Happy Friday,

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

The Apostle John

I thought a Quantum Leap was a big move. No. Quantum is a particle physics term denoting the smallest move possible. The term’s punch comes from highlighting that a small move can have a large impact. In a similar manner, I thought I John 1:9 taught that if I confessed my sins, God would be merciful and forgive me. No. What the text says is that if we confess our sins, God will be just and forgive. Justice and mercy are miles apart. The punch of this passage comes in highlighting that when we confess our sins, Christ assumes the debt, making it unjust of God to hold it against us.

Et Cetera: Readers responded to my Latin with Latin of their own—e.g., carpe diem, Ad hoc, pro bono, de facto, magnum opus, etc. (make that et cetera, which is Latin for “and the rest”). In addition to sending in their favorite terms, some sent phrases, like Ignorantia legis neminem excusat (ignorance of the law is no excuse), which came in second. The big winner was illegitimi non carborundum—which translates as “don’t let the bast@#$s get you down.” I understand its appeal, but I’m sticking with non semper sicut erit, which means it will not always be this way. Because, as I noted last week, it will not. God’s kingdom will come. 

WOTW: Honorable mention goes to: stonks, a deliberate mis-pronouncement of stocks that is either funny or cool (I’m too unfunny or uncool to know), experiangst, which is buyer’s remorse for an experience, and funflation (a WSJ term bemoaning the spike in the cost of things like Taylor Swift concerts, NFL games, or Taylor Swift appearances at NFL games).  Full honors this week are being shared by mindful underparenting (a concept explained in this NYT piece) and le grand renversement, a term Dr. John Lennox—the Emeritus Oxford math professor turned Christian apologist—says is being used by the French to describe the growing movement of academics coming to faith in Christ. 

BTW: Although my mastery of 20 Latin phrases might not justify my claims of being bilingual, it does remind me of a joke. Q: If you call someone who speaks two languages bilingual, and someone who speaks three languages trilingual, what do you call someone who speaks one language? Answer below.

Quotes Worth Requoting: 1) “This is God’s universe, and He is doing things His way. You may think you have a better way, but you don’t have a universe.” J. Vernon McGee; 2) “Freedom and equality are natural born enemies.” Will Durant; 3) “Your actions speak louder than your intentions.” Carey Nieuwhof; and 4) “I was given the impression that Jesus was a gentle creature…Then I looked at the New Testament. There I found an account, not in the least of a person with his hair parted in the middle or his hands clasped in appeal, but an extraordinary being with lips of thunder and acts of lurid decision, casting out devils, passing with the wild secrecy of the wind.… He flung furniture down the front steps of the Temple and asked men how they expected to escape the damnation of Hell. He said such weak and innocuous things as ‘I’ve come to set the earth on fire.’ The diction used about Christ has been, perhaps wisely, sweet and submissive. But the diction used by Christ is quite curiously gigantesque, it is full of camels leaping through needles and mountains hurled into the sea.” G.K. Chesterton

Overheard: 1) Though marriage rates are down, the union of Ignorance and Arrogance seems strong; 2) It takes courage to speak the truth to your enemies, but it takes more to speak it to your friends. Peter Vardy 

JRRT Related: I’m not saying I won’t try again, but for now, I’ve given up on The Rings of Power (Amazon Prime’s Lord of the Rings prequel). Though cinematically impressive and occasionally clever, the series lacks the loveable characters and theological heft of Tolkien’s work. I miss the friendship of Sam and Frodo, the brilliance of Gandalf, the display of power’s power to corrupt, and, well, fifty other things. 

Without Comment: 1) When it was first published, Martin Luther’s translation of the New Testament cost 40 percent of a teacher’s annual salary—i.e., 17 fat geese; 2) One of the problems with money is that it allows us to become too insulated and isolated from the problems of the under-resourced; and 3) the number killed or wounded in the Russia-Ukraine war has reached 1M. (It is estimated that 180M people have died in war in the last 200 years.)

The Answer: The answer to the question—what do you call someone who only speaks one language—is not monolingual. The answer is “an American.”

One More Thing: It takes effort to pay attention to the world these days, especially the Middle East. I am praying. Also, I am waiting for someone to note that the exploding handheld tech pieces wreaking havoc on Hezbollah and in Lebanon are a metaphor for what handheld electronics are doing in the rest of the world, only in slow motion.  

Resources: I’ve heard eight to ten sermons on hell in my life, and I preached most of them. I’d rather chew sand than talk about hell, but I feel the need to because Jesus had a lot to say about it. Should you care to listen to last week’s sermon––the fifth in the Afterlife series––it’s here. 

Closing Prayer: Lord! Going out from this silence, teach me to be more alert, humble, expectant, than I have been in the past: ever ready to encounter you in quiet, homely ways: in every appeal to my compassion, every act of unselfish love which shows up and humbles my imperfect love, may I recognize you: still walking through the world. Give me that grace of simplicity which alone can receive your mystery. Come and abide with me! Meet me, walk with me! Enlighten my mind! And then, come in! Enter my humble life with its poverty and its limitations as you entered the stable of Bethlehem, the workshop of Nazareth, the cottage of Emmaus. Bless and consecrate the material of that small and ordinary life. Feed and possess my soul. Amen. (Evelyn Underhill, 1875-1941)

Happy Friday,

Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it.

Jesus, Luke 17
 

Many assume that No Suffering + Maximum Pleasure = The Good Life. Jesus says, Resting in His Grace + Serving Others = The Good Life. His claim that suffering is an opportunity and that the way up is down is very counterintuitive.
 
