Not many people get to see the Hulk smash through walls. However, it happened on my base in Afghanistan, on one of those days I'll never forget.
Keyboard Warriors, Cowardice, and It Just Got Real
ou know those guys. After a full day of playing Call of Duty from their mother’s basement, they splatter all over the INTERNETS how they would do such-and-such in combat, brag about their guns, post pics of them with their subdued US flag, OAF Nation, camouflage hats. But, they’ve never seen a shot fired in anger. As they say, everybody want to be a tough guy until it’s time to do tough guy stuff.
But I was aware of my lack of combat experience.
I Miss War
I spent May of 2010-April 2011 in the Pech River Valley of Afghanistan. Our area of operations included the Waygal, Chapadara, Shuryak, Korengal, and Watapur Valleys. There have been several books and movies written about that area – because it was a shooting gallery.
My battalion was involved in over 1200 “TICs” (Troops in Contact, involving direct and/or indirect fire) in less than a year.
Words Mean Something
Liturgy, Liberty, and a Ragamuffin Band
I love Rich Mullins, writer of “Awesome God”, and a dozen other songs popular in the 90’s in church circles. I love his music, his lyrics, and his story – he was a weird guy, but in an endearing way. One of his songs, “Creed” is essentially the apostle’s creed set to music, but with a chorus that goes like this:
I believe what I believe
It’s what makes me what I am
I did not make it, no it is making me
It is the very truth of God and not the invention of any man.
I did not make it – no, it is making me. There is something about submitting ourselves to beliefs and practices that are external to our own minds that shapes us in ways we would not have otherwise chosen.
Questions and Answers
For such is the nature of men, that howsoever they may acknowledge many others to be more witty, or more eloquent, or more learned; yet they will hardly believe there be so many as wise as themselves ~ Thomas Hobbes, "Leviathan"
There is a way that seemeth right to a man, but the ends thereof are the ways of death ~ Proverbs 14:12
We have never read, or believed, "just the Bible".
Before we could read, we were being shaped by our parents, our siblings, our playmates, our environment, our experiences.
Welcome!
This blog exists to help people grow as they answer the four questions: “What do I believe, why do I believe it, where did those beliefs really come from, and are those answers good enough?” There will be a mix of sections of books I am currently reading, biblical exposition, thoughts on current issues, and updates for the projects I’m working on. Thanks for stopping by, and please contribute to the conversation!