To Blog or Not To Blog

When I saw that the new site allowed for users to create their own blog I thought, "Wow, now we will really be able to see some wasted bandwidth!" I'm sure there will be all sorts of blogs initiated, with most of the authors imagining that thousands will read their words and be inspired by their creativity, entertained by their wit, and impressed by their command of the english language. But I suspect that the vast majority of these blogs will go largely unread, and many purposely ignored.

So with that in mind, I figured why not begin a blog of my own? After all, surely one more badly written blog won't have any significantly negative impact on the world, will it? To the best of my knowledge, the act of me blogging will not hasten global warming, encourage drug trafficing, or encourage one more adolescent to refrain from the use of punctuation. So why not, say I.

After reaching a verdict to the "to blog or not to blog" decision, the next question is "what will I write about?" I decided that I would leave Heroscape discussions to those who are far more knowledgable about and dedicated to the game. I just spend a lot of money on Heroscape, and as anyone who has followed the presidential campaign can attest, simply spending money on something doesn't make one an expert.

After a full three and a half minutes of contemplation I concluded that there are a few things I know fairly well. One of them is music. I've been playing music and listening to music for most of my 43 years. I am fairly accomplished on multiple instruments and have played professionally in settings ranging from orchestra pit to seedy tavern. But as much as I love music, I honestly have no interest in writing about it. I'd rather just play.

Another thing I know reasonably well is chemical and biochemical engineering. My expertise is in the field of process control, which I continue to teach at UMBC. This is actually my 18th year teaching ENCH 442 - Chemical process Systems Analysis and Control. I don't think I need to explain why I've decided to pass on this as a subject for my blog.

The last topic has to do with my current job. As you will discover by either reading my profile or clicking my signature, I am a pastor. In addition to many tasks, I spend a fair amount of my time preparing for sermons each week. I have always had a love for studying the Bible. As a believer I naturally hold the scripture in high regard. But even if you take my faith out of the picture, I still enjoy studying these ancient texts.

So I thought I would blog about various things that I've discovered, pondered, questioned, wrestled with, and concluded as a result of my weekly exploration of the Bible. Now before you change the channel, let me define a few guidelines that I plan on following.

First, it is not my intention to be "preachy." I have no delusions of "converting the masses" through this blog. It is my intention to simply share what I discover, what I have concluded while leaving it up to the reader to either agree or disagree.

This leads to my second guideline which is that this blog will not become a debate. While I certainly welcome feedback, opposing views, and polite criticism, I have no interest in arguing here. I've done enough of that in the various Heroscape forums over the years and I've decided to give it up for Lent. Besides, I already have enough stress in my life.

Third...well, I haven't really thought that far ahead yet. But if I am successful, then this will be a blog that will accomplishes several things:

1. It will be fun for me to write as it will provide an outlet for some of the results of my studies that don't fit within the framework of a "sermon."

2. It will be an interesting read for those who are followers of Christ. Although it may at times have a "devotional" flair, it will more often wrestle with textual issues, varying interpretations, historic context, and modern application.

3. It will an interesting read for those who are not followers of Christ as it will give a "behind the scenes" glimpse into the Christian faith.

So there it is. I hope to have the first installment done this week, and with a new installment to follow weekly. But then again, who knows. I may change my mind about the whole thing come tomorrow.

Edit- And I will definitely be writing this in MS Word so I won't as many typos as I have in this horrid mess!