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In: Bible and Theology, God's Character, Lament, Prayer and Devotions

Abba Father, Sorrow comes, you are God. Happiness comes, you are God. Anger comes, you are God. Peace comes, you are God. Poverty comes, you are God. Riches come, you are God. Pain comes, you are God. Pleasure comes, you are God. Whatever our physical or emotional condition, you are God, and we are your children, the sheep of your pasture, and you hold us in your hand. Nothing can separate us from your love. May we love you and serve you, and pour our hearts out to you today, whether we have joy or sorrow to lift up to you. May we trust inRead More →

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In: Bible and Theology, Prayer and Devotions

Yesterday, we considered that, what the world tells us are weaknesses that disqualify us for ministry, and should be hidden in shame, God declares, through these weaknesses, he can do a perfect work so mighty, we ought to “boast” about these things. Today, on Christmas Eve, my mind turns along these same lines to a group of lowly shepherds keeping watch over their sheep by night. What were their great ministry qualifications? None. They were poor shepherds, ordinary people, and hardly in an impressive occupation. Shepherding was a grueling, 24/7 occupation that left little time for participating in the religious life of ancient Israel. TheyRead More →

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In: Bible and Theology

What prevents us from following God’s call? For a number of us, it is a simple question, “who am I?” The world demands an answer from us. Often, we’re pressured to be the best, to excel, to prove our worth, and, in this economy especially, “why should I hire you over the thousands of others? What sets you apart?” If you find yourself answering, “You shouldn’t. I am nothing special,” you are not alone in your self doubt. I and a tragic thousands other struggle with that inner-critic. Too often, we end up telling god that also. “Lord, I’ve never been the worst of sinners, norRead More →

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In: Notices, Random Acts of Thinking

I’ve been a very bad blogger. Most of the advice I get asked is private, and well, consistency has never been a strong suit when, as my husband put it once, “if ADD exists, you have it.” Probably a “duh” to anyone who has tried to read my rambling columns. Editing is my friend. My thoughts tend to be scrambled and rather disoraganized–and the internal disorganization has a frustrating tendency to leak out into my house. Grr. But that’s another story. One thing I’ve learned in life is external structure–rigid scheduling and daily routines are sanity savers for me, which neither the book reviews norRead More →

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In: Book Reviews

The Charlatan’s Boy: A Novel by Jonathan Rogers (WaterBrook) is a first person narrative following the adventures of a young boy known only as Grady, who is kept in deplorable conditions by a charlatan named Floyd, who made money by sticking Grady in a cage and charging people money to view a “genuine feechie man,” passing him as a grown native of their island home even at two years old. Poor Grady is also told by everyone he knows that he is ugly because his chin is weak to the point of being nearly nonexistent, his ears stick out, and he has a unibrow. He alsoRead More →