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For the time being, I’m ignoring the toys and socks strewn across my living room to sit on my couch and drink tea. 

Sadly, we in the U.S. are not widely recognized as learners, as thoughtful disciples, as understanding people. We are still mostly known for our lack of language learning, our ethnocentricity, and our cultural imperialism, all understandably. But thankfully, we are growing.

Few things in life are as frustrating as a terrible job.

Reasons for our lack of lived-out unity are many. I offer four themes I’ve observed and questions to consider.

Love is a pretty big deal.

In college, I spent countless hours studying: polishing essays, working through complex derivations, learning new vocabulary. In the busyness, I was often drawn back to the greatest commandment: “Honor the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.” I wondered especially about honoring God with my mind. 

I’m trying to pray audacious prayers.

What if eternal life is less about the continuation of time forever and more about the removal of the limitations of time forever? Less about the “ten thousand years” and more about the divine irrelevance of years?

Over the next few days, many of us will look more closely at the cross than we normally do. But we will likely not linger there long enough.

My friend Jennifer leaned over my cubicle wall.

“You know when my whole life changed?” she said to me. “When I realized I didn’t have to just bake cookies all the time.”