Psalm 30

Psalm 30 (NET) reads:
A psalm--a song used at the dedication of the temple; by David.

I will praise you, O LORD, for you lifted me up,
and did not allow my enemies to gloat over me.

2 O LORD my God,
I cried out to you and you healed me.

3 O LORD, you pulled me up from Sheol;
you rescued me from among those descending into the grave.

4 Sing to the LORD, you faithful followers of his;
give thanks to his holy name.

5 For his anger lasts only a brief moment,
and his good favor restores one's life.
One may experience sorrow during the night,
but joy arrives in the morning.

6 In my self-confidence I said,
"I will never be upended."

7 O LORD, in your good favor you made me secure.
Then you rejected me and I was terrified.

8 To you, O LORD, I cried out;
I begged the sovereign Master for mercy:

9 "What profit is there in taking my life,
in my descending into the Pit?
Can the dust of the grave praise you?
Can it declare your loyalty?

10 Hear, O LORD, and have mercy on me!
O LORD, deliver me!"

11 Then you turned my lament into dancing;
you removed my sackcloth and covered me with joy.

12 So now my heart will sing to you and not be silent;
O LORD my God, I will always give thanks to you.

The most chilling line of this psalm is the second half of verse 7. It starts, "O LORD, in your good favor you made me secure," but then adds, "Then you rejected me and I was terrified." That theology is alien to me and I wish it wasn't.

It's not that I wish I would be rejected by God. Obviously, I don't. But it's only the person who has abandoned all confidence in himself and who truly looks to God for protection who can be "terrified" when he senses rejection.

I don't know if I have written about "the fear of God" on this blog before, but it's something that I think is lacking from a lot of our theology. We tend to gravitate toward verses like 1 John 4:18, "There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears punishment has not been perfected in love." (NET) In doing so, we ignore all the OT passages about the "fear of God" (we prefer to talk instead about how the word "fear" should be translated "respect" or "reverence").

One of my former professors, Gunny Hartman, used to say, "I don't know about you, but I serve a God who smokes people for picking up sticks on the wrong day." That God seems strangely foreign to me, and I don't know that's a good thing. I think there was a healthy amount of fear involved in the ancients' understanding of God. YHWH could be a great and terrible God, and if you got on His bad side, bad things happened to you. I think genuine worship flows out of this fear (note verses 1 and 12). It's tough to worship a God that you don't fear.

Now obviously I am just pointing out one side of God. C.S. Lewis' depiction of God of Aslan in The Chronicles of Narnia is probably the best illustration of the need to balance fear with friendship. We can trust God. He's not a tyrant. But neither is He Mr. Rogers.

"Father, forgive us for taking You too lightly. Forgive us for being too comfortable. We confess that You are great and that it is a 'terrible' thing to be abandoned by You. We praise You for Your continuing acts of faithfulness and deliverance. Amen."

Faith Only Lasts Three Generations?

In his book, The World is Flat, Thomas Friedman quotes a Chinese proverb, "Wealth only lasts three generations." The proverb means that when someone becomes wealthy through hard work and wise decisions, they normally pass a little bit of this ethic to their children along with the wealth they leave behind. Their children usually pass down the wealth to the third generation, but not the work ethic, so the third generation squanders the wealth. Friedman's warning is that the ethic that made America great is missing in the rising generation and that without major changes the future could be bleak for the American economy.

As the question of the hour for the American evangelical church is, "Why aren't twenty-somethings in the church?" I wonder if perhaps the Chinese proverb could be applied to faith. Maybe "Faith only lasts three generations."

Americans of three generations ago were great. They made our nation great, and they made evangelicalism great. In the hard years of our country—during World War 1, The Great Depression, and World War 2, a huge number of people became evangelical Christians. Theirs was an authentic faith birthed out of struggle. They experienced first-hand loss, poverty, and gross evil. They had to rely on God. They saw first-hand what the world looked like without God, and the prayers they prayed in fox holes stuck with them when the wars ended.

The generation after them inherited this faith, but they didn't have to work as hard for it. My generation in turn has inherited that faith, but we haven't had to work at all for it.

Essentially, we have a generation of trust-fund Christians who are living off of the faith of their grandparents. It’s no wonder we are leaving the church.

