Celebrating Advent with Apocalyptic Eyes

The Advent season is about preparing our hearts for Christmas by reflecting on Jesus’ coming to the earth 2,000 years ago. (And it also involves anticipating what is to come in the future — awaiting the day when he returns again.) And as we reflect upon the coming of Jesus, we have to ask ourselves,…

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On Walking

I went for a walk the other day and came across a cross. One might chalk it up as happenstance. Perhaps the wind blew these two sticks until they eventually married one another on this random path at just the right time before I chanced upon them. Or maybe it was by design. Perhaps some…

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Reflections on Table, Time, and Church

When it comes to church, one thing I’ve learned is that “community” is important. In fact, the communal life is necessary. And by “community,” I mean more than a place for shop talk (as important as that is). I mean something along the lines of habitual participation, constant give-and-take, and sacramental union. I mean koinōnia. …

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The Deep Things

I spent time nearly every day last week walking the shoreline. There’s something mesmerizing about it all. The vastness summons you to attention. The waves are fierce and rhythmic, drawing you away from distraction and into wonder and contemplation. What’s beyond our own horizon? What lies behind the veil of our finitude? Without knowing it,…

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Live life in the slow lane

We often get frustrated with the speed at which God works in our lives (slow and steady). I suspect that, in part, it’s because we tend to interpret God’s ways in light of the speed at which we insist on living our lives (fast and hurried). The modern world is a very difficult place for…

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Are we losing our minds?

I recently started reading Dale Allison’s Encountering Mystery, a book packed with discussions about various religious experiences people sometimes report. It’s been a fun read so far. Toward the end of his chapter on prayer, he cites a study that caught my eye. He writes, “A few years ago, psychologists at Harvard and the University…

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Bono and Franklin Graham talk about Jesus

In this article, Bono recounts a conversation he once had with Franklin Graham. It’s kind of funny and reminds me of a couple things: (1) some sectors of evangelicalism don’t quite understand the evangel (the gospel) or how to share it; (2) thank God for the renegade poets who do. Graham: “You … you really…

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How to read the Bible

You’re not truly reading Scripture until you allow Scripture to read you. Do you allow the Bible to question your beliefs or do you read it in such a way that it always agrees with you? Do you simply treat the Bible as your personal answer book—a cache of weaponry you can deploy to support…

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The Gospel of Beautiful Truth

Here’s what you don’t say when counseling someone who’s come face to face with evil and trauma: “God is in control” or “This was God’s will” or “God did this so you will learn something” or “We shouldn’t ask why ‘bad things happen to good people’ because there are no ‘good people’; we are all sinful,…

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