Learning to love others the way Jesus loves us
Community Read Hebrews 10: 19-25 and Acts 2, especially verses 42-47 Pray that the Lord will open your mind and heart to hear His voice. How do we love Jesus through community? There's a Greek word, κοινωνία (koinōnia) that brings together multiple aspects of fellowship. While "fellowship" is a delightful word, American English cannot fully… Continue reading Beloved: Reflection 5
Loyalty Read 3 John and Deuteronomy 7:6-10 Pray that the Lord will open your mind and heart to hear His voice. How do we stand with and for our brothers and sisters in the Lord? We step up. The concept of loyalty runs throughout the Bible, from the Hebrew אָמַן ( 'āman), meaning to be… Continue reading Beloved: Reflection 4
Care Read Luke 10:25-37 Pray that the Lord will open your mind and heart to hear His voice. What does it mean to care for one another as an act of love? It's important to consider what had just happened to visualize the setting of this parable fully. A crowd had gathered to hear about… Continue reading Beloved: Reflection 3
Affection Read Romans 12:3-18 Pray that the Lord will open your mind and heart to hear His voice. How can we show affection to one another in a culture that thrives on division? No one will argue that the last three years have made people unified, bonded, and more committed to loving when the contrary… Continue reading Beloved: Reflection 2
Now what? My goodness. Just when I begin to think the divisive politicking of the American public has reached the bottom, something happens on one extreme side or the other to show me more depths of depravity. Morally vacant candidates fight to see which commits the most egregious sins. Old men stuck in decades past… Continue reading Grace, politics, and Gen Z
Where grace endures. I am currently working through Jennifer Rothschild’s excellent study on the minor prophet, Amos with my ladies Bible study. When the women’s ministry settled on Amos for fall I was both intrigued and excited. Intrigued because the minor prophets don’t have the touchy-feely vibe most weekday women’s Bible studies want (I long… Continue reading Undivided loyalty
The Feast of Trumpets A new year means both reflection and rejoicing A Good Year Leviticus 23: 23-25 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe a day of solemn rest, a memorial proclaimed with blast of trumpets, a holy… Continue reading Shanah Tovah: שנה טובה
Why congregations need to show grace to their leaders. Satan and his demons will do anything to silence the Church. When external persecution is impractical for whatever reason, they exploit human frailties within individual churches. Leaders, especially pastors and priests, find themselves in complex moral, social, and cultural battles on a regular basis. The Church… Continue reading Show yourself beautiful
John 21:15-18 You have to appreciate Peter. He's an all-or-nothing kind of guy who cannot hide his feelings or control what comes out of his mouth. He makes big claims and even bigger mistakes. And Jesus clearly loves that about him. In that love, Jesus also teaches, disciplines, and molds Peter into the apostle who… Continue reading Lessons from a charcoal fire
The God who worked wonders in the past is faithful to keep His promises still (Psalm 77:14; Psalm 86:15). To say we live in troubling times is an understatement. Every day some new catastrophe floods the news cycles: natural disasters, crime, social issues, education, politics, and uncertainty about the economy threaten our personal well-being and… Continue reading Faithful through the Ages
Defaulting to Grace 