We were gathering that early evening because a few days earlier Laura had seen this video. She shared it with our friends, and they had, in turn, shared it with others, and the response was immediate and overwhelming. People were asking us how they could give money to help. The image of a grown man in tears because he hasn't eaten for two days is hard to get out of your mind.
I've already told you the bad news. In fact, I've told you the worst news there is. You are a sinner.... If you've really grasped the truth that you're a sinner, now, and perhaps only now, you're ready for the best news you will ever hear.
You are not a sinner merely because you do sinful things. Though that's true. You are sinner in the first place because from the moment you were conceived in your mother's womb, you were bent in the wrong direction (Psalm 51:5). That is, your heart longed for the same independence from God that Adam and Eve pursued when they ate of that stupid fruit in the garden. You've inherited their rebellious heart and attitude, and not only that, if you were honest, you would admit that you have actively invested a lot of your time and energy into cultivating that rebellion.
God's Worth is the Basis of Your Worth https://youtu.be/TAzJpm15_24 Listen to this post on YouTube. In 2017 the painting Salvator Mundi sold for a record $450 million, the highest price paid for a painting to date. As the name would infer (Salvator Mundi means "Savior of the World"), the painting depicts Jesus and has been … Continue reading Truths to Build Your Life On: Open Letters to the Class of 2020, Part 2
God's Plan is Better Than Your Plan https://youtu.be/pw9TgdDul90 Listen to this post on YouTube. My dear "ninth graders," You, Class of 2020, are graduating high school during a pandemic. And there's just no other way to say it than to say that that sucks. You've missed a huge hunk of your final semester of high … Continue reading Truths to Build Your Life On: Open Letters to the Class of 2020, Part 1
I didn't want to do it. I couldn't deny that Laura's idea was a good one, but I just didn't want to bother the neighbor. We found an iron rod with a small diameter in our basement, bequeathed to us with love by the former owner. It would do if we could get it cut to the right length and welded back together in the right shape. Our neighbor, you may remember, is a metal worker. He could do the job in a few minutes, but I hated the idea of knocking on his door, him opening up, and internally is heart dropping, thinking, Oh, it's Eric again. I wonder what he wants this time.
"It's a big, scary world out there. We could all make lists three miles long of things to fear.... So I don't need to rehearse all the things that make us afraid. Just turn on the news for five minutes and let your heart start palpitating." But what is it about fear anyway?