The Gist Of It

In the beginning...

2006-08-21T10:02:00.000-07:00

Simon decided he might just have some more things to say...To be continued...

In the end...

2005-12-01T14:22:00.000-08:00

...Humans weren't meant to blog. Ask Levi, or Bo, or myself. I'd love to discuss why that would be psychologically or spiritually, but, again, I haven't the time. So I'll leave you all to ponder.May God be glorified in all that you do.By the way, I've always favored short and sweet goodbyes.So goodbye.

Loose Ends

2005-09-30T10:00:00.000-07:00

This is the part of the blog where Simon comes out and covers a few odds and ends.The Rebelution will not be televised; rather, it will be disseminated over the blogosphere. These two brothers are living proof that homeschooled kids are hands-down smarter than those who are publicly "edumacated." Of course, for those who know and love Levi, he is proof enough. But for those who don't have the

Shakers - More than Chair Makers

2005-09-26T11:18:00.000-07:00

So:This weekend we watched a Ken Burns documentary about The Shakers, an enigmatic and eccentric Christian group that reached its height in the 1800's. The Shakers received their name from the frantic dancing and gyrating that often accompanied their worship; a modern day example would be some Pentecostal churches (absolutely no offense intended). It's interesting to me that their style of

My Better Half Continued...

2005-09-20T11:00:00.000-07:00

The Grace of Life.I figured that I'd talk a little bit more about 1 Peter 3:7 and its meaning and instructions. Previously, in my first post on this subject, we focused more specifically on the idea of the wife as the "weaker vessel" and discussed the varieties of possible meanings.1 Peter 3:7 : "Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker

Two Things

2005-09-14T00:00:00.000-07:00

Where do all the big pairs of scissors go once they've cut the ribbon?After many hours spent tinkering with a programming language that I didn’t really understand, I finally created a template worthy of The Gist of It. Consider it a new look for a man entering the second half-decade of marriage; a mid-decade crisis, if you will. However, rather than going out and buying a shiny new sports car (

My Better Half

2005-09-12T12:16:00.000-07:00

On the road of life, together...Specific:Recently Alison and I celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary. The day passed as most others, without much fanfare or pomp and circumstance. We didn't even get each other the compulsory anniversary gifts advocated by Hallmark (this being the fifth year, the traditional anniversary gift is "wood," and the contemporary gift is "silverware;" Go figure...).I

On Writing Again - Influences

2005-09-08T09:16:00.000-07:00

I'd like to thank everyone for the awesome comments on our previous post. You have honestly given me more impetus to continue shaping my craft in the hopes that someday it will reach and affect an audience larger than myself. Now I'd like to talk quickly about influences.My wife has often called me a chameleon, because in any given social setting I can take on the personalities, likes and

On Writing

2005-09-02T08:56:00.000-07:00

I have been told on numerous occasions that everyone has at least one book milling around inside of them. This book is so crystallized in people's minds that it seems like all one would have to do to write it would be to find time, and when you put that pen to paper (or your hands on the keys) the words would simply spill out of you, as if you've been taken over by your story and are simply a

Baby Update!

2005-08-26T12:55:00.000-07:00

Good afternoon.Due to the urging of at least one faithful reader, and my persistent desire to make this post as uncontroversial as possible, I have decided to post...A Baby Update!!!!!!!!!!!!While I don't think this is the cutest picture we have of Eden, I do think it is one of the funniest. And yes, she is cute. She is already six weeks old, and is starting to smile and look at you like she

I'm a Right Wing Fundamentalist (and other sordid confessions)

2005-08-19T11:08:00.000-07:00

Would a right-wing fundamentalist really smoke a cigar?Is that a beer in the fundamentalist's hand? I'm tired. I'm tired of gross oversimplification of issues, people, and beliefs. I'm tired of being called a bible-thumping right-wing fundamentalist, not because the moniker doesn't necessarily fit, but because the words are loaded with negative baggage. I'm tired of being lumped into a fringe

Annihilation - Part 3

2005-08-15T10:18:00.000-07:00

I apologize very sincerely for my delay in getting back to this topic. Since the last post, I’ve had to wipe my computer clean, reformat my hard drive, take a trip to Santa Cruz to visit some friends, and even work some. So I just haven’t had time. But here I am now. For those of you holding your breath, please exhale now. Pheeeewwww!!!

