paravanes:meditations

 (image from kingsteemministry.org) At the time of his dramatic initial encounter with Jesus Christ , the man who later became known as Paul the Apostle prayed. The prayer was short, earnest, and from the heart. The prayer was a question.  The prayer was immediately, clearly, and directly answered. What happens when we pray? Are we "centering" ourselves? Are we "calming our thoughts"? Are we engaging in mindful self-examination? No. In  real prayer, we are hearing from and responding to a supernatural person who knows and loves us, a person who longs to hear us open our hearts and our minds to the one who never turns away and never rejects. In prayer, we are reaching back to the one who reaches out to us. In the Bible passage referenced earlier, Paul's question is a response to Jesus Christ's question. The creature and the creator are interacting, sharing thoughts and ideas. Each understands the other. This is prayer. This real pray...

Lot's wife became a pillar of salt. Did this really happen, and what does it mean? Let's assume this did really happen, as we can trust the teaching of Scriptural truths. Certainly God doesn't need to use made up stories to instruct us. Truth is always a better teacher than fantasy. Fantasy has its place, but not when we are looking for basic truths and guidance for life. I have written elsewhere in this blog about the destruction of Sodom.  Lot's wife, unnamed here, physically left the boundaries of Sodom and it would seem, based on that fact, her safety is guaranteed and she will not experience the destruction overwhelming the city. It didn't happen that way. The others (her husband and daughters) with the woman we can call "Mrs. Lot" escaped immediate destruction. Other problems surfaced later, but they did not die with the population of Sodom. At the very least, these escapees had a chance for life. Why did Mrs. Lot experience the same destr...

"Do you think that I like to see wicked people die? says the Sovereign LORD. Of course not! I want them to turn from their wicked ways and live." --Ezekiel 18:38 (New Living Translation) There is an element in the Christian community that seems to enjoy the idea of the "wicked" suffering, dying, and receiving divine judgment and retribution. You may have seen or heard the broadcasts featuring preachers gleefully threatening lost souls with fire, brimstone, and dancing devils. Their theme seems to be "I'm so glad I'm not you! You've got it coming!!" That thinking is not aligned with God's thinking. There is a part of us that always wants goodness to prevail and carry the day. We want "badness" (however we define it) to fail. That makes sense.  We must, however, separate that wish from the desire to see people fail, experience doom and divine judgment, and remain forever separated from God. As we become more matu...

Photo credit: Jonathan Bachman/Reuters Does Christianity have any meaningful, realistic response to the violence that has swept across the United states during the most recent days? I have followed news reports and listened to responses from BLM, law enforcement leaders, candidates for political office, and citizens expressing themselves on social media and any location featuring a camera and a microphone. Yes, like many, I attended church services last Sunday. We prayed, sang, and listened to an inspiring and consoling sermon. We shared in Holy Communion. Then, we went home or to our next destination. Today, I read a blog post   about why one African-American woman is choosing to leave this country and live in South America. The post is about why she doesn't feel safe in the States. Her sense of vulnerability is not a recent development. Her story is compelling because the openness of her expression is not to be denied. As the saying goes, "You can...

Image is from christianteens.about.com "Go where the love is." -- Edie Brickell A friend posted a social media message stating she was tired of praying after watching news reports of yet another mass murder/terrorist attack. Most recently, it happened in Orlando, Florida, USA. Her frustration could have been tied to reports about San Bernadino, or Boston, or Paris, or Brussels, or many parts of Nigeria, or any number of places. I took from her message how exhausted she felt from absorbing and processing these news reports, how emotionally draining it became to watch video of sobbing family members and friends of the dead, the wounded, the missing. She was no longer moved by memes that read "Pray for ------." She was tired of learning about roundups of suspects because these roundups didn't seem to slow the tide of those willing to violently take themselves and others away from this world. I completely understand "go where the love is" ...

What does it actually mean to be "made in God's image"? Across the world, we look, act, and think very differently about almost every imaginable thing. Do we have any commonalities that transcend our differences? We all share free will, we all share the ability to love, we all share the ability-- in fact, the need--to connect with others and be in relationship with other humans. Recent studies have also suggested we are healthier and happier if we enjoy regular exposure to nature and beautiful natural settings. We feel deep connection to those we have loved, even if they are no longer living on the earth. We were created for love, beauty, relationship, and eternity. What happened? The Fall happened at some point early in human history. Although I don't believe the Bible teaches what some have called the "total depravity of mankind", something tragically and deeply damaging happened to humanity and we have not escaped the consequences of that damag...

Image from firstchatham.org One week after Easter celebrations in the western church is a good time to ask: what happens now? Part of what we celebrated for Easter was Jesus' experience of overcoming betrayal, intense physical and emotional pain, abandonment, and death. Having done all of this, he did not leave behind those who abandoned and left him (almost) alone to die. The amazing and wonderful thing he did was this: he returned to them, welcomed them back into friendship, showed them his victory over all of the negativity, and then commissioned them to give out his message of life. The life Jesus is offering us is not simply an "extended" or forever life. As spiritual beings made in the image of God, we will live somewhere forever. What's to be determined is where and how we will live and what we will do with this "forever" life. , When Jesus says he came that we will have life, and have it to the fullest , Jesus is offering us the ...