The Bible says that God is not just our creator, but our parent. The Bible uses both Father and Mother imagery for God. We normally call him God, the Father. But God does not have a gender. God is not actually male. God is not human. God is a Spirit. We could be missing outContinue reading “Why we need to see God as both Father and Mother – Our Identity: In God, Part 2”
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The king and the secret princess – Our Identity: In God, Part 1
I want to tell you a parable. There was a king who wanted to have more connection with the people in his kingdom, so he decided to have a weekly briefing. At the briefing, reporters from various news agencies in the kingdom would come to the briefing, and they would talk with the king, andContinue reading “The king and the secret princess – Our Identity: In God, Part 1”
How to avoid assimilation and follow Jesus – Characters: Daniel, Part 5
A retired couple in my congregation told me about the time they attended a high school reunion, and their classmates, now all retired, each took turns sharing what they were doing with their lives. The sharing went all the way around the circle, and not a single person mentioned anything about serving the Lord. PerhapsContinue reading “How to avoid assimilation and follow Jesus – Characters: Daniel, Part 5”
How much should we let our Christianity show? – Characters: Daniel, Part 4
In this series of posts on Daniel and his friends, we’ve been talking about assimilation. How much should Christians allow themselves to assimilate with their surrounding culture? What areas of ethics matter, and which don’t? It’s not always easy to know. One way people seek to answer this question is about process. Do the endsContinue reading “How much should we let our Christianity show? – Characters: Daniel, Part 4”
How teens and adults can respond to peer pressure – Characters: Daniel, Part 3
How do you handle societal pressure? Whether you are a teenager facing peer pressure at school, perhaps to try drugs and alcohol, or whether you are an adult tempted to misreport your taxes, there are multitudes of pressures in life, pressures to turn away from living in a way that is honorable to Jesus. WillContinue reading “How teens and adults can respond to peer pressure – Characters: Daniel, Part 3”
Should Christians change their views on morality as their society changes? – Characters: Daniel, Part 2
Is it okay for Christians to update their views on ethics and morality? Can we innovate our stance on traditional theology? There’s no doubt that American society has been heavily influenced by Christianity, and still is in large part, but as our societal views change, can we adapt Christianity to fall more in line withContinue reading “Should Christians change their views on morality as their society changes? – Characters: Daniel, Part 2”
Is the American melting pot disastrous for Christians? – Characters: Daniel, Part 1
In February 1887 President Grover Cleveland signed into law the Dawes Act which sought to assimilate Native Americans into the culture of the United States. It didn’t go well. Indians ended up losing 62% of the land they held before 1887. There remains much debate about how much people should assimilate into American culture. ForContinue reading “Is the American melting pot disastrous for Christians? – Characters: Daniel, Part 1”
How the Holy Spirit helps us have peace when we struggle with fear – Fourth Sunday of Advent 2019, Part 5
What is at the root of fear? Human nature? Maybe it is just a part of the human experience? We fear that we won’t be taken care of. Clearly so many of us, young and old fear rejection, loneliness, insecurity, or being destitute. We can fear that people will look down on us. There isContinue reading “How the Holy Spirit helps us have peace when we struggle with fear – Fourth Sunday of Advent 2019, Part 5”
How God’s Spirit is Alive in Us – Fourth Sunday of Advent, Part 4
Each stream of Christianity has its unique approach to the role and activity of the Holy Spirit in the life of the follower of Jesus. Some Christians feel that they know with certainty who the Spirit is and what the Spirit does. Some Christians have very little certainty. I grew up thinking the Spirit wasContinue reading “How God’s Spirit is Alive in Us – Fourth Sunday of Advent, Part 4”
What is Jesus most astounding promise? – Fourth Sunday of Advent, Part 3
Jesus makes lots of promises. What do you think is his most amazing promise? In this post, I think we just might have a candidate for it. We actually started studying the promise in the previous post. Jesus teaches the promises to his disciples in John 14:15-31, and he crafts in the form of anContinue reading “What is Jesus most astounding promise? – Fourth Sunday of Advent, Part 3”
Engaging Scripture 