A Parable about Lazarus In the parable about the rich man and the beggar, Lazarus, Jesus shares an intriguing story. In it, both men die. Lazarus goes to heaven, but the rich man ends up in hell. Desperate to spare his family from the torment he is suffering, the rich man makes a request of […]
The Bible Is Chocked Full of Perplexing Stories That Are Hard to Understand One puzzling story in the Bible is when God tells Abraham to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. What loving father would kill his son? It might be asking someone to make the ultimate sacrifice. However, Abraham is intent on obeying God regardless […]
Discover How to Hear God’s Voice and Discern Spiritual Direction I’ve shared with you the arc of my faith journey, the spiritual transformations I’ve experienced so far in my life. I built upon that by relating my experiences in reading the Bible and praying for my children and future generations. Next, I decided to share […]
Reimagining Our Sunday Traditions from a New Testament Perspective Do you have a nagging feeling that something’s missing from your church experience? You’re not alone. And it’s time to discover a better way. Church-reform advocate and Bible scholar Peter DeHaan, PhD is a strong proponent of meaningful Christian community. In Jesus’s Broken Church, he uses […]
Today’s Church Isn’t Working. It’s Just That Most People Don’t Know It. Do you have a nagging feeling that something’s missing from your church experience? You’re not alone. It’s time to discover a better way. It’s typical that people who read the Bible do so through the lens of their experiences. Christians use the perspective […]
Consider Each Book’s Genre and Purpose When Reading the Bible Paul writes to his protégé Timothy that all Scripture comes from God. We can use it to teach, rebuke, correct, and train us in right living (2 Timothy 3:16). That is, everything in Scripture is useful. We must keep this in mind when reading the […]
A Personal Story of Growing in Faith and Action [This personal essay first appeared in The Transformation Project: A West Michigan Word Weavers Anthology.] A caterpillar turns into a butterfly; a tadpole becomes a frog. People can change too. We call it transformation. Here’s my story. 1. The Bible Matters We moved between fourth and […]
When God Wants to Give You a Second Chance Make Sure You’re Ready to Receive It You’re probably not familiar with Ahithophel in the Bible. His life serves as a lesson in how not to respond to disappointment. Though his name does show up a few times during the reign of King David, Ahithophel is […]
Discover More about Zephaniah A quick read of the beginning of the book of Zephaniah sounds a lot like Noah and the flood: “I will sweep away everything from the face of the earth,” declares the Lord. “I will sweep away both men and animals; I will sweep away the birds of the air and […]
Discover What the Scripture Says About Overcoming Death Last week we talked about the ten times the Bible records people raised from the dead. Now we’ll expand that thought and explore more Biblical references about people rising from the dead. Valley of Bones Ezekiel records a vision in which he sees the bones of a […]