The Olympic trials have gotten under my skin. Love watching the exhilaration of those who win a ticket to Beijing. Hate seeing the disappointment of those who lose a coveted spot on their national team by a few points, an untimely injury, or some other twist of fate. Keep thinking about how much these athletes […]
A caricature of God that many of us shed in our early-teens is that, if we do something really bad, we’ll get struck with lightning. We soon discover that it’s more likely for that to happen if we challenge a thunderstorm with a golf club, fishing rod, or umbrella. I remember the day my daughter […]
Like Jesus, the Apostle Paul sets high standards for entering the kingdom of God. In his first letter to the Corinthians he writes: “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites…will inherit the kingdom of […]
None of us can afford to call good bad, or bad good. The prophet Isaiah says, “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and […]
What if the Bible told the story of a God who was all-knowing and all-powerful–but who could feel nothing? In a relationship with such a God, I’m thinking a conversation might go something like this: “Hello, God… It’s me again… I need to talk to you about some things that have been on my mind. […]
When we talk among ourselves about miracles, gifts of the Spirit, or the covenants of God, some of us are apt to remind the others that, according to the Bible, God does not– and cannot change. Others are likely to point out that, over time, the God of the Bible has changed the ways in […]
If God is good, but good isn’t God, how do we avoid making our worst mistakes with some of the best things in life? Seems to me that for openers we might want to say to one another, let’s: Value family, freedom, and a government of the people, by the people, and for the people– […]
FOR 50 YEARS, cartoonist Charles Schulz gave us pictures of ourselves wrapped in a smile. One of the last strips I clipped from our Sunday paper showed Snoopy the dog sitting on top of his doghouse with a typewriter, writing about his life. He titled his story . . . The Dog Who Never Did […]
Today was a full day. Had the anticipated meeting with a group of pastors and church people on the subject of marital abuse. Shared the program with a criminal court judge, an abuse advocate, and a professional counselor. The advocate and counselor had heartbreaking personal stories of their own that they’ve had to deal with. […]
There are reasons so many of us struggle to “forgive” a God who seems to have wronged us. The life he gave us 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 at all inherit the wealth of someone […]
