Blogging Again

I can’t believe it’s been more than two weeks since my last entry, but life is traveling fast these days.  Much faster than it used to.  The life of the “Interim Preaching Minister” is full, varied, interesting, and challenging.  It is stretching me intellectually, relationally, spiritually, emotionally, and imaginatively.  Inevitably, when I sit down to blog, I’m never sure what direction to go because of the wide array of things on my mind.   The Northwest Church is in the process of launching a blog related to what we are calling “The Between Journey” and the Arts Ministry is launching a shared blog as well.   So perhaps I will deal with the actual sermon series over on “The Between Journey” blog, and keep this one for more personal and artistic concerns, at least that don’t directly touch on the Arts Ministry.

The discipline of writing is a discipline of every day.  So I’m re-upping my commitment to start blogging again on a regular basis, so check back as you can.

Here’s what I’ve been engaged in terms of culture in recent weeks:  I’m reading my way through C. S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia, which I have never before made it all the way through.  Just finished Prince Caspian and am now starting The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.   Obviously, these are great books with straightforward sorts of stories, but with intriguing images related to Christianity.  I love what Aslan tells one of the girls (Susan or Lucy, I can’t remember) when she comments that he seems so much bigger to her.  He explains that he gets bigger as the children grow.  I chuckled, knowing how true it is–God is enormous, much larger than I thought he was, and I’m confident I’ll feel the same way ten years from now.

Movies?  Nothing great–popcorn fare, lately.   Just last night finished off a very long day of ministry and conversation with The Mask of Zorro (how did they get Anthony Hopkins to look that good early in the movie?).   Swords galore and silly, but it was fun.   Then there was Twister a few nights ago, which I’d never seen, and before that was The Last Kiss, the kind of film about marriage and infidelity that I sort of hate to watch, but the words of the wise old Tom Wilkinson character on the repair of a marriage rang true for me: “You do whatever it takes.”  The image of the poor sap who messed up (Zach Braff) camped out on his own porch (he’d been thrown out of the house) for multiple days and nights as the wronged woman stepped over him on her way to and from work had some punch.

Wait…I did see one really good film of late: The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.   A beautiful, offbeat film that made me notice Casey Affleck, who I’d just seen in The Last Kiss.   Interesting, complex work about character, fame, notoriety, and motive.

TV?  There was Prime Suspect 7, which my sister has been trying to get me to watch for at least two years.  No wonder.  Wow…Helen Mirrin is amazing.  Enough said.   Made me get up and watch The Queen again, and again, she was tremendous.

Missed the Oscars…