Grateful for Caroline Ross’s convicting label “Hubriscene” for this era.

The Christian ought to “know your enemy” so that they might better love them.

Timeless wisdom from the Old English Christian poem, Precepts: “Be ever wise in songs, wary of desires, a guardian of your words.”

A lovely meditation: "A Harvest Festival: The Theological Sophistication of Mice" by David Knowles over on his substack: open.substack.com/pub/davidkno...

I am always amazed at both how wonderful and how dismal New York City can be. Really is an amazing place.

The first Silmarillion map. Drawn by Tolkien on an unused page from a University of Leeds examination booklet.

Disabling Twitter. AI and Social are a nexus I do not want to encourage.

A grumbling heart is a dangerous thing because it may be birthed with a true grievance, but it is maintained by sin.

Rilke is reason enough to spend years learning German.

“If you are a theologian, you will pray truly. And if you pray truly, you are a theologian.” - Evagrius Ponticus

I occasionally use ChatGPT as a sparring partner to hone my thoughts. While still useful, it's remarkably dumb and a liar. When you point out that it has lied, you get: "I misspoke..." It's a savant with a penchant for lying. Great.

Excellent article for pastors over on Substack: Humble Leadership and Humble Leaders open.substack.com/pub/a4mr/p/h...

In some sense, most of American Christianity is captive to a political hermeneutic that blinds us to Christ's appearing in our midst in the least of these.

Who'd have thought that Google would so screw up their own business of search, seeking to trap you in the search and not showing you results that DUCKDUCKGO would turn out to be easier to find things. We live in that world.

If you are in northern New Jersey and interested in being part of the regrowth of a historic reformed congregation (John de Witt's first pastorate), recently departed from the RCA into the EPC, PM me!

My kids adjusted all the levels on the soundboard by my computer. It could have been months or years ago—it's been collecting dust since COVID. I forgot the joys dialing in audio levels. But it means we can worship over Zoom even during a winter storm. It's worth it.

One of the less-loved Penn Stations, Newark, still has some of its grandeur if you look for it.

Let me welcome any discipline, how ever sore, which deepens and widens my sympathy. Let me bear my brother’s burden,and so fulfil the law of Christ. -Alexander Smellie

From Johann Gerhard’s Sacred Meditations:

Turns out the 2 miles from the parsonage to the church is all uphill. I biked to work while it was below freezing. Folks at church thought I was nuts. But the ride home tonight at 28° was glorious and it was worth it.

I bought some Werther's Originals to keep in my church office. It feels like a milestone.

The church is wonderfully huge. United in Jesus as his body, and he as our head—he, the one in whom all things cohere. Therefore, there is a sense in which in him we are intimately connected to all creation.

Awake, awake, to love and work!

Back here because Twitter and Reddit are mirrors of insanity—hoping this place is better.

Fresh meme from me to you:

In our evening reading time we came to my favorite line in all of the Chronicles of Narnia: “In our world," said Eustace, "a star is a huge ball of flaming gas." Even in your world, my son, that is not what a star is, but only what it is made of.”

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to you and yours! BoPfW Psalm 136a:

The annual Hobbit Seed Cake is made for the twins’ birthday.

Our annual “Hobbit Seed Cake” is in the oven for the twins’ birthday.

The news effecting a continent-spanning empire is nearly always distracting enough to help you lose sight of your neighbor.

Pastors, what is your Philosophy of Ministry in 3 movies? No particular order: 1. Calvary 2. Departures 3. Babette’s Feast (HT @cahutch1990.bsky.social).

10 movies to get to know me #hatm 1. Ikiru* 2. Calvary 3. Departures* 4. Babette’s Feast* 5. Princess Mononoke* 6. Lord of the Ring (extended) 7. Big Lebowski 8. Star Wars (1977-1983) 9. Indiana Jones (1981-1989) 10. A Charlie Brown Christmas * subtitled

thinking about another coffee at 3:58 pm:

Families are sacred relationships.

Glad @cahutch1990.bsky.social will still be here even if he leaves the other place.

The UI here is pretty decent. I just signed up for Mastodon... and boy, it is borderline unusable.

Nerd alert: I purchased a 1/72 Avro Vulcan bomber model kit for my "big" Christmas gift. I'm looking forward to finding it under the tree.

Nerd post: I will not buy the 1/16 scale model kit for an Easy Eight Sherman just because of the Veterans Day sale. Self control and limited budget. But boy, I wish I had the time for it.

Some days as a GTD’er you just put the whole pad in the inbox.

Seminary is just Vocation Bible School.

How I feel about leaving Twitter right now: