I’ve been pondering a suggestion by a reader that I go nooze-free here for a whole week, every other week. There’s too much bad nooze out there, and we who follow it are at risk of losing heart.
Other readers, including my editor, don’t want me to change. This blog is part of Chalcedon’s international Christian ministry; and considering the wide liberty they’ve allowed me, gratitude demands that I do my best to please them. But I want to please my readers, too.
I do try to lighten the burden by going mostly nooze-free on the weekends and offering three series–Joe Collidge, Byron’s TV Listings, and Oy, Rodney–that are there solely to perk us up. A good laugh is a gift of God. Plus we have posts about nature, history, Bible study, and any little oddities I think might be of interest.
I know the nooze is daunting; it certainly daunts me. But we don’t want to be like those Israelite spies who said it was a very bad idea to obey God and go forth to claim the Promised Land. Caleb said “Go for it!”, and he was blessed for that. We’re up against a bad patch in human history… but doesn’t God Himself say “Go for it”? Are we going to hide from the wicked, or stand up toe-to-toe against them and proclaim Christ’s kingdom?
As bad as it is, it’s nothing compared to what the early Christians faced. As Christ promised, the gates of Hell could not prevail against them.
The fight is long and hard and often discouraging.
But it’s our fight, and God is with us.