Left on their own, vine branches harbor disease and grow spindly, then die. They head off in wrong directions. God’s good nature is to prevent that. But, sometimes it hurts.
We are pruned.
What blocks victory
There’s a stretch of time between God calling Gideon a mighty warrior and Gideon acting like one. Gideon had questions. Gideon needed proof. An angel of the LORD met him and Gideon made excuses. Perhaps that is what happens when a culture drifts away from intimacy with God. They forget Who God is. What He…
Relentless Hope
I have nonChristian friends who talk. Who express their wonderment at how any person could still believe in a God of love and mercy after the year 2020. As I chat with them, we wade through this tension between the circumstances of the world and the challenge they present to the hope we are called…
How do Introverts become Bold?
Be bold. Be confident in the gifts you’ve been given. Don’t be afraid to use them. Don’t. Hold. Back. I’ve heard them all. OK extroverts. Me, speaking in front of people? Praying out loud? That’s me being bold. That’s me coming a few clicks short of a nervous breakdown in order to wield this gift…
What the blind beggar knew…
Are you stuck in your spiritual walk? Modern events stagnating your faith? Find out one key ingredient to a deeper walk with Jesus.
If you say so Jesus
Luke 5:1-11. Jesus told Simon to put his nets down into the deep water. And, Peter’s response was a reluctant one. “Master, we have worked all night long, but we have caught nothing.” Um, Jesus. I just did that. You actually saw me cleaning up my empty nets before you borrowed my boat. But, after…
Heavenly Sigh
What happens when the Great I am sighs? What happens when the One Who knows us so intimately, who holds time itself within His grasp—takes a moment, looks up, and sighs? By the time Jesus was called upon to heal a man who couldn’t hear and had a speech impediment (NRSV), he had already healed…
Potato Salad, Payday and the Kingdom of Heaven
Oh, behold the church potluck dinner. You think it’s a gathering of people bringing food. To share. To do that churchy word “fellowship”. Let’s get real. Bubbling up underneath the surface is a pile of people sizing each other up based on their potato salad. You know I’m right. There is nothing more horrendous than…
Evangelism for Introverts: Isaiah 55 and Walmart
Isaiah 55 has been somewhat of a war cry for me this year. I love when the deep mystery of faith reveals itself in practical ways–when I see played out in vivid reality that His ways are higher than mine. Usually I’m not so much of a girl person. Or a crowd person. But, this…
False Humility: Closeted Pride
I watched a snippet of a video from a self-proclaimed prophet the other day. What strikes me as odd is the widespread declaration of blessing and breakthrough on whole groups of people, without the call to repentance or discipline. Or humility. And I wonder if blessing without discipline is really what the American culture needs…
A Girl and Her God 