I’m kind of a political nut.  Yeah, I’m into things like AM talk radio, op-ed pages, and keeping a cable news channel running in the background of wherever I am.  That’s me.

My dream job is being a pastor, so I can’t complain.  But a close second would be that of “professional cable news talking head.”  Part of me would love to be one of those guys that occupies a quarter of the screen on “Hardball” and trades jabs with someone in another quarter - say, James Carville or Paul Begala.  So sad.  But so true.

And amongst cable news junkies, political wannabes, and folks who just plain liked being “in the know” there was really no bigger, more respected name than Tim Russert.  Each week as host of “Meet the Press” he interviewed the major players in American politics and did so with great intensity and unusual balance.   He made politics simple and palatable to the oft-confused masses like yours truly.

But what I liked the most about the guy was how real he seemed.  He was unabashed in his love for Buffalo, NY.  He talked a lot about his son, he wrote a book about his dad.  He went to church every Sunday.  If my own father had somehow worked his way out of the railroad, got a degree, and made a name for himself talking about things like the electoral college and super delegates, I imagine he would be exactly like Tim Russert.  I think that’s why I liked him.

My fondness for the guy was reinforced when I read this article.  In outlining his final hours it talks about how the guy took a break from prepping “Meet the Press” to go hang out at his sons’ apartment and wait for the cable guy to show up.  This is a man with millions to his name.  He was the most influential television journalist in the U.S.   He was on a first name basis with every living President.  He’d hung out with the Pope.  And yet he dropped everything to do his kid a favor and wait for the Comcast dude to show up.  [pause] I love that.

I really respected the guy for the excellence with which he handled politics.  But I respect him even more for the way he handled his priorities.

May the same be said of me.

Last week I took the Flip with me to capture some brief clips from my day off.  Actually, each clip is exactly 5 seconds long.  It starts with morning trip to Starbucks and ends with watching Sportscenter.  Why did I do this?  I’m glad you asked.  [pause] I have no idea.  But I hope you get a kick out of it.

My Day Off - in 45 Seconds from Matt Popovits on Vimeo.

As you’ve noticed I’ve been off the blog quite a bit in the last two weeks.  My apologies.  It’s been a very rough couple of weeks in my family.  In the last 13 days we’ve traveled back to Michigan twice in order to bury close relatives.  No fun.  Very sad.

If you get a chance, keep the Popovits clan in your prayers.  I’ll be back.

Jesus lives.

I’m surprised.  I thought Christians were concerned about the state of marriage in America.  I thought followers of Jesus had a lot to say about how marriage was intended to be one man, one woman, committed to each other for one lifetime.  I thought that those who loved both God and God’s world were going to be there to remind us that marriage between a man and a woman is not simply a construct of society but the actual bedrock of society.  I thought that thousands, no millions would be there to voice their alarm, their dismay, and to to fight back with a vengeance.  But I was wrong.  And I am suprised.

More than three weeks ago the California Supreme Court struck down the state’s ban on gay marriage.  And yet it seems that there has been little to no reaction from those who believe in the biblical (as well sociological and anatomical) view of marriage.  Perhaps what little reaction there is was overshadowed by debates over possible Democratic nominees for president, or earthquakes in China.  Or, they’ve just stopped caring.  Or, they’ve just given in to the inevitable.  Or, they’re gathering steam for a big offensive…somehow I doubt it.

For an troubling but intriguing take on this ruling read Anna Quindlen’s Newsweek article.  She cites a great quote about gay marriage from second century Rome.  Although she fails to mention what ended up happening to Rome.  Yes “love won” as she writes, but the people lost…then and now.

Right now I’m traveling back from attending the funeral of my grandmother. My mom’s mom was a fascinating woman. The wife of a World War II vet, married for 61 years, mother of 5, lover of chocolate. The list is long.

And with every funeral I attend or officiate I am reminded of the stark reality that no matter who you are, what you’ve accomplished, how great your family is, how loved you are - no matter what - unless you die a child of God, you not only die without hope, you have lived, labored, and loved ultimately, in vain.

The verse that resonates in my head as I type this is Psalm 127:1. “Unless the Lord builds the house, it’s builders labor in vain.”. Why? Because it won’t outlast the biggest and baddest of storms: death.

We often think of this truth in the context of some rich dude who does a lot of nice stuff yet doesn’t know Jesus and thus loses it all in the end. That would be the accusing, “law” side of it all.

But I prefer the Gospel side - the good news side. You see, this also means that if you happen to build a modest house, a house of love and family, yes, but also a house of mistakes, struggles, and imperfections, yet build that imperfect house holding on to Jesus then you’re all good. Your house will have all it needs; your house, your life will endure forever.

My grandmother spent her 79 years allowing God to build a beautifully imperfect house. And in the hour of her death we were able to celebrate not just who she was, but who God is and the fact what they built together still stands.

Right now I am sitting on an American Airlines flight getting ready to depart Chicago. The flight attendant dude with highlights in his hair (didn’t the whole guys with chick highlights thing go out in abou 1999?) just announced that “Yes, pillows and blankets are available…for 5 dollars.”

Yeah, you heard it correctly. If you’re cold or in need of a mildly comfortable nap you’ll first have to pay up like a kid being bullied on the school yard.

What the hades is going on?

Amen. Come quickly Lord Jesus.