So, what does the future look like for evangelicalism? I think the prediction of our loss of numbers and influence is accurate. I think that when someone has a radical conversion to Christ as an adult, the effects of this conversion will spill over for about three generations. Right now our numbers are high because there were such a large number of adult conversions three generations ago. But the effects of this "revival" or "awakening" are wearing off as the older people are passing away and their less-committed descendants are walking away. So, one of two things will happen:

1. America will continue as it is and Christianity will decline in influence to the levels of Europe. There will continue to be genuine conversions, and these conversions will leave ripples for three generations. But unless the younger generations undergo significant spiritual experiences that cause them to "own" their faith for themselves, the ripples will stop after three generations.

2. America will undergo a catastrophe or in some other way experience "revival." World War 3 or an economic meltdown throws all predictions of the end of Christendom out the window, as they may lead to another time of mass conversion. These conversions may not be to evangelicalism, but to whatever branch of Christianity that best offers hope and an explanation of the catastrophe. The numbers of that branch will swell for three generations.

Regardless of which scenario plays out, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. First, we have a big God who is in control of history. He knows where it is going, and He's going to win in the end. Second, not everyone in the church is a Christian. Just because evangelicalism has large numbers and great influence doesn't mean that "Jesus is winning." The church will always consist of genuine believers and those who just show up for sociological reasons. We should expect nothing more. Third, Christianity is a global movement, not an American one. Ours is an age of a post-Christian west and a post-western Christianity. While the numbers may be down here, the Gospel flourishes in South America, Africa, and East Asia. More and more we will look to them for spiritual leadership. Finally, our kids have to embrace the faith for themselves. They can't inherit our faith. We can do our best to model Christianity for them (and we should, because they can tell what we really believe), but ultimately God has to speak to them, and they have to respond for themselves. So we need to pray for them.

The Evangelical Untouchables

Following up on the success of his Liturgical Gangstas series, Michael Spencer is starting a new series on Internet Monk called The Evangelical Untouchables. He has chosen seven evangelicals to represent six sub-cultures of evangelicalism--Southern Baptist, Calvary Chapel, Church of Christ, Presbyterian Church of America, Christian Missionary Alliance, and two from Dallas Seminary.

I applied and I am on the squad representing DTS and "Non-denominational/Bible Churches." The other DTS guy is Michael Patton from Reclaiming the Mind.

I'll link to all future posts. I have no idea what we will be discussing (but I suspect it is about "The Coming Evangelical Collapse").

Calvinism Is So Hot Right Now

Want to be a part of the movement that is changing the world? Become a Calvinist. So says Time Magazine.

On a related note, I will be following up my "Why I am not a Calvinist" with my "Why I converted to the New Perspective on Paul" post here shortly. I am almost done with the rough draft and I hope to have it done by the end of the month. It's 23 pages right now, so it will be 6 or 7 long posts.

(HT: BHT)

Psalm 29

Psalm 29 (NET) reads:

A psalm of David.

Acknowledge the LORD, you supernatural beings,
acknowledge the LORD's majesty and power!

2 Acknowledge the majesty of the LORD's reputation!
Worship the LORD in holy attire!

3 The LORD's shout is heard over the water;
the majestic God thunders,
the LORD appears over the surging water.

4 The LORD's shout is powerful,
the LORD's shout is majestic.

5 The LORD's shout breaks the cedars,
the LORD shatters the cedars of Lebanon.

6 He makes Lebanon skip like a calf
and Sirion like a young ox.

7 The LORD's shout strikes with flaming fire.

8 The LORD's shout shakes the wilderness,
the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.

9 The LORD's shout bends the large trees
and strips the leaves from the forests.
Everyone in his temple says, "Majestic!"

10 The LORD sits enthroned over the engulfing waters,
the LORD sits enthroned as the eternal king.

11 The LORD gives his people strength;
the LORD grants his people security.

The phrase in verse 1 translated "supernatural beings" by the NET is the Hebrew bene elohim--literally "sons of god" or "sons of the gods." The ESV renders it "heavenly beings," the NIV "mighty ones," and the RSV "heavenly beings." The English versions consistently interpret the phrase as supernatural or heavenly creatures--perhaps angels or pagan "gods."

