Motivation will beat raw intelligence almost every time.
The single most important trait that our schools, families and other institutions can ingrain in our students is the importance of character. Without a strong ethical compass a student in his or her lifetime can only harm the world -- and most likely themselves and those around them. Beyond that, I would emphasize the importance of hard work. That is certainly true of the process of learning. More and more evidence suggests that it takes long hours working on very demanding tasks for one to learn. This is a disconcerting observation given that the number of hours per week college students study today is about half what it was a few decades ago, at which time it was not terribly large to begin with. But one simply can't hope to understand...without hard work.
-- Norman Augustine
From a really good interview: Continue Reading
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Monday, October 29, 2012
Courtesy and Egos
I believe in courtesy, the ritual by which we avoid hurting other people's feelings by satisfying our own egos.
-- Kenneth Clark
-- Kenneth Clark
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Mornings
There is something a bit indescribable about mornings. The older I get, the more I recognize the wonder and beauty of them (like today's sunrise), the more I look east to see what might be coming.
Perhaps it is because I get up earlier these days, due to a variety of things...work, a busied mind, the purging of the night's dreams, the shifting of my internal clock, the call of my morning workouts (or, in today's case, my Sunday morning ritual of a dawn-run through the woods -- by the way, Nature's Christmas Lights are on again!). Nonetheless, I anticipate morning. And, perhaps not unlike the majesty of sunsets, I have discovered what many others before me have discovered that there is something powerful about mornings.
Saturday mornings (not the Saturday Mornings posts per se), in particular, hold the prospect of something less predictable, less pre-determined. I feel a sense of openness...to my choice of what to do; what to get done, what to leave undone. There is a freedom in it that I have come to relish.
But, even more than this, morning strikes something deeper within me. The prospect of starting a day with beauty, rather than duty. The possibility of a new start, even in something regular. A deeper sense of grace.
I used to not even miss mornings; 'nothing going on anyway' (or so I thought). But now, the chance to freely wonder from the day's earliest moments what a day may hold, energizes me, particularly when I am blessed to have such color and beauty cascading behind me.
West-ward then!
Perhaps it is because I get up earlier these days, due to a variety of things...work, a busied mind, the purging of the night's dreams, the shifting of my internal clock, the call of my morning workouts (or, in today's case, my Sunday morning ritual of a dawn-run through the woods -- by the way, Nature's Christmas Lights are on again!). Nonetheless, I anticipate morning. And, perhaps not unlike the majesty of sunsets, I have discovered what many others before me have discovered that there is something powerful about mornings.
Saturday mornings (not the Saturday Mornings posts per se), in particular, hold the prospect of something less predictable, less pre-determined. I feel a sense of openness...to my choice of what to do; what to get done, what to leave undone. There is a freedom in it that I have come to relish.
But, even more than this, morning strikes something deeper within me. The prospect of starting a day with beauty, rather than duty. The possibility of a new start, even in something regular. A deeper sense of grace.
I used to not even miss mornings; 'nothing going on anyway' (or so I thought). But now, the chance to freely wonder from the day's earliest moments what a day may hold, energizes me, particularly when I am blessed to have such color and beauty cascading behind me.
West-ward then!
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Effort
What is it about effort that so many are afraid of? ...that makes us too willing to let those who do it, do it? We love stories about the effort involved in over-coming. But, we don't really want to work any harder than we have to. What do we believe, when we behave this way?
Perhaps, we should consider what drives effort? More often than not, it seems to me, effort is driven by desire. We want something. It we want something bad enough, we will work for it. At other times, desire is driven by need. We need something, so we will work for it. And, when the chips are really down, our need can be even more basic, like the need just to survive.
Maybe we don't put out too much effort because we really don't need to. We already have the better part of what we want without having to work very hard for it. But, under this reality, I suspect we are missing out on something good that was intended for us as humans, something that is a result or by-product of effort.
Are we simply caught up in the exceptions of cause-and-effect? For example, sometimes the results of effort don't come just because of the effort. But, just because that is true, it doesn't mean that most of the time results do actually come from effort; thus the common phrase, "you get out of it what you put into it". The problem shows up when we require that they do, when we put forth effort because of the results, for the sole purpose of achieving the results we want. When we get here, we get mad when we don't get what we want, especially when we've worked hard at something and it didn't yield the result we were hoping for. When we are here, we find ourselves operating with a sense of entitlement -- I am owed the result just because of my effort.
We, however, were created differently, to act differently, to believe differently. We were made to be care-takers in life, to preserve it, to offer it. And, this requires effort, a working at it. But, the real granting of life is a harmony with the Giver of life -- the One who can make things grow. We can plant seeds, but we can't make them grow. So, our effort isn't owed a result, but it does join in harmony with the results that can be given. This is why we are free to work hard, in fact created to work hard, not because of what we will get out of it, but because of what is broadly given when we join something good that we were made to take care of.
Perhaps, we should consider what drives effort? More often than not, it seems to me, effort is driven by desire. We want something. It we want something bad enough, we will work for it. At other times, desire is driven by need. We need something, so we will work for it. And, when the chips are really down, our need can be even more basic, like the need just to survive.
Maybe we don't put out too much effort because we really don't need to. We already have the better part of what we want without having to work very hard for it. But, under this reality, I suspect we are missing out on something good that was intended for us as humans, something that is a result or by-product of effort.
Are we simply caught up in the exceptions of cause-and-effect? For example, sometimes the results of effort don't come just because of the effort. But, just because that is true, it doesn't mean that most of the time results do actually come from effort; thus the common phrase, "you get out of it what you put into it". The problem shows up when we require that they do, when we put forth effort because of the results, for the sole purpose of achieving the results we want. When we get here, we get mad when we don't get what we want, especially when we've worked hard at something and it didn't yield the result we were hoping for. When we are here, we find ourselves operating with a sense of entitlement -- I am owed the result just because of my effort.
We, however, were created differently, to act differently, to believe differently. We were made to be care-takers in life, to preserve it, to offer it. And, this requires effort, a working at it. But, the real granting of life is a harmony with the Giver of life -- the One who can make things grow. We can plant seeds, but we can't make them grow. So, our effort isn't owed a result, but it does join in harmony with the results that can be given. This is why we are free to work hard, in fact created to work hard, not because of what we will get out of it, but because of what is broadly given when we join something good that we were made to take care of.
Friday, October 26, 2012
Wrath
If God were to return and judge the world of evil, what would happen to us? Would we be able to inhabit a perfect world? What happens when we realize that we are part of the the problem, not just the ones longing for a solution?
When we imagine our place within the cosmic story of redemption, we come to realize we are more than passive victims of evil's consequences. We are evil insurrectionists, rebels against the good and loving authority of God our Creator. In the Gulag Archipelago, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who suffered at the hands of the Soviet Communists, put it well: "Gradually it was disclosed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either -- but right through every human heart." We thirst for justice, but once we consider the fairness of God, we quickly discover that Christ's return can only be good news if we have found mercy in God's sight.
-- Trevin Wax, "Rejoicing In The Wrath" (CT - Global Gospel Project)
When we imagine our place within the cosmic story of redemption, we come to realize we are more than passive victims of evil's consequences. We are evil insurrectionists, rebels against the good and loving authority of God our Creator. In the Gulag Archipelago, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who suffered at the hands of the Soviet Communists, put it well: "Gradually it was disclosed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either -- but right through every human heart." We thirst for justice, but once we consider the fairness of God, we quickly discover that Christ's return can only be good news if we have found mercy in God's sight.
