The obliteration of biodiversity in the living world has received much less attention than climate changes, depletion of irreplaceable resources, and other transformations of the physical environment. It would be wise to observe the following principle: if we save the living world, we will also automatically save the physical world, because in order to achieve the first, we must also achieve the second. But if we save only the physical world, which appears our current inclination, we will ultimately lose them both.
-- E.O. Wilson, Pulitzer Prize winner
...for more, click here.
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Monday, June 29, 2015
The Speech of the Sky
Last evening was one of the more beautiful evenings I've enjoyed in this life! The nature of Wilderness State Park, MI.
More pics here....
Sunday, June 28, 2015
CT: We Need to Start Talking about Sin and Righteousness Again
Most people believe the big cultural shift happened in the 1960s. But when I investigated the books and culture of the late 1940s, I found that the transformation happened then. There were tons of best-selling books, and some movies, arguing that the notion of human sinfulness was outdated, and that we should embrace the idea that we’re really wonderful.
When you lose awareness of sin and start thinking that, deep down, human beings are pretty wonderful, you lose the struggle of character building. Building character is not like being better than someone else at a career. It’s conquering your own weakness. But you won’t make that effort if you lose a sense of what your weakness is and where it comes from.
We’ve encouraged generations to think highly of themselves. In 1950, the Gallup organization asked high-school seniors, “Are you a very important person?” Back then, 12 percent said yes. Gallup asked the same question in 2005, and 80 percent said yes.
There are surveys called “The Narcissism Test” that ask whether respondents agree with statements like, “I like to be the center of attention because I’m so extraordinary,” or “Somebody should write a biography about me.” The median narcissism score has gone up 30 percent in 20 years.
Our economy encourages us to promote ourselves with social media, to brand ourselves and get “likes.” In theory, we know humility is important, but we live in a culture of self-promotion.
You may be able to build character and greatness through disciplined effort, but I don’t think you can experience the highest joy without grace. Nor can you experience tranquility. That only comes from gratitude...continue.
-- David Brooks
When you lose awareness of sin and start thinking that, deep down, human beings are pretty wonderful, you lose the struggle of character building. Building character is not like being better than someone else at a career. It’s conquering your own weakness. But you won’t make that effort if you lose a sense of what your weakness is and where it comes from.
We’ve encouraged generations to think highly of themselves. In 1950, the Gallup organization asked high-school seniors, “Are you a very important person?” Back then, 12 percent said yes. Gallup asked the same question in 2005, and 80 percent said yes.
There are surveys called “The Narcissism Test” that ask whether respondents agree with statements like, “I like to be the center of attention because I’m so extraordinary,” or “Somebody should write a biography about me.” The median narcissism score has gone up 30 percent in 20 years.
Our economy encourages us to promote ourselves with social media, to brand ourselves and get “likes.” In theory, we know humility is important, but we live in a culture of self-promotion.
You may be able to build character and greatness through disciplined effort, but I don’t think you can experience the highest joy without grace. Nor can you experience tranquility. That only comes from gratitude...continue.
-- David Brooks
Saturday, June 27, 2015
Friday, June 26, 2015
Fuel of Nature
Nature is fuel for the soul.
-- Richard Ryan
From the Upper Peninsula in Michigan today...in search of fuel.
-- Richard Ryan
From the Upper Peninsula in Michigan today...in search of fuel.
Thursday, June 25, 2015
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Chief Want
Our chief want is someone who will inspire us to be what we know we could be.
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
Monday, June 22, 2015
Sunday, June 21, 2015
One Father
One father is more than a hundred schoolmasters.
-- George Herbert
The Lord is like a father to his children,
tender and compassionate to those who fear him.
-- Psalms 103:13
-- George Herbert
The Lord is like a father to his children,
tender and compassionate to those who fear him.
-- Psalms 103:13
Saturday, June 20, 2015
How To Trust
Above all else, guard your heart,
for everything you do flows from it.
-- Proverbs 4:23
How?
Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.
Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the Lord and shun evil.
This will bring health to your body
and nourishment to your bones.
-- Proverbs 3:5-8
What is the greatest inhibitor to trust? Could it be fear? Wm. Paul Young, author of The Shack, puts it this way: Fear Is Your Own Creation
Have no fear of sudden disaster
or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked,
for the Lord will be at your side
and will keep your foot from being snared.
-- Proverbs 3:25-26
We dis-empower our fears by learning to trust God:
My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline,
and do not resent his rebuke,
because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
as a father the son he delights in.
