Nick Bogardus

If you like to cook, please see below....

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 11:53:02 -0700

If you like to cook, please see below. :)

One of the greatest things about my husband, is the amount of ideas he generates. I mean, it is nonstop. The best part is that I get to help execute many of them.

His new one: Share recipes on my blog.

So alas, another idea conquered. My hope is to post one recipe and photo of the finished product per week. Today, I am giving you bagels (thanks Marina for the recipe!) One fantastic trait of bagels is their versatility. Toast or broil with some added seasonings to your hearts content. We have put cinnamon and sugar on them, used them for turkey sandwiches with a little mayo & mustard, and also toasted with garlic oil to eat with pasta. So, without further ado, here is your recipe for this week:

Homemade Bagels

Ingredients:

1 1/2 C warm water

2-3 T active dry yeast

2 T sugar

1 tsp salt

4 C flour

1 T oil

Process:

Put warm water and yeast in a large bowl- allow to sit 5 minutes or until frothy.

Mix the rest of the ingredients into the bowl until soft and well kneaded. The dough should be smooth and soft- sometimes you have to knead a while.

Let rise until doubled~ approx 1 hour.

Punch dough down and form bagels. Roll them into balls and using your forefinger, poke and twirl an opening in the center of the bagel. Don’t make the bagels super large because they will rise again.

Dust the bottom of the bagels and let them rise another 30-45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350.

Boil another large pot of water- if you want to make your bagels slightly more sweet, add about 1/3 c of syrup or brown sugar.

Boil the bagels for 45 seconds on each side.

Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown and slightly crispy.

(via kimbogardusphotography) Another great pic from my wife.

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:00:00 -0700

(via kimbogardusphotography)

Another great pic from my wife.

(via kimbogardusphotography) This is the lake a few blocks from...

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 11:30:00 -0700

(via kimbogardusphotography)

This is the lake a few blocks from our house and our friends Jonathan and Marielle from Mongolia (via Portland & France).

(via kimbogardusphotography) Childhood.

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 09:15:00 -0700

(via kimbogardusphotography)

Childhood.

Alcohol and the Gospel in Mongolia

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 14:30:00 -0700

Alcohol and the Gospel in Mongolia:

Here is brief article that captures a tiny glimpse of what we experienced and hope for in Mongolia.

(via kimbogardusphotography) Not only is she beautiful, but my...

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 09:00:00 -0700

(via kimbogardusphotography)

Not only is she beautiful, but my wife is talented as well.

There really is nothing like the Mongolian sky.

Though this is about Christian marital counseling, it’s...

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 19:09:45 -0700

Though this is about Christian marital counseling, it’s good for single people to watch as well because in it, he connects how our relationship with God plays out in our relationship with people.

I uploaded a bunch of our last pictures from Mongolia to my...

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 10:45:00 -0700

I uploaded a bunch of our last pictures from Mongolia to my Facebook. Just click on the picture or here to see them.

Birthday Dinner Extravaganza

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 10:00:00 -0700

In case you missed this on Kim’s blog….

thetalesofkimbogardus:

My birthday dinner turned out to be more than either Nick or I expected.

We went to a place called The Pink Door in downtown Seattle. When we walked in, I was instantly captivated by the enchanting atmosphere and decorations. It was crowded but comfortable at the same time.

As I was finishing a quite scrumptious Caesar salad, a girl standing slightly behind Nick caught my attention. She was wearing something between a Christina Aguilera video and a knock-off Moulin Rouge costume. I turned to Nick and simply asked, “Will there be dancing darling?” in a ridiculous 1920’s snobby accent. Seconds after those words left my lips, the lights dimmed low, seductive music started, and I was met with feet above my head.

That’s right. Feet. Feet dangling inches above my Caesar salad. Unbeknown to us, the Monday night entertainment at The Pink Door is Burlesque dancing. Burlesque dancing from a ceiling swing to be more specific. It was rather unusual and I couldn’t help but giggle when I looked at Nick’s face- partially showing terror and partially showing confusion at what exactly he made reservations for. I was amused to no end. However, the only camera I had was my Polaroid- which was low on film- and my phone camera. So this was all I could get to prove my birthday dinner to you:

Afterward, we took a walk downtown, peering into the windows of interesting shops, finally stopping to overlook the bay. It was a good first birthday in Seattle.

