THE FLESH

If you asked people what is the biggest challenge they face in this life, I think most would point to family strife, a hated boss, financial stresses, or a major health crisis like cancer.

But Galatians 5 says humanity's biggest problem is NOT external.

Our biggest problem is IN-ternal. 

Our flesh and our spirit are opposed to each other. 

"For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do." (Gal 5:17)

But the flesh isn't some equally matched "big dog", doing battle with the Spirit, as the famous sermon illustration would have it.

When Jesus was in the garden praying in anticipation of his betrayal and death, the disciples could not keep themselves awake to pray with him. And in that moment, He told them, "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."

He didn't say, "The flesh is strong. It will overpower you." 

No. He said it's weak.

It's a sandbag. An anchor. It suffers from inertia. It would rather sit on the couch, watching TV and eating Cheetos. It can't be bothered. 

It takes the path of least resistance. It is largely passive, only aroused by what is easy, pleasurable, or fun. If it encounters a bit of friction, it shuts down regarding anything that isn't feeding its own appetites. 

The flesh is NOT the all-powerful, unconquerable force we imagine it to be. 

It is not ferocious. 

The "flesh" is a couch potato. 

MORNING PROGRESS

I successfully hit the bed by 10:30 last night. AND I got a start on a new morning routine.

The most important aspect was this: I have decided that for at least the first hour after waking up, I will use my phone for nothing but a flashlight and a Bible. 

I was awake a bit before 5:00 am, got up and made my coffee and spent a few minutes in a comfy chair, praying. 

And, it turns out, prayer is much better for my pre-daybreak mental state than endless Facebook reels are. 

I followed prayer with some Bible study - which coincides with next Sunday's sermon prep but turned into so much more.

I followed that with a bit of kitchen cleaning before a two-mile walk - with more progress on the sermon. 

And THEN I came back to the house, picked up Melissa and the two of us walked to a brand-new donut shop that has opened near our house. 

All in all, a pleasant AND productive morning. And who could ask for more?

ROUTINES NEED FIXING

I have been struggling to re-establish my daily writing routine, not because of a lack of material to think about, but because of a lack of energy.

Especially in the evenings.

I am feeling the need to rework two very important routines: Morning and Night.

My mornings are a mess. I am not sleeping well and that leaves me groggy in the morning and prone to wasting time on my phone.

I rarely need to set an alarm. I am too often awake between 3:30 and 4:30, unable to fall back to sleep.

This would be great ... if I could kick some sense of productivity into gear. 

Instead, I spin my mental wheels. Very slowly. Often for 90 minutes or more.

What a waste.

And maybe it's because I don't have a good bedtime routine on the other end of the day. 

I should be shooting for hitting the bed by 10 pm at the latest. But in reality, I am averaging 11 to 11:30.

It's 10 after 10 pm right now and I am going to act TONIGHT to make a difference. 

I will not look at my phone again.  

I will do a bit of old-fashioned reading in a physical book. 

And then I will brush my teeth and go to bed. 

And maybe in the morning I will be in good enough shape to start making some changes there as well.

STILL WORTHY OF ADMIRATION

I haven’t watched much of the World Cup over the last several weeks. I am just not a sports guy in general and not a soccer fan in particular. 

But I do recognize the value in sports and in this case, I believe FIFA's tagline has proven true: soccer has brought the world together. 

And it has been of great benefit to the U.S. - as soccer fans from all over the world have converged on the U.S. for the games, they have gained a firsthand knowledge of this country.

It seems that a common result has been a greater appreciation of the greatness and uniqueness of this nation. 

Because I am not a sports guy, I knew nothing about the World Cup before the games started. I assumed it was one big game, like the Super Bowl. But I learned it’s every four years, like the Olympics, and that there are numerous games spread over several weeks and over multiple sports venues. 

And so, with soccer fans being as intense as they are, the World Cup has brought people from all over the world to the U.S. for several weeks. And these visitors have done lots of travel between venues, zig-zagging across the country by plane, bus, and car. 

And they are posting videos online about their experience of America and how surprised they are that it doesn’t match their expectations – formed through Hollywood and their own news media. I have really enjoyed watching these videos and, from what I can see, here is what surprises them the most: 

1) America is much safer than they expected. They expected to be dodging a lot of bullets. 

2) There are so many options available here. The number of brands of peanut butter alone leaves them speechless. And don't get them started on Buc-ees! 

