And who is my neighbor?

I've done a lot of thinking lately about how I treat people. Not just how I talk to them or what I do for them but especially what I think about them and their "worth".

C.S. Lewis wrote "There are no ordinary people. You never met a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations, these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat".

What does God say about their worth? They, whoever they are, were made in His image (Gen 1:27) and are worth more than anything else we can think of here on earth. Is that the way I see them?

I'm prone to snap judgments about people and unkind thoughts if not actions. I think this is perhaps the most major heart blemish that needs forgiveness, cleansing and conformity to Christ to begin seeing the world the way He sees it.

"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a great battle" - Philo

Francis Schaeffer

Friday (the 15th) was the 25 anniversary of Francis Schaffer's death. A friend gave me a copy of his book How Should We Then Live? while I was in the Army in the late 70s and I read nearly all of his books when I was in college. What a great man and legacy he left behind.

Here's a brief excerpt from his book Death in the City, which had some sticking power with me.

Our generation is hungry - hungry for love, for beauty, for meaning. The "dust of death" covers all. And as in Jeremiah's day, there is with us the unsatisfied longing for a sufficient comforter.

Jeremiah said it well in Lamentations 1:16: "For these things I weep; mine eye, mine eye runneth down with water, because the comforter that should relieve [bring back] my soul is far from me." Why did the Jews in Jeremiah's day seek comfort and not find it, seek satisfaction and not find it? Because they had forgotten the end of man, the purpose of man. I want to commend something to you very strongly. Often when the evangelical and orthodox circles talk about the purpose of man, we quote from the first answer of the Westminster Cathechism: "Man's chief end is to glorify God." And often the sentence is ended there. This completely changes our Reformation forefathers' understanding of the scriptures. If you are going to give the complete biblical answer you must finish their sentence: "Man's chief end is to glorify God , and to enjoy Him forever." That changes the whole view of life.

Night of Champions

Well I missed this event downtown Friday night but I would have liked to see these two guys and have had a chance to hear them speak. Being a Florida Fan and a Christian, it's hard not to like these two guys and what they stand for.

Faith binds Tebow, Wuerffel

Unanswered Prayer

I just recently finished a great book by Philip Yancey entitled Prayer – Does It Really Make Any Difference. There were a ton of quotes from it that I jotted down but one stuck with me from the chapter on Unanswered Prayer. Do you have any of those?

This one is about St. Augustine and his mother Monica.

Sometimes an unanswered prayer opens the door to something far better. For fifteen years Monica prayed for her son Augustine as he indulged his senses and investigated exotic philosophies. When Augustine finally converted, these were the very experiences that gave depth and richness to his writings, allowing him to set the course of Christian thought for centuries. Once, Monica prayed all night that God would stop her son from going to wicked Rome, but he tricked her and sailed away. It was on that trip, in fact, that Augustine became a Christian. Reflecting later, he said that God denied his mother once in order to grant her what she had prayed for always.

John the Baptist's Doubt

I thought this article showed some great insight into the relationship John the Baptist had with his cousin Jesus. I never really thought very deeply about the doubt John experienced in prison or about Jesus' response and compassion toward John.

I think I'll keep an eye out for Jon Bloom's posts now like I do Andree Seu.

The article: John the Baptist's Doubt

Hudson River Plane Landing (US Airways 1549) Animation with Audio

This is a pretty cool simulation (with live audio with the pilot & air traffic control).

It is amazing that everyone survived this:

Hudson River Plane Landing (US Airways 1549) Animation with Audio

David Foster Wallace

One of my favorite World Magazine writers is Andree Seu. Her articles typically show up in the Commentary, Faith and Inspiration section of the magazine and I follow her blog pretty regularly.

I thought this one about the American Author David Foster Wallace's half grasp of the truth was pretty thought provoking.

David Foster Wallace by Andree Seau