theology
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Daring to Speak of Heaven
The first of four reflections on the vision of heaven in Revelation 4-5 Continue reading
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The Kiln – March 7th, 2025
Some thoughts on the art of preaching as part of my regular newsletter… Continue reading
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Poems of the Incarnation – A Reading
I had a great time explaining my series of poems Poems of the Incarnation: John the Evangelist at Lena Free Church. If you’re interested, here’s a recording from the time. The poems themselves are forthcoming at Foreshadow, a Christian poetry magazine, but they were intended for my church as an advent devotional. Continue reading
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Harvest
Bronze, shorn, past-ripe, dustCovers faces, boots, barnsThe roadside sumac, lilac late blooming,Lungs and hearts as a sign of blessing.The scrabbled landscape sighsIn relief. The corn had weighedIt down, as each road tilted toward thePull of corn-stalk and hay bale. It had grownTo swallow car, road, farm, mind, As September waned and withered. And now I see the Continue reading
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Fig Tuesday
Today in the Christian calendar is “Fig Tuesday”, traditionally a day when we remember Jesus’ cursing of the fig tree (Matt 21:18-22). If you remember the story, Jesus was walking from Bethany and came across a fig tree. He was hungry, and hoped to find a fig to munch on, but instead he found nothing Continue reading
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The King Comes in Kindness
Isaiah 42 Justice is a loaded word. Get it on your side, and you’ve won the argument. In the Bible, the word “justice” is mis-pat, and it simply means judgment. It is the quality of kings and captains, fathers and friends, in which they judge issues, disputes, and even their daily life against the law of God. Continue reading
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Caterpillar’s Crawl
I felt joy and love departIn flurries of tangled emotionAnd frantic senses of my weary heartThat disguise themselves as devotion. A mastery I never had,A false birth-right I long pursued,That taught me: “you are nature’s bane;Time’s gate; decay’s despair;The master of your fate; All things rest in your care.” A stillness caught me, I looked Continue reading
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Some Thought Provoking Quotes
As I’ve been reflecting on this week’s topic (regarding the idea of creativity and the construction of the Tabernacle), I realized I just couldn’t give it the time it needed this week. So, to hold you over until next time, I thought I’d share some of the quotes that I wanted to add to the Continue reading
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Sex and “Purity Culture”
How One Youth Pastor Teaches Sexuality to Youth About two years ago, I met with most of the parents of our youth at our church. The reason I’d gathered them was because of our upcoming youth group series on sexuality, entitled God and My Sexuality. I knew there’d be questions, but I also knew the situation was Continue reading
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The Mystery of Thankfulness
To be thankful implies something about what someone hopes in. When one looks at the world today, there are many things which can be said to be wrong. Wars and rumors of wars, famines, earthquakes, drought, and anger abound. Terrorism has struck fear into Adam’s progeny throughout the globe. Friendships are strained by the vast Continue reading
Revival and Renewal 