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hope

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Ashes to ashes

Increasing portions of the world’s population are today living in ash-infused rubble. Forest fires, wars and natural calamities have consumed their homes, their possessions, their occupations and their health. The ashes remind them how futile life may be—how long it will be for the debris to be removed and hopeful living to re-emerge. “Living in the ashes” might describe how people anywhere—butMORE...

Hopeful musings

Advent weather in the Northern hemisphere—darkness, cold, mixed precipitation, etc .—invites me into cozy caves of theological thought that I trust will eventually emerge as something useful. Today, two musings scrawled on the walls of this temporary hiding place: Hope and creativity, and End Times hope…. Chris and I are part of a congregation where creativity— demonstrated by pastors, staffMORE...

Finding hope in TV commercials

In our family, the sound gets turned off during TV commercials. It recently occurred to me that these soundless visual stories are doing more than selling products. Many of them may depict lived-out hope! I see a lot of ads related to health, automobiles, medical conditions, insurance and legal help. I witness pleas from charities and other non-profits, teasers for coming shows and a smatteringMORE...

Entertainment redux

As I write this, entertainment industry workers continue their strike. Threatened by economic and technological changes, they fear that their work may disappear. Legendary entertainment tycoon Barry Diller has warned that these strikes threaten to collapse the entire industry. Those stories may be good reason(s) for us to get ready for the slow changes to *entertainment as we know it. Perhaps weMORE...

Legacy revisited

(If you’ve been reading these entries for awhile, you’ll recognize legacy as a recuring idea. Today the same theme, but with a twist that might be helpful for your spirit in these times.) Some days it’s hard to find or hold a positive perspective about what’s occurring in our world. Years ago I wrote a book about *finding hope. I was convinced back then—as I am now—that one source for hope mightMORE...

Dealing with anger hopefully

It’s difficult to treat addictions of any kind, and anger addiction adds its own layers of complexity. The complications are easy to see: Anger is both an individual and group phenomenon. A subculture of anger-merchants has worked for decades to insert anger into the way this society functions. Fuel for continuing anger is easily accessible, so those addicted to anger may not seek help. PoliticsMORE...

Outliers unite!

  As I cruise the highways and byways of American senior adult life, I often come upon folks whose spirituality can be described as “outlier.”  Re-affirmed by *Malcom Gladwell, the term may also illustrate an important feature of older-adult spirituality: Individuals who don’t always feel connected to the usual manifestations of Christianity. Not all of us consider ourselves outliers, ofMORE...

Upfront uplifting

Lately I’ve been swatting away a foreboding that whirs around me like a mosquito looking for more than a good meal.  To be direct, the ongoing drought out West has gotten to my spirit. Various swatting-maneuvers—corporate worship, devotional reading, conversations, prayer—have helped for awhile, but then the pesky facts keep buzzing back: Californians will run out of water by August, part of theMORE...

Deferring dementia 2

This and the previous entry propose the likelihood that most congregations offer their members—perhaps especially older members—benefits that might help deter or delay the effects of Alzheimer’s dementia. Today several other possible factors that may match your congregation’s capabilities. Socialization No older adult benefits from being unknown. Research across a variety of studies has found aMORE...

Fearfully and wonderfully made 1.35

This blog is part of an ongoing series that answers this simple question: What might it mean for older adults to claim that they are still “fearfully and wonderfully made?” Today I want to invite you into a neurological universe called “neurogenesis,” which you will remember from Biology 101 in high school. (Actually, you WON’T remember this amazing capability of the [older] adult brain, becauseMORE...

Bob Sitze

BOB SITZE has filled the many years of his lifework in diverse settings around the United States. His calling has included careers as a teacher/principal, church musician, writer/author, denominational executive staff member and meat worker. Bob lives in Wheaton, IL.

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