By Ray Charles Istre
Was Jesus ugly? The Bible seems to indicate that he might have been…
He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
Isaiah 53:2 (New International […]

Which of the American Idol contestants are Christians? Of course it’s hard for us to know with much certainty… Some of them might be believers, but choose not to make it apart of their publicly known profile. Others may claim to know God (like 80% of Americans), but never have known a personal relationship with […]

I was going to write an essay about how the the popularization of the term “Idol” proves the prevalence of idolism in modern society (I really do believe that), but I just don’t have time at the moment, so I’ll just tell you my favorites instead…
We don’t watch much TV, but we’ll watch american Idol […]

What does a youth pastor with too much time on his hands do? A great spoof of Sir Mixalot’s Baby Got Back. A great viral video which seems to have made its way around the web, but I just learned of it today…
http://www.whiteboydj.com/babygotbook.html
If you want to download a bigger-screen version you may be able to […]

Feeling somewhat inspired, I decided to make a painting this weekend. I used acrylic on a 16×20 pre-stretched canvas. Having been accustomed to oil paints, the acrylic was a nice change (no dizzying smell, no mess). However, the particular acrylics I used were too transparent, so I ended up going back over some of the […]

I came across this photo-blog today, of a kid who’s making a violin. Now that’s a sweet hobby! If you’re on dial-up the photos will probably take too long, but if you’re on hi-speed, check it out:
http://s11.invisionfree.com/Stringed_Instruments/index.php?showtopic=16

I recently watched the movie The Five People You Meet in Heaven, on DVD. I have not read the book, but after seeing the movie I’m sure the book is good too.
It’s a made-for-TV movie from 2004, but when you watch it without commercials it really doesn’t feel like a TV movie. I would […]

We attended an excellent concert last night featuring Bethany Dillon, The Afters, and Jeremy Camp.
Bethany Dillon is probably the most talented emerging young Christian artist in the industry. At barely 17 years old, she’s got two awesome albums under her belt and recently wrote and performed the title track for the new movie Dreamer starring […]

I have a blogger confession to make. I’m taking a dance class. Don’t worry though, I’m not turning soft on you…this ain’t no pansy dancin’. I’m taking a hip hop class at the dance studio where my wife teaches. I’ve got good rhythm, perhaps partly due to my musical training, but my skills are definitely […]