Yesterday, I argued there can be beauty, and even virtue, in tawdry places, but I think I was really wrestling with a more fundamental problem: how to live, when to speak, when to shut up, which jokes to tell, what life-script to pick. God certainly seems something like a playwright. He gave Pharaoh a role..
Tag: Christ - page 2
Confessions of a Worldly Kid, Grown Up Mary and I took a two-day break in Las Vegas last week. As a child, my father’s epic family vacations across the West — water-ski trips, trout fishing in the Logan River, choppy boat rides under the looming Grand Tetons — those were all second fiddle choices for..
“The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. Some have departed from these and have turned to meaningless talk.” At lunch in the tavern, a friend of mine was marveling at our ability to deceive ourselves. “You can blame your golf game..
There are some truths so obvious you get a bit hoarse repeating them: Phoenix, Arizona is a nicer place to live than Tejarcillos, Costa Rica for a reason. Seattle, Washington beats Zimbabwe for a reason. Salzburg, Austria trumps Sinhung, North Korea for a reason. It’s easier being a woman in Madison, Wisconsin than Riyadh, Saudi Arabia..
“A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up..” It’s been a bone-weary two weeks. I performed Patrick Henry five straight nights last week, and four straight nights this week. We had a county water well inspection this week, several meetings about the farm..
Believe it or not, the older I get, the more tender I feel about young and/or weak believers, all full of zeal for God. But I don’t think it’s a good idea to let gross legalisms go uncontested, and when you get in that contest, it usually goes something like this: “This nation needs more..
A chat with a FB Friend about sex/wine/pleasure James Patrick Riley: Question for you and Steve — is it unseemly for me to write about sex so much? I honestly don’t believe the church knows how to discuss it, and I think men are particularly under-served by..
The church is either ashamed of — or too bashful to speak about — real sex. And that’s a real shame. Many believers disagree, but I mean to illustrate by means of scripture, and culture, so follow along. A certain woman I know, someone very dear to my heart, chides her husband about being overly..