Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in Him!
Fear the Lord, you His godly people —
for those who fear Him will have all they need.
Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry,
but those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing.
Psalm 34:8-10
We Hear What We Feel: I’ve previously lamented the red getting redder and the blue getting bluer. I’ve also complained about how much time it takes to triangulate news stories to figure out what is really happening. It’s worth marveling at how people holding opposing viewpoints can be so certain that they are right and the other is wrong. How do we explain this? Last week one of the pastors at Christ Church made a keen observation: we hear what we feel. May we all grow in love, patience and the ability to hear well.
Defining Terms: Though I am trying to pretend otherwise, the Presidential election cycle has begun. Indeed, there are now 23 people running for the Democratic nomination. Because I am confused on a few points – such as the difference between socialism and democratic socialism – I went looking for clarification. Here are a few things I stumbled across. Click here to read a clever review of the various economic models. Click here to see Milton Friedman explain capitalism (and defend greed) to Phil Donahue.
Democratic Socialism 2.0: I am looking for someone to offer the kind of defense for Democratic Socialism that Friedman offers for capitalism. I know that those who call themselves Democratic Socialists argue that Venezuela is not an example of their policies because they advocate Democracy > Authoritarian Rule; and promote Equal Opportunity > Equal Outcomes. I also know that they argue that capitalism is actually infringing on democracy, claiming it’s only the rich who have their voice heard. But I have yet to find a clear explanation of this view. If you know of one, please send it.
Birth Rates: Shortly before FutureView went to print, I removed the chapter on population trends because it was all focus-group readers wanted to talk (make that “fight”) about. In that chapter I noted; 1) that demographers were far less worried about the “population explosion” than the opposite – i.e., while the roller coaster had climbed pretty high (7 billion), and was still climbing higher (perhaps heading to 9 billion), what they were terrified about was the ride down; 2) our declining birth rate was being masked by how much longer everyone was living; 3) the birth rate of some countries was so far below the 2.1 “replacement rate”, that there was no historical precedent for them to be able to pull out of their “death spiral”. I had also collected lots of anecdotal information – such as the fact that Japan was selling more diapers for adults than for children. This week I stumbled across a 60 second video overview of the situation.
Hoshea or Joshua: In Numbers 13, we are told that before Moses sent the 12 spies into Israel, he changed Hoshea (whose name means “he saves”) to Joshua (“Yahweh saves”). Joshua later led the children of Israel in ways honoring God. “Yahweh saves” was the theme of his life and leadership. What is your name? Are you depending moston God or on your own efforts?
Repentance: In preparation for this weekend’s sermon on Psalm 51, I have been reading about repentance. As usual, C.S. Lewis makes some of the more helpful observations on this topic. “Fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who needs improvement: he is a rebel who must lay down his arms. . . . this process of surrender—this movement full speed astern—is what Christians call repentance.” He then adds: “This repentance, this willing submission to humiliation and a kind of death, is not something God demands of you before he will take you back and which he could let you off if he chose: it is simply a description of what going back to him is like. If you ask God to take you back without it, you are really asking him to let you go back without going back. It cannot happen.”
Other Quotes Worth Requoting:
- Everybody can be great. Because anybody can serve. Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Not everyone is your brother or sister in faith, but everyone is your neighbor, and you must love your neighbor. Tim Keller.
- We are fond of talking about ‘liberty’; but the way we end up actually talking of it is an attempt to avoid discussing what is ‘good’. We are fond of talking about ‘progress’; that is a dodge to avoid discussing what is ‘good’. We are fond of talking about ‘education’; that is a dodge to avoid discussing what is ‘good’. The modern man says, ‘Let us leave all these arbitrary standards and embrace unadulterated ‘liberty’. This is, logically rendered, ‘Let us not decide what is good, but let it be considered good not to decide it.’ G.K. Chesterton
Closing Prayer: Lord Jesus, we follow you, but we can only come at your bidding. No one can make the ascent without you, for you are our way, our truth, our life, our strength, our confidence, our reward. Be the way that receives us, the truth that strengthens us, the life that invigorates us. Amen Ambrose