Raise Me
As we approach Easter, our church is reading slowly through the Gospel of John. Today’s reading was from John chapter 8 which contains the story of the woman caught in adultery (read it here). This reading reminded me of a song Mike Charko and I wrote a few years ago and so I share it…
Continue readingFruit and the Community of God
Last Sunday, I preached a sermon that presented my current understanding of John 15:18 through 16:4. This passage follows closely on Jesus’ words that he is the vine and we are the branches. The last part of John 15 points out that the vine does not exist to make a wonderful life for the branches.…
Continue readingThe Lacuna
Barbara Kingsolver’s latest book, The Lacuna, contains a number of insights into world politics in 1930 through the early 1950s. At one point, Kingsolver gives a powerful analysis of the events that led to extreme investigations into the disloyalty and subversive activities of American citizens suspected of having communist ties. In the 1940s through 1950s,…
Continue readingLand of Dreams
Rosanne Cash, daughter of Johnny, had this to say in an interview with CBC Radio’s Jian Ghomeshi: My sense is that in my father’s generation, you wanted success and material wealth. You wanted a comfortable life, but that the way to achieve that was through commitment and a strong work ethic and personal integrity. But…
Continue readingWork
A friend of mine asked me to watch a video and make some comments. The video is by Nigel Marsh and can be seen here. Nigel Marsh is an author and lecturer who speaks about balance in life. I agree that “finding the balance between work and life is an ongoing battle.” Regarding my own…
Continue readingConsumers
“Consumerism, is a social and economic order that is based on the systematic creation and fostering of a desire to purchase goods or services in ever greater amounts.”# Most of us know what consumerism has done to our western world; and by now we are probably familiar with what the North American culture of consumerism…
Continue readingLove someone who does not deserve it
“Manifesto: The Mad FarmerLiberation Front” by Wendell Berry So, friends, every day do somethingthat won’t compute. Love the Lord.Love the world. Work for nothing.Take all that you have and be poor.Love someone who does not deserve it.Because this is a vision of life that embraces humility and patience, Give your approval to all you cannotunderstand.…
Continue readingDreams and Empire
Lasn likens life in what he calls America™ to life in a cult in which “we have been recruited into roles and behavior patterns we did not consciously choose.” Does the child who sits in front of a television set for three to four hours a day, shops at the mall with her parents, goes…
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