It can be easy to think that Jesus loves the shinier coins more than the scratched-up ones. It’s easy to believe that divine blessings are proportional to our perfection; the more spiritually enlightened we are, the greater the bestowal of define affection. But as much as the world tries to tell us that this is how things work, Jesus shows a different reality.
Formation
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.
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.
When You Fear Deconstruction
Deconstruction unmoors us, it leaves us drifting aimlessly through our questions and struggles. Yet these questions or struggles are rarely answered or addressed; rather, they are displaced or abandoned.. . .But what do you do if you don’t want to deconstruct your faith?
Tethered to the Anchor: A Guest post by Mariel Davenport
“They say I’m having a heart attack,” came my husband’s breathless voice on the other end of the phone. It was mid-May, I was sitting in my morning quiet time chair, Bible spread open on my lap when the phone rang.
Ask for that goat.
What are some of the good things of God that you would like to experience? What do you hope for? Do you seek those loving gifts from our heavenly Father? Or do you assume that such blessings will be withheld? Despite God making God’s way to you in the person of Jesus, and offering you the purest expression of love and grace imaginable, do you still assume that you must earn your keep?
Revisiting a simple faith
Here's the truth of the matter: our life with God is simple. Simplicity, as defined by Richard Foster, is a “single hearted focus on God and God’s kingdom.” What this means is that we reach out to Jesus as the very basis of our lives. This is where we start. Yes, external frameworks can help us, yet they must be secondary to our primary task of simply reaching out to Jesus.
The Blessing of Empty Churches
As a priest, I have witnessed myriads of strangers randomly stop by and ask to sit in the church. It happens more than one would think. They sit in silence, and leave in silence, often with some tears in their eyes. And because I give them space, never hovering over them or forcing a conversation, I have always wondered about their story. What drove them to sanctuary? I now have a better understanding. I get it. Like a child who desperately needs the presence of a parent, sometimes we just need to sit in God’s house.
Never Forgotten
The question that often plagues us is, how can we know that we are never forgotten? How can we know beyond a doubt that God’s gaze is continually directed towards us? Happily, God answer this dilemma.
Reverend Kyle Norman 