ALWAYS: A good word for hard times

Friends:  It’s been a rough week. I won’t go into details here, but if you’re a praying person, I would appreciate your prayers, especially for our Lucy. In the midst of everything, I don’t have many helpful words. But I happened to sign up for iDisciple last week, and this morning I read a really solid piece of writing from Stasi Eldredge.  (She and husband John are both wonderful writers. Look them up!)

Here is her devotional post entitled “Always”.  I’d just link to it, but I’m not sure you can get to it since it’s subscriber content. I couldn’t find it on her blog, as it is obviously not brand new. But since this past week was also the 9/11 anniversary, this piece seems especially appropriate.

I stopped getting the newspaper years ago because my heart couldn’t take it.  I would open it up and weep.  I didn’t know my tears were intercession, but they were.  They were then and they are now.

It’s been a week.  2:50pm a week ago today the first bomb went off, exploding our sense of safety and so much more.  I find myself today so very sad.  How are you doing?  My prayer is that my tears and yours join in the intercession for the many to aid in their healing and to bring the presence of Jesus.

When Adults Sound Like Preschoolers, Nobody Wins

Lucy, the three-and-a-half year old granddaughter whom we are raising, has entered another willful phase. She tests (“NO!”), she wheedles “PLEEEEZ?”), and she whines (“MA-ma, I want a COOK-ie”).  It is exhausting to be her parent right now, but we see progress, and we know that the goal of forming her character is worth the inconvenience of disciplining her on the spot.

Impulse control is hard for preschoolers. Disappointment is tough for them to handle. They say what they think without editing. They lash out in anger when they are thwarted. I understand that–it’s partly the age, and partly raw human nature which simply needs to be tamed and taught.

But what is only to be expected in a three-year-old is singularly unattractive in a twenty-something. I found that out this week.

No longer the ‘…Home of the Brave’?

“Brave“. What does that word even mean anymore?

Yet again, behavior which was once the hallmark of our nation is being eradicated. We’ve touched on this in the past (in “Land of the Fearful; Home of the Meek“), but the examples keep coming, with no end in sight. In a different time, the people listed below would be considered “brave” or “courageous” by almost any measure.

But today?

Well, do you recall the story of 20-year-old volunteer EMT Stephen Sawyer? He was the only one around when a call came in about a 4-year-old who was having a seizure:

(via Fox News) – “…After making several unsuccessful calls for ambulances, Sawyer said he made the decision to drive the ambulance to save the child – violating the rule that only people age 21 or older can drive the emergency vehicle…” 

And what was Sawyer’s reward for saving the child?

Make a Difference: fund the #Gosnell movie

Today I want to share with you an opportunity in which the whole pro-life community can easily get involved, and which could have a tremendous impact on our cultural mindset. But it is already facing opposition, so your participation will be both helpful and encouraging to three documentary filmmakers.

l. to r.,  Magdalena, Phelim, Ann

L I A R

No, this is not a post about our president, and I’m not calling anyone names. The title of this post is an acronym, and I’m preaching this sermon to myself. It’s one I’ve thought about dozens of times over the years.

…And then promptly forgot about, again:

Low. Information. Action. Ratio.

“Huh?” you say. Bear with me. I will explain.

Do I Really Have to Love My (Liberal) Neighbor?

I have several times referenced the devotional blog, 843 Acres. It is published online five days per week, and includes a very brief devotional on a biblical text.  The devotional for February 12th gave me pause. I’d love to interact with it here, with our readers. In it, the question was asked: 

“How can we live together with people whose beliefs, practices, and views deeply distress or offend us? How do we relate to them, care for them, and even love them?”

We spend a lot of time on this blog dealing with ‘beliefs, practices and views’ which ‘deeply distress or offend us’. But we don’t spend a lot of time talking about how to deal with those beliefs as Christians, when we encounter them in the individuals of our daily lives.

Stories for Cold, Dark Days

The view out my front door…

It’s been a long month. Bitter cold and snow on snow have cancelled classes and events, leaving us huddled in our houses for days on end. And what better way to pass the time than with story?

Our granddaughter has just fallen in love with one of my favorite fairy tales, Beauty and the Beast, and has been let’s-pretending it all day long, for days now. I am startled to find she knows snatches of dialogue by heart, and is singing along on key…just past her third birthday, she seems to have made a quantum leap forward.

I’m pleased that she has taken to a story which involves a loving father, a beautiful act of sacrificial love, and a relationship which isn’t based on good looks. Add to that a heroine who loves to read–it’s perfect! I know Lucy is probably not reacting to all these positive character qualities for their own sake…she loves the story. Presenting her with stories worth loving is my most important job at the moment. Later there will be time to show her why they’re worthy.

Why are there no “Liberal Browncoats”?

I’ve followed John Hayward’s writing since his early days over on HotAir.com, when he went by “Doctor Zero”. He specialized in wonderful and inventive pieces, seamlessly melding pop culture and classic references into posts that made me wish like crazy I’d written them.

Last week was definitely one such post.

Here’s just the first part:

“…A few days ago, I was chatting with a friend of liberal persuasion about the cult-classic TV series “Firefly” – which, particularly in its concluding theatrical film, is one of pop culture’s strongest parables about libertarianism and rebellion against authority.  If you’re unfamiliar with the show, it was a science-fiction program about a space-faring band of lovable rogues, some of whom fought in a losing rebellion against their totalitarian government.  The rebels were known as “Browncoats,” which also became a nickname for fans of the show.