Psalm 127: Who is Building Your House?

 

The Master Builder  

“Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.” (verse 1)

So many principles come to mind when I read this verse. Houses represent our lives and what we’re building inside them. Most people build their lives in traditional ways. Look for a job, get married, start a family and grow your wealth. Nothing is wrong with that. The pursuit of happiness might not be a spiritual principle but it’s a cultural norm. But our success in the important ways is tied directly to our trust in Him. No matter what the skill level of the builder, if you aren’t putting the Lord first your foundation is shaky.

Who is building your house?

If you’ve ever woken up and realized your efforts aren’t getting you anywhere, it’s likely you’re view of God is wrong. I had the realization that my image was way off, after reading the Bible with intention. Cosmic Santa was the phrase that stuck with me. I heard it described as a way that young people view God. “Cosmic” because He is out there in space somewhere and “Santa” because he give gifts. I’m embarrassed to admit that for years it was my view of God. He was a kindly, jovial old timer that makes sure your personal hopes and dreams come true. He’s there to affirm your desires and grant your wishes, just as long as you live right. Ugh. Where is the sacrifice in that, where is the accountability?

I was building my house with hopes and dreams, with a god that didn’t exist. The surest way to lose your home in a storm is with a soft foundation. I can remember being so upset with God when my conception of success didn’t pan out. But my foundation was soft thanks to my ill-conceived notion of God. He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. I wasn’t seeking Him. I wanted a life coach to encourage my efforts and a generous gift giver to cover me when I went over budget.

How do you start?

We learn about the nature of God in the scriptures. Joseph (Genesis Chapters 39-44) was forced to grow up as a slave and a manager, then a prisoner. After his 13 years in captivity, he knew how to trust in the Lord for his provision. He didn’t have the luxury of seeing God as a cosmic Santa. His owed his life and existence to God. All of it was grueling and he probably thought about death constantly, especially after living a comfortable life as his father’s favorite son. God didn’t waste Joseph’s time, despite what it might have looked like in the moment. Every trial he encountered became the framework for future excellence. He learned the Egyptian language and culture at Potiphar’s home. It’s important if you’re going to make decisions for a country full of Egyptians.

He learned how to divide meals among the men properly and read men’s intentions in prison. Both critical skills when you need to save up for a famine and not get swindled by devious people. Joseph’s life proves that God is on His own schedule. He builds our house when we let Him, but not without our faith in His timing. Trusting God the homebuilder looks a lot like grinding away at low wage job or struggling to gain respectability. Faith grows in tough soil. It’s impossible to discover God’s will for our lives without developing a life dependent on Him.  

How do I think differently?

The biggest challenge for young people is taking all of their talent (much of it imagined) and handing it back to God. This doesn’t mean going into ministry (necessarily) or avoiding jobs with the potential to earn big money. It means seeking His will in all situations and letting the Holy Spirit put you where He will. Talented people can go very far on their own abilities but eventually even the best will stall out. We were never meant to do this alone. Trust in the Lord and His wisdom for your life.

What happens when you don’t trust God to build your home? Esau never had a relationship with the God of his father Isaac. He built his life on self reliance. In a moment of weakness he gave up his birthright because he held it cheaply. Whatever your view of God, cosmic Santa or insignificant deity, if you’re building your own house the foundation will be soft. The troubles will overwhelm you and you’ll blame the One who you never bothered to learn about, nor let Him build.

Conclusion

When the Lord builds the house, you get to hand over the fear and worry that comes with striving alone. “It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; for so He gives His beloved sleep.” (verse 2) He wants to take our anxieties and give us rest. What could be better?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Future of Work is De-specialization

 

Social Networks and Job Searching: A Part Time Writer's Lament

Maybe it’s just me, but the promise of technology and social networking has been a giant disappointment. All the writing positions that companies try to fill get hundreds of applications. I’ve stopped sending resumes out. For a while it felt like I was making progress. Applying and writing cover letters, I make sure to put my best writing samples in the document dump that everyone seems to need. How many employers actually look at them? How do they even have a system in place that checks off the necessary requirements? It’s probably like so much of the digital landscape, they run a bot to filter them out.

