A few days ago a friend and I were having a conversation about Easter.  We were comparing it to Christmas and taking note that while Easter is technically the highest of Christian Holy Days, it tends to lack the sense of excitement and anticipation that comes so naturally to our birthday parties for Jesus.

While there are likely a lot of factors that contribute to this attitude in our churches and in our culture - (that’s assuming you agree that Easter gets treated like the ugly second-cousin to Christmas) - my guess is that it stems from a general ignorance as to ”why” Easter is such a big deal.  In other words, other than Jesus pulling the greatest party trick of all time by showing up alive, people have very little grasp of the historical, theological, and personal impact of Easter.

Christmas however is different.  Even a die-hard pagan can tell you that Christmas has something to with Jesus being born to save the world.  But Easter?  Not so much.  Ask your buddy at work why Easter matters and chances are he’ll stare at you like you’re Britney Spears fresh out of rehab.

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So here we go again.  Another politician, another person of power and influence, another man who “should know better” caught with his pants around his ankles.  The world acts shocked, the  24 hour news cycle drags up everyone they can to talk about all of the possibilities, the implications, and essentially to gossip like crazy about the whole thing.  And in the midst of it all you and I tune in, shake our heads, and say “tsk, tsk, tsk” - trying to act as if the same insane situation couldn’t happen to someone we love and respect.

Now, I don’t want to downplay what Gov. Spitzer got caught doing.  The guy - if all of the allegations are true - has sinned against God, his wife, his children, his office, his employees, the woman he engaged in this act with, her current/future husband and even her father.  He is in deep….sin.  If it’s true, he should publicly repent, he should step out of office, and in doing so prove that while this is indeed a private matter, that our private junk - when sick enough - has public implications.  Character counts, laws matter, and integrity is essential.  Amen.

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Can anyone tell me what the 8th commandment is?  Anyone?

Actually, it depends on how you number them but in my book the 8th commandment goes like this: You shall not bear false testimony against your neighbor.  Or, in other words, don’t spread garbage about people.  Out of fear of God and love for God we shouldn’t spread lies about someone at work, betray our best friend’s trust, slander someone’s reputation, but in all things defend others, speak well of others, and attempt to explain stuff in the best possible light.

Now, I admit that this is tough to do.  Talking smack about others is a favorite pasttime of most americans - myself included.  But still, God says to run from it.  Nothing good comes from it.  Speak the truth and speak it to someone’s face. 

I was reminded of this when I did my daily click over to the New York Times to check in on what’s happening in the world.  The lead story was some thin, vague accusation regarding Sen. John McCain and a questionable relationship in his past.  No sources were cited.  No hard details were given.  No counter-evidence was offered.  Just a lead story that essentially amounted to, “Hey, I once heard that McCain….”  That was it.

And while the story broke every rule of upright journalism it was still picked up by every other major news outlet, and by 7AM central time McCain was holding a press conference to call the story out as “untrue” and his team is heading into crisis mode trying to protect his candidacy from a sketchy story.

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I admit that, unlike most of my friends, I have never been much of a Bono fan.  I don’t own a single U2 album; although I do have a few tracks on my ipod.  Does that count?

I’ve also heard that Bono fancies himself a fan of Jesus.  And honestly, when I first heard someone tell me this I was completely skeptical.  I assumed that his was your typical Hollywood spirituality where one immediately follows up their statement about their affection for Jesus with a reminder of how all religions are the same, love is in the air, and hugging a sea turtle is the key to enlightenment.

But today my opinion of Bono’s spirituality has been solidified: he is the real thing.  The clincher - the following exchange from the fascinating book on the man (creatively titled Bono.)

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So, I’ve been really intrigued lately by the craziness surrounding Roger Clemens.  Accused of loading up on roids and HGH by his former trainer, Brian McNamee, the all-time great has been vigorously defending his reputation.

He’s held press conferences, released statements through his attorneys, and shouted at lawmakers in congressional hearings, all in an effort to convince the public that his crazy-good career is the result of hard work and raw talent not needles and pills.

And I’m not here to offer an opinion on who’s telling the truth.  Frankly, we should all know better than to believe that it is as black and white as one person lying.  Situations like this are always a mix of half-truths, misunderstandings, false motives, and dangerous assumptions that end up implicating all parties to some degree.  You and I both know that most of the time there is no clear good guy or bad guy, just one big mess.

