What if a classic novel could help you see the message of the Bible more clearly? One unforgettable story by Charles Dickens opened my eyes to understand Jesus in a way I didn’t expect.
We all have things we know we should think about but keep putting off. Some of them don’t matter much in the long run, but others have lasting consequences. What if the thing you’re avoiding now is the most important of all?
A visit to a Japanese home taught me something surprising about heaven. Just as a host sets the rules for entering their house, God sets the terms for entering His kingdom. Jesus’ parable of the wedding feast reveals what keeps people out.
When tragedy strikes, we ask tough questions: Does God care? Why does suffering exist? The story of Adam and Eve in Genesis provides deep answers, revealing God's love, the deception of sin, and His ultimate plan to restore what was lost.
If you were to draw close to Jesus, how do you think He would change you? There was a time when I would have answered that question very differently. I figured He would rob my fun. I feared He would be controlling. I worried that He would come with guilt and pressure. Instead, what I came to experience was rest. One of the first verses of the Bible that I ever read was Jesus’ invitation to rest in Matthew 11:28-30.
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
At first, I didn’t understand how this promise worked or whether it was true. But it was one of those statements that was so bold that it was either false and put Jesus on the level of a con artist, or it was true and shattered everything I assumed about who Jesus really was. I’d like to share what I’ve come to experience of the truth of Jesus’ invitation.
Last time, we looked at some of the resources that are available to help busy parents encourage the faith of their children while they’re home from school with too much time on their hands. Pouring Scripture into your children gives them a foundation to begin thinking biblically about life and the world around them. But we also need to talk to them about the crisis itself. Chances are that some of your children may feel that COVID-19 is more of an annoyance than a crisis right now. Until you’re actually faced with the physical or economic pain of the pandemic, it may just feel like an inconvenience. Now is the time to prepare for when your family may feel that pain a little more personally. I was reflecting on how we talked with our own children about the earthquake and resulting nuclear meltdown in Japan when I came across an excellent article by Sandy Galea giving 7 Tips When Talking To Kids About Coronavirus. Let me share some of the things I learned from her article and illustrate how we saw them play out in what we experienced.
These are not easy days to be a parent of young children. Having kids home for summer holidays can be difficult enough to plan for, but the COVID-19 school closures were too sudden to allow for planning and there are no camps to send them to or programs to enrol them in. Educators are doing what they can to provide online learning options and, as a church, we’re working to launch an online children’s ministry for our families. But still, many parents see this time as an opportunity to invest in their children’s faith and discipleship and are looking for tools and resources to help. The best place to start is the Bible itself. There’s nothing that can replace reading the Bible to your children and helping them to read it for themselves. You want to make sure that your children’s Bibles are well worn. But as you do that, you may want to supplement the Bible reading. Let me share what I feel are some of the best free materials available right now to encourage your child’s spiritual growth.
Tim Challies recently chronicled, “How the Church Worshipped on One of the Most Unusual Sundays in Church History.” People all around the world were gathered in front of laptops and television screens as preachers spoke into cameras and phones. God’s Word was being proclaimed through YouTube, Facebook, and Zoom. It was a wonderful display of the flexibility and unstoppable power of the church. It was an important start. And if COVID-19 was going to be over in a week or two, that would probably be enough. But there’s more that’s needed if we’re going to ride out this pandemic over the long haul. Let me give some suggestions for how we can be the church in the midst of this global pandemic.
The actor, Jared Leto, recently emerged from a silent meditation camp only to learn that COVID-19 had become a global pandemic. After close to two weeks in a desert retreat, it was a shock for him to learn what had happened while he had been unplugged. With the constant barrage of troubling news reports and alarming developments, escaping to a desert hideaway may sound tempting. Meditation sounds like it may help deal with the uneasiness that many people are feeling. But does the Bible say anything about meditation? Is meditation Christian? And, if so, is it any different than Hindu and Buddhist forms of meditation?
I’ve enjoyed getting to know Michael and Nami of “Mike & Nami +.” They’re thoughtful Christians who have made their mark and their living on Instagram and YouTube. We invited them to speak recently at our church on the theme, “Journey From Online Addiction to Online Business.” They helped me to understand some of the dynamics involved in digital addiction and also some of the factors that can help in a person’s recovery. Their story is one of hope not only because they both radiate vitality and joy, but because they have seen such dramatic change in their lives.