Wart Zapper: Other Uses

One of my more "celebrated" electronic designs was the so-called Wart Zapper. Several companies put this concept into production, and many people reported results -- nearly all of them affirmative. Today I received an interesting question from Mehdi: "Is it better to research on another useful effects of your device on curing other diseases ..." This is good thinking. The answer is yes, the device has other uses. Generally, it seems to hold potential for anything that is both local and alien to the human body. A number of companies have established that it treats herpes (for example, DermaSeptic). I know also that it helps local bacterial infections and local rheumatic inflammation. The photo sequence shows the removal of a small facial wart (click on it to enlarge).

Diesel Engine 3D

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This is my half-ton pickup's magnificent diesel engine "under the hood" in 3D. It surely is like no other engine on the road. The cylinder (a single cylinder) is at the top, the transmission at the bottom. The large pipe is the exhaust pipe. This engine is 2½ times more efficient than the average car / automobile. OBSERVATION: To see the 3D, lazily squint your eyes until the images overlap and snap together. Your eyes need to be in line horizontally. Click on the image to enlarge to 165k for enhanced 3-D. (The vehicle is the Mahindra Alfa).

What Forgiveness Is

As a minister, I am often asked about forgiveness. I think it is born of the knowledge that my whole life is held by God, blessed by God. If I have such knowledge, then I forgive. Evil becomes irrelevant. And so, if I do not forgive, I do not know God. The prime example for me is Isaac. The Bible shows us what he is thinking as he forgives: "Now the Lord has given us room" (Gen 26:22). OBSERVATION: In my view, all of the Christian virtues are born of faith. They are not virtues in themselves. "And without faith, it is impossible to please God" (Heb 11:6).

Changin' Times

The two pages on the right are both from the same Visitors' Book in our Church -- but two generations apart -- the present generation at bottom and the 1940's at top. Without even enlarging the image (click on it to enlarge to 200k) one sees that we live in different times. The more recent page is far more chaotic, far more diverse. Visitors come from far further afield. One could write a paper about these pages. Undoubtedly, ministry is very different, too.

Swordsman

There's always a counselling situation that's beyond one's experience. A woman came to see me this week, saying that her son had taken to strapping on a large sword every morning before walking up a city street to work. It was a heavy steel sword, she said -- "Like this!" and she threw her arms out, to show me how long it is. OBSERVATION: I'd really need to talk to the young man himself -- however, I also sought another opinion. It was thought to be fantasy role-play. But if you should happen to meet him in the street, one might suggest that you don't mess with him!

Celebrity Marriage

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Some years ago, I married a local celebrity. This week she made news headlines for her re-marriage -- covered, among others, by channel24 and broadcast on prime-time TV last night.

Two Is Less Than One

I have found that ministry has chewed up far more energy, now that wife Mirjam is gone. At first I put this down to the energy I needed to come to terms with her death -- and I think this was true. However, I think that now it is this: instead of being able to discuss ministry challenges with her (and ministry is complex), I need to "discuss them with myself". Also, when she was living, I perceived the challenges as being addressed to both of us -- which didn't really seem to be me. But now they are acutely addressed to me. OBSERVATION: There is an adage: two is less than one. The photo was taken atop Lion's Head, in the 1980's.

The Ups And Downs

Some people are pleased with the minister, others are angry. Some are dedicated to the Church, others are letting it down. Parts of the Church are going well, others are teetering. I woke up in the night with all that -- and, well, I needed to pray to get back to sleep.

"It's On My List"

There's a standing joke in our Church: "It's on his list." That's my to-do list. My current list is pictured on the right -- blurred, for obvious reasons. I think this one has nearly a hundred items on it. OBSERVATION: I vainly try to get to everything. However, I would think that I typically cover less than half of any given list. If people pressure me, I may pull it out and say: "It's on my list." I re-write the list every week or two.

Final Mark

Last month, I completed my Master's degree at Fuller Theological Seminary in LA. This morning I received my final mark / grade. I obtained an A aggregate (95-100%). OBSERVATION: Thanks to God for an extraordinary chapter in my life. Special thanks to my academic mentor Rev. Ken Jackson, my Course Co-ordinator Chris Nelson, and Programme Director Dr. Mark Hopkins. Fuller is the largest non-denominational seminary in the world.

