GroshLink

Would that these [i.e., the Scriptures] were translated into each and every language … Would that the farmer might sing snatches of Scripture at his plough and that the weaver might hum phrases of Scripture to the tune of his shuttle, that the traveler might lighten with stories from Scripture the weariness of his journey. -- Erasmus, for more visit Tom's post Are you singing snatches of Scripture at home, work, & play?

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In just over a month we have seen God provide $11,000 of the $13,000 of ministry budget still needed by June 30. We are so thankful and encouraged to see this provision. Please join us in praising Him for this answer to prayer. We look forward to seeing how He will continue to fund this work.

To keep in touch through the summer, we encourage you to keep up with Groshlink, stay connected on Facebook, and pray through the July prayer calendar. As for the Emergingscholars Blog, please check out the book discussion of John Stott’s InterVarsity Press classic Your Mind Matters and dig into yesterday's post Week in Review — Cultural Power, Galileo, Naivete. If your small group, local congregation, or ministry would have interest in having us share about our work over the course of the next several months, please be in touch.

One more day by the grace of God alone,

Tom & Theresa Grosh
InterVarsity Christian Fellowship
Mid-Atlantic Faculty Ministry Catalyst
Brethren in Christ World Missions Affiliate
http://www.groshlink.net/
http://blog.emergingscholars.org/author/tomg/

Financial support for this strategic ministry should be directed to "InterVarsity Christian Fellowship" P.O. Box 7895, Madison, WI 53707-7895. Please enclose a separate piece of paper indicating that the gift is for the work of "Tom Grosh." On-line giving available at www.intervarsity.org/donate/to/Tom_Grosh

Students and Faculty Transformed, Campus Renewed, and World Changers Developed.

Check out the below email from the Central Pennsylvania Forum for Religion and Science for a few on-line resources regarding and an upcoming lecture on Robert Boyle.  Hope to see some of you Monday, 7pm, Pine Street Church, Harrisburg, PA. If you're not able to make it, but interested in my notes, let me know.

The topic of next Monday's talk at Pine Street Church is Robert Boyle.  Some will recognize the name immediately: Boyle was a leading physical scientist during the Scientific Revolution, the Boyle behind "Boyle's Law," and one of the most influential creators of the modern scientific method.  He was an exquisitely gifted experimentalist who focused mainly on the physical properties of matter, but he also worked a bit in physiology and the philosophy of science.  Above all, he was the leading writer on science & Christianity during the Scientific Revolution -- much more so than Isaac Newton, Galileo, or anyone else.  If you want more background on Boyle before the lecture, browse the various parts of the Boyle Project:

http://www.bbk.ac.uk/boyle/

For a short introduction to my talk, read http://home.messiah.edu/~tdavis/ChristianHistoryEssay.htm.  A much more detailed and wide-ranging version was published as "Robert Boyle's Religious Life, Attitudes, and Vocation” Science and Christian Belief 19.2 (2007): 117-38.  That is the essay that some have purchased as a photocopy.  The abstract for that one is http://home.messiah.edu/~tdavis/Boyle%20Abstract.htm.

Ted Davis, Messiah College, History of Science

P.S. If you're a Robert Boyle fan and/or expert with insights about his Religious Life, Attitudes, and Vocation, please share them here.  If you'd happen to have questions you'd like me to ask Ted, fire away and I'll bring them along Monday evening.

Some 'hot stuff' from the first week of summer — Hop over to the The Emerging Scholars Blog to dig into the Week in Review — Cultural Power, Galileo, Naivete and Your Mind Matters 3: The Mind in Christian Life.

Galileo Before the Holy Office
19th century painting by Joseph-Nicolas Robert-Fleury.
Source: http://library.thinkquest.org/C005358/images/galilei_image01.jpeg

This morning, I've spent some time meditating upon the Word.  I began in the Psalms with the girls.  After they all left the house, I spent some time watching and reflecting upon The Story of the English Bible. The video reminded me of a quote from Erasmus* which speaks to how the voice of God spills out upon all of life.  May the Father through the Spirit stir up the Word and work itself out where-ever you are, in you each and every moment of today.

Would that these were translated into each and every language … Would that the farmer might sing snatches of Scripture at his plough and that the weaver might hum phrases of Scripture to the tune of his shuttle, that the traveler might lighten with stories from Scripture the weariness of his journey.

 (More)

This generated a lot of buzz on Facebook, so I decided to post it here.  I liked it. 

I already had soaked and cooked my own chickpeas (garbanzo beans) and froze them in 2 cup portions.  

2 cups chickpeas

1 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 t. ground cumin

1 t. ground allspice

dash of salt and pepper

dash of ground red pepper (I omitted)

2 garlic cloves

1/2 onion (I omitted)

1 leek

olive oil

1.  Combine chickpeas, cilantro, cumin, allspice, salt, pepper, red pepper, garlic, onion and leek in a food processor, and process until mixture resembles coarse meal.  Divide chickpea mixture into 8 equal portions, shaping each into a 1/2 inch thick patty.

