God's Time: Lewis Bell's Funeral
Unexpected death is difficult to process. This time last week, Lewis was responding to a picture of my daughter’s birthday with an animated gif of Cinderella. Now, I stand here. I know I am not alone in this room. We share in the suddenness of it all. In the grand scheme of the world nothing has changed. And yet, in our little corner of things much has changed. For Charlotte, Vickie, Bettie and those closest to Lewis, everything has changed. Read more...
Mary, Mother of God, Most Blessed Human
The second iteration of the Women’s March garnered much attention this weekend. From outward appearances in the news and social media, version 2.0 of the Women’s March was even less unified than the inaugural event of 2017. Saturday’s gatherings across the nation involved feminists, Black Lives Matters, labor movements, immigration activists, Democrats, and a host of other concerns. Though headlines were careful to present female-only images of the events, candid photos on my social media feed show many men co-opting the movement as well. Read more...
God's Self Revelation
As the only source of life and being, God is in a constant state of giving to his creation. Because he wills it, humanity, the earth, and the cosmos are. In this very abstract sense, all things “visible and invisible” are a revelation of the God who creates and sustains them. The enterally triune God, however, is not chiefly a god of the abstract. He is a god of the particular. Read more...
The Doctrine of Sin
Apart from his will and his life-giving breath, nothing outside of God can exist. God made all of creation and wills its existence, movement, and life. Into this creation, God placed a special creature, human beings. Humans were made in God’s own image and outside of receiving his breath of life were uniquely equipped to reflect God’s life-giving back towards creation and the Creator himself. Humans, unlike other creatures, could have relationship with God. Read more...
No Regrets: Travel outside the Alltag
Since August I have been volunteering as the chaplain intern at a retirement community and nursing home in the Middle Tennessee area. Over the months, I’ve spoken and prayed with many people as they’ve reflected on and — sometimes — mourned their journey through time. Over and over again — often through tears — I’ve witnessed people who regretted allowing the Alltag1 of life stand in the way of their experiencing God’s creation in its fullness. Read more...