MLK: It’s not January 15^th (MLK Day), but while I’ve got you thinking about serving, I want to provide you with 90 seconds of inspiration. 

How Would We Know? I’m hearing “this is not an age of change” but a “change of age”–that is, we’re living through “a once-every-500-years geopolitical inflection point.” Those saying as much are claiming this moment will stand alongside the fall of Rome, the collapse of Constantinople, and Luther’s Diet of Worms. Count me skeptical. I’m not saying the ground isn’t moving. I’m simply noting we’re in no position to make such a call. I also want to note that even if we are, in an important sense, it does not matter. We are to trust God and serve others. Be ready today to gently and respectfully offer an account of the hope that is within you (1 Peter 3:15).

WOTW: Honorable mention goes to founder mode (which I think is just this moment’s trendy way to refer to entrepreneurial leadership) and flamping (from this WSJ piece. It’s an important word should you ever pitch a tent under the wings of your private plane). Full honors go to sublime madness, a term Reinhold Niebuhr coined to describe the disruptive but necessary qualities of those leaders who find a way to get the impossible done. 

Without Comment: 1) In 2024, golfer Scottie Scheffler earned $12,039.32 per shot; 2) 48% of bus riders in NYC do not pay the fare; 3) Teen vaping has hit a ten-year low; 4) Only 19% of Rs and 59% of Ds retain “much confidence” in higher education; 5) The median “early career” salary for a graduate of MIT is just over $133K; 6) Girls who grow up in homes without fathers enter puberty earlier than girls whose fathers live in the home; 7) The hero of the story is always the one who takes on maximum responsibility for others; and 8) The iPhone turned 17 years old this week.

Latin: Most of us know some Latin. Semper Fi, e pluribus unum and quid pro quo come to mind. Forty years of reading theology has made me familiar with imago Dei (the image of God), finitum non capax infinitum (the finite cannot comprehend the infinite), and incurvatus in se (the way sin has curved us inward on ourselves rather than outward towards God and others). I’m adding non semper sicut erit to that list. It means it will not always be this way. Because, well, it will not. God’s kingdom will come. Remembering as much is imperative. I recently heard someone say, “I don’t have any tattoos, but if I get one, it will be non semper sicut erit.” I agree.

Misc: 1) There are debates as to whether Christ’s incarnation, crucifixion, or resurrection is the most important. My consistent vote is for whichever one I studied last; 2) Those who helped JB off the world stage might want to turn their attention to Mick Jagger; 3) Discipline in holiness leads to faith and freedom; 4) Tesla’s futuristic truck belongs on Mars not in the drive-thru line at Sbux; 5) The narrative passages of Scripture suggest that even those who have the truth will only listen to it in times of pain; 6) We don’t break the Ten Commandments. We break ourselves against them; and 7) For way too many people, politics is no longer an ideology; it is an identity. 

Overheard (but I Can’t Remember Where): 1) When we face a problem, we need to ask, “What is Jesus’s invitation to me in this?”; and 2) The Bible exposes me to myself, which is seldom fun but can be helpful.

Musk: Walter Isaacson’s bio of Elon Musk (Musk) makes it clear that the CEO of Tesla, X (Twitter), SpaceX, Neuralink, The Boring Company––and the father of twelve children—is more than a little crazy. I’m both attracted to and scandalized by his urgency. I want sublime madness to be more of the first and much less of the second. 

Quote Worth Requoting: Eric Liddell is famous for saying, “When I run, I feel his pleasure.” FWIW, he also said, “It has been a wonderful experience to compete in the Olympic Games and to bring home a gold medal. But since I have been a young lad, I have had my eyes on a different prize. You see, each one of us is in a greater race than any I have run in Paris, and this race ends when God gives out the medals.”

Resources: 1) Renew Communities is having a great year. This colorful, short, and compelling update is worth 2 minutes. 2) I’ve been surprised (and heartened) by the response to Afterlife, our current sermon series, which is focused on a number of breezy topics––e.g., eternity, death, the resurrection, judgment, heaven, and hell. Here is last week’s sermon on judgment. (BTW, some think me brave to take on these topics. Not true. I’m scared not to.) 

Closing Prayer: I am communing with fire. Of myself, I am but straw but, O miracle, I feel myself suddenly blazing like Moses’ burning bush of old…. You have given me your flesh as food. You who are a fire which consumes the unworthy, do not burn me, O my Creator, but rather slip into my members, into all my joints, into my loins and into my heart. Consume the thorns of all my sins, purify my soul, sanctify my heart, strengthen the tendons of my knees and my bones, illumine my five senses, and establish me wholly in your love. Amen (Symeon Metaphrastes, 900-987).

Happy Friday,

“When you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

Jesus, Luke 14

Some think it wrong to be motivated by eternal rewards. Not Jesus. He encouraged it, going so far as to instruct us to store up our treasure in heaven. 

September: There’s much to be celebrated about this moment: the temps are mild, the Cubs are still in the hunt, and the Bears are undefeated. But, September? Seriously? What happened to August? For that matter, what happened to July? When I was little, summers went on for a looooong time. They now feel like a three-day weekend. 

WOTW: Honorable mention goes to 6G (which is not technically a word, but it’s here), nuclear intermission (the period of relative peace some geopolitical strategists claim is ending), retailanment (a word used in this NYT piece to describe struggling malls filling empty space with Play-Doh-Nerf-Lego themed games to bring people in), and marriage paradox (the irony that the institution’s decline is coming at the moment its objective value is being documented). Full honors—perhaps I should say, “full dishonor”—goes to MAID, which stands for Medical Assistance In Dying. This WSJ article, “Welcome to Canada, the Doctor Will Kill You Now,” documents MAID’s impact on the Great White North. BTW, the five-year-old I recently credited with coining nervicited was just repeating a line from Pinkie Pie in My Little Pony. Somehow, I missed that episode. 

