Chawlk

1. Drawar
2. Fenxy
3. Decaflon
4. Two Credits
5. Wriging
6. Loose Suits
7. Chixe
8. Dud3s
9. Wing Colors

 

@archangelchuck:

Well that's really the rub of it. If you are a Christian its not enough to perform good works, go to Church, read the Bible, etc. Those things are fundamentally attainable. The difficult part is changing the way we think, what is inside our hearts, etc.

In Genesis Abraham has done many good works that he could boast about as Paul writes in Romans, but it is only by his faith that God credits him with righteousness. Powerful message for the Jews of the time who saw righteousness not so much as a result of a relationship and faith in God, but rather as a results of works.

For Jesus to teach this was a radical change from the social setting of the time. For Paul to frame that message in the form of Abraham, the Father of the Jewish people was nothing short of genius.

That same message is completely applicable today as it was in the time of Jesus. Unfortunately too many Christians dismiss the Bible and downplay its significance. I know I did, I felt the exact same way as you did.

Felt that way for the better part of the last twenty years. Slowly, but surely I started to have a decline in moral fortitude for lack of a better word. Then one day my wife brought home a book she picked up at a book exchange our town does. The book was "Left Behind", she thought I might like it, end of the world fiction and all.

I started to read it, like a lot of fiction I just devoured it, it was an easy read and who doesn't like to read about a little chaos right? Before I knew it I was done with it.

About halfway through the third book, I started to feel something changing inside me. I couldn't put my finger on it, I chose to ignore it. Starting the fourth book it was getting harder to ignore this nagging feeling I was having. I pushed it away.

The feelings got stronger, and stronger and stronger until I knew, I had it all wrong, and I was in a shitload of trouble. I broke down, I wept, I asked for forgiveness, and I started to read the Bible.

I had lived God free for almost 20 years, I was reading fiction, but this was real. Visceral, and in my face. Immediately I was filled with fear, not of God but of how my friends and family would react to this change of heart. Odd right?

Eventually I became comfortable with myself to let others know. Is that the end of the story? Am I perfect no. I have falled many, many times since then in sin, I've done some bad things, but they have been tempering my faith, refining it if you will, getting the message through my thick skull that I can't do it, I need him -- and its only through him that I can hope to succeed and find salvation.

Sorry for the long winded words, I appreciate your respect and I respect your opinions. No feelings hurt if your opinion differs from mine.

BTW, Timothy was only Paul's son in Faith...

"Timothy was quite young when he first met the apostle Paul. His father was Greek, a gentile. His mother was Jewish, an Israelite. Some think, based on comments in Paul's letters to him, that Timothy was timid. Yet a closer look tells a different story. He encountered persecution, faced it and weathered it well.

Timothy kept company behind bars with Paul. More than once he nearly died. He was a faithful courier for Paul. He served the church at Ephesus, in Asia Minor, where members were predominantly gentile. We can learn much from the young evangelist Timothy, a Greek to gentiles, a Jew to Jews."

I held the belief that the Bible was a contrived attempt at control for the longest time. It had to be fake. Then I started to read it, and not just read, study it in an academic sense.

Once you start to see the connections between books written over long periods of time, its hard to ignore that it would have been impossible for people of that time to "fake it" if you will.

In my personal experience, a lot more depth can be gained by examining the original greek words used. Simple translation does not give the insight to what the word meant at the time the book was written.

I find Biblical word studies fascinating. I was just reading about the word "righteous" and what it mean to be righteous in the time of Moses, David and Jesus. Really helps with the understanding and immersion.

In the end, its a matter of faith. I could argue that Jesus was the messiah till I am blue in the face and have all the facts, figures and logic to back it up, but it won't matter at all if the person I am talking to has a belief system that is different.

Just my thoughts.

OMG, my love affair with online communications began with BBS'ing. Forums were by large threaded as mentioned before. The really cool thing though, was FidoNet.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fidonet

It was the thing that took your BBS from a singular presence and connected it with the the world. In my opinion, the precursor to usenet groups.

