Though darkness reigns And lost I wander I will stay strong I will not falter Fear has no power Any longer For I know That light shines stronger Light that drives away the dark And wakens courage In my heart Now for death Fear … Continue reading But Light Shines Stronger (Part 2 of 2)
This was a poem I wrote, in two parts, please read both, as by themselves the full impact is missed Life torn asunder Now you wonder Where is clear And where you’ll blunder Hope it seems Is going under And those near you Seeking plunder … Continue reading The Dark Comes Yonder (Part 1 of 2)
Where is thy home?Is what I ask To many lost across the land, Is it the place where you grew up? The place you played and drank and supped? The place that sits on dirt and stone The place where weeds have long since grown? … Continue reading Home
you might find it hard to believe some people find the idea of truth offensive. I do not mean they are offended by what others claim is true, no, there are people who find the idea of truth, the idea of objective fact uninfluenced by … Continue reading Truth
by J. Budziszewski
Madame Procurator, members of the Pontius Pilate Society of Post-Everything State University: I’m honored to have been invited to speak to such a distinguished student organization.
Looking up, I see that you’ve placed my podium beneath a banner bearing your motto, Governor Pilate’s famous query, “What is truth?” It was a great question. I hope you will not be angry with me if I say that he did himself no credit by asking it. Not everyone who asks “What is truth?” wants to know the answer. Governor Pilate asked the question not to begin a conversation, but to end one. Perhaps he thought that it had no answer. It was the last sentence he addressed to his prisoner, Jesus of Nazareth, before walking out to the waiting crowd.
I propose not to end a conversation, but to begin one. That requires several things. One is that we…
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Courage is not the absence of fear, nor is courage recklessness. Courage is not the opposite of fear, courage is the weapon with which fear is crushed. Courage is an attribute to be admired and to aspire to, for it is so rarely truly seen. … Continue reading Courage
Worship is our humbling of ourselves before God, the acknowledgment that we are less than him. No matter how great, how dignified, how manly you are; no matter what image you’re trying to maintain, or where you’re trying to get, worship isn’t about that. David was the King of Israel, a great warrior who has slain “tens of thousands”2 in battle, and yet he humbled himself and praised God, saying
And I’ll become even more undignified than this!1
When his wife told him that his actions did not fit his rank. When we worship we forsake our pride and forget the problems of this world as we lift our voices to our savior, it doesn’t matter if we look ridiculous or sound awful to those around us. Worship isn’t about how we look or sound in this temporary world that will soon pass away, but rather how we are seen by our eternal creator.
For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels 2
We do not live for ourselves, but for God. Jesus himself issued the command to
Go into all the world and preach the good news
We did not receive this free gift of salvation to keep it to ourselves, it should be shared, it should be shouted from the mountaintops, sung out in a loud voice! If you and everyone you knew were all condemned to die, and you had found a way to be pardoned, would you not be overflowing with joy? Would you not go to every person around you declaring this good news?
That is why we sing worship, because just like all other arts and music, worship is an expression of emotion as it pours out of those who make it. We sing because the joy of salvation overwhelms us, we sing because we are awed by the awesome power of our creator, we sing because we have come to know God and cannot help but to praise his great nature
Dignity is another interesting idea, you’ve undoubtedly heard of it, you probably even have a vague idea of what it means, but you’ve probably never really taken the time to think about it and what it means, that’s what I’m for. Dignity is an idea, it does not exist by itself, nor is it naturally occurring, dignity could be called a product of pride, which is in turn a product of human nature.
Many people try to preserve their dignity, and put preservation of their dignity at a high priority. But what is dignity really? If you really think about it dignity is no more than image, if you lose your dignity you lose the good image that other perceive you with. Dignity is really just a product of pride, our pride causes us not to want to be embarrassed in front of others, dignity is the idea of maintaining a attractive outward appearance to all those we come in contact with.
Dignity is a double edged sword, unlike its parent, pride, dignity is not absolutely bad, someone with no dignity is someone who is difficult to take seriously or trust, but someone who puts too much stock in their dignity is someone who is absorbed in self interest. There is nothing wrong with maintaining dignity, but there are things that are more important, and the key is to recognize these.
Things that are more important than dignity are things like life and love, if you must sacrifice your dignity to save a life than there is only one clear choice, if you decide that your dignity is more important than the life of another human being, there are few people who would disagree that you yourself do not deserve to live.
But even greater is love, love is worth losing dignity for, be it momentarily or permanently, for is not love the only thing that separates us from the beasts?
What is power? The desire for power has shaped our world, people grapple with each other to attain it, and kill in order to keep it. But like many of the terms I have written on, this one is often used, but rarely defined. Is … Continue reading Power
Thinking for a Generation 