Jon Acuff at Stuff Christians Like asked me to do another guest post last month, and today that post is featured on the site:

SCL#499 – Having a Favorite Book of the Bible

I thought it would be fun to do a books of the Bible fantasy draft, and it was. I took Luke, Revelation, Romans, and Song of Solomon with my first 4 picks (the full piece has my top 11 choices, along with explanations).

You’re on the clock…who ya got?

a few things to check out while you scrub the ashes off your forehead…

+ BIG NEWS ALERT! Our very own Chad Gibbs has signed a book deal with Zondervan for a book due out next summer! I’ve had the privilege of reading bits and pieces of the manuscript, and I couldn’t be more excited about it. Please join me in congratulating Chad by telling him just how wonderful the University of Alabama’s football program is.

+ Former Eagles All-Pro Defensive Back Roynell Young tells the story of how he found that his life had a bigger purpose, and how he’s now helping young people in Houston do the same thing. (Guideposts.com)

+ Public school coaches are prohibited by law to initiate prayer with their teams. According to Mike Organ of the Tennessean, a case is headed to the U.S. Supreme Court that could prevent coaches of public schools from praying with their teams, even if the players are the ones who initiate the prayer. The ramifications of the decision will be huge, no matter which way it falls. (h/t: Deadspin)

What do you think? Should coaches be allowed to bow in prayer when it is led by students? Should they be allowed to LEAD optional prayers? Before you answer be sure to consider the possibility that the coach might have a completely different faith than your own.

What: WGC – Accenture Match Play

Where: Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain

Can I Play There: Looks like guests of the Ritz-Carlton can play one of the two courses, or you can join, for $125,000.

What To Watch For: Not much going on this week, pretty ho-hum golf tournament.

Who Will Win: I want Tiger to win, but I seem to be an awful jinx to those I pick in this column, so I’ll say Phil Mickelson.

Tiger Watch: Brendan Jones, the bell tolls for thee.

Chad Watch: So, last week I went to the range and tried out the Stack & Tilt and it went worse than my experiment with Natural Golf a few years back. So back to the old Chad swing for me, which is getting rusty, since I wasn’t able to play a single hole last week. Looking to play 36 this Saturday though, and I’ve been wearing a hole in my carpet hitting flop shots over our couch.

About The Name: So where did Shankopotamus come from? This wonderful commercial…

Wanted to give a quick shout out to anyone checking out the site who heard me speak at CFNI this morning in Dallas. Really enjoyed connecting with the students there. Also enjoyed throwing PFB T-shirts out into the crowd. Hope whoever caught those are displaying them with pride.

The rest of us should be able to get our hands on PFB T-shirts soon. I know how excited you all are for that.

Time to head back home to Amishland…

The NBA All-Star weekend is always one of the more entertaining professional sports celebrations. The three-point shoot-out is only slightly less exciting than MLB’s homerun derby, but the fly-slama-jama game makes the NFL’s Pro-Bowl look like a backyard two-hand touch match, which it basically is. (Aside from a few trick plays, the Pro-Bowl is pretty forgettable—it’s hard to take anything seriously when everyone is wearing a ridiculous Tommy Bahama Hawaii shirt).

But the game aside, the NBA Dunk Contest is in a league of its own on the merits of its pure entertainment value. And, thanks to Dwight Howard, it’s seen a much needed resurgence. This year though, TNT added their own event to the weekend’s festivities, realizing that the East vs. West match-up main event was secondary to the fan favorite sideshows. Though it was unsanctioned by the NBA, TNT’s game of HORSE gave fans another chance to see their favorite players goof off and display their playground hoops skills.

Considering the success of the event, I thought I’d add my own input and suggest several events that other cable networks may want to consider adding to next year’s line-up.

Dads vs. Sons

A summertime BBQ just wasn’t complete without a heated game of driveway three-on-three with dads taking on their sons. What always started as good-natured bonding time, inevitably devolved into a strange hybrid of hockey/ football/ basketball when one of the uncles started taking it a little too seriously.

What could be more entertaining than seeing Bill Walton trying to hold on to his last pieces of dignity by using the old jersey pull when his son Luke tries to go up for an easy lay-up?

Finally a chance for Bill Walton to recapture glory

I have a hard time picturing Shaq’s infamously strict stepfather (a former Army Sergeant) allowing any easy rebounds down-low. A national TV audience would also be able to see the usually mild manor Brent Barry become flustered and embarrassed when his father Rick insists on shooting granny shots every time he is fouled. Though there will probably be a few bloody noses resulting from unnecessarily aggressive elbows in the paint, a father-son game would be a solid edition to the weekend.

