From the infinitely-rich “God doesn’t give us what we deserve” department, the Anchorage Daily News brings us a cautionary tale: A Sutton man is being treated for serious head injuries after he was found pinned under his ATV on the Glenn Highway, troopers said Sunday. Some take-aways: 1. don’t drink and drive 2. not even … Continue reading »
Church is Good for You
Not long ago, I blogged the news that it’s better to give than to receive. Now comes the news that going to church is good for you. It’s almost like there was some kind of supernatural agency that wanted us to know how we could have better lives. (I blogged this on the web site … Continue reading »
Tab Sweep
There are categories of people you will only reach using social media, as this infographic depicts. (Data from this Pew survey.) The Methodist Hymnal? There’s an app for that! Here’s news about an archaeological excavation of a 1st century synagogue from Magdala. Pope Francis calls Catholics to leave their comfort zones. That’s good advice. But … Continue reading »
It really is better to give…
The Apostle Paul cites a saying of Jesus (not recorded in the gospel accounts): In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ According to this New York … Continue reading »
After Matthew Warren’s Suicide
I feel so bad for Rick and Kay Warren, grieving the suicide of their son Matthew at 27. Of course, there are no words, but as Greg Laurie said on his blog, there is the Word: God with us. I can’t imagine losing one of my children at all, much less to spend a lifetime … Continue reading »
Grace in Motion
Here’s an excellent example of Grace: It’s a good place to start the next time you’re trying to imagine how God treats us. Jesus said, “If your little boy asks for a serving of fish, do you scare him with a live snake on his plate? If your little girl asks for an egg, do … Continue reading »
The pope’s loafers
According to the BBC, the new pope wears regular shoes: Sporting plain white vestments and a cross, and opting for plain dark shoes rather than red ones, Pope Francis spoke in Italian during Friday’s meeting, occasionally breaking off from the prepared text to speak off the cuff. Red shoes? Really? Yes, really. (Kudus: van der … Continue reading »
The Seminary Bubble
From the Aquila Report, but I heard a UMC Bishop making essentially the same point 10 days ago: Imagine an institution that requires its leaders to attend not only college, but graduate school. Imagine that the graduate school in question is constitutionally forbidden from receiving any form of government aid, that it typically requires three … Continue reading »
Denominations and Gun Control
I’m an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and serve a union church of the PC(USA) and the United Methodist Church. For this reason, it always pains me to see these denominations’ national lobbying arms reflexively leaping to endorse whatever dreadful leftist nonsense is topical. Today’s D.L.N. is gun control, and the tragic shootings … Continue reading »
Proclaim Liberty Throughout the Land
Today is the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. I noted that on Facebook earlier today, and referenced Leviticus 25:10, the verse cited on the Liberty Bell: “you shall … proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants.” That verse seems appropriate, since the Emancipation Proclamation represents movement of the nation toward the fulfillment … Continue reading »