I haven’t blogged in a while as last week was very emotionally charged for me personally – maybe it was for you as well.
Between giving the weeks’ sermon, the events of the week, some wonderful family things and some obligations, I was running short on bandwidth. But here’s a bit of what I was going through my mind and likely will for a good while.
Time Magazine’s The Me, Me, Me” article on the Millennial Generation by Joel Stein.
Unfortunately, you can’t read the article online for free (unless you are a subscriber or pay one of their content packages.) I identify myself as a Gen Xer (those born between 1968-1979) but I have a great deal of affinity and affection for the Millennials. The piece was well-written, the title and intro was a bit sensational (that’s how you try to sell magazines right?) but I did appreciate that he identifies his own narcism and his speculation of the Millennials actually being the ones to change the world and do the greatest amount of social good of any recent American generation has seen/done. Not exactly sure how that is measured though.
Just like I’m not sure how narcism is really measured. I get that Stein cited this generation has the highest clinical cases of narcism but can he really compare the countless untreated people throughout the generations with the Millennials, especially since they are the largest, the youngest and fortunately, the ones whose Boomer parents have been able to send them to therapy/counseling?
Is there really more narcism today? Or is impossible it is more evident/verifiable because of social media? Did it really not exist as much prior or did it not have the outlets for it. Does Stein think narcism was just recently discovered along with Higgs Boson particle? Still a well-written, interesting piece.
The Devastation of the Tornadoes that Hit Oklahoma
First, I don’t think I’ll ever get to use “aftermath” pictures. Second, I’m grateful that my heart hasn’t become so desensitized that I can’t feel that. I think you should be grateful for that too. So while I think there’s a line between a cable network cashing in on a tragedy and actual journalism, my concern is my response. Am I merely consuming the news event or am I truly broken by it? While I am not sure if one can actually adequately donate to every cause, tragedy and disaster, I do know that one can at least begin my praying for the suffering and pray for the rebuilding. Honestly, sometimes it’s easier to send the twenty dollars.
I did catch John Piper’s tweet about and the posts like Rachel Held Evan’s responding to it. I can’t hate the guy, but it’s impossible for me to truly respect him. As I mentioned in a post a few years ago (after his Farewell Rob Bell tweet), I did appreciate his writing during my college years but these days Piper is a cautionary tale to me. I fear we are slowly watching a good man lose himself. Would love to be wrong here.
Then I heard the news that a dear lifelong friend died tragically last week.
Here is Mike’s obituary as I don’t have the energy to post much on that right now except to say, he’ll be so missed so much by so many. Whether you knew Mike or are grieving another – God’s grace and peace to all whose hearts are heavy,
Remembering Memorial Day
I continue to pray for the brave men and women who gave their lives for this country. I continue to pray for our soldiers, I continue to pray for our enemies as Jesus taught. I hope God and others will consider me a peacemaker.
Nathan’s Pre-School Graduation.
Certainly a special moment of the week. He just turned five, he just graduated pre-school, so happy, proud and excited for our first born.
So, it all came out in the sermon I gave on Sunday.
I always think twice about posting my content as I am sometimes concerned with how it comes off on social media. Am i contributing to the narcism or to the conversation? May God be my judge. Still, I do believe in this content and if God can use it speak to others, then that’s a good thing.
If you have 30 mins, there may be something here for you.
If you were one of Mike’s friends, I offer a brief eulogy about 23 minutes in.
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