Whatever David meant by this phrase, he urges the supernatural beings to acknowledge and worship YHWH. He is God of the gods.

David then goes on to describe YHWH's power--His voice cracks trees in half and scares the nations so that they jump like young calves and oxen. The only proper response to His power is to cry "Majestic!"

Finally, David brings it home and reminds Israel that it is this God who gives them strength (i.e. military power as in 1 Sam 2:10) and security (Hebrew shalom).

Again, the psalmist has quite a different worldview than most moderns. He seems to be saying to the people, "Don't worry about such-and-such a nation. If they invade us, YHWH is going to smoke them with the power of his voice." The theology was practical. It helped people sleep at night.

However, 3,000 years later we question David's promises. Sometimes, evil people prosper and the righteous are snuffed out. Sometimes God doesn't give strength or security to His people. Even God's own Son cried out from the cross, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

So, what do we do with psalms like this? A lot of people like to spiritualize them. They say "The Lord is my strength and security," but they mean it in kind of a pop-psychology positive thinking sense--"Even when my life sucks, I can still be strong and at peace mentally." That may well be true, but that is not what the psalmist had in mind when he wrote these words thousands of years ago.

As you can probably tell, I am not a fan of spiritualizing OT language like this. I don't think the words mean that we can be at peace mentally even when we are getting beat down physically. I don't think we can paraphrase this psalm, "The Lord allows me to be delusional about my life circumstances."

Now, I am not denying that God gives us peace of mind. But I think we read "peace of mind" into "peace" way too much in the Bible. I think the ancients were looking for literal peace and literal strength and literal protection. So, how do we reconcile that with our experiences, when we don't see peace and strength and protection? Do we punt and say, "well, the Bible is just talking about peace of mind"?

No. We remember that we still serve a God that can break trees with His voice, and that the story isn't over yet. God has promised to one day make all wrongs right and to wipe away every tear. We can't forget that this is our hope.

"Father, we confess that You are majestic. We cry out with the 'heavenly ones,' 'Majesty!' Forgive us for doubting your ability to save. Forgive us for forgetting your promises. You are enthroned as eternal king, and Your reign will be one of justice and peace. We pray that as we await Your reign, that we may be agents of righteousness, mercy, and peace in Your earth. Amen."

Psalm 28

Psalm 28 (NET) reads:

By David.

To you, O LORD, I cry out!
My protector, do not ignore me!
If you do not respond to me,
I will join those who are descending into the grave.

2 Hear my plea for mercy when I cry out to you for help,
when I lift my hands toward your holy temple!

3 Do not drag me away with evil men,
with those who behave wickedly,
who talk so friendly to their neighbors,
while they plan to harm them!

4 Pay them back for their evil deeds!
Pay them back for what they do!
Punish them!

5 For they do not understand the LORD's actions,
or the way he carries out justice.
The LORD will permanently demolish them.

6 The LORD deserves praise,
for he has heard my plea for mercy!

7 The LORD strengthens and protects me;
I trust in him with all my heart.
I am rescued and my heart is full of joy;
I will sing to him in gratitude.

8 The LORD strengthens his people;
he protects and delivers his chosen king.

9 Deliver your people!
Empower the nation that belongs to you!
Care for them like a shepherd and carry them in your arms at all times!

Reading this psalm makes me wonder how dangerous David's life was. Just about every one of his psalms has a line in it that says something like verse 1, "If you do not respond to me, I will join those who are descending into the grave." On the one hand, the psalms are poetry, so David could be using some poetic license here. Maybe he was in some danger, but used some hyperbole to get God's attention.

But on the other hand, David was a man of war (some would even call him a "warlord"), so he was not unfamiliar with violence. Perhaps one of the drawbacks of being an ancient near eastern monarch was that there were always people waiting in the wings to take you out. Perhaps it wasn't always "good to be the king."

I don't know which to think, but I am leaning toward the latter. Maybe in David's day, the best warrior was king. He gained his throne by the sword--perhaps he had to keep it by the sword.

Can you imagine what that life must have been like for David? Sure, you live in a palace and you can have anything you want, but you also have some serious anxiety. Everyone around you has thoughts of what it would be like to take you out and sit on your throne, and the only thing keeping them from trying to stab you in your sleep is the thought that by the power of YHWH you were able to kill this 9 foot tall dude. That might do something to your faith. It might affect your prayer life. It might give new meaning to your worship. Imagine what David meant by "I am rescued and my heart is full of joy; I will sing to him in gratitude."

