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Christian Living

Life’s Not Fair

What Are You Going to do About It? How often have you heard someone exclaim, “It’s not fair!”? This lament seems especially prevalent among children and teens. When this complaint is voiced to their parents, the typical response—be it sage or sadistic—is “Life’s not fair.” It’s true; life’s not fair—and I, for one, am glad. […]

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Bible Insights

Blessed are the Meek

Do you aspire to be meek? Not likely. Who would? When I think of meek, I think of spineless, compliant, and easily imposed upon. While that is a correct understanding of what it is to be meek, it is also the secondary definition for the word. The first definition for meek is patient, humble, gentle, […]

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Bible Insights

The Song of Songs

After my prior post about the number one hit that used the Bible for lyrics, you may thing that it is the song of all songs. Not so. There is another. You may have heard the book in the Bible, Song of Songs. Song of Songs can be thought of as a “biblical erotica,” albeit […]

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Bible Insights

A Frustrating Verse

There’s a verse in the Bible that frustrates me—not for what it says, but for what it doesn’t say. Here’s the background: Jesus dies and rises from the dead, but his followers are slow to catch on. Two of them are on a road trip and Jesus begins walking with them, but they don’t recognize […]

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Christian Living

More on the Spirituality of Margery Kempe

In addition to enjoying a dalliance with God, Margery Kempe’s intimate prayer time with the almighty God sometimes resulted in imagining herself participating in Biblical events. I do not know if this was a Holy Spirit inspired meditation or more akin to a vision. As one blessed with a vivid imagination, I can certainly understand […]

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Christian Living

Jesus Took the Hit For Us

I sat in a coffee shop with a new friend who had just begun to follow Jesus. As we talked about what that meant and how it intersected with life, he suddenly digressed, blurting out, “I don’t really get this whole deal about Jesus dying for my sins.” I knew the answer, but could I […]

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Bible Insights

The Error of the Sadducees

In The Error of the Sadducees and Pharisees, it was noted that the Sadducees’s error was taking away from the Bible, dismissing or ignoring certain sections. Paul notes that the Sadducees did not believe in resurrection, angels, and spirits, even though all are addressed in the Old Testament. In order to challenge or trick Jesus, […]

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Bible Insights

The Error of the Pharisees

In The Error of the Sadducees and Pharisees, it was noted that the Pharisees’ mistake was adding to the Bible and then esteeming their additions as more important. Jesus notes that they break God’s commands in order to keep their own, man-made traditions (that is, the religious rules they added to the Bible). He then […]

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Bible Insights

God Thinks Highly of Us

Are You Highly Esteemed? Do you ever wonder what God thinks of you? Unfortunately, I suspect that most people who consider such a question reach the wrong conclusion. But what if an angel were to show up and provide a supernatural perspective about you? It’s happened: An angel tells Daniel that he is “highly esteemed.” […]

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Bible Insights

A Curious Prayer by Daniel

The ninth chapter of Daniel records a curious prayer of Daniel. One thing that is strange is Daniel confesses things he never did. He personally accepts the errors of former generations, identifying with the wayward actions of his country. It is as if Daniel, though innocent in this regard, takes on himself the faults and […]