1. When typing Satan, especially in something that will be read by the public, it is really important not to leave out the first A. You don’t want to publish something like this, “Stan’s rebellion after his release ends with his followers being consumed by fire from heaven.” Especially if you have friends named Stan.
2. Just exactly what is the point of the white crayon?
3. After having a hairy face for well over a year, and then shaving it, I understand Chuck Norris’s compulsory need for his mustache.
4. I want to be like a tree, as the song goes, but sometimes I feel like a plastic pinwheel stuck in someone else’s front yard.
5. Having three cats rather than two creates a whole new layer of feline social angst.
6. Can we please tax STUPID? Either the national debt will disappear or people will get a clue. We win either way.
7. Who really thought cigarettes were a good idea? Yes, I think I will cram a piece of paper full of an addictive—cancer-spawning-substance, set it on fire, and then put it in my mouth.
8. I think the presidential inauguration should somehow include the phrase, “winner, winner, chicken dinner.”
9. How many morons does it take to reform healthcare? I think we’re about to find out.
10. People either love the Bible, or they hate the Bible, but few enough on either side actually know what it says. Fewer still know what it means.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Preposterously Impossible Hypothesis #10: “What goes up, must come down.”
When I was a boy I loved flying things. One of my favorite TV shows was Air-Wolf which was about a helicopter. I loved making all kinds of paper airplanes and remember one year for Christmas when my mom bought me a model rocket kit. I recall periodically climbing a high tree on our farm and tossing my latest paper airplane into the wind to see how far it would go. When it made it past the branches and got out into open air, it would just glide—seemingly forever, but eventually, every time, it would come back down. Our dear friend gravity has that affect on things in this world.
Regardless of how big, small, aerodynamic, or sophisticated a piece of technology is it will not keep you aloft. The device which would allow you to bypass the effects of gravity all together has yet to be invented. And so, in that sense, what goes up must come down. But is that all there is to this? What about your hope, expectations, faith, and dreams?
In the film ‘The Astronaut Farmer’, Billy Bob Thornton plays a farmer who dreams of building and launching his own rocket. He rallies his family behind him and together they set to work engineering the craft and learning what to do with it. I won’t go into all the details of the film here, but as soon as word gets out about what the farmer is up to he begins to face opposition.
Some of you have big dreams. Hopefully all of you have big faith. I have great hopes that all of you harbor grand expectations for your life and what God will do through you, for you, and in you. But what will you do with your goals and expectations when opposition comes? It will come.
Opposition, like gravity, is always there. The moment you have success someone will oppose you. The moment you allow yourself to dream bigger than your circumstance, someone will try to anchor you to reality. As you begin to feel caught up in the wonder of hopeful expectation some sour soul will shoot you down.
Now, depending on what your hope is in, how you attained it, and what you plan to do with; you may or may not be grounded by a little dose of opposition. Success comes in all shapes and sizes. It comes in a multitude of ways and brings along a smorgasbord of diverging results.
I like to climb the highest tree and toss my dreams into the wind, but it is not the wind that matters. It is neither the careful planning nor finely crafted bit of imagination I am willing to lose upon this world which would identify me. It is the tree that holds me up. It is the fact that I would go to something bigger than myself, allow myself to be caught up in it, and reach for the highest heights it has to offer.
God can be like that for each and every one us. We need only begin to take hold of a branch and climb one step at a time. He offers assurance and He brings steadfastness. He is the only thing which will not be thwarted by opposition, of—or beyond this natural realm. What better place to dream, and dare to loose them on this world, than from the boughs of the very one who authored, and finished our faith. I’m glad this dreamer has found his place with the Father. Have you found yours?
Regardless of how big, small, aerodynamic, or sophisticated a piece of technology is it will not keep you aloft. The device which would allow you to bypass the effects of gravity all together has yet to be invented. And so, in that sense, what goes up must come down. But is that all there is to this? What about your hope, expectations, faith, and dreams?
In the film ‘The Astronaut Farmer’, Billy Bob Thornton plays a farmer who dreams of building and launching his own rocket. He rallies his family behind him and together they set to work engineering the craft and learning what to do with it. I won’t go into all the details of the film here, but as soon as word gets out about what the farmer is up to he begins to face opposition.
Some of you have big dreams. Hopefully all of you have big faith. I have great hopes that all of you harbor grand expectations for your life and what God will do through you, for you, and in you. But what will you do with your goals and expectations when opposition comes? It will come.
Opposition, like gravity, is always there. The moment you have success someone will oppose you. The moment you allow yourself to dream bigger than your circumstance, someone will try to anchor you to reality. As you begin to feel caught up in the wonder of hopeful expectation some sour soul will shoot you down.
Now, depending on what your hope is in, how you attained it, and what you plan to do with; you may or may not be grounded by a little dose of opposition. Success comes in all shapes and sizes. It comes in a multitude of ways and brings along a smorgasbord of diverging results.
