If someone asked you who your favorite teacher was when you were growing up, chances are someone specific would come to mind. And chances are you still respect that person today not because he or she was a fantastic lecturer, or had a superior knowledge of the subject matter, or had a memorable voice. Our […]
How Should We Understand the Teachings of Jesus? Read More »
On the night of the Last Supper Jesus gave his disciples an extraordinary body of teaching which we call “The Upper Room Discourse.” One way of summarizing what Jesus was telling them is “you’re going to be okay.”
You’re Going to Be Okay Read More »
I sometimes think that shame, mere awkward, senseless shame, does as much towards preventing good acts and straightforward happiness as any of our vices can do. —C.S. Lewis [From the new release, Overcoming Guilt and Shame by Daniel Green and Mel Lawrenz. Previously, Why Do I Feel Like Hiding?] IT’S NOT JUST YOU We all
Dealing with Guilt and Shame Read More »
This Sunday morning, March 15… Mel Lawrenz, Elmbrook Minister at Large and former Senior Pastor has recently spent time in Ethiopia where there is a remarkable story of faith that goes back 3,000 years. In the valleys, plateaus, and mountains of sunny Ethiopia in the horn of Africa a dramatic movement of God has been
The Story of Christianity in Ethiopia Read More »
There is a remarkable story of faith far removed from where I live in the Midwest of the U.S. where today there are grey skies and snow on the ground. In the valleys, plateaus, and mountains of sunny Ethiopia in the horn of Africa a dramatic movement of God has been afoot which reached dramatic
Remarkable Place, Remarkable People Read More »
If you were to stumble upon a long-lost manuscript that no eyes had seen for generations, and if you were to read its opening lines which offered a “wisdom” like what’s described in the following lines, you might consider it one of the greatest discoveries of your life. Proverbs… for gaining wisdom and instruction; for
What Are We To Take from the Books of Wisdom? Read More »
The Bible is not just a book. It is relationship in words. God’s word to men and women, boys and girls. A living action between the almighty Creator of the universe and his most cherished creation: humanity. We do not understand Scripture unless we hear in it the divine-human dialogue. The Psalms prove this. In
How Should We Read the Psalms? Read More »
It’s okay to be honest if you’re having difficulty understanding sections of the Bible. Remember, our difficulty understanding Scripture is not a problem. It is what you’d expect of a body of scriptures that speak into the complexities of human experience, and contain the high truth of a transcendent God. When we come to the
How Should We Understand What the Prophets Had to Say? Read More »
One of the ways we know that the truth of the Bible is rooted in reality is that the story of the Bible—the drama of God’s interaction with humanity—unfolds in a real place. This is a real God engaging with real people across a timeline that goes for thousands of years in a specific part
What Is Important About the Land of the Bible? Read More »
Illness is not only distressing, but confusing. Many people have a hard time knowing what to pray when they are seriously ill. The Scriptures make it clear that God listens to the cries of our hearts when we are in distress (the Psalms especially demonstrate that). It is honoring to God whenever we talk to him.
A Prayer for When You Are Seriously Ill Read More »
Most people who start to read the Bible from the beginning for the first time will typically have this experience: Genesis is fascinating with the story of creation, Babel, the flood, and the epic stories of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The exodus story is gripping. And then comes the law. Mount Sinai and the Ten
How Should We Understand the Law? Read More »
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
Peace – A Reading for the Fourth Week of Advent Read More »
If someone were to ask you to take as much time as you wanted to answer the question “Who are you?” you would start at the beginning. Your birth, your parents, your hometown, your ethnicity. To fully understand a person, a people, or a place today, you must go back to their beginnings. That is
What is the Big Picture of the Book of Beginnings? Read More »
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” – Luke 2:10-11 Great joy? Is it almost too much to hope
Joy – A Reading for the Third Week of Advent Read More »
So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. – Luke 2:4 Bethlehem was like any other town in the hills of Judea. And yet it was the birthplace of the greatest king of
Love: A Reading for the Second Week of Advent Read More »