-- Proverbs 3:11-12
for everything you do flows from it.
-- Proverbs 4:23
How?
Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.
Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the Lord and shun evil.
This will bring health to your body
and nourishment to your bones.
-- Proverbs 3:5-8
What is the greatest inhibitor to trust? Could it be fear? Wm. Paul Young, author of The Shack, puts it this way: Fear Is Your Own Creation
Have no fear of sudden disaster
or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked,
for the Lord will be at your side
and will keep your foot from being snared.
-- Proverbs 3:25-26
We dis-empower our fears by learning to trust God:
My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline,
and do not resent his rebuke,
because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
as a father the son he delights in.
-- Proverbs 3:11-12
Friday, June 19, 2015
How To Not Hold Back
Go all the way with it. Do not back off. For once, go all the goddamn way with what matters.
-- Ernest Hemingway
-- Ernest Hemingway
Thursday, June 18, 2015
How to Be Alive
Being a good steward of your pain . . . involves being alive to your life. It involves taking the risk of being open, of reaching out, of keeping in touch with the pain as well as the joy of what happens because at no time more than at a painful time do we live out of the depths of who we are instead of out of the shallows.
-- Frederick Buechner, The Clown in the Belfry
-- Frederick Buechner, The Clown in the Belfry
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
How To Grieve
I'm not claiming expertise on this one...grieving seems to be a continually easy to avoid.
Yesterday, we had the joy of moving our daughter, Drew, into her new place with her now husband, Ryan. Upon returning to our home, I felt a deeper ache than I had anticipated. This sentence ran through my mind: 'She's not coming back this time...' (at least in the same way that she has before). Though I couldn't be happier for her (and him), something inside me hurts.
I need to grieve. I think this means things like, not trying to deny what I feel, not trying to find something else to make me feel better, not trying to 'move on'. I think it means staying in something for a while and letting it take me somewhere...like through something. ...so that it can give me something else, like an unexpected gift.
There are greater losses to grieve, to be sure, than the good transition of a child into marriage. So, I feel the beckoning of not taking this too seriously. On the other hand, I'm guessing that part of healthy grieving is not minimizing our sense of loss wherever we run into it.
Grief is love not wanting to let go.
-- Earl A. Grollman, Living with Loss
Grief is a sign that we loved something more than ourselves....
-- Joan Chittister, Gospel Days
Yesterday, we had the joy of moving our daughter, Drew, into her new place with her now husband, Ryan. Upon returning to our home, I felt a deeper ache than I had anticipated. This sentence ran through my mind: 'She's not coming back this time...' (at least in the same way that she has before). Though I couldn't be happier for her (and him), something inside me hurts.
I need to grieve. I think this means things like, not trying to deny what I feel, not trying to find something else to make me feel better, not trying to 'move on'. I think it means staying in something for a while and letting it take me somewhere...like through something. ...so that it can give me something else, like an unexpected gift.
There are greater losses to grieve, to be sure, than the good transition of a child into marriage. So, I feel the beckoning of not taking this too seriously. On the other hand, I'm guessing that part of healthy grieving is not minimizing our sense of loss wherever we run into it.
Grief is love not wanting to let go.
-- Earl A. Grollman, Living with Loss
Grief is a sign that we loved something more than ourselves....
-- Joan Chittister, Gospel Days
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
Monday, June 15, 2015
Sunday, June 14, 2015
How To Say No
For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age....
-- Titus 2:11-12
-- Titus 2:11-12
Saturday, June 13, 2015
True
We tend to think of truth too much in terms of either / or. Truth is this or that, not often both. This is true, that isn't. That isn't true, because this is and so on.
I got here by listening to a friend talk the other day. As he described his experience, I found myself wondering if it was true. I wondered, in part, because it seemed like it was true...what he was saying. On the other hand, I don't know that I would describe my experience the same way. So experience is true? If his is true, then what does that say about mine? If mine is true, then what does that say about his?
The more I thought about it, the more is seemed possible (likely even) that both of our experiences are true. That it isn't that only one or the other...is true.
What is true seems much bigger than trying to figure out which it is, at any given time. What is true is. The only thing that is untrue is something that says that what is true isn't. I may be getting tangled up in words here, but the greater reality, it seems to me, is that truth is what really is. All that untruth, or lies, can do is say that something that is true isn't...or may not be. It can't really change anything about is really true.