But at least running a bot is giving some attention to your efforts. I don’t blame companies for that, at least they’re trying. It’s the ones that don’t bother that frustrate me. I only apply for jobs where I think I’m qualified. Some of them may be a stretch, but I do think the vast number of total applications for every decent writing offering reflects a huge number of unqualified writers. I don’t have the experience to hold down a full time agency writer job. My experience is with blogs, some SEO and very general copywriting. I look for freelance stuff and not the “join” us type positions.

Another problem with the digital age is how easy it is to fire off a bullshit resume that checks all the boxes on the company’s asking list. The difference between a writer with 15 years of experience and one with 5 could be tiny or it could be massive. Someone who only writes part time can do that for 15 years and never experience the grind of a marketing company work week. But a 5 year writer who’s done nothing but write various types of copy is worth much more. Human resources might not be able to parse this out by looking at both resumes. The better ones ask for writing/grammar tests to prove you’re at least above a certain threshold.

While the tests can whittle down the pool of applicants somewhat, there are still what I’d call personal skills to work through. Some people are rigid and don’t take instruction well. They might be a good writer but they’re loathe to make corrections based on what the editor's direction. Others are just terrible time managers and miss deadlines constantly. None of this is particular to writing, but with so much of the work force operating remotely it’s another wrinkle. Distance is a problem when schedules are tight. I love to work at home too but I’m not convinced it’s the best solution for full time employees.

Like old fashioned networking, face to face is just better. This could be a function of my age but I just instinctively trust people I meet more than people I only have a social media connection to. It’s partly why I always check local company listings before blasting off a ‘likely to be ignored’ application.

For all of the amazing advances in high speed internet and ways to connect with people all over the world, the personal connection is still more effective. I remember one of the tips for getting a new job from the bestseller What Color is Your Parachute? was checking with your friends. The author made a point to tell everyone to check with friends and family because employers look there first when they need to hire. There is a temptation to think the internet has made this rule obsolete. Not so. I think it’s as true as it’s ever been. If you doubt it, put yourself in the position of a hiring manager. Would you rather hire a faceless avatar with a good resume, or the family member of a great current employee?

I’m not dumping on LinkedIn or Indeed or any of the socials filling up my inbox with job alerts. But tossing out resumes is just as cheap as listing them. The huge number of applicants is practically a guarantee that yours will get lost in the digital trash heap. What’s the solution then? We are entering a phase of economic life where we’ll need to be more reliant on our ability to make our own money. Large companies are getting squeezed in the recession and making big layoffs. Our Fed has overspent and eventually the dollar is going to collapse. I know I know, it’s doom and gloom again. But we can’t expect that all that fiscal insanity won’t snap back at some point.

For most of us, me included, we’ll nickel and dime our way getting work here and there as a supplement to a regular job. I’ll do that until I can sustain myself from freelance work and part time employment. But everyone should find a side hustle and build it up if possible.

That's what's on my mind lately.

Smoking Pipe Diplomacy: Nord Stream 2 Solved?

Gas Pipelines: The New Cold War 

Seymore Hersh wrote a piece yesterday about the Nord Stream pipeline explosion last fall. If there was any doubt before about who did it, that doubt was laid to rest today. We did it. The US Navy used its specialized deep sea divers to rig C4 on a timer. I initially thought the Russians probably did it to punish the Germans for sending weapons and materiel to Ukraine. It wasn’t a strong enough argument. Nord Stream 2 was about to be a serious windfall for Russia, it hadn’t fully come on line yet. It’s not the only natural gas pipeline Moscow has running into Europe though. Most of them go through Ukraine.

 But Nord Stream (1 and 2) were an affront to NATO alliances from the beginning.

Why did the Biden administration waive sanctions on the NS2 if they thought it was a threat to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)? What did the US get in return? I can’t imagine Biden waived sanctions to make nice. Obviously this is before the war in Ukraine, May 2021. It’s possible that blowing up the pipeline was always a possibility if the Russians didn’t behave. After the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the plan to sabotage it went into effect. The details are all speculative, but Hersh tells a wonderful story.

