Where's the Thanks?

Yes, another preacher ranting on about how Thanksgiving is being squeezed out by American Pop culture. Read at your own risk.
It's been a problem for awhile. Consumerism taking over the nationally appointed day to give thanks for the fruits of the field and of our labor. What has become most important about Thanksgiving is what happens the day after - Black Friday. But recently, I have noticed an even greater "squeezing out" of the feast day. Commercials depicting families around a table celebrating thanksgiving with the house ALREADY decorated for Christmas. Friends welcomed in the door decorated with a Christmas wreath and a Christmas tree in the background. Stores advertising that they will be open on Thanksgiving Day. So is Christmas really now celebrated on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday? Are those days the pinaacle of the season? Than what becomes of December 24th/25th? And what has become of the season of preparation - Advent? "What's that?"
Another problem with the celebrating a feast of Thanksgiving: if the day is to be a day of being thankful, that means you have to have someone or something to which you direct your thanks. If we are going to be thankful "for" something, there must have been a provider of that something. In today's culture of narcicissm and secularism and growing atheism, there really is no need for a day of thanks. A day of thanks in its very nature aknowledges the providence of God or a god. If there is none, no need to give thanks.
I urge you who are within the pale of Christianity to reserve the day of Thanks to give thanks to our Triune God who has richly blessed us, materially and spiritually, and enjoy the fruits of his Creation, just as He intended (and maybe a little football as well.) Keep your Christmas decorations in the attic for a few more days as a witness to a world that has no need to thank anyone.

They Just Do It

This morning's writing in Treasury of Daily Prayer was an excellent quote from C.F.W. Walther - 1st President of the LCMS. Enjoy:

(Luther) taught that good works do not save a person, but only faith, without good works...He did not say that, to be saved, a person must have faith and, in addition to that, good works, or love; but he did teach that those who would be saved must have a faith that produces love spontaneously and is fruitful in good works. That does not mean that faith saves on account of love which springs from it, but that the faith which the Holy Spirit creates and which cannot but do good works justifies because it clings to the gracious promises of Christ and because it lays hold of Christ. It is active in good works because it is genuine faith. The believer need not at all be exhorted to do good works; his faith does them automatically. The believer engages in good works, not from a sense of duty, in return for the forgiveness of his sins, but chiefly because he cannot help doing them. It is altogether impossible that genuine faith should not break forth from the believer's heart in works of love.

- C.F.W. Walther

Some may ask, "Where does it say that in the Bible?" The one that immediately comes to my mind is one of my favorites:

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." - 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Symposium 2010

Every September, I have the opportunity to travel back to my Alma Mater, Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, to attend their annual Symposium. This year's Symposium was entitled: "Scripture in the Church: Formative or Formality." I was particularly attracted to this theme because one of my electives (Theology of Scripture) in my Master of Divinity studies dealt with this issue. While one of my most difficult classes, it was ultimately the most fulfilling. And for the most part, the presenters and topics addressed did not disappoint.

A thread that continued through most of the papers presented was the inadequacy of our typically used definition of Scripture. The first and usually only move the Church makes is to claim that the Scriptures are "inspired" per 2 Timothy 3:16. That definition used to work when most, if not all, people agreed that the 66 books of the Bible (a few more for the Roman Catholics) are the Word of God. But that's not the case anymore. Critical scholarship has called much of that line of thought into question. In avoiding one error: the error of ignoring the divine Word and its authority, we have fallen into another error: ignoring the Scriptures as God's Word in human words. And which Scriptures are inspired? We have thousands of different manuscripts - none of which match the others perfectly down to the comma and the iota. It ain't as easy as it used to be. We need a much better definition and understanding of the Scriptures.

That's the problem. And a number of the presenters gave solutions. All centered around one theme, in fact one person: Jesus. In order for the Scriptures to be used properly and have any use in shaping us as followers of Jesus, they must be used authoritatively. And that authority comes from the one about whom the Scriptures were written: Jesus. The authority of Scripture comes from the primary user of Scripture: God. God uses Scripture to reveal himself to humanity and to make for himself a people through the death and resurrection of Jesus. So an account for the authority of Scripture must be grounded in work of Jesus Christ focused on his death and resurrection. The whole point being: if you want to attack the authority and valididty, and inspiration of Scripture, you have to first attack the one whom Scripture is about ("Who do YOU say Jesus is?"). The Scriptures have authority over us because of what we say every Easter (and ought to remember, proclaim, and live every day): "Christ Is Risen!"

An account of the authority of Scripture must also account for its humanity. The Bible is a book written by humans. But the Scriptures have authority because they were written about Jesus and have shaped and formed and authorized the proclamation of salvation through none other but him. Those human writers wrote by the Holy Spirit - the same Holy Spirit that was given by Jesus to the Apostles who were given his authority to proclaim salvation in Christ (often referred to as "The Rule of Faith). As Robert Wall wrote: "The Christian Bible gives written expression to the Rule of Faith."

That's just a few of my thoughts and reflections. What do you think?

Life is Like a Box of Legos...

My daughters are about that age now when they can really get into Legos. And that's exciting. Because first, Legos give you the potential of modeling ideas in your head and bringing them into some resemblance of reality. And two, I like to play with Legos too!
Anyway, I got to thinking about Legos as a reflection of our relationship to creation. There are really three things that you can do with a Lego set. 1. You can try to keep the box and all the parts and pieces in their original condition - using them as little as possible. 2. You can use them for purposes they were not intended - like trashing them, breaking them, losing them, using them for house insulation, or worse. 3. You can use them to build the car or boat or house or whatever the designer intended AND modify it for your own purposes and tastes AND build something entirely different - and expression of your creativity and your wants and desires at the time. At the same time, you want to take care not to lose or destroy any parts, because then your Lego set will be less than it was to begin with and not as great a toy to play with anymore. Number 3 is what is so awesome about Legos!
Back to Creation. Creation can be viewed as one massive huge Lego set. All the pieces and parts of everything we can possibly need or want are here in our playground, our Lego set called Earth. Now we can try to leave it as undisturbed as possible (the radical environmentalist view). But that would serve to stifle our creativity and quality of life - possibly even destroying ourselves, because we don't use the "legos" of the earth to provide for our own lives. We can just trash the earth and take what we want in wild abandon. But then, like lost and destroyed Legos, the earth would not provide us what we need or want - creativity and quality of life gone forever. Or, we can use the earth the way it was intended - use all of the building blocks we have been given for our sustenance, our homes and businesses, our pleasure, and our creative expression. But then use those same blocks again and again for new and different purposes. Our earth, like Legos, is remarkably resilient and adaptable. It is here for our use and it is here for us to take care of and manage.
So go enjoy your big box of Legos. (But clean them up after you're done!)

Organic Unity of Worship

The Missouri Synod has a percieved lack of unity among its 6000+ congregations. Those looking at us from the outside would probably view us as lock-step in agreement. And, as our Synod President has pointed out time and time again, we are in total agreement about the major doctrines of the Faith. But one of the greater reflections of this disunity is the so called, "Worship Wars" that have been going on for close to 30 years. Dr. Andrew Bartlelt of Concordia Seminary recently wrote an article about the new Missal the Roman Catholic Church is introducing in the coming months. Click here to read his article.
I fully agree with his point that "the worship in any part of the Church is the worship of the Church, not just the local congregation." We are all one body in Christ. While moment in time and culture and context creates diverse expressions of worship - and thats okay and actually good right and salutary. Yet there should be an inherent order in worship recognizable by Christians in all places. In other words, Christian worship of the one True God by Christians should generally look and sound and feel at least somewhat familiar. Congregations are not merely "independent cowboys" doing whatever they want. Each congregation is also part of the trans-congregational church - accountable to one another in matters of doctrine and practice.
What do you think?

