In a few nights a small crowd will gather at Red Door Church for our annual Ash Wednesday service. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a 40 day season (not counting Sundays) of preparation leading up to Easter. Every year I’m overwhelmed with the sheer number of potential Lenten themes. As a pastor, my […]
The Ashes of Our Praise Read More »
The Bible is a surprising book. When I first started reading it in high school, I regularly cocked an eyebrow at the things in it: stories of men and women doing shockingly ugly things— and of a God who loved them anyway. The Big Story of the Bible (and the thousands of smaller stories that
Making God’s House a Home Read More »
Every culture has rituals that seem bizarre to outsiders. Take the White House tradition of pardoning the Thanksgiving Day turkey as just one example of such an American tradition. When we the story of how God made a covenant with Abram in Genesis 15, we scratch our heads. Why are these animals cut in half?
Cutting a Covenant Read More »
It’s pretty common today to hear some Christians say “Theology doesn’t matter.” Sometimes this is not said explicitly but in other roundabout ways like, “Faith over reason” or “All that matters is Jesus.” A good follow up question to that statement is “Which Jesus?” Various religious groups have views of Jesus that differ widely and
Does Theology Matter? Read More »
The disciple of Christ has a new attitude toward their personal sin. Others’ sins might bother him and society’s ills might be personally discouraging and inflaming, but suddenly he sees that the biggest problem in the entire world is his own sin. Like David, he cries out, “For I know my transgressions,and my sin is
The Fruit of Following God, Part 10: Grows in Holiness Read More »
It’s one thing to be clueless. But have you ever known someone who was clueless about being clueless? Maybe she saw herself as a great cook, but anybody who tasted her food would strongly object. Maybe they figured they were the picture of health—despite what their friends (and doctors) kept saying about their diet and exercise (or
The Psychology of Self-Deception Read More »
