In life, invariably, anything that you do over-and-over has the potential of devolving into mere repetition with no feeling involved. We call that “going through the motions”, right? It can happen with anything: work, exercise, paying the bills, regular date nights with your spouse, community, Sunday church gathering, discipleship group, daily Bible reading, and so forth. When that happens, the tendency can be to think, “I need something different. I need something bigger-and-better. Or, something is wrong with this thing I’m doing. I need fireworks! I need excitement! I need a change.”
Read MoreEvery January there is a flurry of blog posts (like this one and this one) and encouragement to make a plan for your personal reading of the Bible (among other things) in the new year. That’s good. But, the reality is you may already be behind or too busy to come up with a plan. In fact, most of us are, which is why I’ve waited to post this until now.
Read MoreThis past summer as I was preparing for our church's covenant membership series I dropped by the Seattle Central Library, located in downtown Seattle, to do some research on the history of Jesus' people in Seattle. What I found shocked me. On the bottom shelf of an isolated rack, located in a quiet corner of the Seattle Room on the top floor, I found a box. It was largely unmarked. I don't know why I decided to open it, but I did. The condition of the box made it evident that it hadn't been opened in some time. The box, about the size of a small shoe box, was packed with hundreds of 3x5 cards.
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The most recent film adaptation of Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo, came out last week. It is a great work that largely follows the theatrical storyline. Though most are familiar with the musical, Les Mis was originally a 1200+ page novel. I read it for the first time this year. It is probably the best book, outside the Bible, that I've read. It's definitely an investment of time and effort (some parts seem needlessly long, but do contribute to the overall feel of the storyline), but worth it.
Read MoreI find it incredibly life-giving to regularly revisit the attributes of God (i.e. what God is like). Taken individually, they are stunning; taken together, they are breathtaking. Without knowing it, our fallen hearts often get derailed and we end up with a god that is very different than the God of the Scriptures.
Read MoreToday, November 29th, marks the birthday of CS Lewis (1898-1963). It'd be hard to overestimate the impact he has had on my life and thinking, the value of which is inestimable. If someone were to offer me a winning ticket to the Powerball lottery in exchange for all that I have learned (and am still learning) from this man, I would not take it. He saw truth vividly, yet simply, and had the unique ability to pass that along to the reader through his writings. I distinctly remember reading Mere Christianity as a new follower of Christ during my freshman year at the University of Washington and thinking: "How is it that I have spent 18 years of my life without knowing of this man and his writings?"
Read MoreOur church recently spent three weeks walking through foundations of biblical marriage (and other related topics such as gender, headship, submission, etc). For many, it was the first time they've been exposed to biblical teaching on why God created marriage and what it means to be a husband and wife. While there are other resources available, the following is a list of those I have found to be the most helpful and accessible. I commend them to you for personal/group study.
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