Opus 2024-091: Rudderless

We are currently in a leadership crisis.  The ship of state seems to be meandering around and having no useful goal.  Our leaders ship billions of dollars to Iran and then say, “Don’t”.  We have a supreme court nominee who claims she does not know what a woman is.  That was bad enough but she was still confirmed.  

We have an absentee father crisis.  Young men have never had the influence of a father and end up burning, looting and brutalizing.  

Why is leadership so important?  People in that position have the authority to make decisions that the rest of us are locked into and forced to live with.  When Jesus came it’s very possible that God was giving Israel one more chance to embrace the God of their fathers.  How that coordinates with the idea that God knew from the foundation of the world that the cross would be necessary, I don’t know.  We are locked in time and have no comprehension of what it means to be outside time.  God knows and operates both in and out.  I don’t have a way of explaining that but, Israel had one more chance, and they blew it.  The thing is, it was not the people of Israel so much as the leaders of Israel.

The gospels continually refer to the Jews.  They talk about the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the scribes and the elders.  Most of the people in these categories rejected Jesus as the Messiah.  The common people flocked to him to listen to what he had to say.  Granted, many of them just came for the free bread, but if there was anyone who is willing to respond to Jesus, it was the common people.  Their opinion was never considered.

We see this in the early church.  The common people responded to the teachings of the disciples.  Although there were exceptions, the early church was made up of slaves, workers and women.  The heresies and controversies were the product of the educated leaders more than the majority.  We see it today as liberal leaders take their denominations and congregations down the road of wokeness and turn their back on Jesus.

It is vital that we get concerned about the leadership.  We have disasters happening both politically and spiritually.  We will be judged by the leaders that we pick and support.  It may not be individual.  You may be a faithful believer in a sea of apostates.  You will go to heaven but the church and country will burn.  You may be a patriotic American but if you have a communist judge, hello jail time.

And don’t hide behind the “Jesus is my leader” mantra.  We know Jesus is our leader.  And one of the things he’s leading us to do is to pick godly leaders.  It might even mean that you will need to accept the burden yourself.

We are having run-offs in the primary round.  On the ballot are appraisal district candidates.  We also have school boards and a passel of other places where leadership is needed.  At the very least, pray.  Start there.  Then move on to vote and look for chances to speak up.  If the country crumbles you will at least know that you did what you could.

homo unius libri

Opus 2024-090: Internet Gossip

The internet is replacing the church prayer chain as the primary source of gossip in our culture.  If you have been around some churches they have prayer chains organized that rapidly deteriorate into a place to find out all the juicy stuff happening.  It was an early form of Facebook or Instagram.  I say that never having used prayer chains, Facebook or Instagram.

Even when the internet was accessed by dial-up modems it was hailed as a great source of communication and information.  As search engines matured and the speed of access sped up the possibilities became endless.  Unfortunately it went in directions that the innocent were not prepared for.  Who knew that Russian brides were a path to porn?  And then there is the matter of trust in what you read.  The internet has become a great source of nonsense and distortion.

Most of what you find on the Internet could be classified as gossip. People have always had the choice. We have always had the choice of whether they listen to someone who speaks from knowledge and experience, or listening to someone who is upset, because aunt Mabel snubed them in the grocery store. Most of the Internet is aunt Mabel.

Consider how easy it is for the mysterious “them” to modify sources of information such as Wikipedia.  What is even more evil is when they start changing definitions in on-line dictionaries.  

The information is still out there.  You may need to keep digging and rewording your searches in order to get past the censorship of the elites but much is still waiting to be accessed.  As in so much of life, keep your brain turned on and your baloney meters on high.

homo unius libri

Opus 2024-089: Wildflower Watch: Cactus

Today I noticed the prickly pear cactus were starting to bloom.  The Indian blankets are still going strong along with the black eyed Susans.  One more is waiting in the wings.  When the Mexican hats show up it will be a sign that wildflower season is coming to an end.

