Troubled Waters

“Water, water everywhere. Not a drop to drink.”
-Samuel Taylor Coleridge in “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” 1789
These words came to mind when I heard that Mexico City is having to turn off the water valve this weekend.  Starting Saturday the government will stop the flow of water to nearly half of its citizens.  That [...]

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Let Us Listen

Obama in his first interview with an Arab television station (Al Arabiya, a 24-hour Arabic-language news channel based out of Dubai) yesterday, showed that he was serious about his campaign rhetoric concerning change.
President Obama told Al Arabiya.
“My job to the Muslim world is to communicate that the Americans are not your enemy.”
He seems to [...]

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Fretheim Comes to Searcy

Wow, I’m stunned.  Almost 2 years, since I graduated from Harding University and haven’t until now had that longing to return to my Alma mater in Searcy, AR.  This longing is due to a speaking engagement of one of my favorite authors: Terence E. Fretheim.

Fretheim is Elva B. Lovell Professor of Old Testament at Luther [...]

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Feeding the Wolves, Rebuilding Our Ruins

Yesterday I was joining the World as it exhaled, the mountains as they broke forth in singing, and the trees of the fields as they applauded, as if they had never exhaled, sung, or applauded before. This inauguration has been riddled with firsts. For example: the first African-American took the oath of the highest office [...]

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Dreams Realized

Let this Martin Luther King Day be a day of immense reflection. Where would we as a people be without the prophet?  Tomorrow will be a grand culmination of many persons’ longings (see my post We Shall Overcome.) Yet there is much to do, still too many people groups crying out.  Let us not stop [...]

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Fig Trees in Gaza

“War, good God y’all, what is it good for?!” – Norman Whitfield

The direct use of force is such a poor solution to any problem, it is generally employed by small children and large nations.” -David D. Freidman
Today, Israeli forces shelled a hospital that contained around 500 people. They also hit a U.N. relief [...]

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Homage to a Jazz Colossus

Today is important for two reasons: (1) One week until Obama replaces Bush; (2) it marks the second anniversary of Michael Brecker’s untimely surrender to leukemia. He was arguably the most influential tenor saxophonist since John Coltrane.  For those that know me, it goes without saying that he is one of my personal all-time favorite [...]

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The Heart of Jonah

Jonah is a story about two hearts: one in pursuit of its own selfish interests, the other in pursuit of something Holy different. It is a story that takes us down into the depths of Sheol; into the abyss of a man’s withered heart, unable to accept the true nature of his God.

I see this [...]

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Embracing 2009

I’m back to the world of blogging after a brief hiatus.
Many have said that 2008 had 366 days; others: 3,066.  Though a challenging year to say the least, it was the year I was married and will forever remain sacred.  That being said I gladly meet the new year with arms spread wide.
The new year.  [...]

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