Why is that such a bad thing?

So, another burr in my saddle lately has been this amazing tactic by the Republican party at the end of the campaign to label Obama a socialist. You remember, Joe the Plumber, spread the wealth, all that jazz? What was so bothersome to me about it was that this was said with the venom of labeling someone a godless pagan child sacrificer. The Republicans wanted to claim their place as the mouthpiece of God- as the standard bearers of the Christian Gospel- the protectors of all that is right and good and holy and that can't include Socialism. The reason it can't include Socialism is a two-fold error in my opinion.
First, all socialism is immediately and forever associated with godless socialism, or communism- most especially socialism as it was/is found in the USSR, China and despite the presence of some amazing and beautiful cathedrals, France. These countries had experiments with socialism that turned into communism and either forbid religion or make it out to be a social ill. Marx did say religion was the opiate of the masses, but the totalitarian governments of Mao and Stalin were the ones who made it criminal. I am horrified at the way these countries have treated people because of their faith. (And yet, most Christians in America must not have too much trouble with how their brethren in China are treated as long as we can continue to get cheap Chinese goods for a low price at Wal-mart et al. ) In some ways it has been a way to define ourselves against those countries- The US is democratic, Christian and believes in individual property. The others are socialist/communist with dictators and politburos and everything is owned communally. So, since our historical and world knowledge tends to be limited, we equate all socialist activities with the godless communist type. A definite misunderstanding of the basic definition of socialism.
Secondly, there is a fundamental misunderstanding of Christianity. Yep. you read that right. The party of the religious right is wrong in this regard. Now, its only wrong if you take a fairly literal reading of the scriptures. Literal. Not ambiguous. Take the scriptures at face value. Like this one:
"All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had." Acts 2:32 (followed by the object lesson of Ananias and Sapphira who were struck dead because they failed to fully participate in communal living).
or how about this one:
"the land must not be sold permanently because the land is mine and you are but aliens and my tenants" Leviticus 25:23 in God's instructions to the Israelites about their promised land.
How about from Mark 10:
"One thing you lack' he said 'Go, sell everything you have and give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." Jesus' instructions to the rich man, who couldn't do it.
or "therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers" Galatians 6:10
and lastly
"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share." 1 Tim 6:17-18

Over and over again, I read the scriptures and find the instruction to be about letting go of belongings, money and stuff and instead to take care of others, to focus on God, to worship by having a lifestyle of sacrifice and sharing- not accumulating as much stuff as possible and guarding it by not having it taxed or 'spread' around to those who need it more than me. I find that God constantly reminds us that it's not our stuff in the first place, it's his- and we are given blessings so that we can then be his agents of blessing for others. It's my interpretation of course, but I can't help but think that those who claim to be both righteous Christians and completely anti-socialist haven't been reading their scriptures the same way I have. I'm not ready to change my party affiliation to socialist, nor do I think the US needs to become a socialist country. But like my previous post on inconsistency- don't say you're representing God's worldview and then speak something that is fairly antithetical to scripture- since when is protectionist greed the way of God? I am thankful we live in a country that allows me the right to say this- and someone else the right to completely disagree. But in the end, I think that to advocate 'spreading the wealth' from those who have too much to those in need- well to me that sounds like a really Christian thing to say, socialist or not.

Advent Conspiracy

Spend less. Give more. I'm going to try hard to do this very thing.

Rhetorically speaking....

