Prince Caspian Quiz 16

31. How many times are Caspian and company attacked by Telmarine soliders as the seek out Old Narnia?
A. 0
B. 1
C. 2
D. 3

32. Who gets wounded when the Telmarine soldiers attack Caspian and Company?
A. Caspian
B. Trufflehunter
C. Nikabrik
D. No one. They are never attacked

Prince Caspian Quiz 15

29. What member(s) of Old Narnia does Caspian meet first after he leaves Trufflehunter’s cave?
A. The Bulgy Bears
B. Pattertwig
C. Reepicheep
D. The Centaurs

30. How does Caspian meet Reepicheep?
A. Reepicheep shows up at the Council of Old Narnians
B. Reepicheep tries to attack Caspian, mistaking him for a Telmarine solider
C. Trufflehunter introduces them as he takes Caspian around to meet all of the Old Narnians
D. He shows up at Aslan’s How

The Heavens Declare the Glory of God

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands" (Psalm 19:1, NIV).
The past two weeks in Sunday School, we've been focusing on the purpose of science, on how the universe declares God's glory if we'll stop long enough to look, and on the materialistic view of science that has produced modern Cosmology and Evolutionary Theory. Part of what fascinates me is that many of the theories advanced in the last 150 years are starting to fall apart. The Standard Model, for instance, cannot explain why there was a singularity from which it says everything came. And Darwinian Evolution is on the ropes. Between a lack of gradual transition forms, the irreducible complexity argument, and the intricate workings of even the smallest cell, scientists are discovering that life is so vastly complex that it cannot have evolved as Darwin proposed. The vast complexity of life and the wonderful intricacies that make up this world in which we live point strongly to the possibility that everything in this world, including us, has been designed by Someone greater than ourselves. As Christians, we know that this Someone is the Triune God of Scripture. The skies do indeed proclaim that they are the work of God's hands.
Interestingly, despite the evidence from all aspects of Creation, most scientists are not willing to say that there had to be an intelligent designer. This reluctance is partially understandable. We've taught our children for the last 150 years that science deals only with what can be measured, analyzed, and probed. A Creator outside of the system cannot be scientifically investigated in this manner. Another aspect to this reluctance, however, is a moral/philosophical one. If there is a Creator, then we are all accountable to Him. And we humans do not like to be accountable to anyone but ourselves. We want to live how we want to live without anyone telling us how to live. The Bible calls that "sin," and unless they repent and trust in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, they have set before them an eternity without the blessings of our loving Creator. Given that every good and perfect gift is from God, this separation from Him is not something to be desired, cynical comments from atheists notwithstanding.
And I digress. My point is that many scientists who continue to cling to Evolutionary Theory are doing so not because of the scientific evidence but because of a philosophical predisposition. As a result, whenever the Theory of Evolution (for example) comes into question, they have very little evidence to support the Theory, instead resorting to ad hominem attacks. It is disappointing that a true scientific debate cannot occur on these issues, but I've already shared some of my thoughts on this part of the issue in my post about the movie "Expelled."
The debate, obviously, will rage on, ad hominem attacks or not. The "particles-to-people" theory of evolution is on the ropes, but it's not down, yet. And even if it is shown to be false, I would be shocked if Intelligent Design took its place as the dominant theory. Too many scientists are too committed to materialistic science to allow I.D. to become the main theory. After all, if I.D. is right, and God exists and has a legitimate claim on them, then they have a lot to lose.

Prince Caspian Quiz 14

27. When Caspian leaves Trufflehunter’s cave, where is going?
A. To find his horse
B. To meet the other Old Narnians with Trufflehunter and company
C. Out on his own to try to find the other Narnians
D. To his agent to check on whether he’s won the Oscar for Best Actor, yet

28. Who goes with (or follows) Caspian? (Choose all that apply)
A. Trufflehunter
B. Nikabrik
C. Trumpkin
D. Saruman

Tempus Fugit and Prince Caspian Quiz 13

Every so often, I have a sort of existential moment, where I find myself wondering, "What happened to the last 4 or 5 years of my life? In some ways, I don't feel that far removed from 24, yet here I am, more than a couple of years older." I noticed it today, when I was looking over the people in the sanctuary at church and noticed that a lot of them seemed like kids. Then, I realized that these "kids" had toddlers with them. And then I started feeling sick.
I realize that a part of life is getting older, but why does age have to creep up on us so subtly? I'm not that old, yet, and yet I'm obviously older than I think I am. In my mind, I'm still at about 27, maybe even 25. Yet, when I look in the mirror and see the first hints of gray hair, or when I look around church like I did today, I can't help but feel that, somehow, time is getting away from and I'm not doing with my life everything that God would have me do. I feel like I'm missing something, but I can't quite put my finger, yet, on what it is I'm supposed to do.
Maybe I'm just over-thinking everything. I could be doing exactly what God wants me to do. And there certainly have been some wonderful blessings in the past 7 years of living here in Topeka. But at the same time, I don't ever want to become complacent. I need to be as responsive to His leading as I was 7 years ago, when I moved here. He may not have me be here the rest of my life, or He might. The important thing is that I stay aware of His voice and His leading, so that if it becomes time for the Lord to lead me elsewhere, my response is, "I'll start packing."

