Peaceful Resistance and Subversive Conformity →

John Mark Hicks consistently churns out thoughtful (and timely) content on his site. His latest post is no exception. He walks through 1 Peter 2:13-17 to talk about “living as exiles in an empire.” If you have ten minutes, read the whole article and chalk it up as your theological workout for the day (don’t worry, it’s a light workout that leaves you feeling accomplished—not dead—at the end of it).

If you can’t spare ten minutes, here’s the turn from 1 Peter to reflecting on current events in U.S. America:

I find it rather distressing (saddened rather than distraught) that Christians in the United States live in such fear of the future, specifically the loss of a “Christian nation.” This fear generates anger, suspicion, hateful rhetoric, and despair. It is misplaced “fear,” and reflects misplaced allegiance (or authentic fear, the worship of God).

1 Peter called its first readers to live in hope, gentleness, love, and reverent awe among the nations. Without doubt, the imperial Roman culture was saturated with non-Christian values, commitments, and practices. These shaped every aspect of that culture—education, entertainment, and civic religion. Their children, nor anyone else, could escape that cultural reality and influence, and they won’t escape in our present culture. Yet, Peter—though realistic about the harsh criticism and hostility of that culture—calls believers to a way of life that is saturated with goodness and hope.

The Economy of Words →

Another great episode of Luke Norsworthy’s podcast. Luke had a great interview with Nadia Bolz-Weber, a Lutheran pastor in Denver. My favorite part was her discussion of 12-minute sermons and why she rarely exceeds the allotted time: she believes in the “economy of words.”

Here’s the full description of the episode, in case it helps pique your interest:

Nadia Bolz-Weber returns to the show to discuss Luke’s visit to House for All Sinners and Saints, Nadia’s re-connection with the churches of Christ, twelve minute sermons, church plants as a birthday party you throw for yourself, well-differentiated leaders, democratizing church and of course, CrossFit.

When the Music Finds You →

M.G. Siegler:

There’s something different about hearing a song you love on the radio. It just sounds better.

I know that sounds absolutely crazy. And, in a way, it is. I mean, a song is a song. It should sound the same no matter how you hear it. Or maybe over radio it should actually sound worse given the relatively low fidelity of radio.

And yet, it sounds better. You simply cannot convince me otherwise. This has been on my mind this week following the launch of Apple Music.

It’s sort of like when a movie comes on TV. It’s one that you would have never picked to watch, but because it’s on TV you decide to watch it. You may even own the movie, but you choose the worse experience (i.e. ads) because it’s what was presented to you.

Last week’s Accidental Tech Podcast highlighted the negative side of radio, namely the inability to skip songs because it’s live. But now that the music industry has shifted to on-demand access to almost any song ever written, it’s nice sometimes to have something chosen for you. Something you can’t skip. It feels retro. That’s how M.G. closes his post:

In the age of hunting and pecking and searching for music amidst endless catalogs and repositories and libraries, there’s something great in this process being taken out of your hands; in not choosing what to listen to, but having the music find you. And in it being a song you want to hear, even though you maybe didn’t know you did at that moment.