“Beware the Ides of March.” Most days are like nondescript puppies in a big litter; grouped into mutual obscurity made up of 24-hour periods whose names end in “y.” Tomorrow usually looks a lot like yesterday, but with a few more scars and wrinkles from what is likely to happen today. But, then, there are …
Category Archives: Weekly Post
Lincoln was right (and so was Biden)
Okay, here’s a quick-answer exercise – from the news, and from history – that will paint an interesting picture of where we’ve come, as a nation, in 154 short years. Two quotes follow: who was the nationally-notable political leader who was willing to say: “…a guy who’s a decent guy, our vice president…” Quote from: …
You’re heading for your own Red Carpet… and award
And the award goes to… The New Green Deal was running in the red last night as the movie world parked their Prius and Tesla fleets, dialed-up their carbon footprints and rolled the limos toward the Dolby Theater on Hollywood Boulevard. All 3400 seats were full of self-congratulatory professionals from the entertainment industry, assembled for …
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What would you do with a year’s pay on Presidents Day?
Happy Presidents Day. If you have time for catty conversation – and chose to speak that greeting in the barista line this morning – the person waiting for their Carmel Macchiato might respond with, “President? Which one?” The implication: lots of people these days have a hard time separating respect for the position and the …
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Sorry Forrest: Love is not a box of Valentine’s chocolates
America is a diverse culture with one common denominator: holidays. Think about it: we’ve gone from a “melting pot” to a burning caldron. In the old days, you didn’t lock your front door; today, you can have a doorbell that’s really a video camera – with a live-feed to your mobile – so you can …
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The game is not over…
Put the Buffalo wings down and step away from the game. It’s Game, over, this morning… but the effect lingers on. The contrast between the Super Bowl and the State of the Union (the political competition) is stark: a recent survey of Human Resource pros says that 27% of employees have missed work the day-after …
How smart people become fools
Leaders are readers… and lifelong learners. If you’ve been around this weekly conversation for awhile, no part of that first line is foreign to you; it’s at the core of this Monday missive. Only the arrogant end their continuing intake of wisdom from reliable sources: the leader who has a future is the woman or …
When our dreams match God’s dreams…
Most American holidays look back: a day denotes a happening, or, a date marks a birthday or beginning. Though today – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day – was chosen because of proximity to his b’day (January 15), the focus of the day is far more forward than past. Dr. King’s most historic manifesto was his …
Where do you stand?
Yesterday, there was a battle underway, so where do you stand? I’m not talking about Chargers vs Patriots, or Eagles vs Saints: for too many Americans, those conflicts captured their full attention on the Lord’s Day. We’ve got more nail-biting coverage next Sunday, leading to the Super challenge on February 3rd… but those are merely distractions, set …
Keeping the Main Thing the Main Thing
We’ve arrived… at the beginning. Here we are: New year. New horizons. New expectations. New focus. New energy. New opportunities. Amazing how a revision in the calendar can cause an intellectual and emotional reset on life. Everything that was operative – and, restrictive – about the things that surrounded you before the holidays has now …
Ditch the NYR (New Year’s Resolutions) burden: there’s nothing there
I hope I’ve gotten to you in time. If you’re under the influence (of the culture), you are probably feeling some pressure to come up with your version of the annual to-do list to upstage all former to-do lists: we call ‘em the obligatory “New Year’s Resolutions (NYRs).” Babylonians made promises to their gods at …
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Read this before Christmas dinner
Merry Christmas! One quick thought, and then you can get back to your Christmas focus. I want to remind you of an important grammar point that is most important against the backdrop of this holiday. Hope: it’s essential, for life. With it, you can tolerate and succeed against all opposition. Without it, you cannot continue …
We’re still waiting…
It was 100 years ago – in July of 1918 – when Czar Nicholas II and his family were executed in Yekaterinburg, Russia by Bolshevik revolutionaries.
Hallmark and Heaven are in cahoots…
Feliz Navidad, y Prospero Año Nuevo.
We’re seeing the resurgence of the Post Office; this is their big month. Our home mailbox should have a “No Vacancy” sign; Christmas Cards now outnumber new credit card offers in the stack.
