My Greatest Influences: In the Living Years

1. Francis Schaeffer
2. D. James Kennedy
3. John R. W. Stott
4. J.I. Packer
5. R.C. Sproul
6. William Lane
7. Paul Johnson
8. Jay Adams
9. Iain Murray
10. D. Martin Lloyd Jones
11. Haddon Robinson

My Greatest Influences: Democracy of the Dead

1. Charles Spurgeon
2. Thomas Chalmers
3. G.K. Chesterton
4. Abraham Kuyper
5. Arthur Quiller-Couch
6. Augustine of Hippo
7. Martin Bucer
8. Jan Amos Comenius
9. J.R.R. Tolkien
10. C.S. Lewis
11. John Calvin

Books by or about Thomas Chalmers

1. The St. Andrew's Seven by Stuart Piggin and John Roxborough
2. A Scottish Christian Heritage by Iain H. Murray (just a chapter, but excellent)
3. Unity and Diversity by Sandy Finlayson (again, just a chapter)
4. Sabbath Scripture Readings: New Testament by Thomas Chalmers
5. Sabbath Scripture Readings: Old Testament by Thomas Chalmers
6. The Expulsive Power of a New Affection by Thomas Chalmers (a powerful sermon)
7. Lost Causes by George and Karen Grant (just one chapter)
8. Astronomical Discourses by Thomas Chalmers (due later in 2010 from the Chalmers Foundation, with an intro on his apologetic methods by George Grant)
9. Second Fiddles by George Grant (one chapter in a book due in 2011 from Reformation Trust)
10. The Churchmanship of Thomas Chalmers by George Grant (also due in 2011 from Reformation Trust)
11. Thomas Chalmers: Pastor, Reformer, Educator, and Pioneer (due in 2012 from Christian Focus)

Favorite Books by William Gairdner

1. War Against the Family
2. The Book of Absolutes
3. OH, OH, CANADA!
4. The Trouble with Canada
5. The Critical Wager
6. Constitutional Crack-Up
7. On Higher Ground
8. After Liberalism
9. Canada's Founding Debates
10. The Trouble with Democracy
11. Rethinking Track and Field

New iPhone Apps I'm Testing

1. Evernote
2. SoundHound
3. GoodGuide
4. iBooks
5. PoliticsDaily
6. GoodReads
7. ESPN ScoreCenter
8. Shazam
9. 8-Glasses-a-Day
10.Chipotle
11. Pandora

What I Write in My Journal

1. Notes from whatever books or journals I am currently reading
2. Memorable quotes I run across
3. Ideas for books, articles, poems, lectures, songs, stories, illustrations, or other projects
4. Outlines and bibliographies for whatever it is that I’m presently researching
5. Architectural sketches, doodles, conceptuals, floor plans, layouts, site plans, and illuminations
6. Devotional reflections and Scriptural insights
7. Sermon and lecture notetaking
8. Rants--particularly those that are unfit for publication
9. Long-term planning ideas, goals, and aspirations
10. Reflections from self-examination
11. Prayers, intercessions, supplications, and thanks

Why the Church Must Be Pro-Life

"Souls are more or less firmly attached to bodies." Amy Carmichael

Reformational Models for 2nd Fiddles

1. Geert Groote to Thomas a Kempis
2. Jerome of Prague to Jan Hus
3. Philip Melancthon to Martin Luther
4. Peter Martyr to Martin Bucer
5. Martin Bucer to John Calvin—and Luther and Zwingli and Cranmer
6. Heinrich Bullinger to Ulrich Zwingli
7. Theodore Beza to John Calvin
8. Groen van Prinsterer to Abraham Kuyper
9. James Stewart to David Livingstone
10. James Bryan to Birmingham
11. Hans Rookmaaker to Francis Schaeffer

Biblical Models for 2nd Fiddles

1. Jethro to Moses
2. Joshua to Moses
3. Caleb to Joshua
4. Deborah to Barak
5. Jonathan to David
6. Nathan to David
7. Andrew to Peter
8. Philip to James
9. Timothy to Paul
10. Titus to Paul
11. Epaphroditus to Paul

What I'm Looking Forward to in London

1. Blessing My Students with What Blesses Me
2. King's College Evensong in Cambridge
3. All Soul's Church on a Sunday Morning
4. A Quiet Walk through Bunhill Fields
5. Churchill's Study and Studio at Chartwell
6. Hever Castle's Gardens
7. Borough Market on a Saturday
8. G. David Bookshop in Cambeidge
9. Ely Cathedral's Lady Chapel
10. Waggamama's Noodle Bar
11. Covent Garden's Pret, Marathon Store, and Stanford's Maps

My Endurance Race Bucket List

1. Boston Marathon
2. Reykjavik Marathon
3. Prague Marathon
4. Ragnar Relay
5. London Marathon
6. Chicago Marathon
7. Chattanooga Triathlon
8. Race the Trace 250-Miler
9. San Antonio Marathon
10. New York Marathon
11. Houston Marathon

Traveler's Counsel to My Students

1. “Never forget that every place is unique—just like every place else.” Tristan Gylberd

2. “Life is a movement and not a condition, a voyage and not a harbor.” Arnold Toynbee

3. “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.” Robert Frost

4. “Travel somehow broadens the mind and softens the heart.” Mark Twain

5. “See the world and you’ll see it altogether differently.” Groen van Prinsterer

6. “Travel is the laboratory where theory meets practice, where notion encounters application.” Benjamin Franklin

7. “Travel is more than a visitor seeing sights; it is the profound changing—the deep and permanent changing—of that visitor’s perspective of the world, and of his own place in it.” James Ferguson

8. “The world is a book, and those who do not travel, read only a page.” St. Augustine

9. “If you always go where you have always have gone and always do what you have always done, you will always be what you always have been.” Tristan Gylberd

10. “You can lead a youngster abroad, but you cannot make him travel.” Hilaire Belloc

11. “With visions of redemption, I walk against the crowd.” Arthur Quiller-Couch

Churchill's Challenge: May 13, 1940

"I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat."

List of Lists from Eco's Infinity of Lists

1. Achilles’ Shield, Iliad, Book II, vv. 595-1015
2. The Battle of Lepanto, Andrrea Vicentino
3. The Fall of Rebel Angels, Gustav Dore
4. Cupola del Duomo de Parma Correggio
5. Allegory of Fire, Jan Brueghel the Elder
6. Entering the Ark, Jacob Savery
7. Fallen Angels, Peter Paul Rubens
8. Arrival of Isabella of Parma, Martin van Meytens
9. Banquet at Casa Nani, Pietro Longhi
10. Picture Gallery, Giovanni Paolo Pannini
11. The Library, Felix Vallotton

The Most Terrifying Words

“I'm from the government and I'm here to help.” Ronald Reagan

Post-Health Care Reform Resolves

1. Pray more. 1 Thessalonians 5:17
2. Listen first. James 1:19
3. Work harder. Colossians 3:23
4. Serve others. Galatians 6:9
5. Defend life. Proverbs 24:11-12
6. Grumble less. James 5:9
7. Do justice. Amos 5:24
8. Love mercy. Micah 6:8
9. Walk humbly. Proverbs 15:33
10. Rejoice always. 1 Thessalonians 5:16
11. Trust Jesus. Revelation 19:6

A Lifetime of Reading

1. Read--“A broad interest in books usually means a broad interest in life.” Lyman Abbott

2. Read Deeply--“ Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. Richard Steele

3. Read Out of Your Time--“I hate to read new books. Contemporary writers may generally be divided into two classes—one’s friends or one’s foes. Of the first we are compelled to think too well, and of the last we are disposed to think too ill, to receive much genuine pleasure from the perusal, or to judge fairly of the merits of either.” William Hazlitt

4. Read Classically--“A classic is a book that has never finished saying what it has to say.” Italo Calvino

5. Read Above Your Head--“You may perhaps be brought to acknowledge that it is very well worthwhile to be tormented for two or three years of one’s life, for the sake of being able to read all the rest of it.” Jane Austen

6. Read and Re-Read--"Re-reading, we always find a new book." C.S. Lewis

7. Have a Plan--“It is a good plan to have a book with you in all places and at all times.” Oliver Wendell Holmes

8. Medium Is Nearly as Vital as Message--“If you cannot read all your books, at any rate handle, or as it were, fondle them.” Winston Churchill

9. Follow the Footnote Trail--“If a book is worth reading, it is worth buying.” John Ruskin

10. Leave a Legacy--“A little library, growing every year, is an honorable part of a man’s history.” Henry Ward Beecher

11. Joy in the Journey--“When I get a little money, I buy books; and if there is any left, I buy food and clothes.” Desiderius Erasmus

2010 Super Bowl Ad Favs

1. VW: Stevie Wonder Punching Game
2. Google: Parisian Love
3. Snickers: Betty White
4. The Late Show: Leno, Oprah, and Letterman
5. NFL: Liftoff
6. Budweiser: Longhorn and Clydesdale
7. Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood
8. Dodge Charger: Man’s Last Stand
9. Denny’s: Overworked Chickens
10. Doritos: Ninja Revenge
11. Focus: Tebow and Mom

Favorite Fiction of 2009

1. The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun by J.R.R. Tolkien
2. Dandelion Fire by N.D. Wilson
3. Agincourt by Bernard Cornwell
4. The Ebb Tide by James Blaylock
5. The Vintage Caper by Peter Mayle
6. The Stress of Her Regard (Revised Edition) by Tim Powers
7. Metamorphosis by James P. Blaylock and Tim Powers
8. Relentless by Dean Koontz
9. Ancient Highway by Brett Lott
10. Tales of the Perilous Realm by J.R.R. Tolkien
11. Again to Carthage by John Parker

Favorite Non-Fiction of 2009

1. Infinity of Lists by Umberto Eco
2. The White Horse King by Ben Merkel
3. Churchill by Paul Johnson
4. Reflections on the Revolution: Islam and the West by Christopher Caldwell
5. Free by Chris Anderson
6. Calvin: A Heart for Devotion, Doctrine, and Doxology by Burk Parsons, editor
7. Why Architecture Matters by Paul Goldberger
8. Planet Narnia by Michael Ward
9. Heroes by Iain Murray
10. The Christian Lover by Michael Haykin
11. Five Cities that Ruled the World by Doug Wilson