Traditional Marriage – Facing a Painful Reality

I like war movies.  I guess I got that from my dad.  My father was a WWII veteran who lied about his age and volunteered as a 16 year-old to fight for America.  He was always quick to explain that his patriotism and desire for adventure greatly exceeded his knowledge of what he was getting into.  I have two sons of my own, the youngest of which is seventeen.  It is hard for me to imagine either of them going to Italy and fighting across the Apennine Mountains at the age of 17.   I can’t imagine having done so myself.  Yet my dad and many others did. I used to love to watch war movies with my dad and listen to him talk about the different battle tactics.

Is Olympic Pride a Bad Thing?

As I was doing some Bible study today, I came across a passage of Old Testament scripture that I don't often read.  It made me consider the topic of national pride.  I've always been a patriotic American, but is national pride always a good thing?  As I watch the Olympic games and smugly react when America leads other countries in medals, I have to step back and think about my attitude.

Messin' with Sasquatch Again?

After over a year, my post about Bigfoot  still garners more views than almost anything else I have written.  It seems the time is right to produce another ground-breaking intellectual piece on the subject.  Why? Have you seen it?  The new Spike TV reality show, 10 MILLION DOLLAR BIGFOOT BOUNTY?  I have to say I was both excited and nervous about this new reality show which I saw for the first time last night.  I also must say, unfortunately, that it failed to meet even my lowest expectations.

A&E Network and Cracker Barrel – Birds of a Feather?

The recent actions of both the A&E network and Cracker Barrel restaurants are similar signs of the moral confusion of the times.  These companies’ respective responses to the controversial comments of Duck Dynasty’s Phil Robertson give a revealing view of the corporate culture of each company.  Both A&E and Cracker Barrel have a carefully crafted, though very different, public image.  Each company portrays itself as clearly standing for certain values.  In the end, however, we see that neither company has any real convictions – other than the conviction that consumers are resources to be exploited for profit.

Duck Dynasty, Phil Robertson and the Birth of Christ

It’s Christmas Eve.  I’m with my wife’s family preparing to celebrate Christmas and sitting alone in the quiet of the morning with my cup of black (there is no other kind) robusto coffee.  I look forward to the next few days with family.  In spite of all the negative commercialism, the pressure of shopping, and even some knowledge of the pagan roots of some of the traditions, I love Christmas.  It genuinely helps me to focus on the biggest question of life – “Why am I here?”  The coming of Christ is central to that.

It has always been obvious to me that I have a creator, even without Christianity and the Bible.  What is not as obvious is what this creator expects of me, if anything.  Condensing a great deal of comparative religious study and personal journey, I found Jesus to be the focal point for this determination.  If he really did come to earth in a miraculous virgin birth, his arrival is worth noting.  If he really did fulfill multiple prophecies, his life is worth considering.  If he really did perform miracles and teach things that cut to the core of the heart like no other, his words are worth hearing.  If he really did voluntarily die as a substitute to pay my debt for rebellion against my creator and rise from the grave showing his power over even death, he should be followed and followed on his own terms.  Where do we get those terms?  Well, they are recorded in the Bible.  The Bible is part and parcel of the Christian faith and is the key to understanding Christmas.

Thankful on the Cancer Wing?

Having just celebrated what is one of my very favorite holidays of the year, I’m reflecting a little on thankfulness.  It is 1:30AM as I sit here at Kosair Children’s Hospital in my University of Kentucky lounge pants (real men don’t wear pajamas).  My son has been a patient here on the oncology floor for the last two weeks.  What we hoped would be a relatively uneventful round of chemo to treat his leukemia relapse turned into a full blown septic infection in his bloodstream as well as a fungal infection in his lungs.  With no immunity because of the chemo treatments, he has been in a very precarious position.  It has taken constant care, constant treatment, a herd of doctors and nurses, round-the-clock attention from his mother and me, a can-do attitude from Brad, plus much prayer just to keep our noses above the water line. 

10 Lessons I Have Learned Blogging

One year ago today, I posted my first entry on Marking the Times.  I still don’t consider myself a blogger, but I have learned a few things these last twelve months.  I started blogging because writing down my ideas helps clarify them in my mind.  Knowing that others might read my opinions makes me think carefully about what I say.  I never really thought anyone would be interested in my thoughts, but I wanted to contribute to the conversation if I could.  I have been pleasantly surprised (maybe “shocked” is a better word) by the interest in my musings. Most of us like to know what others think about various topics – it helps refine our own thoughts.

I have been surprised to see how steadily the readership has grown.  No big fanfare, no explosive growth – just steady increases.  I am trying to avoid concerning myself with how many people are reading or if the monthly statistics are growing, but I am just as human as the next guy.  I do look, and I do watch to see if people are increasingly interested.