Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
July 4, 2006
The Economist honors our annual July Fourth celebration by looking down its journalistic nose at the Declaration of Independence while showing grudging admiration for the phrase, “Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
Lexington | Pursuing happiness | Economist.com
ONE of the most striking things about the document that Americans celebrate with such gusto on July 4th is that so much of it is dull—hardly worthy of the tons of fireworks and barbecue that are sacrificed in its honour. …But all this tedium is more than made up for by a single sentence—the one about “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”.
Then there is this interesting bit of political commentary:
Weep, and you weep alone
The pursuit of happiness explains all sorts of peculiarities of American life: from the $700m that is spent on self-help books every year to the irritating dinner guests who will not stop looking at their BlackBerries. It also holds a clue to understanding American politics. Perhaps the biggest reason why the Republicans have proved so successful in recent years is that they have established a huge “happiness gap”. Some 45% of Republicans report being “very happy” compared with just 30% of Democrats. The Democrats may be right to give warning of global warming and other disasters. But are they right to give the impression that they relish all the misery? The people’s party will never regain its momentum unless it learns to relate to the guy on the super-sized patio, happily grilling his hamburgers and displaying his American flag.
All of which may primarily prove that Europeans will never quite figure Americans out.
Dave, who doesn’t even trust himself with sparklers any more.
Ephesians 6:10-20
July 2, 2006
Exhortations for Spiritual Warfare
6:10 Finally, be strengthened in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 6:11 Clothe yourselves with the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. 6:13 For this reason, take up the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand your ground on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand. 6:14 Stand firm therefore, by fastening the belt of truth around your waist, by putting on the breastplate of righteousness, 6:15 by fitting your feet with the preparation that comes from the good news of peace, 6:16 and in all of this, by taking up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 6:18 With every prayer and petition, pray at all times in the Spirit, and to this end be alert, with all perseverance and requests for all the saints. 6:19 Pray for me, that I may be given the message when I begin to speak–that I may confidently make known the mystery of the gospel, 6:20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may be able to speak boldly as I ought to speak.
I sometimes feel helpless in my personal war against the onslaught of “bad stuff” coming my way. I have no doubt that Satan uses mass media, to wear me down with sights and sounds reflecting a pagan and unbelieving world. I sometimes have trouble with the idea of the mostly unseen cosmic battle going on around us.
Am I just imagining this unseen war? I don’t think so, and the Apostle certainly didn’t think so. His words of encouragement help me to fight the good fight and not despair. Many times I have made Paul’s prayer my own when I feel beaten down by the world around me. -sdg-