I like to climb the highest tree and toss my dreams into the wind, but it is not the wind that matters. It is neither the careful planning nor finely crafted bit of imagination I am willing to lose upon this world which would identify me. It is the tree that holds me up. It is the fact that I would go to something bigger than myself, allow myself to be caught up in it, and reach for the highest heights it has to offer.
God can be like that for each and every one us. We need only begin to take hold of a branch and climb one step at a time. He offers assurance and He brings steadfastness. He is the only thing which will not be thwarted by opposition, of—or beyond this natural realm. What better place to dream, and dare to loose them on this world, than from the boughs of the very one who authored, and finished our faith. I’m glad this dreamer has found his place with the Father. Have you found yours?
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Preposterously Impossible Hypothesis #9: “If you met my family you would understand.”
Close your eyes. Ok, don’t because then you wouldn’t be able to read this very well would you? Think about your family though, all of them. Yes, even your cousin that nobody likes who keeps bringing that crazy drama causing girlfriend of his to all the family stuff.
What is your family like? Are they mostly quiet bookworm types? Do they like to get loud watch football and scream at the TV until the cops come by? Maybe they are primarily outdoorsmen and your family functions consists of people swapping stories about that big catfish they caught or deer they missed this past season? Probably, there are different individual families within your family as a whole who would fall into one or more of these categories.
What about you? We’ve often heard it said that a man is the sum of his parts. Well, it’s no secret that whether you are talking about your actual biological heritage, or familial connections that are not based on shared DNA, people have expectations about you based on your family.
If your dad was the all-star running back for the high school football team at some point you will begin to feel the pressure to take up the passion for pig-skin hijinks. Is your mother known to be a tireless volunteer or incredible artisan? It won’t be long before insinuations and requests for a similar performance waft your way.
Not only in the land of talent and triumph are we so often identified by our family, but the quality and character of our parentage often labels us early on as well. If your kin are known to be lazy, apathetic, or rude—chances are that people will expect something very much the same out of you. But should they?
Our culture faces identity crisis on a daily basis. People strive to fit in. They struggle to achieve popularity—more often than not giving into societies asinine conformities along the way.
What is it that identifies you? Are you the sum of a sequence of genetic code? Do chemical reactions and predetermined consequences create the sum of your existence? Or is there more?
Is your future limited to that of your parents? Are you bound to repeat their mistakes? Are you chained to their destiny, following blindly simply because they gave you life?
Don’t misread or misinterpret what I’m saying today. I am deeply grateful for my upbringing. I understand a little more every day how blessed I am with the family I have and the heritage that comes with it. But should that define me? Should I really be the sum of my parts?
I would dare to say that you have a choice. You can just let life make decisions for you. Allow familial history to direct your course in all things. Be a good Democrat/Republican because grandpa was. Go to church every Sunday because that’s how mom did it. Or . . . you can choose to plot the course of your life by standards neither your own nor your family’s.
“In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.” Proverbs 16: 9 NIV
Don’t be limited by the boundaries we often force upon ourselves. Step into a life with God. He is limitless.
What is your family like? Are they mostly quiet bookworm types? Do they like to get loud watch football and scream at the TV until the cops come by? Maybe they are primarily outdoorsmen and your family functions consists of people swapping stories about that big catfish they caught or deer they missed this past season? Probably, there are different individual families within your family as a whole who would fall into one or more of these categories.
What about you? We’ve often heard it said that a man is the sum of his parts. Well, it’s no secret that whether you are talking about your actual biological heritage, or familial connections that are not based on shared DNA, people have expectations about you based on your family.
If your dad was the all-star running back for the high school football team at some point you will begin to feel the pressure to take up the passion for pig-skin hijinks. Is your mother known to be a tireless volunteer or incredible artisan? It won’t be long before insinuations and requests for a similar performance waft your way.
Not only in the land of talent and triumph are we so often identified by our family, but the quality and character of our parentage often labels us early on as well. If your kin are known to be lazy, apathetic, or rude—chances are that people will expect something very much the same out of you. But should they?
Our culture faces identity crisis on a daily basis. People strive to fit in. They struggle to achieve popularity—more often than not giving into societies asinine conformities along the way.
What is it that identifies you? Are you the sum of a sequence of genetic code? Do chemical reactions and predetermined consequences create the sum of your existence? Or is there more?
Is your future limited to that of your parents? Are you bound to repeat their mistakes? Are you chained to their destiny, following blindly simply because they gave you life?
Don’t misread or misinterpret what I’m saying today. I am deeply grateful for my upbringing. I understand a little more every day how blessed I am with the family I have and the heritage that comes with it. But should that define me? Should I really be the sum of my parts?
I would dare to say that you have a choice. You can just let life make decisions for you. Allow familial history to direct your course in all things. Be a good Democrat/Republican because grandpa was. Go to church every Sunday because that’s how mom did it. Or . . . you can choose to plot the course of your life by standards neither your own nor your family’s.
