In Matthew 22, Jesus quotes from Exodus, “God said ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ Today, as we celebrate our Encore ministries, I have been thinking theologically about this human-centric naming of God. What are the lessons from “the God of our ancestors”? (Exodus 3) Who […]
Tag Archives: god
Jesus says, “Come unto me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest… learn from me” (Matthew 11) Psalm 42 lays open our inner struggles, longing, wrestling, questioning, and debating- those moments when we or those around us ask “where is our God?” If the Psalmist can […]
In January of 2001, I ran the Disney Marathon, the flattest marathon in the country. I try to mention that whenever I can. My cousin Tom and I clasped our hands as we crossed the finish line together. Perhaps, because the universe is not always fair, I finished a thousandth of a second ahead. A […]
On Tuesday, when we met for worship planning, Matt asked a routine question, “where are you going with the text?” I shared about the tension, the frustration, the blaming, the distress and anger in Psalm 13. I was excited to preach about voicing our anger in prayer! How long will you forget me, Lord? Forever?How […]
The CEB translates the first line in the Bible, “When God began to create…” I love the implications behind “When God began to create…” an affirmation that God “is still making all things new”. (2 Corinthians 5) When God began to create, God created light, land, sun, seas, sky, moon, stars, mountains, seeds, trees, bats, […]
Do you believe that God created your imagination? Do you believe that God gives you songs, dreams and inspiration? Do you believe that God speaks from the experiences of your life, as God spoke through the experiences of our spiritual ancestors like Abraham, Sara, Paul and Silas? Jesus invites us to our imaginations: Consider the […]
Last week, as soon as the 8:10am service ended, I raced across the chancel to speak to Phil, Anna, Mary Kay and Louis before they could get away. Did I run over to rejoice “with exceedingly great joy” that our campaign was going so well? (Matthew 2) Did I rush over to make a point […]
Growing up in Kentucky our family watched our Wildcats with a religious exuberance never displayed at church. If the game grew tighter we drew closer to the TV. If a player was shooting crucial free throws, my mom rubbed her folded hands together in a circular prayer-like motion and repeated “come on baby, come on… […]
There was no fast fashion, no jumbo pack of tube socks at the Dollar Tree, nor Tshirt vendors hawking Passover Festival 33AD hoodies. In the ancient world, everything was handmade and many people owned only what they were wearing and little more. The law told a lender they could not hold a cloak overnight as […]
Early in the morning Jesus returned to the Temple Mount. It is about a two mile walk from the Mount of Olives to the Temple, down a few hundred feet and then back up. Perhaps Jesus entered through the beautiful eastern or Golden Gate. I picture Jesus strolling through gardens or sitting up on an […]
pastorpaulpurdue 