Pursuing a holistic expression of Christian faith that is true to the Bible and applicable for today’s world.
Luther Studied to Become a Lawyer to Please His Father Hans Luther, a German peasant, and his bride, Margaret, who came from the middle class, committed their lives to each other. Though having different social backgrounds, Hans pledged to work his way up in life. He promised to provide for Margaret and their future family […]
Let’s Stop Using Christian as an Adjective Do you call yourself a Christian? What does that word mean to you? What might it mean to others? Especially to those who aren’t part of our faith community? Let us consider if we should use Christian as a noun, Christian as an adjective, or Christian as something […]
God Used a Lightning Storm to Get Luther’s Attention and Change His Life While studying law and not yet 22, Martin Luther went home for a visit. What he experienced along the way reminds us of Paul’s conversion experience on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:3-4). It was the turning point for Martin Luther. Martin […]
Stop Asking If You Can Do Something and Start Asking If You Should We have freedom through Jesus. Do we believe this is true? How does this idea inform our day-to-day actions? We’ll do well to consider this thought to determine the best way to apply it to our lives. As children, our parents taught […]
Strive to Build Meaningful Connections with Those Around You We know many more people on a casual level then we do in a deeper, more meaningful way. We can distinguish between them as acquaintances versus friends. Think of concentric circles, with yourself in the center. The innermost circle contains your friends, and the next circle […]
Luther’s 95 theses detail his objection to the sale of indulgences As we consider Martin Luther’s ninety-five theses, it’s important to note that his initial objection centered on the abuse of indulgences, not indulgences themselves. He didn’t object to the concept, but merely how it had morphed into something he found unsupported by scripture. It’s […]
Beware the Risks of Clearing Your Mind Several years ago, my spiritual director recommended I consider centering prayer as a spiritual discipline. About the same time, a dear friend was exploring this technique as well. The goal of centering prayer is to connect us with God. It’s more about hearing from him then him hearing […]
Some of Martin Luther’s 95 Theses Counter the Practice of Buying Salvation Martin Luther objected to the abuse of indulgences; you can’t buy salvation. Though he mentioned the Church and the pope in some of his theses, he focused on the unbiblical excess of this one practice. Here’s the background: In a creative, though misguided, […]
Celebrate Reformation as an Ongoing Process If you investigate what the word deconstructionism means, you may encounter a disconnected understanding, which seems to vary depending on the context. At a basic level, to deconstruct means looking at what is and asking, “Why?” This question opens the door to dismantle status quo conventions and practices to […]
Discover What We Must Do to Be Saved A recurring theme in Jesus’s biographies is people asking him what they must do. What’s frustrating is Jesus doesn’t always give the same answer. Jesus tells different people to do different things. (For this discussion, we’ll understand “kingdom of God, “kingdom of heaven,” “eternal life,” “salvation,” and […]