“In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.” Proverbs 16: 9 NIV
Don’t be limited by the boundaries we often force upon ourselves. Step into a life with God. He is limitless.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Preposterously Impossible Hypothesis #8: “On the fence.”
Have you ever climbed a fence? Probably. What kind? Have you ever climbed a barb-wire fence? Fun. Wooden rail fence? Breeze.
This notion of fence sitting is insanely popular today. People are so non committal. Few people really have the intestinal fortitude (THAT MEANS GUTS) to stand for, agree to, take ownership in, or to live up to anything. They skirt big issues, ignore anything confrontational that is actually of value, and waste time squabbling over absolute ridiculousness. I realize of course that there are exceptions to this, but those are certainly not the norm. Most people in this day and age are just not engaging.
And why should they? Has society shown them anything that is worth engaging in? Pop-culture? Social bliss? Material acquisition?
In fact, the bulk of what we ARE encouraged to participate in, decide on, or stand for on a daily basis is nothing more than worthless. I really like the book of Ecclesiastes. Solomon was no dummy. Over and over again he recounts how incredibly meaningless all this stuff going on around us really is. It was true then and it is still true.
Few things clamoring for our attention are of any lasting value. Seldom will you be given the chance to plant your feet, steel your resolve, square your jaw and refuse to back down for something of any lasting eternal quality.
However, every so often that chance arises. In today’s society, more often than not, we are all too content to ignore what is black and white. We strive for the grey. The hot topic, well we don’t want to get burned so we just keep our distance. Cold reality, that’s no good either so we drown ourselves in media and the mundane meagerness that results from a life of mediocrity.
What are we left with? We’re left with a culture that at a moment’s notice will flare up over something inconsequential while all the while ignoring travesty with cold indifference. This hodge-podge of social temperament results in a lukewarm stink that assails the nostrils of God.
There is no fence. It is an illusion put in place to keep you from choice. There is either victory or defeat, black or white, yes or no. Those comfortable striving for the middle merely lack the quality required to stand firm.
“It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly . . . who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who have never known neither victory nor defeat.” – Teddy Roosevelt
“So, because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” – Revelations 3: 16 NIV
This notion of fence sitting is insanely popular today. People are so non committal. Few people really have the intestinal fortitude (THAT MEANS GUTS) to stand for, agree to, take ownership in, or to live up to anything. They skirt big issues, ignore anything confrontational that is actually of value, and waste time squabbling over absolute ridiculousness. I realize of course that there are exceptions to this, but those are certainly not the norm. Most people in this day and age are just not engaging.
And why should they? Has society shown them anything that is worth engaging in? Pop-culture? Social bliss? Material acquisition?
In fact, the bulk of what we ARE encouraged to participate in, decide on, or stand for on a daily basis is nothing more than worthless. I really like the book of Ecclesiastes. Solomon was no dummy. Over and over again he recounts how incredibly meaningless all this stuff going on around us really is. It was true then and it is still true.
Few things clamoring for our attention are of any lasting value. Seldom will you be given the chance to plant your feet, steel your resolve, square your jaw and refuse to back down for something of any lasting eternal quality.
However, every so often that chance arises. In today’s society, more often than not, we are all too content to ignore what is black and white. We strive for the grey. The hot topic, well we don’t want to get burned so we just keep our distance. Cold reality, that’s no good either so we drown ourselves in media and the mundane meagerness that results from a life of mediocrity.
What are we left with? We’re left with a culture that at a moment’s notice will flare up over something inconsequential while all the while ignoring travesty with cold indifference. This hodge-podge of social temperament results in a lukewarm stink that assails the nostrils of God.
There is no fence. It is an illusion put in place to keep you from choice. There is either victory or defeat, black or white, yes or no. Those comfortable striving for the middle merely lack the quality required to stand firm.
“It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly . . . who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who have never known neither victory nor defeat.” – Teddy Roosevelt
“So, because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” – Revelations 3: 16 NIV
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Preposterously Impossible Hypothesis #7: “If everyone else jumped off a cliff would you jump too?”
There’s nothing like a good spring afternoon spent rappelling—a quiet mountain breeze gusting around you and the soft shades of late March afternoon sunshine. I like the feel of the rope in my hands and the smell of my leather gloves. However, none of those sensations trumps that feeling you get when you approach the edge of the cliff.
I remember first starting a few years ago and how intimidating that approach could be, my knees nearly shaking from nervousness and a rumbling uncertainty gnawing at the back of my mind.
I got over those uncertainties. I learned to trust in my skill and my gear to get me over the edge and to the bottom safely. Now when I make my initial approach to the precipice the fear is gone. I can adequately turn around and back off the cliff with an assurance that all will be ok.
It didn’t start that way for me though. In fact, for most of my life I was deathly afraid of high things and to this day I still have trouble with man made heights like bridges, mountain highways, and tall buildings. This nearly crippling fear I use to carry around came from a tragic story of a classmate of mine who died in a climbing accident when I was in junior high. However, a few years ago I decided to conquer my fear.
