Round the Sphere Again

The 99th Christian Carnival can be found at Attention Span.

...our theme of the week is "Famous 99's in History!" Now before you go wandering off convinced that this week's host is mostly insane, let me remind you that 99 is an important number throughout history and it remains so in contemporary thought. To prove my point, our entries this week will be grouped according to some of the most famous 99s in our culture. Some are recent. Others are ancient. But all share a respect for the largest two-digit number.

For your weekly dose of theology, try this: The Necessity v. The Sufficiency of Grace by Pastor John Samson from Reformation Theology.

Marla discovered that one of the winners of a Blogs of Beauty Awards is a Mormon, and she issues a call for more discernment. She's absolutely right!

Her remarks seem to have upset some people, so she's had to explain her motives, too.

Contest or no contest--as much as it is possible--we have a responsibility to know the worldviews of those whose words we partake of and pass on to others. Not so we can condemn them, but so that when people call themselves Christians, we don't just automatically align ourselves with them.

...I'm a gatekeeper. Naturally the people on the other side of the gate aren't going to like me because my job is to keep people out whose allegiance is to a false god. I do that because I love the people on the inside and don't want them to be led astray, wounded and left for dead

(I'll have to admit that I didn't vote in the awards. I just didn't have time to make my way through all the nominees that were unfamiliar to me, so I thought I oughtn't vote.)

Update: From another gatekeeper:

Mormon doctrine corrupts the very essence of biblical truth and the gospel itself, trading the simplicity of the apostolic gospel for a different message.

The Upward Call gives you a little peek into the collective Canadian psyche: Ever wonder why Canada has a reputation for being non-violent?

The cat's out of the bag...or maybe the back's just off the wardrobe at Allthings2all.

Update 2: Tamara explains in the comments why her dog is named Paxil:

I didn't name her Paxil. Paxil came to me as an 8 year old. Her original owner is a dog musher/psychologist. Her entire litter is named after anti-depressants! It's an appropriate name for her, she'll lick the frown right off your face. Hard to stay cranky when you're being licked to bits.

Check out her photo of the pets' stockings hung by the window.

I know you'll all want one of these:

Christmas Elf Name My Christmas Elf Name is Get your Christmas Elf Name at JokesUnlimited.com

HT to Ian.