Tag Archives: culture
I remember as a young man being thrilled whenever I heard the secular culture around me drop the name of Jesus. I was excited when Broadway offered Jesus Christ Superstar. I was overjoyed when one of my favorite musical artists, Prince, referenced God in his albums. Sadly, I was so desperate to hear about God that I was oblivious to the…..
I was recently made aware of a phenomenon called the Seattle Freeze that is increasingly becoming the norm in major cities throughout the country. The urban dictionary describes it this way, “A social phenomenon commonly found in the Seattle area. It concludes the majority of Seattle residents (are) snobby, cold, unfriendly people with a fake-polite exterior. Many people move…..
Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom but fearing for God is the zenith of foolishness. Our faith journey needs to begin with awe for who He is and not embarrassment for who He is not. We admire the Guy and want the world to love Him but instead of introducing Him as He is we feel compelled to give Him…..
I am so proud of the women of Hollywood who have come forward to expose those who would use power and position to dishonor women and steal innocence from children. It takes a lot of courage to put reputation and livelihood on the line to stand up for what is right. I am sad that they had to go…..
The Christian church is under constant cultural attack while every other religious persuasion is given a free pass. We feel like we have been good citizens, yet the villagers relentlessly come at us with torches and pitchforks. While others are allowed to meditate, pray and worship, we are told to scold our deity and make Him sit in the corner with an “Unknown God” sign around His neck. Despite all this hostility…..
The Bible tells us to “Judge not, that [we] be not judged,” so why does the world consider Christians so judgmental? I think in our zeal to be Holy like He is Holy; we often use God’s criticism of religious insiders to divinize our desire to judge secular outsiders. We fail to see that God’s sternest words were reserved for the priests and not the pagans. Jesus was also kinder to outsiders than He was to the religious elite. He didn’t condemn the Samaritan woman, even though she was a sinner, yet He…..
In the Princess Bride, Vizzini carelessly uses the word “inconceivable” in conversation. Inigo Montoya finally points out that the word he is so fond of using does not mean what Vizzini thinks it does. Our culture has adopted this same “Vizzinian” approach to language by deconstructing words and changing the way in which they are commonly understood. The problem is…..
Many Christians get so frustrated by their inability to distribute truth in the cultural marketplace that they move to the “Little Christianity” section of town where everyone speaks the same language and they end up preaching to the choir. Other Christians continue to try and import their faith into the world but quickly find the cultural tariffs too high a…..
Our culture got a little darker, a bit blander over the last several weeks. Ultimately, all these efforts to redefine culture are but the cries of the spiritually empty. The anger that seems out of proportion to the issues at hand is actually the sound of profound spiritual hunger pangs seeking living bread and being force-fed cultural happy meals. In…..
Dear Culture,
I want to thank you for all the good times and the technological marvels that you have created to make our lives easier, but I am concerned that you have lost your vision. You used to provide practical solutions to life’s problems but now seem obsessed with denying those problems even exist. You have lost your…..