Processing Paperwork

Tonight my post is a lament. I would guess that, for every week of this year, I have had to process several pages of paperwork for the sole purpose of keeping my life integrated with this society. If I hadn't kept up, I would no doubt soon have ended up in a tent on a beach.

Something Going On

I have noted in the past that what happens in urban ministry is a kind of predictor of what is happening in society (see, for instance, my post Burnout). In recent weeks, I have been coming under great pressure from people outside the Church who are in distress -- although I am not able to give them much time. The present press may pass, or it may be a sign that something is going on.

iBooks And iTunes

I discovered today that I have four electronics books on iBooks and iTunes -- "available on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch with iBooks and on your computer with iTunes". I missed that -- they've been there for months. Goodness knows how they are selling. I hope everybody rushes out and buys them. Actually, all it requires is a few mouse-clicks.

My Marks Take A Hit

With my final marks / grades for my MA being due tomorrow, I went over my transcript thus far. In so doing, I realised, for the first time, that a single class had multiplied my losses by three. I had written a paper on an African theologian, and my graders considered that my arguments were "tenuous". I obtained a B- for the paper. At the time, I was keen to know whether I had misunderstood the theologian. So I sent him my paper -- together with my graders' comments. He was hopping mad. While he didn't seem to think that I wrote a great paper, he did think that my graders were "completely on a different path". They had failed to understand him. He demanded their names and addresses. OBSERVATION: This kind of thing can be avoided by writing a "safe" paper, and I did not. I wrote a creative paper. It's a judgement call -- or one can play safe all one's life.

Chinese Mail

I receive large amounts of mail in Chinese (see the image). It happened like this. I did electronic design for a number of magazines, in English. Some enterprising Chinese swiped the articles, and re-published in Chinese -- together with my e-mail address. Publishers would have been none the wiser (they don't read Chinese) if it had not been for an informant in Burma.

SS Kakapo 3D

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For what it's worth, this is about all that remains of the SS Kakapo -- in 3D. It is one of the Cape's more famous wrecks. OBSERVATION: To see the 3D, lazily squint your eyes until the images overlap and snap together. Your eyes need to be in line horizontally. Click on the image to enlarge to 500k for enhanced 3-D. (I overdid the foreground 3D a little).

SS Kakapo

It being a public holiday today, my friend and I walked 6km / 3¾mi barefoot on Noordhoek Beach, to visit the wreck of the cargo steamship SS Kakapo, which ran aground in fog in 1900. I took the photo on the beach. See also SS Kakapo 3D.

Waiting

Last month, I completed my MA at Fuller Theological Seminary. Today, my current professor got in touch (officially: Affiliate Assistant Professor of Leadership) to inform me that my final marks should be through today ("today" in the USA, that is) -- or on Monday at the latest. I do know that my marks are destined to be high.

The Lord's Work

I consider that there are basically two ways of looking at ministry -- it's your work, or it's the Lord's work. The difference may be subtle. One may trust God to make one a superhero, rather than trusting Him to use one's nothingness. I think this is one of the most important things to know about ministry -- it's not your work. He saves people, He grows people -- a minister just walks in, walks out, watches what God does, drinks coffee and watches the clouds go by.

"Combat-Hardened"

During the past week, in one way or another, I entered a string of extreme situations. Then a young man contacted me, despairing deeply over his life. With the intention of going further with this, I made myself a cup of coffee, looked over some items of administration ... and completely forgot him. His despair hadn't stood out from all the rest. I only remembered him days later, when both he and a family member got in touch. OBSERVATION: He deserved not to be overlooked -- yet this post illustrates how one may become "combat-hardened".

From The Pierhead

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I took this photo earlier this week. This is Cape Town's Waterfront: Quay 4 on the left, Quay 5 in the background, and Jetty 1 on the right. On the far left is The African Trading Post. The large building in the distance is the Table Bay Hotel. The photo is taken from The Pierhead. You may click on it to enlarge to 200k. This is 2.5km / 1.6 mi north of our Church.

Identifying Fakes

A missionary wrote to me this week about "setbacks ... setbacks ... setbacks ... setbacks". The setbacks were mostly related to office-bearers who had "shown their true colours". That is, they turned out to be fakes. I wrote, among other things: "I usually identify the fakes by a) a lack of a sense of sin, and b) a tendency to idolise the Christian leader." That's assuming that there aren't any obvious indicators besides.

