The lantern of Love shines a brilliance Untested, unknown, unraveling and clear, Shines before the children of God To show that darkness never owns them. There will be seasons when light is dim There will be times of suffering There will be moments of doubt and fear There will be angels, dark and dangerous. Yet,…
Tag: Prayer
The Violin-A Christmas Story
Place: New York City. A final Bible study before Christmas break. A group of young men who seem to really be tracking and growing, consistent…some of them straight off the streets, clawing their way up and out of some heavy stuff. Yet, Ace is missing, in fact for two weeks straight. The next day I…
Why?
Don’t be afraid to enter the ‘why?’ The great why question began with Jesus, when from the cross he asked God, “My God, my God, WHY have you forsaken me?” These why questions are too lofty to understand, and so we must sit and wait and contemplate, to see how the Lord will answer them. …
A Beggar, and the beauty of Advent
I was standing in line for coffee, when to my left appeared a homeless man. His stench overwhelmed a normally aromatic space. People fidgeted, and he went straight to the counter, leaned in and spoke with the manager. I overheard him ask for a cup of coffee. The manager shook her head, and the beggar…
A Prayer For Those With Cancer
Abba, Tear Catcher and Boo-Boo-Made-Better- can we talk? Your friend is sick. An anomaly was found in the glare of an ex-ray image. That signals only one thing, you are about to move through time, not into it, but through it, as eternity cannot cohabitate with minutes and hours. In that movement, please carry their…
Hard-Wired for Joy
God has hard-wired us for joy. This fruit of God’s Spirit sits ready to surprise and even overwhelm us, and is a sure sign of God’s presence. If we work at plumbing deeper depths of intimacy with God. If we fuel that ambition with love, with our hearts open to another shore. If we boldly…
What’s In Your Tank?
The movie Chariots of Fire was not primarily about Eric Liddell, the winsome missionary/sprinter who ran “to feel the pleasure of God.” Rather, it was about the other guy, a Jewish man, Harold Abrahams, fighting to sit on equal terms with the most noble among men. For Eric, love drove him to the finish line…
The Hands of God
*In Rembrandt’s painting of the prodigal son, he uses light to draw our eyes upon the hands of the old man who has placed them on the back of his youngest son. The prodigal has returned, and is kneeling in broken apology, waiting for punishment for an unspeakable crime. The younger son’s request for his…
The Weight of God’s Affection
I recently discovered a unique journal packed away in a box during our move to Austin. I had created it during a season I can only describe as a very dark night. On a sketch pad I had written words, then colored them in, creating a poster each night I spent with the Lord. One…
On Leaving and Coming Home
The Gospel invites us to walk out the will of God. We can do that because of Jesus’ obedience to the Father’s will, to be the perfect Lamb Sacrifice. His obedience categorically crushed our disobedience. Not that we won’t on occasion slip, stub a toe, stumble, or fall, as we try to stay in step….
When Gift And Gift Giver Collide
It happens often, as I sit with God, listen, pray, and write my heart out, that He gives me an outpouring of ideas, creative and poetic phrases, even songs. But it rarely stops there, because something inside of me urges me to give it all back to him. When I do, I feel like a…
Old Words To Young Hearts
Julian of Norwich, an anchoress and prophetic voice to her generation said, “We are Christ’s bliss.” Think for a moment how deeply loved you are, more than any text would suggest, or theology argues. With this bliss from the right hand of God, we labor without thought of whether we have enough to go the…
To Sir, with love 