Then I will have to start mowing.

homo unius libri

Opus 2024-088: Eternity

As I was contemplating how God communicates with us I noticed what seemed to be a pattern.  The first communication was simply God, appearing walking in the garden and talking with Adam and Eve.  The second appearance is to Cain.  Again, we have a simple conversation.  That seems to be his pattern until we get to Moses.  With Moses, we start having things like burning bushes.  Revealing the law on Mount Sinai was full of spectacular events.  Those events were still explained in understandable terms.

God spoke to David and through David.  There was a lot of figures of speech and poetic language, but, again, still clear communication.

When we get to Revelation, everything changes, and we have all of these strange images that make no sense to normal person.  I tend to think of eternity in terms of the mystery of the unknown.  I have been thinking that we would not be able to understand it.  Maybe I have that all wrong.

Perhaps eternity will be understandable as God was understood by Abraham.  Perhaps it’s just the clarity of our thinking that will be different.  Maybe we will understand infinity.  Maybe we will we will be able to get our arms around everlasting.

When you think about the description of creation, there are no terms or ideas that we cannot grasp.  In fact, most people are quite content with that and don’t go behind it.  It is possible that in eternity the basics that bring us joy and satisfaction and fulfillment will be within reach of all of our enlightened minds.  For those who want to go deeper into subatomic structures and particle theory, and all of the physics involved, they will be able to do that.  Also that will be the glory of eternity.

It is possible that with our glorified minds, God will be understandable.

We will have to wait and see how it works out.  I am content to know that if I could understand it now it might not be worth understanding then.

homo unius libri

Opus 2024-087: Talent

I found myself almost clicking on another short video of the Seekers.  I had always enjoyed their work but I had never heard of them as a group.  

I found myself wondering if Judith Durham, the lead singer, played any instruments.  The rest of the group do their main accompaniment but I have never seen her touch anything.  I wondered if she had any other talent beside singing.  Did she paint or write poetry?  Did she garden or cook?  Did she do open heart surgery when not on tour?  I have no idea.

And to be honest, it does not matter.  She sings.  She sings in such a glorious way that it really does not matter if she does anything else.  There are people like that.  They are so blessed in one area that the rest of their lives are eclipsed.  They are a blessing to our culture and civilization.

I will never say that about anyone involved in rap.  Don’t bother forgiving me.

homo unius libri

Opus 2024-086: Grace and justice

Christians often talk about “free” grace.  To non-Christians that seems irrational and they are right.  Grace does not really set aside justice.  It only appears that way.  Justice was met on the Cross.  Your sin was paid for.  Grace simply takes that expression of justice, and applies it to your situation, based upon your faith in Jesus.

Don’t get it confused.  Grace is not free.  It cost Jesus.

The idea that grace is free is really confusing to people.  God is just, period, and being a just God means that sin must be paid for.  So you just cavalierly tossing it off by saying you are forgiven would not be justice.  God’s attribute of justice demands payment.  And he made that payment.

Don’t get them confused.

homo unius libri

Opus 2024-085: Organization

We tend to want to put things in their boxes to be able to find them, and to know where everything fits.  Or at least some people think that way.  Some people are only capable of organizing their socks in a drawer by color.  Others can organize the pantry.  What one person can do better the other person often ignores.

I was thinking of how we knew my grandmother had visited.  We could find nothing.  She would come over and totally re-organize the kitchen.  Everything was still there.  It would make sense to her.  But everything was be in a different place.

Is that the way we are in theology?  Philosophy?  Cooking?  Organizing our library?  (You do have a library, don’t you?)  Doing your laundry?  Think of how much hostility would be eliminated if we would simply assume it is a matter of putting ideas in different colored bags.

Are some people incapable of organizing?  Maybe our way, but if they were totally out to lunch they would never have any lunch to eat.

Patience.

homo unius libri