This is going to be fun. I’ve never done the speedlinking thing on a regular basis, but it seems to be a popular feature on a lot of blogs these days, so I’m perfectly willing to join the fray and give you the lowdown on what’s caught my eye lately around the blogosphere and beyond. This first installment will be a little more verbose than future ones as I have a lot of stuff to say this time around!

• First up: the recently unveiled Evangelical Manifesto that everyone’s buzzing about. My take is simple — it’s not perfect, but it’s a good start. I agree with the overall premise of the manifesto that evangelicalism isn’t about any one issue, nor is it about political power, nor is it about American patriotism. It’s about sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ, loving your neighbor, caring for the poor and the oppressed, praying for the lost, and ushering in the Kingdom of Heaven. So I signed it.
• Speaking of buzz, Ben Stein’s documentary Expelled which critiques Darwinian Evolution’s stranglehold on academic freedom has gotten everyone up in a tizzy. I watched the movie personally in the theater, and I thought it was brilliantly done and visually compelling. Why is it so controversial? Here’s a good explanation why.
• Also on the science front, Denyse O’Leary does a bang-up job as usual of exposing the foolishness of materialism when it comes to explaining the mind and the soul. Interestingly, the placebo effect is so effective in some medical cases that it begs the question of just how powerful the mind and human perception can be.
• My friend Justin over at Awesome Purpose blogs about how God is moving miraculously in his life along with his family and friends. I never tire of hearing testimonies of God’s faithfulness.
• I’ve added a few new blogs on my “Blogs I Read Regularly” page. Coffee Talk with John Paul Jackson‘s a good one. I saw John Paul up at a recent Bethel Church conference and absolutely loved his teaching and his anointing in the Holy Spirit. Also, James Laws and Kevin Stover recently switched from having a single blog to having two individual blogs. They’re awesome dudes…check out their new digs here and here respectively.
• And in the wild and wooly west of Web 2.0 land, the strange tale of Yahoo’s demise lingers on. Microsoft may yet end up dragging them onboard kicking and screaming. I sure hope not.
• In closing, I want to highlight Trevin Wax’s excellent essay on Christian ecumenicalism and the importance of unity over doctrinal squabbling. His Kingdom People blog is one of the best on the Christian Web, and I always enjoy hearing what he has to say on important theological issues.

And that’s it for this Friday. Have a great weekend…see you on Monday!