Confused: Never mind the homonyms that shaped several SAT questions—for, four, and fore or meat, meet, and mete—I’ve been confusing Ivan Illich (the Austrian priest) with Ivan Ivanovich (the Dostoyevsky character) and Tom Holland (the actor) with Tom Holland (the Oxford historian). I also thought sea-change (a term that plays off the rising and falling tides) was C-change (i.e., a change driven from the C-suite). I’m glad to report I’m not confused about anything else. 

Without Comment: 1) 5.3% of those living in the US have two jobs; 2) Per this WSJ piece, our body ages in waves, with 44 and 60 being pronounced; 3) Per Barna, 35% of Americans believe that Jesus is God and have made a personal commitment to him. 26% of Americans are “Jesus Skeptics” —i.e., they deny that he lived on Earth, that he was more than man, or that anyone can know if God exists.

Resilience 3.0: I’ve offended some by lauding the grit of several less-than-saint-like people. I offer this 3-minute video as an olive branch. The resilience Derek Redmond displays should be easy for everyone to celebrate. BTW, while I am here, let me note that by the age of 14, Katie Ledecky was swimming 50,000 meters per week, and when Simone Biles was 14 she was spending up to 8 hours per day in the gym. The place where grit is most needed is when no one is watching. 

FWIW: 1) In line with national reports, I’m seeing people leave the church. I’m also seeing some return; 2) A fool can tear down a country, a church, or a school. It takes much more to maintain one and much, much more to build one up; 3) We’re free to criticize the political positions of others, but we must not demonize those holding them; and 4) People advocating a tepid commitment to Jesus will always be able to find someone to affirm their lukewarmness.

Looking Around the Corner 2.0: Few predicted the fall of the Soviet Union, the crash of 2008, the rise of nationalism, etc. Consequently, I’m skittish about going on record. However, it seems very likely that 1) we will eventually see government efforts to spike the US population, which will largely fail, and 2) public education will continue to lose market share, which will lead to skirmishes in state legislatures over how many teachers to employ. 

Speaking of Predictions: In 1776, the French skeptic Voltaire predicted that within one hundred years of his death, there would not be a Bible on earth except “one that is looked upon by an antiquarian curiosity-seeker.” However, within fifty years of his death, the Evangelical Society of Geneva bought his house and filled it with printing presses with which to print the Bible and Christian literature.

Prayer Request: 1) The world and its leaders need prayer—especially the Middle East; and 2) This Saturday at 5 p.m., we relaunch our Saturday night services.

Closing Prayer: Gracious and gentle and condescending God, God of peace, Father of mercy, God of all comfort; see, I lament before you the evil of my heart; I acknowledge that I am too much disposed to anger, jealousy, and revenge, to ambition and pride, with often give rise to discord and bitter feelings between me and others. Too often in this way I have offended and grieved you, my long-suffering Father, as well as my neighbors. Oh! forgive me this sin, and allow me to share in the blessings which you have promised to the peacemakers, who shall be called the children of God. Amen. (Johann Arndt, 1555 – 1621)

Happy Friday, 

They exchanged their glorious God for an image of a bull, which eats grass.

Psalm 106:20

Not long after their miraculous deliverance from Egypt, the Jews “forgot the God who saved them,” worshipped the image of a bull, and started asking, “God, what have you done for me lately?” Sin is stupid like that. Should your heart start wandering, redirect it towards the cross, where Jesus bore the wrath of God for your sin. That is a well-trafficked claim, but it’s one we must always keep top of mind.

Without Comment: 1) Chick-fil-A is launching a streaming service (no word if it will broadcast on Sundays); 2) Strbx—which now sells more sugar than coffee—moved up the date of its fall Pumpkin Spice Latte to Aug 22; 3) The US birth rate is near record lows, but the fertility decline is not uniform: 100 religious adults will raise 208 children, while 100 non-religious ones will raise only 147; 4) The average NFL franchise is now valued at $5.1B, up 14% from last year; and 5) 53% of US women over the age of 65 are divorced, widowed, or never married, compared with 30% of men.

Men: Speaking of US men, around 80K died from fentanyl in ’23, which is more than the 55.2K US men killed during 20 years in Vietnam. I’m seeing reports that more men now die “deaths of despair” than women die from breast cancer.

Huntington > Fukuyama: Though their arguments were more nuanced than most understand, it looks like Francis Fukuyama’s suggestion that the West’s victory over communism marked “the end of history” was wrong. And that Samuel Huntington’s claim that we were marching towards a “clash of civilizations”—principally between the West and radical Islam—was right.

WOTW: Honorable mention goes to two German words: unbehagen (the deep dissatisfaction many feel with themselves) and sehnsucht (our longing for something beyond this earth). Both are difficult to translate but important. I’m also recognizing a sudden spike in boundaries, mostly because it’s being used in place of morals. Full honors go to nervicited (coined by a nervous and excited first-grader before her first day of class). 

Speaking of Sehnsucht: C.S. Lewis wrote, “If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.”

Clean Up: I heard from a few when I cited Luke 6 when I meant Luke 9 or misspelled juristocracy juiritocracy. I heard from MANY when I expressed envy at the resilience of the Clintons and DJT. For the record, I agree that resilience is not all we need in our leaders, nor do I think it alone qualifies one for sainthood. My admiration of their ability to get back up was not meant to affirm all they have done. Let me also say that in the face of this criticism, I’ve decided to follow the example of Putin and keep publishing the Update. 