This is freeing, in many unexpected ways. I don't have to encounter what is true in the same way you do. And, I don't have to require that you do so, in the same way that I do. We both can experience what is true...in wildly different and in similar ways. Conformity is not necessary for truth.
I got here by listening to a friend talk the other day. As he described his experience, I found myself wondering if it was true. I wondered, in part, because it seemed like it was true...what he was saying. On the other hand, I don't know that I would describe my experience the same way. So experience is true? If his is true, then what does that say about mine? If mine is true, then what does that say about his?
The more I thought about it, the more is seemed possible (likely even) that both of our experiences are true. That it isn't that only one or the other...is true.
What is true seems much bigger than trying to figure out which it is, at any given time. What is true is. The only thing that is untrue is something that says that what is true isn't. I may be getting tangled up in words here, but the greater reality, it seems to me, is that truth is what really is. All that untruth, or lies, can do is say that something that is true isn't...or may not be. It can't really change anything about is really true.
This is freeing, in many unexpected ways. I don't have to encounter what is true in the same way you do. And, I don't have to require that you do so, in the same way that I do. We both can experience what is true...in wildly different and in similar ways. Conformity is not necessary for truth.
Friday, June 12, 2015
Thursday, June 11, 2015
Stranger Than We Can Imagine
The universe is not only stranger than we imagine, it is stranger than we can imagine.
-- J.B.S. Haldane
-- J.B.S. Haldane
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
Stepping Away
Stepping away lets you expand on what you’ve already worked on and removes you from work, so you can think clearly.
-- Gregory Ciotti
-- Gregory Ciotti
Tuesday, June 09, 2015
Goals
Most goals require focus to be achieved.
Really? Tell me something I don't already know. Well, the irony seems to be that though we know it, we still don't seem too committed to focusing in our lives. Perhaps, this is due to so much distraction around us. Perhaps, this is why this statement is as true as it is.
I have to concentrate on things I desire, so that goals can emerge from them, so that I can aim my life at what I want, at what is important to me.
Really? Tell me something I don't already know. Well, the irony seems to be that though we know it, we still don't seem too committed to focusing in our lives. Perhaps, this is due to so much distraction around us. Perhaps, this is why this statement is as true as it is.
I have to concentrate on things I desire, so that goals can emerge from them, so that I can aim my life at what I want, at what is important to me.
Monday, June 08, 2015
Tornado of Emotion
I feel like a tornado of emotions just blew through me.
I'm looking around at the debris, in wonder, and marvel at what just happened...through our first daughter's wedding.
I'm looking around at the debris, in wonder, and marvel at what just happened...through our first daughter's wedding.
Sunday, June 07, 2015
Out-Shine
Nothing can out-shine the glory of God...or really even come close to doing so.
The line from a hymn says 'Though the eyes of sinful man, thy glories may not see...'. But whether we see it or not, nothing changes about how this is true.
The line from a hymn says 'Though the eyes of sinful man, thy glories may not see...'. But whether we see it or not, nothing changes about how this is true.
Saturday, June 06, 2015
Week of the Bride, Pt 6: Wedding 'Blessing'
I may not have lived long enough to know, but other than the day you are born, I'm not sure there can be a happier day for a father and mother…than the day of your child's wedding.
From our view of faith, marriage is sacred. Sacred, in part, because marriage symbolizes at least two things -- our desire and our commitment.
Drew and Ryan, your desire to be married is a testimony to God, because it demonstrates your commitment to sacrificially love another person, in a way that creates a context for new life...a family. Your love for God will be what binds and sustains this commitment to love each other. And, your love for each other will be what binds and sustains your commitment to love your children, should God bless you with them.
You each have been uniquely made…to pursue these desires and commitments, both toward God and towards each other and towards the combination of you two for your family. Trust that uniqueness in yourselves and trust that uniqueness in each other...something easier to say, than to do. Seek God in everything…in the good times and in the bad times and, perhaps more importantly, in the in-between times. Assume (part of trusting) that God is in you and assume that He is in each other.
Drew, I have so enjoyed our times together and specifically over the last year. Too many to review all here, but I have received an unexpected comfort from your nightly 'good night!' coming down the hall. I will miss that. I have also enjoyed our lunches together...just listening to each other and talking. I will miss that. Can we do a lot more for someone else than to listen to them (to keep listening to them, even when we suspect we've heard it all?)