Irradiation

I wonder whether anyone remembers the lead blankets that pregnant women wore at the office when seated before a computer. My last major (new) electronic design was the Electrosmog Sniffer (2008), which "sniffed out" electromagnetic fields. I have the prototype on my desk as I write. What it reveals is not comforting. Many computers -- brand new ones, too -- emit many times the maximum "safe" radiation as determined by several governments: 1 milligauss. But how should anybody know? The flat-screen monitor on my desk is three times over the limit -- however, it is situated at a distance. The real problem is likely to be laptops, which one tends to use at close quarters. A laptop on my desk here is off the scale (more than 10 milligauss).

The Purpose(s) Of A Fête

A Church Fête is about more than money. Our Fête convener said yesterday that it keeps our Church on the map. This is true. Further, in our situation it provides "bonding" in a congregation which is quite scattered in the nature of things. If it is a good Fête, it also does a lot for the spirit of the Church. And it often gets people involved who are on the periphery, or able to contribute little in other ways. OBSERVATION: I have considered titling the photo "Consensus". It shows one of our stall-holders (left) with our Fête convener (right). This stall was an experiment -- for the first time, we sold African food. It was a runaway success.

We Don't Need Them

At our Church's "Mini-Fête" earlier this year, there were those who said it was a waste of time -- freely, openly, without let-up. My post Ruining The Spirit suggests what I thought of that. At our Church Meeting which followed, I sought consensus on the next Fête. There was consensus. Now we again have those who consider it a waste of time. This time, I intend to tackle them swiftly and firmly. If that is anyone's attitude, I shall be asking them not to get involved -- not in any way. Such people would be a liability we cannot afford to have. We don't need them. "Let him go home so that his brothers will not become disheartened, too" (Deut 20:8).

Seeking The Friendly Laptop

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I installed Linux Ubuntu on a laptop for a friend. This was not a good choice. As much as it is promoted as being user-friendly, it's just too much of a shock for ordinary mortals (it overturns GUI design as we ever knew it). So I installed Linux Xubuntu instead -- which is Ubuntu with an Xfce interface. This is a marvellous combination of power and simplicity, although customisation may be a little awkward at times. OBSERVATION: My second choice might be PCLinuxOS. That's very nice. The image shows my own Xubuntu Mac-like Launcher panel.

Local And Global

In conversation yesterday, I said that big dreams generally need to be rooted in small realities. I said, supposing that I were to storm the world with a programme to re-invigorate urban Churches. It would need to be rooted in a good grasp of the local -- how to deal with the saboteur, how to re-ignite the finances, how to deal with discouragement, and so on. Once those things had been mastered, I might have something to storm the world with. OBSERVATION: At the moment there is enthusiasm in South Africa to reach the youth. Our own Church has more youth than it can handle -- the real, seemingly intractable problem is raising up the minimum number of leaders to cope with them. That's again global vision vs. local reality.

Sparks That Lit The Fire

I have been editing Mirjam's research -- simply tidying it up to present it to publishers. At the moment, I am running through some of the seemingly insignificant events that led women to dedicate their lives to missions -- sparks that lit the fire. As an example, a future missionary, as a girl, approached a missionary table to see what was on it. A missionary said to her and a friend: "Here are two girls whom we hope to see in Africa some day." From that day, the future missionary "kept it in mind all the time".

Dated Bible

John Wycliffe, who translated much of the Bible in the late 1300's, is both praised and criticised for his English (an example on the right). On the one hand, it was said to be elegant, on the other hand too remote. I find that we have a similar problem today. The most widely accepted Bible translations (e.g. the NIV) use words which are widely known, yet not really current. Examples of such words would be "wrath", "rejoice", "repent". From my experience in ministry, I think this is not an insignificant problem.

Remembering

Earlier this year, it was too painful for us to talk much about Mirjam in the Church. But recently a Church consultant advised me that we needed to remember. In our service this morning, P. (pictured) remembered Mirjam -- and afterwards she e-mailed me: "It was important for the Church to know that it's OK for them to grieve, but keeping in mind that the Lord has great things ahead for us as a congregation." OBSERVATION: Personally, I thought that P. was superb. For those who have missed the story, at the beginning of this year I lost my wife.

Pressing In On Me

This morning I had beggars pressing in on me from all sides in Church -- pressing in on me on the altar, pressing in on my conversations, pressing in on me at the Church door, blocking my path in the foyer. The trouble is, they stop at (almost) nothing. They have little sense of where it would be appropriate to draw the line. OBSERVATION: The titles of other posts on this blog reveal the problem: Strained Charity, Enormous Pressure, Massive Over-Demand, and so on.

