James D. Hogan

Wednesdays: “I am not listening.”

On January 3, 2024

FAITH

Sometimes God listens, and sometimes he doesn’t.

Throughout Advent this past year, I’ve been reading through the Book of Isaiah. As a refresher, Isaiah was a prophet writing about 800 years before the birth of Christ. The book, which many scholars attribute to multiple authors, follows along with the fall of Israel and its occupation. Frequently, Isaiah proclaims a prophecy of a new king of Israel to come, a foreshadowing of the birth of Christ*.

Back in December we were pondering through a text in Isaiah in Bible study, and it struck me that 800 years is a long, long time. Isaiah was predicting something he would never live to see–not just him, but not even his great-great-great-great-grandchildren. That’s a lot of darkness to peer into.

Anyway, last night I flipped back to the very beginning of Isaiah. It’s poetry, but it isn’t pretty.

Hilarious Aspirations

By James D. Hogan

On January 1, 2024

In diary

Let me tell you something about 2023

By James D. Hogan

On December 31, 2023

In diary

My annual New Years resolution performance review

Today, Kel and I were taking an afternoon walk up Locust Creek, usually a 30-ish minute up-and-back where we turn around at the meadow about three quarters of a mile past our house. We did the same thing last New Year’s Eve, and while I don’t remember everything we talked about, I know that I love these walks with my wife. It’s some of the best time we can spend together as a couple–enough time for a good conversation and always free of the (kid) distractions that (kids) often pop up.

This was a pretty good year, we decided. Really good.

There have certainly been harder years, both collectively for us and the world. And that’s not to say this year was easy by any stretch–there were times of loss, times of sickness, times of difficulty. It’s hard to look back at the entire year, though, and not feel like it was incredible. The kind where I can only think to shake my head and pray for counsel on what to do with it all.

This past January I set out my annual list of New Years resolutions, and keeping with tradition, I’m offering an honest assessment of how it’s gone.