This Articles page is proud to serve up links to the house specialties that were on offer at Chez ALS back in the year 2013.
Each entry below contains a "hook" that suggests what the article deals with (an hors d'oeuvre), the first several paragraphs (an appetizer), plus a link to the full article (the main course). If you just want to scan over a list of the titles of all the articles on this site, you can save time by grabbin' a burger at the Article Index page. Bon appétit!
If you want to look for a specific topic, use the search function in the sidebar. Use the menu below to go to similar pages for previous years.
JAN '13: The Forgetful Fiancée
Until Jesus "officially" makes the Church His bride, in a sense we are His fiancée. But some Christians have forgotten to whom they are engaged.
The Forgetful Fiancée
A number of years ago I read a news item about a young woman in Eastern Europe who disappeared a couple of weeks before her wedding. She was spotted several days later on the outskirts of the city, apparently suffering from a severe case of amnesia.
According to the report, the woman was in her late twenties and was found wandering around near a garbage dump. Although she was cold, hungry, dirty and apparently oblivious to her surroundings, she was comparatively well dressed. She had no ID, and couldn't remember her name, address, or telephone number. She didn't even know what year it was.
At the time she was found, she was carrying some type of textbook, although she seemed to have no memory of its purpose or contents. It was later determined she was a school teacher, but she had no memory of having any type of employment.
FEB '13: Born His Way
Can people really be born homosexual? Well, Lady Gaga apparently thinks people can be "born this way." But does it ultimately even matter?
Born His Way
Lady Gaga (born Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta) released her hit song "Born This Way" in February 2011, and the song became the title track of her second album released in May of the same year.
While I confess that I do not count myself among Ms Germanotta's legions of adoring fans, this particular song of hers managed to catch my attention. In the interest of fairness, I took time to listen to the whole song at YouTube (although the video was hard to stomach), and I also made it a point to carefully read the lyrics in their entirety before I began writing this article. I understood the gist of the song, but I wanted to make sure that I wasn't mischaracterizing its message in any way.
MAR '13: Why I Hate Religion
With so many diverse religions in the world, and now this New Age lunacy, who knows what to believe anymore. Maybe we should just chuck 'em all...
Why I Hate Religion
A slick new department store opened a few blocks from where we live in the suburbs of Taipei a few months ago, and I remember the first day my wife and I went over to check it out. It's a medium-sized department store that features the usual range of stores selling clothes, sporting goods, cosmetics and so on, and as is usually the case there is a bookstore located on one floor.
Naturally, I wanted to see if they had much of a selection of books in English. Here in Taiwan, most bookstores have at least some, but it varies widely. And as you might guess, I instinctively check any bookstore to see what they have in the area of religion; but as a Christian living in a Buddhist/Taoist country, I have learned to keep my expectations hovering between zero and low.
But this wasn't just any department store in any city—this was our department store in our city. Our first and only. So, hoping for the best, I struck out through the rows of shelves to see if I could find something worthwhile, and my hopes sprang a bit higher when I spotted the word Religion along one wall.
APR '13: Do Your Job
With the prophetic scenario crystallizing faster than you can say "CNN World Report," the Lord gave me a dream that served as an attitude adjustment.
Do Your Job
I was an avionics technician in the U.S. Navy during the 1980s, trained in the component-level troubleshooting and repair of two black boxes known as the Vertical Display Indicator (VDI) and the Radar Data Converter (RDC), both part of the avionics systems of the A6 Intruder attack aircraft.
Aircraft—that means an aircraft carrier: a combination ship, factory, and airport rolled into one haze gray behemoth. Even though I loved the work, one of the nicest things about my job was that, unlike many others on board the ship, I had the privilege of working in a nice, clean, air-conditioned avionics work center. Most guys on board an aircraft carrier—or any Navy ship for that matter—don't have that luxury. Many have to work in significantly less comfy surroundings. In fact, the guys up on the flight deck work in what is statistically one of the noisiest and most dangerous environments on the planet.
The most dangerous thing I had to deal with was an oscilloscope probe.
Hey, don't laugh...those suckers are sharp.
MAY '13: Yes He Can!
In the lively debate over who the biblical Antichrist will be, some dismiss Barack Obama out of hand. But how solidly does Scripture back them up?
Yes He Can!