Reprint the Button: When William F. Buckley, Jr. ran for Mayor of NYC, one of his campaign slogans was: Don’t Immanentize the Eschaton, which was a very Buckley way of saying, “stop expecting government to deliver utopia.” I’d wear that button today. I’m not suggesting God’s children stop trying to care for widows and orphans or otherwise campaign for the welfare of the city in which they’ve been planted. Indeed, we must not grow weary of doing good. I’m for lessening our expectations and not our efforts. I’m also for focusing more on what we—i.e., you, the local church, and the big C church—can do and less on what we expect of the state.   

Overheard: Between the politics, the assassination attempt, the Ukraine offensive, and our inability to return our astronauts from space, the summer of ’24 is making a name for itself. Not a “Summer of ’68” level name just yet, but a name all the same.

Tony Dungy: Last week, Lakelight hosted Tony Dungy for a talk about how his faith impacted his coaching. You can listen to Faith, Family, and Football here.

Resources: Last weekend’s second message in the Afterlife series was on death. I promise you it’s more hopeful and helpful than you expect. Also, those who avoid thinking about their death do not keep it at bay; they just end up fearful of smaller things and lessen the punch of the Gospel.

Are You Ready? BTW, if you click here, you can download the “Are You Ready?” packet we prepared as a handout. This checklist is designed to help you organize your personal, financial, and legal matters for those you leave behind. Think: here is my list of passwords, and the key to the safety deposit box is in my sock drawer.  

Closing Prayer: May God the Father, and the eternal High Priest Jesus Christ, build us up in faith and truth and love, and grant us our portion among the saints with all those who believe in our Lord Jesus Christ. We pray for all believers, for kings and rulers, for the enemies of the cross of Christ, and for ourselves we pray that our fruit may abound and we be made perfect in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen. (Polycarp, 69-55).

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. Its genius is the writer’s commitment to turn these truths into praise. Insight is not enough. Knowing about God is not enough. Obedience is not enough. We are called to worship.

FWIW: 1) When I was growing up, the prophets of doom feared nuclear war and overpopulation. As I got older, debt and acid rain became the woes de jour. Today’s “nattering nabobs of negativism” lament cyber warfare, rogue AI, climate change, pandemics, and run-away nanobots. (Oh, and nuclear war. I still occasionally see the bumper sticker that reads, “One nuclear bomb can ruin your whole day.”); 2) While it’s popular to find faults with politicians, I continue to admire the resilience of many—e.g., both Clintons and DJT immediately come to mind. Many of us would benefit from their ability to get back up after being knocked down.

True or False: 1) The Church of England is dropping the word church in a quest for relevance; 2) A majority of Americans now believe that open marriages are acceptable; 3) Compliments are to relationships what oil is to an engine; and 4) Last year Japan had 2X the number of deaths as births.

WOTW: Honorable mention goes to brownout (a term for professional exhaustion, think: burnout lite), Mpox (the WHO’s new name for Monkeypox), collisions (the serendipitous meetings—in hallways and water fountains—that happen when people are back into the office); and Yen Carry trade (the highly leveraged financial hijinks that sent the markets into a dive two weeks ago). Full honors go to modern elder, which is developed in this TIME piece. Remember, not everyone who is old is wise. 

Overheard: 1) The things we do, do things to us. 2) Modern society lacks a term for sin, so people are categorized as evil; 3) The test of what you believe is what you live. Some who talk left, live right. Some who talk right, live left; 4) Democracy gives people what they want, which means we need to do a better job of helping people want the right things; and 5) It’s very hard to move people out of the victim-victimizer mindset because it’s quite morally attractive.

Quote Worth Requoting: “In order for a moral revolution to occur, three things must happen: 1) Something that was nearly universally condemned is now nearly universally celebrated; 2) That which was celebrated is condemned; and 3) Those who refuse to celebrate are condemned.” Theo Hobson

Two Articles Worth Noting: This WSJ piece notes that Elon has joined Richard Dawkins, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Jordan Peterson, Tom Holland, Neil Ferguson, Douglas Murray, et. al. in saying nice things about Jesus. Remember, saying nice things about Jesus falls short of embracing an Apostles’ Creed understanding of Christ, but we should pray that the Lord draws them to himself; 2) In the NYT opinion, What I Want a University President to Say About Campus Protests, Bret Stephens reminds college presidents that higher ed depends upon free inquiry. I’m giving Stephens three cheers, but as others have noted, while the spirit of inquiry is important, the historic––and, for centuries, central––mission of American higher education is the pursuit of truth. (And initially, truth was understood to be grounded in Jesus.) 

Answers: 1) Partly true. Per this Telegraph report, some COE churches are moving towards more “modern-sounding” words, such as community; 2) False. However, per both this Gallup poll and this 2023 YouGov poll, though the majority of Americans do not think open marriages are OK, a majority of Americans under 30 do; 3) Of course, this is true. Researchers found, that on the highest-performing corporate teams, members gave 5.6 compliments for every criticism, while on the lowest-performing teams, that ratio was upside down; 4) Yes, in 2023, Japan experienced 1.6M deaths and only 758K births. 

Resources: This week at Christ Church, we started a new sermon series called Afterlife. In the introductory sermon, I argue that while life is short, eternity is not, and opportunity is now. I also repeat a line I use at funerals: “Please do not think XYZ has left the land of the living to go to the land of the dying. They have left the land of the dying and go to the land of the living.” You can access the sermon here. You can also sign up for the weekday 5-minute devotions here. During the next six weeks, I will be answering questions about the Afterlife.

