At 1/2Price Books I found a really cool book on what life was like when Jesus walked the earth. It is very straightforward and authoritative. Excellent! Mom took me out to eat Chinese food. We sat and talked about all kinds of things. It was good spending time with her. I got a fortune cookie that said, "Do not be afraid that the world is ending. It is already tomorrow in Australia!" However, Australia is fourteen hours ahead of us. Therefore, up until 10 a.m., technically speaking we are in the "same day" as Australia. So I crumbled up the fortune and tossed it on the plate. Hogwash.

I hope to spend the rest of the day studying the visions of Amos in the latter part of his book. Amos is a very offensive book to Americans. Amos preached in a time when Israel stood at the zenith of its prosperity and worldwide influence. Amidst the luxuries and commodities, the Israelites soon forgot their God and quickly became ignorant of the suffering throughout the world. Through Amos, God preaches a message demanding abandonment of idolatry and a resurrection of justice. We Americans spend our days watching tv, eating ice cream, and remaining oblivious to the worldwide suffering that surrounds us. This deeply angers God. The prophecies of Amos ought to make us uncomfortable, ought to convict us... and they ought to terrify us.

Tomorrow I have a (possibly) controversial post: "Three Views on Baptism." The first two are the most popular view; the third view is the view I hold to. It's always good to see different views to something so controversial as baptism.