Speaking With Conviction

Two airplane pilots are waiting to land their plane at an airport:

Copilot: Look how the ice is just hanging on his, ah, back, back there, see that?

There is no response from the Captain. He tries again.

Copilot: See all those icicles on the back there and everything?

Captain: Yeah...

Copilot: Boy, this is a, this is a losing battle here on trying to de-ice these things....

A minute or two passes and then he speaks again.

Copilot: Let's check these tops again since we've been here awhile.

Captain: I think we get to go here in a minute.

But they didn't go in a minute. The ice was too thick and the plane crashed.

In this true-life situation, cited in a McGraw-Hill Communication text book, both pilots were trained and competent, however an urgent problem was ignored because the copilot watered down his message to his superior. This is an extreme example of a persistent problem in our culture.

When we speak, we beat around the bush; we add doubt to our words with statements such as ‘I guess’ and ‘maybe’; and we fill our listener’s ears with “ums”, ‘likes” and “uhs”. We hesitate and don’t commit to what we say, and we ask our listeners to do the same. We don’t speak with conviction.

I cited above the extreme example of the copilot in the introduction, but the everyday harms of speaking without conviction surround us.

The listener has to make more effort listening to make up for a wishy-washy speaker. The listener needs to decide whether the message is important. And sometimes, the listener needs to figure out what the speaker is trying to communicate. If the listener doesn’t put more effort into receiving the communication, the message will be lost.

If the speaker does not speak with conviction, they hurt themselves and their message. Speaking with doubt will leave their ideas open to be challenged or dismissed. If every phrase is pithy and passionate, the speaker will be listened to and respected.

There is a question in Journalism; to what extent can you edit the quotes of your interviewees? Oftentimes, you have to edit regardless. If you were to write down exactly what an interviewee said, even the most learned, cultured person sounds like this: "well, uh, we've taken steps in that area, and, and well for example, we have a, have made a committee to oversee that step in the project. Does that make sense?"

A good journalist will edit the clip down to: "We have taken steps in that area; for example, we have made a committee to oversee that step in the project." Now the gentleman sounds like he deserves to wear his suit to work. By why couldn’t he speak like that in the first place?

The way the culture speaks today hinders. Speak with conviction. Rise above the noise.

Morality and the Market

I want to share this video I discovered on the Foundation for Economic Education's website. The lecturer, Dr Ronald Nash, explains the faulty thinking liberal Christians engage in when they think Jesus advocated for a socialistic economy. It is a good lecture, but watch it when you have a bit of time as it is almost 66 minutes long.


Morality of the Market from FEE on Vimeo.

Q&A with Brett Harris

(Note: This article first appeared in my Church's newsletter last March. Since many of you, my audience, are looking for, or going to attend, a college, I thought I should share this before it becomes completely stale. This is a very interesting article for me because this was my first time interviewing someone.)

Writing a bestselling book (Do Hard Things, Multnomah books), authoring the most visited Christian blog on the web (TheRebelution.com) and being much sought after speakers, Brett Harris, along with his brother Alex, accomplished a great deal. Their message to teens is to shake off low expectations and live to Christ’s glory- doing hard things that makes you grow. Having just begun attending college, Brett Harris sat down with me to discuss how college affects a God-fearing teen’s (also called a rebelutionary) pursuit of Christ. Here is our conversation:

Q As rebelutionarys moves off to college, their time that they had as teenagers becomes taken up. Does this hamper the rebelutionary’s ability to do great things for God’s glory?

A Absolutely not! . . . Absolutely not at all. It’s a way to prepare, a way to launch yourself into the rest of your life.

Q What would you say the attitude of a rebelutionary should be entering college?

A The first thing any young Christian should do is become surrounded by good believers and make college the primary season of primary spiritual growth.
A rebelutionary’s goal is to really learn. Priority will be actual preparation, not a good time, not school games . . . The goal is growth, not good grades . . . Life starts now, not after graduation. . . While in college, look for opportunities to serve God and make room in your schedule for that purpose.

Q Anyone can go to college, how do you go about it for God’s glory?

A The Bible says, “whether you eat or drink, do it all to the glory of God”. For the college student, bringing glory to God involves more than just Bible reading, chapel, church, and other religious activities. It involves writing papers, investing in relationships, etc. etc.

Q So Christianity should permeate every aspect of your time in college.

A Exactly. When doing an activity, you should ask, “God, what is your purpose for this activity and how can I glorify you in the way I perform it?”

Q Now this question has been bouncing around in my head for some time. Do you find that as you set out to do a hard thing, it feels daunting, but looking back, you consider the thing which you thought was hard, not that hard after all?

A Doing hard things is like exercise. I began working out when I started coming to college. When I began, I could bench press 150 pounds. I could have said ‘great! I can bench press 150 pounds’ and just kept on lifting that weight without trying to build my strength. But that wouldn’t be beneficial to me. Being stuck in your comfort zone is bad, no matter how big it is. Alex and I could continue to write books and hold conferences. But that would be easy for us and we wouldn’t be growing. Right now, we’re focusing on the small hard things; we’re just going to be normal students. You do something, gain skills, build, to have the strength to do new things later on.

