Junk Drawer Spirituality

The Gospel According To "Lost"

After watching Tuesday night's episode of Lost, I'm getting really excited about where this series is headed.  For those who got tired of the twists and turns, and gave up on the show two or three seasons ago, you're TOTALLY missing out, because this season (the final season) is paying out BIG TIME for those who stuck with it.

Of course we can't know for sure how the series will conclude.  There are seven episodes left, and Lost has a way of pulling a lot of unexpected surprises on people in a very short amount of time.  But at the very least, it looks like the show is leaning toward exploring some really fascinating theological, moral, and Biblical ideas.  

Glenn Beck, Social Justice, and Fear

Evangelical pastors and church leaders have been lighting up the blogosphere the last few of days over some comments FOX News' Glenn Beck made on his March 8th show.  Here's the quote: 

"I'm begging you, your right to religion and freedom to exercise religion and read all of the passages of the Bible as you want to read them and as your church wants to preach them...are going to come under the ropes in the next year. If it lasts that long it will be the next year. I beg you, look for the words 'social justice' or 'economic justice' on your church Web site. If you find it, run as fast as you can. Social justice and economic justice, they are code words."

If you didn't catch it, Beck (it seems) just instructed his listeners to leave any church that starts talking about social justice.

Now, I could talk all about how theologically ridiculus and irresponsible this statement is.  I could talk about how concerned Jesus was for the poor (i.e., Lk. 4), and how the consistant witness in the New Testament expects the church and Christians to keep social justice a priority.

Jon and Kate Plus . . . Awwwwkwaaaard

I just watched the season opener of "Jon and Kate Plus 8," the TLC reality show featuring Jon and Kate Gosselin and their 8 children (a set of twins and a set of sextuplets).  I don't watch the show often, but when I do, I enjoy it.  It is just about the only reality show I can stand.  I hate the canned drama, pseudo-game shows, celebrity celebrations, and the obviously scripted realities you get on lots of other "reality" shows.  But you can't script what a 4 year old says, which makes Jon and Kate plus 8 the most refreshingly real reality show I've seen.  It shows good moments with parents and their kids, the challenges of raising multiples, and cute, tender moments between the mom and dad, Jon and Kate.  

Tonight was the first episode in their 5th season, which was really interesting because it was the first episode since the tabloid reports that Jon's been steppin' out on Kate.  

"Does Satan Exist?" The Nightline Debate

I recorded it on my DVR last week, but I was watching basketball, so I couldn't watch it when it aired.  But tonight, I finally got the opportunity to watch the "NIghtline Face-Off" debate on the question "Does God Exist?"

I'll be honest. . . the only reason I was interested in watching this debate was for the sheer gluttonous entertainment value of watching Mark Driscoll debate Deepak Chopra.  For a theology nerd like myself, entertainment doesn't get any better than that.  As far as how challenging the debate was for either the debaters or the audience, I'd say it was sub-par and flawed from the beginning. 

Waterfront's NBC Nightly News Spot

Waterfront Community Church was featured on NBC NIghtly News Friday evening, February 27th.  Here is the news peice that aired

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

and here is some additional footage that did not air.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Waterfront is On NBC TONIGHT!!!!

I'm pretty sure this is it . . . We've waited for a few weeks.  We thought we were going to be on 2 weeks ago.  We got bumped, but it's all good.  No hard feelings.  But tonight I think we're finlly going to be on . . . 5:30 . . . NBC . . . Brian Wiliampalooza.

Set your DVRs and Tivos to stun.

Mark Driscoll On CNN

Just saw this interview on CNN tonight.  D.L. Hughley (how he got a show on CNN, I have no idea), interviewed Mark with respect to Valentines Day and how Mark talks about sex at Mars Hill so openly and freely.  Driscoll does an amazing job.  I know he's a guy most people either love or hate, but in this interview he rocked.  The guy's so cool in these kinds of situations, I'm sick with envy, and next to D.L. Hughley, he looked like the most articulate, logical, and educated guy on the planet.

The Lost Season Finale!

Last night was the "Lost" Season Finale and it was stinking cool.  I won't spoil it if you haven't seen it yet, but once again, I am becoming more and more convinced that this show is the best series ever!  If you're a fan of the show, and want to see something funny, you should visit this blogsite.   This guy does a really funny recap of all of the shows from every season, lampooning the episodes and totally making fun of Jack. . . For some reason, he hates Jack and makes fun of him for crying all the time.  It's really funny (although it is PG-13, so beware of dirty words if you're sensitive to that sort of thing).    

Why Venezuelan Television Has No Taste!

So I just saw an article on BBC, that Venezuelan television has cancelled showings of the Simpsons.  Boooo.  They said that the television show was "inappropriate," and corrupting to young people.  Here's the funny part.  They replaced that time slot with "Baywatch."

John Adams: the miniseries

I've been DVR-ing a great series on HBO called "John Adams." John Adams is played by Paul Giamatti, and it's all about his life before, during, and following the Revolutionary War (I think it's a 6 part series).  After watching this series, I realized there's so much i didn't know about Adams.  Like, did you know that when Adams was just a local Boston attorney, he actually defended the British soldiers who killed the people in the Boston Massacre. . . and got them acquitted?!  Really facinating guy.  The series is based on David McCullough's biography.