In support of his new book Miracles, an interview in Christianity Today with Eric Metaxas. I began with the parting of the Red Sea, healing a tumor, curing blindness—things that aren’t fluffy like a kitten in the sunlight. People say life is a miracle, and yes, this can be a cliché that doesn’t mean anything. … Continue reading »
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Tab Sweep – Small Groups, Hitchens, Mainline Planting
A quick list of some things I’ve read lately that are worth sharing: First, the short but provocatively-titled “Taking Our Groups Off Life Support.” Key graf: If we are going to take our groups off life support, we are going to need permission to re-imagine what gospel-centered community looks like. We will not change the … Continue reading »
Stumbling and Stumbling Blocks
Here’s an encouraging thought: It is difficult, I admit, not to stumble frequently, and even sometimes to fall, when stumbling-blocks without number lie across our path. But our minds ought to be fortified with confidence; for the Son of God, who commands his followers to walk in the midst of stumbling-blocks, will unquestionably give us … Continue reading »
Truly Dead
Usually when I read the crucifixion and resurrection accounts in the Bible, I notice how they are at pains to show how the risen Lord Jesus was truly alive and not a phantasm. Today, however, these verses leapt out at me: When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took … Continue reading »
Glimmers of Hope (Even in Jeremiah!)
For the past several weeks, my devotional reading plan has had me in Jeremiah. And, you know what? That’s not the most uplifting book in the whole Bible. (Yes, I’ve read the “good bits” in chapters 29-33.) The readings for the past week or two haven’t been much fun, with all sorts of threats (“oracles”) … Continue reading »
Pastoral Tensions
My reading plan brought me two verses this morning that highlight a tension pastors must maintain. The first is Paul’s well-known call to proclaim the Lord Jesus Christ: But how are they to call on one in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in one of whom they have never … Continue reading »
Dealing with the Devil
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”—John 10:10 As a rule, Presbyterians don’t talk much about the devil. But this month, we’re going to begin reading C.S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters in the pastor’s Bible study. The book imagines a correspondence between … Continue reading »