Confessions of a Quirky Christian Artist

My mom and dad arranged a family retreat weekend for them, me, and my siblings. (Minus Lucinda; the autistic one who wouldn't be all that interested.) They are looking at the future and trying to make sure that she is cared for after they die. They also wanted to try to keep us kids in contact with each other and try to pass on a legacy. So to accomplish this they started a family council that will meet yearly and oversee Lucinda's trust. It will be up to us four kids to make sure the fifth kid always has a roof over her head and a kind care giver, and gets family interaction for the rest of her life. It reminds me of the inherent value that people of diminished capacity have. While many people excuse abortion and euthanasia because the burden these people bring on those around them would be too great, I see that the burden is exactly what is needed in people's lives. We are so programmed to love only those that love us back, that the experience of caring fo...

Ha ha haaaa! This has been a great day for me. I got another response on my blog that really cheered me up. Here is some of it and some responses… Anonymous said: "Ok, we all know that you’d say that "church" is the top best place to find a woman. Then we'd also all know that you're definitely hopelessly insane." S/he was referring to this humor entry where Mr. Knowitall tells of the second and third best places for meeting women, but does not reveal the first. Let me clear one thing up. Mr. Knowitall is a good friend of mine, and I can tell you without hesitation that he would certainly NEVER recommend meeting girls in church! I let him use my blog for his advice column but I do not endorse or agree with his opinions. So please, never confuse his thoughts and opinions with mine! (I'm trying to get him to start his own website so he won't need to pollute my blog any more.) And referencing some earlier entries ...

I always enjoy it when people comment on my writing, so I thought I'd answer some recent criticism of this entry , and keep going on this subject because I keep thinking about it. One component of being open minded about a new idea is the ability to de-contextualize it from your own world, and try to re-contextualize it in that of the idea-holder. Let's use the idea of the Burka: that head to toe covering that so many places in the middle east have their women wear. As a modern American I sure don't identify with that idea. So to open my mind to it I have to do some imagination exercises. I have to think about what it is in the culture that shaped me, that makes me dislike the idea. Then I have to think about what it could be in their culture that makes it seem like a good idea. Finally, I have to evaluate those cultural influences and try to determine their intrinsic worth. That's where things get hairy of course, and I think that's one of the ...

Dear Mr. Knowitall, I'm thinking of getting a woman. Do you have any advice? Owning a woman is a lot like owning a snake. But getting them is half the fun. Some men have found a lot of success with women simply by being themselves. This technique may work with a mature, down-to-earth woman; but who wants one of those?! Off to the bar! This is the second-best place to find a woman. It's just like in real estate and philosophy, there are only three things that are important: location, location, and… Crap. I forgot the third thing. Anyway, when it comes to finding everlasting love, there is no better place to find it than where shallow, desperate people drown their feelings of meaninglessness in alcohol. When selecting a woman, there are a few things you want to look for to make sure you are getting the highest-quality woman available. Look for bruises or dark marks. These could indicate damage during shipping. Don't forget...

This is what I find myself doing, and I don't think it's good. I tend to analyze what is wrong, and speak a positive word against it. My prayer becomes a positive affirmation rather than a God-directed word. I don't know exactly how the human intellect and God's revelation mingle and complement each other in the act of prayer. But I find myself suspicious of a prayer that sounds like it could come out of secular therapist. I'm in a class at my church where we are supposed to be learning to pray for healing and such the way Jesus did. After all, He did say that we would do even greater things than He did. But I sure haven't seen that happening. And that's what this class is all about. Why is the church not seeing these things? (Well, in the northern hemisphere anyway.) There is the crowd that claims that it's because we don't have enough faith. That if we just believed enough every single person who needed healing would be h...

Here is the question, or rather, two questions about an 'open mind'. First: is it possible? And second: if it is possible, is it useful or desirable? These questions are almost anathema in today's postmodern world. But I think that is because the term 'open mind', like so many others, has been loaded with presuppositions to the point that it has become useless. Like the word 'progressive'. Progressive now means political, philosophical, and religious left, or liberal thought. A formerly neutral, straight-forward word is now politically loaded and ready for combat. Of course this wouldn't work with a word like Neanderthal or Kettle. Neither of those are seen as intrinsically good in the way that Progress is good. People want progress, so attaching your ideas and beliefs to a word like that is very advantageous to the proliferation of them. Also important is the implicit antithesis of the word. What's the opposite of progress? ...

So here I am, trying as hard as I can to give my passion up to Jesus. I'm almost certain He's going to give it back to me. To give to her. But in the mean time, we are both praying and looking for signs. I've already gone over all the things we are seeing that seem to indicate that we should be together. The only thing that is still causing me trouble is my insistence that I take Jesus at His word when He says marrying another woman would be adultery. I've been grappling with this for so long I'm almost tired of it. But not quite yet. I've heard the rebuttals to this, using vaguely hermeneutic language about how these sayings are meant to protect the disadvantaged party in marriage. Which in those days was always the woman. So the wording was put this way so that men couldn't follow wrote laws, get rid of their wives, and move on without realizing they were defying God. Following the spirit of this message makes sense. Jesus was usually p...

Give it up

Here is an idea that's been sitting on the backburner for a couple of years. And it will probably stay there. I hope someone reads it and develops it and makes a billion dollars with it. I just have too many of these ideas to pursue… Large Scale Play Equipment Concept By Josh Foreman Critique of current playground paradigm~ Playgrounds are without a doubt a fantastic concept. Condensing a variety of play options into a limited area serves many purposes that are immediately obvious. Social interaction, easy observation, and safety are the main benefits. My problem is not with the concept, but the execution. The proliferation of homogonous playground equipment is easily assessed by a quick perusal of your local parks and playgrounds. I contend that there are numerous deficiencies in the current stock of design elements that are utilized today. And that these deficiencies can contribute to a less than optimal play experience. Beyond...