I have about 500+ contacts on my Facebook not because of anything, except that having been lecturing for 4 years, you really come into contact with a lot of people. I am more than happy to connect with people that I have met before, or I have met but forgotten (there have been many such persons).

Having said that, I have a strict policy relating to the type of behaviour that I am comfortable with, especially when it is to do with on-line conversation/interaction. For one, do not stretch the friendship by taking advantage of it. Just because I know you and have contact with you for some time (years even), do not take it upon yourself to be ‘rude’ and ‘display your attitude’.

People who generally come online to have a row or fight, proves that they are not true ‘friends’. True friends take the other person’s consideration, even in having opposing thoughts or convictions. Of course this differs depending on different issues, e.g. spiritual issues versus commercial ones However, the point has to be made that you do not come onboard with a rested determination to put down another person without taking into consideration what is being said. It is like a person who just comes into your house and shouts “Your house looks bad!” repeatedly, even after you have explained yourself.

Such person, I believe, needs to be removed from the ‘friend’ list. At least on my books.

It is unfortunate that some people have such high value on their opinions to the extent where they just come down to the level of ‘name-calling’. If you are not ready to listen to the other side of the fence, “DON’T COMMENT or SAY ANYTHING on MY FACEBOOK!”

Fantastic Four #567 is part two of “Doom’s Master”, a 4 part series done by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch. Excellent duo, telling another excellent tale. Apparently, Victor Von Doom’s masters have come to ‘visit’ him and ends up conveying their displeasure in Doom’s failures. The result is as follows:

The last page of the issue shows the Marquis of Death donning Doom’s face armour, declaring himself as the ‘New Doctor Doom’. Chilling!

Probably a better read once the trade comes out

The titled article is from Sword & Trowel 2009, No. 1. I have to admit that the piece is thought-provoking and blunt on the direction which Calvinism is heading in mainstream reformed evangelical circles. At the end, I cannot help but observe that one of the main issues that Dr. Masters have against this ‘new Calvinism’ is their public congregational worship. That seems to be the chief contention from what I can summise from the article. I think I am more concern with the 2nd point listed; ’soft separation from worldliness’.

The new Calvinists constantly extol the Puritans, but they do not want to worship or live as they did. One of the vaunted new conferences is called Resolved, after Jonathan Edwards’ famous youthful Resolutions (seventy searching undertakings). But the culture of this conference would unquestionably have met with the outright condemnation of that great theologian.

Resolved is the brainchild of a member of Dr John MacArthur’s pastoral staff, gathering thousands of young people annually, and featuring the usual mix of Calvinism and extreme charismatic-style worship. Young people are encouraged to feel the very same sensational nervous impact of loud rhythmic music on the body that they would experience in a large, worldly pop concert, complete with replicated lighting and atmosphere. At the same time they reflect on predestination and election. Worldly culture provides the bodily, emotional feelings, into which Christian thoughts are infused and floated. Biblical sentiments are harnessed to carnal entertainment. (Pictures of this conference on their website betray the totally worldly, showbusiness atmosphere created by the organisers.)

In times of disobedience the Jews of old syncretised by going to the Temple or the synagogue on the sabbath, and to idol temples on weekdays, but the new Calvinism has found a way of uniting spiritually incompatible things at the same time, in the same meeting.

The full article can be read here: http://www.metropolitantabernacle.org/?page=articles&id=13

I can understand the danger that is expressed in the article and the implications if this ‘compromise’ is unchecked. However, I think it begs the question of what then are the essentials of Reformed teaching and practice in world that is changing culturally? There is a need to properly (and accurately) dissect out the Puritan way of life from the Puritan age in which they lived in. I find my thoughts straying back to Edmund S. Morgan’s excellent dissertation entitled: “The Puritan Family”, which debunks many myths concerning the lifestyle of the Puritans.

This is not a matter to be taken lightly, as the charges which Dr. Masters make upon the New Calvinist is very serious (if true on every point). We cannot just ignore the warning, thinking that it is only coming from a small (but prominent) Reformed Baptist church in the UK, nor can we just hope to wish it away (not when Mark Driscoll and his type of amalgamation with culture is getting more followings among Reformed churches).