Darned ZIP Codes

I was seeking this morning to contact Judson University in the USA through their Contact Forms ("We want to hear from you ... Our mission is global.") This typical US rejection notice popped up (on the right) -- my ZIP code being a required field. It's no good typing in a South African postal code, as that is rejected. My own US seminary does this to me, too, at critical junctures. OBSERVATION: And it's not only the ZIP codes. Other specifically US fields may be required.

Liturgical, Traditional, Contemporary

I read an academic article yesterday on the "spookily empty" character of contemporary worship. Contemporary worship was found, empirically, to have much less spiritual content than liturgical or traditional worship. Our own Church worship is surely closest to contemporary -- however, in virtually every service, I take liturgical texts and convert them into "everyday speak", and I doubt that anyone recognises liturgy there.

Loving Attention

Last night, our Youth were served marshmallows as they left the Church (see photo). As the next in line, I reached out for my marshmallow -- but was denied. OBSERVATION: Our rowdy Youth receive loving attention in our Church. This is just one example. I was there to lead a Youth leaders' meeting.

Last Ditch Miracles

A man lost his job in one of our northern provinces, and travelled south with his wife to seek work here. Over time, their situation looked increasingly bleak -- until he had only two coins left for two calls. He prayed, then opened the Yellow Pages, sought out two numbers, and made two calls. He said: "Both businesses granted me work immediately, subject to a satisfactory interview." He said: "I didn't believe in miracles, but now I do." (See also Resurrection Now).

Room Recorder

I have been editing Mirjam's research. She needed to do a lot of interviews, with missionaries who had returned from the field. Before she got started, we tested the recording equipment. This needed to be portable, technically up to the task, quickly deployed -- and something that interviewees felt entirely comfortable with. Eventually I designed an omnidirectional microphone with preamplifier (pictured) which plugged into a recorder, and picked up every whisper in a room. One placed it on some surface, and it was "out of mind" for the duration of the interview. The only time it got trounced was during an outdoor interview where an aeroplane flew overhead. OBSERVATION: Note that this design, although it is pretty standard, is copyright. I have permission from the publisher to display it. Similar devices are available commercially, yet without the preamplifier -- e.g. the Sony AECMF8 or the Audio-Technica ATR-4697.

Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is old news by now. However, there are many who do not have Cloud computing -- or may not even know what it is. Cloud computing is integrated with my current operating system Xubuntu (Xfce-Ubuntu). The image shows that I just saved a file named Called to Mission, and that it was simultaneously synchronised with the Cloud. I'm not sure what the "2 other files" are -- perhaps automatic backups. That is, Called to Mission was sent to some place on the planet where it is now duplicated. So if I should boot up another Xubuntu computer with my name on it -- say in Fiji or India or Argentina -- Called to Mission would be there, just where I left off. And if the computer I am now using should be indisposed, Called to Mission would still be close to hand. The file could be accessed, too, through other operating systems e.g. Windows, although that would be just a little awkward.

DRC Kareedouw

I took this photo in the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC, or NGK) Kareedouw, about 600km / 375mi east of Cape Town, where a past apartheid president, John Vorster, is buried on the grounds. The dominee said: "Stand against traditions! Laws! Teachings! You must do it! Don't ignore them. But love life-purity! Not letter-purity!" (in Afrikaans: leef-suiwerheid / leer-suiwerheid). OBSERVATION: I thought I took this acrobatic photo unobserved -- but look up at the balcony (you may click on the photo for VGA).

A Famous Scarborough

One of my relatives recently sent me this picture of a famous Scarborough. Born in 1852, he championed higher education for African Americans. He was the first African American member of the Modern Language Association, and president of Wilberforce University. He authored the Greek textbook adopted by Yale. OBSERVATION: My MTh thesis combined theology and linguistics (the science of language).

A Wife Always Trusts

There are "features" of counselling -- things that repeat themselves as "human nature". In this context, I find that a wife will always trust her husband -- unless, that is, the relationship has broken down. I think this is a beautiful quality. At the same time, it may preserve a self-destructive dynamic, or it may be blind to real problems -- or, sometimes, the illusions of years will suddenly evaporate.

Fictitious Names

I discovered that a fairly well known US associate professor was posting adulation for himself on his blog -- under fictitious names. I contacted him and asked him if he knew what he was doing. He removed the entire blog and moved to another platform -- starting from scratch.