I started small, and by small I mean I started with cliff jumping. Cliff jumping is essentially finding something tall to jump off of into water. From that I started doing a little rock climbing, nothing crazy or very dangerous. Eventually I wound up rappelling, caving, snowboarding and all kinds of fun things that revolve around God’s heights. There is just something about a high thing I know God put there that doesn’t elicit the same response as something some engineer designed in a cubicle. Rocks and water just seem to carry a greater sense of permanence than do steel and glass.
Let’s look at this phrase for a minute, “If everyone else jumped off a cliff would you jump too?” Naturally, your first impression or answer is most likely a resounding, “No.” That’s all well and good, just because the president gives a speech about government ran health care we wouldn’t all go dump our medicine in the garbage and quit our HMO. Some would, and probably did tonight, but many would not.
What if someone you trusted impressed upon you to do something seemingly crazy? Would you follow them off that cliff? What in you rouses that kind of response? Is it faith in their decision making ability? Is it trust that they are informed enough, skilled enough, or in some way adequate enough to make the decision for you?
We make, follow, or disagree with the decisions of others daily. Our lives are a continual process of decisions and their circumstances. The fulcrum of this issue lies not in the cliff, the inherent danger of following someone blindly, or the result gravity might have upon you. The real issue, the million dollar question, is why you do or don’t follow? It doesn’t really matter whether or not the “right people” are doing something. What really matters is whether or not what is being done is right.
In life there are leaders and there are followers. You either have to lead, follow, or get out of the way. You won’t always lead and you won’t always follow, but at times you have to be willing and able to do either.
Those who succeed in their walk with God aren’t the timid souls who are afraid to step over the ledge. Neither is it the fickle crowd running rampant after every fanciful fad fashion and fallacy to erupt from mainstream society. Those who find real success, a God inspired eternal success, are those who live out Hebrews 10: 38, “But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.”
A lot of time life can feel like backing over a cliff, but at least with God you know you’re in the hands of the very one who crafted gravity itself.
I remember first starting a few years ago and how intimidating that approach could be, my knees nearly shaking from nervousness and a rumbling uncertainty gnawing at the back of my mind.
I got over those uncertainties. I learned to trust in my skill and my gear to get me over the edge and to the bottom safely. Now when I make my initial approach to the precipice the fear is gone. I can adequately turn around and back off the cliff with an assurance that all will be ok.
It didn’t start that way for me though. In fact, for most of my life I was deathly afraid of high things and to this day I still have trouble with man made heights like bridges, mountain highways, and tall buildings. This nearly crippling fear I use to carry around came from a tragic story of a classmate of mine who died in a climbing accident when I was in junior high. However, a few years ago I decided to conquer my fear.
I started small, and by small I mean I started with cliff jumping. Cliff jumping is essentially finding something tall to jump off of into water. From that I started doing a little rock climbing, nothing crazy or very dangerous. Eventually I wound up rappelling, caving, snowboarding and all kinds of fun things that revolve around God’s heights. There is just something about a high thing I know God put there that doesn’t elicit the same response as something some engineer designed in a cubicle. Rocks and water just seem to carry a greater sense of permanence than do steel and glass.
Let’s look at this phrase for a minute, “If everyone else jumped off a cliff would you jump too?” Naturally, your first impression or answer is most likely a resounding, “No.” That’s all well and good, just because the president gives a speech about government ran health care we wouldn’t all go dump our medicine in the garbage and quit our HMO. Some would, and probably did tonight, but many would not.
What if someone you trusted impressed upon you to do something seemingly crazy? Would you follow them off that cliff? What in you rouses that kind of response? Is it faith in their decision making ability? Is it trust that they are informed enough, skilled enough, or in some way adequate enough to make the decision for you?
We make, follow, or disagree with the decisions of others daily. Our lives are a continual process of decisions and their circumstances. The fulcrum of this issue lies not in the cliff, the inherent danger of following someone blindly, or the result gravity might have upon you. The real issue, the million dollar question, is why you do or don’t follow? It doesn’t really matter whether or not the “right people” are doing something. What really matters is whether or not what is being done is right.
In life there are leaders and there are followers. You either have to lead, follow, or get out of the way. You won’t always lead and you won’t always follow, but at times you have to be willing and able to do either.
Those who succeed in their walk with God aren’t the timid souls who are afraid to step over the ledge. Neither is it the fickle crowd running rampant after every fanciful fad fashion and fallacy to erupt from mainstream society. Those who find real success, a God inspired eternal success, are those who live out Hebrews 10: 38, “But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.”
A lot of time life can feel like backing over a cliff, but at least with God you know you’re in the hands of the very one who crafted gravity itself.
Preposterously Impossible Hypothesis #6: “You can’t judge a book by its cover.”