Life’s Road Trip from Hallmark to Heaven crosses many milestones…
It isn’t over; it’s never over
The End? Or, the Beginning? On Friday, President George H. W. Bush died. He was 94 years old; his lifespan exceeded that of every other man who has worn the title of President in the United States. From Saturday’s account in the New York Times: His longtime friend and former secretary of state, …
High Priority: Revised Holiday Schedule
The Holidays. When you score an entry in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, you know you’ve created a unique meaning while using the simple building blocks of common vocabulary. “The” is a definite article: it sets up what follows as unique and significant, measured against all others. “Holiday” is another basic language marker that has come to …
The most important question you’ll ever answer to Jesus
Jesus asked, “What do you want me to do for you?” That’s an incredible question – wrapped around an offer – that would be amazing coming from anyone; it’s even more astounding when it’s posed by Jesus. How would you reply? It happens twice, recorded back-to-back in Mark 10; each offers a weighty insight about …
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How do we say “thanks” for sacrifice?
This is the “holiday edition” of my Point of View. Since 1954, November 11 has been deemed “Veteran’s Day.” A fitting tribute to the living men and women whose history of military service and sacrifice has made America’s continued experiment in freedom possible. Memorial Day honors the fallen; Veterans Day recognizes those who remain among …
The most important election in your lifetime?
Tomorrow is the most important election of your lifetime. That must be true. Donald Trump, Cory Booker and Barack Obama have all said so in the last few days. Candidates – and those pounding their drums – have all been saying so. It must be true. Run the clock back to this same date, in …
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Report from the Front
He’s back… Last Monday, I was writing from Jerusalem – just outside the walls of the Old City, about 200 yards from the Jaffa Gate. Our contingent of collaborators – drawn from our national contacts in The Master’s Program and The Barnabas Group – were amazing. Three dozen Kingdom leaders – most were marketplace players …
It isn’t Santa who’s coming to town…
The land of Israel is almost surreal. I’m sitting on the terrace of the David Citadel Hotel in Jerusalem; 200 yards away – to the west – are the walls of the Old City, and the Jaffa Gate. It’s 5:30am, and in an hour, the sun will come up over the ancient skyline. A few months …
Righteous is as righteous gives
It must be a big, big deal. I’m not sure that everyone in your circles today is inspired to earn this designation. In fact, it’s often used in a derisive manner, for people who reject a certain high-bar moral or ethical standard. At a time when people with character deficiencies win awards and elections, it …
Which best seller is the best?
Which best seller is better? “What kind of God wants you to be poor and miserable?” If there’s anyone who can ask that question and get a positive response, it’s Oprah Winfrey. Though her beginnings were meager – born into poverty in Mississippi to a single mom, raised in an inner city Milwaukee neighborhood, and …
What if you could help them Think Different?
“Hi Bob. You don’t know me, but I read your newsletter…” I was in an airport – waiting to board my flight back to Orange County (home) – when that chance encounter took place. He knew me… but I didn’t know him. How did he get on the distribution list for the Point of View? …
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How we can change the nation
All election, all the time. Is that a blessing? Welcome to the next 43 days of the American reality show. The “big choices” will be ours on November 6th: The confirmation process for the Supreme Court justice is the dramatic War of the Titans leading up to the winner-take-all contest that is just six weeks …
It’s about time
What time is it? Don’t ask Phil Connors that question: for him, it really didn’t matter. In the 1993 movie Groundhog Day, Phil was stuck in a strange time loop, repeating the same day, continuously. If life isn’t moving toward some significant futuristic horizon – if every day is just a do-over – then asking …
Here’s one for the books…
Books. “Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.” President Harry S. Truman is the source of that quote, and most people would agree. There are people who read and never lead: they are probably great students, but ineffective teachers. And, there are functionally illiterate leaders (able to read, but – because of …
The last word
America needs a day off. Last week was supposed to be the final lap around the summer track before returning to the sprint lane that puts everyone back in competition for the Fall. But some things aren’t planned in keeping with the normal calendar: death lands on life with little notice, and demands attention. Parties …
From home to hell…
What are the odds that your kids in college will reject your faith? This happens every year. For families, the summer break ends and “back to school/college” or becomes the critical transition point. Clothes, classroom supplies, shifts of routine and more become a demanding deadline. “First day of school” is on the calendar, and it …
What are you building?
“What did you do on your summer vacation”? In a bygone era, that question was a predictable “pop quiz” for the first day of school. Designed to get the cobwebs out of the students’ cursive grips, it challenged kids to put 10 weeks into 300 words. Today is “back to school” day, for me; my …