I meant to follow-up more quickly on the Guess Which One post; my apologies to those who were waiting.

The correct answer was #8: In fact, I have too many books on my desk.  The rest are all true.  A few comments.

1. Our boys did graduate and they ‘re off to “middle school” in the fall.  One other unique feature of schools here (unique to me, anyway) is that high school is different than senior high school.  If we lived in Plano for another 7 years, our boys would go to middle school for 6-8, then to another school for 9-10, and then to yet another for 11-12.  Strangely enough, middle school and senior high school are located next to each other, but the high school is some miles distant.

2. Yes, it took the editor 11 months to get to the chapter I wrote for a book.  Fortunately he liked it and not much work was required.  Unfortunately, most students who read the book will probably never get to the chapter, given the fact that it’s on Chronicles and it’s the last chapter in the book (following the Hebrew canonical order).

4. An arrest has been made in the case of the woman murdered a few houses down.  Her son.

5. That was true, but since then I finished Obadiah.  Now I’m down to the exile (Ezekiel and Daniel), with only six post-exilic books to follow.  Goal to finish: July 16.

6. Truly I would recommend you never ever go to a store named something close to A—zone.  They give dishonesty new depths of meaning.

8. I should have left this one out, as it just made it too easy.

9. This one however threw some of you.  It is absolutely true.  I was seriously and honestly thinking of it for about six months.  But the day after I wrote the post I saw a couple of guys with shaved heads and I was not impressed.  My haircut was postponed in any case.  My barber should call in a few minutes and then the final decision will be made, but I’m pretty sure I won’t go through with it. (I should add here: the thought was that this was a one-time thing, best done at when I would see relatively few people.)

10. Boy

11. I’m also reading Continuity and Discontinuity.

12. Need a cellphone?

13. Fortunately only $3.81 at Home Depot for a new sprinkler head.

16. I’m really glad I wasn’t taught that the Book of Mormon is a good book.  Watching a new movie on it tonight reinforced my conviction that it is a scam.  Unfortunately a very successful scam.

There’s probably a name for this game, but I don’t know what it is.  The rules are quite simple: guess which one(s) is not true.

1. Our two oldest found out tonight that fifth grade graduation in (this part of) Texas is a big deal.
2. A piece I submitted for publication was first read by the editor this week, 11 months after I turned it in.
3. Raising your medical deductible is a form of gambling, and when today’s bills came in, I realized that the house won.
4. A lady was found murdered in her home a few houses down from us this week.
5. I only have nine books left for my OT arguments.
6. I would recommend you never buy a used car battery from A—zone, as you may well be buying the bad one I returned this morning.
7. Costco, on the other hand, rocks, particularly when they give me a full refund when I return a three-year-old garden hose.
8. There are only a few books on my desk.
9. I’m thinking of shaving my head tomorrow afternoon.
10. I saw what a 20-week-old baby looks like on an ultrasound yesterday.
11. I’m currently reading Unleashing the Word: Rediscovering the Public Reading of Scripture.
12. If you buy a cellphone from Amazon using this link, I make $65.
13. When the neighbor’s sprinklers popped up yesterday, one of my kids decided it would be fun to jump up and down on one of them.
14. When reporting the creation of a fountain in his yard, I had my longest conversation ever with said highly-introverted neighbor, who, it turns out, likes to read biblical Hebrew and Greek.
15. Tomorrow I am a WatchDOG at the elementary school where four of our kids will spend their last day ever in the same school.
16. I love God’s Word.

Because people don’t read here regularly (in part because I don’t post here regularly), I’m going to delay giving the answer so more people can enjoy the fun.  You are free to comment below, but I don’t plan to give the answer for a few days.

If you liked the last visual illusion I posted here (with the candles), you might like the winner of the Best Visual Illusion of the Year for 2010.

This 3-minute video on the “Contemporvant Worship Service” has gone viral.  If you haven’t seen it, and you ‘re my age or younger, you ‘ll probably like it.  Kauflin’s insights below are very good.

These guys have figured out how to walk on water.

If you wistfully recall the days of learning Rambam’s thirteen principles, you may enjoy this article about the man behind them.

I liked Garrison Keillor’s article on “The End of an Era in Publishing.”

Here’s a good reminder from Thomas Brooks, via GraceGems:

(Thomas Brooks, “A Word in Season to Suffering Saints,” 1675)

“O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You, my body longs for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. I have seen You in the sanctuary and beheld Your power and your glory. Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You!” Psalm 63:1-3

Be sure that you don’t take up your greatest delight . . .
  in any creature,
  in any comfort,
  in any contentment,
  in any worldly enjoyment.

When the mother sees that the child is enthralled with the doll or the rattle–she comes not in sight. If you take up your rest in any of the dolls and rattles–in any of the poor things of this world–God will certainly keep out of sight! He will never honor them with His gracious presence–who enthralled with anything below Himself, below His presence.

When you begin to be tickled and enthralled with this and that worldly enjoyment, reason thus, “Here is a gracious spouse, here are precious children, here is a pleasant home, here is a wonderful climate, here is a gainful trade, etc. But what are all these to me–so long God has withdrawn His presence from me?”

Remember this once for all: that the whole world is but a barren wilderness–without the gracious presence of God!

Two days ago:

Jose Rosales was a devout Christian. He sent every spare penny he made as a landscaper and handyman back to his family in Guatemala, and he was so strong and industrious that he did the work of three men. He had the complete trust of the Brar family who hired him.

In turn, Rosales appreciated the steady work the Brars gave him in their construction and real estate businesses and around their 10-acre Centreville property and 9,000-square foot mansion, especially in tough economic times.

So on Monday morning, when two armed men broke into the family’s four-car garage, Rosales stood between them and the Brars. "Get away from my brother and my mom," he said.

Then, the stocky Rosales decided to fight back. He jumped one of the invaders and wrested his gun away, sources familiar with the case said Tuesday. But the other man turned his gun on the family’s mother. He threatened to kill the matriarch if Rosales didn’t give the gun back. Rosales did, the sources said.

Story continues here.

I’m an advocate of visiting a cemetery once a year as a reminder of your mortality.  If you haven’t made it yet, I recommend watching this four-minute video that Zac Smith made when he had cancer.