May God give us the sensibility to understand and come to a real understand of God’s Will in these matters. I for one would admitedly need it.

According to a previous game developer in his blog post at http://godpatterns.com/post/status-update:

The original plan was – move to new job, then buy a computer to develop on (as I didn’t want to send my old one to Singapore), then resume posting.

This was a reasonably good plan, but unfortunately Ksatria’s financial backing started to falter then eventually died and the company went under. It’s a shame because the game was looking very good. At the moment I’m still in Singapore. I’ve had a few queries about possible positions here and back in the UK. In the immediate future I’ll be returning to the UK.

In his resume, he states simply:

Ksatria Gameworks
Jurong, Singapore
August 2008 – February 2009 [Company closed due to financial reasons]

I personally would think that this is a good source of information. The person lost his job due to the problems faced by Ksatria, which is not surprising since Singapore has been badly affected by the financial recession for the last 1 year.

It is a real shame… but it is not surprising. Too many Intellectual Properties (IP) like Lone Wolf has been promised a Triple A development funding but when the economy landscape shifts (as it always does), you find that their previous estimates were a bit too ‘positive’ and smaller problems are multiplied… before you know it, disaster happens within; stifled cash flow, rumour-mongering, cutbacks, etc.

I hope that the game license will be passed on to another (as in sold) game studio to pick up. It is sad to see my most favourite gamebook series coming up dud in the computer games translation.

I think I have had enough with Marvel Comics (the company producing Spider-man and Iron Man) in their playing around with the comic book industry. Paying RM14 for a 22-paged comic book is really RIDICULOUS! No way I would spend that amount on one lousy comic that does not bring much lasting entertainment. I remembered when it was already considered expensive to spend RM6.80 for a single issue of WILDC.A.T.S…. Sigh. And the truth of the matter is this: they are doing it because they just want higher returns. Read an excerpt from a presentation conducted by John Turitzin, Marvel’s general counsel and EVP of the executive office, which he presented at the Cowen & Company 37th Annual Technology, Media and Telecom Conference in New York recently:

During the presentation, Turitzin gave an overview of Marvel — a “cash machine,” he called it — and the various ways it makes money, from publishing and licensing to the more recently added Marvel Studios division. Like I said on Friday, one of the more interesting portions came when a comic fan in the audience asked about recent cost increases on some of Marvel’s more popular titles from $2.99 to $3.99.

“We’re always testing our pricing on our comic books to see to the extent to which it is inelastic, and we can increase our profit in that business,” Turitzin said. He added that different books have different price points, noting the most popular titles saw a price increase, while the lower-selling monthlies, as well as the comics aimed at kids, did not.

“We’re just looking to maximize our profits for that business while not alienating our own fan base by making them feel that they’re gouged, which I hope you don’t feel,” he told the fan.

When asked if Marvel would consider lowering the cover price if revenue started to drop, Turitzin said, “Our goal is to maximize our revenue, and if we’re not maximizing revenue then our pricing is wrong, and we have to take a look at that … so you can hope we see that attrition, and our prices come down.”

The full eyewitness account can be read from http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2009/05/more-on-marvels-price-increases/. There you have it.

If I buy a comic book, it will be in graphic novel format or tradepaperback. At least I get more value for money than what I get from a lousy 22 paged comic book. How stupid do these people think we are anyway?

Doink!

The actual meaning of the word ‘Prodigal’ is ‘lavish’ or ‘extravagant’. Most of the time it is in connection to the attitude of the person who is spending what is in his (or her) possession. It does not mean ‘lost’.

That is something that I only found out when I checked the actual meaning from the dictionary. The problem stems from the fact that it comes from one of the most popular (if not the most popular) parable (story) which Jesus Christ told. It is recorded for us in Luke 15:11-32. In that parable, the younger son is said to have spent his possessions in ‘prodigal living’ (based on the NKJV translation). The younger son was also tagged with the label ‘lost’ by his father, for he left the confines of the father’s house in order to lose himself from his father’s control.

The two terms were confused because many in the church would refer to that parable as either, “The Prodigal Son” or “The Lost Son”. Totally different words.