I had this strange memory pop up today. When I was a youth minister in Winston Salem, our rector of 31 years retired. He was a great pastor, a pretty hard line traditionalist and ran a tight staff that he demanded a reasonable amount from. He managed vestries and building projects and diocesan policies pretty well considering. But he was a bad preacher. Not horrible, certainly not heretical or anything- just sort of short and folksy tidbits about the gospel and life. After an 18 month interim, we installed a new rector- a young fellow, bold, bright, and a fabulous preacher and writer- he had a real gift for wordcraft. But he was a horrible pastor and a mediocre administrator. He spent a good deal of money on what most considered frivolous items, and didn't respond to people's honest concerns- somewhat aloof and elite. He lasted 18 months and then we were again in the search process.
This has always been a great illustration to me of how people, and especially institutions respond to what is wrong by replacing it with the opposite. It made me quite depressed to think that maybe this election was simply about replacing a folksy, poorly spoken 'decider' with a well spoken but out of touch elitist. But then I revisited one of the earliest speeches that Obama made- and regardless of what happens, I am convinced that this will go down as one of the top speeches in history- and I was reminded that what has been missing for so long is someone to lead- not administrate- someone to lay out a vision and capture our imaginations and get us working together and to remember all that is good and possible in the US- not to hunker us down in a fear bunker and limits our hope to simply surviving the current crisis. There is power in words, and if I have to endure political rhetoric, at least this is the type I'd rather listen to.

That's what I'm talking about

I've been trying to reconcile some reading I've done on empires and the Christian church- especially as to how it relates to the USA and the American church- and how do you express those ideas without seeming unamerican or a far left socialist liberal? Here's a good attempt:
Oliver Thomas USAToday article.

Check it out and let me know what you think.

and another thing

I'll just start by saying that since noone ever comments on my posts, I have no filters and no feeling of censoring what I write about- I'm either a)too wordy and nobody reads the whole thing b) too boring or c)way too out there for anyone to throw me a lifeline. I suspect it's A, but its hard to tell. Anyway, since noone comments, I must not be ticking too many people off, or knowing the blogosphere, I'm sure I'd hear about it- although that is making the haughty assumption that ANYone reads this but me! Whatever the case, I'm having fun and noone else seems to want to join the ride on my crazy train so off I go!

The last few days I've been struck by a few of those inconsistency issues. Inconsistency is my hobgoblin. I dislike it. It seems to get worse around election season, and no wonder, what with candidates trying so hard to be all things to at least 51% of the people (in the right states). First is my observation that SOME of those who disagree with the assertion that climate change is man-made also happen to ascribe to the literal timeline of creation (6,000 years give or take). Now, how is it that in one argument you can say that the world is only 6,000 years old and that the fossil record and so forth are up for debate, and in the other argument say that we can't blame global warming in human activity when it can be scientifically be proven the earth has been warm in eons past. Yes, its true that the world has been warmer in eons past- when all the midwest was one giant carribean ocean, and loads of dinosaurs ate the swampy grass matter (and each other) in this humid (but also equitorial) environment. This is pre-ice age, and is dated to be over 100,000 years ago and more so! Which is impossible if the world is only 6,000 years old. So, if you're going to be consistent, you will have to admit that the current temperature quotients are the highest they've ever been in the last 6,000 years. So, since man came into the picture, the globe has gotten warmer. You can't have it both ways!

My second incosistency has to do with the Episcopal church (national) which is doing it's damnest (and I think that's the perfect word here) to fulfill the UN's millenial Development Goals, and do social outreach and all sorts of good 'work' to help those oppressed by our systemic sinful governments and empires while at the same time is so very quiet about two huge uses of money that they are involved with. One is the ongoing lawsuits and legal wrangling to hold onto property and assets and things of this world- as dioceses and parishes remove themselves from the church- "You can't have it- it's MINE!" There is also no response to many calls for financial transperancy on this matter nor any divulgence of exactly how much money is being spent to pay legal and lawyer fees. Secondly, they have been mute in regards to the Wall Street meltdown and corporate greed that is threatening to take down the world financial markets. Why? I think its because they own Wall Street- literally- because Trinity Church, Wall Street owns their whole block and rents it out to those self-same corporations involved with this sub-prime mortgage credit crunch asset CEO bonus oil rich meltdown of a mess we're in. That church and the national church (also in NYC) gain amazing amounts of wealth from their own stocks, money markets, mutual funds and so forth. Trinity even has its own parish conference center in Connecticut. How much money do we need to simply sustain our pretty buildings? A lot I guess, to pay the lawyers. But meanwhile we dare to call the government of say, Germany, out on their reluctance to relinguish 3rd world debt? The last I read it, Jesus said to go and sell all you own and follow him. But I guess that's a little unclear in these uncertain times.

