Solomon Says

Far be it from me to disparage a New Years resolution, especially one so ennobling as the resolve to increase one’s own Bible literacy. I know that, by offering a way to salvage a failure, it is theoretically possible I might make the failure more likely in some cases. But I think it is far more likely that there are many who have quit sometime in March, or in Numbers, whichever came first.

I write this post because I think that people who read the whole Bible every four years are better off than people who read less than half the Pentateuch in the first quarter of every year.

In my last post, I think I vacillated between two perspectives on one’s life. That isn’t a problem because neither perspective completely explains our experience. But both are roughly accurate and helpful.

So let me more clear about them:

Video games have gotten far more “realistic” since the days of pixelated two-dimensional plumbers dealing with monkeys. I use quotation marks because they are often unrealistic by portraying a world of science fiction weaponry or magic. Also, the games I know allow players to run without getting tired and usually heal their wounds instantly by contact with a health pack that promptly vanishes after use. But the three-dimensional graphics are amazing.

The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. Therefore an overseer must be…

Paul’s First Letter to Timothy 3:1-2a (ESV)

Paul goes on to list qualities an overseer must possess. The list is obviously meant to eliminate many Christians from being considered for the office. But he doesn’t begin by saying that people should not aspire to the office. Rather, he encourages them in the aspiration, inviting them to develop the required qualities.

People can aspire to change. Generally speaking, a Christian can (and should!) aim at becoming someone with a different character than he currently possesses.

There are many good books you could read about how to get better at life. Jordan Peterson’s works are often recommended. James Clears’ Atomic Habits is helpful. Of course, I’m partial to my own book and highly recommend it from (mostly) pure motives.

But there is another work I recently rediscovered that deserves to be better known and (more importantly) more widely read. Henry Hazlitt is known as an advocate of free-market policies (or maybe non-policies would be a more accurate term). But, thanks to the Mises Institute some of his lesser known works are also available, including his The Way to Will-Power.