As you all know, in 2008 Barack Hussein Obama was swept into the White House to thundering chants of "YES WE CAN! YES WE CAN!" With charisma and eloquence seldom seen in American politics since the days of John F. Kennedy, he was spoken of in almost messianic terms as he seemed to engender hope for a better future in one mesmerizing speech after another.
What some of you might not know, however, is that ever since that time, a spirited debate has been steadily brewing among many Bible prophecy buffs concerning Obama's possible role in end-time prophecy.
To wit: Is Barack Obama the Antichrist?
OK, I know what you're thinking:
"Sure he is...and his Secret Service agents are reptilian shapeshifters."
JUN '13: The Gospel 2.0
It seems that New Age ideas have contributed to the emergence of a "new and improved" version of the gospel. Didn't you get the memo?
The Gospel 2.0
Unless you've been living in the constellation Orion for the last few decades, you have heard of the New Age movement, as well as its attendant hodge-podge of pseudo-spiritual beliefs and practices collectively referred to as the New Age religion.
I have commented on certain aspects of things New Age in past articles, and possibly as a result the idea just got stuck between my teeth. I just felt strongly that the Holy Spirit wanted me to take aim and pump a few rounds right through this monster's heart chakra.
Twenty, to be precise.
The New Age religion has essentially no comprehensive doctrinal structure or cohesive dogma per se; instead, one is confronted with a veritable potpourri of diverse ideas and beliefs that is so nebulous that it makes logically reconciling or refuting those beliefs something akin to arm-wrestling a jellyfish.
JUL '13: Fifty Billion Shades of Grey
In 2012 a British hotel dumped the Bible in favor of soft-porn bestseller Fifty Shades of Grey. But does "shades of grey" describe how God sees us?
Fifty Billion Shades of Grey
In 2011, British author E. L. (Erica Leonard) James published the novel Fifty Shades of Grey, the first installment of her runaway best-selling trilogy that revolves around the romantic/sexual relationship of attractive coed Ana Steele and wealthy young business mogul Christian Grey. Although the novel topped bestseller lists around the world, it generated a certain amount of controversy due to its deviant sexual content, including scenes depicting bondage & discipline, dominance & submission, and sadism & masochism (BDSM).
Ordinarily, the publication of a novel like Fifty Shades of Grey would have passed under my radar. I typically would have paid scant attention to it, because after all, it's just another piece of trash in an ocean of filth that was designed to cater to the basest and most depraved lusts that men (and women) are capable of, and garner wealth and worldly fame for its creator in a sin-sick world that craves and glories in such things.
So what else is new?
AUG '13: Sorry, Maggie
Some believe in a post-trib Rapture, and that's fine. But they look silly when they keep using the same old lies to "discredit" the pre-trib Rapture.
Sorry, Maggie
That's it. I've had it up to here.
I'm not kidding—I can't take it anymore. If I don't get this out of my system, I'm going to start banging my head against the nearest brick wall.
I spend a lot of time on YouTube watching videos from some of my favorite Bible teachers, and I routinely search for more—especially in the areas of Bible prophecy and eschatology (the study of the end times).
I'm happy to report that, although you may have to sift through a lot of junk to find it, there is a wealth of powerful, biblically sound teaching freely available on the Internet. In the process of searching YouTube, however, I never fail to run across a lot of videos posted by people who apparently have a seething, maniacal hatred for everything and everybody associated with the biblical doctrine of the pre-tribulation Rapture, which teaches that the Rapture will occur before the beginning of the seven-year Tribulation.
It seems the pre-trib Rapture pushes a few hot buttons out there.
SEP '13: Waiting for the Other Shoe To Drop
Some people insist that the Church will go through the entire seven-year Tribulation. Well, call me a doubting Thomas, but...
Waiting for the Other Shoe To Drop
With troubling world events dominating the headlines recently, especially concerning Syria, there has been a predictable uptick in the Internet chatter concerning how close we may be to the beginning of the Tribulation, with some eying 2014 as an apparent prophetic hot spot for various reasons.
I have chatted with numerous people online via YouTube and other websites about this topic, and in the process I have run across a number of people who seem to be convinced that the Church will go through the entire seven years of the Tribulation.