I really consider that the golden age, it was wild that is for sure.

We were getting about 150k emails a day at work. Put a Sendio I.C.E. Box in, dropped immediately to 1-2k emails a day. My life suddenly became a lot happier at work.

Ninjas.

My son's laughter.

My wife's devilish laughter.

A cat purring and luxuriating like a hedonist on my lap or next to me on the couch.

In high school we seek validation, from teachers, peers, social groups. Reunions are nothing more than a chance to show that you don't need validation, that you are great, that your life is kick ass. Etc.

It seems rather pointless to me, after all if I really wanted to get in touch, I would, or they would. I find reunions fishy.. /shifty_eyes

lol..

When the 3G iPhone comes out at Christmas I will be buying one. I'd buy one now but I figure if I waited this long what's a few more months right?

Wowzers! This thread is a blast from the past! I just thought I would ad that I decided to give text link ads a try on the Bean, I have one ad. I just received my first monthly check -- $7 bones and some change.

Free money, or the perception of it isn't that bad if you can come to terms with the methodology and implementation I suppose :=)

I've always pondered the thought of going off the technology grid. No internet, no tv, phone, etc. Sometimes I just yearn for a simpler time. That is about the only thing that would stop me from blogging, but I am sure I might journal the old fashioned way. I just wish my handwriting wasn't so atrocious.

I think if you were to compare the number of radical muslims that engage in suicide bombing to the number of muslims with less extreme beliefs you would find it to be staggering small percentage under one percent.

I find it shameful for the social racism that the media has imparted on society in its selective exposure of events related to people of the muslim faith. We have been spoon fed it for decades.

What I find myself pondering is whether peace is ever possible between Israel/Palestine. I believe the leaders may succeed with a peace settlement, but the masses I believe will always resist it and the fighting will continue.

Why is this? What middle ground can be reached with extremists on both sides that results in peace and an end in killing? Tough questions.

I have to say I am very tempted to get a iTouch now, mail was the main thing I was hoping to have, but I cant help feeling like I should wait for the second gen iPhones.

Happy Birthday (belated) Right-On!

People like to try and avoid failure, myself included but failure offers an opportunity to learn and grow. It can teach us things, life lessons that might not be absorbed otherwise.

The job I had before this was a start up company, I was young and excited and pretty naive. Long story short, the company started to tank and I got screwed. I would not hesitate to join another startup company, I would just do so in a much different way this time around.

"Game Over Man! Game Over!!" -- Alien 2, Chet

I like surreal art and dislike abstract art, others like abstract art and hate surreal art. I don't see how design is any different.

The "Hot Topper"

Picture if you will the happy newlyweds, its their first Christmas. The husband (me) open his gift from his new father-in-law.

Jokingly we laugh about the seventies era looking box for something called the "Hot Topper". Where the hell did he get this box? We thought amusedly.

"Karin...."

"Yes Steve (me)?"

"Its not just a box, he gave me a Hot Topper"

WTF was he thinking. Basically the Hot Topper had an area where a stick of butter went to be melted, and then manually sprayed on things. I was in my twenties and much more fitness oriented. We both scoffed at it.

Funny thing is...

15 years later, I wonder where that thing is, it could come in handy. Sometimes gifts take a few decades to truly appreciate.

I have my ritual that I never stray from. Wake up. Stumble into the bathroom. Say hello to the lavatory. Shower. Deodorant. Shave. Brush Teeth. Take Medication. Eat Bananna.

I am not a morning person, and all of these steps are done in order or required awakeness :=)

An old friend of mine from high school still plays AD&D with a group of people 60 miles away. I kept asking hfor him to tell me when they had an opening so I could relive the old days but have yet to get the call.

I loved AD&D, imagination is the best game enhancement in my opinion, and AD&D readily gave the context to exploit it at every turn.

As long as the next iPhone has GPS, I will be happy and finally buying one.

