We're approaching Spooky Season when fear can be fun, but most of the year, fear is not the state we were made for. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCvutEJc-aQ To learn more about how the Bible knows what's good for us, check out Health Hacks from the Bible.
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If you've followed me for anytime at all, you know that I believe that fear is the antithesis of the Gospel. We are called over and over again to Be Not Afraid throughout the Old and New Testatments. But of course, sometimes the fear gets us. I imagine most of you have heard about the killing of Jordan Neely on the NYC subway, and the subsequent arrest of former marine ...
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The word “Maundy” is derived from Latin “mandatum,” which means “commandment.” On Maundy Thursday (when we celebrate the institution of the Lord’s Supper), not only does Jesus command us to eat the bread and drink the wine in remembrance of him, he also offers us a new commandment: “that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” (John 13:34, Revised Standard Version). In ...
Read MoreTherefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.1 Thessalonians 5:11 Find out why I think encouraging others is the easiest best way we can affect positive change in our world. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ricP9DIM8hE Wanna join me for the Eastertide encouragement challenge? Opt in and download the Intentional Encourager 2.0. Be on the lookout for weekly emails beginning on Palm Sundays and a link to join the private Encourager ...
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Hey friends, I spent last week with a bunch of people engaged in Christian camping ministry. If you know me, you know that I LOVE camp. We had one session where we broke up into small groups and talked about ways we experience God's abiding presence in our lives. I got some really good feedback on the exercise, so I thought I'd share it with you. Disclaimer: time in nature is ...
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Make your holiday a happy one. Based on my experience and extensive research, here are the top 10 questions to avoid this Thanksgiving Day. So, who did you vote for? When are you two getting married?When are you gonna have a kid/another kid or when are you gonna stop having kids? (basically stay away from all talk of people's sex lives and reproductive choices)Do you have a job yet?How can you ...
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God of love and God of all, We enter into this election with more anxiety than hope about the future of our country. We are battling for the soul of America, but we have very different ideas of how that soul should look, feel and behave. We fear for the safety and peace of our nation, as many have already threatened violence if the results are not the ones they want. We ...
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That's my new question at the end of each week. Instead of asking "what did I accomplish" or "how much did I get done" or even "how much money did I make," I've started asking "was I the person God calls me to be?" The answer is always "not totally." And that's okay. I believe there's something in the Bible about how we all fall short (Romans 9:23). Don't beat yourself ...
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Yeah, here we are again. November. When everyone trots out their gratitude practice, and the focus of everything from store fronts to social media feeds is on how grateful we all should be. But gratitude can be hard...because life is hard, and this season of forced gratitude doesn't help. Add a layer of guilt about not feeling grateful over the general malaise of already not feeling particularly thankful and you ...
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My friend and colleague, Rev. Kelly Fitzgerald, and I have put together a FREE resource for families to use at home this Advent, and here's five reasons I'm excited about it. It's Not a To-Do List This is a not a devotion-a-day resource where you have to commit to gathering your family together in the same place at the same time every day while you read and reflect on scripture ...
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