Now I know

This is a very good trailer. Don’t you think that the main baddie looks like Darth Vader, sans the metalic casing? Very exciting sword fights and all. But, I am quite sceptical over the game play. Not until I see the in-game trailer

This trailer was released in E3 2009.

The game is going to be an MMO (Massively Multiplayer Online) and features something interesting (for the moment):

… every non-playable character in BioWare’s upcoming PC MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic talks. Every single digital denizen BioWare has created to populate the game’s universe will have something to say. Useful dialogue or not, this is an impressive feat — an industry first, as we were told during Electronic Arts’ E3 press conference this afternoon.

Quote from http://www.destructoid.com/e3-09-every-npc-talks-in-star-wars-the-old-republic-134391.phtml

Wow! This is a must have for classic gamers! Time to don the pirate hat again, matey! Arrrrrr……… hahahaha.

The best part of the remake is the ability to shift between both versions at any time!!!! Wow… that would be so cool for those who are heavy on the nostalgia (e.g. me!). Hahaha. Hope to see this soon!

GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900

Announced: 2006, September

Available

Dimensions	110 x 53 x 22.5 mm
Weight	140 g

Type	TFT resistive touchscreen, 65K colors
Size	240 x 320 pixels, 2.4 inches
	- Handwriting recognition

Alert types	Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
Speakerphone	Yes

Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
Call records	Practically unlimited
Internal	64 MB RAM, 192 MB ROM
Card slot	miniSD

GPRS	Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 – 48 kbps
HSCSD	No
EDGE	No
3G	No
WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11b/g
Bluetooth	Yes, v1.2
Infrared port	Yes
USB	Yes, miniUSB

Primary	2 MP, 1600×1200 pixels, autofocus, LED flash
Video	Yes
Secondary	No

OS	Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 PocketPC
CPU	Intel XScale PXA 272 416 MHz processor
Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML (PocketIE)
Radio	No
Games	Yes
Colors	Silver
GPS	No
Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
	- Pocket Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF viewer) - MP3/AAC/AAC+/WMA/OGG/AMR player - WMV/MP4 player - T9 - Voice dial

	Standard battery, Li-Po 1300 mAh
Stand-by	Up to 150 h
Talk time	Up to 4 h 30 min

From GSMarena here

I bought this phone last year in May 2008. It was already out at the end of 2006. Now, I have no gripes with this phone except that it is now a dinosaur compared to the other newer phones out there. One thing it still beats is the presence of infrared on it. There is nothing much you can do about the hardware on this device (really, there’s none). But software is a whole other question

Anyway, if you really feel like putting some life into it, I would recommend that you upgrade the ROM (operating system) from Windows Mobile 5 to Windows Mobile 6.5. You can get more information from: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=516595 – it contains the latest ROM version (it is the 21725wwe version, updated as of 28th May). Bugs and all can be forwarded to the ‘cook’: slimshadyliran@gmail.com who really has a lot of time on his hands (to which the community of XDA Stealth users are grateful for).

It is easy to upgrade. But remember, you will lose all information from your main ROM (mobile hard disk space).

Simple Tutorial on How to Flash the Thing:

I would encourage you to make a backup of your contacts into your SIM card before proceeding. It will wipe everything out!

• Unrar the package
• Copy gbcall.nb0 to the root folder of your storage card (MiniSD)
• Turn off the phone
• Hold the Green button and Red buttons (‘Call’ and ‘End’) while pressing the power button (to switch the device on)
• Wait for the screen to show ” Search Image” – Found “file name”… etc.
• It will detect the ROM file and after about 10 minutes the phone will reboot
• Copy the net3.5 folder to “storage card\program files\” on your storage card

Hmmm… apparently it supports SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity aka SD 2.0). That means you can bump the storage to above 4GB which was the limit previously. Interesting. Maybe I should have kept my Stealth (if only the receiver was not buzzing!).