-- Trevin Wax, "Rejoicing In The Wrath" (CT - Global Gospel Project)
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Him vs Me
The first question that the priest asked, the first question that the Levite asked was: "If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?" But... the good Samaritan ...reversed the question: "If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?"
-- Martin Luther King, Jr.
-- Martin Luther King, Jr.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Plant Trees
The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit.
-- Nelson Handerson
-- Nelson Handerson
Monday, October 22, 2012
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Saturday, October 20, 2012
Friendly Intercourse
After the city, where we had always lived, those country years were startling. . . . The surprise of animals . . . in and out, cats and dogs and a milk goat and chickens and guinea hens, all taken for granted, as if man was intended to live on terms of friendly intercourse with the rest of creation instead of huddling in isolation on the fourteenth floor of an apartment house in a city where animals occurred behind bars in the zoo.
-- Elizabeth Janeway
This reminded me of a one recent pre-dawn; the glint of Orion's sword flashed fabulously against its black velvet backdrop. It was mesmerizing. Not much later, the dense green of the forest was alight with a thousand tiny flames of yellow-leafed candles beckoning on the deeper autumn. The reds hadn't come yet, but the big browns were already crunchy under my feet. The air was thick with the moist and cool of the seasonal-adjustment now fully underway and the faintest whiffs of the evening-before burnings hung heavy in my nostrils. All conjuring up some kind of familiar, yet not fully known, ache for something both past and present. Quite a union on many levels. It was great to be alive. And still is....
There is a joy in beauty.
-- Elizabeth Janeway
This reminded me of a one recent pre-dawn; the glint of Orion's sword flashed fabulously against its black velvet backdrop. It was mesmerizing. Not much later, the dense green of the forest was alight with a thousand tiny flames of yellow-leafed candles beckoning on the deeper autumn. The reds hadn't come yet, but the big browns were already crunchy under my feet. The air was thick with the moist and cool of the seasonal-adjustment now fully underway and the faintest whiffs of the evening-before burnings hung heavy in my nostrils. All conjuring up some kind of familiar, yet not fully known, ache for something both past and present. Quite a union on many levels. It was great to be alive. And still is....
There is a joy in beauty.
Friday, October 19, 2012
True Freedom
True freedom is not choice or lack of constraint, but being
what you are meant to be.
-- St. Augustine
what you are meant to be.
-- St. Augustine
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Fascination
God, help me to move more out of fascination with what you are doing in someone else, than out of interest in seeing change in someone else.
I don't see all that you see...or even how what is going in on is being used by you to do your good work in another way or in another person. Such things are dimly lit waters, over which only you are the lighthouse.
Fascination would be born out of a deep trust in you, in your work. And you are a much better beacon than I.
I don't see all that you see...or even how what is going in on is being used by you to do your good work in another way or in another person. Such things are dimly lit waters, over which only you are the lighthouse.
Fascination would be born out of a deep trust in you, in your work. And you are a much better beacon than I.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
One God - Economics
I think we’re miserable partly because we have only one god, and that’s economics. Economics is a slave-driver. No one has free time; no one has any leisure. The whole culture is under terrible pressure and fraught with worry. It’s hard to get out of that box. That’s the dominant situation all over the world.
-- James Hillman
-- James Hillman
Monday, October 15, 2012
Our Political Environment of Election
We live now in, among other things, a market-driven society, where everything is marketed to us, whether we need it or not (even products designed to help with dysfunction are marketed to us whether we have dysfunction or not). And, yes, even Presidents are marketed to us in American Idol fashion (this link on that is worth your time to listen), borrowing heavily on both our deeper hopes and fears about life and the world. But the government can't do everything we want, much less everything we need:
Governments can do lots of things, but there are a lot of things they cannot do. A government can pass good laws, but no law can change a human heart. Only God can do that. A government can provide good housing, but folks can have a house without having a home. We can keep people breathing with good health care, but they still may not really be alive. The work of community, love, reconciliation, restoration is the work we cannot leave up to politicians. This is the work we are all called to do. We can’t wait on politicians to change the world. We can’t wait on governments to legislate love. And we don’t let policies define how we treat people; how we treat people shapes our policies.
I think this is another helpful read on some of what is going in an election environment like what we are experiencing these days:
If the Thought of Either Romney or Obama Getting Elected Makes You Fearful, Angry, or Depressed, You Have What we Call a Theological Problem
Governments can do lots of things, but there are a lot of things they cannot do. A government can pass good laws, but no law can change a human heart. Only God can do that. A government can provide good housing, but folks can have a house without having a home. We can keep people breathing with good health care, but they still may not really be alive. The work of community, love, reconciliation, restoration is the work we cannot leave up to politicians. This is the work we are all called to do. We can’t wait on politicians to change the world. We can’t wait on governments to legislate love. And we don’t let policies define how we treat people; how we treat people shapes our policies.
I think this is another helpful read on some of what is going in an election environment like what we are experiencing these days:
If the Thought of Either Romney or Obama Getting Elected Makes You Fearful, Angry, or Depressed, You Have What we Call a Theological Problem
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Nature
I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time proving that he can outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority.
-- E.B. White
When you have a moment, for silence, choose to watch the video at the bottom this link:
http://www.michellederusha.com/2012/10/one-square-inch.html
-- E.B. White
When you have a moment, for silence, choose to watch the video at the bottom this link:
http://www.michellederusha.com/2012/10/one-square-inch.html
Friday, October 12, 2012
Choices
It is our choices...that show what we truly are,
far more than our abilities.
-- J. K. Rowling
far more than our abilities.
-- J. K. Rowling
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Beneath Our Feet
We spend our lives hurrying away from the real, as though it were deadly to us. “It must be somewhere up there on the horizon,” we think. And all the time it is in the soil, right beneath our feet.
-- William Bryant Logan
In hurrying for more happiness, you can hurry right past it.
-- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts
-- William Bryant Logan
In hurrying for more happiness, you can hurry right past it.
-- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Prejudice, Pride, and Vanity
When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but with creatures bristling with prejudice and motivated by pride and vanity.
-- Dale Carnegie
-- Dale Carnegie
Tuesday, October 09, 2012
Education
...the best education is always self-inflicted.
-- Dr. Philip Riley
From: The Power of Small Moments
More often than not, we don't really learn until we want to...or need to.
-- Dr. Philip Riley
From: The Power of Small Moments
More often than not, we don't really learn until we want to...or need to.
Monday, October 08, 2012
Sunday, October 07, 2012
Yellow-Head Dance
I came around another dirt-beaten bend on a forested path and there they were, hundreds of them. Slender. Tall. Radiant yellow-headed flowers all facing skyward, as if looking for something. Or, praising Someone.
I was running...but not now. I was stopped, in wonder at what all might be going on...in this one sun-drenched spot in an otherwise dense woods. A slight breeze introduced its music to the mix, making the scene as close to a Nature Dance as I've ever seen.
After being transfixed, I continued my run...coming across 2s and 3s of more yellow-heads creeping along the trail. It seemed as if they were headed somewhere...like to the gathering of them I had enjoyed just a few minutes before.
It struck me how not unlike them we are...as we gather together on days like today, to worship. Looking for the Light to warm and fulfill our lives. We take courage by the gathering, of others like and unlike us, and by those striving to get there at various points along their journey.
I wish I had a camera at the time; the radiance of the bright-yellowed scene rhythmically coming both from the earth and heaven at the same time was more than words can capture.
Sometimes we walk together, sometimes alone. But like the yellow-heads, whether we realize it or not, we are reaching upward for the Source of our life.