Q So if you continued with the conferences and the books without growth you would be hypocrites to your own message.

A Yes

Q How has the Rebelution changed since you have published your book?

A It has grown. More people are accepting the message, including secular people.

Q How does the rebelution change as the teenagers who have heard the message move into work and college?

A Hopefully, the Rebelution causes a momentum and mindset that carries into the rest of life. God’s principles apply not just to teens; it applies to all Christians of all ages. We have received feedback from adults, home school moms, business professionals, and all sorts of people. Everyone, not just teens benefit from this message. Alex and I wrote to teens because we were teens at that time and that was the audience we could speak credibly to.

Scientists Find Disease Which Affects Us All

In the past years, scientists have been gradually discovering a host of mental disorders and addictions. Most recently in the wake of tiger wood’s sex scandal, medical researchers in a lab not so far away have announced that they have officially identified a sex disorder. Other physiological addictions include drug addictions, drinking and gambling. Back in the 1970’s, homosexuality was thought to fall into this group but was later discarded with scientific consensus.
Now scientists have discovered a unifying disorder which they have dubbed Humanus Vis “this is an exciting time in the realm of medicine and science” says Dr. Todd Gurry, one of the researchers to discover the disorder. “It means that theoretically the person who has a sex addiction will eventually be treated in the exact same way as a person with a binge eating problem” Scientists are still discussing which disorders are fall under the unifying disorder, but it looks like the final list will be huge. “Even compulsive cheaters and liars can fall under this disorder,” says Dr Gurry.
Patents have found comfort when their doctors told them that the problems that have plagued them for years, and even have ruined their lives, are not their fault—it’s the result of the problems of their mind.
The medical researchers have already begun to solve the next problem—to find a cure for this disorder. “It won’t be easy, as most everybody is affected to some extent,” says Dr John Walden, another researcher with the project, “but when we do find a cure, the potential for the human race is enormous!”
Researchers must solve an apparently impossible puzzle: find a way to change the human mind so that complete healing can occur.

What Shall We Do With The Pope?

Headlines slapped across newsfeeds today announced that the recent development of the Catholic Priest child molestation scandal rocking the world links the Pope to the subsequent cover up of the sin. For a decent video clip on the story, click here.
Don't the Catholics consider the Pope infallible? If so, what does that mean? To quote catholic.com:
"The Catholic Church’s teaching on papal infallibility is one which is generally misunderstood by those outside the Church. In particular, Fundamentalists and other "Bible Christians" often confuse the charism of papal "infallibility" with "impeccability." They imagine Catholics believe the pope cannot sin. Others, who avoid this elementary blunder, think the pope relies on some sort of amulet or magical incantation when an infallible definition is due.
Given these common misapprehensions regarding the basic tenets of papal infallibility, it is necessary to explain exactly what infallibility is not. Infallibility is not the absence of sin. Nor is it a charism that belongs only to the pope. Indeed, infallibility also belongs to the body of bishops as a whole, when, in doctrinal unity with the pope, they solemnly teach a doctrine as true. We have this from Jesus himself, who promised the apostles and their successors the bishops, the magisterium of the Church: "He who hears you hears me" (Luke 10:16), and "Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven" (Matt. 18:18)."
The Catholics believe their leader's teaching is true, and I assume this is something akin to Divine Inspiration, but the leaders are still sinful men. Sin isn't something that is rare; it is something that is expected because, hey, we're all human. But what separates the Christian from the non-believer is what they do after they sin.
Currently the world is dancing over the body of the fallen Catholic Church, gleefully pointing out the hypocrisy and deception in the church. I must admit, although I can go head to head with a Catholic on the matters of faith and theology, I still believe that they are part of the Universal Catholic Church. It saddens me to see fellow brothers fall.
The Papacy, now more than ever, must not show the world a pompous apology ceremony. It must return to the heart of Christianity; to recognize that there has been sin, to fall publicly--with the world as its audience--at the feet of Jesus, and show the world what it means to become restored through the blood of Christ.

A Fun Lession on Economics

I saw this video a few weeks ago and I thought it was a fun way to present economic principals. If you would like to see it,click here. Just be warned, though, it's a nerd's video.

Who should interview Hugh Hefner?