Closing Prayer: Praise to you, saving sacrifice, offered on the wood of the cross for me and for all people. Praise to the noble and precious blood, flowing from the wounds of my crucified Lord Jesus Christ and washing away the sins of the whole world. Remember, Lord, your creature, whom you have redeemed with your blood. I repent of my sins, and I long to put right what I have done. Merciful Father, take away all my offenses and sins; purify me in body and soul, and make me worthy to taste the holy of holies. Amen (Ambrose, c.339 – 397).

Happy Friday,

Praise the Lord, o my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, o my soul, and forget not all his benefits.

Psalm 103:1-2

In Psalm 103, David isn’t talking to God; he’s talking to himself—i.e., he’s meditating. In doing this, he not only models paying attention to what we pay attention to, he models bringing his thoughts in line with truth. BTW, the goal of biblical meditation is not to empty our mind but to fill it with the truth about God’s nature and goodness.

Jesus > Plato: It’s been suggested that Western thought is little more than “a series of footnotes on Plato.” There’s some truth there, but we’d do well to realize that Jesus is smarter than Plato. Indeed, the genius of Jesus exceeds that of Aristotle, da Vinci, Mozart, Einstein, and the next 100 members of Mensa put together. (Do yourself a favor and read The Surprising Genius of Jesus by Peter J. Williams, the Principal of Tyndale House at Cambridge and a speaker at Lakelight last year.)

News < Good News: In Luke 6, the Sons of Thunder—i.e., James and John—encourage Jesus to napalm Rome. The Prince of Peace declines, explaining that he’s going there to die for the Romans, not kill them. At this tribal moment, it’s worth remembering that Jesus would wash the feet of our political enemies. It’s also worth noting that we must see the daily news through the lens of the Good News, not the other way around.

In Defense of Hypocrisy: Not everyone is as wise, thoughtful, and self-aware as you and me (especially me). Indeed, if hypocrisy were helium, most people would have funny voices. But there is something to be said for this. I’m coming to appreciate those who advertise high standards, even if they fail to keep them. At least they recognize them. Many today no longer do.

Overheard: 1) You become what you celebrate; 2) When throwing a tantrum on the golf course, it’s best to throw your clubs in the direction you’ll be walking; 3) Ignorance and arrogance have become frequent dance partners; 4) Being marginalized is not the same thing as being persecuted; 5) Western Civ appears to have no interest in protecting Western Civ; 6) If you read the platforms of the Democrats and the Republicans circa 1960, they are hard to tell apart. Not so today; 7) Not everyone who suffers is empathetic, but everyone who is empathetic has suffered; 8) What makes Cancel Culture possible is a person who feels morally superior and a person who is willing to be shamed; 9) The bibliographic evidence in support of the New Testament overwhelms all other ancient documents more than Katie Ledecky dominates women’s distance swimming.

Expect It: It can be hard to peer around the corner, but some things seem likely: 1) A bevy of books about what went wrong at Boeing; 2) A season of The Bachelor that ends with the bachelor selecting more than one person and everyone celebrating the throuple; 3) A spate of lawsuits launched by de-transitioners against their parents, teachers, doctors, and anyone else that facilitated their transition; 4) Protests over the results of the November election; 5) More and more SCOTUS drama; 6) A fury when the next pandemic hits and it becomes obvious that we are not prepared for it.

Question(s): A question we need to be asking is: What do I need to do today to prepare for my life ten years from now? A question I was asked recently is: Does God get mad if I fall asleep while praying? My answer was: if you regularly pray, I can think of little better than to fall asleep while talking with God. If, however, prayer is not a normal part of your life, I’d work a bit harder to stay awake.

Resources: Here is the sermon I preached last weekend on the occasion of my 25^th anniversary at Christ Church. It’s my effort to explain why—in spite of the many things the church has done wrong and all the hassles of being on staff at one—I think the local church is worth investing in.

In the Chicago Area?: 1) Join us at 1418 Victoria, North Chicago, on August 23^rd at 4:30 p.m. for the next Renew Communities ribbon-cutting ceremony; 2) Click here to sign up for an evening with Tony Dungy and Chris Broussard, who will be at the Lake Forest campus of Christ Church; or 3) Click here for information on Lakelight’s Oct. 5th Good Work Summit, featuring Phillip Yancey, Felicia Wu Song, Nicholas Pearce and more.

The Olympics meets Philosophy: Much could be said about the Olympics. I’m going to bypass any serious comment and—given my earlier reference to Plato—give you this link to Monty Python’s classic sketch about philosophers playing soccer in the Olympics. The five of you who get this—and the two of you who think it’s funny—can thank me later. 

Closing Prayer: God, let me put right before interest; Let me put others before self; Let me put the things of the spirit before the things of the body. Let me put the attainment of noble ends above the enjoyment of present pleasures. Let me put principle above reputation. Let me put you before all else. Amen (John Baillie, 1886-1960)

Happy Friday,

Those who trust in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

The Prophet Isaiah, Isaiah 40:31

Isaiah does not say those who trust in their efforts, their intellect, their 401k plan, their network, their morals, their health care plan, their doctor, their president, their pastor, or their nation… He says those who trust in the Lord will be renewed and flourish. Lord, may our hope rest in you.

