suffering is a facet of God’s glory, and if we are contemplating God’s glory so that we may be transformed into His likeness, we need to contemplate the whole thing—His suffering, too. If we consistently and insistently gloss over the suffering of God and skip right to the triumph, our understanding of God will eventually cease to be Christian, our “god” will become a triumphalist psychopath, and we will start to reflect that image instead.
God
Pastor
This morning I texted someone for the first time and identified myself as "Pastor Jenn." Which was weird.
Impossible Camels
Some people like to say that Jesus was talking about some teeny gate in Jerusalem which a camel could enter if all of the luggage with which it was loaded down was removed. There may be or have been such a gate, but I don't buy that that's what Jesus was talking about because frankly, I think He got kind of a kick out of making really difficult-to-take utterances and meaning them.
First World … Formation
Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial that has come upon you, as though something strange were happening to you... (1 Peter 4:12) Sometimes, if they seem open to the idea, I suggest to people that God doesn't ask us to go through the sorts of things He wasn't (isn't?) willing to go through Himself. He became a human being for that very purpose. And He…Read more First World … Formation
The Like of God
I was loved as a child. I know I was fortunate in this, and I think I even knew it then. I was loved by my family, I mean, which I suspect is the main thing, in childhood. I had a little more trouble at school, though, and somewhere along the way I picked up…Read more The Like of God
Going for the Black Belt
At the end of the day, spiritual disciplines are not about results. They are about relationship.
