Jesus is truth not because he's the correct answer to a math equation, but because, as he says in John 17, he fully reveals the Father to us. There is nothing hidden or obscured in him. When we look at Jesus, we see God. We can rely on him to accurately portray God's heart and character.
Read MoreSpiritual maturity is measured in part by a high level of uncertainty tolerance. I know we sometimes think that the more mature follower of Jesus is the one who has the unshakeable certainty about God. Unshakeable faith in God (because we know his loving character) is good. Unshakeable certainty about God (because we have him all figured out) is not.
Read MoreAlways being served by others is un-Christlike and unloving. However, avoiding being served by others is also un-Christlike and unloving. It may be hard for servant-hearted people to allow themselves to be served, but avoiding it robs another person the opportunity to obey Jesus by serving you.
Read MoreThese three Good Friday responses are crucial if we want to experience the Easter Sunday resurrection of life and hope. In fact, we may find that if we follow this path, we can experience life and hope while we're still in the valley, because even in the valley of suffering, God prepares a table for us to experience his goodness. If you flee that valley, you will miss that table.
Read MoreHave you ever had something you love become something you dread? Sometimes, joys which at one time fed and energized us (ministry, spiritual disciplines, relationships, etc) can become burdens that threaten to kill us.
When this happens, what should we do?
Read MoreMany of us, myself included, struggle with trusting ourselves to hear God correctly. "Will I hear him right?" "What if I miss his leading?" and so on.
However, let me challenge you with this thought: perhaps the root of not trusting ourselves to hear God is actually another way of not trusting God.
Read MoreWhen was the last time you asked or invited God to be with you as you approached a certain situation, conversation, or activity? How many times have you heard a preacher talk about "inviting Jesus into your heart"?
It's time to stop.
Read MoreI arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
of the Creator of creation…
When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, he didn't reply, "Just pray as you feel led." He said, "Pray like this..." and then gave them the Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6). He gave them words and a format.
There are times I am tongue-tied in prayer, when I cannot articulate the thought in my mind or the groaning in my heart. When I feel like this, sometimes I pray in tongues, and sometimes I read the prayers of the saints.
Read MoreThere are times God has commanded his followers to do very strange things, and none of it made sense at the time. God had a purpose for his instructions, but each one of his followers had to decide to trust God's instructions even when they didn't understand the purpose behind them.
Read MoreThere are many ways a small change in heart and action on our part can be used to incarnate Isaiah 61 in our world. In other words, there are many ways to pray for and work for beauty, justice, and peace around us.
To what change might God be inviting you?
Read MoreThe rise of Facebook and other social media means many of us are overloaded with acquaintances. We follow along and try to stay in touch with hundreds or thousands of people, and are affected by the events of their lives. Because we are overloaded and relationally drained, we may have many, many shallow friendships with acquaintances, but very few deep, meaningful relationships.
The result is crisis.
Read MoreI have never met a mature and gracious follower of Jesus that at some point in their journey did not deconstruct at least a little bit in some way. It may have been a major deconstruction (their entire faith construct) or a minor one (changing the way they think about one certain issue or belief), but they came to the point of realizing that they did not know all the right answers and we’re open to unlearning and changing.
Read MoreWe say things like, “Go ahead and question / struggle with church beliefs / deconstruct, as long as you end up back where you started.” We have a hard time allowing those questioning followers to land somewhere else on the faith continuum.
So the first thing that we as followers of Jesus need to understand in order to become the kind of church community for healthy deconstruction and reconstruction is the wideness of Christian faith.
Read MoreHave you heard of the term "deconstruction"? It has nothing to do with buildings or renovations, nor is it a synonym of "demolition." Rather, deconstruction is a term that refers to the breaking down of a philosophy, theology, or thought construct. The reason it's an important word to know is because it's happening all around us in the church, especially among Millennials and Gen Z.
It may even be happening to you.
Read MoreYoga is one of the fastest growing industries in North America, and every week, millions of men and women walk into yoga studios with the hopes of improving their health and wellbeing.
How is the church to respond? Why does The Wild Way use yoga as a tool for spiritual formation?
Read MoreHave you ever gone through a time of what you would call "revival"? What was that time like? How did you feel? How did God move? It is probably a wonderful memory of God's grace and faithfulness.
It's also a dangerous memory.
Read MoreTwo years into this pandemic, perhaps the time has come to turn our focus from the way life has faded away to rebuilding our lives, starting with our life with God. To do this we have to strip away all the pretty decorations we show others, look at our foundation with brutal honesty, and begin the long, hard work of rebuilding our relationship with God. What’s the first step?
Read MoreWhen it comes to issue of vaccines (or any other pandemic decision) the answer is not about what we fear more, or how we feel about being told what to do, or even whether we trust the science / government that has brought about current restrictions. Rather, the question is, "How can I best love God and best love the people around me as I go through this pandemic?"
Read MoreRemember, another term for holistic wellness is shalom. It is God's desire to see you well in every facet of life. So walking our path to being well and healthy in 2022 is one way we honour God as Lord of our lives, because we are moving toward his preferred future for us.
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