"And the whole earth was of one language and of one speech."--Genesis 11:1, KJV Language divides, but also connects. It divides us from one another, from linguistic community to community. For instance, one person who understands Greek typically understands another person who speaks Greek, but to the English speaker, Greek sounds like gibberish. Language also …
Author: Gregory Hake
Son. Husband. Father. Thinker. Doer.
Courage of the Quest
“Life” by Henry Van Dyke Let me but live my life from year to year,With forward face and unreluctant soul;Not hurrying to, nor turning from the goal;Not mourning for the things that disappearIn the dim past, nor holding back in fearFrom what the future veils; but with a wholeAnd happy heart, that pays its tollTo …
Binary Opposition
Western civilization is largely predicated on the concept of binary opposition or "pairs of opposites." A binary opposition is a pair or related concepts that are opposite in meaning. These dualities are fundamental structures through which we interpret our experience. Here are a few that you might have encountered or experienced personally: West/EastNorth/SouthMale/FemaleWhite/BlackWhite collar/Blue collar …
Doing to the Purpose
“If time be of all things the most precious, wasting time must be the greatest prodigality, since lost time is never found again; and what we call time enough always proves little enough. Let us then be up and doing, and doing to the purpose; so by diligence shall we do more with less perplexity.”--Benjamin …
Walking Forward
The real tragedy is the tragedy of a man who never in his life braces himself for his one supreme effort, who never stretches to his full capacity, never stands up to his full stature. To lie down and moan and whine about limited opportunities is the part of weaklings. To grasp the opportunities at …
Companion in Tribulation
Helping others is an art and a science. If you solve someone's problems without providing them with the tools to solve them in the future, you risk creating a dependency. If you impose solutions that don't match the true need, you risk creating future imbalances. If you act without understanding, your efforts will be hit …
Blame, Contempt, and Self-Righteous Indignation
“When people talk, listen completely. Most people never listen.”—Ernest Hemingway You would have to be pretty thick to overlook the fact that civil, reasonable discourse is now the exception rather than the rule. Blame, contempt, and self-righteous indignation have become commonplace in public and private discourse. Sadly, this trifecta has become the response of choice …
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Set Free
Most people live in prisons of their own making. They serve self-imposed life sentences, confined within walls poured of prejudice and grudges and they look out upon the world through bars forged by fears, worries and wants. In this state, each one is his own jailer. Solitary confinement is the human condition when man is …
The Comfort Drug
There is a particular type of discomfort which accompanies personal growth. I say “particular” because it is different than the discomfort that comes from failure, dishonesty or disobedience. It is more like the “good burn” you get from an intense workout than the aches and pains which follow periods of sustained idleness. Your tolerance for …
Restoration of Privilege
I read an interesting statement last evening about forgiveness that I thought you might find interesting and possibly applicable to your life: “Forgiveness neverimplies restoration of privilege to the offender.” This statement caught my eye and interest because I’ve often wondered why there is such a strong tendency in people not to forgive. Consider this: If …
Gregory Hake 