"Father, I thank you for Your strength and for Your protection. May my songs be songs of gratitude as I remember your acts of kindness and faithfulness toward me and my tribe. You are rigtheous and merciful. Amen."

Michael Spencer on "Why They Hate Us"

After receiving national media attention for his "Coming Collapse of American Evangelicalism" article, Michael Spencer has re-posted a 2002 article on why non-Christians hate us so much. It's worth a read. Here are my two favorite sections:

Most evangelicals are not the moral cutting edge of contemporary social issues. Despite the evangelical conscience on issues like abortion, it is clear to many that we no longer have the cutting edge moral sense of a Martin Luther King, Jr. or a William Wilberforce. Evangelicals are largely annoyed at people who tell them to do the right thing if it doesn’t enhance their resume, their wallet, their family or their emotions.

and

7. We take ourselves far too seriously, and come off as opposed to normal life. Is it such a bid deal that Christians are offended at so many things others consider funny? I’ll admit, it is a small thing, but it is one of the reasons ordinary people don’t like us.

I read an incident written by a preacher to an internet list I monitor. He told about taking his youth group on an outing, when the students began singing a popular country song about a guy who leaves his wife to pursue his fishing hobby. It’s a hilarious song. But this fellow’s reaction was predictable. He asked them to not a song about a marriage that breaks up, and to instead sing something that honored God. I routinely hear students ridiculing a fellow teacher who labels much of what students find funny as “of the devil.”

Psalm 27

Psalm 27 (NET) reads:

By David.

The LORD delivers and vindicates me!
I fear no one!
The LORD protects my life!
I am afraid of no one!

2 When evil men attack me
to devour my flesh,
when my adversaries and enemies attack me,
they stumble and fall.

3 Even when an army is deployed against me,
I do not fear.
Even when war is imminent,
I remain confident.

4 I have asked the LORD for one thing--
this is what I desire!
I want to live in the LORD's house all the days of my life,
so I can gaze at the splendor of the LORD
and contemplate in his temple.

5 He will surely give me shelter in the day of danger;
he will hide me in his home;
he will place me on an inaccessible rocky summit.

6 Now I will triumph
over my enemies who surround me!
I will offer sacrifices in his dwelling place and shout for joy!
I will sing praises to the LORD!

7 Hear me, O LORD, when I cry out!
Have mercy on me and answer me!

8 My heart tells me to pray to you,
and I do pray to you, O LORD.

9 Do not reject me!
Do not push your servant away in anger!
You are my deliverer!
Do not forsake or abandon me,
O God who vindicates me!

10 Even if my father and mother abandoned me,
the LORD would take me in.

11 Teach me how you want me to live;
lead me along a level path because of those who wait to ambush me!

12 Do not turn me over to my enemies,
for false witnesses who want to destroy me testify against me.

13 Where would I be if I did not believe I would experience
the LORD's favor in the land of the living?

14 Rely on the LORD!
Be strong and confident!
Rely on the LORD!

Psalm 27 is another great example of David expressing his confidence in YHWH's ability to protect him. Although the immediate context may have been a conspiracy of false witnesses (v. 12), David extends his confidence even to times of violence and war (vv. 2–3).

The basis of David's confidence is YHWH's willingness to take him under His arms. He writes, "Even if my father and mother abandoned me, the LORD would take me in" (v. 10). David is confident that YHWH's faithfulness means protection from enemies (v. 5).

In response to YHWH's protection, David swears that he will offer sacrifices and sing songs of praise (v. 6). He also asks YHWH, "Teach me how you want me to live; lead me along a level path because of those who wait to ambush me!" (v. 11) David recognizes that the way of the Lord is both wisdom and covenant responsibility.

The verses that stuck out to me today are the last ones. David asks, "Where would I be if I did not believe I would experience the LORD's favor in the land of the living?" (v. 12)

This is a great and terrible question. As followers of Jesus, we recognize that YHWH is in supreme control of the universe. No one can thwart His will. No one can harm whom He protects. No one can protect whom He is against. Where would we be if we did not think that YHWH was for us?