 If this isn’t a movie in 2 years I’ll leave the country (not really). I can think of a few angles to write a screenplay from this.

But, it’s still an act of war against a sovereign country. Not only is it an act of war, it’s an act of aggression against a nuclear power. Moscow might not be the powerhouse it pretends to be, but it’s still a formidable enemy. They could drag China into the mix as well, we’d certainly have a World War 3 at that point. The US is likely betting that the Russians won’t be able to retaliate directly for the offense. But what if they unleash nukes in Ukraine and just go scorched earth on the place? It’s a real possibility.

There are too many unknowns and I’m getting a little nervous that we’re setting up for a protracted war. But not a direct head to head war, a proxy that goes on for years and eats up money and lives. The White House denies Mr. Hersh’s reporting by calling it “utterly false” and “complete fiction”. Russia knows it was the US anyway and that’s all that matters. How will they get back at us?

I’ve avoided writing too much about this whole Ukraine war. In part because I’ve had to rethink my positions on a whole range of issues. If Russia is so aggressive why is Germany allowing such an obvious takeover of their way of life? The Germans have allowed the greens to push a radical climate agenda on the whole country. It’s weakened their existence and forced them to seek out cheap gas from Gazprom (Russian national company). This doesn’t solve their supposed climate problem, it just shifts the blame for ‘destroying the planet’ to Russia.

It’s possible too that Germany doesn’t care much for the NATO alliance anymore. I can’t think of a better way to drive a wedge between us and the Russians than buying gas from Putin’s industries. It is frustrating to see your biggest (wealthiest) ally in Europe stop developing its own energy and turn to the very country that NATO was set up to contain. Europe and America needed a plan after World War II to keep the Russians in the East and the Germans weak. The NATO alliance holds for now, but it isn’t looking strong.

For a purely philosophical take, the America I thought I lived in doesn’t exist anymore. What vision of the world are we pushing anyway? The school curriculum talks about the evils of America’s founding. From Marxist notions of class struggle to critical race theory and victim studies, it’s a mess of lies designed to create friction. I guess I bought into the idea that America is a force for good in the world. At least, that was the prevailing view of Reagan and both Bushes, even Clinton. Maybe they didn’t really believe it but they stuck to the script, so to speak, and gave lip service to those ideals abroad. But if America as a country (and an ideal) is so rotten, why keep pushing such dangerous ideas on the rest of humanity.

Put another way, who wants the United States as a partner with our historic racism, sexism and homophobia? Just look at our awful past. Read this article about a kids show and recognize that it's a Disney program.

You can’t push an aggressive foreign policy whose military sabotages a sovereign nation’s pipeline while your schools teach America as the great evil. Music, movies and TV all traffic in it as well. Something has to give. Our belligerence on the international stage makes the point better than any left wing radical could. 

Sadly we’ve just the given the Russians a very public incentive to create more havoc.

Life and Legacy: Service for the King

 

Remembering Papa: Life and Legacy

The memorial service in Branson was a joy.

 It’s a funny phrase to say that about such a solemn occasion but there it is. This weekend an extended group of family gathered for a remembrance of Robert (Bob) Marsden our grandpa. Known affectionately as Papa, he lived to 90 years old and passed on a legacy of Christian service and eternal trust in God’s plan. The last part I don’t say lightly. His career as a preacher taught him the value of applying the scripture to daily life and watching God move. He wrote a book (When God Speaks, Listen!) a few years ago as a recap to his life, something for the family to gain an appreciation of his life.

He put his family first and listened to the voice of God for wisdom as a pastor, and for comfort when life didn’t make sense.

My memories of Papa usually involve him loading a U-Haul truck for another move, or standing behind the pulpit at church teaching from the New Testament. Him and my grandmother moved a lot, taking positions with various churches around the country. He did the marriage ceremony for a couple of my cousins as well as my brother. Other than the weddings I never saw a lot of his actual teaching. He had congregations in Ohio, New York, and Florida to name just a few states. From what others have told me, he was most comfortable behind the pulpit and studying the scriptures.

