Friday, August 1, 2008

Untitled

Hello, reader. It's been a while. I made a New Year's resolution to do two posts per week, but that hasn't panned out too well. Maybe it's just my undisciplined nature.

I'm watching Band of Brothers right now with Dad and Nicholas, and it's wicked good. Nicholas just tried to kill a fly on the coffee table and prissily slapped at it, attempting a manly deathblow (he failed on the adjective).

Anna was over all week (her family is out of town), so we had plenty of time to catch up. I love talking to that girl. I haven't had much chance to over the past few years, but coffee a few weeks ago and the mornings and evenings this week were wonderful. She's inspiring, really.

Mom and Emily left for New Jersey this morning (hence the Band of Brothers boys' night in) at 6:00, and I, being the kind son/brother that I am, was their chauffeur. By 6:15 I had three shots of Starbucks espresso in me, so I was awake, albeit not wide awake. Mom was asleep next to me and Emily was in the back, listening to her iPod (she wouldn't tell me which song she was listening to on the ground that I would make fun of her for being girly -- I probably would've). Approaching the exit for 285-W, I looked in my rearview mirror just in time to see the car behind me swerve, lose control, arc around, and slam into the left barrier facing backward, causing a head-on collision with the car in the left lane. Seeing another driver, ostensibly for lack of sleep, lose control of his car is a sobering thing.

I picked Desiring God (John Piper) off of my shelf (I was feeling a bit down this morning when I got back from the airport - pining over several lost opportunities over the past month) and started reading; it was really encouraging. Piper has a way with preaching that makes everyday problems pale in comparison to the glory of God. I so enjoyed it that I went back to my computer, pulled up iTunes, and listened to one of his sermons - it was brilliant. Funny thing is, Piper is as deep for me now as I thought Pastor Johnny was when I first heard him preach. I suppose that's a sign of maturity.

In any case, he talked about the parable of the prodigal son, one which I've read dozens of times over the course of my life. He said that sometimes you can read ten verses and find ten incredible gifts from God. Sometimes you can read fifty verses and find only one particularly profound statement. He quoted Luke 15:30:

"[B]ut when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him."

Is there any better picture of God's gift to us? Is there any better description of grace toward wretches?

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