Learning to love others the way Jesus loves us
Third Sunday of Advent The King of Glory will return to reign over His garden Kingdom. In the beginning, God made a garden. Yahweh Elohim (יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהִים) caused every tree that is pleasant to look at and filled with healthy food to spring up out of the newly created earth. In the middle of the… Continue reading O ye Heights of Heav’n
Lamentations 3:25-28 The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth. Let him sit alone in silence when it is… Continue reading 4’33
Is God, by His silence, creating space for us to wrestle as Jacob did? Caught in-between. For some of us, it's a space between jobs or transitions between life stages, especially the years between active parenting and the empty nest. For others it may be changing locations or churches. There are times in everyone's life… Continue reading When God seems silent: Part two
We live in strange and awful times. Wars abroad, divisions at home, a global pandemic in its second year, and more vitriol spewed on social media than pictures of kittens and bad puns combined. People are quick to speak, slow to listen, and adept at jumping to conclusions based on incomplete information. And that's just… Continue reading Where is your identity found?
Resting is hard for many of us, especially those of us who grew up in a community where work was prized above almost anything else. "Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise..." Productivity, even in ministry, becomes an idol, but it is an acceptable one. We take pride in how… Continue reading The gift of rest
The Church in the US and much of the West is broken. It has been broken by teachers and pastors who sought recognition and fame. It has been broken by church attendees who stay for the music, but leave as soon as the teaching gets serious. Cultural Christianity (churchianity) focuses on blessings instead of trials and boasting instead of truth. The Church in the US, for the most part, has moved away from worshipping the righteous and holy God who created all things and holds all things together, replacing the Father with a national identity and the human leaders they elect.
Habakkuk 1-3 Wait. Not exactly the word I expected for 2021, but that's the one that stuck. Some people might say it was a word from the Lord, but I won't be so bold as to claim to hear God in such specific terms. Still, this is the word that came to mind over and… Continue reading My word for 2021
Defaulting to Grace 