Love
Who Is My Neighbor?
At my day job, I manage software development projects for an engineering consulting firm. When a new piece of software is being developed, we often produce what we call an MVP release. That is the Minimum Viable Product, the “must haves” to be developed so the software can be used and accomplish what was intended…
Read MoreEverything Old is New Again
Love. Love is the greatest commandment.1 Love is the new commandment.2 Or is it? For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.– 1 John 3:11, ESV This phrase, “from the beginning” is all over 1st John. You can scarcely scan a single page of the letter without…
Read MoreNatural Imitators
I built four large, raised-bed vegetable gardens and one small herb garden in our back yard for Alean. Though it is a lot of work, she enjoys arranging, planting, cultivating the vegetables. I enjoy eating them! The twenty-four-inch elevation allows her to tend the gardens without straining her back. Some time ago Alean and I…
Read MoreLoving Well
There is a phrase I heard in seminary that has stuck with me for decades because it is both catchy and true. “Text out of context is pretext.” For Christmas, last year, Alean made me a coffee mug that says, “I can do all things through a verse taken out of context.” Context is critical,…
Read MoreLoving the Seemingly Unlovely
Wooden Bowls I read, once, the story of a feeble, elderly gentleman who lived with his son, daughter-in-law, and young grandson.1 The gentleman’s failing vision and tremulous hands gave evidence of his advanced age, made even the simplest tasks difficult, and made neatness nearly impossible. As the family dined each evening, accidents were common, with spilled…
Read MoreGrey Areas, Christian Liberty, and Living a Life of Love (Part 3)
Two weeks ago, we looked at how love for our brothers and sisters in Christ governs our Christian liberty. Last week, we dove into what constitutes a “disputable matter.” This week, we finalize our look at Romans 14 by examining the “stumbling block.” Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up…
Read MoreGrey Areas, Christian Liberty, and Living a Life of Love (Part 2)
© 2019 Lilly Cantabile. All Rights Reserved. Pixabay.Used by permission. Last week, we looked at how love for our brothers and sisters in Christ governs our Christian liberty. This week, we take a similar, dangerous dive into what constitutes a “disputable matter.” Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. – Romans…
Read MoreGrey Areas, Christian Liberty, and Living a Life of Love (Part 1)
This lengthy blog post will bother some of you, perhaps even anger you. I understand that and am used to occasionally finding myself in the hot-seat for my views on scripture. Feel free to comment, argue with me, debate, disagree … but please do so politely. Disagreements abound in the body of Christ universally, and…
Read MoreAre There Good People? (Part 2)
Last week I shared the details of one of the most unnerving experiences Alean and I have endured in almost a decade, that glorious moment when my old beater car broke down in the middle lane of the 405 South bypass around Seattle during rush hour. But the bad news turned upward and became good…
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