In Proverbs 12:15 Solomon tells us that a wise person listens to advice. In 11:14 he has told us there is safety in an abundance of counselors. Life tells us that advice is often easier to give than receive.

I have been thinking about the giving and receiving of advice. I am reading a fascinating book on Harry Truman’s – yes, another Truman book – first term as president (Ascent to Power, David L. Roll, 2024). To be sure, the book presents Truman in a positive light, but not without acknowledging his weaknesses and shortcomings. Eighty years later I am left longing for as decent a person and able a leader as Truman to ascend to power. I don’t think my longings will be satisfied any time soon.

Harry Truman faced as many difficult decisions as any modern president. Almost immediately after Franklin Roosevelt’s death, he had to decide about the use of the atomic bomb to end World War II. In time he was confronted with decisions to be made about the rebuilding of Europe and the rebuilding of the American economy from its war footing to being able to satisfy pent up consumer demands. He would have to decide about programs for returning G.I.s and the assurance of civil rights to all Americans, especially to Black Americans.

Some of the most important decisions Harry Truman made had to do with the people who would serve the nation during his presidency. He made some great choices and some really poor choices. Continue reading →

Becky and I recently watched a three-part British television series, MaryLand, and liked it very much. I’ll try to avoid any spoilers in case you wish to watch it yourself, so here is the description you will find at the PBS website:

MaryLand follows two estranged sisters who reunite to unearth the truth about their mother’s sudden death and her double life on the Isle of Man. This is not so much a murder mystery as a compelling tale of two siblings opening up to each other as they work out a string of family secrets. The Guardian (UK) hails MaryLand as “joyful and incredibly affecting.”

In fact, the heart of the series is the “compelling tale of two siblings opening up to each other.” But, as the teaser suggests, there is a mystery to be solved concerning the sudden death of Mary, the two sisters’ mother. Again, no spoilers, but Mary’s death and the mystery surrounding it is more than just a screenwriter’s device to get at the emotional and relational drama of the estranged sisters reconciliation. Neither the sisters nor the viewer will be reconciled to Mary’s death. Death wins. Enough said. Continue reading →

It’s a joke with a thousand variations. Mine will be, “How many retired pastors does it take to change a light bulb?” And the answer is, “One, so long as he has good WIFI.”

We’ve lived in our new house for four years now and are facing the first round of repairs and replacements. The battery in one of the smoke detectors began chirping incessantly a few weeks ago and one of the ceiling lights in the kitchen began flickering earlier this week. Battery and bulb replacement time.

Some of you know that I do not score high on mechanical aptitude tests and what is so simple as to hardly give it a second thought for some is a dreaded test of personhood and masculine worth for me.

Thank goodness for YouTube. Continue reading →

The Bible is full of signs given by God to point to his creative power, redeeming love, and providential care.  We think of Noah’s bow in the cloud and Cana’s water turned to wine. And, of course, the sign given Bethlehem’s shepherd, a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.  The Westminster Confession reminds us that the created order itself is a sign of “the goodness, wisdom, and power of God.”  Summer sunsets and crashing waves on a rocky coast.

Our world is still filled with God-given signs, but as signs they only point to a reality.  The rainbow and the sunset do not deserve our worship, the God who gave them does.

Echoing Hebrews 1, the Confession reminds us that “at sundry times and in diverse manners” God revealed himself to us. He sometimes gave us signs to reveal his will and his way. Our “signs and wonders” Pentecostal friends notwithstanding, the Confession tells us that these former ways of revelation have now ceased and that we have now been given the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as the “whole counsel of God concerning all things necessary for His own glory, man’s salvation, faith, and life.” (WCF 1)

By conviction and confession, then, I am what theologians call a cessationist.  It’s not that I am not reminded of God’s love when I see a rainbow in the sky or his love of beauty when I see a summer sunset, it’s just that such things point to a reality greater than themselves.  They remind me of stories told and truth revealed in the whole counsel of God. Continue reading →

Becky and I have just finished streaming the most recent season in one of our favorite British television dramas.  The sixth and final episode of the season ends with unexpected sorrow and tragedy.  It is devasting.  And though we knew we were watching scripted actors who got on with their ordinary lives when that last scene was finally shot, our hearts were heavy and our emotions drained when the credits began to roll.

I won’t tell you the name of the series for fear of anything resembling a spoiler.  But this is not the first time especially a British series has so played with our emotions.  The ending to episode six was as unexpected as it was wrenching. It was effective because it brought to mind the reality of unexpected sorrow and tragedy in our own ordinary and unscripted lives.  Unspeakable grief sometimes comes our way.

I have been thinking about sorrow and sadness recently. One friend has received a medical diagnosis that is not good.  Another friend found a long anticipated and planned adventure suddenly and permanently canceled.  Sad and tragic things unexpectedly attack our lives, demolish our plans. Continue reading →