These Infinite Spaces

6 years, 3 months of his 7 year sentence has been suspended. (click here) He will be free by 2008.

He has admitted to undergoing terrorism training with al-Qaeda, amongst other things. (click here)

The problem has reached epidemic proportions. Political correctness has prevented decisive action from being taken. (click here )

Joe Smith reviews the movie 300. (click here) Every bloke who has seen this movie seems to want to take up arms and die bravely in battle. Clearly it is tapping into something...

Fascinating list. Click here

Free audio books. (click here)

Al Stewart is being consecrated as the new bishop of Wollongong tonight. He's a good bloke. (click here)

Click here

This is very funny. (click here)

Click here. Includes a review of the latest Goldsworthy book. The US cant get enough of him...

Click here

Click here

Click here

This is the website for the Emerging Church I visisted a couple of weeks ago. (click here) I admire the way the EC uses the web - I want to incorporate some elements into the new version of our website...

As many of you know, I see my boys once a fortnight, which is standard for these situations. I used to pick them up on Friday night of my week, but recent circumstances have meant I have not been able to pick them up until Saturday afternoon, greatly reducing my time with them. I've effectively gone from 2 nights/fortnight to just 1.

There has been another issue troubling me. I see one of my great responsibilities as developing their spiritual lives, and it has bothered me that they only attend church once a fortnight when they visit me.

I recently proposed to the x that I pick the boys up on Saturday evening of my "off-week". This gives me back 2 nights/fortnight with the boys and allows me to take them to church. She has agreed, and this Saturday night is the first under the new arrangement. It means a lot of extra travel for me, but I decided it is worth it. I really only have a few more years before they are grown, and I must make the most of them.

Click here

A page full of classic science fiction at Project Gutenberg. (click here)

By GK Chesterton. I haven't read it, but Chesterton is such a marvellous writer that I am sure it is very good. (click here)

Neil does a "purgatorio-style" post... (click here)

Click here

Fascinating. (click here)

Piper, Duncan and Mohler on the NP. (click here)

Below we were talking about an apologetics discussion group, possibly run via Skype. Now, my current committments would really make it impossible at the moment to commit to a regular time every week, but here is an alternative. How about every week I "sticky" a different apologetics question at the top of my blog? We can then discuss possible solutions to it in the comments thread - and would probably get a much greater cross section of comment.

Here's another little idea; to preserve ego's in the robust debate, anyone who wants to contribute must do so under an alias. Perhaps the name of a dead philosopher.

I rather like this idea. I'll see if I can get it going...

Click here

I love the net. This morning I linked to MJ's review of "The Pelagius Book". Check there now, and you will see that the author himself has commented on the review. ( click here)

This looks like a useful pre-evangelistic course - I think there is a gap in this market. (click here) MMs recent "Six Steps" course may well cover the same ground...

Here is how one Sydney Anglican church is doing it. (click here)

Click here

Looks fascinating. (click here) Not surprising that the author is repulsed by what he perceives to be Augustines fatalism - that's what everyone stumbles over.

The whole "free will" thing is a perennial issue for the church, and especially for those of us to believe God is completely sovereign over the affairs of this world. How do we avoid the charge of fatalism?

Interestingly, some secularists have this problem too. I'm reading "The Blank Slate" by Steven Pinker. Pinker is criticized on the grounds that his biological reductionism leads to an absolute determinism. He has a pragmatic response - stop making decisions for a few days and see what happens! Christians who believe in God's sovereignty could say something similar.

But here's how I look at it. Free will is a subjective experience - perhaps the ultimate subjective experience. Therefore, we have precisely as much free will as we feel we have. Somehow this is experience of free will is comprehended within the sovereign reign of God (and, I suppose, biological determinism!).

Oh yeah, I notice that MJ has finally succumbed to using a classic "MySpace shot" for his profile...

Very good article, very *real*. (click here)

Some messages from the DG conference. (click here)

IR is going to be a bit of a minefield for Kevin Rudd as well. He has yet to declare his hand - look for the government to engineer it's own scare campaign once he does. ( click here) 

Wayne Swan makes a compelling case for investing in broadband infrastructure. (click here) The government is coping a hammering on this issue. I predict a monumental backflip in the next couple of months, and the issue to be neutralised by the election...

Click here

• Does God exist?
• Is the Bible true?
• Wasn't Jesus just a great religious teacher?
• Did Jesus come back from the dead?
• Hasn't science disproved Christianity?
• Why does God allow suffering?
• Doesn't "faith" mean believing without evidence?
• Can miracles actually happen?
• What about people who have never heard about Jesus?
• Aren't other religions just different ways to God?
• Won't God accept good people? 
• How could a loving God send people to hell?
• What does the Bible say about homosexuality?
• What about all the terrible things Christians have done?

