Anyone who isn’t white is illegal, about the only option at that point.

Add this to all kinds of things.

Want to buy a video game system?

Want to buy an expensive bottle of booze?

Want to pay for a hotel room?

Did you go through the spiritual exercises and meditations in Ignatius’s book?

What is going to be the future of White American Evangelicalism after MAGA and Trumpism have died, if they do at some point in the future? What does it look like for faithful Christians to call their MAGA Christen neighbors to repentance, not just now but in those moments when their power is broken?

Will having instant access to the immediate information rewire our brains so that it is harder to retain information, and harder to know how to use it well?

What happens when you do something, or ask something, the techbros don’t like? And they cut you off?

What will the world look like then?

AI taking over education will be a disaster, even if AI is perfected to be able to give accurate answers all of the time.

What happens when the creators of AI decide what counts as accurate information, and if they decide who to sell it to and who to withhold it from?

And then look at his followers. Which one of them is intelligent enough to plan it and pull it off? Pete Hegseth? Kash Patel? Give me a break.

While I wouldn’t put it past him, he’s not smart enough to plan it perfectly and keep it under wraps.

Some people thrive spiritually under stress and such. I do not. My brain gets cluttered very easy when I am worried, and there isn’t a lot left over.

Or they might help you identify if it’s something else entirely. I’ve never had a genuine dark night of the soul. But it’s not uncommon I hear.

It would probably take a unique spiritual director to help someone who naturally reacts adversely in such situations.

They might be able to walk you through anything that could potentially be getting in your way spiritually. I know for me, for example, it’s high stress, esp. related to family.

I had one briefly when I was taking some classes to get licensed in a denomination I used to minister in. She would mostly talk with me about my readings and guide me through lectio divina over zoom.

I don’t know if having someone help you refocus and recenter would be beneficial or irritating.

That stinks. My wife used caffeine to help until she was able to get medicated for it herself.

I wonder if having a spiritual director would help?

Have you tried drinking a caffeinated beverage before doing anything that requires focus? Often caffeine can help people with ADHD focus, at least somewhat.

Going through the motions of spiritual practices may be what it takes to keep spiritually healthy even if you don’t feel it. I dunno if that’s helpful or not, or even translates into your situation. But Rich Mullins said something similar at one point about being close to God.

I don’t know if this will help or not, but my wife just started taking a medication that completely removes her appetite, and restricts her enjoyment of food.

She never feels like eating and never craves anything. So she eats at set times because she has to.

It’s ironic that a lot of what we call outreach involves trying to convince people to come into the church for events.

I would be inclined to agree. There’s no way to kill a boss with a single longbow crit.

Usually accidentally attacking the BBEG early in the campaign leads to a five minute tpk.

My favorite was always Deathscythe.

Am I shocked that the pastor who openly said his goal was to do a prayer for a presidential inauguration would start a rumor about something like this in the hopes his rumor would come true?

No.

Brian Sanderson’s Mistborn has a female lead. It’s a pretty good cross between fantasy and post-apocalyptic fiction.

Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time has some strong female side characters, although main character is male.

I’m not sure if Hunger Games would fit, but the main character is female.

The world doesn’t need to be re-enchanted. We do.

Nope. My church doesn’t. And there are plenty of other churches that don’t as well.

Consider the number of Evangelical preachers who are little more than power and money hungry grifters, he really isn’t much different than someone like Paula White or Kenneth Copeland. The only difference is he cusses more and doesn’t know the Bible quite as much.

Is this about Trump saying it’s a picture of him as a doctor?

First harvest on the counter drying

My lettuce and spinach bed right before my first clippings. Going to have home grown salad with my pizza tonight!

All the world is sacrament, and every square inch of the earth is holy ground. Every breath is alive with the spirit. Everywhere around you the image of God walks, even in the mirror.

I was thinking that as I listened this morning.

Or at least, MAGA leadership is positioning him to attempt that roll with his appearance at the 250th anniversary shindig that is coming this summer.

Can a disgraced pastor fill J-Mac and Graham’s shoes? I guess we’ll see.

I tend to favor Lewis’s “He’ll is locked from the inside” view, although that’s more for my own philosophical comfort than anything else.

The tale of Sir Balin and the Dolorous Strike is a bitter tale that might be fiction, but still holds deep truths. Rash and impetuous men damage more than just themselves, they lay waste to all around them.