Cynically yours and longing for consistency- Smitty

OK maybe I'm not so crazy

Here's a link to an article about Wachovia turning into a subsidiary of Citigroup. Why? Because their bad risks and debt were too much. A global financial meltdown... a couple of weeks ago that was just crazy talk. Now- well- anyone know the best way to stash money in a mattress?

On a tangent to that- I am reminded of the proverb "The love of money is the root of all evil." Maybe the church and Christians need to remind themselves of what it means to be subjects of a heavenly kingdom, and that Capitalism, or even Democracy, are not synonymous with Christianity. I give big props to my friend Lindsay who said "Jesus was a community organizer. Pontius Pilate was a govenor." Hmm. Now I'm not just a prophet of doom, but a fledgling socialist to boot. And I'm just trying to be a faihful follower of Jesus.

Bring it on.

I'm further out than I need to be, but...

See, back when I was doing some research about Wal Mart, I came across some information that was a little arcane and obscure for most regular cocktail party rants I might make about the retail behemoth's shortcomings (in my mind). It is my usual anti-Wal-mart fare to talk about their under-insured workers, or forced overtime or discrimination towards women and so forth. No, this is a little more indepth and even bordered on conspiracy theory radical. See, what I found out while looking up info on the Securities and Exchange website, is that while Wal-mart is a publically traded company, all of its holdings are off-shore. They have not 1, not 2, but at least 5 offshore banks. Mostly Cayman island accounts- one in Euros, one in British Sterling, one in gold. You get the picture. Or do you? None of their money is in US banks. This is where my paranoia crept in and came up with a possible, although not so probable at the time, theory.
What if, I said, there was some sort of financial meltdown, and somehow China and Japan and several other countries, called in the debt. You know- that 5 trillion dollar thing that has grown into being since 2000. The same debt that is being bought up and serviced by countries like China (well over 50% is owned in treasury bills by foreign countries). I mean, what are the chances really? What, besides an entire global crisis, or the chance to own our resources and land, and people, would make China do such a thing? And let's say for the sake of argument they do call in this chunk of change- where does the US government turn to pay the bill? I mean, will China take "we're bankrupt" for an answer? So, the US turns to its banks for the cash. Whoops. They have extended so many bad mortgages and credit lines that they too are out of cash! So, let's go to the largest, most profitable industries and companies to loan the US the cash they need- in fact, let's assume they are unwilling, and for the sake of keeping us from having to turn over the deed to Alaska, we take action to actually seize some of their assets. Guess what? We can't touch most of those funds (which would be substantial) because they are held off shore. So, while Wal-mart (and their friends who do the same things) will have all the money they can make by continuing to inflate the trade deficit by consuming Chinese products, they may not have a country in which to continue their enterprise. Although, maybe communist China will change their stance on private enterprise when they own us.
NOW, before you all give me great instructive comments on how that can't really happen, and I am woefully ignorant on my international trade knowledge, please keep in mind that I am talking far out "what-ifs", and I already said it is improbable. I am just spinning a larger hyperbolic narrative to say that sometimes we should pay attention to little details like where the largest US private employer keeps its money. And, which of the two possible next administrations is likely to change how that happens, and which is likely to pretend there is no problem while pushing its cart down the mega-store aisle.

great video on outdoor learning

OK- so I haven't really kept up with everything out there, but apparantly, there is a bill in congress right now called "No child left Inside" to encourage outdoor learning and ecological education. It is supposed to be up for a vote this week- but here is a link with a cool video:
video

and here is the link to show its current status- due up for a vote on Thursday Sept 11th. Neocons decry it saying it will take away from traditional teaching time- which in my world translates into less worksheets for my kids to mindlessly fill out. I'm not usually given to tree-hugging liberalism, but I am definitely in support of this initiative.

