O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

Enjoy!

The Theology of the "Twilight" Series

Russell Moore posts about this here. Some interesting stuff, really. I have not read the books, but thousands if not millions of young women HAVE read the books, and are seeing the movies. In particular, Moore cites John Granger's thoughtful article in Touchstone here. Specifically, Granger examines the Mormon theology behind the series. I found this fascinating, really, and will look more deeply into it. I preferred when people were drawn to the Harry Potter series, or the Narnia series, as I was on solid ground there. The "Twilight" series breaks new ground for me, and in order to understand the pulse of the culture, I am drawn to what interests the culture. [SDG - JS]

What Did You Learn Today?

A simple, yet profound question posed by a pastor to his parishioner. Here are the five results.

What did you learn today?

 The first dozen times I spent with Pastor Mark Driscoll he asked me the exact same question—"What did you learn today?"



This did five things:

1. It forced me to consider the massive amount of information coming in and discern what's important.
2. It set me up in the habit of reflection on how God is moving and what he's teaching me.
3. It made me understand that I have a pastor who cares not just about what I do, but who God is shaping me to be.
4. It increased my awareness of the who, what, where, why, and when around me.
5. It pushed me to take on the identity of 'learner'.

I think these are profound insights. We are drowning in information, especially those of us who hang around the blogosphere. We may be more knowledgeable, but are we wiser? And is this knowledge based on fact or just the opinion of someone else?

And paying attention to the rhythms of God in our lives. We cannot do this at 65 mph. A relationship with God is not a fast food, speed dating sort of relationship. And if we do not reflect upon what we are learning, we lose the sense of God in our midst.

What did you learn today? [SDG - JS]