Pastor Scott's Musings

Tom Cruise in Risky Business You may know the 1983 movie Risky Business , starring Tom Cruise, who plays a high school senior,  named  Joel, living in a wealthy suburb of Chicago. His parents are gone on vacation for a few days. In a moment of sheer abandonment, reveling in his freedom, Joel dances in his underwear to Bob Seger’s Old Time Rock n Roll ! It’s a classic moment in cinematic history. That crazy, scantily-clad dance reveals something about Joel. He feels trapped under his parents. A few weeks ago we read a passage Luke 12 that is very similar to this morning’s reading. Jesus said, “Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division! From now on five in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three; they will be divided: father against son     and son against father, mother against daughter     and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against...

You have surely heard news of wildfires in the Amazon, but a recent CNN article reported that there are 50 different wildfires burning in in 12 different stars in the US. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, Alaska is battling eight wildfires; Texas 7; Arizona and Idaho six each; Montana and Utah five each; Oregon and Washington three each; New Mexico two; and California, Oklahoma and Wyoming one each. Forest fires are a necessary evil for long term forest health, but it certainly hurts to see it. In Alaska the McKinley fire has devoured over 80 structures and 4300 acres of forest. These fires cause respiratory difficulties for humans living in the area, not to mention the devastation upon wildlife. And how were these fires started? Roughly half of all forest fires reported in Alaska this summer was started by human carelessness. One area of human conduct the apostle James wishes the church to embrace is the discipline of holding one’s tongue. He begins by holding h...