daily life as life goes on . . .

A birthday party for a 95 year old, putting in a new bathroom sink drain and preaching a sermon.

All in a weekend’s enjoyment.

Each activity had a different set of expectations and emotions.  For those who wish to remain on an even keel (a great boat metaphor meaning you don’t tip side to side), reserve your weekends for slow to wake and early to bed.  With nothing in between.

Rather??  How about a range of emotions, a spate of exercise and just plain fun.  That was this weekend.  I rejoiced with Mom Warkentin.  She is bright, energetic and constantly on the go.  I was frustrated by a sink drain that had rotted enough that a simple fix was not possible – and elated when new parts fit perfectly and fixed the problem.  And preaching?  A group of less than 20 were engaged and followed what I was saying – and that is always a joy for a preacher.

I popped onto ChatGPt to ask what are societal changes that have altered the traditional definition of masculinity.  Here is a quick “jot note” listing:

• Changing economic roles
• Shifting family dynamics
• Decreased sense of purpose
• Pressure to conform to new norms
• Need for emotional intelligence and communication skills

Does this make sense?

I’ve been thinking about prayer – especially since a small group meeting last night when we spoke on aspects of prayer.

I wonder if most prayers come in three formats:  Worship, wish/want, and witness.  These areas cover such things as Soul Care, Mental Health and Christian Mission. 

Not a bad combination for a world that is curiously introspective, suffers from the uncommon fear and misses the big picture of life.

Over the years I have tried to remain aware of cultural trends.  My first and only failure on a assignment in high school was a paper that was to highlight current affairs as reported in newspapers.  We didn’t get newspapers at the time so I just didn’t do the assignment.  Shame on me.  For the last 50 or so years I think I’ve made up for that!!!

As COVID wound down in 2022 a number of TV series (or Netflix series, or Disney+ series, or . . . ) have been recorded.  While I generally do not enjoy the salaciousness of many edgy videos, some of the series sound interesting or have actually been insightful.  The ones I enjoy are based on humour that points out inconsistencies.

I was remarking yesterday that often the ability to laugh in our day and age means we are at least aware of the culture around us.  We may be restricted to an echo chamber of our own social group – but can we see the inconsistencies (and hypocrisy)?  Or we may study more widely and understand a “world” culture and see the strangeness of the system.

For me, gut-wrenching laughter comes when a contradiction is pointed out in such a way that you know the speaker has put some thought into the monologue.  At the same time there is a sense that this contradiction needs to be remedied.  Good comedy pushes for change.

My morning thoughts in not such an ordered way . . . almost comical!