The New Righteousness

Every human has an innate desire to be righteous - to know that who they are and what they are doing is "right." Feelings of guilt arise when one discovers that what they are doing is not right. But how does one define what is right? How can they know? Each of us has a built in system for this - what we have termed our conscience. But if you spend any time around other people and get to know them, everyone seems to have a defined righteousness for themselves in different ways. Nevertheless, we all seem to have a basic, general understanding of what is right: killing or hurting others is not right, stealing from others is not right, telling lies is not right, and so on.
But when one does wrong, and feels guilt, what can you do about it? Usually, we try to make up for it, to pay for it, to make it right. A hot topic of righteousness in our culture is our personal righteousness with respect to the environment. One of the unintended consequences of the Environmental Movement is guilt - being guilty for our very existence. We humans have to consume part of nature to continue our existence: we breathe in oxygen and release carbon dioxide, we consume water and food, and we return waste products to the earth. Each of us is responsible in some part for the pollution of the environment. We even have a term for it now: carbon footprint. We are now able to scientifically estimate how much we pollute - we can weigh and measure our guilt. "He who has the greatest carbon footprint is the most guilty and must make it right to be environmentally righteous again" so goes the thinking. And we make ourselves righteous again by buying "green" products, driving fewer miles in cars, recycling more, and the like, to justify ourselves. But how much is enough? How much "green" will make you feel righteous?
Is having an even balance sheet with Mother Nature our righteousness? No, Christ is our righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21). His death on the cross is what has paid for our unrighteousness - all of it. And his righteousness is given freely through faith in him. And declared righteous by God through Christ and freed from guilt, we are free - free to serve. And freed from guilt, we can freely serve one another and be the stewards of the earth that God intended for us to be. We are free to use it without guilt, but do so wisely. Not to be righteous, but out of love for God and neighbor.

Besides, doesn't the Earth do a very good job of absorbing our carbon footprint? - photosynthesis!

Forty One

Yesterday was my birthday - my 41st. I woke up thinking it wasn't going to be a big deal. But it evolved into something somewhat significant for me. The first moments of the day included receiving gifts from Sheri and the girls: An iPod Touch (how cool is that) and a couple of nice dress shirts with matching ties - very nice. Later, I got to work and at 9:00 am, the entire staff met for our usual Monday Morning meeting. As each staff member entered the room, the told me "Happy Birthday." And then they decided to take me to lunch. Later that afternoon, I opened up Facebook and found that dozens of my friends from all over the country had taken the time to wish me a happy birthday. That evening, I enjoyed a nice dinner at home with my family, followed by phone calls from my sister and from my parents.

I was just going to write off the day as a tick on my personal odometer. But all of these people in my life made it so much more. I am truly blessed beyond imagination. I, a sinner worthy of nothing, have been chosen by my God to be his child through baptism and has called me to be an ordained servant of the Word among some amazing people. My Heavenly Father has taken care of all my needs - most especially the gift of salvation through my Lord Jesus Christ. I have a wife with whom I am privileged to share my life and she shares her life with me. We have been blessed with the gift of two beautiful and incredible daughters. And yesterday, so many people took the time to share in my day.

Forty One isn't so bad after all.

Stephen Ministry in the News

Hope Lutheran Church, my congregation, is a Stephen Ministry congregation. We have a group of Stephen Ministers that extend care in the Name of Jesus Christ - multiplying the efforts of Pastor Ralph and myself.
Click here for a great story published by PBS about Stephen Ministry.

R.I.P.

Abby and Emma and some of the neighborhood kids were all playing early this evening. Abby came running toward our house and said, "I need some tape." And I, of course asked why. She said, "For the roly poly grave. She died." Apparently, they found a dead roly poly and they decided to give it a proper burial. One of the other kids made the tombstone. In case you can't read it in the photo. It says, "Mrs. Roly Poly died here." with an arrow pointing to down to the very spot where they laid her to rest.
I'm pleased my daughters and their peers are realizing their importance as stewards of God's creation.

What's in a Name?