3) They are impressed by the natural beauty. Some are stopping at national parks between games and discovering that Yosemite can give any European mountain range a run for its money.

4) They are caught off guard by the friendliness of average Americans on the street. I guess our movies don't often show people waving to each other or offering even strangers the friendliest of greetings on the street corner. 

5) Visitors also comment about American patriotism. And in the most positive terms! Of course, they are coming during our 250th anniversary, but they aren’t talking about the special events. They are commenting on how many homes have the American flag out front. And how even McDonalds will fly the flag in the parking lot – day after day, not just the 4th of July. And the consensus is that American patriotism is sincere, heartfelt, and natural.

It's been good for me to see this reaction from outsiders. In an era of intense political polarization, it's good to see that visitors recognize a positive core of unity.

And a country still worthy of admiration. 

FAILING TOWARD SUCCESS

I came across a story in Austin Kleon's book, Don't Call It Art, that is going to stick with me into the future.

(Maybe it will even motivate me to get going on a YouTube channel.)

The story concerns one Mr. Charles Jones who was a serial entrepreneur with a long record of failed business ventures. 

Each time he would launch a new business, his first step was to order high-quality stationery, pens, and pencils with the new company name.

And each time a company went under, this man would gather all these supplies, bring them home, and hand them over to his kids, begging the children to use them up as quickly as possible. He actually forbade them from using both sides of a sheet of the paper. 

Growing up in a household with plentiful art supplies, several of the children went on to careers in art, including a son, Charles Jr.

AKA "Chuck".

That would be Chuck Jones ... of Bugs Bunny fame. 

In one college art class, Jones had a professor who warned that the students each had 100,000 bad drawings in them that they needed to get out before they could produce anything of quality. Jones said he felt relief knowing that he was likely well past the 200,000 mark himself. 

I guess the takeaway is this: trying and failing leads to more trying and failing which is another way of saying "practice", which leads ... at least sometimes ... to insane success. 

QUESTIONING THE DIVINITY OF JESUS

Benjamin Franklin once wrote in a letter to Ezra Stiles, President of Yale University:

"As to Jesus of Nazareth, my opinion of whom you particularly desire, I think the system of morals and his religion, as he left them to us, is the best the world ever saw, or is likely to see...

"But I apprehend it has received various corrupting changes, and I have, with most of the present dissenters in England, some doubts as to his divinity; though it is a question I do not dogmatize upon, having never studied it, and think it needless to busy myself with it now, when I expect soon an opportunity of knowing the truth with less trouble."

It is not surprising to see Franklin expressing doubt as to the divinity of Jesus. We know that orthodox Christianity was being questioned in his day and that the prevailing theology was Deist, with no room for the supernatural.

It is admirable to see his reluctance to "dogmatize upon" Jesus' divinity. How can he, he says, since he has never studied it in depth for himself? 

Such a level of epistemological humility is refreshing to see. And appropriate.

Franklin wrote this letter on March 9, 1790. And when he theorized that he would "soon" have the "opportunity of knowing the truth" about Jesus' exact nature "with less trouble" than extensive study, he was, of course, hinting at his own death.

And that "soon" proved a matter of weeks. Franklin passed on April 17th.

Now, I'm guessing that many modern American evangelicals would confidently predict Franklin's destination in the afterlife as being a place of punishment rather than reward - simply for questioning Jesus' divinity.

But that's because in this age we seem to believe that people are saved by proper doctrine. 

GOD IN PLAIN SIGHT

1 The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
4 Their voice goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world. (Psalm 19:1-4)

Some people argue that God is too hidden from human senses to be real. Others - like the poet king David - maintain that we walk daily through God's handiwork.

In fact, we are so surrounded by miraculous beauty, that it has grown common to us. 

And thus, ironically, the wonder of God becomes invisible because it is so prevalent.

I was thinking the other evening as the sun was setting and the fireflies began to rise and hover around our backyard ... What if these bugs should happen to go extinct in the future. 

Would my grandchildren even believe me when I told them that once there were insects that emitted pulses of light for about an hour each summer evening's twilight? 

"We called them LIGHTNING bugs. Or FIREflies. The light was a bright fluorescent yellow. Kids would collect them in jars and watch them up close."

Bugs whose tails light up and shine in the darkness? 

I think it would be too fantastical to believe.