Maher-shalal-hash-baz

Destruction is immanent. What a great name! I think I'm going to change my name. You can call be "Hash" for short... ;-)

So who cares about the political warnings given to ignorant and unreceptive leaders 3000 years ago? Are they of any relevance to us today? Why bother studying them?

Is destruction any less immanent now than it was for Jerusalem?

Are we not facing the same kinds of concerns and issues today that they faced then?

Are there lessons that can be learned from the situation?

The answer seems to lie in the fact that all of these things are cyclical - the names change, and the scale of operations changes, but the lessons and the applicability remains the same. We are a people who tend to want to trust each other more than we want to trust God. Which is ironic, because God is really the only one worthy of our complete trust. But it's true - Stalin trusted Hitler, Chamberlain trusted Hitler, the Cambodians trusted Pol Pot, etc, etc, etc. The point of all of these lessons seems to be trust God and He will inspire you, enable you, and even fight your battles for you.

It is as true for nations as it is for families and individuals.

It is not without reason that Christ is called by Isaiah the Prince of Peace.

Comments

The Other Art

I'm not sure we appreciate photography as much as we do other art forms. Part of this comes from the reality that surrounds and permeates a photograph - it's very, very real, and the photographer strives for clarity and crispness in the representations. Perhaps this is why black and white images continue to be relevant - they strip away extraneous information (color) and leave us with something that is at once familiar and also non-existent - for nothing exists in black and white. Nothing. I also think that pictures are becoming too common-place... Everyone has a camera in their pocket, and while that's a very democratic thing (everyone can express themselves in a picture easily and readily, and can find an audience for these images, which are casually taken and casually viewed, and perhaps just as casually forgotten) I think that we embrace that casual attitude, and it spills over to all aspects of the media, making it impotent. So I read this article this morning: h...

Lucky!

So Tomorrow is Amie's birthday. The 12 th is Andy's. The 14 th is Alex's. And the 26 th is mom's. Happy birthday everyone. I recently found that a member of our ward has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Pancreatic cancer has a survivability rate of less than 5% and you never, ever kick it, even if you live. Once diagnosed, people are expected to live about six months. My wife and I were talking about this wonderful woman. There are very few (too few) people in this world who shine. Literally. This sister shines with a light that is perceptible and discernible . The world will literally be a darker place without her in it. Life is short, folks. Too short for hard feelings, too short for pain and misunderstanding. I love you all so much. Sorry this one is such a downer... I don't mean to be lugubrious on your birthdays... I consider myself lucky to be your brother. You have and continue to bless me and my family in many ways, for which I will be eternally gra...

Excommunication

My heart is heavy this morning. I read that Kate Kelly and others are being brought up on Church disciplinary action. For those who are unfamiliar with the process/proceedings of LDS Church discipline, it can be a bit mystifying. There are several levels of censure that the Church may impose. These range from a simple removal of some privileges for a short period of time to the most severe action - excommunication. When one is excommunicated, the person's membership in the Church is terminated. It is a very extreme measure, and for the faithful it can be a very difficult thing to consider. What people don't understand - what is nearly impossible for someone outside the proceedings to understand - is the amount of love felt. It's discipline. It's intended to be harsh (at times). And it's intended to be unpleasant. But it is done with love and care for the person. Since excommunication is such an extreme measure, it is really only very rarely applied. There are ...

The Sublime Roundabout

Search This Blog