Clearing Planks and Confronting Specks

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” ~ Edmund Burke
This blog has developed an interesting personality.
For some reason, readers seem more comfortable sending reactions via email rather than commenting on the blog itself. I appreciate the feedback either way, and I’d like to respond to some [...]

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Specks and Planks

Like many folks, I’ve followed the recent commentary concerning President Obama’s remark that his bowling style “looks like the Special Olympics.”
I suppose my seat in a wheelchair increases my interest in the President’s comment and the controversy surrounding it. I think this incident offers an important opportunity to examine the nature of our public discourse.

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Controversy

“If it bleeds, it leads.”
It’s a fundamental staple of journalism–bad news sells. Everyone says they want to hear more good news, but objective data tell a different story. Audiences gravitate to controversy, crime, and crashes.

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Talking About Faith

Here’s another insightful question from my recent interaction with high school kids: “Is it hard for you to speak in places where you can’t talk about your faith?”

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Where’s The Healing?

Why doesn’t God heal me? Why doesn’t He fix this relationship? Why doesn’t He stop the pain, the struggle, or the grief?
At the risk of sounding trite, I think He does. I’m absolutely convinced that God does heal and fix and comfort. But it’s frequently not the sort of healing we expect or the comfort [...]

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Help or Service?

Last week I spoke with a group of high school students at a wonderful event called Abilities Day. One of the great questions they asked was, “How should we approach someone who appears to need help so we don’t offend them?”

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Who’s Running The Show?

Occasionally I let myself get overwhelmed by the awesome responsibility of representing Christ in the world. Last week I talked about letting my actions speak for me, but I’m afraid that I’m not happy with the message communicated by my behaviors.

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Worry

One of my long-time friends, a guy I’ve known since the prehistoric days of junior high school, had brain surgery this morning. Some undiagnosed physical issues pointed to the possibility of a tumor, so, in my friend’s words, “The doctors are going fishing to see if they can determine the nature of the unknown tenant.”

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