I have spent a ridiculous amount of time around books in my nearly thirty years on this earth. I don’t think it would be any kind of exaggeration at all to say that I have had some kind of contact with a book every day of my life. Whether you love them, hate them, read them, or use them to level your kitchen table, if they are collecting dust or just plain worn out; books are a major part of our culture and they have played a huge role in my life.
My senior year of high school I worked in the Junior High library logging books into a database for easier checkout. I was responsible for writing a brief synopsis for every book I put my hands on. I wrote a lot of short summaries on those old tomes. Books of every imaginable kind that you might find in a school library—reference, fiction, non-fiction, and autobiographies; everything from the Encyclopedia Britannica to Super Fudge.
During college my love of books, music, and all things entertainment landed me a job in the book department of a local retail chain. Again I found myself neck deep in books of all imaginable kinds. I learned two very important things during my time as a person charged with connecting people and the books they think they might want.
First, but not what I want to discuss today, most people who love books think they are smarter than everyone else but have no idea what they are talking about the vast majority of the time. Second, you can indeed judge a book by its cover.
I know that the origin of this idiom has to do with not passing judgment on the quality, condition, or content of a person based solely on appearances. That is mostly a good principle to live by. In fact, it is soundly biblical. We are not to set ourselves as judge over anyone.
Let’s turn the page for a second. Flip this thing over to the back cover and see what’s really going on. Any book you pick up off the store shelf today will have a jacket or a back cover that gives a synopsis of the contents within the book itself. For some books the summary is entirely unnecessary. For example, romance novels. Gag!
Romance novels are probably the most identifiable books on the market. The cover of every one of them is exactly the same. Super-Buff-Guy with delts on pecks and traps on his abs, is either shirtless, or nearly shirtless, and is holding some equally scantily clad tart with full bosom and lust filled eyes in some kind of dramatic embrace. Why do they all have nearly identical covers? Well, because they all offer nearly the exact same thing—shallow plots, vicarious scenarios, and tangled morality. The cover for these romance novels is an unspoken promise made to those thinking to buy the book.
Now flip your life over. Check out your cover. When somebody looks at you what do they see? Not just the short little blurb you’ve thought up to try to impress people into accepting you. What does the way you present yourself say about who you are? Do people see you, your designer jeans, and over done t-shirt and jump to some conclusion about you? Do people hear you speak or see how you treat your friends and get a realistic impression of who you really are? Is the person you are showing everyone on a daily basis the real you or is it a flimsy cover—a shallow jacket hiding the awesome person inside? You see, you really can judge a book by its cover, and people will everyday. What’s on your cover?
My senior year of high school I worked in the Junior High library logging books into a database for easier checkout. I was responsible for writing a brief synopsis for every book I put my hands on. I wrote a lot of short summaries on those old tomes. Books of every imaginable kind that you might find in a school library—reference, fiction, non-fiction, and autobiographies; everything from the Encyclopedia Britannica to Super Fudge.
During college my love of books, music, and all things entertainment landed me a job in the book department of a local retail chain. Again I found myself neck deep in books of all imaginable kinds. I learned two very important things during my time as a person charged with connecting people and the books they think they might want.
First, but not what I want to discuss today, most people who love books think they are smarter than everyone else but have no idea what they are talking about the vast majority of the time. Second, you can indeed judge a book by its cover.
I know that the origin of this idiom has to do with not passing judgment on the quality, condition, or content of a person based solely on appearances. That is mostly a good principle to live by. In fact, it is soundly biblical. We are not to set ourselves as judge over anyone.
Let’s turn the page for a second. Flip this thing over to the back cover and see what’s really going on. Any book you pick up off the store shelf today will have a jacket or a back cover that gives a synopsis of the contents within the book itself. For some books the summary is entirely unnecessary. For example, romance novels. Gag!
Romance novels are probably the most identifiable books on the market. The cover of every one of them is exactly the same. Super-Buff-Guy with delts on pecks and traps on his abs, is either shirtless, or nearly shirtless, and is holding some equally scantily clad tart with full bosom and lust filled eyes in some kind of dramatic embrace. Why do they all have nearly identical covers? Well, because they all offer nearly the exact same thing—shallow plots, vicarious scenarios, and tangled morality. The cover for these romance novels is an unspoken promise made to those thinking to buy the book.
Now flip your life over. Check out your cover. When somebody looks at you what do they see? Not just the short little blurb you’ve thought up to try to impress people into accepting you. What does the way you present yourself say about who you are? Do people see you, your designer jeans, and over done t-shirt and jump to some conclusion about you? Do people hear you speak or see how you treat your friends and get a realistic impression of who you really are? Is the person you are showing everyone on a daily basis the real you or is it a flimsy cover—a shallow jacket hiding the awesome person inside? You see, you really can judge a book by its cover, and people will everyday. What’s on your cover?
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Preposterously Impossible Hypothesis #5: “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.”
