This week we’re studying Ezekiel 19 and its two allegorical parables of lament. The first was a lament about lions. The second parable of lament is similar. Read about it in verses 10-14. Very similar to the lions, isn’t it? A vine grows fruitful and abundant and strong. But it gets uprooted, withered by anContinue reading “Why and how we need to sit in our pain? – Ezekiel 19, Part 4”
Tag Archives: spirituality
Fight or Flight: How do you handle pain? – Ezekiel 19, Preview
What do you do when you are upset? It is fascinating to me how differently we humans handle our pain. Have you ever heard of “fight or flight”? While there are other ways to handle pain, fight or flight are two common ones. The fighters among us tend to get aggressive and confront the painContinue reading “Fight or Flight: How do you handle pain? – Ezekiel 19, Preview”
Have you ever lost hope? – Ezekiel 17, Preview
Have you ever lost hope? I paused after typing that question, thinking to myself, “Have I ever lost hope?” There have certainly been difficult periods in life, and I know I have become very frustrated, very anxious, and very sad. But I don’t know that I have lost hope, at least in the sense ofContinue reading “Have you ever lost hope? – Ezekiel 17, Preview”
Practical ways to stay connected to God – Ezekiel 15 & 16, Part 5
What do we do to stay connected to God? First of all, we must spend time with him, getting to know him, hearing from him. Too often Christians have said that to build a relationship with God, “Go to church on Sunday,” as if what happens in that building is what God really wants. NotContinue reading “Practical ways to stay connected to God – Ezekiel 15 & 16, Part 5”
When you might not want God to talk to you – Ezekiel 14, Part 3
How would you describe your relationship with God? Close? Distant? In Ezekiel 14, verse 7, God describes the status of his relationship with his people. He says that they separated themselves from him. They chose to separate themselves from God, and they showed this choice by setting up idols in their hearts and putting theContinue reading “When you might not want God to talk to you – Ezekiel 14, Part 3”
When it feels like you cannot see or hear God – Ezekiel 12, Part 1
I love learning about humanity’s attempts to travel into space, and one of the common elements of space travel is…delays. The astronauts go through all kinds of training, and then NASA sets the launch day. They say goodbye to their family, get suited up, excitedly enter the spacecraft, and then NASA scrubs the launch. TheContinue reading “When it feels like you cannot see or hear God – Ezekiel 12, Part 1”
Clothe yourselves with compassion – Colossians 3:12-17, Part 1
“Can you wash my jeans?” My daughter was asking a normal question, except that it was 9pm, and she needed the jeans first thing the next morning for her work as a dishwasher at a local cafe. I responded, “Can’t you just wear them again? They’re going to get dirty anyway.” “No, dad!” Think aboutContinue reading “Clothe yourselves with compassion – Colossians 3:12-17, Part 1”
Why we shouldn’t sweep Christian Perfection into the dustbin of history – Colossians 1:24-2:5, Part 5
Is perfection possible? It’s the question I’ve been asking and exploring starting here. Why perfection? It seems like an easy question to answer when we look around the world today, and at ourselves. Perfection seems impossible, and even potentially damaging as a goal, because of the often destructive nature of perfectionism. I’ve been asking theContinue reading “Why we shouldn’t sweep Christian Perfection into the dustbin of history – Colossians 1:24-2:5, Part 5”
Calling people “holy” or “saints” – Colossians 1:1-8, Part 2
What do you think about calling a person “holy”? To many of us, calling people “holy” sounds wrong. Only God is truly holy, not people, right? If we happen to use the word “holy” about a person, we might be describing them as, “holier than thou,” and we’re not complimenting them. Paul, however, uses “holy”Continue reading “Calling people “holy” or “saints” – Colossians 1:1-8, 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”
Engaging Scripture 