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Bible Insights

Peter: Disciple, Confidant, and Leader

It’s interesting that we tend to equate writing prolificacy with profundity. After these three, the reminding New Testament authors, especially those of shorter letters, fade into obscurity and are barely noticed by most readers of the Bible. Such is the case of Peter, whose two short letters comprise but 2.5 percent of New Testament content. […]

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Personal Posts

Thank you, Volunteer Fire Fighters!

When I went to my bank last week, there was a commotion at the car wash next door. A number of trucks were parked haphazardly around the building and a couple of fire trucks were along side. The folks at the bank confirmed there had been a fire. Apparently, someone had carelessly flung a cigarette. […]

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Bible Insights

Jesus’ Mission

To Heal and to Save Jesus came to heal and to save; that was his mission and his purpose. At that time, the people largely accepted Jesus’ healing ministry, but not so much his saving ministry. Today, it is the opposite, with his followers accepting his saving ministry, but not so much his healing ministry. […]

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Bible Insights

An Eye for an Eye; a Tooth for a Tooth

Moses gave a curious command: “Show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.” This seems to be an excessive response when one is wronged, but given the culture of that day, it was actually a move towards moderation. For example, when Jacob’s daughter Dinah was […]

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Reviews of Books & Movies

Video Review: The Devil’s Arithmetic

Reviewed by Peter DeHaan The Devil’s Arithmetic, based on a book by the same name, focuses on narcissist American teenager, Hanna Stern (Kirsten Dunst). Although Hanna dismisses her Jewish heritage, she is compelled to attend her family’s Seder celebration. In the midst of her reluctant participation, she is translated to Nazi occupied Poland, circa 1941. […]

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Personal Posts

Sleep

I have long maintained—and increasingly so—that my body does not comply with the “normal” 24-hour sleep cycle.  Among the random press releases, I received today is confirmation that sleep cycle deviations can occur and that one enzyme may be the central culprit. Although I find this only semi-comprehensible, I nonetheless find it interesting: Central Gears […]

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Personal Posts

We Got Some Rain

After my Friday blog about our local drought, I was in for a pleasant surprise. The light mist that evening resulted in two-tenths of an inch of rain overnight, which was quite substantial given the scant precipitation the prior six weeks.  However, Saturday morning brought a deluge of another 1.6 inches in a couple of […]

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Personal Posts

We Need Some Rain

In the last six weeks, we’ve only received about three-quarters of an inch of rain. That is about one-tenth of what we would normally enjoy this time of year.  The crops are suffering and the lawns don’t look so good either.  That means I’ve been doing a lot of sprinkling, dragging hoses around my yard on […]

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Personal Posts

Moving Day, Times Two

Two weeks ago, we (my bride and I) helped children Dan and Kelli move from their apartment to their house.  They moved a couple carloads the night before and I rented a truck, first to move their items from our house and then to move the furniture from their apartment.  Kelli’s family brought a truckload […]

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Reviews of Books & Movies

Video Review: Genesis with Max McLean

Reviewed by Peter DeHaan In Genesis with Max McLean, which was recorded live, Max McLean gives a dramatic recitation of the first 35 chapters of the book of Genesis from the Bible. As the quintessential storyteller, Max powerfully delivers with passion, expressiveness, and occasional humor. All the while, he faithfully follows the text as presented […]