Quick Hits of the Week

• Over at Michael Hyatt’s blog, Russ Crosson guest posts an interesting question: What would extending your retirement plans make possible? We sort of take for granted that sixty-five equals retirement in this country, but that’s not necessarily going to hold true forever, and it probably shouldn’t. Besides, if you’re doing work that you love (And if you’re not, why not?) why would you want to stop just because you’ve reached some arbitrary age?

• So, Dan Pearce of Single Dad Laughing has penned a very heartfelt rant about religion, love, sin, and judgement. There are points that he makes that I don’t agree with (sin isn’t a personal thing, at all) but I completely agree with the spirit of what he is saying. As a Christian, love is how I’m called, by Jesus, to live. Even if you’re gay. He even calls Christians to love their enemies.
  I’m going to climb up on my soapbox for a second. Why do we expect people who haven’t chosen to follow Jesus to all behave like Christians? Especially when we don’t? And more importantly, why do we keep passing laws to force them (ultimately at gunpoint) to act the way we believe? Do we really think we can bring them to the cross through legislation?  How arrogant of us. So, I don’t vote “Christian values” anymore. I just do my best to live them with mercy, humility, and love.
  I hope that Dan’s friend Jacob would feel welcome at my church. I hope that we’d love and welcome him.

• I’m a huge fan of the work Lenore Skenazy does over at Free-Range Kids. I don’t know if it’s the fear of litigation, or ever-present (but hardly realized) stranger danger that drives our culture to extreme risk-avoidance, but it concerns me. It’s not healthy to constantly take precautions against what might occur. For example, just in time for Easter: Beware of Palm Sunday.

• Instead of “Checkmate,” you have to say “Form Blazing Sword!“