After this post there will be no more Starbucks discussion for a while.  I promise.  But this morning I found something just too crazy to ignore.

A Christian group in San Diego has called for a boycott of Starbucks claiming that the retro-style logo the company has been using over the last several weeks is extremely offensive.  The logo - a throwback to their original branding of the 1970’s - features the barely discernable image of a topless, two-tailed mermaid, which apparently has its origin in some 16th century, norse folk art.

Now, I’m all for Christians taking a bold, vocal stance against things like pornography or the excessive and degrading sexualization of almost everything in our culture - right on.  But this?  This?  Am I alone in thinking this is nuts?

We live in a world where babies are getting aborted at an ever-increasing rate, our kids are being sexualized from the day they are born, gay marriage is about to become a national norm, and almost 150,000 people have died in the last week from natural disasters [pause] and this is what some followers of Jesus have their undies in a bunch over?  That alone makes me want to go there even more.

Now, I do think there is a larger discussion here about the common Christian struggle to discern art from atrocity.  That is, many Christians struggle to figure out when something is “okay” to look at and when something is a “sin” to look at.  The human form is a great example.  Are we to believe that Michelangelo’s David is art but an old Scandanavian drawing of a naked mermaid is inappropriate?  Why - because one sits in a museum and another is printed on a coffee cup?  I don’t think so.

Besides, even if we did decide to boycott Starbucks where else would we go for our overpriced coffee?  McDonald’s?  “Yeah, I’ll take a McGriddle and a non-fat latte…”  Now that would be a sin.

It’s official. I have any addiction. It started so innocently. “I’ll just try it. I can stop if I want to.” Pretty soon, it was any everydat thing - something I found myself thinking about from the moment I woke up and looking forward to at night.

Yes, I am addicted to Starbucks. I love it. My drink of choice? A grande Americano with no room for cream. I’m not even really sure what that mean! But I love it.

Here’s how bad it is. Right now Lisa and I are enjoying a quick getaway in New York City. We are sitting in the midst of one of the richest, most diverse communities that has ever existed. And where am I? Sitting in a Starbucks - one that looks exactly like the one I frequent in Katy, Texas.

Sure, I could be sitting at the Carnegie Deli right now or clamoring to get a glimpse of Al Roker’s bald head. But instead I’m listening to a barista yell the words, “Iced chai tea late’? Hello? Iced chai tea late’?!”

In a world so diverse and so unique - a creation that holds within it almost infinite possibilities for enjoyment - I have often wondered why God would seemingly wire us to be creatures of habit. Why would he give us this world and then place something in us that desires continuity, stability, and that “just like I’m used to” feeling? Any ideas?

Why do we crave egg Mcmuffins - or fricking Fruity Pebbles - when we could have almost anything else, particularly in North America?

One thought is that our desire for routine is not a part of how we are created but a response within us, a survival reflex in response to the fall into sin. Once death entered the picture in the garden of Eden and our relationship with God and peace in our earthly relationships were ruined and life became more of a crap shoot, we responded by grabbing hold of the things we CAN control and trying to find peace in them.

I’m not sure. What do you think? But then again I could be over thinking things. It’s just coffee. (sip) Damn good coffee.

Is it just me, or does every pastor either have a shaved head or some kind of intricately groomed facial hair creation plastered on their head?  The only reason I bring it up is because at this very moment I find myself at a conference full of pastors and as I look around the room, nearly every dude (myself included) falls into one of two camps:  they’re either completely, utterly bald or they have some kind of well-groomed follicle creation plastered to their mug.

For real.  I am looking around the room and it is frightening to me.  And then, there are the handful who have chosen to combine the best of both worlds: the shaven head, facial hair combo - which only a select few people on the planet have been known to successfully pull off.

Is this phenomena limited to the world of guys who preach, teach, and hang out at churches for a living or is it spreading across the country as a whole?

For the record, the only reason I sport the chin-strap style facial hair is because a). God gave me no distinction between face and neck.  I have a “fack” - a strange combo of face and neck that makes me look like Beaker from the Muppet Show; and b.) without it there is little distinction between me and a 12 year-old version of me.

Here’s one thought.  Perhaps (being pastors and all) they’re using their growth and management of hair as a type of spiritual discipline?  Maybe they’re taking a cue from Martin Luther who once compared our tendency to sin with facial hair?  He wrote: “Original sin is in us, like a beard. We are shaved today and look clean, and have a smooth chin; tomorrow our beard has grown again, nor does it cease growing while we remain on earth.”  Maybe?

I doubt it.  Most likely they are going bald and trying to be hip.

That’s all I’ve got.  I just had to share.

Yesterday Barack Obama sold out.  He knows it.  His pastor knows it.  And most importantly, the Democratic Superdelegates know it.  If he wasn’t already, Obama is now officially a politician.

If you didn’t catch it, yesterday Obama officially and completely denounced his pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright.  This comes after Wright - a pillar in the world of Black Liberation Theology, a liberal “Christian” movement that focuses more on social justice issues than the gospel of Jesus Christ - had made a series of completely racist, ignorant speeches over the last few days.  You’ll recall that just last month Barack took major heat due to clips of Wright’s sermons making the rounds on cable news wherein he “damned America” among many other things.

So yesterday, needing to protect his run toward the Presidency, Barack did what a ‘good’ politician must do.  He threw his pastor, their relationship, and likely, their future under the bus.

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