How to deal with attention whores like Mark Driscoll

I'm not sure whether the greatest tragedy here is the 10,377 people who
"like" this comment, or the impact it will have on everyone else.

I've written about Mark Driscoll before, and by uttering his name on this blog again, I'm breaking my own rule about not giving the guy precisely what he wants. Regrettably, in order to make my point, I have no choice.

The comment he tweeted here on Inauguration Day has triggered a veritable tsunami of (rightfully) negative reactions across the web. If you haven't yet seen the extent of it, just Google "Mark Driscoll Obama," and you'll get a pretty good idea.

There's just one problem with the widespread indignation generated by Driscoll's remarks: It's counterproductive and a waste of time, even though I agree with it entirely. Here's why.

Mark Driscoll, pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, is an attention whore. He'll say or do whatever it takes to get people to pay attention to him. It doesn't matter whether the reaction is positive or negative. As long as his name is in the headlines — and the public is talking about him, for better or for worse — he's met his goal.

Best three moments from the presidential inaugural address

As expected, Obama delivered a solid speech to the American people as he was inaugurated to his second term as president of the United States.

Even Republicans seemed to think it had positive elements — except for, you know, that whole "progressive agenda" thing, and the notion that we should work together for shared purposes instead of pledging obsequious allegiance to monied lobbyists and special interests.

Here are my top three moments from the 2013 presidential inaugural address.

1. His shout-out for gay rights.

After voters in three states — Maryland, Maine, and Washington — chose to uphold marriage equality last fall, and another, Minnesota, rejected a discriminatory constitutional amendment, Obama's commitment in his speech to equality for "our gay brothers and sisters" is far more politically palatable than it was even four years ago, and, of course, less risky.

Still, this moment is memorable for two reasons. First, it offered some reassurance to Obama's progressive base, whose members are undoubtedly pleased to hear him take an unequivocal stance on an issue over which he offered nothing but reluctance and ambiguity until about eight months ago.

Second, this is the first time in U.S. history that gay rights has been mentioned by a president in an inaugural speech. That alone is significant.

Gun control proposals, sadly, will go nowhere in Congress

If there's any silver lining in the unspeakably horrific event that took place in Newtown, Connecticut, last month, it's that the national dialogue on gun violence hasn't faded away in the time since, as it typically does following tragedies of this type. Kudos to Barack Obama and Joe Biden for helping to keep it at the forefront of our attention.

The 26 beautiful souls whose lives were extinguished at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14 deserve no less.

The president's proposal on gun control, unveiled Wednesday, includes 23 executive actions alongside a variety of "measures Congress should pass." I place the latter in quotes because I'm under no illusion — nor, I believe, is Obama himself — that the legislative branch of our government is inclined to lift a finger.

In fact, left to its own devices, the Republican Party wouldn't do anything at all to reduce gun violence. Not a solitary thing — even though a recent poll indicated that Americans are angrier now about the atrocity in Connecticut than they were in the wake of 9/11.

Speaking of 9/11, didn't our elected officials come together after that terrible tragedy to take decisive action? Whether or not it was the right action is, of course, open to debate. But didn't they all put partisan differences aside, for even just a moment, to do something?

Why, then, can't we do the same in the aftermath of an abominable act that left 20 innocent children — 6-year-olds — massacred while they sat at their desks in a schoolhouse on a sunny Friday morning?

Top five lessons I learned in 2012

I'll be honest: I've been going through a blogging drought.*

The post-Christmas doldrums that typify this time of year often leave me feeling uninspired. Whatever minutes of daylight have been added since the longest night of the year have yet to make their mark on the darkness of the mornings, so lethargy tends to be the rule rather than the exception during my first waking hour — at least until I've medicated myself with my first cup of strong, hot coffee.

Mid-January is also usually a time when I reflect heavily on the past year, wistfully considering where I was 12 months ago (heading to Hawaii just as a snowstorm clobbered Seattle), marveling at how quickly time passes as I grow older, and pondering what the year ahead may have in store.

To that end, I've decided to try to break through my writing-and-motivation block by highlighting the top five lessons I learned in 2012. Maybe some of these will resonate with you. Maybe they won't. Either way, it's a chance for me to take a look back before I move forward.

The art of total forgiveness

Book image courtesy of amazon.com.

Here's my first book recommendation of the year: Total Forgiveness by R.T. Kendall.

There's nothing terribly eloquent or profound about the writing style or premise of this book, but for many who read it, a straightforward message is exactly what's needed.

If you're a Christian, you'll start it and first tell yourself that its thesis is too obvious to merit an entire book. Dig a few pages deeper, though, and you'll ask yourself why you approached it with such a cavalier attitude.

Most Christians — myself included — probably like to think that they have the ability to totally forgive. Of course I can let things go, I've always assured myself. There's no sense in holding grudges or carrying something to your grave, no matter how egregious you judge the offense to be.

But have I lived out that principle? Do I practice total, unrestrained forgiveness? Not always. Certainly not in the spiritual sense. For better or for worse, this book made that explicitly clear to me.

Kendall gently reminds his readers that biblical forgiveness doesn't just mean issuing a shallow verbal pardon of one's wrongs against you. It means asking God to forgive the person in the same way that you've already been forgiven of your sins: as though they never happened.

Even more than that, it means asking God to bless the individual and allow him or her to prosper — again, as has already been done for you, regardless of the wrongs you've committed.

Finally, it means releasing feelings of resentment and bitterness — for good. Only then have you achieved the goal of total forgiveness toward those who have sinned against you.