Well, it's been an exciting week for the new church web site. We received nearly 7,000 hits last week, which is well over triple the normal number. Will be interesting to see how things level off. I'm in the process of adding a whole lot of sermons to the sermon library, it will be very cool. Check back often! ( click here)

I recorded my latest podcast on Sunday night (part 3 in my series on divorce). I just haven't had time to convert it to MP3 and upload it yet. Will do tonight, the Lord willing...

Click here

He is likely to be home by the years end. (click here)

Results from the NCLS survey suggest the diocese is far less evangelistic than many of us assumed. (click here) Changes are needed, I'm not sure what though...

For a number of years the Federal government has been quietly changing the Family Law system to give men a better deal after a marriage split. New figures show that separated Dads are much more involved in their children's lives than 10 years ago, and more Dads than ever are being awarded custody of the children after divorce. ( click here)

Apparently it's not quite as nasty as we thought. (click here) (h/t JD)

Click here

Click here

I salute the ALP propoganda machine - they have managed to pull a massive con on the public in the area of Industrial Relations. It has been a masterful scare campaign, and the achievement is even more astonishing given how robustly healthy our job market continues to be. As Peter Hendy notes in the Oz -

"There might be 265,000 new jobs created in one year but union bosses insist the legislation is bad for jobs. Wages might be up but they say wages are being cut. Penalty rates and overtime continue to be paid by employers but they say these are being ripped away. Disputes are at a record low but they say the laws are divisive. Agreements are up but they say Work Choices produces conflict.

More women than ever are in the workforce but they say women are worse off. Unemployment is at a record low (4.6 per cent) but they say the low paid are losing out. The job security index is at a record high but they say workers are in fear of their jobs. Jobs are increasing in every sector and almost all parts of the country but they say it's only the resources boom that makes things look good."

We've just updated the sermon library with a whole heap of new sermons! (click here)

Just had our first church council meeting for the year. I always feel really hyped after these meetings, there are so many exciting things happening around the place! This year is going to be a tremendous adventure...

David exegetes the purpose of the Law from Galatians. (click here) The Reformers called this the "first use of the law", and they identified two other uses...

This new book from Dickson receives positive reviews. (click here)

Andy, you might find what you are looking for here. (click here)

I would not be surprised to see him enter a plea bargain.

Finally watched UFC 63 on the weekend with the ladz. Not the strongest card I've ever seen, but there were some ok fights. I enjoyed Penn vs Hughes. A lot of people said that Hughes was lucky to get the win, but I don't agree. He weathered the early storm then got the most dominant mount I've ever seen in the third round - Penn couldn't do a thing.

Click here

David has a suggestion. (click here)

On the Poddy reached #7 on the iTunes Christian PODCast charts this week...well done Dave & Dan!

...save a tree on eBay! (click here)

Part 2 of my series on divorce and the church. Lots of personal stuff, lots of good advice...

Download Here

Some very helpful tips in this article, many of which I use. (click here) You will do yourself a great favour if you learn to speed-read - especially if you are a student or pastor. Your comprehension will increase, trust me.

Click here

Another excellent page. I hope you are all following this story. (click here)

A style of computer interface. (click here)

We've updated the page with some more links. (click here)

David asked what it was all about. (click here)

News Ltd is having a go. (click here) Others have tried and failed - but Rupert is pretty saavy.

State elections are rarely inspiring affairs, and tomorrow is no exception. For the record, I am voting for Debnam. He does not excite me at all, but Labor have made too much of a mess of things to be rewarded with another term. The polls predict labor in a landslide, however...

Finished watching this last night. A wonderful, compelling movie...

Elvis Sinosich, Australian Martial Arts legend, I mean. He added me in MySpace. I feel ridiculously pleased by this...

Click here

Click here

Click here

Check it. (click here)

Ok, the following paragraph will be of interest to Martial Arts buffs only.

Had a good work out at kickboxing tonight - as always. I have to decide where to go with this, as just the cardio stuff is getting a bit dull. I could go the full Muay Thai route, and possibly take up sparring. The other possibility is to start learning Brazillian Jui Jitsu. The owner of the the gym I go to is a world class Pancrase and Shooto wrestler. He fought Frank Shamrock! He is mates with Randy Couture!

There is another intriguing possibility. Not too far away is the Sinosic-Perosh Martial Arts Academy. Elvis Sinosich is a world class MMA fighter, who has had several bouts in the UFC. He beat Jeremy Horn! He fought Tito Ortiz for the Light Heavyweight championship! This guy is the real deal - I've watched a few of his fights. His partner, Anthony Perosh, has also had a fight in the UFC, and is (I believe) under contract for another. Would be kinda cool to go somewhere where the guys you watch on TV are instructing...

Hmmm...will think about it...

