A letter has been found written by Albert Einstein to philosopher Eric Gutkind in which Einstein dismisses his belief in God. Albert Mohler has a whole post on the letter at his site. Rather than recount his thoughts, I’ll post Einstein’s words then you can go read Albert’s thoughts.

… The word God is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honourable, but still primitive legends which are nevertheless pretty childish. No interpretation no matter how subtle can (for me) change this. These subtilised interpretations are highly manifold according to their nature and have almost nothing to do with the original text. For me the Jewish religion like all other religions is an incarnation of the most childish superstitions. And the Jewish people to whom I gladly belong and with whose mentality I have a deep affinity have no different quality for me than all other people. As far as my experience goes, they are also no better than other human groups, although they are protected from the worst cancers by a lack of power. Otherwise I cannot see anything ‘chosen’ about them.

One of the hardest things in life is finding time to stop and have a few moments of quiet time. It seems like there is always something to do, something to read, something to look at, always something. I find that when I don’t have a few minutes of quiet or pause in my day, things just aren’t right. I feel discombobulated, anxious, and just plain yicky!

Like if Cousin Eddie parts his hair on the wrong side, things just aren’t gonna look right. ¹

Point being, this week I’ve made a conscious effort to chisel time out of my day for a few moments of quiet reflection on God’s word. It’s hard. It’s a struggle, daily. I’m going through Proverbs, a deep rich and wonderful book. Yes, that could be said about any of the 66 biblical books in the cannon, but let me have a moment here.

I’ve found that having a quiet time is so necessary and rejuvenating. It’s different than a time of study, or listening to a teaching on the radio or podcast. It’s more focused. I can multitask pretty well; listen to a teaching, drive the car, work, you name it I can usually bundle it together.

Guess that’s why a time of quiet meditation and thought seems so simple, it is. It’s just me, the words on the page and God. Sometimes it almost seems too simple. The idea that to seek knowledge and wisdom, all you have to do is meditate on God’s Word and allow Him to speak to you. There is no ceremony, chanting, disco gyrations in incense sticks, none of that. Just me and God, crazy simple, yet so hard to do.

One of the things that I’ve found helpful is a piece of software called Pzizz. I’ve had the application for a couple years, it’s great for napping or sleeping. But I’ve also found it helpful for having a quiet time. It provides a nice bed of drones and atmospheres that I don’t find distracting. It’s easier to find focus, for me anyway.

So I guess this week I’m starting two things, a daily quiet time and a daily blog post. They are mutually exclusive, we’ll just see how long I can keep them up for.

Currently Listening: A four part message series by J.P. Moreland, Evangelism and the Case for Christianity 

1. ref. Christmas Vacation one of the best movies of all time [↩]

When I was probably in jr. high or so I heard L.E. Romaine known to most as Romaine, the Assistant Pastor to Chuck Smith at Calvary Costa Mesa, speak at another Calvary. He opened his message with an audio clip from Pastor S.M. Lockeridge. Lockeridge was a Pastor at a Baptist church down in San Diego is perhaps most known for his sermon entitled “My King.” All these years later I came across several videos on YouTube featuring Lockeridge’s famed sermon. The one below is set to a dance remix and some nice visuals.