Give Me Your Worst

Sketch by Patrick Murphy “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). “Grace” is the Life which can suffer and die yet be raised again.  Christ in us is grace.  He can go through weaknesses, difficulties, persecutions, and the like (2 Cor. 12:10).  Not only do these not…

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Our Affection for Rubble

“Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has rejected you as king” (1 Sam. 15:23).             Israel asked for a king and rejected the Lord as King (1 Sam. 8: 7).  God gave them what they asked for.  Saul embodied their rejection of the Lord as King.  He too (though he denied…

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The Holy of Holies in Action

The following is an entry from my journal written in December 2007. *** Sometimes I worry that I’m not with the Lord enough, that He is always shoved out by circumstances.  Today, the Lord is again telling me to trust Him.  As I was trying to pray, He said, “Can’t you see how much striving…

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Me and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

I woke up this morning in a grumpy funk.  As I tried to finish waking in the shower, my head filled with visions of the whole family going out for muffins and coffee.  Post-shower, I told my wife.  She said she planned to work out.  Could we do it mid-morning after the workout?  Well, that…

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Divine Polygamy

Polygamy lurks in the shadows of theology.  We know it’s there but don’t talk much about it.  Christians consider polygamy heretical and immoral.  But what do we do with Abraham, Jacob, or David?  All of them had multiple spouses without one rebuke from God.  And why would God say anything?  Polygamy is nowhere condemned in…

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Who Are You, Lord?

Lepicie, “Conversion of St. Paul” “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 killing or imprisoning followers of Jesus.  Then, the future apostle was a Pharisee.  He learned under the…

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Cancer. Suicide. Grief.

“One Act” by Patrick Murphy My dad died of cancer in 2009.  For some reason, I’ve been thinking about him, missing him, and grieving the last couple days. I’m a social worker by occupation.  I manage in-home caregiver services for people who are disabled and/or elderly.  On New Year’s Eve, one of my clients killed…

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A Boy, His Dad, the Rescue Bots, and Psalm 63

Photo of the TBS Westminster Reference Bible My three year old son is my buddy.  When I’m home it’s cars, Rescue Bots, wrestling, you name it.  He never wants to stop playing.  One of the many blessings in my life is that I am home for lunch every day.  My office is that close.  As…

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NO FAIR!!

On my home from work, I drive past the reader board of a local church.  This week, the reader board says, “May Justice and Peace Ring Out!”  Justice is quite the buzz-word these days.  In popular usage, it means things are “fair”: Everyone enjoys the same opportunities, advantages, and success.  The playing field is level,…

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Change or Die: A Post-Christmas Wrap-up

Image from A Christmas Carol (2009, directed by Robert Zemeckis) This year, I introduced my daughter to Dickens’s A Christmas Carol.  We read the book then watched a couple film versions.  The 2009 animated version (with Jim Carrey playing Scrooge) is her favorite.  It’s my new favorite as well.  While adding flourishes here and there, it follows…

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