Wonderful Matters

In my last post I shared some thoughts about the answer to the question, "Who owns you?" There are indeed a variety of answers to the question, but really only two that the World offers. Those two answers are so important to know because in many ways they are the fuel for the Culture War. Those two answers again are, "I own me" and "Others own some of me." I thought I'd elaborate a bit on the extent to which government is involved in the mix, and there is just as much confusion about government as there is about the question. The libertarian naturally has great disdain for government, yet even the most liberated individual utilizes the services of other individuals in some way. Because people are very prone to rotten behavior, that "transfer" of said services must be administered by government in some form. The classic error of libertarianism is the failure to accurately assess the degree of evildoing within each individual. The utilit...

I caught a lecture by a Harvard professor on one of those obscure suburban PBS stations last night in a series called Justice . The TV listings blurb said it was about Robert Nozick, so I was a bit interested. The professor was extraordinarily boring, but to his credit most college profs are. The gargantuan lecture hall, however, was packed with bright-eyed youngsters, all of them certainly the brilliant quite-recently-departed-from high school students from around the nation who squeezed their way into this fine institution of higher learning with A+'s in everything except Calculus G/H. The sad part is that everything the prof said was the most rudimentary political science stuff and everything the students shared in response was nothing beyond the typically elementary philosophical brain farts. But hey, everyone needs to take Poli Sci 101. I wanted to bring up the core question addressed, and that was "Who owns you?" The prof set this up by speaking about the uti...

Last Monday I was struck by two pieces in the news/opinion aggregator I frequent. They weren't unusual by any means, but the topics are ones that are not addressed much. Each shared pretty amazing observations that few take seriously (which is precisely why they continue to periodically show up in some form), and they were from writers who are both very renowned in the financial punditry world. But because they are beholden to World operatives, neither could share anything close to the answer to the problems they elucidate. Or I should say, as always,  Anyone who is the answer. The first was from Robert Samuelson of the Washington Post , and the title of his piece pretty much says everything: "We may be reaching the limits of economics." I like Robert Samuelson because he has lots of comprehensible and quite striking numbers to illustrate how much human sacrifice is actually going on out there. Oh, he certainly won't let on that it is indeed human sacrifice. Hi...

Every once in a while I get a message from someone who is intrested in knowing more about what it means to be an ungrafted church. They've caught my webzine, most likely the "501c3 Q & A" page, and have more questions or are simply concerned about being incorporated. As I thought, I wondered, how many such people look at my blog to see what kinds of things I'm saying about being ungrafted? And are they trying to get cues from the many times I've gone out and consulted people about what it takes to move on establishing a vibrant assembly that is not tied to Caesar? And then I thought, hmm. They aren't going to find any such scintillating narratives here. Not that I don't want to fill this blog with them. I do. It is just They aren't happening. I have indeed offered my services to do some consulting about these matters, but no one has requested them. That is likely because very few see that I'm here. But I think the main reason is more ha...

I blog because I really think I have something to say. Right now I know not a whole lot of people read this. I still write for a number of reasons. Maybe someone will come across it. At some point in the future my children may actually read some of this and think deeply about what their dad was about, what he was thinking and feeling. And I do this simply to "put on paper" what God has shared with me. "Share all good things with your instructor." I like that a lot. Here I may do that. My last two blog entries were simply about things I want. Yes, call me selfish, but I don't think for a second God didn't put deep passionate acquisitiveness into each of us for a reason. After living many years in the World, I found its treasures profoundly lacking. What is still a bit amazing to me is how well the World fools people into thinking its things are the things to acquire. Oh I understand it. I understand why it does that, and I see at least a little bit of how i...

In my last blog entry I kind of went off on rank disunderstanding, if I may coin a phrase. Just thought I'd add a few more thoughts around the visceral feeling about it all. Yeah, I know. It was yet another time I laid it out there. My good friend from work with whom I pray is a very even-tempered guy, he's awesome. He said don't sweat it, God's got it, it's all good. That's fine. I know. But I still feel it. Today in the news/opinion aggregator that I habitually scan were these link headlines. "What If It's All a Lie?" This was from blogger Edward Harrison, who is himself a financal advisor of some stripe. But look at that question. It actually makes me laugh. I mean, come on, how many times can you say "This guy/company/country just ain't payin' us back... um, aren't they?..." without actually getting a clue. 'Scuze me, I've got the answer to your question . I'm no genius because it's the answer that...

I really wish I could blog more. I work ten hour days and spend lots of the other time I have with family. 'Course I really wish for a lot of things, like mixing it up with people who actually understand. Not to brag that I'm the one who does understand necessarily, or even that they'd read my blog. That's kind of the point. I do very very very much wish I could talk with people who get it -- I just want to be getting it. Thing is, paying attention to Jesus' words, you'd get it. When I pay attention to Jesus' words I get it. Paying attention to Jesus' words and seriously getting out there and doing them, I already have the answer. That may sound arrogant, but as I've emphasized, it ain't me for jack. It's Him. Know Him and know the answer. Don't know Him? Don't spout about how much He isn't or that I don't know the answer. It only means anything if someone else whoever that is gets it and knows Him and understands. ...