True/False: 1)The median age for an MTV viewer is over 40; 2) ER admissions for self-harm is spiking for 10- to 14-year-old girls; 3) America’s #1 “export” is Friends; 4) To be unclear is to be unkind; 5) More than 100,000 people die of overdoses in the United States every year; 6) China has over 25 nuclear reactors under construction; 7) There’s currently a larger gender gap on college campuses in the US than there was before Title IX was installed to promote gender equality. Extra Credit: Name two aspects of a wedding that correspond to longer-lasting marriages.

Quotes Worth Requoting: 1) “A Bible that’s falling apart usually belongs to someone who isn’t.” Charles Spurgeon; 2) “If I’ve brought any message today, it’s this: Have the courage to have your wisdom regarded as stupidity. Be fools for Christ. Have the courage to suffer the contempt of the sophisticated world.” Judge Antonin Scalia; 3) “Evil is always temporary. The worst does not last.” Eugene Peterson.

Answers: 1) True, per this WSJ article, the median age of those watching MTV is not only over 40, it’s 51; 2) True as this piece by Jean Twenge shows, between 2010 and 2022, self-harm for young girls quintupled. Thankfully it appears to be declining as we get further away from COVID lockdowns; 3) True. It’s been long claimed—though not documented—that America’s number one export is its culture and that BayWatch and Friends are the leading products; 4) True. When niceness is the goal, many say less than is helpful because they do not want someone to be uncomfortable; 5) True. Per this CDC report, 107K people in the US died last year from an overdose; 6) True. Per this piece, 26 reactors are currently under construction with plans to build 300 more. 7) True. The gender gap today is greater than it was before Title IX was passed, but it’s flipped. Today women are way ahead of men. Extra Credit: per this 2014 study, the two aspects of a wedding that correspond to a lasting marriage are: a large guest list and a low wedding bill.

WOTW: Honorable mention goes to ugly angry (which I’ve yet to see in print but see quite often in life); tsundoku, (which refers to books stacked in piles because they are going to be read. I may or may not see this when I look around my office); and juiritocracy (a country in which the courts exercise power ascribed to the legislature). I’m giving full honors to compliment sandwich, the derisive term Gen Z’ers use to describe performance reviews that include affirmation and correction. Note: this leaves bosses with the mentor’s dilemma—i.e., the reality that constructive criticism directed at a Z’er may not only “crush their confidence and sap their motivation” but be very unwelcome.

Resources: I am about to start a six-week series called Afterlife. In addition to sermons and small group material, there will be daily morning devotions. Sign up here. They will start on Monday, August 19^th.

TWLR: This Week’s Long Read is a 2012 article in American Political Science Review by Dr. Robert Woodberry, entitled, “The Missionary Roots of Liberal Democracy.” In this heavily footnoted piece, Woodberry argues that Protestant missionaries influenced the rise and spread of stable democracies, by “spreading religious liberty, mass education, mass printing, voluntary organizations and colonial reforms.” A short and accessible summary of Woodberry’s work is here.

Random: 1) When the horse dies, dismount; 2) Christians living in the West today have little grounds for optimism but great reasons for hope; 3) AI is making bad writing better, but it’s not making good writing great; 4) The best time to plant a tree is 25 years ago. The second-best time to plant a tree is today; 5) I am wondering if one of the things I have an unhealthy attraction to is stability; and 6) Politics is not a meaning-giving enterprise. The best we can hope for from the state is that it creates space for meaning-giving institutions like the family and the Church.

Closing Prayer: O God, the true and only life, in whom and from whom and by whom are all good things that are good indeed; from whom to be turned is to fall, to whom to turn is to rise again; in whom to abide is to dwell for ever, from whom to depart is to die; to whom to come again is to revive, and in whom to lodge is to live: take away from me whatever you will, so that you give me only yourself. Amen (Thomas Dekker, 1570-1623)

Happy Friday,

Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, David slung it and struck the Philistine. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell face down on the ground.

1 Samuel 17:49

Given that I’ve been the bug more than the windshield lately, I’m reminding myself that even when our enemies are 10’ tall, they will fall. God wins. 

WOTW: Honorable mention goes to Brat (which is what Charli XCX called VP Harris, and also the name of her recent album. Alas, I’m too old to understand what it means, so we’ll keep moving); apocalypse bucket, a Costco emergency dinner kit that contains ingredients that will last 25 years; whimsical nihilism (a description of our focus on entertainment amidst grave challenges), BATANA (Best Alternative After Not Agreeing); and MEI (an anti-DEI acronym that stands for Merit, Excellence, and Intelligence). Full honors go to big history, Peggy Noonan’s term for the recent past, which includes “the worst pandemic in a century, mass riots in our streets, the most acrimonious presidential election in memory, the largest European conflict since World War II, the worst attack on Jews since the Holocaust, and an attempted assassination of a former (and perhaps future) president.” 

Vacation Reading: While Sheri and I vacationed in the mountains of British Columbia, I set aside Team of Rivals—DKG’s book about Lincoln’s insight, humility, resilience, moral courage, and ability to work with just about anyone—and picked up Project Hail Mary a Sci-Fi written by Andy Weir. I found it a fun summer read.  

Speaking of Canada: Given our time in the Great White North, I’m resurrecting this SNL skit about the metric system. (FWIW, I do wish Jimmy had been successful in getting the US to go metric.) 

Quote Worth Requoting: “We think that if we do not feel something there can be no authenticity in doing it. But the wisdom of God says something different, namely, that we can act our way into a new way of feeling much quicker than we can feel our way into a new way of acting. Worship is an act which develops feelings for God, not a feeling for God which is expressed in an act of worship.” Eugene Peterson 

True or False: 1) There are now more grandparents in the world than children under the age of five; 2) After a bad 18 months, Bud Light is bouncing back; 3) MrBeast has nearly 100x more YouTube followers than the Trump and Harris campaigns combined; 4) Same Store Sales (SSS) at Mickey D’s Supper Club (aka McDonald’s) are up—a good sign for the economy; and 5) Though marijuana sales have been climbing, alcohol remains America’s favorite addiction.