Church Panorama

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Here's a panoramic shot of our Church, taken from the Church garden. The whole property extends much further to the left and behind the camera. In the background on the left are our three halls. On the far right is our suburb's Main Road. The Church is built of Table Mountain sandstone. The trees are showing their first Spring leaves.

Getting To Know You

Much ministry is done through e-mail these days. Here is some recent advice I sent a member whose whole future may be in the balance: "One definition of being a Christian is: coming into a relationship with God, through Jesus Christ. And a relationship means learning to know someone more and more. One sees in the Bible that the Bible characters came to know God more and more the more they walked with Him. So you will come to know God's wonderful ways through your challenges."

Haiku OS

There's Windows, there's Linux, there's OS X ... and then there's Haiku. Yesterday I transferred an image of this operating system to CD-ROM and USB, then sought to boot up Haiku from two computers. I got no further than a splash screen. I ran into terminal troubles on both computers. Haiku is highly rated -- if it should happen to work on your system. OBSERVATION: (Linux and OS X might be grouped together, being Unix-based relatives).

Swiss Confederation

I previously detailed a problem I had with the Swiss Confederation (Mirjam was Swiss) -- they were seeking to hold me to a contract about which they never informed me, and to which I never gave my consent. I handed it to my attorney. This week they sought to circumvent my attorney -- which usually is a "terrorist tactic". My attorney commented that they are "quite malicious". She will know, as she is at the cutting edge of South African politics. OBSERVATION: I think there really is a problem here. They are out of control.

Living Memorial

A little girl got off a bus at a school bus-stop, then charged across the road. She was hit by a car / automobile, and killed instantly. Her mother planted this tree at our Church's entrance in the child's memory. For the carpet of flowers that this tree sheds, see Colourful Memorial. You may click on the photo to enlarge to 150k.

Special For Life

I conducted a service in another suburb. A woman came up to me and held onto my arm and spoke to me as though she'd known me all my life. Many years ago, I counselled her after a suicide attempt. There are relationships like this, where a minister meets people at the deepest level, and even if there is no more contact, they will remain special for life.

Rev. Sunday

Every six weeks, we invite a guest preacher to our Church. This morning it was Rev. Sunday Sinyinza, Regional Co-ordinator of the Bible Society (pictured). In the photo he is demonstrating a "wind-up Bible" (more than ten million South Africans cannot use a printed Bible). He had three points: we don't have our own message but God's; we don't seek our own glory but Christ's; and we depend on the power of the Holy Spirit.

Church And Rugby

I wish to commend our Church treasurer today. In spite of World Cup Rugby, he came to Church, and brought his children to Church. However, his wife stayed at home (a pact, by what I could gather), and SMS'ed him the scores in Church.

Glencoe Quarry

Today my friend and I went hiking past Cape Town's Glencoe Quarry (click on the photo to enlarge to 250k). This little-known quarry is an impressive sight (the tall pine trees at the bottom give an idea of its size). The quarry provided granite for various buildings in the city. Today it is off-limits (a restricted area), yet is used as a training ground for mountain climbers. The overcast sky helped here in what is usually an awkward lighting situation.

Church Demographics

I am seeking to address some "warm topics" in our Church -- with a little help from various friends, who are joining me. This Sunday, the subject is demographics, or the way that a Church is made up -- age, income, and so on. I make some observations about our Church's demographics, then sketch two approaches. To put it simply, one may either seek to engineer a Church's demographics, or one may consider that God Himself shapes its demographics. I take the second approach. In this case, faithfulness to a few spiritual basics is important, and the Holy Spirit accomplishes the rest. For an example of the "engineering" approach, see Selling Jesus to Saddleback Sam.

Jürgen Moltmann

I had a review of Jürgen Moltmann's The Coming of God published on the Internet this week -- by John Mark Ministries. This is perhaps what one would call moderated publication rather than peer reviewed publication -- the moderator being the well known Rev. Dr. Rowland Croucher. My article is a (cloaked) example of the deconstructionist technique -- that is, turning someone's own concepts on themselves.

Tiny Core Linux

The latest operating system (OS) that I tried out is Tiny Core Linux -- perhaps the world's smallest up-to-date graphical OS at just 10MB (by comparison, Windows 7 is 2,557MB). Compared with popular versions of Linux, Tiny Core is unfriendly. It is for the initiated. It has a text editor, and some tools, and (importantly) it connects automatically to the Internet. Through that Internet connection, one can download thousands of extras, which it lists in an arcane menu. Being this small, it is extremely fast, and will work on very limited hardware.

