I hope this book is able to help many people see male-female friendships as the God-given gift that they are.
All in Life
Friendships that Look Forward
Far from merely stating that male and female relationships are permissible, this view for the future intimates that these friendships are essential to the vitality of the church and her mission.
Viewing One Another Holistically
One general premise of the book is that the church unwittingly has adopted secular perspectives on how men and women relate to each other and erred in discouraging cross-gender relationships.
notes from neverland
I hoped it would be easier this time - it's not. It's hard to trust; I wish it wasn't. Pray for me, I'll pray for you.
We Would See Jesus
Would you see Jesus? You may well have to walk through the valley of the shadow of death, but he is most certainly there with you. The day we will be able to see him with our own eyes and touch the hem of his garment with our own hands cannot come soon enough for me.
Book Review: The Gospel Comes with a House Key
I would recommend that those who are interested in Christian hospitality (and yes, outreach) read this book. It is challenging and convicting, and having read it, I want to do more in this area.
Valentine's Ashes
Lean close together, hold one another and seek spiritual intimacy. Give one another your ashes. Get down to the real work of being holy partners, wholly together.
Fear Big Bad Beer?
Yes, I'll drink corporation beer if you buy it. But let's not pretend ... I'm definitelyjudging you.
Echoes Become Your Only Friend
Isolation is now man's "natural" path. Isolation from God, friends, and eventually even self. Who hasn't felt like they were a shell of some better self?
always in the blood
The body and blood I inhabit that are—in so many ways—not my own to do with what I please. Maybe it washes out in the water, maybe it's always in the blood. But I have been sacrificed for...and so I am given the strength to keep sacrificing my self.
Confessions, Contrasts, and Christmas
I think it is necessary to begin this piece with a confession: I really just don’t like Christmas.
Penetrating Our Darkness
The Advent season prepares our heart, mind, and soul for the darkness that occurs throughout our life. It reminds us to rely not on any extinction of existence but the Christ who penetrated our deepest darkness and conquered them in His death.
More than Watchmen Waiting for the Morning
We wait. God prepares the city.
Idols During Advent
Advent is a time to set aside the pomp and circumstance of secular celebration. It is a time to clean house on our “speechless idols” and “silent stone[s].” Maybe that entails time away from social media or less spiked eggnog. It might mean taking less pride and confidence in our religious traditions. It is impossible to conceive of all the silent idols our hearts may create.
A Grief Remembered
The day my mother died was a rainy one.
get me to the church on time
There is a comfort in hearing them from someone outside of your own head, someone impartial to your own internal noise.
Still with Me in My Heart
Read in this light (not an immediate pun), the words of Rubarth become a soulful but softly whispered plea that the Christ with those "who have fallen asleep in Jesus" (1 Thess. 4:14) would return.
Written in the Water
I am now "just sinking in" to the grace of Christ conquering the current cyclical cacophony of death and life.
Returning to Solitude
This solitude stands before each theologian as a possibility but also the dangerous possibility to adopt superficially and on false presumptions. The urge to become the theologian Contra Mundum is to be resisted.
Carrying Loads
"O how he springs up before your eyes, how he deafened your ears, how he forces his way even into your dreams and disturbs your thoughts and wastes your time! O how he gets on your nerves!" - Karl Barth