Thanks to everyone who sent warm birthday wishes to rainy Seattle! It helped make my 3rd birthday away from friends and family all the better.

The Church Cannot Die: Poetic Figures, Misunderstanding, and Reality

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 16:00:00 -0700

This is taken from A.W. Tozer’s book Man - The Dwelling Place of God.

Poetic Figures vs. Reality

The language of devotion has helped to create the impression that the church is supposed to be a band of warriors driving the enemy before them in plain sight and with plenty of color and drama to give a pleasing flourish to the whole thing. In our hymns and pulpit oratory we have commonly pictured the church as marching along to the sound of martial music and the plaudits of the multitude.

Of course this is but a poetic figure. The individual Christian may be likened to a soldier, but the picture of the church on earth as a conquering army is not realistic. Her true situation is more accurately portrayed as a flock of sheep in the midst of wolves, or as a company of despised pilgrims plodding toward home, or as a peculiar nation protected by the Passover blood waiting for the sound of the trumpet, or as a bride looking for the coming of her bridegroom.

Misunderstanding The Church’s Role: Wincing & Sanctioning

The world is constantly lashing the church because she has no solution for the problems of society, and the religious leaders who do not know the score wince under the lash. Every once in a while some churchman in an acute attack of conscience does penance in public for Christianity’s failure to furnish bold leadership for the world in this time of crisis. “We have sinned,” cries the frustrated prophet. “The world looked to us for help and we have failed it.”

Well, I am all for repentance if it is genuine, and I think the church has failed, not by neglecting to provide leadership but by living too much like the world. That, however, is not what the muddled churchman means when he bares his soul in public. Rather, he erroneously assumes that the church of God has been left on earth to minister good hope and cheer to the world in such quantities that it can ignore God, reject Christ, glorify fallen human flesh and pursue its selfish ends in peace. The world wants the church to add a dainty spiritual touch to its carnal schemes, and to be there to help it to its feet and put it to bed when it comes home drunk with fleshly pleasures.

Speaking In It’s True Prophetic Voice

In the first place the church has received no such commission from her Lord, and in the second place the world has never shown much disposition to listen to the church when she speaks in her true prophetic voice. The attitude of the world toward the true child of God is precisely the same as that of the citizens of Vanity Fair toward Christian and his companion. “Therefore they took them and beat them, and besmeared them with dirt, and put them into the cage, that they might be made a spectacle to all men.” Christian’s duty was not to “provide leadership” for Vanity Fair but to keep clean from its pollution and get out of it as fast as possible. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

The Church Cannot Die

We are in real need of a reformation that will lead to revival among the churches, but the church is not dead, neither is it dying. The church cannot die.

A local church can die. This happens when all the old saints in a given place fall asleep and no young saints arise to take their place. Sometimes under these circumstances the congregation ceases to be a church, or there is no congregation left and the doors of the chapel are nailed shut. But such a condition, however deplorable, should not discourage us. The true church is the repository of the life of God among men, and if in one place the frail vessels fail, that life will break out somewhere else. Of this we may be sure.

Photo Class of Mongolia

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 09:30:00 -0700

I’m so proud of what my wife did while we were in Mongolia and what she’s continued to do while we’ve been back in the States. Check out her post below and then look at the site she made for the kids: www.photoclassofmongolia.tumblr.com

thetalesofkimbogardus:

Hey everyone!

I know this has been a long time coming, probably about three months now, that I have talked about creating a website dedicated to sharing my students photographs. Well, it is finally finished.

We had two wonderful exhibitions, in both Mongolia and America. Thank you to everyone who made them possible and to those who came out to see what I have been busy with for the last two years.

For those of you who weren’t able to make it to the exhibitions, I have selected what I think are some of the student’s best photographs, scanned them, and made tumblr sites dedicated to each student. Now you can get a little taste of Mongolian culture, read miniature bios on each of the students, and if you want, support the student’s college education by buying some of their printed photographs.

Thank you again to everyone who gave encouragement, support, and supplies to make this class possible. And most importantly, thank you to my students who studied extremely hard and mastered their first photography class.

Now hurry over to:

www.photoclassofmongolia.tumblr.com

Feel free to email me with any questions or comments.

Liberal Lies in National Health Care: Second in a Series - Townhall.com

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 16:00:00 -0700

Liberal Lies in National Health Care: Second in a Series - Townhall.com:

Excerpt: “There are three certainties in life: (a) death, (b) taxes, and (C) no health care bill supported by Nita Lowey and Rosa DeLauro and signed by Barack Obama could possibly fail to cover abortions. I don’t think that requires elaboration, but here it is:” [Full Article]

Stuff White People Like: Moleskin Notebooks

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 10:00:00 -0700

Stuff White People Like: Moleskin Notebooks:

Excerpt: “Thankfully, since white people only keep their most original and creative ideas in the Moleskine, many of them will only be required to purchase one per lifetime.” [Full Article]

The Marks of A Spiritual Leader

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 09:00:00 -0700

The Marks of A Spiritual Leader :

According to John Piper:

1. That Others Will Glorify God

2. Love Both Friend and Foe by Trusting in God and Hoping in His Promises

3. Meditate On and Pray Over His Word

4. Acknowledge Your Helplessness

The whole article is well worth the read. [Full Article]

Local Fox News Story on Mars Hill iPhone App

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 16:00:00 -0700

Local Fox News Story on Mars Hill iPhone App:

Who is that bearded nerd they interviewed? [Video & Article Here]

Pull The Plug on Obama Care

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 13:00:00 -0700

Pull The Plug on Obama Care:

Excerpt: “Here’s another thing that didn’t work. (I write as if health-care reform or insurance reform or whatever it’s called this week is already a loss, a historic botch, because it is. Even if the White House wins, they lose, because the cost in terms of public trust and faith was too high.)” [Full Article]

Here are some pictures of our new place. We’ll put...

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 12:30:00 -0700

Check out the greenhouse!

Here are some pictures of our new place. We’ll put together a little video once it’s more settled…hopefully next weekend or so. How cool is that backyard with the pear tree and greenhouse?

Missional: Is it a good word?

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 09:00:00 -0700

Reflection & Influence

Christians love catch-phrases and keywords. Making fun of or lamenting “Christianese” or the Christian subculture is a relatively easy and lazy thing to do. The more fruitful approach - the one that would hopefully build up the church rather than armchair quarterback it - is to lovingly critique it.

How we use language is something that really interests me. It’s something that’s important to see and think about because, while I’m not a linguist, I can see that language carries with it two big factors. First, language is a reflection of what we think, believe, and value. Secondly, language influences what we think, believe, and value.

Blurred Definitions

Which brings me to the word I want to bring up in this blog article: missional. “Being missional” or “to be missional” has been a descriptive or imperative catch phrase for about the last five years, particularly among younger Emerging churches. It’s a word that I’ve always felt a little uncomfortable with because of it’s relative ambiguity (but that’s another article).

A recent Q&A video from John Piper helped me see more clearly the restlessness I felt about the word. In this clip he makes a very good distinction between “evangelism” and “missions”.

Cause & Effect?

I’m left with a couple questions:

1) Do churches and Christians use the word “missional” because they are afraid of the word “evangelism”?

2) Though it claims to do otherwise, will this North American emphasis on being “missional” negatively effect global missions and the global Church by affirming (instead of challenging) our culture’s narcissism and producing culturally insular Christians?

The Mars Hill Blog | A Picture of the Air War and Ground War From The Past Week

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 20:31:46 -0700

The Mars Hill Blog | A Picture of the Air War and Ground War From The Past Week:

Here is the first blog I’ve written under my own name for Mars Hill Church.

The Tornado, the Lutherans, and Homosexuality :: John Piper

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 16:37:01 -0700

The Tornado, the Lutherans, and Homosexuality :: John Piper:

Dear ELCA,

Good news: God showed up to vote.

Bad news: you didn’t listen.

Nick