In Word or Deed

Photo by Marcus Wallis on Unsplash I heard on the radio today the idea that we as a society have downplayed the importance as well as the role of friendship. The commentator went on to argue that what we have done is relegate all intimacy to only one kind of relationship, namely a romantic one. Having done so we have cut ourselves off from a major aspect of life and one that is of critical importance to our health and our development; physically, mentally, and spiritually. I’ve had some time to reflect on this and I cannot help but agree. We as people have slowly grown further and further apart or at least it seems to be that way. Nearly everyone I’ve talked to agrees that these days it would be practically unthinkable to strike up a conversation with a stranger in the checkout line or in a park or on a bus. We have been trained to not ‘bother’ anyone else and that any intrusion into our day by someone we do not already know is unwanted, disrespectful, and weird. ...

Photo by Heather Mount on Unsplash Do you have a life's purpose? Is there something beyond or above yourself that influences your choices? I ask because it would seem that the current of modern culture is moving more and more toward the idea that the ultimate ethic is my own freedom and choice, with the only overarching ethic being that we should support the rights of other people to also follow their own desires. While this doesn't seem too terrible an idea at the start it does lead us down a rather unfortunate rabbit hole. Modern man is more and more losing the ability to live for anything beyond himself and what he finds comfortable, enjoyable, or agreeable. Really, this is just the natural outworking of pluralism and the post-modern mentality. We've taken away any idea of a meta-narrative, of an overarching truth that explains and pertains to every aspect of life. There is no objective truth in the philosophy of modern man and thus there is onl...

Photo by Hasan Almasi on Unsplash The world often seems to be in a constant state of turmoil and distress. Opposing factions struggle for power in every corner of the world and our various world-views and ideologies combat for supremacy from the water cooler to the world wide web. People everywhere seem to be either searching for real truth or loudly proclaiming that it doesn't exist. Many have simply given up on a life that is meaningful; some of them cutting it short. Where can we go for any sense of reality, any solid foundation of real truth? We can argue back and forth about science and philosophy, we can debate theology and atheism, we can discuss anarchy vs. order, but let me propose that there is one thing at least that no can effectively deny. Humanity is flawed. It doesn't take much observation to prove this simple truth, you don't even have to look outside of yourself. You and I can look inside of ourselves and see selfishness, greed, li...

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash Milestones have a tendency to make us stop and think. Significant moments in our personal history carry with them a sense of import that in my experience brings other things into sharp relief or at the very least cause us to ponder them in different way than before. These moments seem to our minds bigger and more important than the more mundane day to day and often we cannot help but wonder how many more significant moments remain for us in the days to come? Was this the last big thing? I recently celebrated my 33 rd birthday. Thirty-three years of living and breathing and trying for another new tomorrow. Thirty-three years of days. All in all I really have no room to complain in regards to these thirty-three years. I have experienced trial as well as blessing, pleasure as well as pain, sorrow as well as joy. Through it all; however, I have not been tested to any serious degree nor have I endured suffering to the same extent as ma...

It's a bit of phenomenon really, our ability to live so much in the moment that even the passage of time itself can be a bit of a shock. We've all experienced this. Whenever a child seems suddenly older or we do just because we heard the exact number of years, or when we look back and suddenly realize just how long it has been since high school, or that your vacation is already over. The point is that although time moves on as it will, our experience of it tends to skew towards the now rather than the will be or has been. Our ability to accurately understand the time we have is woefully lacking. This plays itself out in a number of ways, not the least of which being our abysmal lack of respect for how much time we have left. Do you remember the first time you realized that you are going to die? I do. I was just looking in the mirror one day, getting ready for something I suppose, and the realization hit me that I am now older than ever I have been before...