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Hazed and Confused
Last night, a girl referred to her current state of mind as hazy. “Hazy,” I thought, I can relate to that. Familiar realities seem to be obscured by the “new normal.” Oddly enough, right when the fog begins to lift another comes. Someone else gets shot, cities are burning down, and people are spewing hatred. My joy has waned and confusion has set in as I watch the fissures within the body of Christ become craters. I have looked on as people who I consider friends and ministry partners dig their heels in despite my grief. People are weary in well-doing, tired of praying, and not seeking the Lord before…
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Experiencing Peace and Hope with God
Romans 5:1–8 is part of the lectionary readings for the second Sunday after Pentecost, which is June 14th. In 3:21–31, we learn about the Father’s provision of righteousness through faith in the Son (Rom 3:21–31). Paul argued that long before the advent of the Messiah, Abraham and David were justified by faith (4:1–8). The apostle clarified that faith was also the basis for the covenant between God and His chosen people (vv. 9–15). Indeed, God’s promise of grace extended to all Jews and Gentiles, whose faith in the Creator was like that found in Abraham. Though he was exceedingly aged, and Sarah was past childbearing, Abraham still believed God’s promise…
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Decide today who you will be tomorrow-Purposeful living brings reconciliation.
Circa 2002, I made the first of several visits to the King Center and Center for Non-Violent Social Change in Atlanta, Georgia. At the time I was a college student and I was highly impacted by Dr. Martin Luther King and his unwavering commitment to justice and peace. I made up my mind then that I wanted to be like Dr. King. I wanted to be courageous and peaceful in the face of evil and committed to loving people with the sacrificial love of Jesus. I have since developed a mantra that has followed me into Christian leadership, “decide now.” When I am speaking with a young lady about sexual…
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Almighty God “Hear Our Prayer”
Has your prayer life increased these past few weeks? Perhaps you are praying for things you have never prayed for in the past. Maybe you have been praying for a hedge of protection, a spirit of hope, a heart filled with peace, a mind filled with God’s Word, an attitude of trust, the list goes on and on if you are like me. Our faith has been stretched and our lives have been turned upside down. Many of us have had circumstances in our own lives that have rocked us to the core, but most can say that they have never experienced a rocking quite like this during their lifetime. It is during…
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Face Trouble with Courage and Peace
Do you feel sometimes that you are just spinning like a top and nothing will stop the spinning? Life is going well. You’re doing your job faithfully, whatever it is. Then you get blindsided. The world starts spinning. It doesn’t seem like it will ever stop. Where do you go to find security when life hits like that? Where do you get the courage to keep going? The Bible teaches that we can face life’s realities with courage and peace by entrusting ourselves and our loved ones to a God who loves us dearly. I believe that you and I can learn to do just that. How do we learn…
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Never Underestimate the Price and Prize of Peace and Quiet
Guest blog by my stellar student Lisa White In childhood we constantly hear, “What do you want to be when you grow up.” At 52, I still ask myself that question. Today, we live under the impression and pressure that the sky’s the limit. We create great expectations for ourselves and for others. Fears of not measuring up or of missing out on the prize often inflate our answers and our egos. One of my favorite novels, Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations tells how bigger-than-life ambitions have the power to crush joy. Dickens’ title references a poem by Philip Sidney who nicknames our great expectations “friendly foe.” These expectations…
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3 Ways to Seek Peace When You’re Anxious
This blog post comes from the frontline of anxiety. I stopped today numerous times to focus on breathing because of a tight chest of emotions. Letting the peace of God rule in our hearts sometimes takes more work than reciting a verse we memorized. Do you ever feel so anxious you want to scream or hide? Here are 3 ways to seek peace when you are anxious: 1. Name. Put a name to your anxiety. Anxiety is a red flag that something needs changed or taken care of. What is it? We can’t change or take care of a feeling. 2. Pray. After you pray, pray some more. When anxiety clenches…
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In the Shadow of Christmas is a Cross
Christmas, for many, is colored with twinkling lights, the sound of singing, bright colored packages topped with elegant bows, cookies, candy, parties and laughter. But for others, Christmas is colored with the stark reality of roaring fires that ravage neighborhoods, hospital rooms, funeral homes, broken relationships, drunken relatives, and memories of those whose faces are missing from thier lives. As we teach our children about Jesus, God’s greatest gift to the world, we must not forget to teach them that the manger was shadowed by a cross. The Messiah in the manger was destined to be a man of sorrows acquainted with all our grief, bearing all our sin…
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The Comfort of Christmas
Comfort, comfort my people, says their God Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned . . . Isaiah 40:1-2 It’s Christmas time, for many of us our favorite time of the year. This is the season of brilliant lights and beautiful color, of celebration and laughter, of holiday parties and family traditions, of rich memories and precious anticipations. There is no season like Christmas. Yet for many of us there’s another side to Christmas, a dark and colorless side, a season of painful memories and family struggles when those who should have brought us joy have…
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Starting Over
For those of you who have read this blog in the past, you have probably noticed that it has been absent for a while. This is the first time since January I have written a blog; it is also the beginning of a new and long-term series from Leader Formation. Why have we been silent for so long? I will tell you. On Sunday evening, January 29, I was meeting with a group in a business building and as I was descending a set of stairs. I fell down four steps to the marble floor at the bottom of the stairs and was knocked out. After ten minutes I came…