These are of course unofficial releases since the original manufacturers are not supporting the device anymore. Trust the developers at XDA-Developers.com to continue on with the upgrading process. If you have any PDA which you think is a bit too old for your liking, just browse at http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=259

It is here that the main issue comes out clearly against N. T. Wright’s (his website is shown above) novel approach to future justification:

According to the vision of final judgment in Revelation 20:11-15, it is only those outside of Christ who will be judged according to their works.  John says, “I saw the dead, great and small standing before the throne, and books were opened” (Rev. 20:12).  The question is, “To whom does John refer when speaking of ‘the dead’?”  On a simple reading, we might assume that he means everyone who had previously been dead prior to their resurrection, that is, all persons who ever lived.  But on more careful consideration, we should realize that those who are resurrected to death are only those who are resurrected for eternal condemnation.  Jesus noted two categories of persons resurrected in the future: some will be raised “to the resurrection of life,” whereas the wicked will rise “to the resurrection of judgment” (Jn. 5:29).  Now, John says in the Revelation, “the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done” (Rev. 20:12).  Here is the final judgment according to works, by which every man and woman outside of Christ will give an account before his holy judgment seat.  But John mentions another book, by which those who are raised to life are justified: “If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire” (Rev. 20:15).  By necessary inference, some are judged by their works and thrown into the lake of fire, and others are not condemned because their name is in the book of life.

Richard Phillips gives us a general argument against Wright’s position, which you can read fully here: http://www.reformation21.org/articles/five-arguments-against-future-justification-according-to-works.php. If you are confused over the issue of Future Justification according to N.T. Wright, it basically says that the believer in Christ, is finally justified by works in the future. This is a departure from Classical Reformed teaching that was recovered by Luther and Calvin in the 17th century.

Again, this calls into question all these newer (modern) takes on Christian doctrines that departs from the history of the faith. Although I never believe in the extreme orthodoxy of some churches (e.g. Rome and Greek), but it is good to keep the understanding that our Christian forefathers had the same Spirit that is working in our contemporary believers today. It is wise not to discount the past just because we are lazy or because of pride in what is ‘novel’.

Sad to see so many in Malaysia trying to hold on to new concepts that were traditionally taught in their churches, not knowing that they are novel doctrines that just came out 100 years before. It is soberring to consider that we have to always be vigilant and come back to the bible  and to study it (not just memorise) by having the whole counsel of God as a measure against what we are taught.

This is the best rap song on Calvin’s teaching on Particular Redemption. Thoroughly biblical point which highlight’s Jesus Christ’s work on earth to save sinners, and not merely to make it ‘possible’ to save. The lyrics are very good:

Verse 1

Here’s a controversial subject that tends to divide
For years it’s had Christians lining up on both sides
By God’s grace, I’ll address this without pride
The question concerns those for whom Christ died
Was He trying to save everybody worldwide?
Was He trying to make the entire world His Bride?
Does man’s unbelief keep the Savior’s hands tied?
Biblically, each of these must be denied
It’s true, Jesus gave up His life for His Bride
But His Bride is the elect, to whom His death is applied
If on judgment day, you see that you can’t hide
And because of your sin, God’s wrath on you abides
And hell is the place you eternally reside
That means your wrath from God hasn’t been satisfied
But we believe His mission was accomplished when He died
But how the cross relates to those in hell?
Well, they be saying:

God knows He tried (8x)

Verse 2

Father, Son and Spirit: three and yet one
Working as a unit to get things done
Our salvation began in eternity past
God certainly has to bring all His purpose to pass
A triune, eternal bond no one could ever sever
When it comes to the church, peep how they work together
The Father foreknew first, the Son came to earth
To die- the Holy Spirit gives the new birth
The Father elects them, the Son pays their debt and protects them
The Spirit is the One who resurrects them
The Father chooses them, the Son gets bruised for them
The Spirit renews them and produces fruit in them
Everybody’s not elect, the Father decides
And it’s only the elect in whom the Spirit resides
The Father and the Spirit- completely unified
But when it comes to Christ and those in hell?
Well, they be saying:

God knows He tried (8x)

Verse 3

My third and final verse- here’s the situation
Just a couple more things for your consideration
If saving everybody was why Christ came in history
With so many in hell, we’d have to say He failed miserably
So many think He only came to make it possible
Let’s follow this solution to a conclusion that’s logical
What about those who were already in the grave?
The Old Testament wicked- condemned as depraved
Did He die for them? C’mon, behave
But worst of all, you’re saying the cross by itself doesn’t save
That we must do something to give the cross its power
That means, at the end of the day, the glory’s ours
That man-centered thinking is not recommended
The cross will save all for whom it was intended
Because for the elect, God’s wrath was satisfied
But still, when it comes to those in hell
Well, they be saying:

God knows He tried (8x)

I don’t agree with the entire ‘video’, what with the depiction of the Lord and all, but the music is intriguing enough to warrant inclusion in my post.