2.  Heat olive oil in a large skillet.  Add patties; cook 3 minutes on each side or until golden.

3.  Spread Yogurt-Tahini Dip in each pita half (or flatbread), fill with 1 or 2 patties.   This made enough for 2 people with moderate appetites. We had about 4 patties left over.

Yogurt-Tahini Dip

1 cup plain yogurt

3 T. tahini (sesame seed paste)

2 T. lemon juice

1 T. chopped parsley

1/2 t. salt

1 garlic clove, crushed (I omitted)

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl; cover and refigerate for 30 min.  I added half of a seedless cucumber cut into chunks.

This week Ellen & Hayley are hanging out at the Landis Valley Museum with my parents.  Fox 43 has several stories on learning PA Dutch Heritage at the 53rd Annual Summer Institute.  Check out ...

• 6-17 The Landis Valley Museum is offering a summer institute
• 6-17 The Landis Valley Museum is a tribute to PA Dutch life in the 18th and 19th Centuries
• 6-17 The 53rd Annual Summer Institute is getting under way in Lancaster County
• 6-17 All summer you can stop by the Landis Valley Museum to learn about PA Dutch life

We'll be sure to pass along a full report from Ellen & Hayley after their week is done ;-)

Tonight I came up with a new theory on personality and I'd like to know if there is more evidence to back it up.  My theory is that a mother can identify the basic personality trait of her child based on how they nursed in the hours and days after birth.  I apologize up front to parents who bottle fed and maybe you can tell me if my theory has any basis in reality for your situation, but I can only speak from my experience.  So...  When I think back to the birth of my children and how they responded to nursing I see evidence of their personalities.  (Sadly Elise was too critical to nurse). 

• Hayley knew what to do from the get-go; no hesitation, no problem. 
• Ellen took a day or two of disinterest and caution before she decided this was a good thing. 
• Eden didn't hold still for one second; she was like wrestling an alligator (yes, she bit too!). 
• Lily knew what to do and was content to do it; never demanding, just content.   (More)

With the kids nestled in bed early and Theresa sewing burp cloths, we spent a fair amount of time discussing Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences as critiqued by Christopher J. Ferguson in Not Every Child Is Secretly a Genius (Chronicle of Higher Education, 6/15/2009).*  One of us (and I won't say who...) said, 

Any parent should know that nature is stronger than nurture.  Not that skills can't be learned or taught, but fundamental personality is just so much nature.  And you can see that often from the first several days after a child is born, as it only takes a short time until you have a pretty good idea of what kind of temperament a child will have.

What are your thoughts?  How would you respond to the below quote from the article?  I have some thoughts, but I am interested in hearing/learning from others.

Aren't there plenty of Ph.D.'s who can't fix their cars? Sure, but the majority of them could learn if they were so inclined. An individual with low "g" [i.e., single intelligence entity] is going to struggle at both book learning and auto repair (although perhaps car mechanics would prove more manageable than literary theory or quantum physics). In other words, individuals high in "g" are going to be able to learn a wider range of activities with greater ease than individuals low in "g". The "g" that assisted our hominid forebears in learning the skills of hunting, gathering, and toolmaking is the same "g" that gives gifted/talented students an advantage in calculus. Of course, one person can't learn everything, so some folks pick, say, European history over Math Without Numbers (or whatever the rage is in mathematics these days). The theory of multiple intelligences fundamentally conflates intelligence and motivation. It's a fatal flaw. Motivation is certainly important, and it works alongside intelligence to produce results. However, having the raw biological machinery of intelligence is simply irreplaceable.  (More)

Do you have a testimony to or suggestion regarding:

the best manner for framing our inescapable duty both to think and to act upon what we think?

In Your Mind Matters, John Stott walks his reader through the great doctrines of creation, revelation, redemption, and judgment (p.22). Any responses to this paradigm?  Note:  Join the converation on Why Use Our Minds? at the ESN blog. 

I haven't watched baseball for awhile, but tonight I turned on the Phillies-Red Sox game to watch with Grandpa Ginder (i.e., Ralph). Hard to believe the first half of the first inning. The Red Sox looked really good with a 5-0 lead stemming from the Phillies giving up walks, errors, runs, and home runs.

It was a relief that the rain brought the tarp on the field after the first inning. The game started back up over an hour later, but it's too late for me to tune in again. A quick glance shows that it's more competitive, well maybe I should take that back as the Red Sox score again. I'm interested in how it turns out and whether it's indicative of who is on top of baseball in 2009 as I doubt the Mets-Yankees series is.  How about the drop on Friday night?  Well maybe I already have my answer, except that I don't keep track of the Los Angeles teams and Tampa Bay seems to be able to beat the Boston.

PS.  It's starting to rain here as I sign-off.  I'm happy to have brought in the towels and the blanket.

News from this morning:

First from Hayley and then from Eden, I heard the excited reports of, She took a step!   After Lily took a couple of steps, Eden exclaimed, She got to be so grown up!

