We began our journey this year with the goal of growing closer to God by modeling Jesus’s life and character in the world around us. This month, we celebrate Jesus and the access to God we have through Him. Eugene Peterson’s The Message describes Jesus’s incarnation in this refreshing way: The Word became flesh and […]
Read MoreTag Archives: Matthew
Dealing with Holiday Loneliness
It’s true. For many people, the holidays draw up painful memories. Sore spots from childhood or the loss of loved ones hit them hard during this sentimental season. While many people celebrate the joys of Christmastime, others suffer its loneliness. During one of the most desperate times of David’s life, the anointed future king of […]
Read MoreAdvent. Coming.
I’m not an Anglican, although there is much that I appreciate from my Anglican roots. Some examples are…the heritage, the rich tradition of orthodox, apostolic faith, the liturgical prayers, which taught me evangelical theology from a young age, and the church calendar. Yes, you read correctly, the church calendar. It’s a wonderful pattern of organising […]
Read MoreA Gift Too Wonderful for Words
Long ago in a quiet, crude place where animals sleep, Mary gave birth and felt the soft, human skin of her firstborn. The humanity of this scene appropriately pulls us in for a closer look. We can identify with Joseph’s confusion, with Mary’s wonder, and with the shepherds’ amazement about the Son of God’s quiet […]
Read MoreAct Medium
The children worked long and hard on their little cardboard shack. It was to be a special spot—a clubhouse, where they could meet together, play, and have fun. Because a clubhouse has to have rules, they came up with three: Nobody act big. Nobody act small. Everybody act medium. Not bad theology! In different words, […]
Read MoreDo Not Quarrel on the Way
The story of Joseph’s rise to power in Egypt is remarkable. Joseph was the eleventh of Jacob’s sons, but his firstborn by Rachel. Jacob favoured Joseph, and his brothers all resented him for it. Betrayed into slavery in Egypt by his jealous brothers, and imprisoned unjustly on the testimony of a frustrated seductress, the future […]
Read MoreBeing the Beatitudes
On the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee there is a hill, green and gently sloped and overlooking deep, blue waters. From this hill a panorama unfolds of the early ministry of Jesus—healing in nearby Capernaum, calling His first disciples to fish for men, and simple yet profound teaching that continues to change lives […]
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