When we talk about tests, we often think about tests in school, or maybe a road-test. Tests are designed for us to prove ourselves, to show our knowledge, our skill, or our worth, and by doing so, earn the grade, the position, or the license we desire. Importantly, testing is rooted in binary in nature. Regardless of demerit points or a range of letter grades, testing boils down to passing or failing. You either make the grade, or you miss out. Does God test in the same manner?
Bible
Deflating my spiritual spare tire.
Are we as attuned to the dynamics of our spiritual life as we are to the physical? Do we notice the presence of “spiritual spare tires” – the weights and burdens that sap our strength and keep us from living the life that Jesus invites us into?
There was a man sent by God. His name was Kyle.
You are not your followers. You are not your success or your shares. You are not the memes that you post. You are not the thumbs-up you receive, or the comments you gain. You are not what today’s algorithm says you are, or what tomorrow’s metric will try to force you into. You are sent by God.
Forsaking my Inner Curmudgeon
Somewhere, amid our frustrations and discouragement there is a voice that speaks words of life and healing. Even in crankiness God is present, and because God is present, God’s grace-filled utterances are both reliable and trustworthy.
Playing Spiritual Games
In 1937, a man named Frank Laubach described what he called “The Game of Minutes.” The game expressed Laubach’s desire to be mindfully focused on God’s presence “at least one second of each minute.” You read that correctly; one second every minute. Given that there are 960 minutes between the hours of 6am and 10pm, the Game of Minutes naturally calls us to turn our attention to Jesus 960 times.
Calling for the Gospel
Church meetings can feel like car accidents; Everything goes smoothly until it doesn’t. An accident of procedure or wording grinds everything to a halt. Discussions, schedules, and tasks pile upon each other until eventually all forward progression stops. And like just an accident on the freeway, the longer you sit in its effects the more … Continue reading Calling for the Gospel
When I Reach my Capacity for Closeness
Have you ever had enough of people? Have you ever wanted to distance yourself, not from anyone in specific, but people in general? It’s as if, suddenly, we reach our limit of social interaction. It happens to me about once per year.
Pray Simple
During university, I participated in a prayer walk for the city of Victoria. The intent was that each of us would to take our turn offering vocal prayer. I’m sure that everyone’s prayers were wonderful, faithful, and well-spoken, but I didn’t hear a single word of them. Instead, as everyone else was praying, I spent the time stressing about what I would say when it became my turn. As prayer passed from one person to the next, my mind raced through different phrases I could use, and scriptures I could refer to, to make my prayers both deep and eloquent. After all, no one wants to offer a messy prayer, right?
The story in our wounds
I have many scars scattered over my body. I have a scar on the inside of my right elbow, and one along my right side. Incisions were made in my groin, and I have 3 bald spots on my head. But one scar outdoes them all. The doozy is the 8-inch scar down the center of my chest. This is the one that is most evident, and most telling.
Hearing voices from above
Wouldn’t it be great if hearing Jesus was equivalent to listening to overhead announcements? Before we are too quick to say yes, I wonder how we would respond if Jesus’ spoke to us in that manner. Jesus, after all, doesn’t always say what we want to hear. His words of love and grace are paired with the challenge to repent, to serve, and to follow him to places we would choose not to go. These words, while necessary and life-producing, can be also upsetting and stretching. If Jesus’ voice was like that of airport announcement, would we not treat it the same way, an unwelcome intrusion into our pre-planned day?
Reverend Kyle Norman 