Being Christian Without Losing Your Mind
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Stay awake, stand firm in your faith, be brave, be strong. –1 Corinthians 16:13 The 8 a.m. worship service was always interesting. I liked it as a warmup for the other services, and also because you knew the people there were committed. Trade in extra sleep for a chance to sit in a pew? Dedication. At …
Jesus replied, “The most important one is ‘Israel, listen! Our God is the one Lord, and you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You will love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”— Mark …
So stop judging each other. Instead, this is what you should decide: never put a stumbling block or obstacle in the way of your brother or sister. — Romans 14:13 Paul wrote these words to a church where people disagreed with each other over what was correct or not regarding food. There were some who …
Go, eat your food joyfully and drink your wine happily, because God has already accepted what you do. — Ecclesiastes 9:7 The most important rule in studying the Bible is this: Whenever you read a passage, see what comes before and after it. Right before the verse above, the “Teacher” (as the writer of Ecclesiastes …
I’ve sinned against you—you alone. I’ve committed evil in your sight…Yes, I was born in guilt, in sin, from the moment my mother conceived me. — Psalm 51:4-5 These are David’s words after he admitted his guilt in his affair with Bathsheba, which entailed having her husband Uriah murdered. Pretty bad, sinful stuff. And he …
“You have heard me tell you, ‘I’m going away and returning to you.’” — John 14:28 The spiritual life, for me, is filled with ups and downs. There are times when everything clicks and you feel Jesus’ closeness, but most of the time he seems far away. It’s like the Transfiguration story. You’re walking along …
In the years leading up the 2019 General Conference of the UMC, I had been a strong supporter of the “One Church Plan.” That proposal was intended to keep United Methodism from fracturing over the issue of human sexuality. It would have empowered local churches, conferences, and clergy to decide about LGBTQ+ ordination and same-sex …
Who put wisdom in remote places, or who gave understanding to a rooster… –Job 38:36 …or to a mama sparrow? I’m amazed each spring how Mr. and Ms. House Sparrow take up residence on our front porch. They build/mend the nest by the porch light with the meticulousness of a surgeon. Then mama fritters and fusses until three …
“And don’t lead us into temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.” — Matthew 6:13 In the typical turbulence of teenhood, I remember very well looking ahead in life and imagining what the world would offer. Money, fun, etc. The future was wide open and, in the optimism (or folly) of youth, I could …
It seemed very bad to Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us,” so he prayed to the Lord. The Lord answered Samuel, “Comply with the people’s request—everything they ask of you—because they haven’t rejected you. No, they’ve rejected me as king over them.” — 1 Samuel 8:6-7 It’s shaping up to be quite an …