Motive

In Lewis Carroll's classic nonsense novel "Alice in Wonderland", Alice stands at a crossroads, uncertain of which path to choose. So she asks the Cheshire Cat which way to go. The Cheshire Cat insightfully replies, "That depends on where you want to go." 

Without knowing which way she wanted to go, Alice could go nowhere - she was stuck. An action cannot be taken in the absence of motivation: every action has a motivation behind it. 

There are two types of motives - moral, and immoral. Moral motives can lead to immoral results, as demonstrated by Les Miserables. Jean val Jean desired to feed his sister's starving family - his motivation was pure. But the theft he committed to fulfill that motive was wrong. Conversely, immoral motives can lead to good results. Pharaoh's refusal to release the Israelites from Egyptian slavery showed forth God's great power, through the plagues. 

If both types of motives - moral and immoral - can lead to bad results, then does it matter which motivates our actions? Yes, it matters a lot. God weighs the motives of the heart in weighing the action accompanying the motive. The Pharisees' righteousness was counted as filthy rags, because their motivation was pride. The tax collectors' repentance, though seemingly paltry compared to the Pharisees', was motivated by love for God. The attitudes of the heart, or motives, often differentiate between good and bad actions.

God is weaving all history into a tapestry of grace, regardless of evil or righteous motives. So let each of us play a role in Hisstory, doing our best to keep our motivations pure, to walk in the path of the righteous, and to remember that with God, nothing is impossible. 

Roman Opalka and Infinity

Roman Opalka died on August 6th, leaving a legacy of longing. Opalka, a painter who yearned for infinity, spent the last 46 years of his life in painting numbers on canvases. He painted numbers all the way from 1 to 5,500,000. 

Why? Infinity intrigued him, drawing him irresistibly to its pulsating fascination. He yearned to get as close to infinity as he possibly could. 

Some may think Roman Opalka's enterprise was silly, some may think it was admirable. But Roman Opalka was expressing the same longing for infinity that all of us have. Sometimes a beautiful piece of music arouses the yearning for infinity - sometimes it's a lovely landscape - sometimes it's a well-written book. But all human beings possess  that same longing for the infinite, the perfect, the beautiful - a desire placed in human hearts by the infinite, perfect, beautiful Creator.

What is Pragmatism?

A simple definition of Pragmatism is "whatever works". Pragmatism's focus is on efficient practicality.

Let's explore pragmatism through two main points:
1: Practicality
Pragmatism is, if you will, utilitarian. It focuses on the practical. "What do we need?" Pragmatism asks, "Which is the fastest possible way to get what we need?"
Pragmatism's highest goals are efficiency in practicality. However, this can lead to a serious problem ...
2: Short-sightedness
America is a very pragmatic society. We love to solve problems so we can get what we need - quickly!
But what happens when the most efficient way to solve a problem creates a host of other problems? Pragmatism has the answer. We simply solve those problems the most efficient way. That leads to even more problems created ... because we want what we want right now!
Ladies and gentlemen, Pragmatism's problematic problem-solving is how we got to the budget deficit!

Often, the godly answer to problems and getting what we want is just to be patient, work hard, and pray. God values patience and long-suffering more than efficiency, and wisdom more than Pragmatism's short-sighted problem-solving.

Are you real?

How do you know that you are real?

Really. How do you know? What proof do you have that this isn't just a dream?

Today I'll prove that you exist in three ways.
1: Self-Awareness

We wake up each morning with a keen sense of self-awareness. We don't wander around, looking for the cereal, and think, "Who is this person? Oh - it's me!"

We can't escape ourselves. We simply are ourselves, in a way that only we can know and tell.

However, self-awareness isn't enough by itself to prove our existence, as we are still aware of ourselves in a dream.
2: Limited Point of View

In a sense, you are all of the characters in a dream. You see into their minds, feel their emotions, and even control them. Obviously, life doesn't work this way.

In life, you know for sure solely what you are thinking, feeling, and can control only your actions. You are one of the actors who struts along the stage with no guarantee of what the other actors will do next.

You are limited to yourself.
3: Sense Perception

Sense perception is so vivid. We run our hand along a bookshelf and smell the faint scent of wood, see the dark grains that flow over it, feel the friction of our hand against its smoothened fibers, even hear the whisper of our hand against the wood.

There seems to be no doubt about whether or not sense perception is part of a dream.

Today I hope I've proven to you that you exist. Don't laugh. This is a serious matter that calls into question the entirety of reality.

Next time you feel like something's so wonderful that it must be a dream, praise God that we do exist!