We thought the gully might never heal. Up until then, we’d believed wind couldn’t stoop so low as to dig the heart out of our safe places, tossing concrete foundations into the sky like a monster looking for lost things. But that day changed us, when hundreds of tornadoes feasted on our towns and dragged […]
A whole bunch of people showed up. Devastated. Tired. Overwhelmed. Politically oppressed. Poor. Depressed. Desperate. Outcast. Uncertain. Haunted. Disgraced. Uninvited. Afraid. The enormous crowd found Jesus, wanting Him to say something encouraging to them. So He sat on a hillside and rolled out the welcome mat of Heaven, which says Blessed, and shared The Constitution […]
“If you are not anchored in the goodness of God, you will lower your theology to match your pain.” ~ Christa Black Gifford That one is my all-time favorite. Here are more notes spilling out of my Bible from over 60 sermons and conversations: ~ “Stay within the boundaries of Scripture and the boundlessness of […]
Before we judge any more people, we need to know what we’re getting ourselves into. It’s not deciding whether someone’s actions are good or bad. That’s for God to sort out, but we can usually get that part right. The judgment Matthew 7:1 warns against is when we think we know someone’s intentions or motives, […]
What you’re about to read can change your life, and many of us have never heard it before. It’s the secret of the weddings of Galilee, and it’s the key to understanding almost everything Jesus said. It’s also the key to understanding how much God loves us—loves you. Jesus’ disciples were all from Galilee, so […]
Do you ever get the feeling you’ve never really heard the Gospel before? I used to feel that way. I’d heard it probably hundreds of times, but it didn’t affect me like it seemed to affect other people. I’d heard whispers, hints, and mostly wonderful revelations about God’s nature and His Love, which were radically […]
What if we’re still missing the point? What if sin is not the problem? What if our problem is lacking the most important evidence Jesus said would prove Him and cause the world to believe in Him? That one thing is unity among believers. Our love identifies us as His people; our unity proves that […]
I’m not sure why anyone would intentionally destroy their own mental health, but I see so many trying hard to do it, I thought this would help. It won’t require all of these to accomplish it. In fact, the first one alone should be enough. Below each heading, I’ve included Scripture of light, so you […]
When I’m anxious, something that infuses me with hope is to read back over some of the many, many times God has brought us through scary or uncertain circumstances. Each story becomes a stone I can use to fell fear. I thought maybe if you could use some comfort, reading my list with me might […]
I hadn’t been an adult for very long when a guy in college tried to convince me I was crazy. Immature? Yes. Strung out on ephedra? Yes. Crazy? No. Not in the way he meant it. But this is when I first noticed a theme that would carry throughout my life, one leveled at not […]