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So, last night Amy Winehouse took home a couple of Grammys - 5 to be exact.  No one was really surprised - the girl has a truly unique sense of style, songs that make you want to hit ‘buy’ on itunes and a stage presence that oozes intrigue.

My take is that part of what makes her music so appealing is its brutal transparency.  Her hit single “Rehab” is a self-referential song telling of her refusal to get treatment for a substance abuse problem, something that the singer only very recently has sought help with.  Winehouse is your typical tortured and troubled artist - addicted to both illegal substances and dangerous characters (her boyfriend is currently in jail after fight in London bar) - and willing to fill her work with the truth and pain that such obsessions produce. 

It’s rare to watch someone perform and feel as if you’re reading their diary.  Such was the case last night when this girl looked into the camera, shook her fingers and said, “You know I’m no good.”  Yes, I do.

Seeing her reminded me of a question that I have often wrestled with:  why is it that some of history’s most popular and influential artists seem to be so messed up?  Why do we like them so much?

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Yesterday Lisa woke up not feeling so great.  And, as the day progressed, things just got worse.  By mid-day it was clear that she was down for the count.  This meant that I was in full-on daddy duty with the kid.  And while I do consider myself to be a pretty good parent, I realized quite quickly that all of my parental skills pale in comparison to those of my wife.

As I spent a good portion of the day trying to decipher the mumblings of a two year old, cleaning up messes, keeping her out of harms way, and dealing with periodic meltdowns (Ava’s meltdowns, not mine), I could not help but think, “My wife is a gift.”

My wife is a gift not simply in that she manages our home and teaches Ava as her full time vocation, no.  What makes my wife an incredible gift is in how she does it all: with patience, grace, joy, creativity, and a constant grasp of how each present moment is shaping our future daughter.

Lisa and I were high school sweethearts.  We’ve been together since we were 14 years old.  And what never ceases to amaze me is how the girl I got to know some 13 years ago has matured before my eyes into a confident, incredible woman of faith and grace.

I’m glad to say that Lisa is feeling fine today.  And I am feeling richly blessed.  “Give her the reward she has earned; and let her works bring her praise…” Prov. 31

I stumbled across something today that I just had to share.  Doing some reading on-line I came across a point made by Rick Warren that I thought was actually, dead on.  Some of you know that I am not the biggest RW fan - for reasons we can talk about in another post.

Yet, in coaching a fellow pastor Warren reminded him of how God has designed us to grow.  Warren said, “We grow by making commitments.  We don’t grow to commitment, we grow through commitment.”

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Heath Ledger could act.  He really, really could.  And those of you who know me well, know that I’m not one to hand out compliments for much of what modern Hollywood considers fine acting.  No, Heath Ledger was good.  He made guys like this and this look like the kid who played the lead role in your Jr. High production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

And yes, if you’re about to jump on my case ‘cuz the dude starred in Brokeback Mountain, just cut it out.  Yes, I completely disagree with the message and premise of the film.  But the man was astounding in it.  The other dude however, was a trainwreck.  And yes, I skipped the sweaty stuff.  Okay, back to the topic….

Of course, Heath Ledger is not the first young star to die “before his time” and sadly he won’t be the last.  Just how the guy died doesn’t mean a whole lot to me.  Rather, what gets my attention is how differently we treat the death of someone like Ledger than the death of others.  Now, I’m not talking about how his death gets more attention because of his fame - no, that is totally understandable.  I’m talking about something different.

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I try not to just post links on the blog.  It always seems like a cop-out from actually writing something myself.

However, this afternoon as I sat down to write a response to a recent article in Christianity Today,  I came across a response written by my buddy and fellow pastor, Joe Burnham.

He nails the errors made in the CT article, and points us in the right direction.   Take a read by clicking HERE.  There’s also a good response posted HERE.

Bottom line, salvation is a passive event done to us; not by us or through us.  Any other view only drives us further from Jesus in depression, thinking “dude, I suck.  If I were God, I wouldn’t forgive me” or filled with a prideful attitude saying, “thank you Jesus that I’ve got all my junk together unlike all those other losers.”  Which, is itself sin, thus leading you only to doubt your standing with God all the more.

That kind of thinking just don’t fit.