For this Advent season, I thought it would be good to study a lesser-known book of the Bible that relates to Advent. This letter didn’t originally relate to Advent. Advent was a season of the year that Christians created many years after this letter was written. But because Advent mean “arrival,” I think you’ll seeContinue reading “Introducing our Advent 2021 series – 2 Thessalonians 1, Part 1”
Tag Archives: advent
The important connection between Sci-fi and Advent – 2 Thessalonians 1, Preview
How do you feel about science fiction? Are you a sci-fi lover? A sci-fi hater? I love sci-fi. I love pretty much any sub-genre within the larger sci-fi umbrella. What’s not to love? Time travel, futuristic technology, spaceships, lasers, intergalactic travel, and of course, aliens. Sci-fi has it all! I recently started watching a newContinue reading “The important connection between Sci-fi and Advent – 2 Thessalonians 1, Preview”
How to practice our faith like Jesus – Honest Advent Week 4, Part 5
What should we do to use our bodies to express our faith? In the previous post, I mentioned church attendance. But an embodied faith must go well beyond church worship service attendance. So look to Jesus. Jesus had a human body, and he showed us how to live. Jesus invites to do what he did.Continue reading “How to practice our faith like Jesus – Honest Advent Week 4, Part 5”
The most important spiritual habit? – Honest Advent Week 4, Part 4
I once had a class in seminary where we were talking about how we are embodied souls, which is our topic on the blog this week, and the professor asked the class what we would consider to be the most important spiritual habit we should practice. Of course there are the common answers of prayerContinue reading “The most important spiritual habit? – Honest Advent Week 4, Part 4”
Does your body have a soul? – Honest Advent Week 4, Part 3
Does the body have a soul? Let’s talk about that. As we continue learning about embodiment during this fourth week of Advent, while we’re focusing on our physical or material side, what about the spiritual or immaterial side of humanity? Religion tends to emphasize the spiritual side. What we’ve been learning, though, is that ChristiansContinue reading “Does your body have a soul? – Honest Advent Week 4, Part 3”
Christmas and the abortion debate – Honest Advent Week 4, Part 2
Yesterday I mentioned that Christmas has a significant connection to the abortion debate. How so? Consider what we read in Psalm 139:13-16a, where the Old Testament King and Poet, David, writes: “13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully andContinue reading “Christmas and the abortion debate – Honest Advent Week 4, Part 2”
Christianity is not a purely spiritual faith – Honest Advent Week 4, Part 1
Our is an embodied faith. The opposite of this is the view that says ours is a purely spiritual faith. But Christianity is not a purely spiritual faith. Does that sound odd or wrong? Let me say it again. Christianity is not a purely spiritual faith. Upon hearing that some might think, “What are youContinue reading “Christianity is not a purely spiritual faith – Honest Advent Week 4, Part 1”
For love to be love, it will cost you – Honest Advent Week 2, Part 4
I had a difficult time finding the picture above, the one with a man holding an umbrella for another guy. My difficulty didn’t have to do with the photo, but with the fact that I couldn’t figure out how to get the search algorithm to give me what I wanted. I use Unsplash for freeContinue reading “For love to be love, it will cost you – Honest Advent Week 2, Part 4”
Examine how you love – Honest Advent Week 2, Part 3
Examine how you love. Do you know how to examine your love? Or do you just assume that you are good at loving? Have you ever thought about that? As we continue studying Honest Advent, we are learning what gifts Jesus wants us to give him for Christmas. Last week we learned to give him theContinue reading “Examine how you love – Honest Advent Week 2, Part 3”
What it means that “God is Love” – Honest Advent Week 2, Part 1
During Honest Advent we are looking at what gifts we can give Jesus. Last week we learned that one of the gifts he wants is our vulnerability. What we are starting to find in this Advent series is that the gifts Jesus wants are gifts that he first gave us. Think about how Jesus gaveContinue reading “What it means that “God is Love” – Honest Advent Week 2, Part 1″
Engaging Scripture 