Think of this as an exercise in taking a year-end inventory of your life and cultivating the spiritual soil for an abundant harvest in the year ahead. Taking stock of your spiritual life Get out your 2018 calendar, your journal, your Bible and your check register. Slowly, soberly look through them and take stock. Bible […]
Philippians 2 reminds us that after His humiliation, Jesus experiences exultation. “God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is […]
The Incarnation of the Living God Question 47 of the Larger Catechism asks, “How did Christ humble Himself in His conception and birth?” Reflecting both John 1:18 and Philippians 2, the answer confesses that “Christ humbled Himself in His conception and birth, in that, being from all eternity the Son of God in the bosom […]
As we approach the celebration of Christmas, it seems appropriate to seek to unwrap the mystery and the meaning of the manger. From the perspective of reasoned thought or a rational mind, the Bible’s claim that the God of the Universe, the Maker of Heaven and Earth, took on human flesh by being born of […]
Do you always read the fine print in the Terms of Service? I confess that I have, on occasion, agreed to Terms of Service that I have, in fact, not read. Have you read the Terms of Service for the social media platform upon which you are now reading this post? If not, the time […]
Thanksgiving is a week away! Ready? Set? Go! Thanksgiving is a genuinely American holiday and one of my favorites. If you have not done so already, it’s time to issue some invitations for next Thursday. You could do a Thanksgiving Day brunch, lunch, dinner or leftover party on Friday or Saturday. Whatever you do, remember […]
“He touched me.” With what ears do you hear that sentence? Do you hear the refrain of a comforting hymn or the revelation of a sexually-abused child? The seemingly simple phrase may call to mind for you the reality of the touch of God in your life but for many others it brings waves […]
Nearly 20 years ago, I was walking down the large hall of a Convention Center during a national church meeting when I heard him. “You!” “You!” I turned to see a man nearly running in my direction pointing a very accusatory finger. You might wonder why I didn’t run. I can tell you that I […]
The title is total click-bait for a person like me: Psychologist is developing a smart phone to talk to dead people. The article is written with open mockery of the idea and those working to bring products to market which would satisfy a particular consumer demand. The article appears on the Patheos website. The drop-down […]
Today’s public language and cultural rhetoric is demonstrably coarse. It’s no way for people of good character to speak to one another and yet we hear coarse speech throughout the public discourse. Coarse talk bears witness to a coarse walk. Ephesians 4 makes clear that those who are seeking to live lives worthy of […]