I am reminded of something Alistair Begg said in chapel during my freshman year of college, "I am not tossed about on the waves of chance." Where would I be if I did not believe this?

Finally, in verse 13, David exclaims, "Rely on the LORD! Be strong and confident! Rely on the LORD!" Is he talking to himself or to others? Perhaps both.

"Father, it is easy to forget about Your control over everything that happens. It is easy to fear. It is easy to worry. It is easy to despair. Father, we confess Your greatness. We confess Your power and Your might. No one can stop You. No one can control You. No one can slow you down. And Father we thank you for your faithfulness and Your goodness. We thank you that You hear our prayers and that you wish our welfare. We confess our trust and reliance on You. Amen."

Obama and Stem Cell Research

Ryan T. Anderson has a great article on President Obama's decision to lift restrictions on federal funding to research involving the destruction of human embryos.

Anderson suggests that new research may soon render stem cell harvesting from human embryos obsolete. The article is a pretty scathing critique of the president's decision, and it is worth a read. (HT: Between Two Worlds)

Wolfhart Pannenberg, The Apostle Paul, and Son Lux Prove God

Ever since I read volume one of Wolfhart Pannenberg's Systematic Theology, I have been drawn to his approach to apologetics. He argues that the gods are best known through their respective religions, and that the gods "prove" themselves as the claims of their religions come true in history. The prototypical example of this would be the contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal to see whose god could bring down fire and thus justify himself as the true god. YHWH brought fire and He proved himself to be the true god.

Thus, Christianity can be evaluated without bias by people outside of the faith. Christians claim that YHWH is the Creator and Sustainer of the universe, and that history is unraveling according to his purposes.

Can we prove that?

How would we prove that? What would be sufficient evidence?

First, the soft postmodern/critical realist apologist would say up front that it is impossible to prove 100% that God is, but he would also add that 100% certainty is not an appropriate standard for "knowledge" or "proof." We don't have 100% knowledge of anything, and yet we live our lives relatively free of anxiety about the unknown. Thus, 100% knowledge is not the standard we use in everyday living, so it's not the standard to which we should judge our knowledge of God. Like everything else, we cannot know for sure, but we can know.

Of course, this will not be the case forever. Some day, the dwelling place of God will be with men once again, and we will know for sure that God is. When the dead are raised; YHWH will be vindicated as Lord and God. But until then, we don’t know for sure. But that doesn't help us believe here and now. How can we believe now?

The Apostle Paul thought that God had intervened in human history in two radically conclusive ways during his lifetime: (1) the death and resurrection of Jesus, and (2) the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on the people of faith. To Paul, these two events were the "proof" that YHWH was at work in the Christian community.

Now, I think we have good historical evidence for the truth of proposition (1). However, Jesus' resurrection happened 2000 years ago and we can't recreate it. It remains a one-of-a-kind event, and its historicity isn't much comfort to those who were born long after it happened.

But what about proposition (2)? Can that be the proof of God's existence? I think so.

To me, the "proof" that YHWH is Lord and God is the work of the Holy Spirit in the community of faith. As the church keeps in step with the Spirit and lives out Jesus' command to love one another, we prove to the world (and to ourselves) that God is.

I was reminded of all of this I was listening to Son Lux yesterday. He has a great song called "Raise." The music is so powerful that the lyrics by themselves don't do the song justice, but here they are:

Raise a living thing from nothing.
Then I will know for myself who you are.
Clothed in skin a pile of dry bones.
Then I will know for myself who you are.

I will feel breath come into my body.
Then I'll know just who you are.

Raise a living thing from nothing.
(simultaneously) Clothed in skin a pile of dry bones.
Then I will know for myself who you are.

Raise a living thing from nothing.
(simultaneously) Clothed in skin a pile of dry bones.
(simultaneously) I will feel breath come into my body.
Then I will know for myself who you are.
(repeat)

Will know for myself
You are who you say you are.

Then I will know for myself.
Then I will know.
Then I will know who you are.

Then I will know for myself.

Article by Matt Edwards to be Posted on Jesus Creed

Yes, that Matt Edwards. Yes, that Jesus Creed.

Scot McKnight asked readers to submit articles for his new "Friday is for Friends" segment. I submitted an article and he liked it. He said it would be published on the last Friday of March. I will link to it.