New Record

Last night I set a new record for my ministry. I chaired a leadership meeting, in which we went through a 60-point agenda in 45 minutes. The meeting opened with devotions, closed with prayer, covered several "substantial" issues, and very little was skipped. Our accounts clerk, too, was incredibly quick -- reporting our first monthly surplus for 2011.

Introducing A Friend

Last night I shared with our Church leadership that I have made a friend -- simply a friend, with no announcements to be made. She is a member of our Church -- a woman of faith, wisdom, humility, and compassion. She has been a quiet organisational power in our Church. It was my late wife Mirjam who, looking to the future, made this match before she died. Recently we met with our Church elders, where we spoke more expansively about this development. They were delighted, and considered that it is of the Lord.

Photo Stitching

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Here are two examples of photo stitching, using free Linux tools -- Hugin on the left, and Fotoxx on the right. Both (here) stitch two photos vertically at the centre, and both are easy to use. You may click on the images to enlarge to 350k. There are some obvious differences. Hugin does a much better job fixing radial distortion, while Fotoxx does a much better job stitching. Fotoxx would shine where one has narrow-angle shots. The Church is St. Andrew's Church of England in Pinelands, Cape Town.

Apology To God

Recently I was called upon to see a woman who was terminally ill. The first time I went to see her, I asked her whether she had confessed her sins. She said: “I haven't sinned.” I said: “I can't convince you that you have sinned. Pray that the Holy Spirit will show you.” The next time I went to see her, she said: “I have apologised to God.” I told the story at her funeral service. I said that when someone does that, God is delighted. The angels rejoice.

Elders

I have ministered in two Churches in nearly 30 years. In both Churches, we introduced an eldership. Elders devote their attention to spiritual issues. I feel "contented", I could say, how the eldership has worked in my present ministry. The elders have given me personal encouragement and guidance, they have been involved in significant moments like membership interviews or spiritual counselling, they have provided important discernment, and sometimes they have spoken to issues in public. I wouldn't like to contemplate "being on my own" again.

"Prophetic" Approach

A month ago, I wrote that I felt the need for a "prophetic" approach in our Church -- meaning a speaking directly to our situation with Scripture and discernment. With the death of the minister's wife, we lost a formidable prophetic ministry among us -- also, in our bereavement we were just "keeping on keeping on" (which was appropriate for a time). In my own estimation, the new approach has already had a palpable (positive) effect on the Church. Over three Sundays, I/we spoke about: prophetic ministry itself, how the Church may respond spiritually to the shock we suffered, the need for constancy among believers ... then, this coming Sunday I anticipate a word about what I would sum up as our "demographics", and the next Sunday a time for "remembering" -- all things which I consider are on people's hearts and minds. OBSERVATION: This represents a personal change of policy for me, too. I have not exposed my background thinking in ministry -- for the reason that I consider that we are one Body, and not a leader with followers. However, this could also energise the Body into developing their own thoughts on such issues. See also The Big Picture.

Hover Fly

Our modest Church manse garden is host to an amazing variety of creatures. As best I can tell, this is a hover fly. Such insects may seem to behave like bees. You may click on the photo to enlarge to 50k.

Guns Drawn

There has been an unnerving trend in our area: men standing in the street with guns drawn and ready for a firefight. Yesterday I dodged around a corner, to find myself in front of what looked like an R4 assault rifle, pointed directly at my middle at point-blank range -- I could have grabbed the barrel in my hand. In years past, such weapons were handled discreetly. OBSERVATION: I've wanted to get a photo of this phenomenon for my blog -- however, it would seem a pity if my Leica were to get a bullet through it.

From Research To Publication

Having completed my MA in Los Angeles two weeks ago, I began this week to devote some attention to my late wife Mirjam's research. Shortly before she entered the final phase of her illness, she completed a 220-page PhD, which essentially studied the reasons for missionary burn-out -- yet she was unable to prepare this work for publication. I have read a great many books during the course of my own studies and research, and believe her work to be a treasure. The style needs to be simplified, and the duplication which is typical of academic research needs to be stripped out. However, the content will remain the same.

