Like it or not, failure is an inevitable part of life. We face it at work, at home, and in ministry. Unfortunately, society doesn’t place a high degree of value on failure, so people are not often equipped to deal with it when it comes. But failure can be one… Read More

My friends are railing about politics on Facebook again. I’m exhausted. My social media feeds brim with news of violence, incivility, and decidedly un-neighborly behavior with no end in sight. And that’s just in the United States. Does it feel the same for you? Take a deep breath… Read More

Alasdair Wallace – Bible Advocacy Campaign Manager, Scottish Bible Society I can sometimes forget that when I’m reading the Bible: what I’m looking at is a translation. And not just a translation into English from the original languages of Hebrew and Greek, but a translation from the way… Read More

I have a particular fondness for old hymns of the faith. A good hymn allows us to sing Scripture, and when we sing Scripture, we’re interacting with the Bible, which shapes our choices and transforms our relationships. And since we are just a few days away from Christmas, I’d like… Read More

Every year at Christmas time my family looks forward to watching the “Service of Lessons and Carols” televised from King’s College in Cambridge, England. The singing is exhilarating, and so is the beautiful reading of the passages from Scripture that foretell and narrate the birth of Jesus. The readers’ rhythms… Read More

Where did all these feelings come from? All of my life I have been called an “emotional person.” But here is a fact: everyone is an “emotional person.” Emotions are natural and normal, and there are a variety of ways we can express them. Our emotions are created by God,… Read More

I have been thinking a lot about Jesus’s encounters with people at the dinner table. I wonder what it would be like to have him as a mealtime companion. What would he talk about? Would he walk the path of least resistance, trying his best not to bring up uncomfortable… Read More

The Bible tells us to rejoice. All the time and in everything. I spend my days juggling a toddler, freelance work, volunteer positions, a husband, friends, and a household. I cook meals that are too complex. I regularly overschedule my days. I am not continuously mindful of my very good… Read More

Early in my marriage, my wife used to ask me to “whisper a prayer” whenever a situation would arise. I thought her expression was quaint, maybe even lacking a degree of seriousness. However, it was not like her to take prayer lightly. In those early years of our marriage, prayer… Read More

The cross, the central symbol of the Christian faith, holds such power for believers that they are often willing to go to great lengths to display it. In a remote field in Lithuania tens of thousands of crosses of every imaginable size and design have been planted on a hill… Read More