Making Hard Choices

Occasionally, when I have a hard time deciding between options on a menu, I have joked that while I’m great with big decisions – whether to get married, buy a house, or change jobs – I can get paralyzed by the prospect of choosing between (as I had to do just the other day) General Tso’s Chicken or Pad Thai. That’s not entirely true, of course. I sometimes agonize over big decisions as well! ☺ Which is maybe one of the reasons I find the whole topic of understanding how we make choices so interesting. In this TED Talk, lawyer-turned-philosopher Ruth Chang invites us to think differently about how we make hard decisions. Several...

Matthew 9:2-8

And just then some people were carrying a paralyzed man lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” Then some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming.” But Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, said,...

Church and The World Cup: Competition

The Church Lives and Does Ministry in a Competitive Environment Even as I watch the World Cup with 25 million other U.S. soccer enthusiasts, taking delight in what many are describing as one of the most thrilling World Cup’s in years, I continue to wonder why soccer has taken so long to grab a permanent place in the hearts of American sports fans. I mean, around the globe soccer – or, more accurately football – is the world’s favorite sport. But even though soccer has been played here for a century – the U.S. actually finished third in the first World Cup in 1930 – it’s struggled for decades to secure the kind of attention and...

Matthew 9:1-2

And after getting into a boat he crossed the water and came to his own town. And just then some people were carrying a paralyzed man lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” And so he leaves. Jesus, that is. After...

Matthew 8:28-34

When he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demoniacs coming out of the tombs met him. They were so fierce that no one could pass that way. Suddenly they shouted, “What have you to do with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” Now a...