What is worship? Really. That’s a serious question. You see, I think worship is one of those things that we all know so well – or at least assume we know – that we don’t always think about it. And so, as I jump into an occasional series on worship, I’m interested in what you...
Luke 12:35-40
posted by DJL
“Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he...
Angela Lee Duckworth on Grit
posted by DJL
As indicated by my post last week on “Grit,” I think this is one of the most important and challenging elements of parenting. Important because if our kids don’t learn to persevere when things get really challenging, if they don’t learn resiliency in the face of set backs, and if they don’t learn that they’ve got more in them than they thought, it’s going to be really, really hard for them to flourish as adults. Why? Simply because life is full of setbacks, we all suffer low moments, and some of the most important situations we’ll be in – parenting, marriage, etc. – require us to give more than we’d imagined we had. But...
Luke 12:22-34
posted by DJL
He said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and...
How to Be Creative
posted by DJL
Interested in being more creative – as a writer, artist, parent, employee, pastor, student, problem-solver? PBS’s wonderful Off Book series devoted one of its episodes to this question, culling the interviews of an author, cognitive scientist, computer scientist, and filmmaker to produce a vivid and fast-paced nine-minute video to address this question. And the answer? Well, there is no single answer, but among the many helpful insights shared was the need to push beyond the boundaries of your comfort zone, the openness to failure, the willingness to work with and learn from others, and the eagerness to work hard. As one of the...
Luke 12:13-21
posted by DJL
Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” But he said to him, “Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?” And he said to them, “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does...
On Cell Phones, Sadness, and Resiliency
posted by DJL
I saw this video a few weeks ago and loved it. But I also hesitated to put it on my blog. It’s another video of Louis C.K., the comedian who I think is a very astute student of human nature and our culture. It’s on his hesitancy to give his kids cell phones. While naming some of the detrimental social conditioning he thinks cell phones promote – not making eye contact, always looking down – he goes beyond that to talk about the ways in which we us our phones to avoid sadness. Rather than feel sad, we look for something meaningless to do, like sending a text. In fact, Louis believes there’s a value to feeling sad, a value to...
Luke 12:1-12
posted by DJL
Meanwhile, when the crowd gathered in thousands, so that they trampled on one another, he began to speak first to his disciples, “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees, that is, their hypocrisy. Nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known....
On Aging
posted by DJL
In his poem “On Aging,” the 13th century Sufi mystic Rumi asks a question that we have all asked at one time or another. Why do we grow old? For that matter, why does everything grow old? His answer is strikingly similar to that of The Teacher, better known as the author of Ecclesiastes,...
Luke 11:37-54
posted by DJL
While he was speaking, a Pharisee invited him to dine with him; so he went in and took his place at the table. The Pharisee was amazed to see that he did not first wash before dinner. Then the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you...
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