A living hope is a dangerous thing. It is a revolutionary thing. Hope can keep you going when you’re in solitary confinement, when you’re being pressed down and spit out of society’s mouth, when you lose someone so dear to you it makes you want to die every day. Consider the theme of hope in Shawshank Redemption. Andy, Red, and other prison inmates are talking about Andy’s recent two-week long isolation in solitary confinement (you can find the link to... Read more
How often have you come across bait and switch tactics or loss leader strategies in business? Have you ever witnessed such tactics and strategies in evangelism, that is, when people share about Jesus with others in the hope they will convert and become Christians? Let’s define the terms to make clear what we are discussing. Cornell Law School defines “bait and switch” in these terms: A “bait and switch” takes place when a seller creates an appealing but ingenuine offer... Read more
I remember exactly what we were doing when we received the news that Christopher was in emergency surgery two years ago today. We had purchased tickets from the Portland Art Museum to watch the film Gunda online at home that evening. Gunda provides an in-depth view of the life of a pig presumably named “Gunda,” from the time she gives birth to a litter of pigs to the time they are taken away in a truck, likely to market or... Read more
To commodify someone or something entails using or exploiting them as vehicles for profit, which is often though not necessarily monetary in scope. How often do we approach God and salvation in this way? Take, for example, moralistic therapeutic deism’s (MTD) emphasis on God being a divine butler or cosmic therapist. God exists to give us happiness.[1] Living a good or honorable life becomes a means to an end of getting something from God. Relationship with God is transactional in orientation.... Read more
I drove over to my son Christopher’s adult care facility last night to be with him. It was cold and rainy, and I was depressed. It will be two years to the day later this week since he endured a catastrophic brain injury. The past two years have been severely taxing in so many ways, this ordeal being chief among them. Will 2023 be any different? Christopher was awake and conscious when I arrived at his room, which encouraged... Read more
I remember a leader in my Anglican church back in London many years ago say, “People find most difficult to give toward that which they want most.” Perhaps everyone wants communion, but we often settle for commodification. What does communion entail? What does commodification signify? Let’s start with the latter. I will draw from pop culture to answer the first question. In the Netflix television series Ozark, a drug lord reacts to a business associate who appeals to their partnership... Read more
Waves of various emotions sweep over me so much of the time since my son Christopher’s traumatic brain injury two years ago. You would think I’m the one who endures neuro-storming. Holidays are supposed to be occasions for great joy and bliss. But they can often be letdowns for sorrow and the blues—at least in my case. So, I need to look for moments and occasions for joy and cherish them whenever and wherever I can find them. They are... Read more
Bethlehem is “a place where extremes meet.” So wrote GK Chesterton in a meditation on Christmas. Here is the immediate context of his statement: It has been created in our minds by Christmas because we are Christians; because we are psychological Christians even when we are not theological ones. In other words, this combination of ideas has emphatically, in the much disputed phrase, altered human nature. There is really a difference between the man who knows it and the man... Read more
Today, many Christians reflect upon the angels’ declaration in Luke 2. They light the Angel’s candle symbolizing God’s peace: Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” (Luke 2:13-14; NIV) The occasion for these good tidings was the announcement of Jesus’ birth to the shepherds. The backdrop was quite the contrast. There was... Read more
We can buy and acquire a lot of things at Christmas, but none of them will bring us joy. Happiness, yes, but not joy. Joy arises from something other than one’s pocketbook and possessions. It rises up from deep within one’s soul, no matter how many Christmas presents are around the tree. The subject of joy emerged in a conversation yesterday morning with Pastor Tom Schiave, my Italian Baptist Godfather. Pastor Tom provides spiritual counsel and serves as... Read more
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