Commentaries

Bernie Taupin and Elton John are a powerful songwriting team. Taupin writes the lyrics. John then puts them to music. But in one of Taupin’s songs, John hit the wrong chord.

The British historian A. J. P. Taylor said the Enlightenment is still interesting only to those who are still worried about Christianity. The Enlightenment philosopher Denis Diderot turned 300 on Saturday, October 5th. But only Worry Worts found this interesting since they worry about how the Enlightenment is deforming today’s church.

Sheila Larson made her own decisions about faith. Robert Bellah described her as a typical American Christian, holding to an individualistic faith. A prophet would suggest that Sheila’s faith is heresy. But in a nation of heretics, who’s asking for their opinion?

In October 1977, The Atlantic ran a cover story on renewable energy. That year, at least 40 green innovations had proven their worth. Thirty years later most had died. The problem was insufficient funding due to a lack of institutional alignment. These are the two challenges that Jesus predicted prophets would face – fit and…

In 1995, Lorraine Cichowski found a fit. Her team played a prophetic role at USA TODAY. In 2005, Henrik Syse found a fit. For two years, he played the role of prophet, or gatekeeper, at Norges Bank Investment Management. These two stories are, however, exceptions proving a rule. Jesus predicted prophets experience difficulty finding a…

During World War II, shortages of staples such as sugar became commonplace. Kurt Lewin was commissioned to find the causes. He claimed to discover an influential individual in the food network, what he called a “gatekeeper.” Lewin was on to something but he wasn’t original. Long ago, Jesus described the same individual.

by Steve Garber Most of us celebrate Labor Day by forgetting about our labors. This is not the vision of Sabbath. It is a day to recall and celebrate work well done. That’s why it’s appropriate that we appreciate the good work of Steve Garber, a good friend. On occasion, he consults with a global…

“We’re looking for people with clean hands.” A friend recently told me this over lunch. No, he doesn’t work for a Christian organization. His company is however doing the right thing. Clean hands are critical for healthy companies as well as marriages. In fact, they help us make sense of Jesus’ most startling sayings.

This past week Kathy and I celebrated 32 years of marriage. The last few months have led me to reflect on what makes a flourishing marriage. I’ve coming to appreciate at least three things: quick to confess, a clear conscience, and clean hands.

Why did I tell only Patrick to “leave and cleave?” Our daughter Jennifer and Patrick were wed this past weekend. I had the privilege of officiating the ceremony. In accordance with scripture, I told only Patrick to “leave and cleave.” Do brides get a pass? No. Leaving and cleaving simply gets the ball rolling.