Humility
A Bizarre Prayer From Jesus
Just this morning I read a heartbreaking thread from a young woman on Twitter who has decided that prayer is pointless and she has stopped praying as a result. Not cut back. Stopped. Completely. Several others chimed in with some form of, “Yeah, me too. Gave up praying years ago.” I’ll admit that I struggle…
Read MoreOf Towels and Upside-Down Kingdoms
By the time we reach John chapter 13, we are getting very close to the time of the Passover Feast, and it is in that context that John focuses on Jesus’ last meal with his disciples. They will never again be seen as a unified group, and it could be argued that they are not…
Read MoreJesus is Not an Egomaniac
I don’t know that I can identify a single verse of scripture that I would label as my over-all favorite. I don’t have a “life verse” and am not even certain I know what it means to have one. But if I could identify my top forty or fifty verses in the Bible, one of…
Read MoreA Celebration of Weakness
I am about halfway through Eric Metaxas’ biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. It is a fascinating read, one filled with tidbits of information I did not previously know, as well as fuller explanations and backstory regarding things I did know. Metaxas is walking through Bonhoeffer’s life chronologically, and I have read as far as the mid-1930s.…
Read MoreKeeping Your Focus on What Matters
A while back, I was in the Oakland California airport, working my way through TSA security for my flight home following an event sponsored by West Coast Christian Writers. As I shuffled through the security cattle stalls, I noted that the screening process was significantly slower, and more stringent than anything I had previously experienced,…
Read MoreSpiritual Trophies
“I led Ignatias Fibwitz to the Lord last week.” I hear this line, in various forms, quite frequently. Indeed, I heard it just last evening. “I led this person to the Lord,” or “I led that person to the Lord.” I get it. I understand what the person saying this means, yet, I confess that…
Read MoreGiving Up the Superman Suit
When my children were very young, they delighted in wrestling with dad. I would lie on the floor to prepare for the battle, or sometimes I would already be lying there busy with another task, and they would dog pile me. Even my brave little daughter would dive into the fray. Once the pile was…
Read MoreHall of Fame
Congratulations to Rick Pitino and the Louisville Cardinals on their NCAA Championship. As I was driving to work this morning, I was listening to the news as I always do, and heard that Pitino is slated to be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. That’s a great honor. I began to ponder this whole…
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