ODJ: be reconciled
They sit beside each other on a straw mat—he in beige trousers and a white and purple shirt, she in a blue and yellow dress. “I participated in the killing of the son of this woman,” says Francois, one of thousands of Hutu men that perpetrated crimes against Tutsis during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. “He killed my child,” says Epiphanie, “then he came to ask my pa
ODJ: a generous tip
In November 2014 a couple asked a waiter named Carlos for a dish that wasn’t on the menu. Having worked in restaurants themselves, they were impressed by him and how he fulfilled their request.
ODJ: restoration and salvation
An antivirus update for my laptop kept blocking the last phase of my radio recordings—the words I spoke between songs. I tried restoring the computer to an earlier date, prior to the update, which worked for one session of recordings. But when I tried to record another radio show, the antivirus once again stopped me from saving my work. In the end I restored the laptop to a time when it wo
ODJ: where’s your hope?
Yesterday I received a double dose of bad news. In the span of 5 minutes, the words in two emails left me disappointed and doubting that a project I had worked on for years would come to fruition. I wanted to quit. What’s the use? I felt like going back to bed and starting the day over again.Then I remembered Psalm 71. The psalmist (who might be David) complained that his enemies we
ODJ: shine like stars
I’m not exactly what you would call a stargazer, but I’ve spent my fair share of clear nights gazing up into the heavens. I’ve learned enough about the star field to point out constellations such as the Big Dipper or Orion’s Belt or Aquarius. And I’ll never forget the time that locating the North Star was the only thing that saved me from spending the night lost in a
ODJ: deadly perspective
During the Middle Ages, some monks kept a skull on their desks to remind them of their mortality and eventual death. The bony paperweight was a vivid reminder that life is fleeting and that they needed to keep their priorities in line.While the monks’ practice of staring at skulls and keeping their deaths ever before them seems depressing, both the psalmist and the teacher connect the practi
ODJ: holy ground
As a teenager I travelled from America to London on a school trip. Just 14 years old, I regrettably paid more attention to my meals and classmates than to the impressive sights around me. One day, however, I encountered the ruins of a Roman wall. I was awestruck, and my attention was temporarily diverted from typical teenage interests. It was humbling to touch something so ancient. The moss
ODJ: chosen instruments
My daughter is only 5 years old, but she’s a self- declared ‘artist’. One day we talked about paintbrushes. I selected two and handed them to her. The first brush was slim, with bristles that ended in a fine point. The other brush was larger and thicker. I explained that artists typically use bigger brushes to fill in large areas, while tiny brushes work better for small spaces
ODJ: wholehearted life
When counselling young couples who are preparing for marriage, I always ask these questions: “Why do you love each other? Why do you want to spend the rest of your life with this person?” What I really want to hear is a flash of passion, a quake of desire. I don’t merely want to hear rational judgements (“We complement each other”, “Our families approve”,