When David was fleeing from King Saul, long before he was crowned king himself, he ended up in a cave in the wilderness called Abdullam, which means “fortress” or “refuge.” While there, as improbable as it seemed, he gathered to himself a group of 400 men ready to follow him. Their “qualifications” weren’t exactly what [...]
Greek philosophers championed the idea of “Nothing in excess.” The slogan was etched onto public buildings, referencing the “Golden Mean” or “Middle Way” made popular by Plato and his student Aristotle. To be a true virtue, Aristotle argued in his work on ethics, it must be held in balance between two extremes. As one example, [...]
From its beginning the world has been limited in significant ways. God imposed limits on vast bodies of water, for instance, to keep their destructive power in check. When challenged by his servant Job, the Lord asked him in Job 38:4-11: “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Who shut up the sea [...]
A sojourn is a relatively short period of time when a person stays somewhere other than home. It’s a temporary stay or visit that’s usually associated with a specific purpose. During a sojourn, people are outside of their natural environment. They adjust to their new place of residence to some degree, but it never becomes [...]
We all know that God’s ways are not like the ways of the world. Yet we tend to continue to operate like everything depends on us. We polish our skills and groom our appearance so we can be more appealing to our peers. But if we’re fortunate, every once in a while God allows us [...]
In Hebrew, the word Eden means “delight.” When God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden, it contained everything he’d need to enjoy life—streams, vegetation, rich soil, sunlight, plenty of food, and living creatures of every kind. God even provided another human (Eve), who would partner with Adam in ruling the world under God’s direction. [...]
I’ve been troubled lately by some posts I’ve seen on social media. I know … this is nothing new. There’s always something we can find on those sites that we don’t like to see or read! But in this case, the entries that trouble me are posted by fellow Christians. We all see things from [...]
“There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.” Proverbs [...]
I’ve always been a lover of books. Growing up in the 1950s, my life in MidAmerica was safe, predictable, and often boring. So I found my escape in books. Walking into a library back in those days was intoxicating. I can still remember the smell that assaulted you the minute you walked through the big, [...]
We’re not sure how Jesus was feeling when He said it. Was He sad? Frustrated? Stressed out? Or just lamenting? Whatever the case, it was a heads-up moment for His disciples—a foretaste of what lay ahead for them. In Luke 12:50 Jesus says, “I have a baptism to undergo, and what constraint I am under [...]
Adventuring with God 