HR 3036. Its a start.

Live from the RNC.....it's ??

Given Sarah Palin's remarkable resemblance to former SNL anchor Tina Fey, it took me awhile during her speech at the Republican Convention to take Gov. Palin seriously. For much of the speech, which was well delivered and well paced(she is a charismatic speaker, regardless of content), I kept taking in the hyperbole waiting for it to finally crest over the top. You know how it goes on an SNL political spoof, they start by talking basic ideals and thoughts, making more and more outlandish statements until they are finally saying things like "I think we should all run naked on the lawn." or "All broccoli will now be outlawed." You know.

So as Sarah Palin spoke first about her family and upbringing, I followed along- anticipating where we were going with this. Then came the support statements for McCain- OK, now we're building- and then finally, when we hit the attacks on the opposition, I almost wanted to start laughing. I say almost, because it was obvious there were many people who were absolutely supporting this line of thinking- this was no send-up of politics, this was the actual thing. And don't get me wrong, I am not belittling Palin or the RNC or its delegates- they happen to share some of my ideals. And yes, I know, there is more than enough political hyberbole for both sides to use and skew- and they do- early and often. Still, I am ready to turn off the TV now, and tune out until November. Because whether or not it feels like it should be a humorous sketch- it has stopped being amusing.

Never be Mine

It happens a couple of times of year. Sometimes I think it is brought on because of a conversation, a random thought, or because the cool magazine came in the mail. Somehow I am reminded of Sewanee, or The University of the South, and I usually end up having a dream about how I am back there trying to finish up. See, I started off at Sewanee- a small liberal arts Episcopal college in Tennessee. 10,000 acres with a gothic/Oxford inspired campus nestled on a remote part of the Cumberland Plateau. I went there sight unseen. A college visit had not ever worked itself out, so based on their slick photos and the testimony of one of my best friends, Mike, who was also headed there- off I went. Despite the student enforced dress code of coats and ties for men and skirts and dresses for women, I was still drawn to the amazing blend of natural surroundings and major liberal arts emphasis. I thouroughly enjoyed my time there- and was just on the verge of getting my gown, when my Dad insisted I transfer. It was a no-brainer for him when you compared the cost of that small school's tuition with the cost and opportunity offered by the in-state options of UNC and the like.

Don't get me wrong, God had other plans for me, and my transfer to UNC worked out in really amazing ways. I doubt my life would have taken the same path of youth ministry and camp work without having been back in NC. I had the opportunity to major in something that fit me well (speech communications) and take some classes that wouldn't have happened as an English major at Sewanee. I really did move on and embrace life as it came. I don't spend a great amount of time thinking I should have stayed, or regretting that I tranferred. I also managed to avoid some destructive behaviors I was being drawn towards as well- so that was a definite positive. Plus, I gained a sports team to pull for!

Still, a couple of times a year I have this dream about being back at Sewanee and trying to finish- sometimes I am college aged, sometimes I am the age I am now. Sometimes I am married, sometimes I am not. Sometimes I have my gown and I'm getting ready to take my comps! (I actually didn't mind not having to do those). Whatever the case, it's unfinished business in some way- something I will never get to complete. So, since the big alumni magazine came in the mail today (how I am considered an alum is still kind of curious to me) and since I was reviewing my days of canoe racing while thinking of Olympic paddling events, and since I wrote this blog, I'll expect one of those unfinished dreams soon!

We went west with the young men!

vacation photos-Colorado, Utah, New Mexico

Old MacDonald had a what?

