Crosshairs

In the wake of the school shooting in Florida, social media is flooded (again) with memes, posts, articles, and factoids for or against guns. Personally, I see guns as one of many social scapegoats. A gun is a neutral thing, not intrinsically good or bad. It can only be as good or bad as the…

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Who Are You, Lord?

Lepicie, “Conversion of St. Paul” This post from a couple years ago is on my mind so I thought I’d repost. *** “Who are you, Lord?”  This was Paul’s question after Jesus struck him blind and stopped him in his tracks (Acts 9:1-5).  Paul was on his way to Damascus where he planned to continue…

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No Answer

Lately, I’ve been thinking about a couple phrases: “God answered my prayer” or “God didn’t answer my prayer.” It’s common to hear both of these. I’ve said them and heard others say them countless times. Let me preface the rest of this post: I’m not given to semantic arguments. Communication is an (often clumsy) art….

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Impossible People: Os Guinness

Recently, a group at church decided to read Impossible People by Os Guinness. I didn’t need a lot of convincing. Some liken him to C.S. Lewis because of his intellectual clarity on matters of faith. That sold me. Impossible People examines modernity’s challenge to Christian faith, a challenge Guinness believes is the most significant ever…

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One Flock, One Bride, One Man

After Bethel, Jacob resumes his journey to find a bride. He travels to the east, a land associated with man’s fall, Cain, and Babel. Abraham left the east by faith. Spiritually, it is the land away from the Son (Gen. 25:1-6). When Jacob arrives in Haran, shepherds are gathering sheep near a well covered by…

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The Nativity Within

I had the following article published in the religion column of our local paper last weekend. My original title was “The Nativity Within” but the paper re-titled it for whatever reason. The important thing is that I got to share Jesus! *** Happy New Year! I hope everyone is enjoying the shiny, new gifts they…

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Following, Losing, and Living

Art by Patrick Murphy The following is a meditation on Luke 9:23-24 from my personal journal.  *** “If anyone wants to come with me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will…

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God with the Smelly and Beastly

With Christmas just past, I’ve been thinking about one of the names by which Jesus was announced: Immanuel, “God with us.” “God with us” was a prophetic name first uttered by Isaiah in a prophecy (Isaiah 7:14).  Matthew tells us Jesus fulfilled this prophetic appellation when he was born (Matt. 1:23). Jesus’s birth as a…

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House of God (Reprise)

Art by Patrick Murphy “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it” (Gen. 28:16). As we said before, the Lord revealed to Jacob that God was in His house. Bethel means, “House of God.” It shows Christ and His people as God’s dwelling, God’s house. The Lord is in us!…

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An Unexpected Christmas Greeting

The other day, as I was just waking up, I said, “Merry Christmas, Lord!”  It was a quirky thing to do.  I had never wished Jesus a merry Christmas.  The things one does when half-awake! Quite unexpectedly, the Lord replied!  He said, “I Am Christmas.”  True enough, right?  So a merry Christmas to all of…

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House of God, Gate of Heaven

On his way to Haran, Jacob stops for the night. He puts a stone beneath his head and sleeps.  He dreams of a staircase that goes from earth to heaven with angels traveling up and down. Echoing His promise to Abraham, the Lord tells Jacob He will give him the land and bless all peoples…

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