I have a lot of mixed feelings about this particular saying. On the one hand I feel like it should be true, and for some it could be, but I know for many that is just simply not the case. Words hurt. Maybe not in a broken-bone-I-suddenly-need-a-cast kind of way, but words can and sometimes DO cause incredible damage. The quickest way to cut the chord of any relationship is by wielding damaging words in a careless way.
I’m pretty much the king of this. I believe in being honest and direct to the point that it could sometimes be taken as meanness. This isn’t really the case. Of course I deeply care for the people in my life. I try to have a healthy dose of love and respect for others as well, but realize that sometimes in this I fall flat on my face.
Step back and look at our world for a minute. Think about some of the bigger court cases in recent years. So many times the testimony of a key witness can be called into question or refuted based simply on their lifestyle and activities.
Words are powerful weapons—even more powerful are the thoughts, lack-thereof, or faith behind the collective syllables that spill out of our head. Before we can consider our words with kindness shouldn’t we consider our thoughts?
Paul put it this way in his letter to the church at Corinth, “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
The Psalmist wrote, “keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.”
There is a lot to be said in the Scriptures about the tongue, its power, and the damage that can be done by words. We have all, at one time or another, been the recipient of words that hurt. We have all, at one time or another, been the perpetrator of words that hurt. We could all use a little more discretion in our speech, care in our language, and love in our vocabulary.
I’m pretty much the king of this. I believe in being honest and direct to the point that it could sometimes be taken as meanness. This isn’t really the case. Of course I deeply care for the people in my life. I try to have a healthy dose of love and respect for others as well, but realize that sometimes in this I fall flat on my face.
Step back and look at our world for a minute. Think about some of the bigger court cases in recent years. So many times the testimony of a key witness can be called into question or refuted based simply on their lifestyle and activities.
Words are powerful weapons—even more powerful are the thoughts, lack-thereof, or faith behind the collective syllables that spill out of our head. Before we can consider our words with kindness shouldn’t we consider our thoughts?
Paul put it this way in his letter to the church at Corinth, “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
The Psalmist wrote, “keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.”
There is a lot to be said in the Scriptures about the tongue, its power, and the damage that can be done by words. We have all, at one time or another, been the recipient of words that hurt. We have all, at one time or another, been the perpetrator of words that hurt. We could all use a little more discretion in our speech, care in our language, and love in our vocabulary.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Preposterously Impossible Hypothesis #4: “Two heads are better than one."
Sure this saying has its foundation—like most of the others I’ve been going on about—in some semblance of truth. Basically it just means that it’s good to seek advice or collaborate on ideas to get a fuller picture or better perspective on a given situation. Who could really argue with such an implementation of this tiny tidbit of truth? What about in other aspects of your life?
Do you remember the early 90’s TV show “Hercules and His Legendary Journeys” starring Kevin Sorbo? I remember it well as it was one of my favorites. I distinctly remember the episode where Herc first encounters the mythic Hydra, a multi-headed beast which could only be defeated by lopping off a head and burning the stump. Gruesome! But what happened the first time he decapitated the scaly fiend? He jumped in, chopped off a head, and, sans fire, two grew back in its place.
I can’t think of the saying “Two heads are better than one” and not instinctively come back to the imagery of mighty Hercules battling the Hydra. You might not cling to this particular imagery as an allegorical representation for this old saying, but for me it keeps coming back to Herc vs Hydra. Why?
Paul writing to the church at Ephesus said, “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”
We were never designed to derive our sense of purpose from any source outside Christ himself. Our sole source of service and satisfaction is in Christ alone. He is the Head of this glorious body we are grafted into by the sacrificial outpouring of His blood at Calvary.
How do you make your decisions about life? What thought process do you go through to reach a conclusion on moral matters? What are you investing your time, life, property, and passion in?
Christ as the head wants it to be Him. He wants nothing less than everything from all of us. Jesus himself said, “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”
I hope you will continue to make Him your Master. It is not merely a one time choice, but an every day decision to relinquish control to the good things found in His grace.
Somebody a lot smarter than me once said, “Anything with two heads is a monster.”
Do you remember the early 90’s TV show “Hercules and His Legendary Journeys” starring Kevin Sorbo? I remember it well as it was one of my favorites. I distinctly remember the episode where Herc first encounters the mythic Hydra, a multi-headed beast which could only be defeated by lopping off a head and burning the stump. Gruesome! But what happened the first time he decapitated the scaly fiend? He jumped in, chopped off a head, and, sans fire, two grew back in its place.
I can’t think of the saying “Two heads are better than one” and not instinctively come back to the imagery of mighty Hercules battling the Hydra. You might not cling to this particular imagery as an allegorical representation for this old saying, but for me it keeps coming back to Herc vs Hydra. Why?
Paul writing to the church at Ephesus said, “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”
We were never designed to derive our sense of purpose from any source outside Christ himself. Our sole source of service and satisfaction is in Christ alone. He is the Head of this glorious body we are grafted into by the sacrificial outpouring of His blood at Calvary.