You have such a beautiful sensitivity about you -- to life, to relationships, and to God. I love this about you and the opportunity to see you again in this way...I know of some of the depths of your desire for God. I will predict that you will encounter both deep pain and deep joy because of this sensitivity. Don't let anything or anyone take this from you; it is your gift, from God. It is your unique way of following him and drawing others to him. All gifts are meant to be given…. Give yours. Give yours to Ryan, even when he's not yet all that he will be.
Ryan, you have an unassuming strength that I admire...you join in, and you stay present. You don't seem to make assumptions easily. You have a deep desire to do what is right and good and to follow God. You step toward things, even when they are hard. You have an ability to be persistent -- committed to see things through to the end, even if it is a long way to go (this last year has been an example of that). I love this about you. Ryan, this is part of the gift you have been given. And, because all true giving is sacrificial, I predict that you too will experience pain and joy because of your gift. Don't let anything take this from you; it is your gift, from God. Give what you have been given by Him to others. Give it to Drew, when she's not yet all that she will be.
Drew & Ryan, marriage has purposes that are greater than you two, as individuals. It is through your pursuit of God individually and together that you will each become more of what God has made you to be -- Drew for your beauty to shine, Ryan for your strength to fight and endure. Ryan, like I have had, you now have the wonderful opportunity to help present Drew blameless before God. Drew, you have an opportunity to embolden Ryan's strength and ability to stand humbly in this crumbling and sometimes cruel world. Please know that when both of you do this, you will be reflecting and giving something glorious to those around you.
I am so pleased and grateful for what God is joining together, in the two of you, in your marriage today. You both have my (our) unhesitant blessing. We are thrilled to celebrate with you -- your desire and your commitment to each other and to God.
I love you…both.
Friday, June 05, 2015
Week of the Bride, Pt 5: Final Preparations
Why so much of it? Is it worth it...all the preparation? You bet it is. It taps into the deepest parts of us, to join something we so deeply desire, to give of ourselves for even moments of beauty and joy. We live for moments of aspiration and for what they reflect of God.
These kinds of things help us know that we really are getting ready for something beyond ourselves and we know this most deeply when we do this together.
Thursday, June 04, 2015
Week of the Bride, Pt 4: Gift & Gratitude
This morning's woodsy walk did its good work in me -- it gave me a gift:
I am so grateful for the gift of Ryan to my daughter, as her husband, now just in two days. Unless I believe that I deserve good things due to my efforts, which couldn't possibly be the case, then everything good that we receive is nothing short of a gift from God. In a consequence-laden world like ours, and with my own baggage in tow, that God would bless my beautiful girl with a man who fears Him and loves her...is both a marvel and a gift beyond description.
Wednesday, June 03, 2015
Week of the Bride, Pt 3: Valley & Routine
So far, I am calling today, 'the valley'. The brimming 'sense of anticipation' cannot be perpetually sustained and, perhaps, goodly so. In a matter of hours (days), we will all be converted to a rush of something, if not the details themselves, the actual engulfing of the event itself. And, that, I look forward to immensely...because 'the thing' IS happening!
But today's low spot seems rightly a more subdued day (though it's not yet over...). A time of reflection, low-grade anticipation and building, of doing the final behind-the-scenes stuff of preparation. Last night, opportunity for friction arose...as well as the appeal (to me) of avoidance. I awoke this morning a bit anxious about it. But, I stuck to the pattern of living that has served me so well in recent years and exerted myself physically, and thereby spiritually, to discover anew where my strength truly lies...in what I believe, because of Who I believe in, Who sustains me.
Here again, I risk too much about me, but I sense the moment was recognized by others in my family last night and am grateful that I chose not to use the force of self-protection, but rather a kind of patience (although, certainly, an imperfect one...given some of my internals). The greater things are true (though it's not that the lesser things are not...), and it is those that I thankfully rediscovered this morning. I can be something good, whether I fully and perfectly am or am perceived to be that way or not. Others are living a dynamic as well, in their own lives, and that also actually can be deeply trusted.
The beauty of the sunrise whispered this truth to my waking mind and now the morning of these truths are again in full-bloom. I am alive and well and goodness is on its way (like it always is).
From the valley...of the 'Week of the Bride'.
But today's low spot seems rightly a more subdued day (though it's not yet over...). A time of reflection, low-grade anticipation and building, of doing the final behind-the-scenes stuff of preparation. Last night, opportunity for friction arose...as well as the appeal (to me) of avoidance. I awoke this morning a bit anxious about it. But, I stuck to the pattern of living that has served me so well in recent years and exerted myself physically, and thereby spiritually, to discover anew where my strength truly lies...in what I believe, because of Who I believe in, Who sustains me.
