FYI…

ADHD adults can tell you they are working really hard to get mentally organized—expending tons of energy on it—yet are frustrated that they get consistent feedback from important people (teachers when younger, parents, spouses, friends) that they aren’t working hard enough. This confuses hard work with results—and the two are sometimes strikingly disconnected for those with ADHD. One person I know described what it feels like to have ADHD as “having the Library of Congress in your head, but with no card catalogue.” Think about how hard it would be to get organized—a Herculean task!  Dealing with this sort of mind 24/7 can lead to a sense of helplessness—a sort of “I’m dancing as fast as I can so please don’t ask more of me” feeling.  Sometimes that feeling is voiced (and often met with a disbelieving, “Then why aren’t you doing better if you’re trying so hard?” from a frustrated spouse or parent.)  Sometimes the “I’m dancing as fast as I can” feeling is not voiced but simply leads to feelings of overwhelm or paralysis.

Read more here

Wise Words for Confused Times…

Dr. Jenell Williams Paris is the author of The End of Sexual Identity: Why Sex Is Too Important to Define Who We Are. She told Relevant that Christians need more than rules to live chastely. What’s often missing, Paris believes, is a compelling story and an understanding of the “whys” behind the rules. To explain what she means, she uses the example of parents teaching their little girl to look both ways before crossing a street:

A young child may follow this rule solely because of the power of her parents’ authority, which is appropriate. As she grows, the child [continues to look both ways,] but for a deeper reason that she owns for herself. She sees the broader context of traffic, understands the benefits and dangers, and makes choices accordingly. Rules are external and authority-bound: Maturity requires knowledge of why to do the right thing, not just what the right thing is.

 

Read more here

Just Reading…

an article on sexuality where a person in favor of abandoning the historic Christian wisdom on this quotes the Golden Rule, urging the readers to allow others to follow a different path rooted in a permissiveness based on how they would like to be treated themselves. If you enjoy marriage how can you follow the Golden Rule and deny others the right to the same?

Well, as it turns out if I get caught up in some form of darkness I hope people, inspired by love and in a firm but caring manner, come to my rescue. I hope they would do this for me not because they are malicious but because they care. Yes, it would be hard to hear. Yes, it may not be received by me at the moment as words I wish to hear. Yet I would wish to have that done to me, to have someone say “John, have you considered the path you are taking can be laden with trouble?” “Have you considered that where you are at might not be the healthiest place?”

At its heart the Golden Rule is not about “Live and let live” so much as it is a call to remind those who are helping the other, who are encountering the other, to do so in a manner reflecting not harsh judgment or exalting oneself in the face of another’s sins and struggle but rather to be both truthful and merciful, to approach the wounded, the other, the lost, the struggling, as you would like to be approached if the positions were reversed.  It reminds us of our mutuality as sinners with each other and also of the grace that is available to all as well.

Yes, Virginia, there is right and wrong and a right and a wrong way to proclaim and live it as well. Thus the Golden Rule.

I Think…

that perhaps one of the reasons the imperfections of the world, both minor and horrible, are allowed to continue is to stop us in our tracks, remind us of what might be, and call our thoughts higher. Everything here is temporary. Everything here, no matter how good or beautiful, is tinged with sadness, colored with imperfection, flavored by a struggle. Its a kind of wisdom to understand this and to, upon reflecting on it, live lightly on this Earth and fully in the Kingdom of God.

I've Just Woken Up…

from a most beautiful dream as I often dream deeply in the early morning.

I was in an Orthodox Church and it seemed it was just before the service. As I left the sanctuary I saw a former parishioner of St. George Church, George Strickland, who recently reposed after an illness,  censing the church. This caught my attention and I came up to him and said “George what are you doing?” There was no answer but I gave him a hug, he was a big guy and although his sickness had taken the weight off he was healthy. In the dream I recognized that he had died and I asked him if he was okay. He responded “Yes” and then I asked him if he was with Jesus and he answered “Yes.” He then said to me “I’m praying for you.” and the dream ended as I walked the streets of a town elated and light in spirit.

May God give rest to the soul of His servant George and great comfort through this dream to His handmaid, Jennie, who stood by George as his wife, caregiver, and friend in George’s journey.