During the season of advent, we celebrate the fact that Jesus has come and the promise that he will one day come again. But it is also a time when we can celebrate and experience Jesus' presence with us right now! We invite you to take a moment to pause and listen to what Jesus might have to say to you in this season.

Daniel's final apocalyptic vision comes in Daniel 10-12. In this vision, he has a very personal and intimate interaction with the Son of Man. Ultimately, the Son of Man offers Daniel the greatest hope - one that can overcome even the greatest act of evil and destruction. This is the hope of resurrection.  

In Daniel 9, Daniel is faced with the reality that he may never return to his home in Jerusalem. He has spent his whole life as an exile in Babylon because of the actions and decisions of others. In this moment of revelation, Daniel does not give in to self-righteousness or self-pity. Instead, he comes before God with a display of radical humility. We get a unique look into the perspective on life that has sustained Daniel through unimaginably difficult circumstances.

In this episode, we hear from Brent Brewer, who is writing his doctoral dissertation on interfaith dialogue between Christians and Muslims. He is learning a lot from his studies that will be helpful for those of us who desire to build relationships across cultural and religious lines!

In Daniel 8, Daniel has a strange vision of two creatures—a ram and a goat—with the goat trampling the ram. These creatures represent human empires and illustrate one political reality giving way to another. With the shifting empires comes persecution for the people of God in the centuries leading up to the time of Jesus. The vision also implies an end to the persecution and God’s sovereignty over history. We are reminded that, although the political realities of our world rise and fall, and the social favor toward or opposition against the people of God comes and goes, our hope lies in the alternative kingdom that Jesus inaugurated because God triumphs over all of the kingdoms of this world.

A short reflection on the 2024 presidential election.

In this episode, we get into part two of Daniel which is made up of a series of visions that Daniel receives while in exile. Daniel 7 is a particularly terrifying vision in which Daniel faces four monstrous beasts that represent human kingdoms that rule over the world. The fourth beast is particularly vicious and inhumane. The vision culminates with God defeating the beasts, and a character referred to as the son of man who comes on the clouds and is given authority over all of Creation. 

While there is a lot of debate around the meaning of this vision, Jesus gives us an important insight that we cannot overlook. And if we take his perspective on this passage seriously, it will hit a lot closer to home than we may realize at first glance.

In Daniel 6, we are reminded of the nearness of God's Kingdom and that it can break through in the most unexpected times and places.

Daniel spent decades living in exile, and a major question throughout the accounts of his life is: What kingdom is he living in? Is he living in Babylon or the Kingdom of God? 

The answer is both. Yet, often times, the world around Daniel looks a lot more like Babylon than it does Heaven. Even in his darkest moments, Daniel holds on to hope that God is still the ultimate authority and that His Kingdom reigns. And sometimes that Kingdom shows up in the most hopeless of places. In the case of Daniel 6, it shows up in the lion's den.

In Daniel 4, we get a first-hand look at the destructiveness of pride. 

In our pride, we elevate ourselves over others. We erode our capacity for gratitude and contentment because we believe that we always deserve more. We destroy our relationships because we place our own desires over the needs of others. But as we see in the life of King Nebuchadnezzar, the destructiveness of pride reaches to the very core of who we are. Pride ultimately degrades are humanity. 

In this episode, we hear from Marjorie Thigpen-Carter, who is the Lead Organizer of Justice Knox. Justice Knox is a collective of faith communities throughout Knoxville who work together to build power and fight for justice in our city. Listen in to see how you can get involved!