Thursday, January 9, 2020
From The Archives: Thursday, January 9, 1936People who live together learn to love each other. What a wonderful fact it is that just living in a family causes love to be born! Mutual service begets love, and in turn love makes service a joy. We love others because...
Wednesday, January 8, 2020
When someone takes on more than they can handle, we might say they are “drinking from a fire hose.” When we spiritually thirst and surrender ourselves to Christ, God tells us to get ready: The force of many waters is headed our way.If Christ’s living water is meant...
Saturday, January 4, 2020
We spend more than $600 billion annually on global advertising. Every cent of that money tells us that if we just buy the next shiny thing, we’ll be happy. Jesus never offers us easy promises. At the cross, he calls us to imitate nothing less than God. If imitating...
Thursday, January 2, 2020
From the Archives: Saturday, November 16, 1935 What is the teaching of Christ about: war and peace; the training of youth; the economic injustices of our day; race barriers? Review the resolutions you have made this week. Talk out these subjects with others. Agree...
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
My wife and I enjoy following the British royal family. Their weddings, children, daily lives—we are fascinated by the wealth and privilege we can’t hope to attain in this life. The reading from Galatians reminds us that we are far wealthier than any royal house....
Tuesday, December 31, 2019
New year’s resolutions are intended to make our lives better in some way. Better habits, more productivity, less stress. I think James is right to remind us that we don’t know what tomorrow will bring. Today we stand on the precipice of clean slate, a fresh start, as...
Monday, December 30, 2019
New Sanctuary Coalition is an immigrant justice organization in New York that provides support and resources for immigrants: free legal clinics, court accompaniments, etc. They have made the very conscious choice to call all the people they work with friends—not...
Sunday, December 29, 2019
How against our very adult sensibilities it is to cry out to God as if a giddy child to a beloved parent. But God does indeed have for us perfect parental love—that unconditional, heart-bursting-out-of-your-chest love, a love that is deeply personal, bottomless, and...
Saturday, December 28, 2019
Have you ever assembled a tent? It’s not as simple as putting up some poles and throwing a tarp over them. To set up camp isn’t an arbitrary or fleeting action—it is a deliberate, intentional choice to settle in a place.To dwell somewhere—to abide—is setting up...
Friday, December 27, 2019
A seminary professor of mine, teaching about mission and evangelism, said: Remember: if it’s not working for you, don’t try to sell it to me.When I’m enthusiastic about a book, TV show, gadget, or a new store in my neighborhood, I eagerly share my feelings...
Thursday, December 26, 2019
In my years ministering in New York City, I have been especially humbled by people’s personal accounts of life on 9/11/2001. There are so many sensory and emotional details: the terror and fear, the smell of smoke, the ash that covered the city, the twelve miles I...