They either think the Rapture will happen at the end of the Tribulation, or that it won't happen at all. Some of them are adamant that the pre-tribulation Rapture is a lie and an unscriptural escapist fantasy, and are urging others to start prepping for the tough times to come.
Pardon me while I file that last sentence away for a future article.
OCT '13: Tilting at Windmills
Just as Don Quixote sought to slay windmills he imagined were giant monsters, some bitter individuals seek to slay the pre-trib Rapture.
Tilting at Windmills
In the novel Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes (1547–1616), there is a scene in which the eponymous hero spies several dozen windmills in the distance and announces to his squire/sidekick Sancho Panza that they are monstrous giants, and that fortune has arranged for him to engage them in battle.
Although Sancho dutifully informs him that they are nothing but windmills, Don Quixote imagines his battle to be a righteous one, and declares that "the removal of so foul a brood from off the face of the earth is a service God will bless." With that, he charges and thrusts his lance into one of the sails, only to be unceremoniously thrown from his horse when the sail is turned by a sudden gust of wind.
This comical scene is where we get the phrase "tilting (i.e., jousting) at windmills," which refers to the confronting of imaginatively and inaccurately perceived enemies in the pursuit of vain, fanciful, or self-serving goals that are imagined to be monumentally heroic.
NOV '13: The Pearl of Great Price
In one of His parables, Jesus likened His Church to a precious pearl—and it may surprise you to learn how true His words are.
The Pearl of Great Price
Pearls are one of nature's loveliest, most fascinating gems, and have always been prized for their lustrous, iridescent beauty. Since time immemorial, these precious gems with their characteristic soft, inner glow have adorned the necks of queens and princesses the world over and have been treasured as a symbol of beauty, luxury, and elegance. Pearls were so closely associated with wealth, power, and high social standing during the Renaissance that several European countries actually passed laws that made it illegal for anyone but nobility to wear them.
All talk of beauty, luxury, and elegance aside, however, arguably one of the most fascinating aspects of pearls is where they come from:
They are cut out of the crust-covered shells
of slimy, parasite-infested bivalve mollusks.
(Now there's a line you won't see in a Zale's ad.)
DEC '13: Alone Again (Naturally)
Support for Israel throughout the world is rapidly dwindling, just as the Old Testament predicts. Uh, h-e-l-l-o...where's the Church?
Alone Again (Naturally)
Irish singer-songwriter Gilbert O'Sullivan released his hit song "Alone Again (Naturally)" in 1972, and the brooding ballad spent a total of six weeks in the No. 1 spot of Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart.
I'm sorry, did I say "brooding ballad"? "Alone Again (Naturally)" is easily one of the saddest, most depressing songs I've ever heard in my life. In the song, the singer is contemplating suicide by throwing himself from the top of a tower after being stood up at the altar on his wedding day, then segues to the death of his parents. Ouch. (Incidentally, I'm pleased to report that according to Mr. O'Sullivan, the song is not autobiographical.)
But when I think about what is happening to Israel today in the global community, the title of this song invariably comes to mind.
1. Adapted from Sunset Over Grass Field © AOosthuizen at Can Stock Photo
2. Butler With Tray © NewAfrica at Depositphotos
3. Addiction © rinderart at Can Stock Photo
4. Rainbow DNA © deosum at Can Stock Photo
5. Fashion Mannequins © PaulMatthew at Can Stock Photo
6. USS Eisenhower 2, United States Navy, photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Miguel A. Contreras Contreras, marked as public domain [PD], more details on Wikimedia Commons
7. Barack Obama portrait, United States Senate, marked as public domain [PD], more details on Wikimedia Commons
8. Meditation Chakra © adrenalina at Can Stock Photo
9. Handcuffs Isolated on White © RTimages at Can Stock Photo
10. Adapted from Hit Your Head Against Brick Wall © 72soul at Can Stock Photo
11. USA x Syria © aquir at Can Stock Photo
12. Don Quixote by Gustave Doré creator QS:P170,Q6682, marked as public domain [PD], more details on Wikimedia Commons
13. Pearl in Oyster © Anke at Can Stock Photo
14. Antique Menorah © rinderart at Can Stock Photo
Scripture Quotations:
All Scripture is taken from the World English Bible, unless specifically annotated as the King James Version (KJV) or the American King James Version (AKJV).