paradoxum

"The Saints are the true interpreters of Holy Scripture. The meaning of a given passage of the Bible becomes most intelligible in those human beings who have been totally transfixed by it and have lived it out. Interpretation of Scripture can never be a purely academic affair, and it cannot be relegated to the purely historical." ~ Pope Benedict XVI

I’ve had almost two weeks to reflect on the election and I’m still amazed at the HOPE Barack Obama was able to inspire. I have drastically underestimated the power of HOPE. My sister is a counselor and I remember her saying once that when you counsel people, one of the first things you have to do is give them HOPE. I’ve done a little bit of counseling myself and when people believed there was HOPE we usually had a degree of success as opposed to when they had no HOPE.

Like him or not, Barack Obama inspired millions to HOPE.

HOPE is a powerful emotion. The Obama phenomenon has taught us that if it has taught us nothing else. With it, people will do incredibly constructive things, but without it, they do incredibly destructive things.

I began to think about Barack and the HOPE he had inspired. I won’t attempt to say what that HOPE was grounded in, but I do know this, people felt it and they were and are moved by it. Interestingly enough, Christians profess to have HOPE, and yet, they rarely seem that attractive to me. In fact, I dare say that Christianity as a whole inspires a lot less apparent HOPE than Barack Obama.

I am sad and a little angry that this is the case, but you know, I am HOPEFUL that it doesn’t have to be the case.

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Today is the best day of the year. Today I go back to my sanctuary. Today the choir of basketballs will be music to my soul. The rain might not have stopped, but the sun is always shining in a basketball gym.

If you haven't read Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer then you must move it to the top of your list ASAP. I've read it 3 or 4 times and each time I'm deeply moved. I recently read it again and was encouraged to renew my practice of praying the Psalms. I find very few things as spiritually enriching and challenging as praying the Psalms.

If you would consider trying this...and I HIGHLY recommend it, then go read this article by Tim Keller. It has a 30 day calendar at the bottom. I challenge you to try this for thirty days, and, like me, I think you will find that praying the Psalms will become a permanent part of your spiritual life.

Read the article here (http://www.redeemer.com/connect/prayer/praying_psalms.html).

One note, the article suggests reading a commentary on the Psalm you pray. I don't do that since I don't have a good commentary on the Psalms and too often that turns to "Bible Study" for me. So, you might want to skip that suggestion. Just a thought.

I've never had a "guest blogger" on my blog, but my sister-in-law wrote a beautiful post about her youngest daughters birthday and I had to post it. So, thanks Kim!

Today is my "baby's" 8th birthday! So hard to believe and so fast does the time fly by! As I stood in the shower this morning, I wondered, "does everyone have headless barbies, naked baby dolls, and Little Ponies in there shower?" It wasn't always this way. Not too long ago batman figures, zoo animals, and Woody and Buzz lightyear were in my shower. That was my life with little boys, now they are practically men and my little girls are the ones leaving their toys in the shower.

Where did the time go? How do I have a son in college and when did my little baby "egg" grow so big? There are days when I think, "ok, I've got this. I'm ok, he's ok, it's all good". Then I pull into a parking space at Target and look across the way at a mom getting out with her 2 little boys. They are close in age, but opposite in appearance. A little tow head and a brunette, I can relate. I laugh as I watch them compete for holding her hand, arguing one second and dancing a silly jig the next, laughing and poking each other. My laughter quickly turns to tears and I am caught unaware. "What just happened? I thought I was ok!" The truth is, I am. I am ok. Things change, Love doesn't. Circumstances change, but "love remains the same". 

MY "baby" only asked for one thing for her birthday, a water baby. It's a baby doll that when filled with warm water feels like a real baby. I wonder if that makes her feel like a "real" mom? I hope not AND I hope so. It's quite a feeling! Love, joy, hope, peace, pain, dispair, fear, love... always love. So, I guess there will be a new baby doll in my shower, but I'll try to make room. Who needs shampoo anyway?...