And, boy is it fun when the music's playin'!
I was running...but not now. I was stopped, in wonder at what all might be going on...in this one sun-drenched spot in an otherwise dense woods. A slight breeze introduced its music to the mix, making the scene as close to a Nature Dance as I've ever seen.
After being transfixed, I continued my run...coming across 2s and 3s of more yellow-heads creeping along the trail. It seemed as if they were headed somewhere...like to the gathering of them I had enjoyed just a few minutes before.
It struck me how not unlike them we are...as we gather together on days like today, to worship. Looking for the Light to warm and fulfill our lives. We take courage by the gathering, of others like and unlike us, and by those striving to get there at various points along their journey.
I wish I had a camera at the time; the radiance of the bright-yellowed scene rhythmically coming both from the earth and heaven at the same time was more than words can capture.
Sometimes we walk together, sometimes alone. But like the yellow-heads, whether we realize it or not, we are reaching upward for the Source of our life.
And, boy is it fun when the music's playin'!
Saturday, October 06, 2012
Calling
You will never lighten any load until you feel the pressure in your own soul.
The ultimate imperative and the training of your character, the training of your own heart, is going to happen when you are alone.
-- Ravi Zacharias
Really enjoyed this thinking / challenge regarding our 'calling' in life from a recent address at Wheaton College. Click image to watch the series.
Friday, October 05, 2012
What You Become
What you get by reaching your destination
is not nearly as important as what you will become
by reaching your destination.
-- Zig Ziglar
is not nearly as important as what you will become
by reaching your destination.
-- Zig Ziglar
Thursday, October 04, 2012
Wednesday, October 03, 2012
Tuesday, October 02, 2012
Disposition
I have learned that the greater part of
our misery or unhappiness is
determined not by our circumstance
but by our disposition.
-- Martha Washington
Some call this attitude. Some call this faith. Disposition puts it a bit uniquely; I like it. I especially resonate with the observation on 'our circumstances'.
Contemplative simplicity isn't a matter of circumstances; it's a matter of focus.
-- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts
our misery or unhappiness is
determined not by our circumstance
but by our disposition.
-- Martha Washington
Some call this attitude. Some call this faith. Disposition puts it a bit uniquely; I like it. I especially resonate with the observation on 'our circumstances'.
Contemplative simplicity isn't a matter of circumstances; it's a matter of focus.
-- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts
Monday, October 01, 2012
Sunrise
At our annual church harvest holiday week, the sunrise does it again.
Click pic...for more pics. 'Wasting' time, eating, talking, playing, and dancing (some of the dancing pics are pretty fun to click through quickly)! Quite the harmonies of 'being together'.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Obstacles
Most of our obstacles would melt away
if, instead of cowering before them,
we should make up our minds
to walk boldly through them.
-- Orison Swett Marden
I think this is true particularly in the context of our fears. Not favoring this as a form of self-determinism, but as a renewing of our minds, since it is often our fear that disables us.
if, instead of cowering before them,
we should make up our minds
to walk boldly through them.
-- Orison Swett Marden
I think this is true particularly in the context of our fears. Not favoring this as a form of self-determinism, but as a renewing of our minds, since it is often our fear that disables us.
Friday, September 28, 2012
Char-cool
Last night's dark punctured, with the sky's pin-prick leakings of light. The air chilled now with October's anticipation and the nose welcomed the smokey of still charring wood.
I have come to so love this conspiratorial deluge of the senses, what they arouse so deep within me. Welcome Char-cool!
...camping this weekend. I anticipate. The life of direct conversation with others, the escape from the dominance of our flat-screens, the surprise of the blend of the 3-dimensional world of nature and the unique interaction of souls it prompts.
I have come to so love this conspiratorial deluge of the senses, what they arouse so deep within me. Welcome Char-cool!
...camping this weekend. I anticipate. The life of direct conversation with others, the escape from the dominance of our flat-screens, the surprise of the blend of the 3-dimensional world of nature and the unique interaction of souls it prompts.
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Parenthood - Everything Is Not OK
I have plugged for this show before. This week's episode was another really good one - very family, very human. I was prompted to confess a bit of me I saw in Adam (one of the characters) to Tami.
Worth your while. Click pic to watch....
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Spend on It
There's a very positive relationship
between people's ability to
accomplish any task and the time
they're willing to spend on it.
-- Joyce Brothers
Get that tongue out of your cheek, Joyce. Not many people (any?) can get good at what they do without really working at it.
But really, with the self-evident humor, why wouldn't this be a very natural response to Emerson's thought?
between people's ability to
accomplish any task and the time
they're willing to spend on it.
-- Joyce Brothers
Get that tongue out of your cheek, Joyce. Not many people (any?) can get good at what they do without really working at it.
But really, with the self-evident humor, why wouldn't this be a very natural response to Emerson's thought?
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Monday, September 24, 2012
Partial Redemption
There is no such thing as partial redemption.
While it may be true at any given moment that it isn't complete yet, there is nothing 'barely' about redemption. God isn't just 'doing the best he can' with what He's been left to work with. No, His redemptive work is full, complete, and total.
That is the beauty of redemption, in the first place.
While it may be true at any given moment that it isn't complete yet, there is nothing 'barely' about redemption. God isn't just 'doing the best he can' with what He's been left to work with. No, His redemptive work is full, complete, and total.
That is the beauty of redemption, in the first place.
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Forgiveness
The glory of Christianity is to conquer by forgiveness.
-- William Blake
An odd juxtaposition of images -- glory, conquering, forgiveness -- but a not so subtle irony none-the-less. I remember a rather stunning thought from Blue Like Jazz that such 'conquering' is even more by asking for forgiveness than simply granting it.
Forgiveness carries a lot of assumptions. Things like the need to be honest, the willingness to seek out another person with my vulnerability, the reality that I need it as badly as any one else. And, of course, these are among nearly impossible tasks without having realized that I, myself, have been forgiven in very specific and personal ways. The act is a profound one, a deeply human one, a powerful one. One that truly dismantles (conquers) so many of the false constructs we have built in our lives.
When is the last time I forgave someone...or asked for forgiveness?
-- William Blake
An odd juxtaposition of images -- glory, conquering, forgiveness -- but a not so subtle irony none-the-less. I remember a rather stunning thought from Blue Like Jazz that such 'conquering' is even more by asking for forgiveness than simply granting it.
Forgiveness carries a lot of assumptions. Things like the need to be honest, the willingness to seek out another person with my vulnerability, the reality that I need it as badly as any one else. And, of course, these are among nearly impossible tasks without having realized that I, myself, have been forgiven in very specific and personal ways. The act is a profound one, a deeply human one, a powerful one. One that truly dismantles (conquers) so many of the false constructs we have built in our lives.
When is the last time I forgave someone...or asked for forgiveness?
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Your Story
We can't change the present or the future. We can only change the past, and we do it all the time.
-- Bob Dylan, Rolling Stone
We all know the line that says something to the effect that if we don't remember the past, we are condemned to repeat it. Donald Miller's latest book, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, is all about living our story now because the past has sure shaped it.
I really like these thoughts about story as well:
Grace is the backbone of every woman still standing.
-- Ann Voskamp's blog
God’s writing your story and He never leaves you alone in your story....
-- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts
That is a lot be thankful for. Continue reading Ann's thoughts about your story....
-- Bob Dylan, Rolling Stone
We all know the line that says something to the effect that if we don't remember the past, we are condemned to repeat it. Donald Miller's latest book, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, is all about living our story now because the past has sure shaped it.
