Jesus had said to wait.  His instructions were to not head off and try to do the work of the Body of Christ until the Father sent what he promised.  So they waited—and on Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came on the church and enabled the followers of Jesus to witness and proclaim the Good News. […]

Why are you here on this earth?  What is your purpose?  Answering these questions and others like them can bring clarity to life.  Understanding God’s purpose for you and how you are part of a larger picture can reduce stress, speed up decision making, and create a better sense of satisfaction.  There is some clear […]

Sin’s modus operandi is to isolate, separate, and spiral down into oblivion. We often think of Christian fellowship as the fellowship of the pious—brothers and sisters in Christ—when it is really the people who confess their sinfulness. Christians conquer loneliness by confessing that we are all sinners.

Being in the middle of a crowd, surrounded by needy children, or in the midst of co-workers or fellow students can be a very lonely place. How can it be that, even on days when there’s almost no time alone, one can feel lonely? What relief is there for that type of loneliness?

We don’t believe in a hierarchy of leaders who are the only ones who can grasp great spiritual truth, individuals necessary as an intermediary between general humanity and God. However, sometimes in our practice we may fall back to reliance upon clergy for understanding Scripture and/or serving the body and the greater world.  Is this […]

The real story was too good to be true, but when the truth of reality lodged in those first disciples, it changed everything. It sparked a movement, a following: this thing we call church. The enemy was defeated, and glory began to appear on the horizon like the first rays of the coming sun rise.

Jesus makes a spectacle. Something is up.  He comes like a king riding into Jerusalem.  But then, at maybe the height of the festivities surrounding this ride, he stops.  In this moment of reflection, a tear doesn’t just trickle from his eye; he nearly falls off his ride as he sways in agony with heartfelt […]

God is incredibly flexible with us, and we should be with one another – working with each other even when we are not at our best. God decided to give Israel a king against his good judgment, supporting them even when they differ from him . . . a bold concept.

Many try to enter, but it looks like getting in the narrow door is about knowing the door keeper; a claim to know or that we are known isn’t enough.  Some have called this passage “the great reversal.” Is there only room in God’s kingdom for a certain family line, or is God opened to […]

Jesus said, “A pure eye lets sunshine into your soul, but an evil eye shuts out the light.”  It’s difficult to understand this saying of Jesus because he warns us to make sure that the light we think we have isn’t really darkness! What is he getting at?  How do we know if our light […]