Dave Miller

Social media interaction can be revealing. I retweeted a tweet by a friend - an observation about the tendency of Christians to justify any failures on "our side" (politically) by pointing out that "their side" is worse. The nearly immediate and sadly predictable response was that this man (a rock-solid conservative) must be a Hillary supporter. Naturally, if you are not 100% in support of the GOP and everything they do, you are a Democrat-lover! I have watched the response to a tweet I sent out a while back with some amusement. Trump. Comey. Russia. Schumer. Pelosi. Ryan. Impeachment. … [Read more...] about Whither Nuance? The Disappearance of Thoughtful Subtlety in American Politics

I don't use study Bibles. No, smart-aleck whippersnappers! I didn't say that I don't study the Bible. I said I don't use a study Bible. I have a couple of them. One of my first Bibles was the original, inspired, Scofield Reference Bible. I've had a Thompson Chain. The ESV Study Bible is on my phone and tablets. I just don't use them as my main Bible and I think that in general, it's kind of a bad idea to do so. Use them as a reference, essentially as a commentary? Great. But I like the idea of my main Bible being a plain text (or bare text) with perhaps a few translation and textual notes … [Read more...] about The Dangers of Study Bibles and Why I Prefer Plain Text Bibles

Trevin Wax has published an article at the Gospel Coalition blog, entitled “Southern Baptists and Conventional and Cosmopolitan Cultures” in which he lays out the cultural divide in the SBC in a clear, concise, understandable, and fair way. Any attempt to summarize a divide such as ours is going to be difficult, of course, and there are going to be those who don’t like his terminology (that’s always the problem), don’t agree with his descriptions, or don’t fit his categories. But this article encapsulates the present condition of our denomination as well as any I’ve seen and has the … [Read more...] about Trevin Wax’s Definitive Article on SBC Cultures: Cosmopolitan and Conventionalist

Monday night in Boston, a despicable act of racism took place. There are not two baseball teams I like less than the Orioles and the Red Sox, and there are few players I cheer against more than Adam Jones. There's a reason for that. He's a confirmed Yankee-killer. Just brutalizes Yankee pitching. But last night he was subjected to racist taunts from the stands during the Orioles game against the much-hated Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox condemned the action in no uncertain terms as did the mayor of Boston. Boston fans have gone on social media to decry the racist and his actions. There is a … [Read more...] about Grace, Racism, Social Media, and THAT Photo!

It is almost time for the SBC, at which it is normal for speakers to make derogatory remarks about bloggers. It always gets me a little angry and defensive when they do, but the fact is that we have, through the years, earned our bad reputation, haven't we? It is easy to say that it's just a few of those bad eggs out there, the extreme blogs that traffic in derogation and character assassination, but if we are honest, most of us have more than a few moments in blogging (often in commenting) that we would like to have back. I give discernment bloggers a hard time, but I know that I have the … [Read more...] about Was Timothy the First Blustery Blogger?

I love the scene in “O Brother, Where Art Thou” when Pete and Everett are arguing about who should be in charge and decide to take a vote. Pete: Suits me. I'm voting for yours truly. Ulysses Everett McGill: Well I'm voting for yours truly too. [Everett and Pete look at Delmar for the deciding vote] Delmar O'Donnell: Okay... I'm with you fellas. Delmar votes with both of them, though they disagree. That’s how I feel about the split opinion among conservatives about the president’s decisive and swift action in response to Syria’s use of chemical weapons on its own people. Some say we … [Read more...] about I’m with You Fellas: Conflicted Reflections on Syria