Should We Recite the Lord’s Prayer? Last week I blogged about saying the Lord’s Prayer each Sunday in church as a kid and my apprehension for doing so. I cited my reason as the phrase “vain repetitions” (KJV) found in Jesus’s warning about how...
All Things Are Possible—With God A rich man asks Jesus how to get to heaven. The man reels off a list of all he’s done, of all of God’s commands that he’s kept. He waits for Jesus to affirm him, but deep down he knows he still falls short. “What...
Should We Avoid Vain Repetition When We Pray? As a kid I took seriously the warning in the Bible to avoid vain repetitions when we pray. Even at a young age I knew that reciting a memorized prayer over and over did not impress God. In fact I...
We Shouldn’t Be Afraid When it Comes to God Matthew writes about Jesus sending out his disciples to tell others about him. In the middle of his lengthy instructions, he simply reminds them, “Do not be afraid.” That’s good to know. He is about to...
Why Do I Write on Sunday? Part of how I follow Jesus is to treat Sunday as different from other days. I spend time with other followers of him, both at church and apart from church. I worship him, hopefully in spirit and in truth. I don’t work or...
What Does God Do On Sunday? After God finishes with his amazing creation he takes time on the seventh day to rest. He declares the day holy. Later in the Old Testament, God reminds his people to keep the Sabbath holy and to not work. Yea, a day...
Do You Think Like an Exile? Do You Act Like a Foreigner? If you are a citizen of the Kingdom of God, then you live here as a foreigner Peter writes his first letter to Christians scattered about in pagan cities. He first calls them exiles (1...
Are You a Comfort-Zone Christian? I recently heard someone call herself a “comfort-zone Christian.” Though I disagree with her self-diagnosis, I understand what she’s saying. Christians live their lives on different levels. Here are four to...
Can an Actionless Faith Save You? There are some people who try to earn their way into heaven. They do good and obey God’s commands—at least most of them anyway. They work hard their entire life to get God’s attention. Surely when their time...
Do You Believe in Unicorns? Maybe it’s Time to Start Let’s say a friend is reading a book. The opening draws him in. The characters are compelling. A fascinating plot unfolds. This is a great read, but then a unicorn walks into the scene. What? A...
