The right place at the wrong time

Have you ever noticed how much literary real estate is given to David in the Old Testament? Chapter after chapter sing the praises of this man. He is the obvious main character of both Samuels. His family details are splayed out all over the place like some kind of Semitic soap opera.

For the last couple of weeks, I have been reading through the section of the Old Testament that tells David’s story. In the beginning, it seemed like he could do no wrong. He starts off as a little kid destined to do big things. He kills a lion, and then he kills a giant. He fights battles for the king, and he cannot lose. “Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands,” sang the people.

Saul gets jealous and chases David all over the countryside, but he cannot kill him. Saul dies, and David becomes king. He continues to fight and he continues to win. David beats armies he has no business beating, like Syria. He was unstoppable. And after all this, God tells David he will establish a dynasty that will reign for eternity. Through his lineage would come the king of all kings, whose rule would never end. Talk about a pretty sweet life.

But then I got to today’s passage.

The message of the cross - Part 2

Before you even attempt to read this post, I would suggest you read Part 1. 

Desensitized.

It is a word that gets tossed around a lot in western culture now. We talk about being desensitized to violence or sex in movies. We talk about how children in our society see so much filth they do not really grasp that what they see on television is, in fact, fake. In a country where it was once wrong for Lucy and Ricky to be in the same bed on television, it has now become the norm to hear about sex scandals from members of the Mickey Mouse Club (with plenty of internet pictures and video to accompany). Even video games can acquire a “mature” rating. Skin is everywhere and most of us have seen so many people get shot on television we could fill a stadium with the “dead bodies.” 

Is it true? Can people see or hear something so much that it loses its significance?

I found the answer to that question last week.

Would you like fries with that friendship?

People ask me all the time what things I miss from the States, expecting it to be a steak or some real fancy meal. Quite to the contrary, I have discovered people miss the things they did and used the most. It is the things that were a part of my life everyday that seem to have left a hole.

So I really miss fast food.

Down the rabbit hole

Do you ever have those moments where, like a line of dominoes, a series of completely unrelated events cascade into a continually shaping idea? (I would call it an epiphany, but that would be just a bit pretentious I suppose.) One strange thought leads to another, and then, a lightbulb goes off and you see the world through different eyes.

Well, I had one of those moments yesterday. But let me start at the beginning: