personal weaknesses
Last November, the news about Tiger Wood’s numerous extramarital affairs began to leak out. It became evident that the golfer with the squeaky clean image wasn’t so perfect after all. Since then, there has been a growing debate over whether or not the media has been too hard on Tiger. Some say he deserved to be publicly shamed. Others point…
November 29, 2010
As we celebrate C.S. Lewis’ 112th birthday (he passed away in 1963), which one of his books is your favorite? Why?
honey dripping
In Eugene Peterson’s Eat This Book, he tells the story of his 7-year-old grandson Hans who appeared to be devoutly reading his New Testament as he sat on a park bench. The boy’s eyes moved back and forth across the pages of the Bible, denying the fact that he had not yet learned how to read.
Similarly, we can consistently…
get the party started
Pastor Robert Brearley says, “Weddings are accidents waiting to happen.” I tend to agree. At one wedding where I officiated, some of the decorations in the sanctuary (which had just finished being renovated the night before—making this the first public event) caught fire, ultimately sending one of the wedding cakes up in flames. More than a few times, we’ve seen…
not an option
Last Sunday, we gave our 7-year-old congregation a spiritual challenge—to join together in an on-site, 24-hour prayer chain. Each person was asked to consider signing up to pray for 30 minutes. Nearly 100 people signed up to participate through prayer! We gave our congregation this challenge because, unlike the disciples in Mark 9, we did not want our ministry effort…
thanksgiving and grief
A few months after our 25 year old son's suicide we attended a friend's wedding. The bride's grandmother took both my hands in hers, looked into my eyes and said, "There are still good things in life." Her words were comforting. I carried them around with me for weeks, pondering what good life could offer me now. My prayers then…
possible
A benefit of being a teacher, I know that Thanksgiving vacation is always an anticipated respite from the routine of waking early, grading papers, and planning lessons.
What I hadn’t planned for was the impending disagreements that would arise from our two children being home in close quarters with extra time. No matter how much I tried to reason with…
unplanned
At 17, she was in the midst of a brief season of rebellion. One night, instead of staying at a friend’s house, as she had told her parents, she went to a party thrown by a guy in his twenties. Although drinking and drug use took place, she abstained and eventually fell asleep. Later, she awoke to find herself being…
picture of pride
Hoping to catch a prowler, the South Wales police published his image in a local newspaper. But the burglar was unsatisfied with the photo, so he submitted a better one—featuring him standing in front of a police vehicle! Police later captured and detained the criminal, thanks to his arrogant stunt. You might say his glamour shot led to a mug…
like a river . . .
God's love is like a river . . .
—image of Yegar river submitted by Ruth, Indonesia
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November 22, 2010
In the book unChristian, researcher and author David Kinnaman—a believer in Jesus—details many negative perceptions of Christians shared by unbelievers. What can we do to better represent Jesus to the world in a winsome way?
spiritual pursuit
On this day in 1963, the world was shocked by the news that John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, had been killed by an assassin’s bullet. Though it’s not as well known or remembered, Christian author C. S. Lewis passed away the very same day. Even fewer will remember that Aldous Huxley, author of the book…
Jesus heals
By 2:00 a.m., as reports streamed in from the earthquake in Haiti, Craig Miller knew he had to go. Miller, director of the relief organization Thirst No More, had been able to have two Facebook chats with a medical contact working amid the rubble. The team’s news was dire: They had seen five children die, and they couldn’t provide adequate…
wisdom of a president
With the death of former US President Gerald Ford in December 2006, many Americans found renewed appreciation for the man who steadfastly served following the resignation of President Richard Nixon. Many people knew that he had spent years of his life in public service before becoming President. But few knew the integral role his Christian faith had played in shaping…
