The Glory of the Average Person

September 9, 2010Posted inDesire, Spiritual Life2 Comments

This is something that’s been bothering me for some time, and I finally decided to write about it any pass it along to bother someone else…

I love books, movies, and video games about important people – people who are talented, famous, brave, and selfless – people who make a big difference in the world around them for good.  Whether I’m reading Ursula LeGuin, C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, or the Bible, or playing Fable, Final Fantasy, or Star Wars (Knights of the Old Republic), I’m somehow taking part in a story where the main character rises to greatness to save their world and make a difference for good.

Here’s my problem: Looking at how my life is going, I don’t think I’ll ever live up to any person in those stories I like.  It doesn’t look like I’m ever going to be a talented, gifted, or famous person. I don’t think I’ll ever have a chance to do something incredibly important or really good (in a big way) in the world. 

Fried Green Tomatoes

April 9, 2007Posted inDesire, God, Movie Review, Religion2 Comments

If anyone who is reading this hasn’t seen the movie Fried Green Tomatoes, I would suggest seeing it ASAP if you are a person who cares deeply about the spiritual life. Since I am spending all my time at home with my wife helping out with our new baby, we end up sitting and watching movies. We just watched it, and when I watch a good movie, I’m up half the night thinking about it.

Two things about this movie made a big impression on me. The first one was who the real heroes in a society really are. I’ve written about the concept of the hero in society before – but this movie is the embodiment of what I think one looks like.

After the risk

February 3, 2007Posted inBelief, Desire, GodNo Comments

Asara asked some great questions about finding God from a risk-taking perspective. If a person takes the risk of believing in God, what would be the next steps towards a deeper faith? This was in response to my previous post, (Risk and Proof.) My answer got too long, so I thought I would write another post instead. Note: this is not how I came to know God of the Bible – it was more of an overwhelming invitation. However, if my life were different, I would probably venture down a similar road to the one I describe.

The hero

December 20, 2006Posted inDesire, Philosophy4 Comments

Note: I originally posted this on John Remy’s website as a comment on a post with a similar subject at mindonfire.com by another great author – Miko, but decided to post it here as well because I’ve been too sick lately to write much. So I’m being lazy (or just practical since I’m recovering from surgery) and consolidating. When it comes to my priorities, it’s more important to me to post comments on other people’s sites then it is for me to write posts on this one. If you’ve read my comment there, don’t bother to read it here. The text is exactly the same with no extra goodies 🙂

Anyway, the about the hero…

This has always been a phenomena that has fascinated and inspired me. Within literature, motion picture, gaming, and song, there has always existed the hero – the person who fights for the cause of good in the titanic and ever-present battle between good and evil. It seems to me that within each man or woman, their exists a dark, broken nature which powerfully influences them. If given too much free reign, its influence can become so great that even a person’s conscience and the warnings of friends can be ignored and cut off. This same struggle is found in the macrocosm of the mind – human society (hat tip to Socrates.) And so the hero fights on two fronts – against his own broken nature, and against the people and movements in their society that have come under the near complete control of the same brokenness and have become twisted at a spiritual level into something inhuman.

Desire and fulfillment

October 28, 2006Posted inDesire, WorldviewsNo Comments

If there is no hope in the spiritual life other than to acknowledge that it theoretically exists, then the longing for more and the desire for the mysterious will never be satisfied. The longing is all that there is to be had. Is simply the longing for something mysterious enough to give meaning to my life? I would argue most definitely not. Not in my experience. Hope and longing without fulfillment breaks the heart.

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. (Prov. 13:12)

To be drawn to the mystery and the joy we find in our pursuits is not enough. After experiencing all pursuits, they come up empty to me. They were not what I was looking for. I must find the source of the mystery or desire that was behind them.