When my girls were younger, knowing a name was important to them. I remember trips to the zoo when the girls would see an animal they didn’t know and the first thing out of their mouths was, “What’s it called?” And I or Sheri would tell them – or we’d have to find out from the posted sign the name of this or that strange creature. When Abby or Emma would get a new doll or stuffed animal, the first thing they’d do is give it a name. Or even when reading a book with them, they would see the illustration of an animal or person in a book and before I could begin to read, they already wanted to know its name. Learning a name or giving a name gives the creature or the stuffed animal or the concept or person on the page of a book life - life in their minds.
When the Almighty God created all things, he spoke all creation into life by saying the name he had given it – “Light, sky, land, sea, creatures.” God spoke its name, and it had existence – it had life. Our God is a life-giving God through his Word. And he has done this to you. In baptism, you were given life by God and new-life by water and his Word. In Baptism, God gave you new life, by giving his name to you – “In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” His spoken name connected to your spoken name in baptism gave you new life and new identity as God’s child, freed from slavery to sin and alive through the work of the Son of God, Jesus Christ.
Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early that first Easter morning. What was she thinking as she walked to the tomb? Certainly sorrow over Jesus’ death. St. John’s account of the Crucifixion says that she was there to see his death. Jesus was in fact dead – she was a witness. And if she truly believed that Jesus was not only the man from Nazareth, but also her Lord, the very Son of God, Yahweh, God of Israel – then her God was dead as well. She was without her God. And if her God was dead, then everything Jesus said and did really didn’t matter. His life ended in defeat. The horror of being without your God! She must have been absolutely crushed, in despair, without any hope. But as Mary approaches the tomb, she finds that it’s open! The stone is rolled away! So what does she do? She starts assuming – something we’re all very good at doing. Mary doesn’t even look in. Somebody has taken the body of Jesus! She panics and runs to tell the others. Not only is Jesus dead, but someone has desecrated his tomb. She returns with John and Peter, they have the good sense to at least look in. They find no body. And they go away.
So what’s there left to do? Just cry and weep and mourn. Jesus is dead, God is dead. And if God is dead, then I am too. Have you ever felt like that? Felt like God has abandoned you – causing you to question the existence of God and of Jesus. In the times when we are suffering and mourning, it’s easy to think that way. It’s easy to assume that God is dead and all these words of Scripture and all the stories are dead. And if God is dead, then we are dead. Mary doesn’t know it, yet but there’s Jesus – alive. She talks to him, but doesn’t recognize him – thinking him to be the gardener. And then, Jesus says her name, “Mary.” Jesus says her name, and everything changes. Jesus says her name, and gives her life again. Mary is alive again because her God - Jesus - is alive and with her here and now. She is no longer without her God. With a name - “Mary” - life is given and relationship is restored.
So when you feel like your God has abandoned you or you are questioning the existence of God and of Jesus during the dark times in your life or when the devil has a strangle-hold on you. Remember, your God has said your name and you have life. In baptism, he has attached himself to you. In baptism, you have died with Christ and have risen with Christ. You have a name, you have your God, he is alive again, and his name is Jesus Christ. And one day, he will call your name again. When he comes again, he will call your name and you will rise and join him in resurrection. And he will continue to be your God, not by faith, but by sight. Like Mary, Jesus will say your name and everything will change. You will have life – eternal life - because he knows your name and has called your name. And that eternal life in Christ starts today, and every day. Because Christ is risen, he is risen indeed. Amen.

"My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?"

“And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?’ which means, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’”

Total separation from God. And we have no idea or understanding for what that’s like. The Scriptures tell us of the mystery of our almighty God – how he is both outside of our universe and yet also present among us. He keeps the universe in order – the planets in their orbits – evening and morning – summer and winter. He makes the grass to grow and fruit and grain for us to eat. He causes it to rain on both the righteous and the wicked. While our sin separates us from him, God remains near – keeping humankind from complete chaos, anarchy, and destruction and seeking out and finding the lost by his word. Realize it or not, none of us, saint or sinner, none of us have truly experienced full separation from God.

The Gospels proclaim the story of the Passion - the crucifixion of the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ. The judgment of God gathered as darkness covered the whole land. Jesus is in unimaginable, unbearable agony and pain being nailed hands and feet to a cross. But more unimaginable and unbearable is how God the Father separated himself from his only Son. Jesus experiences hell – total separation from God. Sometimes we may ask, "If Jesus is God, how can God be separated from God?" But how this happens in the mystery of the Trinity is beyond our human understanding and is not explained in the Scriptures. So it remains just that – a mystery. The dread and horror Jesus experiences comes out of him in a cry of terror. It’s almost more than he can bear. He doesn’t call Him Father, but God as he cries out, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me? Jesus bears and experiences the sins of all humankind in all time and place. Forsaken, He becomes the greatest robber, murder, adulterer, and blasphemer of all time as he experiences God’s righteous wrath and anger. He has the power to come down from the cross, to end it all right here, right now – come down from the cross and vindicate himself and condemn his enemies. But he doesn’t. He stays. He drinks the overflowing cup of judgment empty. His love for you and obedience to the Father keeps him on the cross. “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” The Son of God dies in sadness.