Annihilation - Part Two

2005-08-09T09:49:00.000-07:00

Welcome back all!In the previous post, we laid the groundwork for our study on the nature of hell and the consideration of the annihilationist position. Please read the first post if you haven’t already. As I said previously, this post will be mainly a defense of the traditional position regarding hell. I think it is extremely important that we should thoroughly grasp the arguments and strengths

Annihilation - Part One

2005-08-05T15:56:00.000-07:00

Well, I racked my brain and I couldn't think of anything else to say, so: back to controversy. We're going to study if annihilation is biblical. I'd like to thank Paul over at the Fish Bowl for constantly riding me about my lack of posting on this subject over at his blog, which ultimately led me to defend my belief here on my blog. It feels a lot better defending

The Gist of It

2005-07-27T16:08:00.000-07:00

So...I helped somebody out yesterday. I was sitting at home, relaxing with my family after a day of work, and a knock came at my door. We're not very accustomed to knocks at my house, because the person who comes over to our house the most is a 2 year old who usually announces herself by laying on the doorbell five or six times. It could have been just about anybody. Turns out it was my next-door

Is Abortion Biblical?

2005-07-22T10:42:00.000-07:00

All right, I have to do it. I have to be controversial again; but it's only because someone else's site incited me to action, not because I savor controversy. I visited a web site today that argues not only for the morality of abortion, but also attempts to show the bibical support for abortion. And that is what made me kind of distressed. I think that non-Christian's belief about abortion is

Tech Thursday on The Gist of It

2005-07-21T10:04:00.000-07:00

As if there weren't enough nerds...I've decided to devote this post to two applications that deserve all the recognition I can muster. Today being Thursday, I thought I'd be generous and give two unique thoughts for the price of one. Because I'm a nice guy, and all. And because I want this post to stay fresh for a few days.Giving a whole new meaning to the phrase "they're watching you," the

Eden Glory Kerbel

2005-07-18T14:18:00.000-07:00

"Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord; and the fruit of the womb is His reward. As arrows in the hands of a mighty man; so are the children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them; they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate." Psalms 127So:On 12:38 AM early friday morning, July 15th, I became a father of two. Alison had gone to the

Shout-Outs

2005-07-14T14:11:00.000-07:00

Well the baby still isn't here. I'll have to come up with something else to talk about. So:I think it's cool how a blog community comes into being. You find a blog because it's done by someone you know; you find it because you're surfing for people with the same interests; you join a bloggers group and check in on the others; you come upon a blog while simply surfing; and you become some strange,

And the winner is...

2005-07-12T10:10:00.000-07:00

This is it! After 106 votes for your favorite M. Night Shyamalan movie, the results have been tallied. If you think 106 votes is too small to dictate a proper majority...hey, I was getting anxious to put up another poll, OK?According to the poll, everyone's favorite M. Night movie was:1. The Sixth Sense (44 votes, 42%) To which I say, big surprise...2. Unbreakable (23 votes, 22%) This was a bit

Still Waiting...

2005-07-11T11:11:00.000-07:00

Well: We were pretty sure that Alison would have the baby by now, but Eden remains in utero up to this moment. Not anything to worry about--her due date is still ahead of us. She was having some pretty intense contractions this weekend, but Eden decided that she still wanted to remain in some contorted "bikram-yoga" like position for another few days. We just saw a picture this weekend of a baby

2005-07-08T10:12:00.000-07:00

A funny coincidence? I think not...Today's message is entitled, "dealing with blogger's block."This is it. I have run the gamut of all my good blogging ideas, I am the proverbial old dog, devoid of any new tricks. I am in the throes of a particularly nasty case of "blogjam" (Copyright 2005, The Gist of It, may be reproduce with written permission). The name, she is very clever, no? Remember how

Reruns

2005-07-05T10:26:00.000-07:00

Many paths to the same mountain top? As a blogger, there's usually a time when you wish that the original insights you or others posted on the comments page were getting more exposure. Most of the time, unfortunately, that wish goes unfulfilled, and the sharp insights and wisdom trapped in the comments are soon choked and covered by the dust of their own inactivity. I have resolved not to let

The Sound of Inevitability

2005-07-01T09:09:00.000-07:00

So, on Wednesday night Paul Legge invited me to go watch his softball game. Alison and I had nought else to do, so we agreed to come and root his team on. There was no hint of a conspiracy, nor a whisper of subterfuge. I still believe that Paul invited me in innocence, not knowing how the night would unfold. So we followed him to the game, and we watched Abby play with Autumn, and watched the

Tagged

2005-06-29T14:12:00.000-07:00

Was I really that good-looking? And what exactly is Abby wearing? Ok, here we go. My first tagging! Being "it" really has a mix of emotions. On the one hand, you're glad to be the center of attention. On the other hand, everyone's running away from you.10 years ago...I was 15, living in Livermore, and sadly I was a wanna-be gangster and death rocker all rolled into one. I listened to hardcore