My Top 5 Tina Turner songs

Nutbush City Limits
River Deep Mountain High
We Dont Need Another Hero
What's Love Got To Do With It
The Best

My Top 5 Christmas songs

Driving Home For Christmas
Merry Xmas Everybody
Last Christmas
Fairytale of New York
Angels From The Realms of Glory

Special mention for O Come, O Come, Immanuel... not a real Christmas song but always a winner at this time of year.

Things I didn't know: No 21

The following connections...

Barbara Streisand has been married twice. Her first husband was actor Elliott Gould. Her second husband is actor James Brolin, whom she married on July 1, 1998. While they have no children together, Brolin has two children from his first marriage, including Josh Brolin, another top actor.

How To Find The Minister In You

The opening paragraph to my proposed new book.

“Life as a Presbyterian pastor can be hard. Pressures come from all sides. There is no end to the responsibility. It can feel like being a manager in any ordinary organization. And you even have to pretend that you actually believe in infant baptism. But deep down inside another you longs to be released. Somewhere your real identity is hidden. You want to be a minister. But you can't find that person. One thing is needful. You need to release the real you in you … If that is your current mindset this book is for you.”

I need to find a publisher. I need to write the book. I suppose I would also need to be a Presbyterian pastor, too. But, I'm beginning to realise that writing has got nothing very much to do with reality. So maybe, just maybe, one day I'll finally make it into print... David Shedden. Author.

My Top 5 Pulp songs

Live Bed Show
I Spy
Something Changed
Do You Remember The First Time?
Babies

Things I didn't know: No 20

The 1900 Galveston storm is to date the deadliest natural disaster in United States history.

My Top 5 John Shuttleworth songs

I Can’t Go Back To Savoury Now
Two Margarines
Betty Turpin
Incident On The Snake Pass
Mutiny Over The Bounty

...only at the cross...

"The love of God is seen in its fullness only at the cross of Jesus Christ. The intimations of God's love in creation and providence are somewhat ambiguous. There are earthquakes as well as beautiful sunsets, cancer and other forms of sickness as well as health. Only at the cross does God show his love fully and without ambiguity.

For that reason it is difficult to find a verse in the New Testament that speaks about God's love without also speaking in the same verse or in the immediate context about God's gift of his Son on Calvary."

p332, Foundations of the Christian Faith by James Montgomery Boice. IVP 1986

Things I didn't know: No 19

The Walker Brothers. Not real brothers.

My Top 5 Joni Mitchell songs

Big Yellow Taxi
California
River
Little Green
A Case Of You

Things I didn't know: No 18

I knew that a damp squib was not a damp squid.

But I didn't know that a squib is an explosive device.

My Top 5 Status Quo songs

Rock ‘N’ Roll
Down Down
Marguerita Time
Caroline
Pictures of Matchstick Men

Wars

Peter Hitchens writes,

“Wars – which can only ever be won by ruthless violence – are seldom fought for good reasons, even if such reasons are invented for them afterward. Civilized countries become less civilized when they go to war. And they hardly ever have good outcomes. In fact, I think it safe to say that the two great victorious wars of the twentieth century did more damage to Christianity in my own country than any other single force." The Rage Against God, 79-80

HT: Russell and Duenes

Things I didn't know: No 17

I did not know about John Cowperthwaite. He was Financial Secretary of Hong Kong in the 1960s, widely credited with creating the conditions for the subsequent economic success of Hong Kong. They make bronze busts of this guy to sell to rich people in China.

This fascinating Channel 4 documentary tells the story.

My Top 5 Elton John songs

Bennie And The Jets
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
I’m Still Standing
Daniel
I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues

Any Human Heart

Based on one of the few novels I remember reading with enjoyment, Any Human Heart begins on Channel 4 next Sunday. I hope the drama entices me to read the book again.

Things I didn't know: No 16

Claudia Winkleman is the daughter of Eve Pollard. I don't think there is any connection to Su Pollard.

Another blog

Very good friends bought me an edition of Karl Barth's Church Dogmatics. Two or three friends are joining me in an effort to read through all 14 volumes over the next two years. The blog is really just a log of our progress.

www.onreadingchurchdogmatics.blogspot.com

Thing being, despite my problems with some of Barth's formulations, it's awesome stuff. The depth and scale of the work is superb... and, of course, the way Barth engages with other Christian thinkers down the centuries brilliant.

I can sometimes work out the references to other works. Barth famously quoted lots and lots of material in the original languages.

Like this from Calvin... Omnis recta cognito Dei ab obedientia nascitur... all right knowledge of God is born of obedience.

Which Barth takes to mean you can't do theology without presupposing Christian faith. I think he means the content of Christian faith rather than any experience of Christian faith... but, as is often the case with Barth, I'm just not sure.

Danger

Think about your beliefs.

Read this article.

Are any beliefs worth having safe? Can you hold any belief without influencing your children?

My Top 5 Pet Shop Boys songs

Heart
Being Boring
Suburbia
What Have I Done To Deserve This
Rent