Posts from 2019 (Page 2)
Why does the universe look so old?
“When it comes to the age of the universe, Christians find themselves in a bit of a conundrum. At least, those Christians do who hold to a traditional interpretation of the first two chapters of Genesis—an interpretation that leads them to believe the universe is something less than the billions of years indicated by contemporary understandings of the scientific data. Those, like me, who hold to a six-day understanding of creation have to face this question: Why does the universe…
What Children Get Right that Adults Get Wrong
“A child kicks his legs rhythmically through excess, not absence, of life. Because children have abounding vitality, because they are in spirit fierce and free, therefore they want things repeated and unchanged. They always say, “Do it again”; and the grown-up person does it again until he is nearly dead. For grown-up people are not strong enough to exult in monotony. But perhaps God is strong enough to exult in monotony.” Read more…
The Gift of Accepting Help
“Here’s the problem: I’m horrible at accepting help. If I’m honest, delegating, relying on others or asking for help sometimes doesn’t even occur to me. From washing dishes to managing stress—even jobs that usually require more than one person—“I’ll just do it myself” is my almost subconscious mantra. I know this isn’t an issue for everyone, but I know there are others in my camp because, like many character deficits, it’s easier to spot in others before myself.” Read more…
The Scars of Heaven
‘Do you think I’ll have my scar in my resurrection body Daddy?’ He responded, again surprising himself with his own words, ‘I don’t know, but if you do it will be a mark of God’s grace and help to you through this; it will be a sight which speaks joy rather than sadness, and you’ll know that that kind of accident will never happen again.’ Read more…
Spiritual Fruit Grows Slowly
“As others have pointed out, your growth in the spiritual fruits should not be measured day-by-day, but year-by-year. Consider your growth, for example, with the fruit of patience. Do not ask yourself: “Am I more patient today than I was yesterday?” If you do, you are bound to be frustrated. Instead, ask yourself: “Am I more patient today than I was five years ago?” If you walk with and obey Christ, the answer will be yes. The Holy Spirit is…
Ordinary Work, Extraordinary Opportunity
“There are very few jobs in this world that are consistently exciting. Not only that, but there are very few jobs in this world that are consistently fulfilling, where the person doing the job maintains the sense that he is really making a difference in the world, or that she is using her talents and passions to the fullest. To the contrary, most jobs are mostly mundane most of the time, and few people do work that fully engages or…
Ordinary is the New Cool
“Life works like this. Everyone is ordinary. Yes, I know that we are made in God’s image, but that gives us no reason to take pride in ourselves. Those who have come to terms with their ordinariness are on a path of uniqueness and strength. They have learned to think less often about themselves. Get to know them and you have a sense that you are with greatness. Those who insist on personal reputation are brutish and small. Get to…
Some Things Are Worth Doing Poorly
“It’s true for exercise and prayer, cooking and learning, loving and just about everything else. As G.K. Chesterton put it, “If a thing is worth doing, it’s worth doing badly.” Read more…
Allowing God to lead your emotional healing
“Many people’s approach to emotions is about efficiency. We seek to swiftly move from feeling bad to feeling good again, wanting to process bad events as quickly as possible. This is partially natural. We want to take the pain away. When we are physically hurt we put bandaids on and take pain killers. But we need to remember that those things only ease the situation; healing still has to happen.” Read more…
Joy Comes in the Mourning
“For the follower of Christ, (funerals remind us) that the sin we mourn in the world will one day no longer be able to touch us, that the brokenness of our bodies and spirits will one day be wholly healed and fully aligned with our Lord. Death is a difficult, but desperately-needed reminder that we should not only strive to cherish the brief life God has given us here , but also, paradoxically, that we should hold it with open…