{"id":1949,"date":"2022-09-07T09:24:53","date_gmt":"2022-09-07T13:24:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/js1cd06kre.onrocket.site\/?p=1949"},"modified":"2022-09-07T09:25:47","modified_gmt":"2022-09-07T13:25:47","slug":"the-gospel-according-to-chuck-norris","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/2022\/09\/07\/the-gospel-according-to-chuck-norris\/","title":{"rendered":"The Gospel According to Chuck Norris"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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To listen to this reflection as a podcast, <\/em>click here<\/a>.

Some people wear Superman pajamas.  Superman wears Chuck Norris pajamas.<\/em>
 
That\u2019s one of hundreds of so-called Chuck Norris \u201cfacts\u201d that for the past 17 years have fed a logic-defying cultural phenomenon and Internet craze. 
 
In 2005 talk show host Conan O\u2019Brien began to tell jokes about the martial arts fighter and actor whose credentials include the TV series Walker, Texas Ranger, <\/em>and a host of B movies in which Norris basically defeats entire armies by himself.
 
Somehow the jokes took off.  The satirical \u201cfacts\u201d about Norris\u2019 toughness and masculinity propelled him to global superstardom.  We visited this subject years ago in a morning reflection.  But jokes just keep on coming, including a posting of 225 additional Chuck Norris quips just this year.  Here\u2019s a sampling:
 
After Chuck Norris was born, he drove his mother home from the hospital.
 
There is no evolution.  There are just creatures Chuck Norris allows to live.
 
Chuck Norris\u2019 tears can cure cancer.  Unfortunately, he has never cried.          
 
The flu has to get Chuck Norris shots every year.
 
Chuck Norris can cut through a hot knife with butter.
 
Chuck Norris is why Waldo is hiding.
 
Chuck Norris had perfect attendance in school.  They never saw him, but they knew he was there.
 
When Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone he had three missed calls from Chuck Norris.
 
There used to be a street named Chuck Norris.  But the name was changed, because nobody crosses Chuck Norris and lives.
 
When Chuck Norris does a push-up, he isn\u2019t lifting himself up.  He\u2019s pushing the earth down.
 
The actor himself has maintained a sense of humor about his online cult hero status.  What is his favorite \u201cfact\u201d about himself?  People wanted to add Chuck Norris to Mount Rushmore, but the granite wasn\u2019t tough enough for his beard.<\/em>
 
This ongoing silliness had a brush with reality a few years ago when NPR reported that a bakery in eastern Europe, which had been repeatedly robbed, facetiously put a life-sized cardboard cutout of the actor in its front window.  These words were posted alongside: \u201cPremises Protected by Chuck Norris.\u201d  The robberies immediately stopped.  And one local tough guy quietly asked if he could get Chuck Norris\u2019 autograph.
 
Life is hard.  Strength is mandatory.  So what\u2019s your bedrock source of strength? 
 
Is it what you alone bring to the table?  Or are you selling out to a strength beyond yourself?
 
The most famous \u201cpower verse\u201d in the Bible is probably Philippians 4:13: \u201cI can do all things through him who gives me strength,\u201d where Paul is referring to Jesus.  But right alongside it is Isaiah 41:10, where God makes this extraordinary promise to the deeply discouraged remnant of the people of Israel: \u201cSo do not fear, for I am with you.  Do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you.  I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.\u201d 
 
In his modern English translation called The Message<\/em>, the late Eugene Peterson displayed a gift for bringing new life to well-worn verses.  Here\u2019s how he rendered Isaiah 41:10: \u201cDon’t panic.  I’m with you. There’s no need to fear, for I’m your God.  I’ll give you strength.  I’ll help you.  I’ll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.\u201d (Isaiah 41:10, The Message<\/em>)
 
No matter what \u201cstrength verses\u201d speak most powerfully to you, this truth will always shine through: 
 
God has it all over Chuck Norris.  That\u2019s because he can move both heaven and <\/em>earth.
 
And by his grace he can move you<\/em> forward, too, even when it feels as if you can\u2019t take another step. 

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

To listen to this reflection as a podcast, click here. Some people wear Superman pajamas.  Superman wears Chuck Norris pajamas. That\u2019s one of hundreds of so-called Chuck Norris \u201cfacts\u201d that for the past 17 years have fed a logic-defying cultural phenomenon and Internet craze.  In 2005 talk show host Conan O\u2019Brien began to tell jokes about the martial arts fighter and actor whose… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1950,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[496],"class_list":["post-1949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-strength"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1949","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1949"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1949\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1952,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1949\/revisions\/1952"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1950"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1949"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1949"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1949"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}