Another Christian Leader Fallen
(5-minute read)
Amid a dozen head-spinning news items involving the killing of another U.S. citizen, loss of trust on the global stage (Davos), and others, you may have missed this gut-wrenching story. One of my favorite Christian authors, Philip Yancey, has disclosed an eight-year affair. His books, The Jesus I Never Knew and What’s So Amazing About Grace, were a great help to me during some very challenging times in my life—and in the life of my family.
I have read some raw ...
The Boy Crisis in America… Continues
Several years ago, I wrote about a New York Times article titled “The Crisis of Boys and Men.” That article echoed the central warning of Tender Lions: Building the Vital Relationship Between Father and Son—a message my son and I have been writing and speaking about for the past six years. In many ways, it feels like we’ve been trying to speak calmly while standing in front of a cultural tsunami of screaming masculine might.
Simply put: boys and men in America are struggling—and ...
Life Through a Straw…it still Sucks!
(3-minute read – an edited version from several years ago)
Years ago, I had a stroke that wiped out almost all my vision. Imagine trying to see life through a McDonald’s soda straw…for real. No peripheral vision, no depth perception. Just complete blackness, except for that little round view directly in front. Taking a slow walk was difficult and driving was out of the question. I told a friend it felt like looking at life through a straw, and he said, “That sucks.” I laughed ...
Unholy Alliance: Five Reasons Why Christian Nationalism is Destructive to Democracy
(5 minute read)
There’s been a lot of conversation about Christian Nationalism (CN) recently. Some dismiss it as a fringe movement, not a “real religion,” and not worth worrying about. I firmly believe it's far more powerful and harmful than many of my red-state friends care to admit. I see it influencing white evangelical churches in troubling ways—where indoctrination often replaces critical thinking and compassion. I know. I was raised that way.
In the CN world, theology ...
The Dominoes Towards Authoritarianism are Falling Fast
Or, How to Spot a Dictator in the Media (9 minute read)
I've been doing a bit of studying how fascist movements start and why so many seemingly good people abandon their values to follow power-hungry leaders. The parallels between 1930s Germany, Stalin and Putin’s Russia, and modern-day America are eerily similar.
Here are a “dozen dominoes” that are slightly terrifying along a request for the days ahead.
1. Institutions Can’t Speak for Themselves, So Speak for ...
The Gospel According to Gladwell: 3 Leadership Principles for Turbulent Times
(4 minute read)
“When people in authority want the rest of us to behave, it matters – first and foremost – how they behave….This is called the ‘principle of legitimacy,’” Malcolm Gladwell, David & Goliath
Gladwell writes concerning the principles of legitimacy that first, “The people who are asked to obey authority have to feel like they have a voice.” I recall a specific work situation where I and other colleagues had creative ideas. We knew how to improve things, ...
The “Brilliance” of Musk & Five Experts Who Disagree
(4 minute read)
For the first 60 years of my life, I never had a disagreement with anyone because of their political leanings. Although in recent times I’ve been struck, actually hugely disappointed and saddened, by the growing polarization and downright hatred I’m observing from my fellow Americans, particularly from some towards anyone with a differing opinion. What was once a “difference of opinion” is now considered “evil, delusional and shameful.” (Three things I’ve ...
BONHOEFFER: On Stupidity
(4 minute read)
What follows is a paper Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote before he was hanged to death in a Nazi prison camp shortly before World War II ended in 1945. The similarities to the radicalization of young men and boys in Nazi Germany is frighteningly similar to what is happening today in America, particularly in the Christian Nationalist movement. Bonhoeffer also provides clarity for how and why some people seem entirely convinced they are right, even when their position in ...
Baking a Jimmy Carter Pie Can Save the World
Imagine if Jimmy Carter had believed in a zero-sum world—where one person’s gain meant another’s loss. If that were true, philanthropy would be pointless, and volunteers would be wasting their time on those “others” (you know, the hungry, the homeless, the sick, the struggling… no big deal, right?).
If you’re not familiar with the term, it refers to a belief that “any gain by one party must come at an equal loss to another, meaning that the total amount of resources is ...
Father’s Day Wish
This Father's Day I'm choosing to remember, learn, and even benefit from the relationship between my dad and I…the good, the bad, and even the ugly.
I have wonderful memories and lessons learned from Harold Henry Becker, now sainted for eight years. Dad was the most honest man I’ve ever met, faithful and supportive of my mother for over 59 years, a hard worker, intensely loyal to friends, generous with his time and money, possessed a simple and deep faith in God, and he was present at ...
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