Don’t be an Awful-izer: There are moments when we need a Paul Revere to sound the alarm, but not often. And even then, the goal isn’t to make people anxious, it’s to alert them so they make wise decisions. There are way too many alarmists out there right now—unwise, unserious, self-important Chicken Littles who delight in using ALL CAPS, exclamation marks!!!!, and bold fonts. A pox on them all. Work to keep small matters small.

What’s in a Name: I am making plans to restart my podcast this fall and expect to rename it. If you have ideas, let me know here. If we select your suggestion, Lakelight will send you some swag.

FWIW: 1) The insecure part of me that’s forever campaigning for homecoming king pays too much attention to criticism. At this moment, we all need to defend less and absorb some of the free-floating anger that is poisoning many things; 2) However the election plays out, I’m preparing to pastor to two groups of disappointed people: those who are disappointed on Nov. 6^th and those disappointed when their candidate fails to deliver on their promises; 3) Some cultures are better than other cultures in some things. Every culture is prone to certain sins. Few cultures see their sins very clearly; 4) We often earn trust for being restrained—e.g., we do not trust an accountant because they’re good at math but because they won’t sign something they don’t know to be true.

Answers: 1) True. This is discussed in Extra Time, Camilla Cavendish’s book; 2) False. Bud Light’s star is still fading. Sales recently dropped below Modelo Especial and Michelob Ultra; 3) True. MrBeast’s 300M YouTube subscribers dwarf Trump’s (2.7M) and Harris’s (267K) combined. 4) False. Per this article, SSS at McD’s are down 12%; 5) Unclear. The journal Addiction claims that 17.7M Americans smoke pot every day, which is more than the 14.7M who drink every day, but others suggest the number who drink every day is higher than 14.7M.

Closing Prayer: God, let me put right before interest. Let me put others before self. Let me put the things of the spirit before the things of the body. Let me put the attainment of noble ends above the enjoyment of present pleasures. Let me put principle above reputation. Let me put you before all else. Amen (John Baillie, 1886-1960)

Happy Friday,

“Pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments because you know they produce controversy.”

The Apostle Paul, 2 Timothy

Here is some earthy, realistic advice from Paul. Lots of noise out there, lots of foolishness and stupidity—ignore it. Your personal character > the outside chaos. How can you pursue faith, love, and peace today?

Kamala For Biden: My name is Glenn Wishnew, and I’m filling in for Mike this week. I work for both the Lakelight Institute and North Star Classical Christian School. The last time I guest wrote for The Friday Update, I anointed myself the ascending Brady and Mike the declining Bledsoe. This time, it appears God, in His providence, supplied the apt metaphor.

Name That Generation Quiz: Your answers to the following questions include: Silents (ages 79-99), Boomers (60-78), Gen X (44-59), Millennials (28-43), and Gen Z (12-27): 1) Which generation gave us self-help books? 2) 6 out of 10 people in this generation believe that America is not “a fair society where everyone can get ahead.” 3) This generation was the last one where a majority of the public watched the same shows and listened to the same music. 4) 70% of 18-year-olds in this generation believed they would be a top 20% performer in their jobs.

The Answers: 1) Boomers. Case in point: My mom made me read Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People when I was 11 years old. 2) My people, Gen Z! The world is wrong. We are right. 3) Gen X —the pop culture lovers. No, I don’t remember Jim Carrey on SNL. Sorry, I wasn’t alive at the time. 4) Millennials, obviously. (BTW, all this is from Jean Twenge’s excellent book Generations.) (Sorry for leaving you out, Silents, but I don’t believe in participation trophies—I’m not a Millennial.)

Something I Can’t Stop Thinking About: “Let us consider our relationship to our own body… We climb on to the scale: we should lose weight. We look into the mirror: we must get rid of that pimple, those wrinkles. We take our blood pressure: it should be lower. We track our steps: we should walk more. Our insulin level, our bustline: we invariably encounter such things as a challenge to do better, even if it is a challenge we can ignore or reject.” – Hartmut Rosa, The Uncontrollability of The World

Quote Worth Requoting: “The game of life is hard, and a lot of us are playing hurt.” – Anne Lamont

It Seems 2 People Much Smarter than Me (& me too, tbh): 1) Democracy presupposes a society that believes in the existence of truth, a meaning and purpose for history, and the capacity of citizens to shape it. (James Davison Hunter, Democracy and Solidarity); 2) The Left de-regulated the culture. The Right de-regulated the market. The burden now falls on individuals to self-regulate. “Some indication of how well we are bearing this burden can be found in the fact that we are now very fat, very much in debt, and very prone to divorce.” (Matthew B. Crawford, The World Beyond Your Head)

Without Comment: 1) According to this piece, 45 percent of young adults (18 to 29) live with their parents; 2) Per this report, there is a greater gender imbalance in college degrees awarded today than in 1972 when Title IX was first legislated. However, it is in the other direction; 3) From the same source, among 18–29-year-olds, Black women are more likely than White men to have graduated from high school, be enrolled in college, and hold a post-graduate degree.