Never the warm fuzzy type, he was serious by default and always focused on the hard realities of any situation. Where my grandmother was warm and easy, he was serious and tough. But as a pastor he learned how to be gentle and helpful to his flock. He wasn’t without a sense of humor either. The first time I watched Tim Conway’s novocain bit from the Carol Burnett show was at his house. He loved Conway’s deadpan physical comedy. It’s ironic that he looked a little like him too.  

From his book, I got a sense of how difficult it was to be his family’s provider at the age of 10. His father’s passing forced a realignment of values, he suddenly became provider for his mother and sisters. Government help wasn’t consistent in the 1940s and people were too proud to take it in a lot of cases anyway. It might have been tough for a young boy to start working at such an early age, but it wasn’t unusual. Life took on a very serious tone during those years and he never got back the innocence of youth.

He famously hated board games. Not only did he hate board games, but he never really learned how to play most games. I’m sure it’s a result of being responsible for so much at such a formidable age. He wasn’t shy about sharing his opinions either. But he was an amazing resource for advice on relationships, politics and Christian living. In the years right after grandma passed away, he used to visit my mom for a few days in the summer.

She stayed in Broken Arrow in apartments that looked out over a pool. I spent a few days with him at the pool, he loved the heat and sun. In those few days he told me various stories about churches he pastored and cities he and my grandmother lived in. I stayed with him at his apartment in Branson one night. A few of us (including him) were traveling to Illinois the next day to celebrate my aunt’s birthday. He told me about his prayer list, a nightly ritual of names that he’d been compiling for years. It’s a great practice that I’ve used myself in certain seasons of life. We never know how much the prayer from another person is working on our behalf.

I think the word that best defines Papa is “Servant”. He gave his life to Christ early in his marriage and began a life of service in the pulpit. His daughters learned the importance of the Bible in family life and taught it to their children as well. Life was tough for most of his years, money was always tight and moving put an extra strain on the finances. But the most important value he taught was to turn to Jesus in times of trouble. It’s a process that’s learned through trying times and harsh circumstances. It tests our faith and gives us enough patience to weather the storms of life. It’s the most important skill that one person can give to another, and it’s rooted in prayer.

Thanks for being our example Papa, and thanks for the legacy.  

Faith and Patience From James 1

Growing in Faith and Patience

If there’s a chapter in the Bible I’ve read more than any other it’s probably James 1. There’s so much practical wisdom on taming the tongue, trials and breakthrough, being a doer of the word. Patience though, has been a critical part of my growth as a Christian.

 “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” (verse 2-4)

I always imagined the verse should read “The testing of your patience produces faith”. That used to confuse me. Isn’t faith the ethereal thing that Gods asks for? Isn’t faith the ‘hard to get your mind around’ discipline?

Patience for Maturity

It seems like faith would be the goal and patience would be the mechanism you exercise. But it’s the opposite. That tells me that faith is the mechanism or muscle you build. Hebrews calls it the “substance of things hoped for”. It’s the activity we use to strengthen our character. Patience isn’t just for spiritual matters. It’s critical to function as a responsible adult. It’s also the way God’s plan of sowing and reaping works. All that planting and watering creates a restless mind prone to giving up. Patience bridges the gap between our efforts and rewards.

 We rarely get what we want, in the time frame we want it. And much of what we want in our 20s goes away in our 30s anyway. It’s the same situation for career and relationships. Patience means waiting and trusting that God will provide what we need in His time. It’s really about trust, and trust is a process.

Respecting the Father

When we place our trust in God we give Him our wants and ask for His wisdom. It’s rarely a quick process. Trust takes time because it must. How deep would that trust be if He gave us everything we asked for right away? We’d be no better than a screaming child in a shopping cart pointing and demanding various items in the toy department. This is key to understanding how the Father breaks through our selfishness straight to our heart. Not only will the toys not fulfill us, they’ll reduce God to a dispenser of goods. This isn’t a god anyone can serve. He’s more like an eternal Santa Claus, affirming our feelings and handing out goodies.

