Resurrected Blog, Resurrected Hope

 Wow, 10 years. 

Ten years since my last blog post.  The many blessings have also included bumps and bruises, and I feel as if now I actually have something to contribute in the way of wisdom. I will keep posting occasional updates on caringbridge.com regarding my health and that of close family.  But stop back here from time to time (or subscribe at the bottom) as I reflect on culture, faith and eternity.  For now, AI has gotten my attention along with most of the first world:

The oldest profession in the world was preceded by the oldest pastime in the world: The lust of males after the beauty of the female body.  And what we read about through the ages makes perfect sense in light of a good God and a sinful humanity.  Others have traced the trajectory of pornography through the years of pre-internet.  Most Gen Xers remember the relative inaccessibility of porn, with covered up covers stored safely behind the 7-11 clerk’s checkout counter.  Today, young teens do not merely have a rolled-up Playboy in their back pocket; instead, they have a 24/7 adult superstore with no clerks or checkout counters to be found. 

 

Unfortunately (in this case) in our modern culture technological ‘advancement’ seems to take place exponentially.  So, what may the future hold in this area with the advent of AI?  Many heard of the recent Taylor Swift images making the rounds on X with a superimposed digital nude body.  (Don’t worry, they were quickly taken down.)  Let me suggest what may be a mere matter of months away: Lightning-fast computer programs and apps that allow any subject on any screen to appear nude: from an image of a friend to a YouTube clip, and—yes, even in real-time walking down the sidewalk through Vision Pro Goggles.  The impact on marriages, families and society is overwhelming and discouraging.  Except for what I am observing this year. 

 

At many churches (in name only), let’s face it: no real transformation takes place.  At most churches long-haul life-change simply takes time, measured often in years.  But at a small, growing number of churches, real change can be observed week to week.  At one such church in Upstate SC, small groups of mostly young men and women work to address all sorts of behaviors, habits and addictions they desire to change.  Through mud, sweat and tears (it is messy), they dig into issues of family, the past, forgiveness, reconciliation; looking at how they have been hurt, honestly admitting where they have hurt others, and all this through the lens of God’s unlimited grace through Jesus.  

 

Jesus said, “I will build my Church.”  I wish it were much quicker, starting with my own heart, but it is happening, nonetheless.  And if you are not a Christian, what is taking place is difficult to explain away without supernatural forces at work.  That which appears to be shrinking is simply becoming more well defined, refined and beautiful with time.