A great day to not leave the house

Today seems as good a day as any to stay in the house with a warm cup of coffee, a blanket and a couple of good books. Not that us Minnesotans should be surprised by a 1 degree day in the middle of January. It's only on days like this that I miss the warm weather of Fort Myers, FL. However, I don't miss the hurricanes. I'll take the cold and snow over that any day. Stay warm out there.

ST

In search of a thesis

I'm getting ready for my upcoming orientation seminar at Reformed Theological Seminary and one of the things I have to do is come up with a thesis idea. I'm thinking either something Old Testament-related or church history-related. Here's a sample of my high-level brainstorming.

• Why did God choose Abraham?
• Why did God choose Noah?
• Scriptorium of Eusebius
• Application of technology in teaching and study of theology, bible or Biblical Languages
• Ezra the scribe

I'm curious if anybody has any suggestions related to the ideas above, other topic ideas or some tried and true advice for coming up with a good thesis topic. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

ST

Thought provoking quotes from Jonathan Edwards

You have reason to wonder that you are not already in hell.

Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, sermon delivered in Enfield, Connecticut (July 8, 1741)

Resolved, never to do anything which I should be afraid to do if it were the last hour of my life.

The Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards (1722-1723)

Greek Flash Cards

Flash cards are an important part of learning your Greek vocabulary. Here are a few flash card options that may prove useful in your Greek studies.

• Greek Flash Pro 2 (Win 95/98/NT) - $35
• Flash Card (Requires Java) from Crosswire Bible Society - Free
• Power Point, Keynote, etc. - With a good Greek font, you can quickly make a very functional flash card set in power point, keynote or other presentation program.
  

The Logos Blog has an article about using pre-made vocabulary lists and how to create your own. You can check that out here: LINK. If electronic flash cards are not for you, I'd recommend the Basics of Biblical Greek Vocabulary Cards from Zondervan. Please post a comment if you have found other flash card resources to be useful. Happy studying!

ST

Men's Retreat Recap

I had an opportunity to attend a Men's Retreat this past weekend with one of my good friends. We stayed at Camp Chetek in Chetek, WI. The topic was a Biblical approach to finances. The speaker was Dr. Larry Oats from Maranatha Baptist Bible College in Watertown, WI. It seems quite providential that as I'm starting back to seminary and trying not to incur any further debt, I get invited to a men's retreat on finances. Dr. Oats was a great speaker. He had many useful suggestions/ideas for sound ways to better manage your finances. Camp Chetek was a great facility. The staff was very hospitable. This was by far one of the best retreats I've ever attended. If you're looking for a place in the Wisconsin/Minnesota area to host a retreat, I'd suggest you give the folks at Camp Chetek a call. I'm sure they'd love to hear from you.

Get your Greek on!

As I'm preparing to get started with my seminary studies again, I'm reviewing materials from first year Hebrew and Greek. I'm a bit rusty, so I'm trying to get functional again. I picked up a book titled, English Grammar to ACE New Testament Greek a few years ago. It's a great review of the parts of english grammar that are important for the study of New Testament Greek. It's a quick read at only 110 pages. The author's sense of humor helps to make what could be a boring book, quite entertaining. I'd highly recommend it. Happy reading!

ST