(REFLECTIONS ON EZEKIEL 30:1-26) Weapons can be used to protect, to defend, to deter, but they are also used for the offensive, to bring about destruction rather than to bring about peace. Perhaps our initial motivation to bear arms is to protect, but that can quickly be transformed to a way to control, elicit fear, […]
22–28 September 2019. Hosea 7 (click to read). The story of Hosea’s broken marriage with his cheating wife Gomer is a metaphor for God’s marriage relationship with his own unfaithful people. And it’s here in chapter 7 that we hear the husband’s sadness and confusion at the way this unfaithful wife has behaved. God is […]
Bonus Devotional for February 2017. Luke 23:26–56 (click to read). Today we read about one of the most terrible events in all history: the crucifixion of Jesus. We followed Jesus’s story with so much hope and expectation. We watched as God left the glory of heaven to come be here with us as a small […]
12–18 February 2017. Luke 21:1–19 (click to read). We spoke last week about the dangerous temptation to look for signs of the end of the world. We saw how it distracts us from the work God wants us to do now, today. And even though this type of “sign reading” was popular in Bible times […]
5–11 February 2017. Luke 17:20–37 (click to read). It’s hard to walk into a Christian bookstore these days and not find several books on the shelves about the so-called “end times”. The authors advertise how they are the only one who can really read the signs and predict the coming end of the world. They […]
29 January – 4 February 2017. Luke 13:1–17 (click to read). One day when I was walking in Taipei, I saw a church group on the street calling out to people, saying “Become a Christian, and all your troubles will disappear!” As I heard this, it made me really uncomfortable – because that’s not true at […]
15–21 January 2017. Luke 9:37–62 (click to read). In today’s business world, networking is important. People go to business dinners hoping to meet important people, to swap name cards, and build relationships with people who can help their businesses grow. But knowing so-called important people doesn’t just help our businesses, it also boosts our own […]
15–21 January 2017. Luke 6:27–49 (click to read). What does it mean to be like God? That’s a difficult question that many people have argued about all through history. For some, to be like God means having enormous power; it means bossing people around and telling them what to do. For some, to be like God […]
8–14 January 2017. Luke 3:21–38 (click to read). If we take a very simple look at the Christmas story, it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that the coming of Christ was somehow just part of God’s backup plan. We read through the Old Testament and look at the way that Abraham and […]
19–25 June 2016. 1 Samuel 17 (Click to read). Over and over in this world we see how the strong survive and succeed, and how they do this at the expense of the weak. Strong nations attack weaker nations; strong armies fly into other countries and randomly bomb and kill families and children; big companies use […]