[follower] “What’s on the agenda for today?” [leader] “Today we dine with uptight self-righteous people.” [follower] “That’s gonna be awkward.” [leader] “Yup.” Later that day, during dinner… [uptight self-righteous people] “Why do you flagrantly break God’s rules?” [leader] “I don’t.” Awkward silence… [leader] “I got a story for y’all. Once upon a time there was […]
Everyone has values. And our values are conspicuous. Our values are apparent in our spending, our attentiveness, our habits, our vigilance, and our concern regarding appearances. For instance, if you shadowed me for 5 days, you’d see that I value my iPhone, YouTube, rock climbing, running, audiobooks, “me time”, tidiness, doodling, and people’s perceptions. A […]
We hear words like “marvelous” and “greatness” and “excellent” and “holy,” and we presume to know the definitions and chief manifestations of these words. For example, in 2 Samuel 7 king David presumes that God wants a more “impressive” and “stable” dwelling place on earth, but God says, “Hold up! I actually prefer living in […]
My buddy David has a stressful job. He is the leader of a hyper-dysfunctional non-profit organization. A major dimension of the dysfunction has to do with the fact that David’s predecessor was fired, but the predecessor refuses to step down. Moreover, the predecessor is extremely upset about David being named the successor, and subsequently David […]
She knew she was right. She had Bible proof texts to back her up! This had to stop. She was the victim. She was being abused. The burdens always fell on her. It was oppressive. She had been longsuffering, accommodating, and uncomplaining; but now it was time to call in the big guns! She had […]
Once upon a time some leaders were squabbling about “greatness.” These guys felt tremendous pressure to settle the question of “greatness” because they had been appointed to leadership positions by God Himself! However, these men were not what you and I would consider to be “leadership material.” They were in fact bad leaders! But these […]
We oftentimes find ourselves swimming in superficiality. Sometimes superficiality feels nice. It’s light, it’s casual, it’s predictable, and it offers a dose of ephemeral pleasure. But ultimately it erodes confidence, and it amplifies our anxiety. Simply put, inch-deep interactions with fellow image-bearers won’t cut it. We often opt for superficiality because we aren’t comfortable with […]
Even a cursory overview of Paul’s life is alarming. Paul put himself through stuff that makes the Badwater 135 look like “treat-yo-self” spa day! Paul received countless beatings, he was often near death, and frequently in prison. Five times he received forty lashings minus one. Three times he was beaten with rods. Once he was […]
What is the premiere picture of a successful church? Jesus must be our most emphatic, and most-highly esteemed, paradigm of success. That means, the MOST SUCCESSFUL, MOST WORTHY OF ESTEEM AND EMULATION, CHURCH looks like Jesus and the apostles. The apostles, bear in mind, were blue-collar uneducated fisherman and former tax-collectors and zealots. Eventually, Jesus […]
“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather […]