JUNIA, THE WOMAN APOSTLE Did you know that there was a woman apostle?  There was, and today, May 15, is a day in the Christian calendar to honor her. During the Middle Ages, the Christian church began commemorating the lives of deceased Christians, both to honor them and be encouraged by such a “great cloud […]

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has been overwhelmingly sad and sobering. While the indiscriminate brutality and aggression of the Russian government is shocking, the indomitable spirit of the Ukrainian people, who will fight to the finish for their freedom and dignity, is inspiring. What are we in the West, watching from our cozy warm homes,

          “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem, and asked ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” (Matthew 2:1,2)            “This will be a

Do you have joy? When is the last time you experienced full-throttled, deep, peaceful joy? So much of life today robs us of joy, and that’s not right! Does it surprise you that God created us to have joy, and even more, to be “full of joy” (John 17:13). As C.S. Lewis said, joy is

Bimala, 17 years old, lives in Nepal. Like many women in Nepal, Bimala was lured into India by a man who promised her a future.  He promised to take her traveling to beautiful places in India and buy her expensive clothes. After luring her into India, however, it became clear he had  sinister plans. Thankfully,

In the last blog, we began to explore the interesting (and relevant) question of how we should understand the forceful conquest of the land of Canaan by the ancient Israelites as recorded in the Old Testament books of Joshua and Judges.  God was settling the new nation of Israel in Canaan, and this new nation

When you read parts of the Old Testament, and particularly the Israelite’s conquest of the land of Canaan, you might wonder how to reconcile this God with the God revealed in Jesus Christ. How should we understand the forceful conquest of the land of Canaan by the ancient Israelites as recorded in the books of

The angels gathered around to hear the conversation between the Father, Son and Spirit.  The word was that a special mission was about to take place, a mission that would affect every last particle of dust in the Creator’s far-flung universe.  What fantastic plan did He have up His celestial sleeve?  His face was pained.

Sunset.  Gusts sweep the horizon and gales swirl dust.  Leaves rustle; darkness creeps and captures the land. Night has fallen. A man is walking to a secret meeting. The man holds a Ph.D. in religion. He is known as the “Doctor.”  The Doctor has spent his life analyzing the enigmas of life: the mind, the

The New Testament book of 1 Peter is unique in that its author, Peter the disciple of Jesus, answers the 3  most pressing, important questions we have: What is life for? What do we do with suffering? How do we live? These questions are interrelated; the answers to each inform and guide the others.  Think