Attending Mass (Visiting Church #5) When I tell people we’re visiting Christian churches, they often assume Protestant and are surprised our plan includes Catholic gatherings. That’s where we head today, to our first Mass. The most noticeable...
Discover the Comeback of John Mark A person who keeps resurfacing in the Bible is a man with two names. Sometimes he is Mark, and sometimes he is John. For clarity, Luke often refers to him as “John, also called Mark“; John Mark for...
How Can We Help the Poor? Deuteronomy Instructs Us to Help Foreigners, Orphans, and Widows In the book of Deuteronomy, Moses reminds God’s people that when they’re harvesting a field to not pick it clean, to leave some of the produce for others...
Do You Say Bold Prayers or Safe Prayers? God Often Wants to Delight Us, If Only We’ll Ask Too many people say safe prayers, such as, “God, please guide . . .” These are safe because no matter what happens, our confidence in God...
It was 2014 when my wife and I were selling our house. It wasn’t our plan, but things change. We had just finished updating most of it: new roof, furnace, windows, carpet, flooring, kitchen, and bathrooms. It was a three-year effort that...
The Right Mix of Music (Visiting Church #4) The church is a traditional-looking building, constructed of brick and stately in appearance. In checking out the sanctuary, I anticipate the service will be just as Facebook promised. It said “a...
Paul the Reconciler While Philemon is the recipient of the letter that bears his name, Paul is the author. We know a great deal about Paul, as he is mentioned over 250 times in the Bible, mostly in the book of Acts, but also in the letters that...
Moses Blames the People for His Mistake Not Taking Responsibility for Our Actions Goes Way Back We often shake our heads in dismay over people who refuse to admit when they have done something wrong. Instead they want to blame others. They refuse...
Is Our Faith About Talk or About Power? The Kingdom of God Is About Power, Not Words When Paul writes to his friends in the city of Corinth, he encourages them to change their behavior. In the middle of this, he slips in a curious line about the...
What True Church Should Be (Visiting Church #3) “This won’t be a typical service” cautions a friend who greets us when we arrive. The church suffered a tragedy, just three days before and not all the members yet know. The service will communicate...