I really like these thoughts about story as well:
Grace is the backbone of every woman still standing.
-- Ann Voskamp's blog
God’s writing your story and He never leaves you alone in your story....
-- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts
That is a lot be thankful for. Continue reading Ann's thoughts about your story....
Friday, September 21, 2012
Two for the Road: Stolen & One
Two for the road today...
...much of our lives are spent trying to avoid conflict. Half the commercials on television are selling us something that will make life easier. Part of me wonders if our stories aren't being stolen by the easy life.
-- Donald Miller, A Million Miles In A Thousand Years
It is more noble to give yourself completely to one individual than to labor diligently for … the masses.
-- Dag Hammarskjold, Secretary-General of the United Nations
...much of our lives are spent trying to avoid conflict. Half the commercials on television are selling us something that will make life easier. Part of me wonders if our stories aren't being stolen by the easy life.
-- Donald Miller, A Million Miles In A Thousand Years
It is more noble to give yourself completely to one individual than to labor diligently for … the masses.
-- Dag Hammarskjold, Secretary-General of the United Nations
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Change
...we were designed to live through something rather than to attain something, and the thing we were meant to live through was designed to change us.
-- Donald Miller, A Million Miles In A Thousand Years
-- Donald Miller, A Million Miles In A Thousand Years
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Nature Speaks
The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they display knowledge.
Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,
and their words to all the world.
-- Psalm 19:1-2, 4
Is God silent or is He talking? What is His language? Psalms 19 seems to answer this question.
His language of love is Nature. He has spoken and continues to speak...day after day after day. The glory of His Nature 'pours out speech'. Undeniably. Irretrievably. Unquenchingly. Overwhelmingly. If we listen, we are star-struck by it, stream-struck by it, mountain-struck by it, season-struck by it. Its order, chaos, and timelessness all pronounce the transcendence of his love throughout our experience of tHIS life, in this world.
...and so many still seem able to hardly notice.
Blake and I were talking about his recently; what do you think? What is God 'saying'?
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they display knowledge.
Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,
and their words to all the world.
-- Psalm 19:1-2, 4
Is God silent or is He talking? What is His language? Psalms 19 seems to answer this question.
His language of love is Nature. He has spoken and continues to speak...day after day after day. The glory of His Nature 'pours out speech'. Undeniably. Irretrievably. Unquenchingly. Overwhelmingly. If we listen, we are star-struck by it, stream-struck by it, mountain-struck by it, season-struck by it. Its order, chaos, and timelessness all pronounce the transcendence of his love throughout our experience of tHIS life, in this world.
...and so many still seem able to hardly notice.
Blake and I were talking about his recently; what do you think? What is God 'saying'?
Monday, September 17, 2012
Priesthood of All Believers
Anthropologists tell us that "religion" is a universal cultural reality. Every culture creates a religion. We find religion all around the world, in every culture.
The religions they create have at least two characteristics:
The religions they create have at least two characteristics:
- people create religious rituals to ceremonialize their devotion
- people create a religious hierarchy to outsource their religious obligations
We don't want a priesthood and ministry of all believers. Instead, we want people to go to God for us and leaders to do the ministry to us...
Sunday, September 16, 2012
By Us & For Us
Before we can begin to see the cross as something done for us, we have to see it as something done by us.
-- John Stott
-- John Stott
Saturday, September 15, 2012
CT: What Kind of Wife
Picture this: a bride and groom dashing out of the church, through the showers of birdseed and into the limo, all aglow with the light of love from the vows they've just taken. In the backseat of the car, en route to the reception, they embrace and kiss. Then the groom announces that he has something to say:
"Now you realize, my dear," he begins, "that, as far as I'm concerned, we can't really say we're married, because I don't know yet what kind of wife you'll turn out to be...."
This CT article is one of those 'must read' kind of things about grace and faith -- really worth your time:
Continue Reading!
Friday, September 14, 2012
Mistakes
The greatest mistake you can make in life
is to be continually fearing
you will make one.
-- Elbert Hubbard
...so, we can 'go for it' and give it our all and be thankful for any good that comes out of it and seek forgiveness for anything bad we've caused.
is to be continually fearing
you will make one.
-- Elbert Hubbard
...so, we can 'go for it' and give it our all and be thankful for any good that comes out of it and seek forgiveness for anything bad we've caused.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
To Reveal
The greatest good you can do for another is not just to share your riches, but to reveal to him his own.
-- Benjamin Disraeli
I'm not a huge fan of superlatives...like when people say things like, "I've always believed that..." or the 'est' in statements like the above. But, generally at least, they are used to emphasize a point and the one above is a good one, in my estimation. Especially when one thinks about what our true riches are.
-- Benjamin Disraeli
I'm not a huge fan of superlatives...like when people say things like, "I've always believed that..." or the 'est' in statements like the above. But, generally at least, they are used to emphasize a point and the one above is a good one, in my estimation. Especially when one thinks about what our true riches are.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Grateful Participants
We get robbed of the glory of life because we aren't capable of remembering how we got here.
...stunningly true, no?
When you are born, you wake slowly to everything. Your brain doesn't stop growing until you turn twenty-six, so from birth to twenty-six, God is slowly turning the light on, and you're groggy and pointing at things saying circle and blue and car and then sex and job and health care. The experience is so slow you could easily come to believe life isn't that big of a deal, that life isn't staggering. What I'm saying is I think life is staggering and we're just used to it. We all are like spoiled children no longer impressed with the gifts we're given -- it's just another sunset, just another rainstorm moving over the mountain, just another child being born, just another funeral.
We are awakening to God, as we live, if we are willing.
I've wondered, though, if one of the reasons we fail to acknowledge the brilliance of life is because we don't want the responsibility inherent in the acknowledgement. We don't want to be characters in a story because characters have to move and breathe and face conflict with courage. And if life isn't remarkable, then we don't have to do any of that; we can be unwilling victims rather than grateful participants.
-- Donald Miller, A Million Miles In A Thousand Years
Gratitude goes a lot farther than the other reaction: busyness.
...by the way, I'm thoroughly enjoying this Donald Miller book.
...stunningly true, no?
When you are born, you wake slowly to everything. Your brain doesn't stop growing until you turn twenty-six, so from birth to twenty-six, God is slowly turning the light on, and you're groggy and pointing at things saying circle and blue and car and then sex and job and health care. The experience is so slow you could easily come to believe life isn't that big of a deal, that life isn't staggering. What I'm saying is I think life is staggering and we're just used to it. We all are like spoiled children no longer impressed with the gifts we're given -- it's just another sunset, just another rainstorm moving over the mountain, just another child being born, just another funeral.
We are awakening to God, as we live, if we are willing.
I've wondered, though, if one of the reasons we fail to acknowledge the brilliance of life is because we don't want the responsibility inherent in the acknowledgement. We don't want to be characters in a story because characters have to move and breathe and face conflict with courage. And if life isn't remarkable, then we don't have to do any of that; we can be unwilling victims rather than grateful participants.
-- Donald Miller, A Million Miles In A Thousand Years
Gratitude goes a lot farther than the other reaction: busyness.
...by the way, I'm thoroughly enjoying this Donald Miller book.
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Monday, September 10, 2012
Meant to be Given
It is interesting how we gauge what we keep for ourselves. It seems that we often base this on what everyone else is keeping...I shouldn't have any less than everyone else, right?
But, when does that thinking take us somewhere that simply isn't right? See Ann Voskamp's thoughts on our problem with this here.
We don't own anything - everything we have is given to us.