We neither respect Him nor put any long term trust in Him. This might be a big part of our problem culturally as the Church. Our affluence in the West acts like a callous over our hearts. We don’t have to wait all that often. 'Suffering' today means waiting for the woman at Starbucks, who’s ordering customized drinks for the entire office. Talk about a test of patience when all you want is a coffee, black! The comfortable existence of daily life, lulls into a sense of complacency. We’ve forgotten how to trust in God. America has built up an impressive consumer driven economy. Amazon delivers most packages within 1 day. Walmart delivers groceries the same day.

This isn’t a lament about our wealthy culture. I’m grateful for the all the comforts. I’m grateful that we can pursue leisure and finicky diets without worrying about the national wheat crop.

Waiting is Countercultural

But the ease of life makes us forget that God’s plan has its own schedule. Has anyone found a way to make cattle grow faster or how to shorten the seasons? Time is God’s purview and messing with it will leave us frustrated. The consumer marketplace might move quicker than ever but it can’t mature a person any faster. Faith can only be built one way, through struggle. It’s uncomfortable at first because it’s supposed to be.  You can’t lift a 100 pounds over your head until you’ve started with 50. Faith is linked to patience like muscles are to power.

Maybe we’re slow to learn this concept because culture is rooted in handing us whatever we want. But part of gaining patience is learning to stay in the shopping cart and sit still. Trust that when you need something God will throw it in the basket. For the rest, learn to work for the important things in life and be grateful for the time we live in. You never know when it will end.

conclusion

This isn’t doom and gloom forecasting, but life is unpredictable and nothing lasts forever. A patient person is a complete person who lacks nothing according to James. That means difficult times won’t phase you if your trust is in God, and how He’s built up your faith. It’s what I’m learning about the nature of God. James 1 is a good place to start with patience.

A New Theory on China's Rise: Michael Sekora of the Socrates Project

 

Is China’s Global Rise a Result of Their Technology Strategy?

I watched a video (Part 1)from a China expert, Michael Sekora, who described the rise of China as a strategic move to leverage technology. He explained, since World War II the United States has pursued a Finance based strategy. China has pursued a Technology based strategy. I’m sure these are his terms because I’ve never heard them used like this. Both terms refer to how the government and its business interests grow. Finance based strategy is concerned with efficient investments and rates of returns.

Finance or Technology

In other words, making money is the primary objective when considering what to manufacture and subsidize. Other considerations like competitiveness and market domination are secondary. In technology based strategies, the country exploits technology to gain market advantage and dominate the industry. The best example Mr. Sekora gives is in the auto industry. China could never compete with the United States’ automotive industry, but they did offer cheap labor. GM took advantage of that cheap labor and sent some low end car manufacturing over to China, let’s say the seats or the dashboard.

China got 2 things from this trade, work for their 1 billion strong labor force and technology from GM. Sure, it was easy to replicate. It’s not like GM sent them engine materials to machine or electronics to wire up. But China now had some low tier capabilities for car manufacturing. Add to this low tier a mid tier, once GM sent higher level manufacturing the next time around. Maybe in the next decade it was the exhaust or the drive train. GM is still not sending electronic components at this point. But China is taking the technology they do have, and figuring out how to build a car for their domestic market. How long until they’re competitive? They don’t need to sell in the United States or Europe. They can sell to countries around the world (Brazil, Russia) that might have bought from us before.

His point is that we, the United States, allowed this to happen because we obsess over financial concerns. The accountants are running the country and so on. China focused on using what we considered, low grade to build a first world country that always saw us as a competitor. They want to dominate markets, so they play small ball until they can dictate terms. Remember how difficult it was to get PPE (personal protective equipment) at the start of Covid? Latex gloves, masks and even a lot of medicines were all tied up in containers because it’s where all of it was made. That’s was a real example of what it means to not have necessary goods. Our supply chains are still a mess.

The era of consequence-free open markets is over.

Two Systems

Michael Sekora makes a convincing argument that the US doesn’t think enough about long term competitiveness. Mostly though it’s a function of our very different systems. Our businesses think about profit and loss because it’s what businesses are supposed to do. Governments consider things like global competitiveness and long term sustainability. At a certain level though, energy companies are a good example, industry is crucial to national security. They’re also large enough to steer national conversations on where the country is headed. It’s in the interest of the national business and the government to work toward healthy, dominant industries.

