Happy Friday,
Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever.
Psalm 136:1
Every verse in Psalm 136 points to a truth listed elsewhere in Scripture. The genius of this meditation is the writer’s commitment to turn these truths into praise. Insight is not enough. Obedience is not enough. Knowing about God is not enough. We are called to worship.
Why Are We Commanded to Worship? C.S. Lewis once worried that the Bible’s instruction to praise God suggested God’s ego needed feeding. He later realized God didn’t need his affirmation any more than Lewis needed his dog “to bark approval of my books.” We are not instructed to worship God for God’s sake but for ours. Worshiping Him is the only sane response to who he is, and ordering our hearts to reflect this is necessary to live rightly.
Your Prince Caspian Moment: When Prince Caspian —the title character in the Narnian Chronicles of the same name — comes face to face with Aslan, the lion king asks him, “Do you feel yourself sufficient to take up the Kingship of Narnia?” Caspian says, “I — I don’t think I do, Sir.” To which Aslan responds, “Good. If you had felt yourself sufficient, it would have been proof that you were not.” Have you had your Prince Caspian moment?
WOTW: Honorable mention goes to The New Theists — a play on New Atheism’s decline juxtaposed with a recent spike in left-adjacent public intellectuals declaring their admiration for Jesus. I’m also selecting lickspittle, both because it’s fun to say and because it will prove useful between now and November’s election. Full honors go to Yondr Pouches — a product designed to create phone-free schools. I’ve not given WOTW honors to a branded product before, but I’m a fan of their work.
IS2M: 1) There is something both confusing and delicious about hearing 30-somethings whine about the work ethic of 20-somethings; 2) Any objective review of the last ten years makes it clear that more than a few Christian leaders held influence beyond what their character or their competence warranted — i.e., they did not have their own Prince Caspian moment. (I’d say more if I didn’t suspect my name belongs on that list.)
A Quiz: Do you know the leading causes of death in the US? Here are some categories to choose from: accidents, Alzheimer’s, cancer, COVID, diabetes, heart disease, homicide, liver disease, obesity, respiratory disease, strokes, and suicide.
LVIII: I usually comment on the commercials that air during the Super Bowl — AKA, the “Big Game,” “The Festival of Dips,” “People Watching Taylor Swift Watching Travis Kelce” — but this year, I was underwhelmed.
From Last Week: 1) Several people sent in additional references for humans. Meat puppets, organic data processors, and symbol-manipulating great apes were my favorites; 2) My frustration over the unprecedented use of unprecedented led others to share their language gripes — e.g., very unique, irregardless, and the overuse of multiple. Irregardless of your view, I’m inclined to agree. Already today I’ve heard multiple uses of multiple, and I doubt my experience is very unique.
Without Comment: 1) Half of the US has at least one unused gift card. Collectively, they add up to $21B; 2) Listening to podcasts has become a daily routine for 10% of the US population, the most popular of which are true crime; and 3) After World War II, the US Navy had 7,600 ships. Today, it has less than 300.
Resources: Click here to learn more about The World of CS Lewis: Oxford, Cambridge, and London Tour that I am leading July 5 – 12, or here to listen to my message on Exodus 25, an overview of the topic that gets more attention than anything else in the first five books of the Bible. (I doubt it’s what you think.)
The Front Lines of Cultural Clashes: Marriage was much in the news this week. This WAPO piece — by NPR’s Rhaina Cohen — argues against it. This Atlantic piece — by UVA’s Bradford Wilcox — argues for it. (Note: Wilcox articulates a point I have been trying to make for years.)
The Answers to the Quiz: According to the CDC, the leading causes of death in the US during 2021 were: 1) Heart disease – 696K, 2) Cancer – 605K (breast cancer is 45K), 3) COVID – 417K, 4) Accidents – 224K, 5) Strokes – 163K, 6) Chronic respiratory disease – 142K, 7) Alzheimer’s – 119K, 8) Diabetes – 103K, and 9) Chronic liver disease – 57K. Based on the news and anecdotal conversations, I expected breast cancer (47K), homicides (21K), and suicides (48K) to be higher. That aside, I did confirm that the mortality rate remains at 100% — which seems to be something not everyone is paying attention to.
Closing Prayer: O Light eternal, surpassing all created brightness, flash forth the lightning from above and enlighten the inmost recesses of my heart. Cleanse, cheer, enlighten, and enliven my spirit with all its powers, that it may cling to you in ecstasies of joy. Oh, when will that happy and wished-for hour come, when you will fill me with your presence and become all in all to me? So long as this is not given me, my joy will not be complete. Amen. (Thomas à Kempis, 1380 – 1471)