Posted in Life, Things I Don't Know on May 3rd, 2011
Tonight, while rocking little Philip to sleep and singing Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” to him, I whispered to him at least 10 times, “I love you SO MUCH!” And then I said to him, “I have no idea how Abraham or God did it.” Add it to the list of things I don’t know.
Posted in Faith, Religion, Scripture, Things I Don't Know on Mar 30th, 2010
So yesterday, I saw a license plate on the front of an old van that said “Repent Believe Obey.” These commands were stacked on top of each other as if to emphasize the importance of the order. But, in my opinion, this is getting the cart way before the horse. Repentance, which simply [...]
Posted in Faith, Religion, Theology, Things I Don't Know on Dec 21st, 2009
I’ve been thinking lately about the gospel, and the proclamation of it. After listening to the sermon series on the beatitudes from Mars Hill Bible Church, and after a conversation with one of my smartest friends (Doug Magee) I am thinking about the concept of the “open secret” of the gospel. Often times, the exclusivity [...]
Posted in Things I Don't Know on Nov 16th, 2009
Okay, I don’t wax political often, especially on this site which is supposed to be a happy place. But I find it hard to understand why many conservative voices are loudly decrying our president bowing in respect to Japan’s emperor. Many of the loudest voices would be the first to say that we are a [...]
Posted in Faith, Things I Don't Know on Oct 1st, 2009
Trust is one of those things that is great in theory. It sounds good in a sermon, prompting “Amens” from the congregation. It produces solid counsel toward others who need a dose of it in their situation. But trust is not something that is necessarily fun to acquire. For it requires us to go through [...]
Posted in Faith, Things I Don't Know on Sep 9th, 2009
I don’t want to live anymore with the nagging sense of how much I do not deserve the grace and mercy of God. Sure it’s true that I don’t deserve it. But it’s mine. Rather than meditating on how much I do not deserve it, I want to receive it with gratitude and walk in [...]
Posted in Faith, Life, Things I Don't Know on Aug 6th, 2009
Remember sitting in the guidance counselor’s office in high school and being asked this question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I know at my school, if you were even semi-academic, you were expected to move toward college. If you got A’s and B’s and said you wanted to be an auto [...]
Posted in Faith, Parables, Scripture, Things I Don't Know on Jul 10th, 2009
Once, there was a man who set out on a journey. He had a clear destination and a map with a planned path to arrive at his destination. He was traveling at a good clip when suddenly his map and the terrain before him seemed to contradict each other. And so he, in a fit of [...]
Posted in Things I Don't Know on May 14th, 2009
On April 23rd, a NASA satellite “detected the ten-second-long gamma-ray burst” that was from about 13 billion light years away. So approximately 13 billion years ago (give or take a few) this star exploded. And we just saw it in April. “We” meaning NASA. That’s crazy. I believe in the Biblical account of creation. I [...]
Posted in Faith, Prayer, Scripture, Things I Don't Know on May 1st, 2009
…what is it? I’ve been pondering that question a lot recently. Communion with my Redeemer is the first thing that comes to mind. Intimacy must be maintained through communication. If I stopped talking to Michelle, our relationship would wither. If I stopped telling her I loved her, she might begin to question if I do. [...]