Billy Mays Dead At 50

Mays, 50, the emphatic and well-known hawker of the OxiClean stain remover, the Zorbeez super chamois, a sticky substance called Mighty Putty and many other items offered for an amazing low price, was found unresponsive in his Tampa, Fla., home Sunday morning. He was declared dead by a fire rescue crew at 7:45 a.m., according to Sgt. Christopher Ugles, a spokesman for the Tampa Police Department.

The cause of his death was unknown, but Mays had told his wife, Deborah, that he didn't feel well after a U.S. Airways flight he was on made a bumpy landing Saturday afternoon. In an interview with a local TV station, Mays said he was struck on the head by a falling object during the landing.

You can read more here.

Some questions:
-Will infomercials ever be the same?
-Three celebrities in a week... is there anything to learn/take away from this?

Michael Jackson Most Wanted Love

"I am going to say something I have never said before and this is the truth. I have no reason to lie to you and God knows I am telling the truth. I think all my success and fame, and I have wanted it, I have wanted it because I wanted to be loved. That's all. That's the real truth. I wanted people to love me, truly love me, because I never really felt loved. I said I know I have an ability. Maybe if I sharpened my craft, maybe people will love me more. I just wanted to be loved because I think it is very important to be loved and to tell people that you love them and to look in their eyes and say it."

-Michael Jackson

One cannot read these words without feeling a tremendous sadness for a soul that was so surrounded with hero-worship but remained so utterly alone.

-Rabbi Shmuley Boteach

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

-I John 4.9-10

Michael Jackson penned a song called Morphine. It is very telling of his final years. You can read the lyrics here and watch/hear the video (as long as it stays up) here.

You can read the entire article by the Rabbi here.

Some questions:

-How does this impact you?

-Do you think the lure of money and fame would have caused you to be an enabler to MJ?

-Does this make death a little more of a reality for you?

-Does how we live and what we believe in life really matter?

-If you had 15 minutes with MJ, what would you have told him?

Church Casting Out Homosexual Demons

Some questions:
-Do you think exorcisms are legitimate or even relevant today?
-Are they Biblical?
-Should a church be allowed to perform an exorcism if the person who is seeking it allows them?
-Are any rights being violated? The boy's? The church's?
-Do you think they "murdered his soul"?
-Do you think the "prophetess" handled the interview situation correctly?
-Your thoughts?

A Dollar A Day Keeps The Babies Away?

A buck-a-day -- that's the incentive being offered to young girls to keep them from getting pregnant.
The group College-Bound Sisters was founded at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro by Hazel Brown, a maternity nurse who thought too many teens were having babies.
Brown said she hopes the program, which pays $1 each day to 12-to-18-year-old girls, will keep them from getting pregnant. In addition to remaining pregnancy-free, the girls must also attend weekly meetings.
The program is funded by a four-year grant from the state.

You can read the rest here.

Some questions:
-Money talks yes?
-Would you allow your daughter to participate in this tax-payer funded program?
-How do you feel about giving money to other people's daughters?
-Should men be offered the same incentive for not impregnating a girl/woman to ensure there is no discrimination?

A thought:
It would seem that the logic breaks down. Young boys and girls are being promiscuous. We don't want them to have children. We, as tax payers, will pay them a dollar a day to ensure they do not carry a child full term.

The logic should be: Young boys and girls are being promiscuous. We don't want them to have children. We, as parents, instill within them values that promote respectable behavior. Throwing money at the situation is not the answer. Parents being parents is.

Broadway Baptist Cast Out Of SBC

Messengers (delegates) to the SBC's (Southern Baptist Convention)annual meeting voted overwhelmingly to disassociate from Forth Worth's Broadway Baptist Church, following an executive committee ruling Monday that the congregation "failed to establish its compliance" with the SBC rules that ban churches that "act to affirm, approve or endorse homosexual behavior."

You can read more here.

Some questions:
-Do you think this is right?
-Is it Biblical or just against the SBC's rules?
-Would you allow practicing homosexuals to serve on committees and be members of your church?
-Are there facts that prove the allegations that led to removal or is it simply hearsay?