As we discussed Lily's birthday, Eden shared her desire to help out with birthday party preparations and the blowing out of candles.  I tried to explain to Eden that we'll give Lily the first try on her birthday candles.  Later in the conversation Eden offered, I want to make cupcakes so she can blow them out because she's so little. Do we need a recipe?

Now Lily's eating a roll of toilet paper, after someone left the bathroom door open ... gotta help out.  Well, Hayley took care of that but the open bedroom door means that Lily's turned her attention to wrapping her birthday present, i.e., Bubble Lawnmower ... now I have to stop reporting on the situation and help out ;-)

This morning, I received some parent-rest & was able to turn to some writing projects.  Pray for the time to complete these projects by the end of the month. 

Pray for the girls to settle quickly this evening that I may have a block of time for rest from work in order to truly celebrate (and enjoy) Lily Joy's birthday tomorrow.  As Lily Joy turns 1 and the twins have become such a help around the house, I look forward to re-incorporating stretches of solitude in my regular life pattern.  Pray for this to come to pass over the course of the summer months. 

The fruit of solitude is increased sensitivity and compassion for others.  There comes a new freedom to be with people.  There is new attentiveness to their needs, new responsiveness to their hurts. -- Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline, recently came to my attention again via *cino Public Mailing List.

Eden kept active and on her feet throughout our visit to 'da Burgh.  Praise God!

Our trip wrapped up with Eden's facial nerve therapy appointment.  Her time in the office went long,* but well. As a result of the visit, we have some exercises/practices to stimulate the use of her facial muscles, including the closing of her eyelid.  Still considering the recommendation of a 'gold weight' in her eyelid.  Anyone have experience with this form of treatment? (More)

If anything, the pressures against using the mind carefully, honestly & faithfully as an essential aspect of the Christian’s calling are stronger now than ever before. -- Mark Noll, Foreword to Your Mind Matters

Swing by the The Emerging Scholars Blog to take part in ESN's four week on-line discussion of John Stott's Your Mind Matters.  We're beginning with the Foreword/Chapter 1.  By-the-way, if you don't have a copy of the book, click here for a free download of the Foreword/Chapter 1.

Last night our family settled into Pittsburgh w/Mineo's pizza.  Before getting to bed in order to have the strength for a full Saturday of visiting friends in the North Hills and the city, I read Walt Mueller's excellent blog post Jon & Kate. . . Too Late? And prayed for the Jon, Kate, their kids, and those who walk with them.

Although Jon & Kate Plus 8 has caused quite a stir among some of our friends (including those at CPYU), I must confess it's not been on our family's screen.  On the surface, it's our lack of investment in cable programming.   We just don't keep coming across the show and it's not all the rage with whom we hang.  If we lived in the actual neighborhood, it would have been a concern of ours.  So I guess being ~2 miles away can make a difference. ...

More deeply we've always been more interested in real people in real life.  As a genre I find the reality show framing of people, life, and perspective difficult to stomach.  Furthermore, we're not well connected to cultural Christianity's celebrity subculture and have to be continually informed regarding what's hot.  Whether you choose to pull the plug or not, join our family in prayer for Jon & Kate Plus 8 and take time to be Christ with real people in real life right now.

Pray for our family's visit to Pittsburgh this weekend.  We leave on Friday and return Monday afternoon.  The schedule is full as we'll reconnect with friends, former neighbors, students, alumni, and donors. On Sunday we'll worship with a partner congregation where Tom will share a few words and our family with have lunch with interested members of the congregation. Monday morning Eden will visit a facial nerve therapist to assess progress and hopefully come home with some exercises to practice.  Note:  If you're in 'da Burgh and want to see us, drop us an email or call on Tom's cell.

A former pastor of ours likes to remind his congregation that God always pays for what He orders.  In 13 years of full-time ministry with InterVarsity, God has indeed provided for us: spiritually, through His people, and financially.  And we don't intend to starting doubting His provision now.  As fallen human beings our temptation is to have tunnel vision, yet God is (thankfully) so far beyond what we can ask or imagine.  Let us share our financial concerns with you and then please join us in praying for clarity of vision so that we can see where and how God is leading.

Each year we raise approximately $90,000.  This includes operating expenses, travel expenses, salary (including healthcare, etc.).  A portion of this amount is given through churches and the rest through individual donors.  Some donors give monthly and some provide a one-time or periodic gift as they are able.  The great blessing of raising support is seeing the surprising ways that the Lord provides.  We have learned SO many spiritual lessons through this experience and have the privilege of sharing those lessons with our children.  Our fiscal year ends June 30 and as we approach that date, we project a $13,000 shortfall.  We have identified two main reasons for this gap:  (More)

We rejoice in your partnership with our family in extending the Word of Life to individuals and institutions involved in higher education. It's hard to believe how connected we've become not only to those in close proximity, but also around the country through conferencing, the Emerging Scholars Network, and various relational connections. Join us in praying for God's provision as our fiscal year wraps up at the end of June and as begin preparations for a new academic year of pioneering work among Graduate Students, Faculty, and Emerging Scholars.  Click here to view/print our June prayer calendar.