Nothing given to us is meant to be kept. Everything given is meant to be given (to others).
But, when does that thinking take us somewhere that simply isn't right? See Ann Voskamp's thoughts on our problem with this here.
We don't own anything - everything we have is given to us.
Nothing given to us is meant to be kept. Everything given is meant to be given (to others).
Sunday, September 09, 2012
Oh God, Our Help
O God, our help in ages past,
our hope for years to come,
our shelter from the stormy blast,
and our eternal home.
Under the shadow of thy throne,
still may we dwell secure;
sufficient is thine arm alone,
and our defense is sure.
Before the hills in order stood,
or earth received her frame,
from everlasting, thou art God,
to endless years the same.
A thousand ages, in thy sight,
are like an evening gone;
short as the watch that ends the night,
before the rising sun.
Time, like an ever rolling stream,
bears all who breathe away;
they fly forgotten, as a dream
dies at the opening day.
O God, our help in ages past,
our hope for years to come;
be thou our guide while life shall last,
and our eternal home.
-- Isaac Watts
I attended a wedding recently where this song was sung. My how I've missed it over the years. What a vision to sing such a thing like this at a wedding. Pure vision.
And, perhaps, I recognized more of its sweep because of two other recent events, one another kind of beginning and another hinting at a possible ending. The former I referenced in yesterday's post regarding my son. The latter regarding the open-heart surgery of my 71 year-old mother. The juxtaposition of the two and all their possibilities laid right next to something like a wedding that wants to be built on this kind of God. What a wonder. What a mystery. What a stopping. What a worshiping.
Saturday, September 08, 2012
Shadow of Me
Like that created by the setting sun, the older I get, the longer my shadow gets. It takes up more space.
I arrived at this thought one day as I contemplated the leaving of my son for the first time at college (which we did last weekend). It occurred to me that he needs to be out of my shadow. I don't know of anything particularly wrong with my shadow (well, sure, there is plenty wrong with it....), it's just the order of Dad-ness. He needs to be free of me, the shade of my shadow, for a while. In order for him to grow, to identify the size and shape of his own shadow, he must move out away from mine. He needs sunlight to grow...all things do, to develop fully, to mature, to become what they are intended to be.
You’ve got to do your own growing, no matter how tall your grandfather was.
-- OLD IRISH PROVERB
I can ascent to this intellectually. But I must admit, something else is at work, too. I wish I knew what he was up to, how he is doing. Not too long ago, our lives were quite integrated. Now they're not...or so it feels. At least, they're not integrated by proximity. And this, though bearing a sense of loss, is how it should be now, for his sake. It is time for him to find himself, on his terms...and without my direct supervision, without the shadow of me directly over him. This is healthy...for both of us.
...and, it forces something else good in me; to pray for him, to entrust him to God. To trust God for him. To trust that God is for Him and taking him more fully from here (not that He didn't have him fully until now). This process of entrusting him to God frees him to grow up into the shape God has for him. And, really, what more could I really want for him. I don't want to over-shadow him.
I want him to find his own shadow, so that he can see what he really looks like...who he really is.
...and, if his experience is like mine and that of all sons, the Shadow of Me will likely be quite a part of his anyway.
I arrived at this thought one day as I contemplated the leaving of my son for the first time at college (which we did last weekend). It occurred to me that he needs to be out of my shadow. I don't know of anything particularly wrong with my shadow (well, sure, there is plenty wrong with it....), it's just the order of Dad-ness. He needs to be free of me, the shade of my shadow, for a while. In order for him to grow, to identify the size and shape of his own shadow, he must move out away from mine. He needs sunlight to grow...all things do, to develop fully, to mature, to become what they are intended to be.
You’ve got to do your own growing, no matter how tall your grandfather was.
-- OLD IRISH PROVERB
I can ascent to this intellectually. But I must admit, something else is at work, too. I wish I knew what he was up to, how he is doing. Not too long ago, our lives were quite integrated. Now they're not...or so it feels. At least, they're not integrated by proximity. And this, though bearing a sense of loss, is how it should be now, for his sake. It is time for him to find himself, on his terms...and without my direct supervision, without the shadow of me directly over him. This is healthy...for both of us.
...and, it forces something else good in me; to pray for him, to entrust him to God. To trust God for him. To trust that God is for Him and taking him more fully from here (not that He didn't have him fully until now). This process of entrusting him to God frees him to grow up into the shape God has for him. And, really, what more could I really want for him. I don't want to over-shadow him.
I want him to find his own shadow, so that he can see what he really looks like...who he really is.
...and, if his experience is like mine and that of all sons, the Shadow of Me will likely be quite a part of his anyway.
Friday, September 07, 2012
Don't Worry About Size
Don't worry about the size of your platform or whether you'll have one -- you will. Instead, pay attention to the people around you and the opportunities in front of you, knowing that your chances to make a positive difference will come along in due time. Focus on the impact you have with the platform God gives you.
-- Tony Dungy, The Mentor Leader
-- Tony Dungy, The Mentor Leader
Thursday, September 06, 2012
Truth and Beauty
The pursuit of truth and beauty is a sphere of activity in which we are permitted to remain children all our lives.
-- Albert Einstein
-- Albert Einstein
Wednesday, September 05, 2012
Beauty Simply Is
Beauty requires no justification, no explanation; it simply is and transcends.
I pay tribute to God by paying attention.
All beauty is only reflection.
-- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts
I pay tribute to God by paying attention.
All beauty is only reflection.
-- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts
Tuesday, September 04, 2012
Something Else
To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Monday, September 03, 2012
How Well Do We See
Once upon a time there were two small boys who asked their fathers to take them to see the great parade that passed through the village every ten years. The fathers, remembering the parade from when they were boys, quickly agreed, and the next morning the four of them set out together.
Continue Reading, some good stuff, especially at the end.
Continue Reading, some good stuff, especially at the end.
Sunday, September 02, 2012
I Will Instruct You
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.
-- Psalm 32:8
In the end, leaders lead...by example.
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.
-- 2 Corinthians 8:9
God’s not out to get you — He’s out to give to you.
And God’s blessings don’t pursue temporarily — but relentlessly. It’s right there in His Word: His goodness and mercy pursue me not just some days — but all the days of my life. When I’m in a wilderness, His mercy and goodness run after me. When I’m hurting, His grace hunts for me. When I’m plagued by problems, His goodness pursues me.
Surely Your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life…
-- Psalm 23:6
Your beauty and love chase after me …
-- Psalm 23:6
-- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts
-- Psalm 32:8
In the end, leaders lead...by example.
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.
-- 2 Corinthians 8:9
God’s not out to get you — He’s out to give to you.
And God’s blessings don’t pursue temporarily — but relentlessly. It’s right there in His Word: His goodness and mercy pursue me not just some days — but all the days of my life. When I’m in a wilderness, His mercy and goodness run after me. When I’m hurting, His grace hunts for me. When I’m plagued by problems, His goodness pursues me.
Surely Your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life…
-- Psalm 23:6
Your beauty and love chase after me …
-- Psalm 23:6
-- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts
Saturday, September 01, 2012
Gateway into Fall
Must say I like this thought from OtRs latest newsletter regarding the season of Fall. Joe Henry always thinks of September 1 as New Year’s Day:
The gateway into fall; marking the time to set aside distractions and truly engage in the soul's real work; to rededicate yourself to love and service, forgiveness and mystery.
-- Joe Henry
It is a most wonderful time of year, a welcomed rhythm of life.
The gateway into fall; marking the time to set aside distractions and truly engage in the soul's real work; to rededicate yourself to love and service, forgiveness and mystery.