We look at the cross in awe and witness our salvation. We confess, “Why God? Why haven’t you forsaken me? Why haven’t you forsaken me instead of this sinless man? And that’s the Gospel. That’s the gracious love of God for you - that he has not forsaken you. Out of love for you, he forsakes his only Son. Out of love for you, the Son of God dies to pay the enormous price of your sin and mine. His life to give us life – real life – eternal life in him.

Who Killed Jesus?

I have been seeing commericals on either Discovery Channel or History Channel (I can't remember which) for a program coming up called "Who Killed Jesus?" Based upon the commerical, it sounds like the program will explore all the possible historical figures from the crucifixion narrative and decide who is the one or ones who are responsible for killing Jesus.

But that's just like society and the media today. We always want to know who is responsible. "Who's responsible?" "Who is guilty of this?" We have to find someone to blame for all the bad things that happen in our world. I suppose so that justice might be had.

So in this case, who killed Jesus? Well in the narrative, the Jewish religious establishment was out to get Jesus for some time. They were the ones that went to find him in the garden and arrest him. They must be to blame. Pilate, the Roman Governor believed Jesus to be innocent. But he gave into the crowds and permitted Jesus to be crucified. He must be to blame. The Roman soldiers mocked him, whipped him, and carried out the crucifixion order. So they must be to blame. But ultimately, who is to blame? Who killed Jesus?

God killed Jesus. He permitted all these events to happen and to come to fruition at the right time. God permitted the death of the Son of God at the hand of the very sinners he was sent to save. Our sin killed Jesus. We are the reason he died. To save each one of us from eternal death. He was separated from God so that we might be joined back to God. We always look to blame someone else for what we have done. But look at what the Son of God has done for you!

"Subdue and Have Dominion"

"And God blessed them. And God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.'" - Genesis 1:28 ESV

"Subdue it and have dominion." I have thought about this phrase since my post "Just Another Animal?" What does subdue mean here? Am I subduing creation when I attempt to dominate my backyard into submission with a lawn mower?

The Hebrew word for subdue is "kabash" meaning "bring into subjection, make subservient." Subdue as "make subservient" may be helpful for us in this context. God created this world as the living place for humans. And our world continues to serve us to this day; giving us the air we need to breathe, the food we need to eat, and providing the materials we need to create clothing and shelter. In that sense, creation is our servant - "subservient" to us. "Subdue" is used elsewhere in the Old and New Testaments 31 times. And every other time outside of Genesis chapter 1, it is used in a military or political context. So, those other uses are not much help. The use of "subdue" with regard to God's command of humans viz. the earth is never again addressed in Scripture beyond Genesis 1.

But I think it's important to remember that all the other times this word is used in Scripture are after man had sinned. And as the sinful children of Adam, both then and now, the full understanding of God's command to "subdue and have dominion" is elusive and difficult for us to wrap our minds around. Martin Luther has some insight into the problem in his Lectures on Genesis as he addressed Genesis 1:28:

"But Adam would not have used the creatures as we do today, except for food, which he would have derived from other, far more excellent fruits. For he under whose power everything had been placed did not lack clothing or money. Nor would there have been any greed among his descendants; but, apart from food, they would have made use of the creatures only for the admiration of God and for a holy joy which is unkown to us in this corrupt state of nature. By contrast, today and always the whole creation is hardly sufficient to feed and support the human race. Therefore what this dominion consisted of we cannot even imagine."

