart of Football, 227-228).

Poem: lost judgment

lost judgment 

verb | lose verb-past | lost & the participle | lost 

the Grammarians cried: “Adjectivally! Adjectivally! Not this man, but Barabbas!” such it was such was it such and shortly the days-darkness enveloped their land; weeks later the Stone of the Head of the Corner said: “Brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it.” such it was said was it said such and yet believed--the lost judgment ye did it, as did also your rulers. “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, when the times of refreshing come lose the lost judgment.” 

Imagination

"Follow this principle as your children grow: feed their imaginations as well as their rational minds, for the imagination is the fertile ground in which all other studies can grow best" (Wes Callihan, Preparing Younger Children for a Great Books Education, 8).

Ben Stein

Education: Learning for the Glory of God

"[D]isciplining the mind in rigorous, propositional, linear thought about certain core subjects, and learning to appreciate and glory in the beauties of language and words, must be at the heart of education. If it is not, then those other studies will be an incoherent collection of particulars with no overarching, coherent world-view into which to fit them and with which to find real meaning for them" (Wes Callihan, How to Prepare Younger Kids for a Great Books Education, 5).

Consider the quote above on the aim of education. Education first and foremost is about shaping a child-student's character. However, identifying and appreciating beauty and goodness is at "the heart of education." If an education curriculum is not beauty/goodness oriented, then its telos is broke. Like a compass with a needle that doesn't point to the magnetic North, such an education is plumb useless.

The world was created by a good God, and creation in its original form was good, good, very good. The child-student has a Creator. The "overarching, coherent world-view" that allows the child-student to make sense of the particulars of this world is derived from Biblical knowledge/revelation: a beautiful and good Triune Lord made a beautiful and good world to beautifully and goodly mirror and reflect the Creator's beauty and goodness. However, man, the chief image-bearer of creation, rebelled. Thus, the imago Dei was defaced, and now the world groans under the weight of sin and the effects of the Fall. And yet, the beautiful and good Triune Lord before the foundations of the world chose to elbow-drop Satan, sin, death, and the effects of the Fall, through the perfect obedience of the Life, Death, and Resurrection of the God-man Jesus Christ.

The beauty and goodness in the world was merely defaced, it was not obliterated. Hence, a child-student studies the flawed (fallen) world, studies creation, studies language, etc., in light of Biblical knowledge/revelation, and the child-student learns a bit more and more about the beauty and goodness of the Creator who preordained to restore this world. Education conducted in this fashion necessarily becomes a means for giving God glory; education conducted in this fashion fulfills man's chief aim of glorifying God and enjoying Him forever. So, an education curriculum with an unbroken and functioning telos will say things like, "Go and sin no more" and "Learn about this beautiful world" and "Glorify God and enjoy Him forever." And if you can check the box next to each of those three statements, then of course you'll be able to go find a job and get dominion for Jesus.

Luther on "Good Man" and "Good Works"

"Good works do not make a man good, but a good man does good works."
                -- Martin Luther

I Will Prepare for Worship by Thom S. Rainer

 "I Will Prepare for Worship" from Thom S. Rainer's blog.

This weekend I will attend my church’s worship service.
I will prepare for that corporate worship event;
I will not take the moments lightly.
I will see it as a precious time to gather with brothers and sisters in Christ. 

I will prepare for worship.
I will ask God to prepare my own heart.
I will ask Him to help me hear God’s Word clearly.
I will ask Him to speak to me that I might be changed. 

I will prepare for worship.
I pray that I will not be distracted by my own preferences:
By the style of music; the length of the sermon; the place where I sit;
Or anything that would cause me to focus on me instead of God. 

I will prepare for worship.
I will pray for my pastor that the sermon will be anointed.
I will pray for strength for my pastor,
And for encouragement in a world that often offers little. 

I will prepare for worship.
I will pray for other leaders in the church,
Leaders often unnoticed and unappreciated,
And specifically for those who sacrificially care for our children in the services. 

I will prepare for worship.
I will pray that I will hear God’s voice in the music, in the prayers,
And in every moment we gather as a body of believers,
United in heart, focus, and purpose. 

I will prepare for worship.
I will pray with my family before we leave to go the church service.
I will also pray alone for the services before we leave,
Even if it’s only for a few minutes. 

I will prepare for worship,
As I see fellow believers enter to worship together,
I will pray for them and their families,
And I will pray for their own hearts of worship. 

I will prepare for worship.
I understand I am blessed to be able to gather,
Because I know that many Christians around the world
Are being persecuted and banned from such times. 

I will prepare for worship.
I pray I will understand that it is a foretaste of heaven,
And that I will never take such times for granted,
I pray I will truly rejoice in the house of the Lord. 

I will prepare for worship.
Thank you, God, for your grace.
Thank you, God, for you goodness.
And for allowing me these precious moments to gather to worship You. 

"I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD."
—Psalm 122:1

Football

"More than any other sport, football is about the coach, the general with the god complex who wants to map every sequence, prepare for every contingency" (Rich Cohen, Monsters: The 1985 Chicago Bears and the Wild Heart of Football, 17).

Team as Nation, Team as Destiny

"Your team is a nation and on game day your nation is at war. That's what my father understood when he tried to dissuade me from following the Cubs. He believed that a Cubs fan will come to accept defeat as the inevitable end of all earthly endeavors. A Cubs fan is fatalistic: he rends his garments and cries, Vanity of vanities, all is vanity! The ultimate implication of my father's words was left unstated: a Cubs fan has a greater likelihood of leading an unfulfilled life. Pick your team carefully, because your team is your destiny" (Rich Cohen, Monsters: The 1985 Chicago Bears and the Wild Heart of Football, 11-12).