Rise ball versus drop ball

 A nice overlay video showing the difference in Montana Fouts's pitches.


Tell me about plot and character

 A good tip about the link between plot and character. 

✍️ #screenwriting tip of the day:

 Here is something from Astronaut Shane Kimbrough.


If being one of Christ's disciples was easy, everyone would be doing it

 Instead everyone is writing about it.

A review of the plethora of discipleship study materials and courses suggests the volume of content may not be that good a situation.

Main point: Information overload because "The waves of discipleship materials that have swept over the church in the past sixty years have in many cases caused people to be more confused than ever when they think of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ."

More about it:

  • As a result, "... discipleship as we know it in the church today is influenced by other forces, near and far" that make it more of a program rather than a way of life.
  • Formats:
    • The mind-centered format. "The Learner...a disciple is the person who is dedicated to an intense study of the Bible."
    • The heart-centered format. "The Committed...a disciple is supremely committed to Christ."
    • The other-centered format. "The Mentor...only when we are involved in such a relationship can we say that we have experienced true discipleship."
    • The community-centered format. "The Small Group...true discipleship occurs today when a person is involved in a small group."

Takeaways:

  • While anyone who becomes a Christian becomes a disciple, "the point is whether or not they are obedient disciples."
  • The process probably blends all the formats because it's a holistic "ministry of the church in helping all believers to grow in their discipleship to Jesus and reaching out to bring non-Christians to Jesus to become his disciples."
  • There is practical advice in the linked article, so you'll want to read it.


A physicist popularizes string theory

 An article recorded some musings from a well known physicist. It looks like he's promoting a new book, so he's getting some coverage. 

Main point: "His latest book, The God Equation, is a clear and accessible examination of the quest to combine Einstein’s general relativity with quantum theory to create an all-encompassing 'theory of everything' about the nature of the universe."

More about it: 

  • Theory of everything still being worked out: "I think we actually have the theory but not in its final form. It hasn’t been tested yet and Nobel prize winners have taken opposite points of view concerning something called string theory."
  • Where we are in the process: "The destiny of science is to become like grandmasters, to solve this puzzle that we call the universe. There are outstanding questions that the public wants to have answers for."
  • Like a 2-horse race: "Sometimes, the mathematics and the ideas are ahead of the concrete experimental data."
  • Anyone who watched Independence Day knows it's a bad idea: "I think the chances are quite high that we may make contact with an alien civilisation. There are some colleagues of mine that believe we should reach out to them. I think that’s a terrible idea."
  • Finding where religions are consistent with each other: "According to string theory, big bangs are happening all the time. Even as we speak, Genesis is taking place somewhere in the cosmos. And what is the universe expanding into? Nirvana. Eleven-dimensional hyperspace is Nirvana. So you can have Buddhism and Judeo-Christian philosophy in one theory."
Takeaway: A theory of everything may in fact be consistent and even supportive of a Christian worldview. The doctrine of common grace holds that God provides the means for a fallen world to continue to function in good order. A theory of everything may be a scientist's explanation of a religious concept.

Hardcover

Kindle

Audible

Robots in restaurants

A prediction from Rise of the Robots: Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future by Martin Ford about using robots in the restaurant industry: "Once one of the industry’s major players begins to gain significant advantages from increased automation, the others will have little choice but to follow suit. 

More about it:

  • "Automation will also offer the ability to compete on dimensions beyond lower labor costs." 
  • "Robotic production might be viewed as more hygienic since fewer workers would come into contact with the food."
  • "Convenience, speed, and order accuracy would increase, as would the ability to customize orders."
  • "Once a customer’s preferences were recorded at one restaurant, automation would make it a simple matter to consistently produce the same results at other locations."

Has it aged well? A fairly recent article indicates the automation of restaurants is proceeding as predicted.


Hardcover:
 
 Kindle:
 
 Audio:

Tips for reading your Bible

The CS Lewis Institute published a sermon by Charles Spurgeon about getting the most out of reading one's Bible. It's directed to Christian ministers but can apply to any Christian.

Main point: "They [Christian ministers] must read much if they are to be profitable to others as preachers."

More about it:

  • Read to learn: "...he will be most fresh and original in his own thoughts who most diligently cultivates his mind by studying and pondering the thoughts of other minds."
  • Read to repeat: "He who never quotes, will never be quoted, and he who does not read is not very likely to be read."
  • Read and depend: "...to understand the word is not enough. We also need that He makes us to feel its power."
  • Read and meditate: "Reading is the gathering together of our food, but meditation is the chewing of the cud, the digesting, and the assimilating of the truth of God!"
  • Read and apply: "...endeavor in reading a page of the Scriptures, always to see how much it belongs to you...seek for the application of precepts."
  • Read and practice: "The worldling’s Bible is the Christian. He never reads the book, but he reads the disciple of Christ and he judges the Christian religion by the lives of its professors! The world will learn better and will more likely be brought to know Christ when the lives of Christians are better, and when the Bible of the Christian life shall be more in accordance with the Bible of Christian doctrine!"
  • Read and pray: "...we should pray over every passage in order that we may be enabled to get out of it what God would impart to us."
  • Read and test: "...the Christian should keep God’s Word near at hand and treasured in the soul, to test thereby all that he hears."
  • Read and repeat: "When you read a passage of Scripture and have any enjoyment therein, go to your sick neighbor [or anyone else, for that matter] and tell what God has said to you."

Takeaway: Others can reveal truth: "...if He pleases to reveal a truth of God to another man, and I will not read that truth as it has been recorded by that other man, I have neglected the teaching of the Spirit of God."

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