How do you make your decisions about life? What thought process do you go through to reach a conclusion on moral matters? What are you investing your time, life, property, and passion in?
Christ as the head wants it to be Him. He wants nothing less than everything from all of us. Jesus himself said, “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”
I hope you will continue to make Him your Master. It is not merely a one time choice, but an every day decision to relinquish control to the good things found in His grace.
Somebody a lot smarter than me once said, “Anything with two heads is a monster.”
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Preposterously Impossible Hypothesis #3: "The early bird gets the worm."
Do any of you like to be early? To church, the movies, class, job interviews, or whatever else the occasion might be? The general consensus among most successful people would be that punctuality is a worthwhile endeavor. At first glance I would have to agree. However, sometimes don’t you think we take it a bit too far?
Case in point: “Black Friday”, the largest shopping day of the year. Every year people get up at three o’clock in the morning to wait in line for their department store of choice to open at like 4:00 A.M. The door swings open and the mob surges through recklessly. Ignorant of bystanders, fellow shoppers, and the store associates in their path.
Last year alone I read about at least five different instances where people were trampled to death in this situation. I mean come on. That is just on a level of ridiculousness that should make any self respecting person cringe, but that type of behavior is hardly limited to “Black Friday.”
Everyday—all over our country people are making choices to put their own selfishness above those around them. Look at the state of our society. Think about how you act in line at your favorite fast food joint. How do you respond if you go into a restaurant and people who were seated after you get served before you?
Our society has become a society ripened with the mentality that instant gratification is the best option. We want fast, we want it first, and we want it now. We demonstrate this in our relationships, our jobs, and our hobbies. The repugnancy of our actions has created a cycle where each generation is becoming more self-centered and selfish than the one which came before it.
Long term investment in anything is old hat. We want the new nowness. Romance is no longer a thing of beauty to be cultivated over time like a prize garden. It’s a cheap trinket we want to pick up, use, and toss away when we’ve had our way with it. Friendships are shallow and superficial, with both sides seeking mutual gain. The economic infrastructure is rife with this kind of ideology; bail outs, golden parachutes, quick gains, high risk-quick yield investments.
Who is stopping to think about consequences? Who has time for that kind of careful introspection? No, we’re very quick to move on to the next apparent thing that will make us feel better, look better, or get better.
Our spirituality has not escaped this mentality. Some of us would like to close our eyes and pretend it has. Some are all too happy to realize the truth and capitalize on people’s weakness, but God himself is content with neither.
Romans 8: 22-27 puts it like this, “We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.”
I believe we could all, from time to time, handle a little dose of God-inspired patience. And not only patience, but satisfaction for what we already have. Not merely in material possessions or gain, but contentment in those ephemeral things like relationships.
We should strive to put to death this mentality of me, myself, and mine first. The early bird might get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
Case in point: “Black Friday”, the largest shopping day of the year. Every year people get up at three o’clock in the morning to wait in line for their department store of choice to open at like 4:00 A.M. The door swings open and the mob surges through recklessly. Ignorant of bystanders, fellow shoppers, and the store associates in their path.
Last year alone I read about at least five different instances where people were trampled to death in this situation. I mean come on. That is just on a level of ridiculousness that should make any self respecting person cringe, but that type of behavior is hardly limited to “Black Friday.”
Everyday—all over our country people are making choices to put their own selfishness above those around them. Look at the state of our society. Think about how you act in line at your favorite fast food joint. How do you respond if you go into a restaurant and people who were seated after you get served before you?
Our society has become a society ripened with the mentality that instant gratification is the best option. We want fast, we want it first, and we want it now. We demonstrate this in our relationships, our jobs, and our hobbies. The repugnancy of our actions has created a cycle where each generation is becoming more self-centered and selfish than the one which came before it.
Long term investment in anything is old hat. We want the new nowness. Romance is no longer a thing of beauty to be cultivated over time like a prize garden. It’s a cheap trinket we want to pick up, use, and toss away when we’ve had our way with it. Friendships are shallow and superficial, with both sides seeking mutual gain. The economic infrastructure is rife with this kind of ideology; bail outs, golden parachutes, quick gains, high risk-quick yield investments.
Who is stopping to think about consequences? Who has time for that kind of careful introspection? No, we’re very quick to move on to the next apparent thing that will make us feel better, look better, or get better.
Our spirituality has not escaped this mentality. Some of us would like to close our eyes and pretend it has. Some are all too happy to realize the truth and capitalize on people’s weakness, but God himself is content with neither.
Romans 8: 22-27 puts it like this, “We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.”
I believe we could all, from time to time, handle a little dose of God-inspired patience. And not only patience, but satisfaction for what we already have. Not merely in material possessions or gain, but contentment in those ephemeral things like relationships.
We should strive to put to death this mentality of me, myself, and mine first. The early bird might get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Preposterously Impossible Hypothesis #2: “You get what you pay for.”