OK- so my kids sometimes watch this show called Barnyard- its a spin off from the movie of the same title. Computer animated farm animals have a secret life of pizza orders, movies, joyrides in the farmer's truck. They usually walk on 2 legs when the humans aren't around- lots of plot lines revolving around not getting exposed as talking rational animals. I have a couple of issues with it though. The first is just a silly thing- but goes back to my point about how far removed from an agrarian lifestyle we've come. The main character on the show is a cow named Otis- its a male cow, or as some might call him a bull, or if he's had some modifications, a steer. He's definitely a male- male name, male pronouns, has boys' nights out, whole show about being a long lost son of another cow etc. He also happens to have an udder. You know- large pink round thing with nipples sticking out of it- cow's udder. Only female cows have udders- males have other appendages in that area. No one seems to care. Probably most kids wouldn't recognize him as a cow if he didn't have an udder- all cows have udders, right? Wrong. But obviously not an issue for the Japanese animators. (maybe cows are different there?)
Second complaint has to do with a ferret who is best friends with a chicken. Obvious carnivore/herbivore conflict there- but he has chosen the alternative lifestyle of being a vegetarian and he and his 'best friend' live in the same barn stall together happily. Do we really need to push the PC barriers so far? I mean this is way over kids' heads, but I think most adults would get the idea of acceptance for psuedo gay stall mates and gender-bending cows.
Most people would say, "its just a cartoon show- get over it" and for the most part I am- just felt like venting, because when its on and I tell my kids to try and find something else to watch, they wouldn't understand these dilemmas I have. This is why I have a blog- to get this stuff out of my head. You can go back to your regularly scheduled programs now.

Fifteen years ago...

Fifteen years ago today, about this time, I relinguished my status as a single independent person and joined my life with one young lad named George Lipscomb. What a cool and amazing journey its been. I am glad I took a class on relationships in college, for many reasons, but especially for knowing that every relationship is evolving and requires tending always. There are good and bad times, and easy and hard times...it echoes those famous vows "for better or worse, in sickness or health." So we made those promises 15 years ago, and I am happy to say we still let them bind us to each other. We've added a couple of kids to just spice things up (!) and up our level of adventure. I don't have any great words of wisdom other than to remind everyone, and myself included, that relationships take work, prayer, communication and selflessness. Here's praying that God continues to equip George and I to keep doing those very things for each other. Rock on!

By the Waters of Babylon

Well, May hit like a fury, and then June- somehow I managed to miss the entire month as far as blogging goes. At least what I got written down. There were innumerable blogs written in my head. Like this one...

It happens every summer. First is the excitement that summer is finally here. It's a part of my DNA- the internal alarm clock that says, "it's here! It's here! Summer is finally here!" For many many years, the clanging of that alarm meant one thing for me: Summer camp. A pilgrimage to the holy mountain, where like many a traveler on his way to Jerusalem, I sang the songs of ascent and inwardly squealed (and sometimes outwardly) with excitement over finally climbing the mount and entering my temple of summer. For a few years, it meant the precious few weeks of being a camper- and then for a few more years, the work, joy, exhaustion, exhilaration and fun of being on staff. And then, several years later the amazement of watching a year's worth of planning and paperwork turn itself into a cool camp experience while I served as director.

More than anything though, the one feeling I loved at camp was the feeling that this is where I belonged. I had no yearning for home or my own bed (maybe more sleep, but my bunk was just fine). I had rough times and hard times and yucky times, but even in those times, I felt like I was doing what I was made to do. It was a perfect fit if there could be such a thing. I deeply felt and understood the difference between a job and a calling.

But, now, as summertime crests and breaks into routines of pool time and family cookouts, I feel like the Jews of Psalm 137, who having been exiled to a foreign land, are asked to sing songs from home to entertain their captors. My loose paraphrase goes (with apologies to Don McLean) "By the waters of Babylon Community Pool, we laid out and wept for thee summer camp." I look around and feel like an alien in a strange land, having been banished and sent out to live among a new tribe. I have been exiled to the land of the Suburbanite tribe, with their strange costumes of capris, leather sandals, and highlighted hair, with rituals of swim meets and play-dates. There I sit in my native dress of jean shorts and t-shirts and closed-toe shoes and I feel disconnected. My fallback position isn't shopping at the mall, it's starting a fire in my back yard and roasting marshmallows while my kids catch fireflies. I find myself inviting over friends and making them participate in 'evening programs,' and I start to teach my son how to play guitar even as he starts to pack for his own precious week away at camp.

