June 17, 2026

Viewing all things through the lens of the True and the beautiful!

The True

Of Wood and Stone

No expense was spared. Only the finest materials were used, and only the most skilled craftsmen were allowed to do the work. It was extravagant beyond words.

All of this was necessary, because they were building a house in which the Living God would abide!

The general contractor was King Solomon. God had given Solomon’s father, King David, the dream of building the temple, and had even begun to pass down the instructions. But as is so often the case—and should be a lesson for all of us as we endeavor to live in community with fellow Jesus followers—the dream that God gave to King David was actually to be accomplished at and by the hands of another—King Solomon.

So the king went to the ends of the known world to gather the best, most luxurious, and most coveted building materials, decorations, and furnishings known to man. When the job was finished, King Solomon proclaimed:

“The Lord has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud, I have built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell forever” (2 Chronicles 6:1-2).

God had instructed the building of a house in which His presence would abide, and therefore King Solomon’s construction of the temple was an act of obedience that God honored. Can you imagine what it was like to have a building in which the presence of the Living God was so thick that nobody but those designated by God could enter? What a reassurance it must have been to lay eyes on the temple and know that God was there!

But amid the overwhelming blessing of God’s presence filling the temple, there were warning signs of the sinful nature of mankind. Notice how King Solomon takes credit for himself (“I have built”). Notice also how he asserts of his own volition that God will live there “forever.”

The king was, of course, getting way ahead of himself. The power and the blessing to build the temple had come from only from God, and while God desired a place to abide among His people, the plan was never that it would be a permanent home.

It is far easier for you and me—living on this side of Jesus the Messiah’s finished work on Earth—to grasp, but the permanent home for God’s spirit was never intended to be one made of wood and stone. Instead, God’s temple was to be composed of flesh and bone! He had always planned to send His spirit not just to live nearby in the community, but to actually live in you!

The apostle Paul said it this way: “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?” (1 Cor. 3:16)

There’s more: When God was looking for material with which to build this forever temple, He chose only the finest and most extravagant materials available!

Don’t believe me? In Genisis 1, we read that God created out of nothing for six days. We read repeatedly that He was pleased with the outcome, and that He deemed it “good.” But then we come to the creation of you. To the forming of mankind, the entity that would become His permanent dwelling. Upon finishing the creation of that final work of art, God distinguished the quality of that work from all the rest by calling it “very good!”

You, my friend, are made up of the finest material. It is that way not so you can boast or take credit, but in order that you would be a fitting temple in which the Living God can abide forever!

Wood and stone are but for a moment. But flesh and bone infilled by the Spirit of God becomes a soul that lives forever!

Sports

The Beautiful Game

The 2026 World Cup has kicked off! Forty-eight countries are participating in the nearly six-week-long soccer (or maybe you prefer football or fútbol) tournament. Games are being hosted in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and a champion will be crowned on July 19, 2026 in East Rutherford, NJ (just outside of New York City). Argentina enters the tournament as the #1 ranked team in the world, followed by France and Spain (the United States is ranked #16). Only eight countries have ever won the World Cup (Brazil-5, Germany-4, Italy-4, Argentina-3, France-2, Uruguay-2, England-1, and Spain-1).

Analysis and eternal perspective: It is called “the beautiful game” (this baseball fan respectfully demurs), and it is the most played (and by most measures, the most popular) sport in the world. The World Cup is played every four years and is the most important event in the sport, so you can begin to imagine the excitement (and nerves) for players and fans all around the world.

The early stages of the tournament are played in “groups” of four, with every team playing one game against the other three teams in their group. Thirty-two teams will then advance to the knockout rounds, where the format is single-elimination (loser is eliminated). The opening days of the tournament also presented several off-the-field stories (i.e., a Somalia referee was denied entry into the U.S. on national security grounds, and the Iranian national team moved their base camp from Tucson, Arizona to Tijuana, Mexico for diplomatic reasons related to the U.S.-Iran conflict).