What people often overlook about Revelations is that it is not a plan God has devised to punish, but rather bring people to him. What would it take for an atheist to believe? Probably quite a bit. I would think that say, seeing the oceans and rivers turned to blood might give even the staunchest atheist pause to consider his/her beliefs.

The people that end up in trouble are the ones who make it to the end of everything and still refuse to believe.

A keep out sign maybe?

My ugly mug :=)

For those not in gangs, its just another avenue to perceived coolness. Look back over the last twenty years and you will find many examples of things that you can now look back and say ... "What the hell was I thinking?"

I am probably the only one to think this, but I think their entire download area is the pits. Its entire notion seems to be based on the assumption that I know what I want.

Where are the categories? If I want to see Internet apps, how can I browse just them? I just think its a poor design for what its function is supposed to be.

Like I said, I am probably nuts.

I find that I write in distinctly different ways for each of my blogs. For Brotherhood of the Bean I try to keep it professional, on an even keel in my opinion and reviews. Those views might not always please the people of product I am writing about, but at least its done in a semi-professional way (emphasis on semi).

On Eleven 22 I don't hold back at all. I let my passion and emotion drive me in whatever direction that it wants to go. I needed an outlet like this, a yang to the bean's yin.

As a writer I feel like I have found a balance.

Chuck Norris pwns _____.

I wouldn't mind using facebook, but none of my friends use it.. will you be my friend? .sad puppy eyes.

lol.

No...
Seriously.

I've been meaning to try bloglines and netvibes, after hearing all of your comments they sound like something I need to try again, or at least with my heart and conviction this time around.

I find RSS something of an enigma in its popularity. To my simple brain, the web has gone through a transformation from a textual and very limited design (old school in the house! lynx..), to being all about the glam on websites, to more about the content with RSS.

Hey all! Well my real name is Steve, you know me here obviously as Cappuccino, but over the last almost 38 years I have been called many things : Bubba, The Thin Man (after de-bubba-ization), Gee-Bo, and any number of online handles, my favorite and currently retired being : The Long Haired Leaping Gnome.

Which is funny to me at least because I am not a fan of long hair.. but I digress. I have a degree in English which amuses me to no end given my error ridden writing and the fact that work in IT.

I am married to a wonderful woman who puts up with my crap and have a 6 year old son named Maverick. We are currently in the process of adopting a girl from China, which frightens me to no end thinking about her in high school dating.

I am coffee obsessed, I love it. The taste, the rush, the culture. So I decided to start blogging about it. Thus began the life of Brotherhood of the Bean.

I also have what would be considered more of a thoughts on the world and life blog called Eleven 22. And just started a Linux blog called Linux Ninjas.

I secretly wish I had design skills to create amazing layouts for these sights but realize that I don't so I find myself constantly trolling for a layout that makes me feel complete.

Cutline 2.0 to Rene Z: "You complete me",
Rene Z to Cutline 2.0: "You had me at widget support."

I love cats, have a two year old Savannah called Valentino and an absolutely crazy kitten named Tiger.

I really enjoy 9rules, it just feels right and I like the people I get to interact with here. Lastly I am a Scorpio, right on the cusp with Sagittarius, my wife insists I am the later, but Scorpio is just so much cooler if you ask me, so I defy her.

Ciao! Drink coffee, come to my site, fawn over me. That about covers it. :=)

Mike - just have to say it again, very cool!

Hey Xircle - I found something I think I am digging, have a peek:
http://linuxninjas.net

@Mike: The Religious community fades in and out, it goes on tears and then fades away. Seems zealotry is a fad :)

Or the rest of us are slacking when they are posting and vice versa. :=)

@xirclebox - don't put too much more time into it X, I am so over the place on this site that I could change my mind tomorrow and go in a different direction.

Very cool xirclebox!! Ayn chance of getting some swords in there?

I've seen a few attempts at Ninja Tux :=) I'm not opposed him, I just think he needs a upgrade on his bad assitude. lol.