What if I told you that God has been speaking to me about an issue that I haven’t been able to put out of my mind? Because you know me, you don’t think I’m claiming to have heard God speak in an audible voice. You assume that I have had an idea that I believe […]
Why are the villains in the greatest story ever told a group of religious conservatives? The question is personal. I am a religious and biblical conservative. I believe in the importance of the family and am convinced that our children need to learn the dangers of Darwin, abortion, and same-sex marriage. Theologically, I’m a fundamentalist. […]
Why do we punish ourselves for old regrets long after we believe God has forgiven us? The question stuck in my mind after a conversation with someone I’ll call TC. TC described himself as being in recovery for multiple addictions. A couple of times he said, “My problem was forgiving myself. I found it a […]
Life isn’t fair. Helpless children suffer for their parents’ mistakes. Some who work hard are cut down prematurely by accident or disease. Others who hardly work inherit the wealth of someone else’s labor. People of faith seem as subject to the luck of the draw as the weekend gambler. As if by a random dealing […]
On April 8, 1966, the cover of Time magazine asked in bold black letters, “Is God Dead?” The lead story described the work of several theologians who no longer held to traditional concepts of God. They were alike in concluding that the God of our fathers had not survived the dawn of evolution and birth […]
I recently saw a greeting card that shows a woman sitting in a business meeting with five men. The man at the head of the table says, “That’s an excellent suggestion, Miss Triggs. Perhaps one of the men here would like to make it.” Men smile because the card catches them with their guard down. […]
Dear Mel, I’ve been thinking about the spiritual doubts you were struggling with the last time we talked. I didn’t say much at the time because I didn’t know what to say. Now that I’ve had a chance to collect my thoughts, I want you to know that I respect you for admitting that you’ve […]
Only hours before His death, a carpenter rabbi from Nazareth told His followers that He was leaving them. Then He said, “Let not your heart be troubled . . . . I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:1-3). Almost 2,000 years later, […]
In the memories that come with a parent’s passing, I’ve been reminded of what my dad taught those of us who lived and worked with him. In many ways, Dad didn’t have an easy life. Long before his problems with a detached retina, heart surgery, and Parkinson’s disease, he lived in the shadow of his […]
Is it wise for followers of Christ to be involved in the social debate over public policy? The question of political activism is dividing Christian groups right down the middle. Some are convinced that it is our moral responsibility to use our civil rights to “capture our culture for Christ” and “reclaim our national Christian […]
