Public Punditry

In a few short weeks, the ceremonial passing of the torch will take place where President-elect Joe Biden will take his oath of office and be sworn in as the 46th President of the United States. Tens of millions of people around the world will tune in to watch the momentous occasion, but what will be more significant are the controversial thoughts, comments, and actions from those who will refuse to call Biden their President in the name of election fraud and conservative cable news.  Over the last four years, there has been overt political polarization sweeping the nation, never seen since the Civil War's bloody battles. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have become battlefields. Thumb taps and swipes have become weapons. Tweets and posts have delivered the onslaught of casualties to both sides of the fight. Sadly, once Biden is sworn into office, his calls for unity will start and end at the desk of the Oval Office. The cable news cycles haven't provided any sort of help in he...

COVID-19 has taken many things from us. Sporting events, packed pews, family gatherings, and every other thing that made life normal. But for me, the shutdowns, masks, and social distancing rules sent my movie frenzy into a spin. My family and I would routinely spend our Christmas breaks at the local theater, spending quality time together by spending way too much on popcorn, relaxed on the reclined seats saying nothing to each other for two, sometimes three hours. Millions of families and friend groups have done the same things for decades, but now, in the age of streaming, the new normal is packing your family into the living room to watch the most recent Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, or Disney+ film.  This Christmas, I decided to bypass the standard family bonding time and instead sit in front of my TV in the dining room by myself to watch "Soul," Pixar's latest film. I'm usually one to read movie reviews, but since I'm doing the blogging thing now, it will be yours ...

So, if you don't know me, you might miss the fact that I love my family. If you do know me, you know that I have two awesome parents, four siblings, an incredible dog, and an emotionally subpar cat. My family means everything to me, and since I've come home from school, my family has indirectly taught me one of the most important aspects of the Christian life-- surrender.   In Luke's gospel account, Christ looks to his followers and instructs them to take up their cross and follow him. One of the underlying themes that goes relatively unnoticed with Jesus and his followers is that they become a family. Jesus said to the one who asked to bury his father, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and spread the news of the kingdom of God," (Luke 9:60). Like a sheep being brought to a new pasture, his followers left their families to join a new one.   The twelve apostles and the many unnamed followers spend all of their time with Jesus and develop a love and conn...

  "The snow's coming down. I'm watching it fall. Lots of people around, Baby, please come home." We've all heard the song. We all love it. Darlene Love's perennial Christmas smash hit has been decking through the halls of homes across the world for the last 57 years since its original recording. The song tells the story of someone who is lonesome during a time where friends and loved ones stay together. Love's strong emotional plea of "please come home" ringing throughout the song might go unnoticed by the joyful combination of the choir of background vocals, crashing drums, and jazzy saxophone solo, but in the era of COVID-19, our world has been particularly acute to the thought of going about the holiday season alone. At the time of this writing, over 75 million people have contracted Coronavirus and nearly 1.7 million people have died from the dreadful disease. Polarized politics, cable news, and social media juggernauts have pinned the nation...

A while back, I preached to the congregation at First Baptist Church Hot Springs. Regardless of the outcome of the sermon, I knew that there were at least going to be a handful of congratulatory and thankful messages from those who attended. Thankfully, there were, and the warm community the people of FBC Hot Springs gave me on a cold, Monday morning was second to none. I thought it would nice to present the manuscript of that sermon. So, read it and weep. As a precursor, it would be good to either have Exodus 24 handy, or read it ahead of time.  On a cold, autumn night at War Memorial Stadium, a young quarterback was on the cusp of completing an outstanding season. With his teammates lined up, his coaches looking on, and the crowd in a frenzy, the young quarterback knew that this moment would forever live on in his mind. His team’s name would reside in the school’s record books. The trophy would sit nicely in the trophy case. It was only one drive left until glory.  You ...

Psalm 33:17–22 "The war horse is a false hope for salvation,   and by its great might it cannot rescue.  Behold, the eye of the   Lord   is on those who fear him,   on those who hope in his steadfast love,   that he may deliver their soul from death   and keep them alive in famine.   Our soul waits for the   Lord ;   he is our help and our shield.   For our heart is glad in him,  because we trust in his holy name.   Let your steadfast love, O   Lord , be upon us,   even as we hope in you." Romans 8:24–25 " For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience."   A young Senator from Illinois named Barack Obama dared to tip the political landscape. He had the charisma. He had the look. He had the Harvard Law credentials. In terms of running for president, what more could a soon-to-be 47-year-...

It has been over six months since George Floyd’s passing. Riots have raged across the nation. State and federal political figures have laid the groundwork for their goals toward lasting change. Black artists have carved marvelous works documenting the truth about America’s past dealings with racism in hopes of seeing a country unified, putting the daunting horrors of racial prejudice behind them.  The conversation has been forwarded. People of varying backgrounds are learning and practicing what it takes to break the generational barriers of bigotry and hate. But there is a question that refused to leave my mind over the last couple months.  What took so long? Did it take Ahmaud Arbery, Breanna Taylor, and George Floyd losing their lives in order for the conversation to be forwarded? Did it take weeks of riots in the streets in order for the people of America to wake up? Did it take more than  fifty years  since the death of Martin Luther King Jr. and  four hund...