The Old Testament prophet, Haggai, urged the people to get about the task of rebuilding the temple with these words: “Give careful thought to your ways! You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but you never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put …
Category Archives: Christian living
“Do Overs”
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Cor 5:17). Call them what you want–second chances, mulligans, do-overs–they all provide a fresh start. I am convinced that one of the reasons we humans make so much of the beginning of the new year …
Join the Sacred Game
An end of the year article by Phyllis Tickle (Emergent Village) urged readers to “join the sacred game.” Tickle was asking for reader feedback, but the phrase gave me pause. Authors have described the Christian life of interaction with God, other Christians, and the larger world in various ways, but I like this picture: join …
Pronounced Victorious
I just came from the hospital and a brief visit in the Grimes’ home. Ray passed away this afternoon, about 45 minutes after Jan and I arrived at the hospital. We were blessed to be there with a faithful family able to rejoice that Ray was getting his wish to escape the hurt he was …
Project Heaven
I came back from Honduras with a sore throat and cough which worsened through the week. Slowed me down considerably, even though I found enough office time to do what absolutely had to be done (obviously, not blogging!). My visit to the doctor yesterday yielded antibiotics and cough suppressants which should do the trick and …
No “Kingdom People” Without Gratitude
My conclusion may seem a bold statement. “Genuine ‘kingdom people’ are always grateful people.” The Gospel of Luke contains a significant amount of material not found in the other two Synoptic Gospels (Matthew and Mark). Much of the material unique to Luke appears after the second prediction of Jesus’ death (Matt. 17:22; Mark 9:31; Luke …
What Motivates Thanksgiving? (2 Corinthians 9)
“(6) Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. (7) Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. (8) And God is able to make all grace abound to you, …
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Am I wise?
“But Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him” (2 Chr. 10:8). Age and wisdom do not always go together. One may become old and not wise, one may be wiser than his years. In our text, Rehoboam, the son …
Margins
Richard Swenson provides a helpful insight and corrective in his book, Margin. The primary meaning of the word margin (it share a common origin with mark) is a border or limit. It has come to denote the area surrounding something (as the margin on a page, usually blank). We reflect this concept in the phrase, …
Still Here!
Frainkly, I have had trouble getting the creative juices flowing over the past week. Yet I feel the need to check in and say something to my friends and readers. Seems that I just finished materials for the Leon, Mexico trip. Now I am feeling the presssure to finish my presentation for the Pan-American Lectureship in …