-- Joe Henry
It is a most wonderful time of year, a welcomed rhythm of life.
Friday, August 31, 2012
Going to College
What is the purpose of 'college'? We took our son to college today. Anticipating the event, I asked myself what the purpose of doing this is. In part to remind myself; in part to admonish him -- at the end of the day, what is this whole thing for?
I got it down this far: Going to college is an opportunity.
An opportunity to:
I got it down this far: Going to college is an opportunity.
An opportunity to:
- become a professional in some skill-set
- develop more awareness -- of one's self, of others, of the world
- fit the 3 together from a deeper awareness of God
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Until it is faced
Not everything that is faced can be changed. But nothing can be changed until it is faced.
-- James Baldwin
-- James Baldwin
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Strengths & Weaknesses
Every time you meet a person with great strengths, you are also meeting someone with great weaknesses.
-- Peter Drucker, The Effective Executive
-- Peter Drucker, The Effective Executive
Monday, August 27, 2012
Excuses
As you might have gathered, I'm exploring the concepts of leadership of late. Here's one to start off this week's continued thinking:
If you start making excuses to cut out the things that are important because of urgent circumstances, it will become a habit, and you'll start cutting them our regularly.
-- Tony Dungy, The Mentor Leader
When you think of leadership, what stands out as 'important' to you?
If you start making excuses to cut out the things that are important because of urgent circumstances, it will become a habit, and you'll start cutting them our regularly.
-- Tony Dungy, The Mentor Leader
When you think of leadership, what stands out as 'important' to you?
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Far More Willing
Experience has taught me that the Shepherd is far more willing to show his sheep the path than the sheep are to follow. He is endlessly merciful, patient, tender, and loving.
-- Elisabeth Elliot
Do you ever catch yourself censoring your prayers? Why would you do that, you might say? Among other things, is something at work to cut our prayers short? It seems to me that a big part of following God is praying (breathing with God).
I was out today and found myself praying. Praying that God would free me from some things, but as I came closer to the specific words of my request I noticed myself start to censor my prayer. Do I really want to say that? If I do ask for something, He just may give it to me. Be a little careful how you phrase that, I thought. And, then, I realized why I was doing this; that I was really trying to avoid something. And, that something was the possibility of pain. You see, I know that if I ask God something like 'teach me to love like you do'...this may very well be granted and the granting may be very painful, like it was (is?) for Him. 'Help me not to...' ...and, He may just answer that by exposing something (painfully) in my life. So, without even realizing it, I was censoring my own prayers to God.
Acknowledging this, however, lead me somewhere I might otherwise have not gone. It lead me to consider the notion that it may actually be good for me to experience a helpful pain. Like having a needed surgery, the short-term pain may in fact become an integral part of a needed healing of something. Pain isn't always simply to be avoided. I have to remind myself of this. It can be a good thing that truly frees me toward the things I more genuinely want and ask God for. And, do I really want to be in the business of negotiating for goodness from God, particularly as I tend to define goodness in any given moment? Half the time, I don't really even know what is truly good for me, what I really need.
So my censoring effort, if successful, would have kept me from discovering this idea. I would have stopped by prayer short. In other words, if I had managed my prayer, I may not have realized what I was really doing and forfeited my deepening requests of God for His goodness - as He defines it - however He may choose to grant them.
And He is, afterall, endlessly merciful, patient, tender, and loving.
-- Elisabeth Elliot
Do you ever catch yourself censoring your prayers? Why would you do that, you might say? Among other things, is something at work to cut our prayers short? It seems to me that a big part of following God is praying (breathing with God).
I was out today and found myself praying. Praying that God would free me from some things, but as I came closer to the specific words of my request I noticed myself start to censor my prayer. Do I really want to say that? If I do ask for something, He just may give it to me. Be a little careful how you phrase that, I thought. And, then, I realized why I was doing this; that I was really trying to avoid something. And, that something was the possibility of pain. You see, I know that if I ask God something like 'teach me to love like you do'...this may very well be granted and the granting may be very painful, like it was (is?) for Him. 'Help me not to...' ...and, He may just answer that by exposing something (painfully) in my life. So, without even realizing it, I was censoring my own prayers to God.
Acknowledging this, however, lead me somewhere I might otherwise have not gone. It lead me to consider the notion that it may actually be good for me to experience a helpful pain. Like having a needed surgery, the short-term pain may in fact become an integral part of a needed healing of something. Pain isn't always simply to be avoided. I have to remind myself of this. It can be a good thing that truly frees me toward the things I more genuinely want and ask God for. And, do I really want to be in the business of negotiating for goodness from God, particularly as I tend to define goodness in any given moment? Half the time, I don't really even know what is truly good for me, what I really need.
So my censoring effort, if successful, would have kept me from discovering this idea. I would have stopped by prayer short. In other words, if I had managed my prayer, I may not have realized what I was really doing and forfeited my deepening requests of God for His goodness - as He defines it - however He may choose to grant them.
And He is, afterall, endlessly merciful, patient, tender, and loving.
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Bob Dylan - Fort Wayne 2012
Man, the old guy wasn't so old last night. He was 'feeling good' with new variations both jazzy and jammin'. What a beautiful evening to be outside listening to really quite fabulous music with both iconic and relevant message for even our times. My appreciation simply increased.
Click pic for set list....
Friday, August 24, 2012
Leadership
Most ideas today about leadership seem quite novel, but the more I review the topic, the more timeless the traits obviously are:
If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader.
-- John Quincy Adams
If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader.
-- John Quincy Adams
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Well-Roundedness & Inspiration
Those individuals in our organization who are inspired tend to outperform. That's because the more well-rounded you are, the better you're able to perform.
-- John Robak
Well-roundedness is likely a product of many things - family, up-bringing, opportunity, exposure, reading, personality, etc. Based on my personal experience, I think college can go a long way for someone as well. But I am particularly intrigued, however one gets there, by the connection between it and inspiration.
-- John Robak
Well-roundedness is likely a product of many things - family, up-bringing, opportunity, exposure, reading, personality, etc. Based on my personal experience, I think college can go a long way for someone as well. But I am particularly intrigued, however one gets there, by the connection between it and inspiration.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
College & Reading
Donald Miller seems to concur with yesterday's post:
I don't think there is any substitute for a college education, and I regret not attending myself, but a diligent commitment to reading will get you far. All leaders read, and there are almost no exceptions.
He went on to say this, which I like quite a bit:
I just think of the mind as a muscle, and by working it, we get more enjoyment out of life.
And, humor about an otherwise quite serious problem is quite...winsome, no?
The latest statistic is that the average American watches 1,456 hours of television a year but only reads three books. So if it's true that readers are leaders, and the more you read the further you advance, then there isn't a lot of competition.
-- Donald Miller, To Own a Dragon
I don't think there is any substitute for a college education, and I regret not attending myself, but a diligent commitment to reading will get you far. All leaders read, and there are almost no exceptions.
He went on to say this, which I like quite a bit:
I just think of the mind as a muscle, and by working it, we get more enjoyment out of life.
And, humor about an otherwise quite serious problem is quite...winsome, no?
The latest statistic is that the average American watches 1,456 hours of television a year but only reads three books. So if it's true that readers are leaders, and the more you read the further you advance, then there isn't a lot of competition.
-- Donald Miller, To Own a Dragon
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
For Those Who Want to Lead, Read
Even as global literacy rates are high (84%), people are reading less and less deeply. The National Endowment for the Arts has found that "reading has declined among every group of adult Americans," and for the first time in American history, "less than half of the U.S. adult American population is reading literature." Literacy has been improving in countries like India and China, but that literacy may not translate into more or deeper reading.
