It was an unusual visit, albeit a divinely orchestrated one. The Jewish apostle Peter had been invited to the home of a Gentile soldier named Cornelius. Certainly Peter has his reservations....

“Sing to the LORD . . . Shout for joy to the LORD . . . Make music to the LORD . . . ” (NIV). The psalmist implores us to...

Driving to work one morning, I listened to a song by a musician I like. A friend had recommended him to me, and I thought about how I might not have...

A character in one of my favorite western novels, Lonesome Dove, is so fond of a Latin dictum that he emblazons it, albeit somewhat incorrectly, on a sign. The phrase seems...

Growing up, I heard many sermons that focused on specific behaviors: what I should and shouldn’t do, with a heavy bent toward the “shouldn’t.” Each Sunday the preacher delivered his dire...

Not long ago I drove past the building that was at one time the location of the public library in my hometown. Seeing the old building reminded me of the many...

Like most people, I want a smooth journey from points A to B; but that’s not always what I get. When I’m out hiking—one of my favorite activities—sometimes the path is...

When I enrolled in a graduate degree program to study theology, I went because a friend had suggested that I go and because I didn’t have any other concrete life plans...

During my freshman year in college, one of my teachers made a note in the margin of an essay I had written that said, “You write well.” I don’t think he...

Jesus’ prophetic statement of bringing other sheep into the fold can be viewed as John’s commissioning for the early church—a command to welcome and receive others into the life and ministry...