Monday Melange

A vicarious visit to Paris...promising news in stem cell research...and reflections on redeeming the time


"Main Entry: mé·lange
Pronunciation: mA-'länzh, -'länj
Function: noun
Etymology: French, from Middle French, from mesler, meler to mix -- more at MEDDLE
: a mixture often of incongruous elements"

Today's post is going to be kind of a hodge-podge.

First, I've been poring enviously over my friend Joy's pictures of France. Joy is living in Bordeaux, teaching English as a second language, and her photographs are so lovely and evocative, they make me want to hop a plane and go there right now.

You must understand that I've been drawn to French things since I was a little girl living in Beirut, Lebanon. Lebanon was once under direct control of France, and the French influence was still strongly obvious when I lived there in the mid-60's. My desire to visit France is almost right up there with my ever-present desire to visit the UK.

Anyway, do check out Joy's snapshots of her New Year's weekend in Paris, especially if you've ever yearned to visit the City of Light.

Keep these men in your prayers

Coral Ridge Ministries founder D. James Kennedy and Southern Baptist Theological Seminary president Al Mohler continue to improve after suffering serious health setbacks in recent weeks. For an update on Dr. Kennedy, go here; for more on Dr. Mohler, here.

Dr. Kennedy's radio program, Truths that Transform, airs one one of the stations where I work, Radio 91.

New possibilities with stem cell research

A way to harvest stem cells without harming mother or preborn baby? Looks promising.

Makes you wonder, though, if anti-lifers will find a way to try to cling to the destructive way. (Boy, I'm getting cynical.)

Redeeming the time?

Having a brother who is a Gulf War marine veteran and police officer now training Iraqi cops in Iraq, I can so identify with this post by Phil Johnson of Pyromaniacs.

Phil's son, cyberly-known as Pecadillo, is an L.A. cop. Reflecting on the recent shooting of Pecadillo's partner, Phil writes: "Had it not been Pecadillo's day off, he would no doubt have been there when this perp—with no warning whatsoever—opened fire on officers serving him a warrant.

"It's unsettling, of course, to watch the lead story on the evening news and have it hit so close to home. It's a somber reminder of the truth of James 4:13-16—a passage which itself is both sobering and comforting. God is sovereign in the outworking of His providence. Our times are in His hand (Psalm 31:15). But life itself is a vapor (James 4:14), and we cannot take the future for granted. We therefore need to be redeeming the time."

Amen.