8 May 2014 Heart Conditions

Heart Conditions

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“I care not for a man’s religion whose dog and cat are not better for it.”

–Abraham Lincoln

While I love reading historical biographies of remarkable people, I’m particularly fascinated to learn about things that shaped their childhoods. What’s the real story behind the familiar one? What early events, influences, relationships and turning points affected them in their youth? What were those famous people like behind the scenes when their lives seemed more ordinary? Or like Abraham Lincoln essentially asked: How did they treat the dog and the cat?

The best stories, I’ve found, were in the kids’ section of our local library. Biographers often focused on childhood tales because of their intended audience. I will never forget one story about Abraham Lincoln. With all that has been written about that great man, this account is relatively unknown. Here it is, as I remember…

It happened one summer afternoon. Young Abe and his sister, Sally, set out to play in the woods behind their rustic cabin. They headed toward a certain stream. After walking a good distance, it felt good to cool their weary feet in the flowing water. Abe suddenly noticed a good-sized fish lingering in a deeper pool. He didn’t bring a pole, but made up his mind then and there to catch that fish with his bare hands. Positioning himself, he waited patiently for the right moment.Continue reading

Filed Under: 2014, Character, Experiencing God Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,
16 January 2014 The Predicament of “Otherness”

The Predicament of “Otherness”

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Years ago, a Harvard sociology professor spoke on the subject of “taming barbarians.” He maintained that across many diverse cultures and throughout time, the future and stability of every civilization depended on it. Barbarians were defined as boys and men, ages 15-25.

Barbarians, he said, tend to live for self-serving, short-term goals. Girls and women—as child-bearers—are fundamentally more interested in building the future. And so the taming force for guys comes down to whether or not they form committed relationships—through marriage and parenting.

However, in modern times (read: birth control and promiscuity) many young women are short-term-goalers too. Just think how many sitcoms and reality shows depict 20 to 30-somethings acting like junior high kids—cheating, lying, backstabbing, and hooking up. A & E’s Crazy Hearts: Nashville premiered last night offering just that.

And so marriage and family structures are at risk on more than one front. Committed relationships are the glue in all societies, and the lack of them brings instability and downfall. History is fraught with examples.

Maybe you’re offended by this professor’s analysis. I tend to agree with him, though I don’t see it as a gender issue—rather a human condition.

In our carnal nature, we’d like everything to be centered around our life, with others fitting in accordingly. We want control of the channel-changer. We secretly turn the thermostat up or down to our liking. Movies like The Stepford Wives (1975) and the recently released film called, Her (2013), explore the idea of spouses and lovers created as an extension of ourselves. We want the world to be “personalized” for us.

Google, Amazon, and Siri are constantly forming their sense of what we want, echoing our desires back to us. Pandora will make a radio station just for you. Writer, Cass Sunstein, says that this kind of thing is a form of modern slavery. Similar to Huxley’s Brave New World, “people have lots of fun, but their lives lack meaning or genuine connection.” Their desire for pleasure is both “seductive and soul-destroying.”

Basically, we’d like to eliminate the wildcard of another’s “otherness.”Continue reading

Filed Under: 2014, God's design, Relationships Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
6 September 2013 God Says it Best

God Says it Best

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On my last trip to Uganda, I was asked to speak to the older girls about sexual purity. I felt my heart sink.

Many of you know that my husband, Duncan Hill, started Uganda Orphans Fund in 2002 to rescue orphans and children at risk. On my first trip to Uganda, over ten years ago, I had asked a Ugandan woman named Eva the hard questions about AIDS in Africa. “This is catastrophic! Why don’t people talk about AIDS over here?”

She spoke calmly, explaining that their culture had deep roots in polygamy. In modern times, that translated to promiscuity—almost a male “right.” On top of that, women in Africa are far more dependent on men. “In your country, women are independent,” she said. “If a man puts sexual pressure on a woman, she can say ‘No.’ But here in Africa, if a young woman goes to work and her boss imposes on her—to refuse is the equivalence of anarchy.” In other words, she stands to lose everything. So men get AIDS and expose others, including their wives.

At the time, great efforts to stem the tide were already underway in Uganda. HIV rates had reached epidemic proportions in the 80s, but declined in the 90s due to a government campaign called “ABC”—Abstinence, Be faithful, or Condoms. Reports showed that promoting abstinence and monogamy were most essential in reversing the devastating spread of AIDS.

But cultural changes are not that easy.Continue reading

Filed Under: 2013, Biblical Foundations, Character of God, Dreams Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,