Pool Basketball

All you need for this one is a standard backyard swimming pool, a cheap plastic poolside hoop and an undersized ball.

Not in this house

Because anyone who has ever played pool ball knows that it’s basically impossible to make a jump shot (not just because shots are so easily blocked, but also because those flimsy hoops only allow for swishes), the game will be a dunkfest. This one also has the potential to get a little rough—because you can’t dribble in the pool, players will be forced to lower their shoulders and barrel their way to the basket. It may not be the safest game, but it sure will be fun to watch.

Buzzer Beater

What kid hasn’t done it? You’re all alone at the local court, and your internal monologue sets the stage for basketball immortality. “Down by two, just seconds left. He steps back behind the three-point line! Three, Two, One …” You jack-up shot after shot, imagining what it’d be like to sink a game winner.

The guy in the orange is insanely pumped

For this event, players could choose a teammate to inbound the ball to them with just three seconds on the clock. They get several attempts to hit a buzzer beater, in a three-round tournament style competition.

Other Possible Additions to All-Star Weekend:

A Celebrity NBA Jam Classic Arcade Tournament (though the Larry Johnson/Alonzo Mourning Hornets are not allowed because of their obvious unfair advantage)

One-on-One (Two players. Half of a court. The first one to 15.)

Eight-Foot Hoops (This one may not translate with players of NBA stature, but it sure is fun for weekend warriors like myself)>

I use my ninja-like Photoshopping skills to morph a notable Christian with a notable sports figure.

You use your jedi mind tricks to figure out who they are.

2 golf posts in a row? I know, I know. I’m sorry.

But I wanted to pass along that PFB Member Erik A has started a fantasy golf league and he’s looking for people to join up. here’s the info:

Group ID# 16753
Group Name: Golf Nuts @ P4B
Group Password: blowouts

enjoy!

He’s Back!

a few stories to check out while your cousin shoots steroids in your butt…

+ Pastor Glenn Sprunger is using soccer to reach his community in Ashland, Ohio. His program, Spirit-driven soccer, is a co-ed league where players ranging from high school age to their 40s and 50s come out to play indoor soccer. Halftimes usually involve a brief spiritual lesson, and Sprunger estimates that more than half of the participants do not regularly go to church.

+ Here’s a story on the witnessing efforts put together by Sports Fan Outreach at the Super Bowl in Tampa a few weeks ago. The piece highlights Donnie Legg, who works in spring training as a major league baseball chaplain for the Washington Nationals and also for a Milwaukee Brewers farm organization.

+ The Community Sports Network is trying to get the testimonies of professional athletes into as many houses as possible, via printed booklets and videos. They’ve printed nearly a million booklets already, and have camera crews descending on spring training this year to record up to 60 hours worth of video.

+ This is a couple weeks old, but it’s a piece on religious displays in sporting events by Kurt Streeter of the L.A. Times. He says, “The constant pointing to the sky, the kneeling at the goal posts, etc., in most cases are thinly veiled attempts by sports stars to reel in converts, and only seen as OK because the athletes are in almost all cases Christians, the religion of our majority.”

+ Ted Kluck’s “The Reason For Sports”, which releases on August 1st of 2009, is now available for pre-order at Amazon. Says the product description, “…there is little thoughtful, Christ-centered writing on the subject that drives most of men’s banter with each other and consumes the bulk of their free time. Sports.” I enjoy Ted’s writing a lot, so this will be a must-read for me…

What: Northern Trust Open

Where: Riviera Country Club

Can I Play There: What part of Country Club do you not understand.

What To Watch For: Ryo Ishikawa, the 17-year-old Japanese phenom who in 2008 became the youngest player to crack the top 100 world rankings.

Who Will Win: Probably not defending champion Phil Mickelson, who isn’t very good at golf right now. How about a surprise pick, the gritty little Bruin, Corey Pavin.

Tiger Watch: According to Mark O’Mera, Woods is close to 100% and better than ever. It is possible Tiger will play in next week’s Match Play event, if so, we’ll know by this Friday.

Chad Watch: According to Golf Digest, I played the 22nd toughest golf course in the United States this past weekend, Silver Lakes, in my hometown of Glencoe, Alabama. I played OK, but somehow turned an 81 into an 86. My swing has been a little iffy so far in 2009, so I’ve decided to experiment with the Stack and Tilt this week. I’ll let you know how it goes next week.