NowTHINK!AboutIt

Avoiding Hackneyed...Making Sense

Investing In Foreclosed Property

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I just spent the last two weeks searching and arranging details for my first home purchase. It was a time consuming process but I learned a lot and hope to share some of that learning with you. I haven’t closed on the property yet and will post information as we proceed but I wanted to write about some of the initial stages while it is still fresh.

Because this was my first purchase I proceeded very cautiously and I recommend that approach for every new home buyer. It can be a complicated process and mistakes in the early stages could create pressure in the latter stages. You can get into trouble if you aren’t sufficiently prepared or knowledgeable. The large number of foreclosures on the market is evidence of that. I have been planning for this transaction for a few years and the planning involved several key issues three of which I will address here. [Read more…] about Investing In Foreclosed Property

God Blesses Israel

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I will make of you a great nation.

I Still Enjoy Eating Matzo Bread

The neighborhood in which I grew up was very middle class. We had all types living there from professionals to laborers but everyone got along, at a distance, and it was “safe.” There were no drugs or serious mischief of any kind and the parents let us kids romp freely without worry. We rode bikes in the street (very little traffic), played baseball or football, depending on the season, and we even had woods and a creek nearby that gave us many opportunities to do a bit of safe exploration.

Our street was a long slow curve the ends of which attached to a moderately busy throughway but we always felt comfortably isolated from the mainstream. From our neighborhood, we could see the world without being in it and yet we were very close to every possible amenity. Within two minutes “walk” we had a drive-in theatre, a children’s hospital, a church, a community hall (we had Cub Scout meetings there) and just a bit further away was an orphanage (with a dairy farm), a well-developed shopping center and most of the kids could ride bikes to the local elementary school. It was a nice neighborhood situated close to everything you might need.

From the age of 8 to 16 I lived some of the most formative years of my life in this neighborhood. It was there that I developed some of the closest friendships I ever had and experienced many personal firsts: kiss, smoke, caught a fish, fight and there are a few I won’t mention. That neighborhood molded the perspective I have on life and the world. Even today, many years later, my experiences there are still the reason for many of my idiosyncrasies.

The one interesting thing about this neighborhood was the presence of several Jewish families. I recall at least six but there may have been more. Of the six, two lived on either side of us. The Rothenbergs lived on the left and the Aptakers lived on the right. We were close to these families. The kids from all three houses played together. The adults talked across the fence. My dad and Mr. Aptaker often discussed their common interest in gardening. From my youthful point of view I thought they were the only two people in the world who could enjoy gardening. I’ve since learned there are many other people with this same affliction. [Read more…] about God Blesses Israel

Evangelism – Nation to Nation

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Answering An Atheist

Original arguments are found in the post “Top Ten Worst Bible Stories”
On the web site “Not A Potted Plant” (NAPP)
Author – Transplanted Lawyer (TL)

This post is number four in a continuing discussion on the conflict between Israel and Moab/Midian as recorded in the Book of Numbers, chapters 22-25 and 31. The original observations – complaints – regarding this event are made by TL which can be read here (number one on his list of ten). My first response is here and his first counter is here.

Because TL is widely read and has an exceptionally quick mind I consider it a privilege to have him as a sparring partner. No doubt his abilities will suit him well for the bench should his aspirations in that regard be realized. His quick thinking has made me sharpen my game.

The discussion with him is incisive without insult and firm but in a respectful way. I know you will enjoy the read also.

Suffice it to say that the event under discussion seems particularly gruesome. It was war and war is never nice even under the best of circumstances. As TL and countless others have pointed out, a certain number of deaths are expected but in the case of Midian it seems a bit extreme. The entire community was destroyed, even young boys, with the exception of virgin girls. I can’t imagine anyone not being disturbed by it.

Obviously, because God was involved in this situation – He ordered the counter attack in the first place – it is easy to assume that everything Moses ordered was exactly God’s plan. I don’t presume to understand everything God does but I do believe there are reasons He should not be implicated every time difficulties arise. He is a third party, sometimes silently so, and we must at least try to see where the fault lines lay before assuming His guilt. Previously I have suggested that Moses acted in the extreme and went beyond God’s original intent.

