News & Notes

“God of the second chance.” I have used the phrase myself over the years, but only recently realized how untrue it is. I don’t have a God of the second chance. Not even close. I blew through my second chance so many years ago I can’t recall the details. I need more than a second chance. I need a God who forgives me far more that 70×7 times. Every time I “come to myself,” like the prodigal son, I can trudge back home to find a loving Father. Every day. Grace means God doesn’t count chances. One of my favorite

Next year is the 100th anniversary of the publication of Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity. It occurred to me that grace is to Christianity what relativity is to physics. You could say that grace is the quantum physics of theology. First, both are infinitely puzzling and difficult to understand. Sir Arthur Eddington was a contemporary of Albert Einstein’s and one of the earliest physicists to understand the concepts of Einstein’s relativity. He was genuinely brilliant, and both confirmed and contributed to Einstein’s work. Eddington also had a colossal ego. One time a reporter asked, “Dr. Eddington, is it true that

One of the most puzzling themes in the New Testament is the idea of embracing personal weakness as an opportunity to experience God's power. Jesus taught that being last of all and servant of all leads to exaltation, denial leads to salvation, losing life leads to finding life. Paul wrote of  being a broken vessel that demonstrates God's transcendent power. His thorn became the testimony of God's all-sufficient grace, so that he boasted in his weakness. Peter wrote of rejoicing in a fiery ordeal. Etc. History is full of stories of Christians who have found a deeper faith through unimaginable

In case you haven't heard, the adultery-promoting website whose motto is "Life Is Short-Have an Affair" has been hacked. The names and contact info of clients(?) has been published. This kind of story is low hanging fruit for anyone who wants to rail against adultery. The site is disgusting. It plays to some of the very worst impulses people have. It promotes the myth that if no one knows then no one is harmed, and ignores the far deeper truth that any sin is a spiritual poison, first to the sinner and then to the family or larger social circle.

I wrote and preached on hope this week, the theme of the first week of Advent. Some readers/hearers have given me two terrific references to the "lightness" of hope. Picking up on the line in GraceWaves "hope is a whisper," one friend wrote me the first stanza of an old hymn entitled "Whispering Hope:" Soft as the voice of an angel, breathing a lesson unheard, Hope with a gentle persuasion, whispers her comforting word. Wait till the darkness is over, wait till the tempest is done, Hope for the sunshine tomorrow, after the shower is gone. Refrain: Whispering hope, O

May 21st is the latest end of the world prediction date, or the next one in line. Don’t confuse it with the end of the world prediction for 2012 which comes from the Mayans. No, the May 21st date is from a Christian minister and is being promoted by a group of people in rv’s traveling about the country trumpeting the warning. I am not making this up. If you want to spend/waste a few minutes google the phrase “end of the world predictions” and browse through the offerings. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of predictions have come and gone in the

After a particularly poor performance by his former team (a 55 point loss by Cleveland) LeBron James reportedly tweated that karma was a female dog and the Cavaliers deserved their ignominy for wishing ill upon him for his move to Miami. Or something like that. Three things caught my eye about this story. First, LeBron provides another example of the hazards of being a 25 year-old young man. His neo-cortex is still wiring up, and for that reason he is still very capable of making very poor decisions, like The Decision or taking a 25 foot fall-away jumper. All parents

Remember the scene in The Green Mile when the guards were bringing in “Wild Bill” the first day? Big John Coffey (“like the drink, only not spelt the same”) senses the approaching danger and whispers from his cell, “Careful . . . careful . . .” Sure enough, Bill lulls the guards by acting highly sedated, attacks, and mayhem ensues. Whenever I hear a political movement courting or promoting a religious angle, or some faction of the church embracing or promoting a political party I whisper the words, “careful . . . careful . . .” The warning is for