The Guardian has credited Neil (One Salient Oversight) as the first blogger to suggest that Bob Woolmer was murdered. (click here) We are not worthy...

Well, I was leaning that way anyway - time for a change. But his plan to spend several billion dollars upgrading our broadband infrastructure is enough to cement the decision. Bring it on!

A fascinating article discussing how the internet has changed marketing. (click here) There are implications for anyone seek to put out a message...

Click here

We sang "Blessed" by Matt Redman on Sunday night, and the congregation nearly lifted the roof off the church. It's a wonderful, anthemic song. And contemporary people like anthems - it is a part of our recent musical heritage. They stir us, and lift us, and encourage us like the great hymns used to for our great great grandparents. Pentecostal churches have been BRILLIANT at writing wonderful anthems. More conservative churches less so. We need to work hard at finding good anthems for our meetings - and writing our own anthems as well...

Read the whole thing - excellent. (click here)

Challies gives a positive review of this MM book. (click here)

Here is a link to Dominic's memorial address for Morgan Mellish. (click here) Really moving, compassionate but also convicting. Well done, my friend.

I put a cool "Latest News" box onto our website - very helpful! (click here)

An SMH video report on the Morgan Mellish Memorial. (click here)

Here is our Topical Talk Library. (click here) Check out the "Building God's People" series...

Here is a link to our Old Testament talk library. (click here) A bit underdeveloped, will have to do some more OT...

Here's a link to our New Testament talk library. (click here) Pretty cool, eh?

Our church really needs a MySpace page, I reckon. Has anyone seen a template that would be appropriate?

I love shopping online. Lunch-time, and I've done my shopping in about 5 minutes. Delivered later this week...

Click here

Click here. Hmmm...I'm reading between the lines, but it sounds like MM might be publishing an anthology of the Dean's weekly articles to the Cathedral. That would be pretty cool, I reckon...

Shiloh puts forward a rather harsh (but possibly true) theory. (click here)

An excellent piece. (click here)

...is a mormon movie! True! A friend of mine worked with the director...

Anyone know how to change the favicon under Joomla? I've replaced the .ico file, but no difference...

Click here. I wish he would blog more often!

Click here. Two members of my home group are as well - must be something going around. Please pray.

Click here

Audio of this conference on gender now available. (click here)

Click here

Another really good home group meeting. We did the final study on Joel tonight - ended up spending a fair bit of time talking about pre-millenialism and amillenialism. It wasn't planned, but was good anyway.

...has a new website! (click here) If you find any errors, please let me know ASAP...

...wondering how long David will be bothered keeping his twitter up to date for.

Brilliant comedy! (click here)

An interview with Bob Kauflin, of Sovereign Grace ministries. (click here)

Desiring God ministries are giving 30,000 copies of "Don't waste your life" to new army recruits. What a great idea! (click here)

Justin has some thoughts. (click here)

Cool! EMU are releasing this album locally soon...

Sam in the City. (click here)

Interesting comment on Generation Y. (click here) Seems like a bit of a justification for selfishness to me. But maybe I'm just a "GenX technological pragmatist"...

MM comment on a recent survey regarding Christian belief in Oz. (click here)

Andre is graduating from Moore College tonight. Well done mate, I'll see you at the ceremony...

Has there been some massive fraud going on? (click here)

Click here

Groups of bible-believing Christians continue to form within ECUSA. (click here)

Ray tells of his recent battles. (click here)

David is a great fan of this site. Looks interesting. (click here)

Really enjoyed church tonight. I thought the music sounded excellent - and the congregation was in fine voice. Sam from the fountainside was preaching, a good sermon on Romans 14. He started the sermon by lighting up a cigarette and smoking it for a couple of minutes. Heh. Sam, I thought you would have mentioned the Beer Appreciation Society for sure...

My latest PODCast - the first in a multi-part series on the church and divorce, as I share my personal experiences. Pretty hard hitting. Mature audience only.

Download Here

Click here

Woah, tired. Great weekend, but tiring. These things always are. We did 15 songs (with minimal rehearsal time), but they went ok. Now I've got about an hour to revive before rehearsal and playing this evening! haha - I love it though! Great series by Con on Zechariah - sorry, we didn't record it. Lotsa fun playing games, chatting etc with everyone too. V. good weekend, well done Ro and Nae.

Click here. Interesting lecture by Don Carson. One surprising thing he said - that the requirement of "hospitality" excluded those men who were not socially inclined, who did not like spending time with people. Those men who want to spend all their time in their studies with books are not good eldership material, in the opinion of Carson.

Some helpful thoughts. (click here)

Just had a very pleasant lunch with DavidC. Nice to catch up mate.

Click here

Well, this should go into the "dead nags" category. But anyway - so far as I'm aware, pastors did not have the authority to execute anyone in 16th century geneva, only magistrates had that authority.

