We Need

Happy Friday,

Do not allow this phrase to become shopworn. Its audacity and revolutionary thrust should shock and embolden us every time we pray it. It should bring hope. This is a prayer God is going to answer.

Overheard: I spent several days this week in Portland at a Christian leadership conference. While I was there, I heard a lot about stillness, beauty, wonder, imagination and reflection. I am pretty sure I did not hear any of these words at the conferences I attended between 1985 and 2010. (As an aside, when I asked a 30-year resident of Portland to describe his city, he said: Failed. He went on to say it was a failed city because it’s corrupt, ineffective and leaderless. Ouch. Glad I live in Chicago.)

We Need: Among the other things I wrote down to think about are these: 1) We need to temper our expectations about spiritual growth, because idealism is a recipe for burnout and then cynicism. Personal change happens at about 2 millimeters per day – which is all the faster neural networks can grow; 2) We need to replace the algorithm of division with an algorithm of beauty; 3) We need to pay attention to our anger in order to figure out what it is teaching us; 4) We need to ask what we are going to hold on to from the pandemic; and 5) We need to understand that silence is not the absence of sound but “the fullness of quiet and a chance for the blooming of attention.”

WOTW: I’m dismissing the Thanksgiving-themed nonsense nominations – e.g., tofurkey, turducken, etc. I’m giving honorable mention to the algorithms of division, false binaries andbeloved community. And I am selecting sports washing as the winner. Sports Washing is the term that describes what China did with the Winter Olympics and what Qatar is attempting do via the World Cup. I am glad my efforts to buy respectability do not require the billions Qatar spent. I also hope they are not as obvious.

Words of the Year: Oxford English Dictionary selected metaverse and Merriam-Webster chose gaslighting. I’ve received nominations for: tribalism, Omicron, incel and LGBTQIA. BTW, at the Portland event I heard that those under the age of 25 are starting to leave social media, and that they think the metaverse is a joke. I suspect that’s an overstatement, but I do expect the next generation of parents – i.e., the very ones who were lobbying for a smart phone when they turned 12 – will shield their own children from much of the tech we now take for granted. They know first-hand how smart phones changed their childhood.

Verse of the Year: The YouVersion Bible app announced that the most cited and downloaded verse in 2022 was Isaiah 41:10. “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” It’s worth reflecting on what this says about what is going on in people’s hearts.

The Chosen: Sheri and I went to the theater to see the first two episodes of season three of Dallas Jenkin’s crowdsourced series on the life of Christ. I suspect The Chosen benefits from the low expectations many have for Christian cinema – and given this is season three of seven, it’s too early to have a settled opinion about this effort – but having said all that, we remain fans.

Clean Up: Thanks to the record number of you who wrote to tell me last Friday was Black Friday not Boxing Day. As with previous Friday Update mistakes, I took this very seriously, yelled about excellence for a while, fired a few people and put the rest of the staff on half rations. BTW, I suspect I’m not the only one having trouble keeping track of all the new secular holidays – e.g., Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday, Prime Day, etc. I keep waiting for a memo from HR to make this clear. I also keep waiting to hear that they are all becoming federal holidays.

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You’re Going to Have to Serve Somebody: Here is an oldie from Bob Dylan’s classic album Slow Train Coming. People are of two minds about Dylan. (I am a fan.) Those who learn to ignore the voice and focus on the lyrics will discover that they are quite profound. May God use this song to smuggle some deep theological truths into your heart today.

World Cup > Advent Services: When I am asked to name the largest church in Chicago, I always say, “The largest worship services are held at Soldier Field.” Given that reality, I was not surprised to learn that the Church of England is encouraging local parishes to reschedule advent services on December 18^th so as “not to conflict with the World Cup Final.”

Closing Prayer: I now know what must be done. Only now am I beginning to be a disciple. May nothing of powers visible or invisible prevent me, that I may attain unto Jesus Christ. Come fire and cross and grapplings with wild beasts, the rending of my bones and body, come all the torments of the wicked one upon me. Only let it be mine to attain to Jesus Christ. Amen. (Ignatius of Antioch – 35-107)