Household
“Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”
Jesus
Happy Friday,
We’re blessed we come to the end of ourselves, when we realize our spiritual poverty and our utter dependence on grace. Why? Because God works when we stop shouldering the load. Indeed, as the second half of the verse says, that’s where the Kingdom of Heaven is on earth—where our ego retreats, and his glory takes center stage. It’s painful at first but good news: you couldn't want or imagine anything better. Heaven on earth.
Happy Memorial Day
Freedom isn't free. Thank you to the many who died and sacrificed so that we could live and be free.
Youth Pastor Newsletter
Mike’s not the author of this week’s Update; it’s me, Glenn Wishnew. My official role is Lakelight’s crash test dummy designated fall guy Associate Director, but you can think of me as TFU’s youth pastor. I support the main guy from backstage and try not to mess up my one shot per year. (As info, I’m also 3.7 decades younger than Mike—but who’s counting?)
Households
Andy Crouch writes in The Life We’re Looking For about how we all desperately need a household, a place “where someone moves more quietly when they know we are asleep.” I find that image especially poignant as a father to a two-month-old. I’ve always been a loud walker, and talker, and eater, and sleeper—but I’ve gotten quieter since Luke made our house a household.
Without Comment
1) The average age for a student loan defaulter is nearly 40 years old.
2) Social Scientists have determined that the most aggressive human beings are small children, with 25% of interactions between two year olds involving attempted acts of physical aggression. (Looks like I’m poised to have an amazing & very aggressive 2028.)
3) According to Jonathan Haidt’s research in The Anxious Generation, teens spend 6-8 hours per day on screen-based leisure activities.
4) The generation that’s most pessimistic about AI also happens to be the one that uses it the most—Gen Z.
5) The year 2023 was a unique year in the history of humanity, because it’s the first time our total fertility rate as a planet fell below replacement rate.
6) A 1967 US senate subcommittee predicted that the average American would work 22hrs/week for only 27 weeks/year by 1985, with all the leisure time technology would free up for ourselves.
A Parable
In the 1980’s, a group of ambitious scientists launched Biosphere 2—the largest attempt to build an artificial ecosystem, with all the water, food and oxygen generated within the facility. It failed. One of the main reasons why: the trees would grow too fast and then collapse. Young trees, they discovered, need wind to grow properly. When the wind blows, it bends the tree, which forces the roots to expand and provide a firmer anchor, ultimately strengthening the trunk. Shield a young tree from wind and you prevent its long-term growth. Shield a young person from problems and the outcome will be similar.
Quotes
1) “Do unto those downstream as you would have those upstream do unto you.” — Wendell Berry
2) “In contemporary society, our Adversary the devil majors in three things: noise, hurry, and crowds.” — Richard Foster
3) “I became a journalist partly so that I wouldn’t ever have to rely on the press for my information.” — Christopher Hitchens
4) “To get rich is a glorious thing.” — Xi Jianping
5) “Blessed are the poor.” — Jesus of Nazareth
Irony
A group of NYU students were upset that Jonathan Haidt—the NYT best-selling author and public intellectual—was selected as their commencement speaker. They wrote a letter to the administration saying his selection made them feel "disappointed" and "unseen,” and they walked out when he began his speech. Haidt wrote the 2014 breakout book The Coddling of the American Mind, which describes the rise of a generation who wants to screen out anything that makes them feel uncomfortable. Hmmm.
Beauty
I’m convinced we need to encounter beauty now more than ever, given how much our senses are assaulted by ugliness. Here are some beautiful things for your Friday:
1) The song Farther Along by Josh Garrels.
2) The Isenheim Altarpiece, painted by Matthias Grünewald for a 16th century monastery which specialized in hospital work. Christ’s body is saddled with sickness and pain, so that the sufferers at the monastery would remember that their Savior knew their plight.
3) The 19th Psalm, described by C.S. Lewis as "the greatest poem in the Psalter and one of the greatest lyrics in the world."
Closing Prayer
“We beseech You, Master, to be our helper and protector. Save the afflicted among us; have mercy on the lowly; Raise up the fallen; appear to the needy; heal the ungodly; Restore the wanderers of Your people; Feed the hungry; ransom our prisoners; Raise up the sick; comfort the faint-hearted.” (Clement of Rome, c. 100 A.D.)
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