HT: JOE BLACKMON

Continental Pilot Dies Mid-Flight

A pilot at the controls of Continental Airlines Flight 61 has died during the flight.

Port Authority officials say the plane was en route to Newark Liberty International Airport from Brussels, Belgium.

Currently the co-pilot and a passenger who is a pilot is continuing the flight.

You can read the rest here.

Some questions:
-What do you do with the pilot's body?
-Why does the news outlet go for shock value: "Passenger helping to fly plane" sub headline?

Relativism's True End

A Las Vegas man (Jonathan Weaver) tied up and abandoned his girlfriend's two children so he could watch the NBA Finals at a nearby bar, police said.

The children are 1 and 2 years old.

Police said Weaver didn’t think leaving the children was a big deal “because they have had campouts inside” the garage.

You can read the rest here.

Some questions:
-Why? Why would anyone think this is okay? Really, why? Even if one tried to convince themselves that there is no ultimate truth to which we are subjected, surely something within that person would have to tell them this is "wrong" yes?
-If you are the pregnant girlfriend Amy, what is your next move in this situation?
-What should his punishment be?
-Why do some elevate sports watching to such a level that things like riots happen and people tie up and gag children in their garage?
-If you had 15 minutes with this guy, what would you tell him?

The Mysteries Of Gravity

New Scientist put out an article on the mysteries surrounding gravity on their online site. I have included a snippet below.

SEVEN MYSTERIES OF GRAVITY

It's the force we all know about and think we understand. It keeps our feet firmly on the ground and our world circling the sun.

Yet look a little closer, and the certainties start to float away, revealing gravity as the most puzzling and least understood of the four fundamental forces of nature.

You can read them in detail here.

Questions are included in the article this go round (no reason to reinvent the wheel).

Chuck Norris Can't Be Found

He can't be found... he finds you.

Go to google and type in the search box: "Find Chuck Norris" without the quotes. Click on the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button.

Bring Your Gun to Church Day

"Bringing new meaning to the term "wearing your Sunday best," a pastor in Kentucky is encouraging his parishioners to strap a holster to their church clothes and proudly display their weapons.

Pastor Ken Pagano of the New Bethel Church in Louisville has declared June 27 -- actually a Saturday -- as "Open Carry Celebration" day, to promote responsible gun ownership. Pagano told ABCNews.com:

"As a Christian pastor I believe that without a deep-seeded belief in God and firearms that this country would not be here. I'm not ashamed of that fact. I'm proud of it."

Pagano said no one will be taking out their guns and waving them around. In fact, all guns must be unloaded. Extra security will be on hand to make sure things stay safe. Pagano defends the celebration, saying the congregation voted in favor of it. There will be videos with information about gun safety, patriotic music to celebrate the upcoming Fourth of July holiday, as well as a raffle for a brand new handgun."


Some Questions:
~Is this a good idea?
~Should the right to bare arms be tied to Christian teachings?
~Why or why not?
~Should this message be preached from behind the pulpit?

Martyrdom

As a consequence of professing their faith, early Christians were persecuted mostly during the Roman Empire and were often tortured to death for maintaining his or her religious belief. Many deaths were inspirational for other people and increased the fame of the Catholic religion, although several of these stories are unhistorical and are purely legendary. Meet ten of the most excruciating martyrdoms of early christianity...

1. Saint Hippolytus: torn apart by horses

2. Saint Ignatius Of Antioch: sentenced to be eaten by lions at the Coliseum

3. Saint Lawrence: grilled and toasted alive

4. Saint Agatha of Sicily: had her breasts cut off

You can read the stories and the rest here.

Some questions:
-Would you really, I mean really die for what you say you believe as it relates to your world view?
-If you are not a Christian, how do historical Christian martyrs effect your understanding on Christianity?
-If you are a Christian, how do things such as this effect your faith? Does it strengthen it or cause you to shrink back?
-Why do you think suffering plays an integral part in the Christian faith?
-Is persecution still alive and well today?