Last Saturday I attended an event called “Faith, Film and Philosophy,” a daylong conference discussing art, faith, philosophy, and how that all relates to film. Many good ideas came from the afternoon, and they will probably pop up in future posts, but this post has to do with Christian journalism.
The lecturer, Dr. Douglas Geivett, professor of Philosophy at Biola University, was answering questions and expanding on the topic on the need for Christians in Hollywood. He told the story of a Christian worker in the industry; she felt God was leading into her into a particular job she had been praying for and miraculously, she got it.
The job was, quite simply, to conduct interviews of famous people. In the meeting to decide on the first person to interview, she suggested Billy Graham, but that subject was dismissed and they settled on Hugh Hefner. What was a Christian supposed to do?
She trusted God and went ahead and interviewed Mr. Hefner. The interview brought out the early life of the adult-industry mogul and showed why he made the decisions he did—it showed the man behind the actions.
Hugh Hefner was also touched by the interview. He wrote a note thanking the interview team for conducting such a good interview. Somehow, the interview spoke to Hugh’s soul, and his aides said that it was like a therapy session for him.
There is no place a Christian cannot go to minister. Sure, only a few Christians can go into a situation like that—not all Christians belong everywhere—but a Christian was able to interact with a very un-Christian man, and produce a good work. Who should interview Hugh Hefner? Christians, with love in their hearts and a desire for truth are able to reach out with love and touch even the most broken.

Why I Hate Becoming Green

Last weekend I visited Gordon College in Wenham Massachusetts for a debate tournament. Like many colleges and institutions these days, Gordon made the switch to a greener campus. The most visible change was the numerous containers for waste products. They had two kinds, the first read: "single-stream recycling bin, Gordon recycles!" And the second: "Non-recyclable waste, Gordon recycles!" I wish they simply called the latter what everybody else calls it—a trash can.
All that emphasis on environmental friendliness bothered me. The end goal of the Green movement is convince us to live in a manner which has little or no effect on the environment. The emphasis on using less energy, developing renewable energy and managing the resources we have in this world are all laudable. But there are more important things in life than the earth and the Green movement is getting in the way of those goals.
We sacrifice lives and progress when we give up for the environment. We don’t have any CFC’s in our lives because they were banned several years ago due to the widely believed fact that they depleted the ozone layer. CFC’s made firefighting more efficient, saving lives. Scientists have now discovered that the ozone depletion at the South Pole is naturally occurring and CFC’s were not an important factor in the depletion of the ozone. But they are still banned, making our lives difficult because we have to use less efficient alternatives to CFC’s.
Many Green projects can only be supported by the government, which increases the power of the state. Ethanol is mixed in our gasoline to make the mix more environmentally friendly. Currently the Government supports the Ethanol industry through subsidies. This is all fine and good except that this policy creates less efficient gasoline, a car which emits different, not fewer, toxins, and an industry dependant on the state for its existence. Currently, ethanol is not the bright, new energy future we are looking for, but if the Government were to discontinue the subsidies, the whole industry would collapse, destroying thousands of jobs. The ethanol program has made government bigger and created a need for government in a place where it should not be in.
Blind fervor is driving many green projects, not science or logic. We only have to look to global warming to see numerous examples of this. The loudest spokesman for climate-change is a politician who didn’t get an award in science, but a highly politicized Nobel Peace Prize. (The Nobel Peace Prize is now reduced to a joke) And the most recent fiasco of “Climate-gate” demonstrates how politics, not an unbiased approach to science, drives the Global Warming scare.
Environmentally friendly programs and acts are not all bad. If a green action makes sense and truly provides saved energy and more efficiency to people, it will be adopted. But we need to think before we act. Not all green programs are beneficial, not all environmental issues are urgent. Right now, I await the day when the true, level headed solution comes along to our environmental obstacles. The rest, I scornfully discard.

A Tale of Two Churches

It was the best of times; it was the worst of times. It was the age of wisdom; it was the age of foolishness. It was the season of light; it was the season of darkness. There was a church which had a traditional service and contemporary thinking in one town. In the next town there was a church which had a contemporary service and traditional thinking.
The white church with a steeple that probably held a real bell has been around for at least 150 years, and the organ takes up a notable portion of the worship space. When the congregation gathers, they sing traditional hymns to the organ and then listen to an uplifting sermon by a talented preacher on Sunday morning.
The reality is this congregation practices religion. They get to go to an event filled with show and ceremony and aesthetics because that is what Christianity is all about to them. They try to preserve that bubble as much as possible.
In that church, I have been told not to put anything on the communion table and to refrain from wearing hats in the sanctuary. Rules of respect. Yes, it is a sanctuary, but when I am in it, it is not a worship service I am attending—it is usually my violin practice. They show respect for the space because that is all they have to their Christian experience. For some Christians, they hold tightly to the rules and aesthetics because that is the only thing they have left after deluding Jesus and the Gospel.
Contrast our church, or any other modern Evangelical church building. The electric guitar sits in the corner—not a traditional church music maker for sure. The space is informal, and the stained glass is usually vacant on the building. The walls are sheet-rocked. The building aesthetics don’t matter much because when it comes down to it, the building, the songs, the preacher and the people don’t matter. Jesus does.
Am I advocating wearing hat and being generally rude in Church? No. these rules are unwritten in some churches because we seek respect and honor for a person—Jesus—and not a place. It is actions which grow from a spontaneous honor for God, because we did not delude the gospel.