This is terrible for leadership, where my experience suggests those trends are even more pronounced. Business people seem to be reading less — particularly material unrelated to business. But deep, broad reading habits are often a defining characteristic of our greatest leaders and can catalyze insight, innovation, empathy, and personal effectiveness.
Continue Reading...
This is terrible for leadership, where my experience suggests those trends are even more pronounced. Business people seem to be reading less — particularly material unrelated to business. But deep, broad reading habits are often a defining characteristic of our greatest leaders and can catalyze insight, innovation, empathy, and personal effectiveness.
Continue Reading...
Monday, August 20, 2012
When You
...when you have a lot, it is easy to not want to lose it.
When you don't want to lose it, it is easy to invest effort into keeping it.
When you invest effort into keeping it, it is easy to think you deserve it.
When you think you deserve it, you have forgotten that it was really given to you.
When you forget that it was given to you, you forget who gave it to you.
When you forget who gives you...anything you have, you're in trouble.
When you don't want to lose it, it is easy to invest effort into keeping it.
When you invest effort into keeping it, it is easy to think you deserve it.
When you think you deserve it, you have forgotten that it was really given to you.
When you forget that it was given to you, you forget who gave it to you.
When you forget who gives you...anything you have, you're in trouble.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Thankfulness and Living
“Gratefulness allows us to understand what matters most to us and translate that to a broader goal,” offered the researcher who presented his findings at the American Psychological Association annual meeting.
When we don’t think there’s much to give thanks for, we don’t think there’s much to live for — because giving thanks to God is the purpose of our lives.
When we don’t focus on what we can thank God for, we can’t focus on living....
-- Ann Voskamp
When we don’t think there’s much to give thanks for, we don’t think there’s much to live for — because giving thanks to God is the purpose of our lives.
When we don’t focus on what we can thank God for, we can’t focus on living....
-- Ann Voskamp
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Friday, August 17, 2012
Wait (Pt 2)
Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him
-- Psalm 37:7
We are encouraged to wait. We are challenged to wait.
Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.
-- Psalm 27:14
At times, it seems we have no choice but to wait.
Some times we wait so long, we forget what we are really waiting for...or who is doing the waiting.
So what is going here? What is making us believe that this effort, this activity is so against something in ourselves? ...when, in fact, it may be part of our purpose? What is the purpose of waiting in our lives?
-- Psalm 37:7
We are encouraged to wait. We are challenged to wait.
Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.
-- Psalm 27:14
At times, it seems we have no choice but to wait.
Some times we wait so long, we forget what we are really waiting for...or who is doing the waiting.
So what is going here? What is making us believe that this effort, this activity is so against something in ourselves? ...when, in fact, it may be part of our purpose? What is the purpose of waiting in our lives?
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
I Will Wait -- Mumford & Sons
Click to listen while you read:
I Will Wait
Well I came home
Like a stone
And I fell heavy into your arms
These days of dust
Wish we've known
Will blow away with this new sun
But I'll kneel down wait for now
And I'll kneel down
Know my ground
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
So break my step
And relent
Well you forgave and I won't forget
Know what we've seen
And him with less
Now in some way shake the excess
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
Now I'll be bold
As well as strong
And use my head alongside my heart
So tame my flesh
And fix my eyes
I tethered mind freed from the lies
And I'll kneel down
Wait for now
I'll kneel down
Know my ground
Raise my hands
Paint my spirit gold
And bow my head
Feel my heart slow
Cause I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
-- Mumford & Sons, Babel
I Will Wait
Well I came home
Like a stone
And I fell heavy into your arms
These days of dust
Wish we've known
Will blow away with this new sun
But I'll kneel down wait for now
And I'll kneel down
Know my ground
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
So break my step
And relent
Well you forgave and I won't forget
Know what we've seen
And him with less
Now in some way shake the excess
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
Now I'll be bold
As well as strong
And use my head alongside my heart
So tame my flesh
And fix my eyes
I tethered mind freed from the lies
And I'll kneel down
Wait for now
I'll kneel down
Know my ground
Raise my hands
Paint my spirit gold
And bow my head
Feel my heart slow
Cause I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
And I will wait I will wait for you
-- Mumford & Sons, Babel
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Shields & Cages
...no one tells you that the shields you carry to keep you safe, they become the the steel cages that keep you alone.
-- Ann Voskamp
-- Ann Voskamp
Monday, August 13, 2012
Am I OK?
We live regularly with the question of whether or not we are OK. And, most of our time is spent seeking the answer to this question from those around us. But, even with each validation, we are dropped off at the bus-stop asking it again. Am I still OK? What about the last thing I did, or didn't do? Where does that leave me now. And, in the end, we are exhausted by the endlessness of the affirmation we seek.
Exhausting this method, though, isn't bad. It leaves us looking for something else and moves us towards the understanding that ultimately we cannot be validated enough by others...because they were not designed to validate us. Our only real validation comes from God. He is the one who created (authored) us...made us to be what we are. And with God, we are not OK...on our own merits. We are not who we were made to be. We have simply screwed things up, over and over and over. And, we are not OK. Perhaps our deepest sense of this is what keeps us constantly looking for another opinion...from others.
A surprising (and relieving) truth is that we can be OK with God after all. Because He has offered us forgiveness, if we seek it. He is the one who constantly invites us back to what He made us to be. And, in seeking this forgiveness, we discover that He is the only one who can answer our deepest question. We are OK, because of what He has done for us, for our un-OK-ness. And, when we realize this, we are finally free to not get off at all the old bus-stops. We are free to live with a new answer, a freeing answer, to our human question.
Exhausting this method, though, isn't bad. It leaves us looking for something else and moves us towards the understanding that ultimately we cannot be validated enough by others...because they were not designed to validate us. Our only real validation comes from God. He is the one who created (authored) us...made us to be what we are. And with God, we are not OK...on our own merits. We are not who we were made to be. We have simply screwed things up, over and over and over. And, we are not OK. Perhaps our deepest sense of this is what keeps us constantly looking for another opinion...from others.
A surprising (and relieving) truth is that we can be OK with God after all. Because He has offered us forgiveness, if we seek it. He is the one who constantly invites us back to what He made us to be. And, in seeking this forgiveness, we discover that He is the only one who can answer our deepest question. We are OK, because of what He has done for us, for our un-OK-ness. And, when we realize this, we are finally free to not get off at all the old bus-stops. We are free to live with a new answer, a freeing answer, to our human question.
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Friday, August 10, 2012
How vs Why
"We all live life asking questions, questions about how to get ahead, how to make life more meaningful, questions about how to survive or help people survive. The question how is an American question, and it rests on the presupposition that we know what life is really about."
Just give us the manual.
The Bible is answering primarily another question. It taps into our un-habited questions of why. If we feel it is out of sync with our concerns, perhaps it is because it and we are seeking answers to different questions.
The link below encourages us to think about the many why questions we are often unaccustomed to asking. Continue reading....
Just give us the manual.
The Bible is answering primarily another question. It taps into our un-habited questions of why. If we feel it is out of sync with our concerns, perhaps it is because it and we are seeking answers to different questions.
The link below encourages us to think about the many why questions we are often unaccustomed to asking. Continue reading....
Thursday, August 09, 2012
Flourish
If all the insects were to disappear from the Earth, within fifty years all life on Earth would end. If all human beings disappeared from the Earth, within fifty years all forms of life would flourish.