As a Jesus follower, the World Cup is an opportunity to observe the beauty of the diversity in the pinnacle of God’s creation: mankind (Gen. 1:31). It is also a chance to take special note of your command to, “Go and make disciples of all nations” (Matt 28:19; similar commands in Mk. 16:15, Lk. 14:23, and Acts 1:7-8). If you reside in North America, the nations are coming to you!

It is also with a touch of sardonic humor that I compare the elite athletes in the World Cup with my own injury-riddled pursuit of a church softball championship. Our team is an aging one (Yours Truly is Exhibit A), so our pursuit is equal parts performance and survival as we try to keep enough bodies healthy to finish the tournament!

No matter where on the athletic spectrum you fall (from World Cup caliber to two left feet), allow this story that will play out over the next several weeks to continually remind you of your life’s work. It may be called “the beautiful game,” but you are to tell The Greatest Story!”

World

A Peace Deal and the G7

As leaders from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States gather in France for the G7 Summit, the U.S. and Iran have reportedly reached a peace deal to end the ongoing conflict. The deal is said to involve a ceasefire, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and a 60-day period for resolving the issue of Iran’s enriched uranium.

Meanwhile, the three-day G7 Summit included a focus on both the U.S.-Iran war and the war between Russia and Ukraine.

Analysis and eternal perspective: You know this drill by now. Peace deals are tenuous affairs, especially in the Middle East. As you continue to pray for peace (Ps. 34:14)—both the ceasing of wars and the surrender of hearts to Jesus—be mindful of the reality that awaits the millions who have been displaced by these wars. Countless families are longing to return home, but they will do so grieving over being fewer in number, and many will find nothing to which they can return.

War takes so very much. But it cannot take what is eternal! The love of God reaches into every corner of creation (Ps. 139:7-12), speaks everlasting love to each and every soul (Jer. 31:3), and desires that none would perish for eternity (2 Pet. 3:9)!

So as you endeavor to meet the suffering and the oppressed in their moment of need, and as you grieve with those who are grieving great loss, do it carrying an eternal perspective of victory and restoration, because it is true! The sufferings of this present place and age are but temporary, and the loving God is preparing a place for those who love Him (Jn. 14:3)!

Business

Going Public

Three of the world’s largest companies are going public. SpaceX, the rocket company owned by Elon Musk, became the first of the three to complete the process last week. In doing so, SpaceX broke the record for the largest initial public offering in history, and Musk became the world’s first trillionaire (SpaceX’s market cap is still settling out but currently stands just shy of $2.7 trillion).

Meanwhile, two of the largest Artificial Intelligence (AI) companies, Anthropic and OpenAI, filed their respective Form S-1s, the first formal step to becoming a publicly traded company.

Analysis and eternal perspective: It is admittedly hard to make sense of these astronomical numbers. Just for illustration purposes, one million dollars is $1,000 a thousand times over, one billion dollars is one million dollars a thousand times over, and one trillion dollars is a billion dollars a thousand times over!

Are you confused yet? Simply put, it’s a LOT, and that is understating it!

But here’s the reality: All of it is so very fleeting. Even if the wealth sustains for a time (far from guaranteed), all of it will be in different hands a few short decades from now, and all of it will pass away in eternity.

It is a beautiful thing to build and create! It is reflective of the character of our Creator God, and building value into our physical world is in fact one of our biblical mandates (Jer. 29:4-7). So build and create with all of the skill and excellence God has bestowed upon you (Ecc. 9:10)!

But do so wary of the futile pull and temptation of earthly treasure. Do not let your heart be set on things of this Earth, but instead set your eyes and your heart on heaven, for treasure laid up in eternity will never fade away (Matt. 6:19-21)!

The Beautiful

Always Attuned

Your world has seemingly infinite ways to disrupt your peace. But your heavenly Father is attuned to each one, and He will not tarry too long in coming to your aid.