A Boxer at Rest

A relative suffering from Type 1 diabetes was recently hospitalized for an emergency amputation. The physicians hoped to halt the spread of septic gangrene seeping from an incurable foot wound. Naturally, family and friends were very concerned. His wife was especially concerned. She bemoaned, “I just don’t want this (the advanced sepsis and the resultant amputation) to be my fault.” It may be that this couple didn’t fully comprehend the seriousness of the situation. It may be that their choice of treatment was less than ideal. Perhaps their home diabetes maintenance was inconsistent. Some Christians I know might say the culprit was a lack of spiritual faith. Others would credit it all to God’s mysterious will. Surely there is someone or something to blame. Someone to whom to ascribe credit. Isn’t there? A few days after the operation, I was talking to a man who had family members who had suffered similar diabetic experiences. Some of those also suffered early deaths. “Th...

As a Christian, living virtuously meant living in a manner that pleased God. Pleasing god (or living virtuously) was explained as: Praying for forgiveness for sins  Accepting Christ as Savior  Frequently reading the Bible  Memorizing Bible verses Being baptized (subject to church rules)  Attending church services  Partaking of the Lord’s Supper  Tithing  Resisting temptations to lie, steal, smoke, drink, party, have lustful thoughts, have sex (outside of marriage) masturbate, etc.  Boldly sharing the Gospel of Salvation with unbelievers The list of virtuous values and expectations grew over time. Once the initial foundational values were safely under the belt, “more virtues'' were introduced. Newer introductions included (among others) harsh condemnation of “worldly” music, homosexuality and abortion Eventually the list of values grew ponderous, and these ideals were not just personal for us Christians. These virtues were used to condemn and di...

Recently I heard someone who was struggling to ferret out a solution to some problem being softly rebuked by a listener with a well intended,  “Stop overthinking it!” I have had this polite suggestion leveled at me from time to time . Here’s the thing, Thomas Edison did a lot of thinking during the 14 months he took to develop the electric lightbulb. Similarly, a lot of thinking was done by Orville Wright, Leonardo DaVinci, Albert Einstein and innumerable other problem-solvers throughout history.  Overthinking is different from problem-solving. Problem-solving involves thinking about a solution.  According to official definitions, overthinking is synonymous with over-anxious worrying. Overthinkers dwell on the problem or how bad they feel. They think about all the things they have no control over. Overthinking doesn't help a person develop new insight.  Overthinking is also different from self-reflection. Healthy introspection is about learning something about you...