23

Another year closer to Jesus! To help me on my way I received an iPod which will play Mark Driscoll's sermon videos (mp3s are so 2004) and 80GB more; and a wee little book of uncommon prayer. Not to mention good times with family and friends.

Announcing a new Bible translation

The PHV* takes some of Scripture's most clichéd evangelical passages and re-renders them in a form more suitable to today's post-Christian age. An exclusive preview is presented below, with more to follow.

John 1:29ff:

The next day, John saw Jesus coming towards him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, 'A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.'" Jesus, hearing these words, replied, "Sorry, what? I think you must have me confused with someone else."

Slightly nonplussed, John gave this testimony: "I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. And I myself did not know him, but I have seen and I testify that this is God's Chosen One." Jesus said, "Be that as it may (although I'm not convinced) I just have some relevant life experiences to share. I wouldn't like to claim any sort of exclusivity for my beliefs, but wouldn't it be nice if we could all learn to love each other a bit more?"

* Profoundly Heretical Version

Top Gear Motorhome Racing

This week's classic video!

Re:cycling

London

When I moved here last month, I found the Tube to be a good method of getting around. Sure, it was pretty expensive (£2 single journey during the day, into Zone 1) but it was fast, there were plenty of used freepapers to read and the opportunity to see someone really strange. The main downside was (and is) that my flat is 10 minutes' walk from the nearest station. Even given this, I thought that 35 minutes to All Souls and 45 minutes to UCL was pretty reasonable. Imagine my surprise when my trusty Dawes 500 (which I bought for £35 after my last bike was stolen) beat the Central Line every time!

All seemed ideal - saving time and money, and getting fit to boot, with only the 20x greater fatality rate than car drivers to worry about. I had also started to notice that I spend about £3 a day more on food when I cycle, just to recover the energy I spent getting to uni... but there's no such thing as a free lunch after all. Today, however, after cycling for 30 minutes in pouring rain through central London (it started raining just after I set off) I had the inestimable joy of spending 7 hours in an underground, air-conditioned lecture theatre, giving my clothes that still-damp feel as I cycled home again in the drizzle. Hmm... at least the Tube is undercover!

Here's a video I made with some friends the other week.*



* This is a lie.

Lifehouse's Everything

This video is fantastic.