rebelling against low expectations
Every Christmas season we’re barraged with holiday clichés and messages of love and peace. Christian ministries remind us to “keep Christ in Christmas,” and every church sermon somehow intertwines the message of “goodwill to all men.” All of this is good. In fact, Christ should be the focal point of our celebration. But sometimes, the debate of “keep Christ in...
As Christmas Day draws nearer and nearer, I’m sure many of you are gathering around with your families to take part in a classic Christmas tradition—watching Christmas movies. Favorites like Elf, Home Alone, and The Miracle on 34th Street play nonstop on countless different channels and seem to set the mood for this time of year. An interesting observation is the common thread that runs through...
One of today’s most notorious agnostics is Bart Ehrman, whose books have undermined the faith of many young Christians. His theory is that Jesus was just a preacher from rural Galilee who never even claimed to be God — that it was His followers who slowly, over time, exalted Him to be equal to the Creator. Ehrman explains that the ancient Romans gradually elevated their emperors to gods and...
It is undeniable that Easter is the center of history. All the Old Testament points to the death and resurrection of Jesus. All the New Testament is based on it. Often, however, we talk only about one part. The cross has become the symbol of Christianity. We emphasize the death of Jesus (which is good), but in doing that, we often forget to emphasize His resurrection as well. Most of us know the...
I write this poem on the eve of the 2020 election as a reflective, occasionally silly and exaggerated reminder to be grounded in my one true hope: Jesus and his unshakeable Kingdom, not in earthly politics (during these exaggerated times). I hope it’s a comforting reminder to you as well. Yet, I have hope. It could be that by this time tomorrow We’ll all be drowning in sorrow. Or by...
Have you ever tried to tell someone the gospel . . . and they got offended? The gospel is the greatest love story ever told. It’s the story of how Jesus came down as a human baby, died on the cross, taking the sin of the world upon himself, and rose again three days later, defeating sin and death once and for all. It’s difficult to imagine how anyone could be offended at such wonderful news, but...
Recently, hundreds of people gathered in my state and others to protest stay-at-home regulations put in place by the state government. Among the protesters were small-business owners struggling to maintain their businesses, parents out of work and ineligible for unemployment benefits, people awaiting care that has been deprioritized, and others who were simply unconvinced of the danger of COVID...
It’s been a rough couple of weeks, what with cancelled plans and postponed weddings and last-minute homeschooling (for some–for others it was old hat). Cancelled Easter plans aren’t any less disappointing. My church has a tradition of camping together over Easter Sunday, which obviously isn’t happening anymore. Other people had Passion plays to perform or breakfasts to...
Christmas can seem to come and go so fast. It seems that we barely bought our Christmas tree, named it (if you’re like me), and decorated it before its pine needles start to go a little dry and its nearly time to say goodbye. But I’m wondering this year—what if we viewed Christmas not just as a season but as the beginning of a rescue story? Because Christmas truly was only the beginning of the...
People often refer to the Apostle Paul as the problematic writer in the New Testament. I’ve heard people say things like “I really like Jesus and his teachings, but what Paul wrote about women or slavery (or what-have-you) doesn’t sit with me. It seems outdated and offensive.” In reality, I’ve made similar comments myself as I wrestle with the writings of Paul. But I’ve been reading...
rebelling against low expectations
