Learning to love others the way Jesus loves us
An approach to grace through the wisdom of James It has been a long week since the Supreme Court struck down the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. Responses included protests and threats, fear and anxiety, joy and exultation, determination and delight-- both within the Church and in the broader secular culture. Extreme reactions to national… Continue reading Grace when courts decide
How Noah responded to the grace of the Lord and what that means for us GRACE: charitos (χάριτος) Charis (Χάρις) appears more than 150 times in the Bible, mostly in the letters written by Paul. The first usage of the concept, however, is not for first-century Christians, but for pre-Abrahamic Noah (Genesis 6:8) when the… Continue reading Grace and Gopher wood
I can do all things through him who strengthens me. "I can do hard things" is the current cultural parallel to this verse and is the meaning many cultural Christians intend when they call on it as inspiration to achieve something. But Paul was not advocating that believers be like the "Little Train that Could," approaching… Continue reading Philippians 4:13
MISUNDERSTOOD VERSES #4 Upon first read, this one seems to promise that if parents check all the right boxes for raising happy, productive, and godly offspring, then by golly, it's a sure-fired guarantee that their adult children will be pillars of Christian society. No pressure. This verse turns into ammunition for judgement. Christian parent with… Continue reading Proverbs 22:6
Misunderstood verses #3 Misunderstood Have you heard this lately? It's popular with purveyors of the prosperity doctrine who teach that God wants everyone to be healthy, wealthy, and wise. Benjamin Franklin is the author of the aphorism "Early to bed, early to rise…" and he may have been a deist, but he didn't pretend to… Continue reading John 14:14
There is a legend about the dogwood tree. It’s a lovely little story with absolutely no basis in fact about the role of the dogwood tree in the crucifixion of Jesus. The flowers form a cross, the central portions represent a crown, and each petal is pierced and stained red. The spring blooms come near… Continue reading The Dogwood
Defaulting to Grace is going to be a book! To celebrate, I've decided to share bonus content to subscribers only. You may already follow me through WordPress, but I invite you to subscribe (free), too. As a subscriber, you'll be first to know about the publication process and timeline along with some sneak peeks at… Continue reading Subscribe for bonus content
"Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near" (Hebrews 10:24-25). The COVID-19 pandemic added to a building cultural sense that regular church attendance… Continue reading Going missing
Why does God allow suffering? Certainly He could have created everyone to be good and moral and kind. But doing so would mean humans would have no free will or independent spirits. If people are allowed choices, there will always be consequences. And humans don’t like to feel conformed to or constrained by another. In… Continue reading Someday we will see the “why”
The silence of God also does not mean the inactivity of God. (Twitter post, @songgirl127, April 16 2022) How long, O Lord? It was the cry of the prophets from Moses to Malachi. It was the cry of the early church under persecution. And it is the cry of many today in the face of… Continue reading When God seems silent
Defaulting to Grace 