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God with “Skin On”
Thanksgiving offically kicks off the “Holiday Season” and sounds of the season surround us. Decorations abound, lists begin, shopping survives Black Friday. For many this annual season recalls warm memories and anticipates new ones. I discovered this year a family Facebook picture that included the newest member sporting a tiny tee shirt with the words “I’m New Here.” That clever line brought a smile to my face. However, for some, if not many, aspects of this season prove difficult. Perhaps because of painful memories of seasons past or traversing a first season without a loved one gone, they struggle to enter into the celebration. It could be added stress financially…
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Can you spare 15 minutes?
Do you read the newspaper for at least 15 minutes a day? Do you watch at least 15 minutes of television daily? Do you spend at least 15 minutes a day on Facebook? Do you surf the internet for at least 15 minutes a day? Do you check your email for at least 15 minutes a day? If you answered “yes” to any one or more of those questions, let me tell you a story and offer you a challenge? A friend of mine recently diagnosed with serious cancer is fighting for his life. For the past several years he chose to read the bible through each year. In addition,…
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Pope Francis and the FedEx Cup
Pope Francis was the news this past week. I must say it has been a long time since the national media devoted so much uninterrupted time to hear and even affirm various messages from a person of faith. In our skeptical age it was refreshing. For a person of faith it was encouraging to see the cross lifted high and Jesus and the power of the gospel exalted. Observing the multitudes at various venues I am reminded of Ecc 3:11 how “God has set eternity in the hearts of every person.” Blaise Pascal said it well that “there is a God shaped vacuum in the heart of every man.” This…
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Suffering – Imposition or Entrustment?
Several years ago I had the privilege of hearing veteran missionary, Dr. Helen Roseveare, speak at a staff conference for field missionaries of Entrust, International, in Hungary. As a result I read her book, He Gave Us a Valley. In it, Helen describes her twenty years of ministry in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo. I think perhaps her life and experience may inform on how to respond in the challenging times in which we live Helen went to the field in 1953 and her twenty-year ministry spanned the Congolese civil war where she found herself captured, beaten and brutally raped. Nevertheless, she returned to the Congo in…
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Making sense of the senseless
It is painful to imagine the tragic reality that smacked us all in the face last week. Senseless murders of innocents. We can relate to sitting around a table with bibles open and listening to a pastor lead us in study; laughter, questions, smiles and nods. The scene is familiar. In Charleston, even though welcoming a new person, evil lurked in that heart. Death is far from their thoughts. Dylann Roof himself, feeling the kindness, considers relenting, resisting evils wicked whispers. Then, shoving aside those kinder thoughts, he reaches for the gun. Chaos and confusion descend and the acrid smell of gunpowder fills the air. Moments of heroism as…
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Memories, A Legacy or Lifeline?
A popular storyline recurring regularly recounts the tragedy of a person who loses their memory due to some tragic event. Then, beset with amnesia, the hero searches for what has been lost and the story unfolds. Remembering and recovering becomes a victory. In a similar way, the devastating illness of Alzheimer’s robs a person of their memories and devastates those who love them. Losing the lifeline of memories becomes a living heartbreak. Memories represent the legacy of a life and become a lifeline . Yet as I was reminded by a young pastor some years ago Jesus knows we are a forgetful people. He instituted a special meal to jog…
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Let’s Change the Conversation!
With the news of devastating earthquakes in Nepal and the horror of consistent atrocities by Isis and extreme Islamists against believers in the Middle East why is the primary conversation about faith here in the USA centered on conflict between bakers and photographers and same-sex marriage? Where’s the outrage and attendant action to relieve suffering and support our brothers and sisters in Christ facing death or displacement. Let’s change the conversation. I know we feel helpless and frustrated. What can we do? We can pray! For the weapons of our warfare are not those of the world. Instead, they have the power of God to demolish fortresses. We tear…
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They don’t call it work for nothing!
War and turmoil, conflict, anger and moral decay confront us on every side. The words of Francis Shaffer echo in my heart, “How then shall we live?” As we groan at the darkness, how can we make a difference for eternity? Where shall we turn today? What "works?" It helps me to recall that Jesus walked our planet in the flesh at the height of Roman rule. The Greco-Roman world was rife with idolatry, immorality, and all manner of depravity. His own people, Israel, were hard-hearted and resistant to His message. How then did He live and how did He instruct His followers to “make a difference?” My mind returns…
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Danger in Digital Dust
In our electronic world of texts and instagram, conversation tends to get left in the digital dust. Condensing relationships to tweets and texts often shortcuts the heartfelt encouragement or support of friendship. Yet this is the world we live in and simply dismissing or dissing it doesn't truly address practical reality. Can we capture the convenience of instant communication and couple it with the deep realization that conversations matter because people matter? In the past several weeks two friends entered eternity unexpectedly and I was reminded again that only two things last forever: people and the word of God. People matter to you and me and to God. How we…
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You Can’t Handle the Truth!
Echoing from the movie courtroom this bold assertion, “You can’t handle the truth” resonates beyond that stirring scene. Between accusations going viral on social media and salacious reports many years old about those we have admired how does one even determine what is true. Add to the confusion that Satan is the "Father of Lies." In today’s generation, doubt exists that such a thing is possible. So where can “true truth” be found? Leaders and media filter information and between edits and photo-shop, determining fact and accuracy becomes increasingly difficult. Often that filter conforms to the assertion above that “we” can’t handle the truth. Dictionary.com offers this definition of…