Prince Caspian Quiz 13
25. Under what circumstances does the bear attack Lucy?
A. It bursts at her from out of the trees
B. It sneaks up on her from behind
C. It charges at her from in front of her
D. Lucy tries to talk to it and it charges her

26. Who kills the bear?
A. Peter
B. Susan
C. Edmund
D. Trumpkin

Prince Caspian Quiz 12

23. What happens to Dr. Cornelius after Caspian escapes?
A. He switches sides and helps Miraz locate Caspian
B. He is arrested by Miraz and thrown into the dungeon
C. He sneaks away from the castle before Miraz can detain him
D. Nothing of any consequence

24. Where are the Pevensies and Trumpkin when Lucy gets attacked by a bear?
A. At Aslan’s How
B. On the shore of a river
C. In the forest
D. At Cair Paravel

Stimulus Plan and Prince Caspian Quiz 11

I'm not an economic expert, and I don't know exactly what it will take to bring our struggling economy back into shape, except maybe time. I'm not convinced that a massive amount of government spending, which is still over 50% of the current stimulus plan, is the answer. Any spending that the government does will have short-term effects at best. Once the public works projects and other infrastructure improvements are done, the workers that were employed will be unemployed again, unless the private sector begins to hire more workers, again. The private sector will only start to hire workers, though, when it can afford to. Right now, the current situation is one where companies are not hiring. Clearly, something needs to be done to try to find a way to encourage businesses to hire. I don't know what that something is. Lowering tax rates on businesses would, in theory, give businesses the extra capital to make infrastructure improvements and hiring more workers. In practice, though, we've seen some of the stupid things that businesses have done with their excess capital: insane executive pay and benefits, luxury items like private jets, etc. In the end, the best thing to do, to my mind, is to let the economy correct itself. I realize that such a laissez faire approach to the situation will look like apathy on the part of politicians, so there is little hope that they will take a hands-off approach. They want to be able to say, "Look what I did!" to their constituents. The danger, of course, in trying to do something to fix the economy is that 2 years from now, the economy might still be struggling because of the interventions of government. Then, the constituents of these politicians might well be the ones saying, in frustration, to their representatives, "Look what you did!"

Prince Caspian Quiz 11
21. What are Caspian’s first words to the Narnian creatures?
A. “If we’re taking a vote, I’m with him.”
B. “Could I have some of that soup, please?”
C. “Gentlemen, whatever you do to me, I hope you will be kind to my poor horse.”
D. “Hey, Trufflehunter, Wisconsin called. They want their mascot costume back.”

22. What does Caspian do first when he regains consciousness?
A. He lays in bed, dazed, and Trufflehunter gives him something to drink
B. He gets out of bed and tries to fight his way out of the wave with a fireplace poker
C. He breaks into a song and dance number
D. He counts his fingers to make sure that he doesn’t have a concussion

Prince Caspian Quiz 10

19. What are the first words that Caspian hears upon regaining consciousness?
A. “Pass the bacon, please.” “
B. “And now, before it wakes up, we must decide what to do with it.”
C. “This bread is so stale.”
D. "What are we going to do tonight, Brain?”

20. How many Narnian creatures are there in Trufflehunter’s cave?
A. 0 – Caspian is alone in the cave
B. 1 -- Trufflehunter
C. 2 – Trufflehunter and Nikabrik
D. 3 – Trufflehunter, Nikabrik, and Trumpkin

February & Prince Caspian Quiz 9

February. Bah. Humbug.
Okay, so I'm exaggerating, but of all of the months of the year, February always seems to be the one I least look forward to. It's not that good things don't happen in February, and it's not that I don't enjoy myself during this month. I just have to work a little harder at it in order to survive this shortest of months, which Gilbert and Sullivan referred to as a "beastly month." There are several factors that work together to create this challenge.
First, this month features the celebration of things that are not really worth celebrating. I think February ought to be designated "National Month Month" because it seems like (although it's not true) that the majority of the "National __________ Months" are all in February. Some are worthy of celebration, like National Black History Month, but most, such as National Boost-Your-Self-Esteem Month and National Canned Food Month, are hardly laudatory.
Second, this month features a holiday that I, as a meteorologist, dislike: Groundhog Day. If you've ever seen the movie of the same name and remember the scorn poured on the "holiday" by Phil Connors, then you'll know about how I feel, although with less disdain and cynicism. (Besides, there's always this nagging fear in the back of my mind that I'm going to get stuck in an endless cycle of living the same day over and over again. [grin])
Third, this month is often the coldest month of the year, and, since I know that Spring is right around the corner, it seems like one of the longer months of the year. With warmer weather looming, the anticipation makes time seem to come to a crawl.
Finally, this month contains February 14th, enough said.
Like I said, those are all reasons that February is a hard month for me to enjoy. That doesn't mean that I won't enjoy it, however. I'm determined to persevere through these annoyances and live my life enjoying the blessings that God has given me, now that I've vented a little about some of the minor annoyances.

Prince Caspian Quiz 9
17. What are Trumpkin’s first words to the Pevensies?
A. “Drop him?! That’s the best you could come up with?”
B. “Next time, try shooting them before they drop me in the water, ok, missy?”
C. “Well, whatever they say, you don’t feel like ghosts?”
D. “Where’s Legolas?”

18. How do the Pevensies convince Trumpkin that they are indeed the old Kings and Queens of Narnia? (Choose as many as apply)
A. Edmund beats Trumpkin in a sword fight
B. Susan beats Trumpkin at an archery contest
C. Lucy heals Trumpkin’s wounds with her cordial
D. Peter gives Trumpkin a tour of Cair Paravel