Forty-Four Years and Counting

 

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The Selfie Culture

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  It never ceases to amaze me, whether in the supermarket, sporting events, on the street, during worship or even at funeral services, people seem driven to take pictures of themselves at every given opportunity. 'Selfies', as they are known, permeate the airwaves and digital footprint of media, including television stations, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and so many more. It is as though a picture of a sunset alone is never going to be enough, it can only be made better if our faces frame the picture! Oy! On the one hand, a selfie is a step higher on the palatability scale than a picture of a plate of food yet, on the other hand, most folk do not have the required equipment for a 'good' selfie, a 'selfie-stick', which extends the cell phone farther from those being photographed, thus making the 'un-sticked' selfies almost exclusively close-ups. No one wants to be that close to me, not even my wife and kids.  Is it subliminal narcissism which drives us
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How Do You Look?

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Have you ever wondered how you look in someone else's eyes? A fair number of people I know keep that concern close in mind as they select the clothes they wear, have their hair done, think about where they might find themselves - and with whom, and even as they choose what fragrance to wear. All that - for what one imagines others might see and perceive. Truth of the matter? Far more people will see you than you will ever know and, to a great extent, they will draw conclusions about you and who you are more by what you do and how you treat others, than by any personal appearance or attitude you work so carefully to project. Don't believe me? Consider this picture. Our farming neighbor across the fields, Judy Feig, sent this picture to me last evening. Seems she was outside their home and caught a glimpse of the setting sun reflecting off the barn at my brother's place and just could not pass on taking a picture and sending it to me. Oddly enough, though, Judy told me that t
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The Mouth of the Lord Is Still Speaking

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"A voice cries: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken."  (Isaiah 40:3-5 NRSV) The story was recently told of a boss who, when confronted with their lack of production, absence of truthfulness, and willingness to plagiarize without thought of credit to others, simply looked at the person leveling the complaint and shouted, 'Do you know who I am?" A thousand potential answers filled the recipient's mind at that moment, but silence seemed to be the most appropriate and, given that the two Board members present offered no support, the intimidation of the bully-boss held sway. So it seems to continue in a myriad of ways in our culture today, '
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