Happy Friday,
We are saved by grace through faith, not of ourselves; it is a gift of God.
Paul, Eph. 2
The suggestion that God knows the worst about us and yet loves us anyway is not just counter-intuitive; it conflicts with our deep need for self-justification. We want to save ourselves. Legalism is our native tongue. Consequently, it is not enough to accept the doctrine of justification by faith alone. We must drive it deep into our hearts. This work is never done.
Absorb Pain: Make it your goal today to absorb someone else’s pain. After they act inappropriately — e.g., cut you off, misrepresent your views, say something unkind, leave you to clean up a mess, etc. — surprise them with your gracious response. Let me go so far as to suggest that you model your treatment of them on Christ’s treatment of you. I think this will not only help them and bring you some joy, but it may help save society. We are descending into an “eye for an eye” world where everyone ends up blind. Someone needs to stop the trendline; it might as well be us.
WOTW: Given world events, I am dismissing athleisure as being too trite (Lululemon is one of the big names in athleisureapparel). I’m also dismissing keyboard radicals because I don’t want to encourage those self-important windbags who think they’re changing the world by writing a weekly newsletter.My selection for WOTW is moral injury. I chose it from among a number of Middle East adjacent nominations, i.e., just war theory, Armageddon, and doom loop.
Planning Ahead:Now is a good time to start thinking about your guesses for 2023 Word of the Year and Time Magazine’s Person of the Year. To prime the pump, here are past nominees: in 2015, Merriam Webster picked Isis, and Time picked Angela Merkel. In 2016, OED gave us post-truth, and Time gave us Donald Trump. In 2017, we got Youthquake and The Silence Breakers. In 2018, it was misinformation and the Guardians (journalists risking persecution and violence). In 2019, it was the pronoun they and Greta Thunberg. In 2020, we got Pandemic and Joe Bidden/Kamala Harris. In 2021, it was vaccine and Elon Musk. And in 2022, it was gaslighting and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Nominations will open in November.
Accepting Limits: One of the aspects of Jesus I have long underappreciated is his gracious acceptance of limits, starting with the incarnation itself.
FWIW: Thirty years ago, I heard an “old preacher” — at least at the time I thought he was old; he was probably in his early 60s — say that when he was young, he spent all his time preparing the message, but the older he got, the more time he spent preparing the messenger. I find myself marveling at the wisdom of that more and more.
Without Comment: 1) According to this study, a 50-year-old founder is twice as likely to start a successful company as a 30-year-old, and a 60-year-old is three times more likely to start a successful company as a 30-year-old; 2) 74% of US households consist of at least one member who plays video games, with the average age of a US gamer being 31 years; 3) The boost in happiness from attending one worship service per week— compared with not attending — is equivalent to moving from the bottom income quartile to the top income quartile.
Quote Worth Requoting: “The scientific world in general, and the disciplines of behavioral health in particular, tend to be biased against matters of spirituality and religion. The existing literature is enough to show that these factors have large protective effects against suicide. If another variable had even half the value for any major public health concern, I suspect it would receive substantially more attention.” David H. Rosmarin, Professor, Harvard Medical School
Flash Mobs: It’s the time of year that flash mobs make an appearance. Here are two of my favorites: the Hallelujah Chorus and Every Praise is to Our God. Do yourself the favor of watching these. You can thank me later. (BTW, if you run across a new one that you like, please send it my way.)
Resources:
- Click here for my wide-ranging discussion with R.R. Reno, the editor of First Things. (Among other things, we discuss the trajectory of the West and ways to live faithfully at this moment).
- Click here for my sermon on Exodus 7, which marvels at both the Plagues and the timeless nature of God’s Word,
- Join me at one of the two remaining Lakelight Live events on the news: How and Why the News is Changing: How it is Changing You and What to Do About it. Click on the city to register for Sunday, Oct 29, in Lake Forest, IL, or Thursday, Nov 2, in Naples, FL.
Closing Prayer: Be kind to your little children, Lord. Be a gentle teacher, patient with our weakness and stupidity. And give us the strength and discernment to do what you tell us, and so grow in your likeness. May we all live in the peace that comes from you. May we journey towards your city, sailing through the waters of sin untouched by the waves, borne serenely along by the Holy Spirit. Night and day may we give you praise and thanks, because you have shown us that all things belong to you, and all blessings are gifts from you. To you, the essence of wisdom, the foundation of truth, be glory for evermore. Amen. (Clement of Alexandria, c.150–c.215)