In a communist country like China, the only choice available is government planning. In this case, Mr. Sekora calls it technology planning. But it’s really just the top down way the government makes all decisions.

The Chinese didn’t have much of any industry before Chairmen Deng Xiaoping and the rise of factory towns around large cities. They had a lot of catching up to do with the West. But they knew how to do it; it had been done already by nearly everyone else. And yes, the US helped them get there quicker through tariff reductions and an onslaught of manufacturing jobs. But according to Mr. Sekora the goodies the Chinese received from the West in the early nineties were just boosters. The main thruster was always the technology strategy they employed.

They didn’t lose focus on developing their competitive edge at our expense.

It's also no secret that the Chinese steal IP (Intellectual Property) from foreign owned businesses that open up shop over there. It’s part of doing business. They don’t respect property rights and they never have. In the early stages of their reform and opening period (1991-2000) there was hope among American businesses that this would change. No one would make that mistake today.

I’m curious how he sees the next decade playing out for China.

 

 

The Group Dynamic in Running

I’m back training again for another marathon. 

Running is now squarely in my DNA. Like a lot of healthy shifts in lifestyle, it reminds you that fitness is now a way of life. It’s more than just an occasional hobby, like collecting rare coins and fixing up old cars. It’s both a social club and an important activity for ageing well. Don’t get me wrong, running isn’t the only way to do this. A lot of my friends play basketball in men’s leagues, while others have found pickle ball or jiu-jitsu. Nothing beats a consistent walk if that’s all your body allows for. The key is finding something to do with others, if you’re reluctant to exercise alone.

I’m naturally an introvert so making friends is important. It’s work for me to get out and meet people. I started to make jogging a year round activity 5 or 6 years ago. Back then I ran alone. I still contend, nothing clears your head like a long run at a steady pace. But at a certain point I wanted to compete. Races are a specific goal that forces you to meet a time standard and continually improve. For me the standard was to complete a half marathon under 2 hours and 20 minutes. Once met, I started to increase my pace. I ran a handful of half marathons and even joined a group that offered training.

Joining the group was a perfect next step in my running journey. It forced me out of a comfort zone of individual effort, where I could only improve marginally. We all need others in our lives to push us, even slightly, and to keep us honest in our goals. There are plenty of people in the group that just run for exercise and camaraderie. Either they aren’t competitive or don’t want to hassle with the whole racing experience, money for entry and travel. I’ve learned how to prepare for a big race through the training program my club puts together. But even without doing the race, the training is preparation for future performance.

If you’re like me, prone to work alone, the best advice is to let someone help you with a struggle. Now I’m talking about more than running. Apologies for the clunky transition. Individual effort can only get you so far. You become like a weightlifter who only does arms. His biceps are impressive but from the waist down he stands on pool cues. No one doubts his ability to do curls, his physique proves this out. But he lacks strength in his legs because he ignored everyone who tried to give him advice. 

When you do life completely alone you’re incomplete. Your missing strength might not be obvious yet to others, but without help it will soon show. Pride gets in the way of improvement. We all need group training in something. Group dynamics allow us to build where we’re weak. Sometimes admitting you can’t do something by yourself is the most difficult part. It means you aren’t as great as you thought, a necessary step that allows you to grow. Similarly, my writing is better when I take advice.

Now I’d rather run with a group than alone, even if races are very singular events. I’ve picked up advice on eating, sleeping and stretching before and after training runs. I can bounce ideas off others who are further into this lifestyle than me. The internet can provide forums for questions about injuries and what shoes to buy. But a group is a community.

Just today someone asked me about my marathon from back in October of last year. We hadn’t talked since the last session. I’d picked up a few pointers from him last time. The best thing he told me was to get in my miles before the big run, don’t cheat. Your legs will thank you. I can’t remember how many races he told me he’d done since he decided to get fit. He’s in his late fifties and he runs almost an hour faster than me. So I listen.

This year I’m loosely planning for the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon in late April. I believe I can knock 20 minutes off my total in the Justice Run from last year. That might be a little aggressive for a second race, but I know of a good group that can get me there.