Had a conversation with @chuckdegroat this morning about reading “blessed as the poor in spirit” as “blessed are those who have come to the end of themselves” and I can’t stop thinking about how that’s good news for all of us this year.
Are you at the end of trying to hold it all together?
Blessed are you. For yours in the kingdom of heaven.
Are you at the end of being able to plan your future and control your world?
Blessed are you. For yours in the kingdom of heaven.
Are you at the end of managing work and school and making decisions that seem to make everyone around you mad?
Blessed are you. For yours in the kingdom of heaven.
Are you at the end of being isolated, separated from loved ones, tired of being alone?
Blessed are you. For yours in the kingdom of heaven.
Coming to the end of yourself feels like death. And it is. It’s scary as hell. But it’s also the only way to resurrection and new life.
When we come to the end of ourselves and it feels like death, that’s where Jesus meets us. That’s where we find peace and rest.
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Read the story of the Good Samaritan, but replace the man in the ditch with a man trying to get into a full hospital—for any illness—and the priest and the Levite with a Christian refusing to wear a mask or worship online.
The priest and the Levite would have been disqualified from their temple duties in caring for the man in the ditch. In other words, they were prioritizing their worship of God over the physical needs of the one before them.
There’s a parallel to today’s arguments for meeting.
But Jesus shifts the mental model. Loving God is not at odds with loving our neighbor. They are the same thing. To say it differently, when we love our neighbor we are rightly worshipping God. It doesn’t have to be one or the other. It can be both/and.
The amount of conspiracy theories shared on Facebook in the last month is absolutely staggering. Humans are meaning making creatures. When something doesn't fit our current paradigm of thinking, we pull together disparate facts...
...to make a story to that gives meaning, purpose, or reason. Using facts makes those stories believable. But just because something is believable doesn't make it true.
Sadly, most of the people I see sharing conspiracy theories are Christians.
They are people I know who deeply love Jesus. Why are Christians so susceptible to believe and propagating conspiracy theories? I blame Left Behind.
Evangelicalism must accept that the American public doesn't trust its pro-life ethic because it hasn't politically advocated for the children who are alive in the way it has for the unborn.
Far too many evangelicals have worked to silence BlackLivesMatter, have echoed the words 'They aren't our kids', celebrated tax cuts for the rich at the expense of safety nets for the poor, chosen policy over families, and sided with sexism and misogyny.
How have evangelicals built trust with the broader public that the black boy will be treated fairly? The Latina immigrant who is due any day will find resources? What policies have we advocated for that would structurally support an influx of children? Tax cuts aren't enough.