Why do you pray? No, really. It’s not a stupid question. Why do you pray? If you’re like most of the people I talk to, your answer will be something like this: “I pray in order to ask God to take care of needs in my life and in the lives of others. I pray…
The often-repeated truism about marriage is the once the honeymoon is over, life comes back to normal and the bloom is off the romance. There is good reason behind this expectation. The romance of courtship fades under the pressures of jobs, house, friends, children, etc. We stop putting our best selves forward. The mysterious beckoning…
And do not lead us into temptation Matthew 6:13 Lead Us – How are we supposed to understand this strange phrase? God doesn’t tempt anyone. The Bible is clear about that. God is holy. All that He does is holy. There is no possibility that He would ever entice anyone to sin. So, what can…
More than 30 years ago, Wolfhart Pannenberg wrote the book that was translated into English as Jesus – God and Man. On page 230 of that work, Pannenberg makes a suggestion about the relationship between Jesus’ proclamation concerning the true nature of the creation and the end of this world age. It reads: . ….
I recently had a conversation with a long time friend, catching up with our individual lives over some months. While the general themes seem to stay the same, we both were in the midst of new relationships, a subject of considerable interest. As I talked about the thrill that I was feeling, the energy that…
Many years ago Rollo May examined a connection between obscenity and violence. In Power and Innocence, he argued that violence progresses through several other mediums before it erupts in physical force. One of these mediums is language. The disintegration of the meaning of words is a step on the pathway to violence. There is a…
“and forgive us our debts as we also forgive our debtors” Matthew 6:12 As We Also – It’s such a well-known phrase that we don’t really pay close attention to its implications. It just runs off our lips like drinking from a hose. But there is something very important here; important because it is right…
Jesus rarely talked about the intimate connection between himself and the Father. His teaching and discussions were focused much more on obedience, service, compassion, money and leadership. But occasionally we are allowed to glimpse this vital relationship that permeated his life. We see it in its darkest hour in the struggle in the Garden of…
Most of my life I have lived with the “not good enough” syndrome. It’s very motivating. When you think that you aren’t good enough, the usual reaction is to try harder. After all, everyone wants approval, especially from the ones who are most involved with us. So, when your parents or your spouse or your…
When it happened, I was caught completely off guard. I couldn’t believe that the old temptations, put aside long ago, were back, demanding attention. At first I was confused. Since I didn’t see it coming, I was unprepared. I felt like someone had just turned back the clock about three years. I cried out to…