Michael Spencer on the Collapse of Evangelicalism

Michael Spencer predicts the collapse of American evangelicalism in the coming years. I think he is right. Little in popular evangelicalism has anything to do with Christianity.

At this point, I think churches need to focus on orthodox faith and missional living. Let the megachurches, radio stations, political groups, and trinket stores rest in peace.

Spencer--My Prediction:The Coming Evangelical Collapse
Spencer--The Coming Evangelical Collapse: What Will be Left?
Spencer--The Coming Evangelical Collapse: Good or Bad?

(Plus he references Michael Horton. Horton's book In the Face of God changed my life.)

Get On Your Boots

U2's new album, No Line on the Horizon came out this week. The first single on the album is "Get on Your Boots." Here are the lyrics:

The future needs a big kiss
Winds blows with a twist
Never seen a moon like this
Can you see it too?

Night is falling everywhere
Rockets at the fun fair
Satan loves a bomb scare
But he won’t scare you

Hey, sexy boots
Get on your boots, yeah

You free me from the dark dream
Candy floss ice cream
All our kids are screaming
But the ghosts aren’t real

Here’s where we gotta be
Love and community
Laughter is eternity
If joy is real

You don’t know how beautiful
You don’t know how beautiful you are
You don’t know, and you don’t get it, do you?
You don’t know how beautiful you are

That’s someone’s stuff they’re blowing up
We’re into growing up
Women of the future
Hold the big revelations

I got a submarine
You got gasoline
I don’t want to talk about wars between nations

Not right now

Hey sexy boots
Get on your boots, yeah
Not right now
Bossy boots

You don’t know how beautiful
You don’t know how beautiful you are
You don’t know, and you don’t get it, do you?
You don’t know how beautiful you are

Hey sexy boots
I don’t want to talk about the wars between the nations
Sexy boots, yeah

Let me in the sound
Let me in the sound
Let me in the sound, sound
Let me in the sound, sound
Meet me in the sound

Let me in the sound
Let me in the sound, now
God, I’m going down
I don’t wanna drown now
Meet me in the sound

Let me in the sound
Let me in the sound
Let me in the sound, sound
Let me in the sound, sound
Meet me in the sound

Get on your boots
Get on your boots
Get on your boots
Yeah hey hey

I am pretty sure that this is an allusion to Isaiah 52:7, "How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, 'Your God reigns!'"

Here's the video
U2 - "Get On Your Boots" - OFFICIAL PROMO: Video

God of the Moon by Kees Kraayenoord

What do you think about this video? I guess YFC of Great Britain made the slideshow.

(Hat Tip to Brian Auten of the Boar's Head Tavern)

The Good Life Sermon 10--Conclusion

A couple of weeks ago I finished my sermon series called The Good Life: Redeeming Suburbia through Counter-cultural Living. I loved the series. In it, I compared the messages of suburbia about living the good life (taken largely from David Goetz's excellent book, Death by Suburb) with the message of Jesus about living the good life (taken from the Gospel of John).

In the conclusion, I reviewed all of the messages we have encountered to this point, and then showed how they worked together to form an overarching metanarrative or framing story about the good life. I said that because we believe a different story, we should be living different lives. In short, Believers Fellowship (or your church) should be an advertisement for a better way to live.

In some ways, it was a bit sad to finish this series. Because I only teach about 13 times per year, and many of those times have assigned topics, it took me 9 months to get through this 10-week series. That gave me 9 months in the Gospel of John, and 9 months of interacting with the works of Father Raymond Brown and Dr. Craig S. Keener (both have written excellent commentaries on John).

I am still fascinated with The Gospel of John and the apostle who created it. Since we spend so much time wrestling with Paul's words written mostly in epistle form--parsing words, dissecting sentence structure, tracing argument--it's refreshing to look at the Gospel of John and see how another Christian thinker has packaged the Gospel in a story. Instead of talking about our unity with Christ and how our baptism into his death unites us to his resurrection, John tells a story about a dead guy named Lazarus. Jesus said, "Lazarus come forth," and Lazarus got up and walked.

We need Paul. But sometimes we need a good story.

You can listen to the final message in The Good Life, any of my other sermons, or the ones by Gary Albert here.