A Parable About the Press: “The conduct of the Republican party in this nomination is a remarkable indication of a small intellect, growing smaller. They pass over…statesmen and able men, and they take up a fourth-rate lecturer, who cannot speak good grammar.”The New York Herald (May 19, 1860) commenting on Abraham Lincoln’s nomination for president at the Republican National Convention. If you’re curious about how the media has changed over time, Mike has a book on the media coming out in the fall. Stay tuned.

A Tale of Two Worldviews: Friedrich Nietzsche said, “What is good? Everything that heightens the feeling of power in man, the will to power, power itself.” Meanwhile, Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.” It’s worth asking, which one of those worldviews is guiding me today?

What’s Ahead > What’s Behind: George Sayer spent much of his life studying and writing about C.S. Lewis. He read the Narnia stories with his daughter, who, after finishing them all, wept bitterly and said, “I don’t want to go on living in this world. I want to live in Narnia with Aslan.” Sayer replied, “Darling, one day you will.”

Resources: If you’re in favor of thoughtful Christian content, you should subscribe to Lakelight’s monthly newsletter which drops tomorrow. Your willingness to receive an email from Lakelight once a month could help me buy a house someday.

Closing Prayer: “Lord, I have a heart that continually inclines me to sin, and I’m spiritually powerless to change one bit of it without your supernatural help. How can I feel superior to anyone at all? Remind me of that—and of your amazing love for me—all throughout the day. Amen.” (Timothy Keller, 1950-2023).

Happy Friday,

Around midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God.

Luke, Acts 16:25

In Acts 16, Luke shows how hard it can be to get something done, even when God’s behind it. What makes this passage so powerful is that it describes their behavior following being beaten and thrown into jail. I used to think Paul and Silas were just that full of joy. I now think their singing was their effort to lift their spirits and shape their hearts.

Practice Makes Permanent: Practice doesn’t make perfect, but it does establish patterns-–i.e., make permanent. Almost anything we do once is easier to do twice. This is true of both virtues and vices. Where are your habits leading you?

True/False: 1) The most common way we are misled by the news is by reporters who lie; 2) The least happy people in America are the elderly; 3) States that legalize marijuana underestimate the revenue it will generate; 4) Potatoes are the third largest source of calories in the world; 5) Government hiring accounted for 25% of the new jobs in the US this year; 6) Japan’s decade-long, multi-billion dollar campaign to raise their birth rate is working; and 7) People no longer trust science.

Worth Noting: Most organizations must update their product line to stay relevant. Alcoholics Anonymous is among the few that are aging very well. Their approach—meetings, sponsors, accountability, transparency— remains unchanged.

Things British: It was convenient that Lakelight’s C.S. Lewis tour had us in Britain for their peaceful transition of power. I took notes! BTW, though I appreciated much of the new PM’s acceptance speech, I took exception with his promise to govern Britain “unburdened by doctrine.” Oh no! It’s not just that not having a doctrine is a doctrine; it’s that those who say they don’t have a doctrine have the most aggressive and oppressive doctrines of all.

Yes!: Several editorial boards channeled Lincoln in reporting on the assassination attempt. I appreciated the NYT and WSJ and especially (even?) the WaPo, “Can this, then, be a moment to pause and rediscover our better selves?… Americans, what do we want to be? It’s not up to politicians, or editorial pages. The responsibility is ours, as neighbors and citizens. In fact, this republic is ours, as Benjamin Franklin said, ‘if we can keep it.’ Let us begin today.”

With Malice Toward None; With Charity For All: Speaking of Lincoln, though Abe is not on the ballot (trust me, I keep checking), we can learn from him all the same. Ponder this from his first inaugural speech: “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.” Abe 2024!

WOTW: Honorable mention goes to 1) client journalism (which I saw on display when a reporter who, having previously assured us that President Biden was “sharp as a tack,” was complaining that the press had not reported about Biden’s mental acuity); 2) silver squatters (the 1 in 4 family members now 55+ who will require financial support from their family when they retire); 3) divorce divide (the marked difference in voting patterns not just between married and divorced people, but between divorced men and divorced women); and 4) the exhausted middle (from this still important 2018 Hidden Tribes article). I was going to give full honors to the exhausted middle until I started using the phrase Crack Boom to describe thunder and lightning. (Those who suspect the winning entry was unwittingly submitted by our 2-year-old granddaughter may be on to something. Full disclosure: when it comes to crack boom, she’s not a big fan).

Answers: 1) F: We are less likely to be misinformed by reporters who lie than we are under-informed by reporters whose story selection favors their viewpoint; 2) F: The saddest people in the US today are young girls; 3) Both T and F: Some states have been surprised by the revenue, but others find that black market sales suppress projections; 4) T: Rice and wheat are 1 and 2. Corn and Potatoes get listed as #3; 5) T: Per this report, government hiring accounted for one-quarter of new jobs last quarter; 6) F: This BBC report suggests that Japan has spent $200B to date. This report places the number somewhat lower, but both agree that the massive spending efforts are failing—in fact, that since the spending began, the country’s birth rate has dropped from 1.6 to .99; and 7) F: I think it would be more accurate—though equally tragic—to say that people have not lost trust in science as much as they have scientists.

1 Picture > 1,000 Words: This chart says much about the “success” of the sexual revolution. If only someone had warned us that sex was wonderful but fragile and best reserved for a covenant relationship between one man and one woman for a lifetime.

Closing Prayer: In keeping with the British theme, the closing prayer is from the Book of Common Prayer: Almighty God… Save us from violence, discord, and confusion; from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties, and fashion into one united people the multitudes brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues. Endue with the spirit of wisdom those to whom, in thy Name, we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home… all of which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (The Book of Common Prayer, “For Our Nation,” #39.)