Entries in this category probe deeper thoughts about old age. Spirituality, self-image, relationships, hopes and yearnings — all the stuff of self-talk and core meaning for people who are older.
Today’s entry offers you some updates about malignant miscreants who want to steal your identity. You may be the recipient of online notes like the following click-baits. First the lures and then their spiritual correctives. YOU HAVE BEEN REWARDED OR AWARDED. You are the surprise recipient of cash (or its equivalent) from a source that seems trustworthy. YOUR SECURITY ARRANGEMENTS ARE ABOUT TOMORE...
In a perfect universe, each of these blog entries would break new ground. Or at least find some unexplored conceptual niches close to the heart of older adults. In the real world, I know that I repeat myself, obviously or otherwise. And if that happens too frequently, I could become a *yammering older fellow, something I dread. It’s not so much the repetition that stands out as a problemMORE...
Ever since our state legalized sports betting, our airwaves started filling up with high-energy ads enticing us to engage in what appears to be this exciting, shared activity. The message remains inviting: “It’s about sports, so you can’t lose!” Let me be direct: Sports betting is not about sports, and you will lose. Sports betting may seem benign compared to playing against a casino’s machinesMORE...
In one of his *most famous works, 17th century English poet and Anglican cleric John Donne penned two memorable metaphors: “No man is an island,” and “(the bell) tolls for thee.” Too often my mind races to the second phrase. Thankfully, Donne counteracts my over-active morbidness with these additional reminders: “The bell doth toll for him that thinks it doth.” There are other bell-ringings inMORE...
“Something good will come from this!” Some social commentators are starting to use words like these to describe possible positive results that could come from what appears to be a spreading tragedy for the whole world. These opinion leaders take us back to the end of World War II. They point out how that destruction of much of the world’s social and economic landscape also provided motivation forMORE...
This year, Lent is front-and-center for me. Not just the themes—self-examination, repentance, self-sacrifice, Jesus’ suffering and death—but also the emotions and actions that accompany those ideas. The cruel barbarism of the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine evokes my condemnation for this once-mighty country’s leader. The relentless, random bombardment of civilians recalls all theMORE...
At this moment, I’m running out of words. The ones coming at me seem overburdened from trying to carry something that’s too heavy for human expression. The words I’d like to send skitter around in my brain, waiting to capture the essence of my best thinking but clearly not up to the task. Like you, every day I face both what’s unspeakable and what’s ineffable. What’s unspeakable? The horrors of aMORE...
In order to take advantage of Scripture on a Sunday morning, we “read, mark and inwardly digest” the Word. As I understand the process, digestion involves teeth. And when it comes to naming sin and defeating evil, the Law has *teeth. There’s no mistaking what Law-based preaching and teaching talk about: Behaviors and thoughts that are forbidden, dangerous or ungodly. But what if we rememberedMORE...
As I write these few words, bullets and bombs are raining down on the people of Ukraine. An aggressor threatens Eastern Europe, and the specter of another world war haunts us. My older adult mind races: “What can I do about this horror?” One practical answer stands out strongly: It feels like you and I—and others who have come through other dangers and wars—are specially called to exemplify calmMORE...
“The times we’re in….” Perhaps accompanied by a sad or anxious sigh, these words set in motion a parade of other thoughts. How easily any of us can be frozen by our contemplation of the dangers, sorrows or evils of our day. Inaction solves nothing, but it may feel like the only approach open to us. But perhaps there’s another way out of all of this. Previously I wrote about kenosis, how JesusMORE...
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.