The context here is John 5:1-15. Verse five is what hit me the hardest: “One man was there who had been sick for 38 years.” You can be healed of a condition, but how do you recover from being trained into a mindset, or from having your mindset reinforced by your circumstances? Thirty-eight years. How … Continue reading Healing a Soul
Tag: inspiration
Press In
So, what if you find yourself in that place, maybe too busy, or just feeling off track? If you are struggling, if you don't feel loved, if you feel empty, if you feel broken, guilty, ashamed, or dirty: press in. Press in when you would rather withdraw. Press in with God. I’m not going to … Continue reading Press In
Purpose and Holiness
Recently, God was speaking to me about how holiness is connected with purpose. It's easy to think of holiness as it relates to things that are obvious sins, but even those sins can be thought of as not just wrong or bad, but as violations of, or deviations from, God's purpose for a person. When … Continue reading Purpose and Holiness
What You Already Have
I was talking with a friend of mine about seeking God in the context of a romantic relationship. In the course of that, he told some of his story about the woman who is now his wife. At some point he said, "we prayed together", and though he was not placing any special emphasis on … Continue reading What You Already Have
Finding Your Way
If I were to paraphrase Isaiah chapter 58 in one sentence, it would be something like, “You need to evaluate your practices and discern what is pointless versus what is actually conducive to the truth of God blossoming in your lives.” Roughly speaking, that is the context of the quote which came to mind recently … Continue reading Finding Your Way
A Path for Miracles
"A voice of one crying out: Prepare the way of the Lord in the wilderness; make a straight highway for our God in the desert. Every valley will be lifted up, and every mountain and hill will be leveled; the uneven ground will become smooth, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of … Continue reading A Path for Miracles
To Give Meaning
"In the beginning was the Word..." -John 1:1 "What makes us sick are those things we cannot see through..." - Alice Miller, 'The Drama of the Gifted Child' "Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life, and you will call it fate" - Carl Jung Recently, I was considering the mystery of … Continue reading To Give Meaning
I am the Pharisee
The topic of conversation was the process of head-knowledge becoming real at the heart-level. Then she asked me, “How do you know when that change has occurred?” Unprepared to answer that question, I briefly paused and then gave the first answer that came to mind: “When I no longer feel the compulsion to preach that … Continue reading I am the Pharisee
The Wrong Question
"What does the Bible say?" That is the wrong question. Looking for the divine, tradition misses the humanity, misses the incarnation of God's Spirit, misses the Spirit dwelling among us. So, the real question is, "What did God say to this person in that instance?" or "What did this person say to those people in … Continue reading The Wrong Question
Whoever is Not Against Us is For Us
This story may be found in Mark chapter 9. Jesus was told, "Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in Your name, and we tried to stop him because he wasn't following us." Jesus responded, "Don't stop him." As Jesus explained his point, one thing he said was "Whoever is not against us is for … Continue reading Whoever is Not Against Us is For Us
