Religion, relationship, service and sin (pt.3)
“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” – James 1:27 I learned something interesting about puffins the other day. You know, puffins. Cute little birds with faces like French mimes. Apparently, puffins have a […]
Religion, relationship, service and sin (pt.2)
James has been called the most practical book in the Bible, and indeed, it is full of great specifics about how to properly live out this relationship we have with God. If worship is a lifestyle, then James is a how-to-guide for the type of lifestyle God desires for us. In this context, look at what he says “pure” religion is: “…to visit orphans and widows in their affliction…” Now, there are a couple of ways to look at this…
Religion, relationship, service and sin (pt.1)
We were created to worship God in the joy of a relationship with Him, but when “religion” becomes just a set of rules that we follow dogmatically in fear, then we aren’t really worshiping God the way He desires, are we? In fact, one could argue that we’re more likely worshiping the rules, rather than the One who gave them to us…
Midnight and witness
“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them” Acts 16:25 (ESV) Previously, we saw that for Paul, Silas, Peter and the other apostles in the New Testament, suffering is not something to lament over, but rather to rejoice in, and that the reason for […]
Midnight and communion
“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them” Acts 16:25 (ESV) I’m sitting at my kitchen table on a warm, humid summer morning. The sky outside is mildly overcast with a light breeze, and I keep thinking I should turn the air conditioner down […]
Who I Really Am
It’s 2:00am on the morning of American Idol auditions, and I am remembering who I really am, and I’m switching my audition song… again. This will be the third time I’ve changed my main “audition song” in the past 24 hours. Mostly I’ve been thinking about what is a good fit for my voice, what […]
Almost there…
Only 5 hours to go before American Idol auditions begin! I’m not really nervous, just wanting to do my part to make this whole experience all that god wants it to be. Not so long ago it would have been my biggest dream to be a STAR, but now, truthfully… my biggest dreams are to […]
Catch the Sunrise
“[God] has put eternity into the hearts of men.” – Ecc. 3:11
Stepping out of my door at 6:35am to run is usually more endurance training that art appreciation, but this morning was different. Like pulling the dust cover off of a forgotten painting and realizing that it’s a priceless Monet, the morning sky on this day was different. It was as if, on this morning, God had taken out His “good” brushes and paints and pulled out all the stops, spreading the sky with layer upon layer of rich cobalts and vivid hues of peach. Each cloud was textured and well-formed, so clearly defined, like thick strokes of fresh oil paint on burlap canvas.
Chosen
“For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world…” – Eph. 1:4 Tony Lucas was beaming. Not just smiling, not just grinning, absolutely BEAMING from ear to ear… the kind of smile that you get when you realize that you just got picked first in gym class, even though you’re not at […]
Just Beyond the Horizon Line
I can almost see it… but not quite. I can almost hear in the whispers of the wind, almost heart the sound of the new song, the new joy, the relieved sigh of peace… but not quite yet. This desert, this wasteland, it’s not that there isn’t some good here, or that I haven’t had […]