An essay. (click here)

Our churches new youth initiative. Please pray! (click here)

Finished reading it, it was excellent. We should make more use of fiction in teaching. I'd recommend this book to anyone (well, any Australian at least).

Our church is having it's weekend away this weekend. Con Campbell will be teaching from Zechariah, which will be great. I've been organising the music, and we are going to be learning "Never Alone" from the latest EMU album. It's a wonderful song - please write some more like that Simone!

Click here. (h/t JohnH)

Click here

A helpful chart. (click here)

...no answer. Simple as that...

Another trailer. (click here)

Oh wow, oh wow, oh wow. This looks SO awesome! (click here)

Check it out. Download it. Leave your top score in the comments. (click here)

I just want to draw your attention again to the CCEC Youth web site. (click here) This is an excellent example of how a ministry can create a really, really cool website using a blog. I'm pretty sure they used WordPress for their blogging software.

Click here

DJP rounds up a whole bunch. (click here)

A study suggests that the way someone walks affects their attractiveness to the opposite sex. (click here)

Just wondering...

Oz readers will be aware of the death of journalist Morgan Mellish in a plane crash in Indonesia last week. Dominic will be speaking at the memorial service at the cathedral next week. The service will likely receive national media attention, so please pray that he will speak wisely, and with grace and power.

10th Birthday party! (click here)

"One of the most basic laws in the universe is the Second Law of Thermodynamics. This states that as time goes by, entropy in an environment will increase. Evolution argues differently against a law that is accepted EVERYWHERE BY EVERYONE. Evolution says that we started out simple, and over time became more complex. That just isn't possible: UNLESS there is a giant outside source of energy supplying the Earth with huge amounts of energy. If there were such a source, scientists would certainly know about it" (from "Fundies say the darndest things")

Click here

I'm about a third of the way through this and really enjoying it! Kel has done such a good job on it. I would seriously consider giving it to new (Australian) Christians as the first book they should read...

Mandy wants your help. (click here)

Bron discovers Sydney has it's charms. (click here)

The Riddleblog claims Macarthur is not "Reformed". (click here)

One of the things that surprised (and impressed) Horton was the fact that Driscoll celebrates communion every week. I've just listened to one of Driscolls sermons (on Habbakuk 2:4 - faith), and he ends by inviting his people to respond by taking communion. Interesting...

This is a very insightful discussion. A number of things they said rang true for me. I'll be interested to hear David's take on it. ( click here)

A wonderful early quote on the imputation of Christ's righteousness. (click here)

A remarkable testimony from a celibate, "gay" Christian. (click here)

Straight off the bumper sticker. (click here)

Coming soon...

Tell me no-one saw that...

Michael Horton's "The White Horse Inn" have interviewed Mark Driscoll (click here) and put his book "The Radical Reformission" on their Recommended Reading List!!!! I find this so surprising - Horton usually has such a dislike of pop culture. On the other hand, Driscoll is bringing Reformed theology to many people - Horton would be very in tune with that.

Ligonier Conference is making a vidcast available for free. (click here) Speakers include John Piper, R.C. Sproul, Ravi Zacharias, Al Mohler, and John MacArthur. Will be worth checking out.

Interesting opinion piece in the SMH. (click here)

David is having a discussion. (click here)

The case for. (click here)

A clever video. (click here) A bad, anti-intellectual/anti-faith message though. Let's be plain - if all you are doing is "trying to live like Christ lived", you have no inheritance in the kingdom. It is faith alone that will secure salvation...

David asks the question. (click here)

A great website. Shows a different country each day. (click here)

We had our church AGM yesterday. The best thing about it was that we managed to keep it down to about 90 minutes. As someone said to me, it is good to be part of a church where everyone is going in the same direction. These things are painful when everyone is arguing. I've been elected to church council, and also to represent the parish at synod. I may do a Challies-style liveblog of the latter event...we'll see...

Pretty much what this guy is saying. (click here)

An excellent sermon yesterday on "Grace Alone" from Dominic. Terrific monergistic doctrine, powerful stuff...

If you haven't checked these out yet, do so. (click here)

There is certainly some hypocrisy going around. (click here)

Sounds cool - wish I could have made it. (click here)

My latest PODCast. I share the story of my conversion. Get's kinda heavy toward the end, pretty personal.

Download Here

Click here. Have my US friends got onto this guy yet? He's an Australian evangelist - and I reckon he's great! He's basically podcasting his books, bit by bit, which is an excellent marketing strategy.

Click here

A lecture by Hawking on Quantum Mechanics. (click here)

Click here. Some interesting stuff.

Click here

Here is the direct link to J-Walk 01. (click here) It's very cool - be inspired youth group leaders!

Click here

Click here

Click here