Today’s Daily Reflection from The High Calling. Therefore, say to the house of Israel, The LORD God proclaims: House of Israel, I’m not acting for your sake but for the sake of my holy name, which you degraded among the nations where you have gone. I will make my great name holy, which was degraded among the nations when you dishonored it among them. Then the nations will know that I am the LORD. This is what the LORD God... Read more
Are we a nation of heretics? Ross Douthat, a columnist for the New York Times, says “Yes.” It’s a rather elaborate “Yes,” actually, taking up 293 pages of Douthat’s new book, Bad Religion: How We Became a Nation of Heretics. I always enjoy Douthat’s writing, and Bad Religion is no exception to this rule. He is thoughtful, knowledgeable, and can turn a phrase with the best of them. I’m about a quarter into Bad Religion and am finding myself both... Read more
Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy. Psalm 126:5 Psalm 126 begins with a joyful remembrance of a time when God brought “brought back his exiles to Jerusalem” (126:1). It was a time of laughter and joy as the people of God celebrated: “Yes, the LORD has done amazing things for us! What joy!” (126:3). Yet, Psalm 126 was written in different time and different mood. Verse 4 begins, “Restore our fortunes, LORD.” Though we don’t... Read more
The following photo shows my (much younger) daughter and (much younger) me in Little Lakes Valley, along Rock Creek, in California. Without a doubt, this is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. The hike to this spot isn’t terribly difficult. In fact, it’s one of the easiest and most scenic of High Sierra hikes. You drive to 10,200 feet and then walk along the creek and several lakes into the heart of aptly-named Little Lakes Valley.... Read more
This year, a Harvard education will run well over $50,000. The same is true for M.I.T. Of course, that’s if you’re able to get into those schools, which is rather like passing through the eye of a needle if you’re a camel. But, if you don’t have the money to attend one of Cambridge, Massachusetts’ colleges, and you don’t have an acceptance letter in hand, you’re not out of luck. According to the New York Times: “Harvard and M.I.T. Team... Read more
According the New York Times, Google has a new secret that’s transforming their corporate life. In “O.K., Google, Take a Deep Breath,” Caitlin Kelly investigates this secret, a class called “Search Inside Yourself.” She sets up the need for this class by pointing out the extraordinary demands and stresses for those who work at Google’s Mountain View, California campus: Step onto Google’s campus here — with its indoor treehouse, volleyball court, apiaries, heated toilet seats and, yes, Oz-style road —... Read more
Does our work really matter? Lester DeKoster answers “yes” in his insightful article, “God Rebuilds the World Through Our Work.” It appears at The High Calling. DeKoster made me think about work (mine and that of others) in a way I had not considered before. Speaking of The High Calling, be sure to check out the collection of videos at The High Calling‘s YouTube channel. There are some great 60-second clips on work, leadership, faith and work, life balance, etc.... Read more
A recent column in USA Today claims that Facebook can’t replace face-to-face conversation. The authors, Ed Keller and Brad Fay, of the KellerFay Group, claim to base their conclusions on six years of research, including more than 2 million conversations (?). They have found, for example: •75% of conversations in the U.S. (and even more in other countries) still happen face to face; less than 10% take place through the Internet. The rise of social media, such as Facebook, has... Read more
If you’re a leader at any level in a business, government agency, school, church, non-profit, or you-name-it, you know how vital innovation is to the health and future of your institution. In a rapidly changing world, standing still is a precursor to lying still six feet under. In order to survive, not to mention thrive, we need to be innovating. Yet not all innovation is equal. Some ideas are great; many are not. Thus, we who lead need more than... Read more
Mark D. Roberts
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Recommendations for a Nation of Heretics
In my last post, I began to comment on Ross Douthat’s new book, Bad Religion: How We Became a Nation of Heretics. Well, actually, I focused on a recent interview Douthat did with Christianity Today. He does believe that much of American religion, Christianity, in particular, is “bad” because we have lost touch with Christian orthodoxy and with the institutions (churches, denominations) and guard and pass on classic Christian truth. In the last couple of days, I’ve been attending the... Read more