My primary arguments are:

  • Israel was not the aggressor.
  • The intentions of Moab/Midian were clearly violent but their strategy was cleverly deceptive. They tried to divine a curse on Israel and when that failed they used wile, enticing them with their sexually oriented religion, to demoralize them. The second plan worked but not sufficiently enough to destroy Israel’s or God’s resolve.
  • God ordered the attack on Midian but did not specify the extent to which it should be executed.
  • The women who were destroyed were frontline soldiers or spies, not collateral damage or the subjects of a genocidal frenzy. Without them the ruse would not have been effective. His order to execute them, therefore, is not completely without justification.
  • I have argued that the order to destroy every male came from Moses not God. This is the real issue.

Everyone is very quick to take the Midianite side and speak of their anguish but not fair minded enough to spread that love around, ascribing to Israel (and God) a venomous nature. The truth is, Israelites were just as human as any and “rising above” was sometimes out of reach for them as well. Israel had very good reason to be hurting from this event and it doesn’t take a degree in psychology to figure it out.

It was only because Midianites were distant relatives of Moses and because Israel’s first encounter with a Midianite (Jethro – Moses’ father-in-law) was positive that the ruse was as effective as it was.

It is not unreasonable to see this was personal for Moses and it isn’t strange that his response would be so vengeful.

As mentioned previously, his worst characteristic was his anger and it had gotten him into trouble on more than one occasion. He also had a tendency to take action impulsively and God pronounced a final judgment on Moses as recent as Numbers 20. He was to die before entering the promised land and Joshua would take his place.

Even as God gave the order to counter Midian aggression He reminded Moses that he would be removed from the scene following the battle. I’m sure that reminder laid heavily on his mind. It doesn’t justify his actions but it does explain it.

In his rebuttal TL makes additional suggestions which I would like to answer here: [Read more…] about Evangelism – Nation to Nation

Moses Massacres Midian

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Answering An Atheist

Original arguments are found in the post “Top Ten Worst Bible Stories”
On the web site “Not A Potted Plant” (NAPP)
Author – Transplanted Lawyer (TL)

There are two absolute No-No’s when reading the Bible. One is never wear rose-tinted glasses (Christians do this) and the other is don’t precondition the text with modern perspectives (critics do this). Christians tend to extract from the text sentiments that aren’t there. Critics do just the opposite, imposing on the text preconceived ideas. Both start with an assumption and then proceed to draw it out or weave it into the text. Both approaches narrow the mind and have the same affect, distortion. Neither is really honest.

Take Abraham for example. He fathered his first child by Hagar, his wife’s handmaid – polygamous. According to cultural practices of the day this was acceptable but according to biblical teachings it was not.

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It is fair to be forgiving. Abraham and Sara were faced with difficult and unusual circumstances. But justifying polygamy as anything other than adultery is going a little too far and that is what believers tend to do.

Non-believers, particularly atheists, are quick to pounce on that.  Polygamy, or any other form of sexual divergence, may or may not be a problem for them but they are clever enough to see the contradiction between what the Bible teaches in one place and what believers say it teaches in another. [Read more…] about Moses Massacres Midian

The Best Budget Airline In SA

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This review comes a long time after the fact but it’s a story that deserves telling even late.

Last July my wife and I flew to Johannesburg partly for business and partly for pleasure and we flew on Kulula Airlines. This wasn’t our first flight with Kulula and I can assure you it won’t be our last.

Kulula is a small, South African based, no frills, budget airline that began operating in August 2001 with one aircraft and has since expanded to eight, all 737-800’s. They cover all the main routes in South Africa and a few destinations in neighboring countries, as well as Mauritius and the best part is the price.

If you plan ahead you can usually buy tickets at less than half the rate of the nationally subsidized carrier, South African Airways, and if you get caught organizing last minute bookings they still offer reasonable prices, if seats are available.

Like most budget airlines, snacks are not free but are reasonably priced and (surprise!) tasty. They even offer snacks from Woolies which for international readers means high quality.

What makes them different to the bigger competitors and even other budget rivals is their sense of humor. The usually boring pre-flight, in-flight and post flight announcements are well seasoned with humor. They even add humor to their online and call-in services. Their primary color, lime green, isn’t my favorite but they run on time, usually – a big plus, and always provide a laugh. Granted the humor is scripted but every now and then a flight attendant comes up with an unscripted quip to get everyone giggling. They are professional but entertainingly so.

As you can see from this photo, humor is incorporated in the exterior design as well.

But, back to my story. On our July trip we had an experience that sold me on Kulua for a long time to come. [Read more…] about The Best Budget Airline In SA