Pushing the Boulder

A king called one of his servants to the royal grounds and pointed out a particularly large boulder that marred the beauty of his garden.  He ordered the servant to arrive promptly at 6:00 a.m. each morning and push on the boulder for as long as he could before reaching exhaustion.  While it seemed impossible [...]

The Bird’s Nest

When a young bird’s feathers and wing muscles are developed enough for flight, the bird’s parents will often push it out of the nest. With some species of bird, this can be a spectacular free fall from a dizzying height. With others, it’s not the fall they have to worry about but the [...]

Finish Lines

Be careful where you draw your finish lines. By that I mean, be sure that what you think is done is really done. President Bush drew a finish line for the war in Iraq a few years back. “Mission Accomplished!” I’m sure he has regretted that banner on more than one [...]

Wrong Way

As I got off the plane in Bangkok today, I noticed a man headed the same direction as me who had stepped onto one of those converyor belt walkways.  In Bangkok, these walkways are motion activated, and if you don’t notice the sign, you are sometimes surprised to find when you get on one that [...]

Audience of One

Researchers Bibb Latane and John Darley conducted a study in the 60’s on the power of social pressure.  They had subjects enter a doctor’s waiting room, thinking they were there for a check-up.  As soon as they arrived, they were asked to fill out a lengthy medical questionnaire.  Then, after a few minutes, the researchers [...]

Peter Pauper

Ever notice how many times in the Gospel accounts that Peter was doing the wrong thing?  He seemed to always be three steps in the opposite direction of where God wanted to go.  Here’s my possibly non-exhaustive study of Peter’s wrong turns:

John 1:35-51, Mark 1:16-20 and Matthew 4:18-22, Luke 5:1-11, John 21:1-25 – Peter was [...]