Fasting for the Right Reasons Although many people ignore its practice, fasting is demonstrated in the Bible and is an encouraged practice. (See the blog entry, “When You Fast…“.) However, fasting rightly requires fasting for the right reasons. Here are some of them: Wrong reasons for fasting includes to earn God’s attention or favor, out […]
If you accept that God exists and exercises providential care over his creation, it is, therefore, reasonable to expect that from time to time, miracles will occur—either for our own good or for his pleasure. As such, an occasional divine intervention is not an irrational desire, but a reasonable expectation. At the risk of trivializing […]
Holding What Gives You Life By Dennis Linn, Sheila Fabricant Linn and Matthew Linn (reviewed by Peter DeHaan) Sleeping with Bread: Holding What Gives You Life, opens with the account of World War orphans who, although provided with all their material needs at refugee camps, were unable to sleep at night. They feared that they […]
Lessons from Abraham, Jacob, Moses, and Jesus A reoccurring statement in the Bible is “Here I am.” This was often said to God when he calls out or speaks to one of his children. Abraham, Jacob, and Moses were all expectantly ready to listen to God.We need to do the same. Later Jesus said, “Here […]
I have Christian friends who are staunch, conservative Republicans. When they read their Bible, they see God as a conservative Republican. They cannot comprehend how anyone who follows Jesus could be or think like a Democrat. Their views are found and substantiated in the Bible. I have other Christian friends who are staunch, liberal Democrats. When […]
In the northern clime of Michigan, the ideal time to trim deciduous trees (that is, non-evergreens) is in their dormant state. That means winter. Unfortunately, this winter was colder than most and the snow was deeper. So whenever I considered trimming a few branches, it was either frigidly cold or there was more than a foot […]
Do You Want Justice or Mercy? I have a friend who pursues justice; she wants everything to be fair. The bad thing about absolute justice is that it leaves no room for mercy. In many ways, justice and mercy are opposites: In a paradox of Godly proportions, God is both fully just yet full of […]
Here are my favorite comedies. Sometimes the humor is subtle; other times I smile; and occasionally I laugh till there are tears in my eyes and my stomach hurts. How many of these would make your list?
Money: How Much is Enough? How much money is enough when you give to charity? When considering gifts to God, that is a difficult question to answer. This is because God’s economy functions differently than ours. This is aptly illustrated in the following story: Jesus notices the rich people giving gifts to the temple treasury. […]
As followers of Jesus, we are encouraged to be generous and giving. Hospitality is part of that. Sometimes when we show kindness to others, we will never know the affect of our actions. As an encouragement in being generous and giving, Paul writes, “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people […]