-- Jonas Salk
Seems a bit dismal, but not in light of yesterday's post...read here.
Especially when we could be doing this.
-- Jonas Salk
Seems a bit dismal, but not in light of yesterday's post...read here.
Especially when we could be doing this.
Wednesday, August 08, 2012
Makes Me Mad
...just keep it out of sight?
'Just' makes me mad. How much of this is going on? ...probably way more than I want to know.
Indifference at work? One of our crimes?
...somehow I am a part of this and I don't want to be. But, how do I not support the cultural machinery all around me...that enables this kind of thing? Seems like it has to come down to some personal choices that don't seem like they would matter anyway (not that that alone should make a difference).
'Just' makes me mad. How much of this is going on? ...probably way more than I want to know.
Indifference at work? One of our crimes?
...somehow I am a part of this and I don't want to be. But, how do I not support the cultural machinery all around me...that enables this kind of thing? Seems like it has to come down to some personal choices that don't seem like they would matter anyway (not that that alone should make a difference).
Tuesday, August 07, 2012
Seven National Crimes
I don't think. I don't know.
I don't care. I am too busy.
I leave well enough alone.
I have no time to read and
find out. I am not interested.
-- William J. H. Boetcker
I don't care. I am too busy.
I leave well enough alone.
I have no time to read and
find out. I am not interested.
-- William J. H. Boetcker
Monday, August 06, 2012
Sunday, August 05, 2012
Saturday, August 04, 2012
Wonder
As I wander off the porch of a space some dear friends are sharing with us, I realize I have forgotten that it is Saturday Morning. There are no digital clocks on these views, only the natural ones, whose rhythm is so easy to get accustomed to...like it was natural or something.
I have mentioned my deep affection for slant before, and this morning is full of it. Light miraculously invading the shadows of ridges and trees, but ever so gently as it does so. It seems transported this morning on breeze, creating a flutter of a million leaves all waving in a kind of praise. The light and the shadows dance together romantically, as the leaves of the conductor's wand direct them deeply into a kind indescribable beauty.
A fullness drowns out the sense of doom we so often carry around with us. It requires a trust, but oh so beckoningly. And the human spirit within me yields today to it.
Thank you, David and Julie, for a spot to remember, to wonder, to discover. Thank you for your humility, which so frees us to enjoy the fact that all goodness is from God.
I have mentioned my deep affection for slant before, and this morning is full of it. Light miraculously invading the shadows of ridges and trees, but ever so gently as it does so. It seems transported this morning on breeze, creating a flutter of a million leaves all waving in a kind of praise. The light and the shadows dance together romantically, as the leaves of the conductor's wand direct them deeply into a kind indescribable beauty.
A fullness drowns out the sense of doom we so often carry around with us. It requires a trust, but oh so beckoningly. And the human spirit within me yields today to it.
Thank you, David and Julie, for a spot to remember, to wonder, to discover. Thank you for your humility, which so frees us to enjoy the fact that all goodness is from God.
Friday, August 03, 2012
A Watch
When I go running some place unfamiliar, I take my watch. It helps me know how far I've gone. Otherwise, the pain in my bones, the fatigue in my legs, or my gasping breath on a hill might deceive me into thinking I can't do (or can do) something I really can. Pain or discomfort -- a deceiver. I haven't really thought of it like that before. I need something like a watch to help me properly interpret what I experience, to have a more true understanding of it, rather than just going with what it feels like where I am.
Both are realities, but one could overshadow the other.
Ann Voskamp puts it this way:
Joy and pain, they are but two arteries of the one heart that pumps through all those who don't numb themselves to really living.
and
this Daily discipline is the door to full freedeom.
A watch to keep me oriented to what is true...to make me free.
Both are realities, but one could overshadow the other.
Ann Voskamp puts it this way:
Joy and pain, they are but two arteries of the one heart that pumps through all those who don't numb themselves to really living.
and
this Daily discipline is the door to full freedeom.
A watch to keep me oriented to what is true...to make me free.
Thursday, August 02, 2012
Be Still, and Know
...and (see post below), beauty opens us back up to the reality of God. What is it about the lack of our movement that enables this? Rush, rush, and rush and we may never notice Him or see Him...imagining that we are the source of provision, of goodness, of what we have.
But take a few...to step back, to wonder, to be grateful, to receive the truth that it is God who provides us with all things, that gives us everything...and we are both renewed and reminded about the real order of things in life. All things start and end with God. What a relief, what enjoyment, what peace is ours.
Continue viewing...
Wednesday, August 01, 2012
Beauty - Revisited
Beauty often comes in forms greater than we can take in all at once.
It soaks. It opens. It reveals. Though it can take us by surprise, it is often slow.
Beauty leaks through our crust, opening and softening us to things within us, to the world outside us. It is an unparallelled power. A force undeniable, except when we ignore it.
It soaks. It opens. It reveals. Though it can take us by surprise, it is often slow.
Beauty leaks through our crust, opening and softening us to things within us, to the world outside us. It is an unparallelled power. A force undeniable, except when we ignore it.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
How to Make Any Relationship Better
When the Farmer comes in after 11 from the field, he carries it in on his grimy shirt, a few pounds of dirt.
I wonder if he feels it, the weight of the gritty world on his shoulders.
He finds me in a straight back chair at the window in lamp light. There are pages on my lap. He has no words.
Continue reading here....
I wonder if he feels it, the weight of the gritty world on his shoulders.
He finds me in a straight back chair at the window in lamp light. There are pages on my lap. He has no words.
Continue reading here....
Monday, July 30, 2012
Cannot Make Yourself
Do not be angry that you cannot make others as you would wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.
-- Thomas à Kempis
-- Thomas à Kempis
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Wants To Be
Family ought to see a man less for what he is, and more for what the man wants to be.
-- Brother Smith
-- Brother Smith
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Faith & Control
Faith is about, among other things, the release of the need to control life.
In fact, show me someone who has faith, and I will show you someone who has less and less tied up in how things go. And, in opposite, show me someone who has a high need for control, and you will see someone to whom faith is not much more than an idea.
Control is most often about fear. But here is the key to fear.
In fact, show me someone who has faith, and I will show you someone who has less and less tied up in how things go. And, in opposite, show me someone who has a high need for control, and you will see someone to whom faith is not much more than an idea.
Control is most often about fear. But here is the key to fear.
Friday, July 27, 2012
Thursday, July 26, 2012
What Lies In Me
I have never met a person I could despair of, or lose all hope for, after discerning what lies in me apart from the grace of God.
-- Oswald Chambers
-- Oswald Chambers
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
What Needs Healed
What if your healing comes through tears?
What if it takes tears to turn our hearts to God? What if it is our humility that rolls 'our stone' away?
What if it takes tears to turn our hearts to God? What if it is our humility that rolls 'our stone' away?
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Humility
The soul of a true Christian, as I then wrote my meditations, appeared like such a little white flower as we see in the spring of the year; low and humble on the ground, opening its bosom to receive the pleasant beams of the sun's glory; rejoicing as it were in a calm rapture; diffusing around a sweet fragrancy; standing peacefully and lovingly, in the midst of other flowers round about; all in like manner opening their bosoms to drink in the light of the sun. There was no part of creature holiness, that I had so great a sense of its loveliness, as humility, brokenness of heart and poverty of spirit; and there was nothing that I so earnestly longed for. My heart panted after this - to lie low before God, as in the dust; that I might be nothing, and that God might be all, that I might become as a little child.
-- Jonathan Edwards
-- Jonathan Edwards
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