Reflections on the loving kindness of the Triune God
What should we make of the WWJD movement—What Would Jesus Do?—of the 90’s? Proponents of that movement updated Charles Sheldon’s book, In His Steps: What Would Jesus Do? They also borrowed from The Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis of the 16th century. I’ve been a skeptic. My hesitation has nothing to do with …
Read More WWJD RevisitedA friend recently commented on what he sees as a widely embraced twist in our Christian circles: “We believe in the Trinity . . . of a sort: in the Father, Son, and the Holy Scriptures.” His wry point invites some reflection. He wasn’t saying that an overt opposition exists in some circles between honoring …
Read More The True TrinityWe were made for conversation. This realization comes in the first hours of birthing and never ends. Every child who grows into successful adulthood will have started with a mother’s tender gaze, cuddles, and whispered words. This parent-child bonding is woven by words of devotion and love. The child also smiles and learns to respond …
Read More ConversationsGretchen, who has contributed here before (see her last in August 2013), invites us to a deeper faith. Be sure to read her post with an open heart! The beginning of a new year brings with it a flurry of New Year’s resolutions….lose weight, exercise more, de-clutter the closets, etc. We all have issues and …
Read More A Different Kind of ResolutionThis entry repeats a post at Cor Deo: please offer any responses on that site. Thanks! Jesus offered a parable about the types of soil farmers find in casting seed. He then explained the parable. Those who hear God’s word are the soil and the quality of the soil defines the fruitfulness of a teaching …
Read More Soil SamplesIt’s nearly Christmas and the time for Christmas pageants: baby Jesus, all aglow, in a cross-legged wooden manger with a docile cardboard donkey, a couple of sheep, and Mary with Joseph looking on. Sweet. Yet we can be sure this sterile setting misses the original scene by a long mile. Think, instead, of an animal …
Read More The Glory of ChristmasCan you think of the times you’ve called out to God without a response from him? Do prayers seem to bounce back from heaven? Have you ever asked him, “Where are you when I need you? Why don’t you answer me?” Do we need to find some magic formula to stir God? Or to placate …
Read More Prayers that workHow do we define and apply morality? Is our morality intention-based? So that we examine motives, whether our own or others, to know whether a person is authentic in what they choose? If so, this calls for us to find our true identity so we can be “true to self” no matter what others might …
Read More Faith, Time, & MoralityAn unlikely Old Testament hero—the African eunuch, Ebed-melech—offers us a model of courage. We first meet him in Jeremiah 38 when he rescued Jeremiah. The prophet was in trouble—discarded to die in a muddy cistern—until Ebed-melech acted. In the rescue this African’s faith invites admiration and imitation. And through his story we gain another facet …
Read More FaithfulHow do we present the gospel to a skeptical world? Let’s consider a few common approaches. Arguing is one option: God’s existence is affirmed by proofs such as Christ’s miraculous resurrection. The premise is that undeniable evidence for the supernatural—with the moral implications of the supernatural God in view—will stir a decision to believe. This …
Read More By Invitation Only