Mark Botts

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http://www.bottsandmouw.com/

Mark Botts lives with his wife Rebecca and their three kids in West Virginia. He is a Visiting Instructor of English with Bluefield State University. Mark also serves as a Bible teacher for his church and as a Strength & Conditioning coach for a Christian school. He writes essays, poems, stage plays, and screenplays. His screenplay The Women Will Be Here Soon is in pre-production for a shoot in the fall of 2023.

Recent Essays

The Census Taker In the Church Pew, Part 2

Mark Botts - June 27, 2023

At the time of this writing, W. and D., with W. staying at D.’s side, remain faithful attenders of our church’s worship services and Bible studies. How long will this hold? The answer is unknown, but I am watching.

Advisor Wanting: The Absence of Moral Limits in Lady Macbeth

Mark Botts - June 20, 2023

Our best ally should not be a man or woman who lacks the aptitude to discern right from wrong...one should not draw unto himself or herself a companion like Lady Macbeth, for Lady Macbeth does not exercise virtue.

A Sabbath Reflection on Artificial Intelligence & the Human Body

Mark Botts - April 19, 2023

Will we distance ourselves from machines that, like carnival attractions, buzz and ping and light up with those grand prizes of ease and efficiency so that we might remember Christ’s body by way of our bodies? Or will we offload our humanity to those devices that hate our embodied souls?

Wisdom Crieth Without: Features of an Inspirational Speech

Mark Botts - March 1, 2023

We speak to connect with ideas and with the Divine. Of all the speeches I have heard in-person and not in a movie, or play, recording, or manuscript, a few have reached the pinnacle of being inspirational.

The Census Taker in a Church Pew

Mark Botts - December 8, 2022

It is a trouble that visits us all: our fate is to die and be forgotten. Tying ourselves to one another and to life can diminish that trouble’s force, but kingdoms and cultures and homes rise and fall. Being willingly bound in devotion to the Creator redeems that trouble forever.

Not Vanity

Mark Botts - September 29, 2022

I worked alongside Dad many times. I have also worked alongside other men and women with a disposition towards work like my father’s. They do their labor with skill, creativity, and energy. They rightly earn trust as one to call upon for help with physical jobs.

Ride Into the Day: Images That Remain

Mark Botts - September 16, 2022

“Choose you this day whom you will serve,” the Old Testament leader, Joshua, charged his fellow Jews. And that choice, while crucial, while fundamental, must also be borne out during a lifetime of choices.

Against Fun: The Ubiquitous Specter of Youth Sports

Mark Botts - August 19, 2022

More to the purpose of this essay, organized youth sports should challenge students to be dissatisfied with amusement or entertainment in their pursuit of excellence. Our culture is soaked in entertainment, the preponderance being of a low quality. While it can be entertaining, sports also offers an education.