“[Psycologist Baruch] Fischoff calls this phenomenon ‘creeping determinism’ — the sense that grows on us, in retrospect, that what has happened was actually inevitable — and the chief effect of creeping determinism, he points out, is that it turns unexpected events into expected events.” Malcolm Gladwell, What the Dog Saw The idea of creeping determinism explains the expression “hindsight is 20/20.” When we look back on events, it always seems so obvious that things would turn out the way they…

Here are some of my favorite ideas from chapter 2 of Dallas Willard’s Divine Conspiracy. “But, to be quite frank, grace is cheap from the point of view of those who need it.” “Helmut Thielicke points out that we often wonder if the celebrities who advertise foods and beverages actually consume what they are selling. He goes on to say that this is the very question most pressing for those of us who speak for Christ. Surely something has gone…

My friend Justin and I are reading through Dallas Willard’s book, The Divine Conspiracy. Published in 1998, this book has become a modern classic of the Christian faith. It is a pretty in-depth read, so I’m taking my time reading through it and will try and share a few ideas from each chapter as I go. “Unlike egotism, the drive to significance is a simple extension of the creative impulse of God that gave us being. It is not filtered…

I recently finished the 2nd installment of our summer reading of Dante’s Divine Comedy called the Purgatorio. After Dante travels through hell, he passes through purgatory on his way to heaven. This part of Dante’s journey is a bit confusing as I’m not sure why he put certain people in this point of eternity. I’m excited to read his depiction of Heaven. Nonetheless, here are some of the passages that stood out to me: “Horrible were my sins, but infinite…

I often get asked about my thoughts on reading. So for the benefits of disciplining myself to write this out, and to have as a resource to direct others to in the future, here is my advice if you’d like to improve your reading habits. Understand that successful reading, like much of life, is about creating and sustaining momentum. It all boils down to this in my opinion. In his book titled Rework, Jason Fried puts it this way: “Momentum…