I come from a really big family. With my Mom as one of eight children and my Dad as one of five, every Christmas I knew as a child was filled with more people than I could usually see in one room. Now, years later, we don’t have quite as many people, but between myself…
The orange glow from my bedside clock mocks me as I blink away the hours. I roll over and groan. I know I should get up, but the coziness of my blankets and the weight of my heart keep me in bed. It is the Christmas season, and I feel weary. There are many reasons…
Then an expert in the law stood up to test him, saying, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Luke 18:18) In ancient Israel, to be a good Jew meant following the Law as laid out by Moses. This was more complicated than just the Ten Commandments we’re used to. To be upright…
You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? . . . They are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. Christ is…
Have you ever felt like an outcast? Of course you have. We have all felt outsider-like twinges from time to time. I know I have! No one is exempt from these humbling and bewildering emotions. People have the power to draw a social circle—invisible, yet real—and simply not allow us inside that space. These brush-offs…
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” (Phil. 2:3-4 NIV) “Can you help me buy some food?” The question from a stranger surprised me as I stood in the snack…