Wailing Wall

I always wanted to see the Wailing/Western wall when I got to Jerusalem, so when I arrived in Israel this past New Year's Eve it was our first destination! It is a small section, 200ft. wide by 100ft. tall, but you can see, even late at night, orthodox Jewish men praying on the left and the women on the right behind the covered area. Later in the trip I was able to climb in tunnels underneath the wall. The wall itself is part of a 2000+ year old support structure for the temple mount...more pictures and videos in the future! Want more info? Click here...

The Wailing Wall (along with many other spots in Israel) was also a ready reminder of the fact that the worship of our God is not constrained to "holy spots" or temples, but that as Christians our body is "a temple of the Holy Spirit." What a blessing it is to be able to have His Spirit within us!

TV -'The Tempter in the Bedroom'

Good blog today by Dr. Al Mohler on a NYT report on the health effects of TVs in bedrooms...

I especially like the quotes from Cornelius Plantiga's sermon. It makes me rethink my own TV viewing habits!

Favorite Bibles!

How awesome is it that we have so many Bibles as options today!

Lifeway stores are having a great sale this next week or so if you are looking for a Bible, so I thought I might share my top 3 recommendations!

The MacArthur Study Bible is my favorite! It has an awesome commentary on every page that gives applicable historical, cultural, linguistic, theological, and contextual points...it helps you to understand the Bible in a much richer and in-depth way!

The Archaelogical Study Bible is awesome! I just used it on a three-week trip to Israel and its photos and descriptions of Biblical sites in accurate, concise and useful. It was a resource I used to prepare myself the night before visiting every site I went to. I highly recommend it if you want to see pictures and descriptions of the Biblical sites as you read the text.

The Apologetics Study Bible is one of the latest out. I have it, but unfortunately have not used it a lot yet. It has a TON of great articles and comments that enable the reader to better defend and understand their beliefs.

As for translations, I can explain more in a future blog, but I really trust and would recommend the ESV, NASB, HCSB, and NIV translations. There are many other great translations out there, these are simply the four I feel comfortable going to.

WORD OF CAUTION: I would not recommend the NRSV, TNIV, NLT, NCV, GNB, and CEV for reasons of gender-neutral translation controversy (this link has good info on the differences in translations as well). I would never, ever recommend the New World Translation that has been put forth by Jehovah's Witnesses in support of their maligned theology.

BOTTOM LINE: Find a trustworthy Bible that you enjoy and will inspire your daily reading of God's Word!