After leaving my wife at the bus station today in Concord, NH, the drive back to the camp where I’m speaking has me thinking about change. My youngest daughter will soon be arriving home from a summer in Rwanda, changed utterly. In a few short months both she and my wife will graduate from Seattle Pacific University, and this will mark the end of college careers (at the very least, for the time being) for our whole family. Change. The... Read more
I was reminded last night, at Georges Seafood and BBQ, that I become irrational when I’m too hungry. I order something that will bring immediate pleasure, and certain delayed pain. Last night is was the Seafood Threesome: scallops, haddock, and shrimp, all fried, and served up with a tiny green salad, and some beans and rice. I won’t mention that, in need of even more immediate gratification, I’d also ordered a fried calamari appetizer. It was all good while going... Read more
There was no way it could happen. Last Thursday afternoon, I was watching ESPN and happened to see that the “biggest series of the year” was about to happen for the Red Sox, as they met the Yankees at Fenway park in Boston. Then it dawned on me that, with the red-eye flight out of Seattle Friday night, I’d be IN Boston on Saturday, which meant that, in theory at least, I could go to the Sox/Yankees, in August, with... Read more
If it weren’t so tragic it would be funny. The news has been filled lately, whether on Fox, or CNN, or in the New York Times, with average Americans enraged at the inability of our elected officials to manage our collective money. Enraged! Hahahahaha! The average American has three credit cards and is carrying, on average, $15,799 in credit card debt. We spend too much in our personal lives and reflect that problem when we vote for officials, some... Read more
“I like food too much to not fast” David Steindl-Rast, in his “A Listening Heart”, writes about what he calls sensuous asceticism. He’s trying to find that space between the over-indulgences of our culture, where food, sex, shopping, social networking, music, movies, television, web surfing, clothing, drugs, and alcohol are just some of the many appetites that, at their worst, rise up and become masters in our lives, and the vilifying of appetites that so often occurs among Christans. The... Read more
“where you treasure is, there your heart will be also…” Matthew 6:19 Our holiday in Austria this past June, courtesy of the marvelous church I pastor, allowed my wife and I several days to hike in the Alps. And hike we did: up, up, up, until we were high above any trees, leaving us hiking on something that was, at times, akin to the desolation of the moon. Up there, “trail” means something entirely different than down lower, where a... Read more
Casey Anthony. Who is she? Why is her case important? Or, is her case important, or before that Anthony Weiner’s case, or before that some other politician or movie star, or both – why is anyone at all paying attention to this string of social pablam? And we Christians have our own diversions: “Good bye-Rob Bell”? “Eugene Peterson is the devil because he wrote the Message”. Are these conversations more important than our national fiscal crisis, or the torture of... Read more
My recent vacation was a gift in every way. Seeing our oldest daughter in her world was a gift. Being in the places I travel for work, without working (and without snow), was a gift. Receiving the vacation as a gift from the church I lead was deeply encouraging. Enjoying fellowship with close friends who live in Europe was a gift. And, significantly, there was the gift of a lesson learned…. We live in a world of objectives where success... Read more
Dietrich Bonhoeffer had a lot to say about Ethics, and with good reason. A pastor/theologian by heart, he was committed to the way of Jesus which, by all his understanding, meant a way of non-violence. In spite of this, he ultimately became part of a conspiracy to assassinate Hitler. The reasons behind his decision are far beyond the scope of this post, but central to this post is Bonhoeffer’s belief that ethics flow from a person, not a system. The... Read more
The New Times published an article recently positing that infidelity was, for some marriages, just the right ingredient needed to keep a marriage strong. The advocate for this lifestyle is none other than Seattle’s own Dan Savage, of “Savage Love”, Stranger fame. At first blush (pun intended), the article appears not to be worth the time to read. Who cares about some guy’s theory that married couples would be happier in some cases if infidelity was an accepted part of... Read more
Fibonacci Faith: Changing Everything
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