Random Wordiac

Same routine as Monday, rose up early and took a shower, breakfast at 7:15, then in class at 8:15. Something I forgot to add on Day 1: Every morning the Class Director would lead us in the pledge to the American and Christian flag, as well as singing the first stanza of Amazing Grace.

Today started out with Dr. Noebel (the President and Founder of Summit Ministries) doing the Bible Hour. This consisted of a Verse of the Day and Thought for the Day, as well as a list of Why You Should Study the Bible.

Verse of the Day: "Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge." Proverbs 23:12.
Thought: Christian Leadership involves servanthood (Mark 10:24) and a non-quitting attitude (2nd Corinthians 4).

Why You Should Study the Bible:
1. It's a part of World Literature
2.Had a great influence on our nation
3.Had a great influence on Western Civilization
4.It's a mark of an Educated Man
To be contintued...

Lecture 1: Dr. Michael Bauman, The Meaning of Meaning
Dr. Bauman is permanet staff with Summit, and also teaches at the Summit Semester program.
Notes: This was basically on the purpose and absoluteness of meaning.

• Ideas have consequences, bad ideas have bad consequences (this is the theme of Summit, it's even on the t-shirts...I think on the tshirts it sounds like you went to a Reform Camp for bad kids :D).
• Sloppy language makes sloppy thought possible
• Meaning = Interpretation FALSE
• Meaning=Meaning TRUE
• Epiphenomenon-a secondary or derivative existence, owing it's life to something else (cool word, eh?)
• Conclusion: Meaning has meaning. We should not base meaning on our interpretation.

Lecture 2: Bauman, The Problem of Pain
Basic question: If God is good, why is there pain/evil/bad stuff in the world?

1.If God were good, He would want to make people happy.
2.If God were all powerful, He could do what He wanted and could make people happy.
3. But People suffer. Therefore, God lacks goodness, or power, or both.
-CS Lewis

But-

• Inexorable love- love that does the best for the loved one
• Megaphone- pain is "God's Megaphone to the world" (Lewis)

"Love is not Beanie Babies for your soul"
"Life has rumble strips"
Basically, we don't know what God knows is good for us.

Lecture 3: Bauman, Dangerous Samaritans
This lecture was on basic economics and welfare reform.

Notes:
False Charity-Poverty is not a money problem
Reforming Welfare-
1. Put welfare inthe hands of contributors, not recipients or bureaucrats
2.Re-define poverty
3.Re-educate the politicians and poor
4. NO PERFECT SOLUTIONS
5.Provide tax credits for companies that hire and train people on welfare
6. Welfare is not a one-size-fits-all problem

Lunch! Then back to class...

Lecture 4: Darrell Furgason, Islam II
This lecture was a continuation of yesterday's lecture and dealt with dealing with Islam in international relations.
Notes:
Islam is an ideology.

• A political ideology and vision
• Divine social order
• Goal: The perfect "State"
• Blueprints for social reality

"We are not Socialist, we are not Capitalist, we are Islamic." Anwar Ibrahim, VP of Malaysia, 1998
Biblical Foundations for International Relations:

1. We are at war with Ideas (2nd Corinthians 10:4)
2. Collosians 2:8
3. Wrong Ways to develop Nations

• Marxist- 170 Million dead
• Islamic-Jihad and Totalitarianism
• Humanist-Liberalism, Moral Decline
• Christian-Jeremiah 9:23,24
  

4.Focus is on Truth
5. Renew the Mind-develop Biblical perspectives on each discipline
6. God works on Earth through His people to bring about Justice-in politics, in law, in society
7.God has goals and a strategy in human history
8.Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done....(Matt. 6:9)
9. Disciple the Nation
10. Redemption from Sin applies to everything
Biblical Goal of IR- Psalm 67:1,2

That ended morning lectures and we had about 20 minutes before we headed off to Sports Time at the local (and huge) park. We all ran to get water and whatever else should be necessary at the park, and then hopped on the buses. The park was about 10 minutes down the road, and had 4 large fields, hiking trails, a jungle gym, and a pavillion. I and a few others decided to go hike through the small trails. It was pretty fun, I had never seen wild cactus everywhere before, it was like being in the desert! We attempted to talk while walking up the hills, but found (all of us being from the East and unaccostomed to the air) that it was not very easy. Conversation went something like:
Me: So.....*panting* where are you from?
Florida: I'm *huffs* from Florida *panting* how about you?
Me: ......*breathes* Delaware....
Etc.
After we had hiked about a mile, we looked up and saw rather ghastly clouds coming from over the mountains in the distance and heading right for us. Not wanting to be caught in a thunderstorm on the highest elevation around, we beat it back to the park. Once there, we parted ways and went off to play some sports. I played some soccer, partly in the rain, and then the horn sounded and it was back for dinner.

Lecture 5: Noebel, Worldviews in Collision III
Dr. Noebel focused on the Tribe of Issachar first in this lecture (1st Chronicles 12:32)
Notes:
200 willing to go to battle (tribe of leaders and scholars)
a. They understood the times in which they lived
b. Knew what Israel ought to do
We also read Steve Turner's poem Creed (found here) and added Nietzche, Lukacs, Gramsci, Sanger, Dewey, Derrida, and Foucalt to the first line. ("DERRIDA IS EVIL!" :D that is a note I have written, mostly because I hated much of my Critical Approach to Literature class because of him).

After his lecture ended, we went to Small groups and discusses any questions we had, the lectures, etc, and one of our small group leaders read Max Lucado's "You are Special". Then bedtime!