It’s nice to see the chorus playing on the absurdity of those who do not understand Particular Redemption (also known as Limited Atonement)… they will be the one saying “God knows He tried”, which is a sad utterance on a Lord who was supposed to save, and not just ‘make it possible’.

I didn’t see this coming. Very few sites (less than 2) still keep track of Yoshiki’s projects. Anyway, this has been released to iTunes and it is one of the better Yoshiki songs. But look at the lyrics… very very cryptic. Typical Yoshiki-ness. Hahaha.

Feeling the wind blowing from the sea
Caressing my skin with its breath
To trace my memories carved in the sand
I’d be crawling at the bottom of the ocean

Kiss me softly in the daydream
Love’s undressing the sky of suicide-blue
Embrace its beauty lost in the stream
The stream or the clouds still blinding my eyes

Will you wipe my tears if you are the rain
Will you dry my face if you are the wind
That’s swaying roses, spreading the red
Into the sky that’ll veil and close my eyes
I still see your smile

I feel so lonely without your love
I bury myself in the sea of the dark side

When I become the wind, I’ll fly across the sky
And whisper the scream
Into the seam between two worlds

The one we breathe and the one we dream
When the love turns into ashes
Will it survive with all its senses
Or will it die before its life ever lives
Still feeling the earth beneath my feet
Letting the world suck my soul
I feel so dirty to believe in
Believe in myself and a phantom of the new sky

Will you wipe my tears if you are the rain
Will you dry my face if you are the wind
That’s swaying roses, spreading the red
Into the sky that’ll veil and close my eyes
But I still see your smile

Saw this from: http://www.newsweek.com/id/197891/page/4

And the last movie you saw?
Now, movies I’ve been doing OK [with] because it turns out we got this nice theater on the ground floor of my house … So Star Trek, we saw this weekend, which I thought was good. Everybody was saying I was Spock, so I figured I should check it out and—[the president makes the Vulcan salute with his hand].

Very good.
Yes, absolutely.

Did you watch that when you were growing up?
I used to love Star Trek. You know, Star Trek was ahead of its time. There was a whole—the special effects weren’t real good, but the storylines were always evocative, you know, there was a little commentary and a little pop philosophy for a 10-year-old to absorb.

A lot of U.N. stuff.
Yes, exactly, right.

I like PointUI. I wrote about it previously (search it if you have no idea what it is about). I am very glad to hear and read about this project: http://community.pointui.com/topic/package-android-theme-038-applet-package

I cannot wait for them to finish this momentous project. I think android has much potential that has not been realised, and since I do not have an Android enabled device, PointUI is doing us Windows Mobile users a favour with its applets customization ability.

Go download PointUI already! http://pointui.com/

I love PDA phones. I like the technology that is imbued in such a tiny device and yet with the ability to connect with other devices through normal handphone technology (voice over air). This was and still is my first PDA phone… an O2 XDA Stealth, which I bought last year (same month) for RM600. It has everything that a phone should have; Bluetooth, Wifi, Infrared (how many devices still have this? ) and it is touch screen based. Once you have tried touch screen, you will not go back to a non-touch based device. Really!

The tragedy began 2 days ago when it fell off my hands into the hard concrete floor. Sure, it has slipped off my hands before, but it never quite hit the floor as hard as on Wednesday. There was a dent/scratches to prove it! But what was worse is the audible buzzing noise that irritates me everytime the phone line is in use. It is like having bees trapped in the phone. Sigh. The speaker still works well (it has a very good sound quality) even on its external speakers. Everything else works… except for the (now) retarded buzzing which I cannot seem to fix (it’s hardware… I just can’t fix hardware).

Sigh. My only consolation is the prospects of a new phone Yay! I wonder what I should get?