Poem: “The Graced Land”
Spring is not cruel but Heaven sent — Comes fresh and quiet as a mint. No poem makes the land seem new The way the rhododendra do.
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Faith and Works
The topic of this post is the extent to which a Christian, in addition to having faith, needs to worry about performing good works. Sure, maybe it’s presumptuous for me to opine on such a profound issue, but let me start by noting that it would be a mistake to agonize over reaching the right … [Read more…]
Just a Word on the Predestination versus Free Will Problem
This is another topic where it’s rather presumptuous for a nontheologian to weigh in at all, but let me reassure the reader that in my humble opinion this is also another issue where it’s a mistake to agonize over reaching a definitive resolution: Clearly there will never be such a resolution, and since we might … [Read more…]
“Fill in the Blanks” for Self-Improvement
This post is really not tied to Christianity, but it’s not inconsistent with it either, and God wants us all to be the best we can be, so I thought I’d share it. Here are five sentences for which you, gentle reader, should fill in the blanks as you try to figure out what you … [Read more…]
Three Challenges
There are three challenges that a Christian faces: (1) maintaining his faith in God; (2) figuring out what God wants us to do; and (3) doing it. Different people might find different challenges most difficult; we all may face any of them from time to time; and of course it’s not just the committed Christian … [Read more…]
What Triggers “Adoration”?
I like the categorization of prayer into A-C-T-S: that is, adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication. Every night, I run through that list and try to recall events of the day that fit into each box. I’ll admit, though, that the first category is the trickiest, especially since it’s very easy to say you adore God … [Read more…]
A Poem
Son His science project’s home is here; Its title is, “The Bean.” Heliotropically, ten plants veer, Then toward the window lean. Back to the desk my gaze then goes And finds a truth I’ll limn: His confirmation picture shows I’m leaning, too, toward him.
A Note on the God-Man Relationship
Westerners are so used to thinking about the God-man relationship in the Judeo-Christian way that we forget there are all kinds of other possibilities. A god might have a variety of different personalities, of varying degrees of sophistication; and the degree of concern he might have with the fate of humanity could vary widely, too … [Read more…]
What Should Be Our Attitude Toward God?
[Or: “What Would Jesus, a Real Man, Do?] How should we think of God as we go about our daily lives? The starting point that immediately suggests itself is that of a present father. He does not want us to be timid and cowering, but grateful and joyful, loving not only Him but also focused … [Read more…]
Rendering Unto Caesar What Is Caesar’s, and Unto God What Is God’s
Christianity must be chosen, not forced, if it is to save a soul. And one can have a strong faith for oneself and believe it to be wrong to force that faith onto someone else — both because it will not save the other person’s soul, and because each individual ought to respect the choices … [Read more…]