Somewhere in my innermost self is an awareness of the fact that camp time is slipping away. Even as I look at the weather radar and immediately check camp locations for impending thunderstorms, I know the summer is racing by, and while I am making the most of it, I am still missing camp. My good friend and camp director Leslie recently said of camp, "once it gets in your blood, its always with you." So true. I can't slice a watermelon without thinking of the kid who gets the corner/end piece. I can't pass up a good deal on water balloons at the dollar store. I watch all the summer movies with a thought to how it could be spoofed in a 10 minute skit. I make up my son's loft bed making sure I get all the sheets tucked in underneath so they don't hang down for points off....

So, as I lay out by the waters of Babylon-burbia and sing camp songs in my head, I will remember thee- my Zion of Summer Camp

-and I might just make a lanyard for my key chain.

I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride my bike...

Ok, besides getting old Queen songs lodged in your brain, I just want to report that I am morally superior to lots of people, as I rode my bike to work today. It is national "Ride your Bike to Work Week", and today was my best bet for not getting rained on. Greenville is all about being a green city,and is especially high on biking and bike week. I've always enjoyed biking as a form of exercise, because the way I do it, I get to rest on the downhills (none of this constant peddaling stuff for me!) Now, let me see what I can do about those other 364 days of the year. Factoid: it takes me about 7 minutes to get to work by car, and took me 15 by bike. Not bad for an old lady.

Things Children Say

Before I forget these, I'm going to write them down.

Me (teaching Sunday School): Our worship service is divided into two parts, like two halves- but put together they make a whole. Does anyone know anything like that, that has two parts that you put together to make a whole?
Josh(having watched a show about splitting atoms): I know- An atom.
Me: OK- what else?
Ellery(hearing Atom and thinking Adam): Adam and Eve were the first people on the earth.
Me: Well, that's true- they were the first two people and together they made the first family. Can you all think of anything else?
Margy(not to be outdone): I know who the first people on earth were- they were the Indians. I am reading a book about them.
George(said with a 6 year old accent): No, the first people on earth were the Austro-pith-e-cus.
Me: Okay- how about a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? You put the two parts together to make one sandwich. That's how it is with our church service.

I should have stopped then.

On a different day, when I was teaching Children's church:
Me (reading a story about Jesus' last night- the last supper, garden of Gethsemane, arrest): And so, after they ate their dinner, Jesus and his disciples went to an olive garden, and there he prayed.
Hannah: An Olive Garden? I love eating there!
Me: what?
Another savvy adult: Not an Olive Garden restaraunt, a garden grove where they grow olive trees.
Me (trying not to laugh): OOOhh. Yes, that's right- a garden with olive trees.

Lastly, my favorite story of Burke and communion
Burke goes to communion with his friend Peter, and Peter's mom. Burke takes the bread and the wine, but Peter only takes the bread. The wine is administered with these words," The blood of Christ, the cup of salvation." Upon noticing that Peter has not taken the wine, Burke says quite loudly, "I like mine with a little salvation, you should try it." Peter's mom, the priest and chalice bearer all try hard not to completely lose it at the altar.

Do I have a label?

For a minute I was worried I might have been pegged. USA today has an article here about the newest generational label- Scuppies (socially concious upwardly-mobile people). I do consider myself socially concious- aware of how my actions and habits affect others. But, then I realized- I would rather categorize myself as downwardly mobile- ala Matthew Sleeth's Downscaled Life. I've no aspirations to make more money, increase my social standing or work to impress others. Instead I'd prefer to add quality to my life- simplify, get rid of 'stuff' and try to impart in my kids a real appreciation for the sanctity and holiness of living with less. So, if we're doing acronyms, that would make me a scd-or sciddie - hmm, sounds like a small skin mite. Maybe I'll just stick with Smitty. Close enough.

