When a 90 mph, category 1 hurricane Sandy made her landfall last night at Atlantic City New Jersey, the breaking news seemed a bit anti-climactic for awhile. Predictions of a Superstorm with a catastrophic storm surge began to seem like one more false alarm. By 9:00 EST time, however, the language of the news groups […]
Am back home again after a wonderful few days with our team in Curitiba, Brazil. As the pic shows, it’s Spring in the southern hemisphere. Thanks so much to those who prayed for and with me along the way. I was repeatedly aware of the Lord’s presence and provision in opportunities to talk with different […]
A television commercial series for Dove Soap for Men promotes its product by showcasing well-known athletes talking about their life with a sense of satisfaction. Each ends their ad saying, “My name is i.e. Magic Johnson and I’m definitely comfortable in my own skin.” The effectiveness of the commercial seems to depend on whether enough […]
When I wrote in my last post about the way time has changed my thinking about the Bible, I was thinking of what has happened as a result of: Listening to the way others interpret or apply the Scriptures. Discovering the complexity and simplicity of life, circumstance, love, and honesty. Seeing that many of us […]
I’ve noticed over time an awkward pain that can show up in followers of Christ in their later years. My first memory of what I’m referring to came when an aging pastor invited me as a young man to have lunch with him. I’m sure that we talked about many things in the hour or […]
As we come to the end of Israel’s September 30 to October 8 Sukkot holiday, I’ve been thinking again about the significance of a harvest festival (Exod 23:16). Israel’s annual cycle of seven harvest festivals gave a nation an opportunity to remember that no matter how much human effort goes into the agricultural enterprise, it […]
Israel, secular as it is, celebrates this week the last harvest festival of the annual cycle of special days called for by Moses in Leviticus 23. (Lev 23:34-44) Intermingling secular, traditional, and spiritually observant customs, the modern celebration of Sukkot/Tabernacles combines elements of present practice and ancient significance. Among the more recognizable are (1) thanks […]
In July of 2011, a 33-year-old Norwegian bombed an Oslo government building and then gunned down scores of guests at a Labor Party youth camp. Seventy-seven people died, and many more were injured. Prior to the attacks, the young gunman wrote a lengthy manifesto titled 2083: A European Declaration of Independence. In chilling detail, he […]
