Tag Archives: Humility

Three Wise Words

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To listen to this reflection as a podcast, click here. Economists Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner – famous for their Freakonomics books – wonder if you think you can out-perform a group of British schoolchildren, ages five through nine. First, listen to this story. Then answer four questions: A little girl named Mary goes to the beach with her mother and brother. … Read more »

Have You Considered the Possibility

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To listen to this reflection as a podcast, click here. Have You Considered the Possibility For eight seasons beginning in 2004, Dr. Gregory House was TV’s medical superstar. Just as Perry Mason never lost a case in court, the star of House always managed to solve even the most puzzling medical mysteries. British actor Hugh Laurie feigned an American accent in order to play the… Read more »

Four Words

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To listen to this reflection as a podcast, click here. Four Words The Bible is a bit like a play that introduces, one after another, hundreds of characters over the space of two millennia.  Most characters show up on the stage for just a few moments, speak their lines, then disappear from view.  Those may seem like “bit parts,” but they are skillfully woven… Read more »

The Greatest Man in the World

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To listen to this reflection as a podcast, click here. When America’s ragtag revolutionary army faced one of its darkest moments, George Washington brought out his secret weapon. His eyeglasses. Things had gone unaccountably well for the colonists in their struggle against the British army, the world’s most elite fighting force.  By the spring of 1783, treaty negotiations would soon guarantee America’s independence.  But… Read more »

Needing to Be Right

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To listen to this reflection as a podcast, click here. Needing to be right can sometimes be oh-so-wrong. I learned that more than 50 years ago while on a canoe trip down Sugar Creek in north-central Indiana with some of my high school friends.  It was a beautiful spring day.  The river was alive with insects, birds…and snakes. Every now and then we… Read more »

A Refresher Course in Humility

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Every now and then it’s helpful to experience what it’s like for the shoe to be on the other foot – and for that matter, the socks as well. About a decade and a half ago I was walking our two exuberant Australian Shepherds on a local trail.  When a jogger approached us from the other direction, with her well-behaved dog… Read more »

Washed by Grace

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For the four weeks leading up to and going beyond Easter, we’re looking at the life of Peter.  Because he’s so often at the center of both the brightest and darkest moments in the Gospels, he has always been a source of hope and inspiration for those endeavoring to follow Jesus. In Bible times, the foot was literally and symbolically the… Read more »

Humility, Please

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In September 1519, Ferdinand Magellan left Spain on a quest to find an oceanic trade route to Asia. Magellan didn’t sail east.  Others had already pioneered that route around the southern tip of Africa and through the Indian Ocean.  Instead, he sailed west across the Atlantic.  Would it be possible to connect Europe with China, Japan, and the East Indies by… Read more »

Farewell to the Big Me

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According to Greek mythology, Narcissus was a spectacularly handsome young man. Every female in his zip code yearned for his affection.  He could have cared less.  In the words of author Eugene Peterson, “Narcissus had no time for them.  He was all the company he needed.  He could not waste time on anyone.  He required his full attention.” The beautiful… Read more »

Confession Booth

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Reed College in Oregon is widely regarded as one of America’s most socially progressive campuses. Its annual springtime student festival, Renn Fayre, is, to put it mildly, faith-averse.  The campus is shut down for three days so the students can come together and do some serious partying in the spirit of revisiting Renaissance England.  Participants are far more likely to… Read more »