Show notes

This episode delves into the complex confusion of modern times, highlighting the contradictions in modern man's pursuit of rights without responsibilities, the loss of fundamental understanding of morality, and the misconceptions about relationships and truth. Through a compelling metaphor of a pilot navigating a jet fighter, it illustrates the disorientation and challenges faced by individuals and society in discerning moral truths amidst high-speed changes and secular influences. Josh quotes from Dallas Willard and Canon B. F. Westcott, stressing the impact of ideas and the diluted power of the gospel in contemporary life. It concludes with thought-provoking questions aimed at self-reflection on the creation of goodness, the balance between truth and harmony in relationships, and the importance of a wise, curious, and responsible approach to life's complexities.

00:00 Introduction: Navigating Modern Confusion

00:06 Exploring Modern Man's Confusion

01:06 Insights Through Quotes

03:12 Reflective Questions for Personal Growth

03:46 Concluding Thoughts: Wisdom for the Journey

About Josh Kalsbeek, LMFT

• As a Psychoherapist Josh helps people overcome their greatest struggles.

•Founder and CEO of Great Oaks Collective, and it's flagship program Overcome, a 10-Week virtual Intensive Outpatient Program for Christian couples experiencing sexual betrayal and addiction. www.greatoakscollective.com. 

• Sign up to receive Josh's weekly email newsletter, Words of Wisdom. ​

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Links

Dallas Willard, ​Divine Conspiracy​

B.F. Westcott, ​The Gospel of the Resurrection​

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Support this podcast by buying a book through one of the links above.

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Words of Wisdom 130 on the

confusion of the modern world.

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One.

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Modern man is so confused He shouts to

stand up for his rights, but does not

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first shoulder his responsibilities

and carry others burdens.

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The most confused are

often the loudest critics.

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Those in the arena are often the quietest.

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2.

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Modern man is so confused he

has lost sight of the need for

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a fundamental knowledge set

of what it is to become good.

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He is blind to the realities

of right and wrong.

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Confused by justice

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and enraged by the need to be judged

by someone greater than himself.

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3.

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Modern man is so confused he thinks

relationships can thrive without truth, or

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that truth thrives without a relationship.

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Love and truth fit together and

must be lived out together for

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flourishing to be experienced.

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Quotes.

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"Recently, a pilot was practicing

high speed maneuvers in a jet fighter.

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She turned the controls for what

she thought was a steep ascent

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and flew straight into the ground.

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She was unaware that she

had been flying upside down.

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This is a parable of human

existence in our times.

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Not exactly that everyone is crashing,

though there is enough of that, but

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most of us, as individuals, and world

society as a whole, live at high speed,

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and often with no clue to whether we

are flying upside down or right side up.

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Indeed, we are haunted by a

strong suspicion that there may

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be no difference, or at least

that it is unknown or irrelevant.

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Indeed, in the current world of

accepted knowledge, one can't even

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know the truth of a moral theory or

principle, much less a specific rule.

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We are not primarily in a political

battle, nor is there at bottom some

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kind of social conspiracy afoot.

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But, quote, "secular

humanism" is an idea movement.

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Not the work of any individual, and

before it, as a whole, individuals

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are little more than pawns.

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The seemingly triviality and irrelevance

of the, quote, "merely academic",

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is a major part of what misleads

us about the power of mere ideas.

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By Dallas Willard, in his

book, Divine Conspiracy,

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.

"We have so persistently disassembled the power of the gospel that it is

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pardonable if those who judge of

it by us should doubt whether it

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is anything more efficacious and

inspiring than the pathetic guesses

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which adorn the writings of philosophy.

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By Canon B.

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F.

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Westcott, in his book The

Gospel of the Resurrection.

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Questions.

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To what degree do you complain

about, criticize, or condemn evil,

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rather than consistently create

what is good, true, and beautiful?

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Do you tend to err on the side of speaking

the truth, or focus on not having conflict

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and prioritizing a peaceful relationship?

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How can you move to more of a both

and today, rather than an either or?

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Use these questions as a journal prompt

and to guide your prayers this week.

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End note.

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When in doubt or confused, stay curious,

listen deeply, and take courageous

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responsibility to care for others.

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Live wisely.

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Josh