Did Paul Tell Women to ‘Shut Up’ in Church?
I have been somewhat taken aback by the volume of material posted over the last four or five months regarding the oppression of women in the body of Christ. To my shame, I did not recognize this was as widespread an issue as it seems to be. The pervasiveness of the issue is clearly evinced…
Read MoreA Different Kind of Light
I have written several times recently about light and darkness. Sometimes a topic just sticks with me because I find it interesting. Other times this happens because the Bible has so much to say about a given subject. I’m not sure which, if either, of those fits, but I found myself, again, thinking about light this week,…
Read MoreHoliness is a Pursuit
It is likely that one of the least understood and most abused words in the English language is “holy.” On one end of the spectrum, we find extreme sanctimonious, “holier than thou” religious snobbery, while the other end of the spectrum houses the use of “holy” as something of an expletive. Just as often, “holy”…
Read MorePray for Your Pastor(s)
Do you pray for your pastor(s)? I strongly encourage you to do so. As a former pastor, I can assure you very few non-pastors understand the load a pastor carries. About thirty years ago, I heard Chuck Swindoll commenting on Jesus’ getting away to rest. He said, “Only those who have ministered publicly understand the…
Read MoreIs Anything Believable Anymore?
The world is chaotic of late. Military conflict abounds. Fentanyl continues to spread, claiming lives that are ending far too early. Men pretend to be women and women pretend to be men, and this is now characterized as the new “science.” Grotesque surgeries are mutilating children. The Olympic Women’s Boxing championship bout featured two X/Y…
Read MoreA Sacrifice of Praise?
When I was working as a Campus Minister at Kansas University, we had devotionals every Friday evening. To some that seems like exactly the night you would not want to do such a thing, but it worked for us. It gave the students something wholesome to do on a Friday evening. A big part of devotional night…
Read MoreStop Being Shocked by the Worldliness of the World
The rumbles of the Olympic opening ceremony continue as Parisian spokesperson, Anne Deschamps, attempted to throw a little water on the fire by explaining they were trying to celebrate community tolerance. “We believe this ambition was achieved. If people have taken any offence, we are really sorry.” There is so much wrong with what is…
Read MoreLoving the World While Loving Christ
At least once a week I have to mow my lawn. The routine features a boring sameness each time. I put on icky clothes and icky shoes. I put in my ear plugs to block the noise, pull the machinery out of the shed, manicure the edge of the sidewalk, trim all the borders with…
Read MoreGive Yourself a Break
The one issue that seemed to get Jesus in conflict with the religious aristocracy of his day more than any other issue was Sabbath observance. “This man does not keep the Sabbath!” “This man does what it is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!” Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days…
Read MoreAt God’s Good Pleasure
Language changes over time. I’ll confess, that bugs me. I like words to mean what they mean and to mean that forever. But, the reality is new words are created, old words are redefined, and some words and phrases drop off the charts and are no longer used. No one talks of going to a…
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