On this day in history: In 1851, Yosemite Valley was discovered in California. In 1871, journalist Henry Morton Stanley begins his famous search through Africa for the missing British explorer Dr. David Livingstone. And in 1963, Alcatraz Prison in San Francisco Bay closes down and transfers its last prisoners.

A Coffee Spoof Video – Some people accuse me of taking my coffee seriously, very seriously. But I’m not like this guy. No way. I’m not. At all…

Planet Earth 2 – I love the video series that BBC released a few years ago called Planet Earth, as well as Blue Planet, which is about the oceans.. The images and footage they captured are stunning. And now they are making a second series, featuring the hypnotic voice of Sir David Attenborough. I can’t wait!

A Map Of The Whole Universe – This is a map of the known universe, showing the entire thing in one disc shaped image. Granted, it is difficult to display something that exists in three dimensions at this size in a two dimensional image, but here is a good attempt. And just ignore the evolutionary big bang language.

An Airplane Made Of Paper – As a kid, I made tons of paper airplanes. I could make a dozen different varieties, and all of them would fly well, more or less. Singapore Airlines also builds paper airplanes. This video shows how detailed they are.

Today In Church History
In 1556, Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury, was burned at the stake at Oxford after retracting the last of seven recantations that same day. Read more about him here.

Tools To Get Things Done – I am always on the lookout for tools and apps that will help me be as productive and effective as possible. Tim Challies lists his preferred tools here. Many of these I use as well, and they are a great addition to my ability to get things done.

Do Muslims And Christians Worship The Same God? – This is an argument you hear very frequently these days, that both religions worship the same God, just in different ways. Nothing could be further from the truth.

How I Prepare A Sermon – I love the way Joe goes about this process. My own way of writing sermons differs somewhat, mainly in the fact that I work digitally more than by hand, as shown in his images (although he does use Logos Bible Software, as do I). While Joe seems to use an outline, I lean more towards manuscript. But the journey in getting there is very similar. I really love how he lays it out clearly.