Nobody wants to be a sheep. It is one of the most pungent accusations we can hurl at our enemies. A sheep is mindless, following without any purpose, surety, or attention. They do not weigh or consider. They are not involved. They are being used, manipulated. It is a weakness. And we do not want to be perceived as weak. And so, in order to make sure we are not sheep, many of us turn ourselves into wolves. Aggressive. In... Read more
If you are anything like me, there is a great tyranny that threatens your ability to be content. The tyranny of more. No matter where we are in life, we tend to believe that happily-ever-after is just around the next bend. If I can just pass this class, graduate, get a job. If I could just find a girlfriend or boyfriend, get a raise, get married, or conceive a child. If I could just be famous, rich, or pretty. As... Read more
Where do emotions come from? How are they born, reared, and pushed from the nest? I found myself thinking about this recently when I noticed myself getting more worked up during an encounter than I had expected. My initial thought: where did that come from? My wife and I are in the midst of trying to conceive and it is pretty amazing to research all of the things necessary for a successful conception and birth. It is a miracle it... Read more
So much of my time is spent trying to figure out what to do. What action should I take? Where should I go? How should I spend my time? I am a philosophical being in a physical body, so action is necessary but always feels a little bit elusive, a little further away than things like thought and feeling. The path of life is a windy road. It circles in on itself, stretches over the horizon, and sometimes feels impossible.... Read more
Power is, well, a powerful thing. The way we think about, pursue, and use power is perhaps the most defining marker of our personality. It reveals and determines. We are, in my estimation, obsessed with power. We want it badly. But, in all honesty, we are not really sure how it works. We are convinced it does, that it is key to thriving, but we are not sure of the dynamics involved. While there are many things we presume about... Read more
When I think about conflict, it often conjures the image of two armies standing across an open field from one another, like something out of Braveheart or Lord of The Rings. Two sides are about to wage war. All is fair. A winner must be decided. Conflict feels like a fight. Emotions are high. Defenses are on alert. Weapons are drawn. Just like in those battle scenes, conflict arises when two sides are at odds with one another, usually in... Read more
One of the hallmarks of the Christian walk is obedience. Following the voice of God. A clear command. A mutually beneficial design. But in practice, discerning the voice of God is harder than it may seem. Over the years many of my friends were very certain they heard the voice of God (usually concerning who they were going to marry) but it did not turn out well. Others, including myself, seem to use the “voice of God” as a type... Read more
There is a lot to unpack in our modern world when it comes to perspective. Our arguments are tainted with very selective logic. We surround ourselves with reinforcing voices, so that what we already think is rarely truly challenged. We assume a moral superiority, which, historically speaking, is the starting position for both revival (like The Great Awakening) and for Great tragedies (like The Inquisition). We have narrowed truth and reality, so that more things appear mutually exclusive to us... Read more
All of us are striving to be people of power. What we really want with power is the ability to influence others. To affect the world and to use who we are to serve the people around us. Sounds romantic, doesn’t it? The problem is that influence does not often look like we want it to nor result in the way we hope. Influence is not the same as control. And that is a lesson we all grapple with on... Read more
We are a competitive people. We like to win. The feeling of victory is unlike anything else we experience. It is a high, no mistake about it. And we like the feeling. Humans chase after a win with almost obsessive, reckless abandon. We want that high. At times, our pursuit of it cheapens the result. We want to win, even if that means hurting others (which undermines our win). Even if we cheat. Even if we lie. The win, it... Read more
Victorious Living
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