Here again, I risk too much about me, but I sense the moment was recognized by others in my family last night and am grateful that I chose not to use the force of self-protection, but rather a kind of patience (although, certainly, an imperfect one...given some of my internals). The greater things are true (though it's not that the lesser things are not...), and it is those that I thankfully rediscovered this morning. I can be something good, whether I fully and perfectly am or am perceived to be that way or not. Others are living a dynamic as well, in their own lives, and that also actually can be deeply trusted.
The beauty of the sunrise whispered this truth to my waking mind and now the morning of these truths are again in full-bloom. I am alive and well and goodness is on its way (like it always is).
From the valley...of the 'Week of the Bride'.
Tuesday, June 02, 2015
Week of the Bride, Pt 2: History & Gratitude
We watched 'home videos' last night.
Wow...how young we were. And, to think that we (I) was entrusted with real kid's lives.... There is something powerful about history, especially in an age where the 'present' is so emphasized. There are reasons for this, even some good ones. But, reflection on the past can often, easily bring one back to one's knees. We really had no ideas what we were doing, but we sure thought (hoped) we did. We really didn't. Perhaps, there is a grace in our naivete.
And, the video version of 'life' then doesn't capture all that was going on. There was some real pain happening, too. As I reflected on all of that this morning, I realized how grateful I am that God has not only preserved us, but also saved us. Us, and our kids. This is the real WOW.
And now we are preparing a wedding. A wedding to celebrate a commitment to do this all again, in the form of a new family. God's grace will again be needed. But, God's grace will also be more than enough and will result in an equally deep sense of gratitude.
I am grateful...for the love of our God.
Wow...how young we were. And, to think that we (I) was entrusted with real kid's lives.... There is something powerful about history, especially in an age where the 'present' is so emphasized. There are reasons for this, even some good ones. But, reflection on the past can often, easily bring one back to one's knees. We really had no ideas what we were doing, but we sure thought (hoped) we did. We really didn't. Perhaps, there is a grace in our naivete.
And, the video version of 'life' then doesn't capture all that was going on. There was some real pain happening, too. As I reflected on all of that this morning, I realized how grateful I am that God has not only preserved us, but also saved us. Us, and our kids. This is the real WOW.
And now we are preparing a wedding. A wedding to celebrate a commitment to do this all again, in the form of a new family. God's grace will again be needed. But, God's grace will also be more than enough and will result in an equally deep sense of gratitude.
I am grateful...for the love of our God.
Monday, June 01, 2015
Week of the Bride, Pt 1: Thoughts & Emotions
In my own, small corner of the world, I am designating this as 'Week of the Bride', from a father's perspective. My oldest daughter, Drew, gets married this coming Saturday. Since this is the first marriage of one of my children, I think it good (for my sake, in nothing else) to capture at least some of the thoughts and emotions, particularly that I experience this week.
Thoughts: We are transfixed by both the temporal and the transcendent. Temporal -- what will the weather be like for this 'outdoor' wedding (we aren't the first to temp this fate)? Transcendent -- what will this kind of beauty do to me? How will it melt into and emanate from my daughter and son-in-law? We are dealing with timeless forces here. May a portion of God be reflected well.
Emotions: I have had the words, but this morning the emotions, too -- that I will truly miss my daughter. I sat a bit slumped on the stairs with my wife as tears flooded my eyes (yes, it's only Monday...). As I hold something for my daughter, she does the same for me, too. I will miss that, and her. I am also over-joyed for her and this most natural of unfoldings of life. I couldn't be happier.
Thoughts: We are transfixed by both the temporal and the transcendent. Temporal -- what will the weather be like for this 'outdoor' wedding (we aren't the first to temp this fate)? Transcendent -- what will this kind of beauty do to me? How will it melt into and emanate from my daughter and son-in-law? We are dealing with timeless forces here. May a portion of God be reflected well.
Emotions: I have had the words, but this morning the emotions, too -- that I will truly miss my daughter. I sat a bit slumped on the stairs with my wife as tears flooded my eyes (yes, it's only Monday...). As I hold something for my daughter, she does the same for me, too. I will miss that, and her. I am also over-joyed for her and this most natural of unfoldings of life. I couldn't be happier.
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