Puppy Linux

I tried out a stunning operating system (OS) yesterday -- stunning, that is, for its speed. Puppy Linux. Click on an icon (say "paint"), and the application may be up and running before one can lift one's finger from the mouse button. Puppy Linux is "lightweight", and well suited to old computers. However, it has an arcane file system. Before I could save the graphic shown, I needed to figure out that one must mount a drive, then track it down in an obscure directory. However, I found this snappy OS appealing. According to DistroWatch.com, Puppy Linux is among the top ten Linux versions or "distros".

Complexity

Ministry is fairly complex. There is a Church's spiritual life, its groups, staff, finances, properties, leadership, legal issues, pastoral work, and so much more. But I have said that, thankfully, it is not like a business, where one is expected to take control. Rather, one seeks to find the mind of the Lord.

Ins And Outs Of Hospital Visitation

I went to visit a congregant in hospital yesterday, but was stopped by a security guard at the front entrance. I said I was a minister. He asked me to prove it. I said: "We are gathered together to observe the sacrament of the Lord's supper, and we call to remembrance that this holy custom of the Church has been a source of strength, comfort, and inspiration to the people of Christ in all generations ..." He looked blank. I said: "I quoted the liturgy." This, however, did not prove to be my ticket to the hospital. But I know of a concealed door behind the hospital kitchen -- and I found it open -- so I entered there. Unfortunately, I got cornered at the lifts / elevators by a second security guard -- I was missing a vital little sticker. He ordered me back to the first security guard -- but I slipped out past the kitchen again. I tried again with the security guard at the front entrance. By this time, the liturgy seems to have sunk in, and I got my sticker.

Solid Gold

A money-lender invited me for dinner. The spacious dining room was surrounded by illuminated fish tanks. He laid out solid gold goblets and solid gold cutlery. It was as heavy as ... lead. In fact, gold and lead have nearly the same atomic mass (gold has 3½ times the atomic mass of iron).

Safe As Houses

South Africa has something of a reputation for being unsafe. However, it isn't all like that. In July, I stayed in the middle of a sleepy South African village. Prior to my arrival, the owner of the house sent me this SMS. I have deleted the name of the house -- not least because it is filled with valuables.

Premonitions of Death

Last month, one of our members had premonitions of death in her family. She spoke to me about it before it happened, and made numerous calls to ask after her family's well-being. Then two family members died, both of them suddenly and unexpectedly. OBSERVATION: See also "God Told Me!"

Rheumatic Fever

The week before last, I was grinding to a halt with what the doctor diagnosed as rheumatic fever or rheumatoid arthritis. He decided to treat me for both. I wish he'd treated me for one -- then we'd know which one it was. OBSERVATION: So I was fighting fatigue. On past history, I think it was rheumatic fever. I am holding thumbs that I'm a cure. Rheumatic fever, if it is left untreated, has up to 5% mortality, so it is potentially serious. It has previously landed me in ICU. Yet if it is caught early, it is no more nuisance than a cold. Most people are unable to contract it.

Seize The Advantage

A Church consultant taught me: if you struggle with malicious opposition in the Church (and such opposition can drag on for too long until things become clear to all involved), if then you obtain a sudden advantage, seize it, and drive the victory home. He used the Battle of Waterloo to illustrate the point.

Puppy Love

As a young man, I was extremely popular with the girls. I kept all their letters in a wooden box, which I have to this day. I don't know who Megan was (on the right -- click on the letter to enlarge), and she had it wrong about Cathy. Here's the song she refers to, by The Darts. Many of the letters are a kind of "caustic love". For example: "You're exceptionally lucky ... I actually found time to write ..."

English Savages

On Monday, Son M. leaves Durham University for the tiny island of Herm (pictured) -- on an archaeological expedition to dig stone-age graves. I shared this with a local Xhosa man today. He looked aghast -- then twisted as though he didn't know where to put himself. I expect that if he'd put it into words, he might have said: "These savages will stop at nothing."

African Christian Leadership: Interpretation

In my previous post (African Christian Leadership), I showed that knowledge of the Word, interpretation of the Word, and communication of the Word are subjects which dominate Christian leadership curriculae in Africa. Leadership principles and leadership character are at the bottom of the list. Why is this? It would seem to me that the Word itself is viewed as guaranteeing effective leadership (respectively, followership). In theological terms, I would think that the doctrine of the means of grace lies behind this -- and that implies a form of supernaturalism. Other suggestions would be welcome.