Beyond Religion
“And this is eternal life: that they know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent”. John 17:3 What does it mean to be Christian? That was essentially the question being asked of me by my doctor during my routine checkup recently. This individual seemed genuinely curious, yet frustrated by his […]
Don’t Give Up On Unity
Freedom
”But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.” Philippians 3:7-8 (NIV) I had a humorous and rather humiliating moment of clarity about a […]
The Reproach Of Egypt
Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you”. Joshua 5:9 We sunk down into our chairs feeling a mixture of embarrassment and shame. Holidays in which the entire extended family would come together were some of the most joyful times of my childhood. I rarely spent […]
The Gift Of Contentment
Last week Leah and I had the opportunity to visit some of our family back in Chicago. We are always grateful for those precious hours given the fact that our ministry assignments have brought us a bit of a distance from our hometown. Upon arriving at their grandmother’s house, the kids lit up with excitement to learn […]
The Lost Art Of Really Listening
“Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.” James 1:19 I have this very vivid memory of a particular gym class during my elementary school years. The physical ed. teacher declared that it was “free gym day”, which meant a bunch of high-wired […]