Doubt

Live Like It’s Live

/ Alex Doriot / 2 Comments

SNL-imageLive From New York, It’s Saturday Night!

For 40 years, those 7 words have been uttered from studio 8H in Rockefeller Center announcing the most exciting 90 minutes of television comedy every week.

The most important of those 7 words is the first one – Live.

“Saturday Night Live”, despite what you may think, airs LIVE. It does not air on tape delay. It does not air 3 months after it was recorded. New episodes air live at 11:30 pm Eastern Standard Time Saturday nights.

There’s no getting around this. If the sketches aren’t ready or the actors aren’t prepared the show cannot be postponed. There’s a contract with the network and with the viewers. The show must go on no matter what. Continue reading →

The Conspiracy Of Hope

/ Alex Doriot / 1 Comment

denver.post.kennedy.assassination.croppedI fell down the rabbit hole. Like many others this week, I became fascinated by the 50th anniversary of the JFK assassination.

The JFK killing appears to be a once in a lifetime time type event – one that only could have happened at a certain point in history where there was not enough media saturation to find out the truth but just enough media saturation to create the controversy and conspiracies which continue on some 50 years and counting down the road.

One podcast I listened to featured one of my favorite authors Chuck Klosterman giving his analysis on the conspiracy theories. Klosterman made an interesting point on conspiracies in general.

Klosterman hypothesized that conspiracies are often more comforting to believe than the more probable truth. He said believing that a few people somehow orchestrated a catastrophic event is more comforting than believing all things happen by chance. If we simply believe all the events of life are random and by chance, that can be even scarier than thinking a secret society or some evil mastermind acted outside of normalcy.

I think Klosterman is spot on. In fact, I’ll take his theory one step further. I think conspiracies can be more comforting than believing God is actually in control.  Continue reading →

So You Think You Can Doubt

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Time to come clean and reveal a dirty little secret. My favorite guilty pleasure of the summer is a show called “So You Think You Can Dance.”

I’m a fan of reality shows which track and reward a contestant’s growth over the course of the series. “Survivor”, older seasons of “American Idol”, even “Celebrity Apprentice”. I love seeing real people face down seemingly insurmountable challenges and overcome them, learning more about themselves and life along the way.

(Also I have an unhealthy crush on host Cat Deeley.)

But what I love most about “So You Think You Can Dance” is the moment of doubt. Continue reading →

What Would Taylor Swift Do?

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swift

Billboard

Without heartbreak Taylor Swift would have no songs to write.

Without the pain from relationships gone bad, where would Taylor Swift’s inspiration come from?

Her scars tell her story. Her pain inspires her art. Her conflicts create an opportunity for a greater victory.

Without getting knocked down we have no reason to rise up.

Without conflict there is no reason for us to rise off the couch.

Without getting fired from Apple Steve Jobs would have never invested in a little company called Pixar and we would have no “Toy Story”.

Without getting saddled with the horrible name “The Ringmaster”, Steve Austin would have never gone home and brainstormed the name “Stone Cold”.

There is significance in our struggle. There is art in our unrest. With conflict comes the chance for heroism. Continue reading →

What Do You Doubt?

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Doubt is a pain too lonely to know that faith is his twin brother. – Khalil Gibran, poet

What do you doubt about God? If you have any faith in God, you surely wrestle with doubt as well.

In a world where innocent Marathon runners and spectators become terrorist victims one day and innocent plant workers become victims of an explosion the next, doubt creeps in about a loving God.

What kind of God does this to His people? What hope is there in this world? What do we have to cling to?

The doubt in our heart is nothing new. The stains of doubt are never fully washed from our cup no matter how powerful our faith is. For as long as people have had faith they have wrestled against doubt.

482376_858133227665_1363584939_nTake Thomas for instance – the doubting disciple. For the past few weeks I’ve been rehearsing for a play called “Eight Days After”. The play is an exploration into the mysterious appearances of Jesus after His resurrection and how they affected the people He once knew. Continue reading →

You’re Right To Fight

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(It’s Wrestlemania week on POP GOD! Join us everyday this week as we count down to Wrestlemania XXIX this Sunday with new posts searching for God in the squared circle.)

hoganandreWhat if Hulk Hogan never fought Andre The Giant?

What if instead The Hulkster was just handed a championship?

What if instead of bodyslamming the behemoth, Hulk Hogan just traveled the world talking about what a great athlete he was?

If Hulk Hogan was just a great speaker and never engaged in any battles, he would not have been my hero growing up.

Unlike so many people in the real world (and so many of today’s WWE stars), Hulk Hogan didn’t just talk about being the best wrestler in the world. He went into battle every night in arenas across the country to back up the words he said.

Hulk Hogan faced down conflict when it came after him – even in the form of a giant. Continue reading →