May 2012
1 post
April 2012
2 posts
lean on who?
So far these posts have been rather optimistic in nature. Sort of like nice, neat packaged thoughts, with little sign of confusion. And although I wish all my thoughts were neatly settled, there still remains confusion for me.
If nothing else, I think what bonds young adults (and many older adults too) is an overwhelming sense of confusion. What is life about? What is my purpose? What should I...
March 2012
4 posts
freedom from anger
When we are wronged by others, when injustice is done against us, we are hurt. Period. Objectively, it is these wrong-doers who are guilty and probably even deserve retribution. This is where anger comes into play. It stimulates the desire for retribution, for exacting a punishment to the crime committed. And it’s terribly frustrating when we can’t make this happen.
Yet, like I...
angry birds
Anger is an interesting emotion to me. On one hand, it is probably good to be angry at injustice—the dominating bully, the tyrannical boss, the unfaithful spouse. Yet, on the other hand, anger can spark so much destruction—that one punch you wish you could retract, that one remark you wish you could take back, that bullet fired in hasty passion. Anger is both a strength and flaw of the...
what did he say?!
Up on top of a hill, he stood and spoke. His very tone of conviction and confidence caused the crowd to wonder, “Who even talks like this?” Was it delightfully intriguing, or maybe frustratingly complicated? One thing I think is for sure…Jesus didn’t speak a simplified list of rules for good living. He went much deeper—he instead taught about a complete change of...
true harmony
“Hi. I’m keeping a book of questions that I ask people. I was wondering if I could ask you a couple of questions and write down your response.”
This is me at a local coffee shop last week. Yes, I am that weird guy who makes conversations with you when you’re sitting alone. But, I have a good reason. I want to spur discussion where I see no discussion today; I want to...
February 2012
2 posts
science vs faith
If you ever ask me what some of my pet peeves are, this is one of them: the common juxtaposition of science and faith. I typically cringe when I hear the pomp of a pastor beating on “science”, or the scientist criticizing anyone with “faith”. In my mind, they both employ science and faith daily to understand life.
What is Science?
Let’s go back to middle school for...
let's talk about life.
When I started this blog, I knew I wanted to focus on a new understanding of work, asking God what he thinks. At the same time, I had a hunch that it might not be appropriate to segregate the topic of work from life and human purpose. Now, a few books later, and after many hours of thoughtful reflection, I am even more convinced that work is intrinsic to the human being. Separating our...
August 2011
2 posts
don't be distracted
In the last post, I mentioned the possibility that work exists for us to love God and love others. If work was only for producing goods—being productive and efficient—then it would probably be alright for us to ignore anyone who stood in the way of our productivity (maybe even commendable). But if the purpose of work is love, then this sort of disposition could distract us from what really...
July 2011
2 posts
the good of work
I don’t think it would be hard to reason that work is a good thing. As I sit at a coffee shop I notice all the great things brought to me through the invention of a work-and-market system—clothes, chair, table, wi-fi, coffee, etc. It would probably be a moot question to start off asking, “Is work good?” After all, we enjoy the product of multiple types of work, and even...
the common person. the common world. a common...
In 1974 a book was published, titled Working: People Talk About What They Do All Day and How They Feel About What They Do. It was written by Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Studs Terkel. Terkel was a highly esteemed radio broadcaster who took about three years to conduct interviews with normal American workers, gathering vignettes for his book. He carefully and meticulously captured what it meant...