bwana asifiwe!
Bwana asifiwe!” is Swahili for Praise the Lord! As I traveled from the dry place of Tala to the slums of Kawangare to the densely populated and dangerous ghetto of Korogocho in Kenya, this is the way every believer greeted me.
correcting blind spots
In The Call to Joy and Pain, Ajith Fernando, a Christian leader from Sri Lanka, wrote: “The church in each culture has its own special challenges—theological blind spots that hinder Christians from growing to full maturity in Christ. . . . I think one of the most serious theological blind spots in [today’s] western church is a defective understanding of suffering. . . . The ‘good life’—comfort, convenience, and a painless life—have become necessities that people view as basic rights. If they do not have these, they think something has gone wrong. . . . One of the results of this attitude is a severe restriction of spiritual growth, for God intends us to grow through trials.”
a prize awaits
How do I decide what to write in my ODJ article? Each month, I move down the list of 66 books in the Bible, and pick a passage from three books to write on. But sometimes I’ll write on the passage that I’m currently studying. Interestingly, I’ve noticed that quite a number of my articles are on Christian service. So I wondered: How many ODJ readers are actively serving God?
opening up
Recently, my wife and I had the privilege of speaking on the topic of Loving One Another at a marriage retreat. Attendees included couples of all ages—those who had been married just a year to a “golden” duo who had spent 50 years together. That couple, Joe and Arlene, blessed the younger couples as they transparently revealed some of the struggles they had experienced in their marriage. They candidly acknowledged their imperfections but also stated that they had chosen to cling to God and their vows as they went through rocky times together.
not fooled
It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.” —Mark Twain
sin is serious
David Head, in his book He Sent Leanness, overhauls a traditional public confession of sin found in the Book of Common Prayer and offers a satirical look at our shallow view of sin: “Benevolent and easy-going Parent: We have occasionally had some minor errors of judgment, but they’re not really our fault. Due to forces beyond our control, we have sometimes failed to act in accordance with our own best interests. Under the circumstances, we did the best we could. We are glad to say that we’re doing okay, perhaps even slightly above average. Be your own sweet Self with those who know they are not perfect.” Oh, how we trust in our own righteousness and justify our sinfulness!
born to die
We’re well into that special time of the year when our focus turns to the celebration of Jesus’ birth (Luke 2:1-20). The world has never been the same since that sacred night in Bethlehem so many years ago.
leave room for God
A TV commercial begins with a boy sitting in a play tree house, taunting a grandma and a baby because he has the family’s bag of Doritos chips, and they don’t. The grandma and the baby conspire to get their share. Cooperating with one another, the grandma slingshots the baby to grab the Doritos. It’s a funny illustration of what’s inside all of our hearts—the desire for justice. Unfortunately, our desire for justice is often illegitimate and mixed with revenge, anger, pride, and very little room for God to work.
right thing, wrong reason
I was preaching one evening when a mentally ill man walked down the church aisle, slapped me in the face, pushed over the pulpit, and sent the congregation into a panic. In a protective act, a church member named Gary stepped toward the man as he lunged towards Gary and his wife.
thanks, but no thanks
A Christian school for autistic children received a donation from a corporation. After making sure that there were no strings attached, the school accepted the money. Later, the corporation requested to have representation on the school’s board of directors. The head of the school returned the money. She refused to mix school governance with secular values. She said, “It’s more important to do God’s work in God’s way.”
collapsed
In the past few years, my kids and I started a Christmas tradition of making gingerbread houses with some friends. Last year, as we prepared to go meet with the others, I gathered our supplies and noted with concern that the baked product didn’t seem quite hard enough. Later, my dread grew as the first house collapsed before the pieces…
earthly loss, heavenly gain
What is the most valuable thing in your life? Some would say family—a spouse, children or parent. Others would list career, education or material possessions. Those struggling with sickness would likely say that health tops the list. Jesus illustrated this same question with two tiny parables (Matthew 13:44-46).
He told of two people who stumbled upon treasures. In both tales…
clean utensils
Have you ever been dining at a restaurant—sitting before a plate of appetizing, mouth watering food, when suddenly you discovered (to your horror) that your utensils were encrusted with food from a previous customer? Yuck! That plate of food suddenly didn’t appear to be so delicious after all. Upset, perhaps even angry, you probably expected a set of clean utensils,…
the Spirit of truth
"May the force be with you.” Those familiar with the Star Wars film saga recognize this famous phrase, given out as a blessing to those embarking on a critical or dangerous mission. The force, as presented in the series, is an impersonal metaphysical characteristic that empowers individuals to undertake and complete their tasks.
“The Holy Spirit will be with you,”…
not sinless, but . . .
The story is told of a man who found a wallet filled with cash. He was tempted to keep the money for himself. As a Christian, he knew he should return the wallet to its owner. But he began to reason with himself: I’m in need of cash right now. So "finders keepers!" I’ll keep the cash, but I’ll confess…
