Very nice interview

In my opinion, Matt Chandler is one of the most gifted communicators of God's Word in our day. On this interview, he sits down with John Piper and talks about his life and ministry. I really enjoyed it. This is part 1 of 4. You can get the other 3 parts here. (and trust me, you will.)

Worldviews matter

There is this guy at my church that won't stop talking about how important it is to have a well thought out, biblical worldview. Every chance he has, he'll point out the fact that worldviews do matter. I came across something that, I think, is a real, frightening illustration of what my friend Sergio is relentlessly talking about. Here is what happened: I was catching up on my "Albert Mohler program" podcast (I love to download a whole week and then listen to the whole thing at once), and for the first time was forced to think through the consequences of the Chinese government policies regarding the number of children their citizens are allowed to have. Dr. Mohler points ou clear inconsistencies in their practices and also asks the feminists in the west a question that, in my opinion, has no possible answer. Definitely worth checking it out. Here is the link

Sex before marriage.

This type of conversations come up all the time and I'm sad to say that, in general, evangelicals give what I call the "Nike answer": Just do it! Or, in this case, "just don't do it! I wish more people would be able to convey what Piper does right here. He, as always, is masterful at pointing out that the issue is not obedience in and of itself, but the issue is the motivation for obedience. Piper is quick to point out that "staying out of bed with your girlfriend" does not make you a good person. Nobody is good, he says. Which brings me to another point of appreciation for Piper: The fact that he does not let anything ever take the place of the Gospel. Spurgeon was also really good at it. He could bring any conversation (and Bible texts) to the cross. I, personally, need to learn to do this way better. Mark Dever preached a message once about "Improving the gospel" where he talked about this, things that aren't necessarily bad, some that were even good, replacing the gospel and he made those distinctions. We have to recognize that some things are actually good but we also have to recognize that they are not the gospel. In this video, Piper gives a great example of how to do it.

The Dragon

A lot has happenned since I posted on the MMA world last. Busy few days around here.

There was UFC 96, Mir injured, UFC 100 announcement, Rampage earning a title shot just to postpone it the day after, the great decision to have Lyoto vs Rashad and, of course, the tragic loss of Mask.

Let's go one at the time.



UFC 96: I don't think it was a great event. Not necessarily UFC's fault but the action just never took off in my opinion. Gonzaga got carried away trying to exchange punches with a man who has hands that are bigger than Lesnar's. That's insane. Why a BJJ Mundial champion would do that, remains a mistery to me. The main event was potentially great but the boys were a bit too cautious. I think that if one of them had really dominated a round, someone would be more desperate and that's how we could have seen an old fashioned slug fest. Oh well, can't always get what you want. I want to acknowledge my boy Gray Maynard for a good fight and the great improvement of his boxing. Also Brown put on a great performance but, in my opinion, the once promissing Sell isn't exactly top competition right now.



Mir injured: I don't want to hyper spiritualize it but there might be a curse over the heavy weight division. Randy out forever on that lawsuit thing, Big Nog performing like an amateur, Fedor x Randy doomed to never happenning and now Mir x Lesnar postponed. What's next? Wish Mir all the best and hope he can come back soon.



UFC 100: Can't wait to see that card finalized. GSP x Alves is a good start but, come on.... it's the UFC 100 guys.



Rampage: I'm a Rampage fan but I think Lyoto deserved it more so I'm not TOO bummed out. Quinton will be back better than never.



Lyoto Machida really deserved a title shot after the devastation of one of my favorites, Tiago Silva. One way or another, he got it. Can't wait to see him defeating Sugar. (or not)



Mask: Heartbreaking news. The MMA community lost one of the most recognizable faces in the game. Mask will truly be missed. I hope God will show His grace and goodness and comfort in this time of tremendous pain to all the Tapout crew.

Don't waste your blog.

This is the first of a series of posts I've been thinking about for a while. It is easy to get caught up in the whole "blog adventure", have lots of fun and accomplish nothing for the kingdom. Not that I believe in salvation by works, but I do think we should be mindful of everything we do, especially because most of the things which get godly people in trouble are actually morally neutral. It is not a sin to go golfing with the boys on my day off. It is a sin to go golfing at the expense of my marriage's intimacy. It isn't sinful to take vacations, it is actually healthy to make sure you get enough rest and relaxation. One of the ten commandments even encompasses it, but vacations can be very sinful if they are taken with the purpose of feeding laziness or if they stretch you financially way beyond the family's means. Vacations can be a highway to hell if they are taken because you bought into the american dream of making a ton of cash, buy a lot of toys, retire young and never produce a thing after that, stretching adolescence until the end of your days. Blogging, in the same manner, isn't necessarily sinful but it can be. It can be a gross mismanagement of time and resources, a family divider, a means to neglect intimacy, a way to live in "La La Land" and YES, a great tool in the Lord's hands to grow the blogger in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. I look forward to writting these posts and I hope you enjoy them.

Here are some guidelines I find very helpful in my own blogging.

Eating light

This is my lunch today. Feeling great and will go for a light lunch. (Actually keeping my new year's resolution)





WHAT was I thinking? That went quick. I'll do light lunch some other day.

Tough love

Not going to try to smooth this one out. RECEIVE IT!





...love you.