2007, it has turned out, was the year of God's absence. God's absence was lamented by a modern saint and celebrated by famous atheists. We learned that Mother Teresa experienced long stretches during which she had no sense of God's presence. Because she had experienced startling epiphanies earlier in life, these stretches of divine absence were ( Read more... )

“Behold, the Lord GOD will come with might . . . Like a shepherd He will tend His flock.” (Isaiah 40:10)

Most of us get the idea, we just don’t have a clue about its magnitude. When we call something awesome these days, we mean “cool” or “wow” or “what an upgrade!” Awesome is our label for everything superlative.

The lid on the cookie jar slams ( Read more... )

The Consequence of Criticism

Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married, for he had married a Cushite woman. And they said, "Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?" And the Lord heard it.
Numbers 12:1-9 1

Moses could have written a book on how to cope with cranky ( Read more... )

God promised Jeremiah that He would deliver him personally- ". . . your life shall be as a prize to you . . ." (Jeremiah 39:18  ). That is all God promises His children. Wherever God sends us, He will guard our lives. Our personal property and possessions are to be a matter of indifference to us, and our hold on these things should be very loose. ( Read more... )

My beloved little girl has arrived.  She was born Thursday at 5pm, weighing 9pounds 10 ounces and was 21 inches long.  We had prayed for God to give us a child and the Lord answered that prayer.  That's where her name comes from.  The name Eliana is Hebrew for "the Lord Answers".  Eliana Marie Johnson is already a bundle of joy, and Mommy and I are ( Read more... )

Does God have enemies? How would you answer this question?

If you are one kind of Muslim, you might answer that question, "Yes, God's enemies are the Americans and Israelis!"

If you are a Hindu nationalist, you might say, "Yes, it's the Muslims and the Christians!"

If you are like most Americans, you probably find the whole question strange, maybe to ( Read more... )

In recent years worship has been wrenched from the story of God and has been formed by some of the narratives of contemporary culture. Many find only a cultural manifestation of Christianity that bears no mark of spiritual nourishment or sustenance.

Me-oriented worship is the result of a culturally driven worship. When worship is situated in the ( Read more... )

In America, Evangelical churches have often been bastions of conservatism, providing support for the status quo. For example, many of our leaders were reluctant to lend their support to the civil-rights movement when their help was desperately needed. More recently, some of our leaders have allowed male chauvinism to continue unchallenged. ( Read more... )

IDr. Robert Webber passed away Friday evening... a great teacher and theologian.  I apprecaite his teaching on worship that I received.  RIP Dr. Webber

God Is Not the Object of Our Worship
He is the subject who forms us as we sing, tell, pray, and enact God's story in worship.
Robert E. Webber, excerpted from The Divine Embrace | posted 4/30/2007 10: ( Read more... )

Every day our naming of the people around us gives life and takes it away.

Being rightly named means being truly known. It changes our lives.

Embedded in our words, and in our actions, are the names we give to and receive from others. Nods of recognition, glances of curiosity, looks of compassion, signs of paying attention build one another up.

"Hey ( Read more... )