Another familiar sentiment often bandied about is, “You get what you pay for.” Ok, let’s think about this one for a second. This is basically a statement referring to the quality of an item purchased. Yes, I know you know what it means but humor me.
So, you walk into Lowes and need a hammer. The manly man inside you, or aggressively-hammer-shopping-lady inside, sees the “Kobalt” brand steel hammer and yearns for it, but the tightwad inside sees the “Lil Helper” with handy plastic grip for a fraction of the price. Your two personas duke it out in the arena of your self-conscious shopping psyche and the tightwad wins out. You head home with the “Lil Helper” in tow and get to work on that shelf you’ve been meaning to fix for about three months now. You get about five minutes into the job, are enjoying the nature of the work, and SNAP! “Lil Helper” breaks like . . . something that breaks really easy.
You would like to berate yourself and throw a good natured man-fit that probably involves yelling at nothing in particular simply because you enjoy raising your voice, however, you realized . . . “You get what you pay for.”
Buy cheap, get cheap. We’ve seen this story play out in our lives numerous times. Jeans on sale = whole in the seat. Steal on eBay = Korean Scam. New cheaper cat food = a really bad day for the litter box.
But what if, what if, this saying didn’t always prove true. What if there was an aspect to our lives that no matter how hard we tried to make this pithy little principle fit, it just didn’t pan out?
Think about this for a second. What kind of life do you live? Do you call yourself a Christian? Do you adhere to the basic Christian principles of sin and righteous living? Have you always?
The fact is, there is a large part of the population who will one day find that this principle does indeed carry a titanic tone of truth when applied to their spiritual journey. Some will just keep on writing bad checks, keep on doing the same thing that’s made them miserable for years, and never stop to think how bad those checks are bouncing. Some people are content to find themselves investing in the shallow side of life for apparent short term “joy” or “gains.” One day those people will find themselves standing in front a broken shelf with a broken “Lil Helper” wincing at the words, “You get what you pay for.”
For the rest of us, this principle holds almost as much power as an echo on a cloudy day. There may have been a time in our lives when we sowed bad seed. We might have lived rotten lives, invested poorly in the spiritual side of life, and made cheap choices, but something happened and we changed. We took a step in the direction of a loving God who met us right at the point of our need and changed our lives forever. He ignored all the prices we tried to pay for flimsy peace, false security, and fickle prosperity. He saw only the price He paid.
John 3: 16 says it like this, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Someday the banks will close, the world will shudder, and time itself will turn on its head. God will look down on us and do one of two things. Either He will give us what we paid for, or He will give us what He paid for. What category will you be in?
So, you walk into Lowes and need a hammer. The manly man inside you, or aggressively-hammer-shopping-lady inside, sees the “Kobalt” brand steel hammer and yearns for it, but the tightwad inside sees the “Lil Helper” with handy plastic grip for a fraction of the price. Your two personas duke it out in the arena of your self-conscious shopping psyche and the tightwad wins out. You head home with the “Lil Helper” in tow and get to work on that shelf you’ve been meaning to fix for about three months now. You get about five minutes into the job, are enjoying the nature of the work, and SNAP! “Lil Helper” breaks like . . . something that breaks really easy.
You would like to berate yourself and throw a good natured man-fit that probably involves yelling at nothing in particular simply because you enjoy raising your voice, however, you realized . . . “You get what you pay for.”
Buy cheap, get cheap. We’ve seen this story play out in our lives numerous times. Jeans on sale = whole in the seat. Steal on eBay = Korean Scam. New cheaper cat food = a really bad day for the litter box.
But what if, what if, this saying didn’t always prove true. What if there was an aspect to our lives that no matter how hard we tried to make this pithy little principle fit, it just didn’t pan out?
Think about this for a second. What kind of life do you live? Do you call yourself a Christian? Do you adhere to the basic Christian principles of sin and righteous living? Have you always?
The fact is, there is a large part of the population who will one day find that this principle does indeed carry a titanic tone of truth when applied to their spiritual journey. Some will just keep on writing bad checks, keep on doing the same thing that’s made them miserable for years, and never stop to think how bad those checks are bouncing. Some people are content to find themselves investing in the shallow side of life for apparent short term “joy” or “gains.” One day those people will find themselves standing in front a broken shelf with a broken “Lil Helper” wincing at the words, “You get what you pay for.”
For the rest of us, this principle holds almost as much power as an echo on a cloudy day. There may have been a time in our lives when we sowed bad seed. We might have lived rotten lives, invested poorly in the spiritual side of life, and made cheap choices, but something happened and we changed. We took a step in the direction of a loving God who met us right at the point of our need and changed our lives forever. He ignored all the prices we tried to pay for flimsy peace, false security, and fickle prosperity. He saw only the price He paid.
John 3: 16 says it like this, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Someday the banks will close, the world will shudder, and time itself will turn on its head. God will look down on us and do one of two things. Either He will give us what we paid for, or He will give us what He paid for. What category will you be in?
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