shameless plug

Here is my shameless plug for a new band. Some folks I know in Tallahassee have put together a kickin band led by a few of my old counselors from Camp Weed (yes, its a real place). Sarah McElhany leads on vocals, Claire Swindell rocks the bass, Charlie Vanture smokes on the guitar and they've added someone I don't know, but who tears up the drums- Keli Swearingen. They have titled themselves The Sarah Mac Band- or SMB for short. I hired Sarah one summer for her musical abilities as our worship and arts leader. Charlie volunteered many summers and I have several memories of him using his amazing guitar abilities to help campers shine in the talent show. Claire worked several summers and was great at guitar, and I am so very impressed with how she's picked up the bass and totally glues the band's sound together. All together it is an amazing jazz/rock/folk/acoustic combo that has gotten me amped about them making it past nice local group that plays a few bars and instead puts them as contenders! They are in fact contending for a spot at Bonaroo in Tennessee- and just had a track on the widely read music indie magazine Paste- for their April CD sampler. Their newest album is due out next week- they will have a release party on Friday and Saturday April 18th and 19th, and it will be available on iTunes starting Tuesday the 22nd. Here's the website http://www.sarahmacband.com/. Be a part of a new thing, enjoy some great music, become a fan and join me in saying, I knew them when...

Favorite song: Open Fire, closely followed by their masterful cover of Gershwin's Summertime.. Check them out!

One, Two-who, thrree...

In response to the boy's request of "How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?" the wise old owl answers three before crunching away at the candy. The narrator then wisely says, "the world may never know". In quite similar fashion, I have been pondering the question of how long it would take me, being bereft of challenging and nourishing Christian community, how long would it take to reach a nadir in my spiritual life? I think I'd have to say 5 years- for that is how long it has been since I've moved to Greenville. But I think I may be like the owl in coming to my answer a little too quickly. It is akin to declaring a drought, and what level of extremity it classifies as. I mean, how can we get 4 inches of rain in a day and still be in a drought? And yet, it is the persistence of the situation that makes it so. In a similar way, though there be showers and relieving rains along the way, my spiritual life has slipped into a drought, and I am left trying to find sources of life giving water. It is not as if I am some rain-forest plant who has been thrust into the sahara- my Christian life has been marked with arid landscapes. I am pretty drought and heat tolerant. But even the toughest of plants needs water to grow. When you see a huge cactus in the desert, chances are they are very old- they grow so slowly due to the lack of moisture. Similarly, my growth has slowed, I am experiencing less and less spiritual moisture in my life. Still, I believe, I hope, I dream of the kingdom of God come to its fruition. I rejoice in His creation, I trust my family and my life to his care. Is this drought moderate, extreme or exceptional? Bereft as I may be, this is likely not the true nadir. In fact the world, and I, may never know.

When work is really work

OK- so I have this idea for a new workplace. People like to work out- can't find time because their jobs get in the way, yadda yadda. We eat too much and need the exercise to keep our bodies in the idolatrous shapes we like them to be. So, how about if your job was to work out? I mean, you went in and for say, 2 hours in the morning and 2 in the afternoon, with a good break in the middle for rehydrating, you simply walked/ran on a treadmill or lifted weights or some other machine assisted exercise. Why machine assisted? Well, because what you would be doing is using your motion to generate electricity! Just like there are special batteries connected to solar panels that store the energy so it can be used later, so too would these machines be attached to special batteries- so as you ran, you would turn a crank that turned a small generator that stored energy in batteries for use other places! We could use the power for an associated business, say like my local foods grocery store, or a great bookstore/toy store/coffee bar. Or perhaps powering a recycling plant. And if we generated too much power, we'd just sell the excess back to the grid! What a win-win. I mean, the requirements for the job are very low- can you walk? How about can you lift weights? (even most folks confined to a wheelchair can do so). You would end up in great shape, you'd get paid a basic wage, and we'd have a renewable sustainable energy source to sell to people everywhere. As for pollution, I suppose we'd end up with some sweat issues- but I don't see that being a project ender. So, what do you do for a living? I work. Work out that is.