Adam and Eve were created in the image of God and had a perfect relationship with Him. Yet that perfect harmony with God and with the earth fell apart with the fall into sin. I tend to fall in line behind Luther here in saying we can't have a crystal clear understanding of how our first parents went about having dominion over the earth. Because of who we are as sinners, we have never enjoyed that perfect relationship. The earth is cursed and we eat our food by the sweat of our brow (Genesis 3:17-19). Yet now where in Scripture does it say that God's command to subdue the earth was ever revoked. And that command is still ours today.

So where do we go from here? How are we to understand and live out our role as humans subduing creation? And how do we understand that role in the light of Jesus Christ? How about your thoughts?

Ash Wednesday: Remembering

This morning, we (myself and my daughters) were sitting in the car at the corner of our street waiting for the school bus. (Personal comment: It's just been too cold here in S. Texas this winter!) After a couple of minutes, I told Abby, "Tonight we will do the Imposition of Ashes." And Abby replied, "You mean when we put that black stuff on our heads?...Yeah!!!" For some reason, Abby likes that. I think it's because the Imposition of Ashes on Ash Wednesday is something strange and unique and done only once a year, thus she remembers it. Then I asked her, "Do you know why we do that?" (blank stare) "To remind us we will die."

That is what Ash Wednesday is all about. It is the day beginning the season of Lent in which we remember who we are: sinners doomed to death - "Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return." We are sinners without our own righteous leg to stand on. There is nothing left but death for us. But Ash Wednesday is also a day to remember where to focus our hope: the cross of Christ. The ashes are drawn on foreheads in the shape of a cross for a reason - to remind us who removed the sting of death for us by becoming death for us: Christ.

So I encourage you today to remember - remember who you are and in whom is your only hope.

Why Some and Not Others?

This is such a difficult topic. Why are some saved and not others? In fact, it is an impossible question. It is what theologians call the "Crux Theologorum" - the "theologians cross." Different demoninations have different answers, but none seem satisfactory. Rev. Paul McCain over at his blog, "Cyberbrethren" does an excellent job of breaking down the problem and giving our Lutheran response, which, as he points out, will still seem unsatisfactory. The impossible question stands. Click here to read his blog post.

Just Another Animal?

In recent years, the environment has taken a prominent position in our collective dialog. We are quickly discovering the impact our actions and our lifestyle truly have on the larger world around us. "Going green" is the new mantra as many pursue renewable sources of energy, new ways to use old products and materials to our benefit, and protecting animal and plant life from complete destruction - so that nature remains in its delicate balance and continues its symbiotic existence.
But we humans don't seem to quite fit in the world like the rest of nature. We don't seem to be a part of nature like we are just another animal. Unlike the animals we humans have the ability to control and manipulate the world around us in very complex ways. We gather seeds and plant them so our food sources multiply. We don't have natural protection against the weather as part of our body, so we make clothes. Instead of exclusively using natural features for shelter (caves or trees), we change and modify nature to create more effective shelters (wood, brick, and other materials for homes.) We modify nature to suit our needs and even our wants. So are we just another animal? Or do we have a different purpose here on earth?
The Bible tells us that we do have a different role to play in our environment. After he created all things, including the first man, God said:

"Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth." And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food."

And later, God created a special place, a garden, for man to live in, he put man in the garden to work it and keep it.

So, from a Biblical worldview, we have a higher, two-fold purpose in our existence on this earth. We are to subdue it - use all of the resources it offers so that we can take care of ourselves. And at the same time, we are to take care of the earth - to work it and manage it so that it continues to exist. We are not just another animal. We need the earth for our continued existence. And the earth needs us to manage and take care of it.
However, those two need to remain in balance. If we don't subdue the earth, we won't have what we need (food, clothing, shelter). If we don't take care and manage the earth properly, it won't be a viable place for our children. In recent centuries, humanity has done an excellent job of subduing the earth. But sadly, this has often been done to the detriment of the larger environment.
Thus. those with a Biblical worldview would avoid the extremes - the extreme capitalist view ("The resources of the earth are all mine for the taking!"), or the extreme environmentalist view ("The needs of all plants and animals are superior to my own needs").

What do you think?

I've Moved!

I have moved my "church" blog offsite to Blogger. Posts will still feed to Hope's website. But all blog entries and other tidbits will begin here.
Blog creation on this end is still in progress...
Stay tuned