Some experiences enlighten us, others confound us. Life can surprise us with its generosity and its cruelty. Reality is richer that the simple stories we often construct. But it is here in the seeming contrasts, in the pleasant and the painful, in the promise of what could still be and in the devastating ends, in…
In our conversations we have realized that the question of pre-existence is important to many. We read texts such as Ephesians 1:4 “…He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world…” or Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you…” and wonder in what way were we known…
What does it mean to participate in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ? [Jesus] saying, “The Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.” Then he said to them all, “If any want to become…
Certainty or truth. Choose one. You cannot have both. These might seem like rather provocative statements but their purpose is to show the significant distinction between certainty and truth. There are many things we may be certain of. We may be certain of the facts of a situation. We may have moral and ethical principles…
By Mary-Anne Rabe We gathered around a table last night with friends and shared a simple meal of bread and wine, reminiscent of another twelve friends who sat around a table of communion. There are so many beautiful thoughts around the communion meal and how, when we consume the message it communicates, it becomes…
Fleshly thoughts… scary and intriguing for most who come from a Christian background. For many the word ‘flesh’ is almost synonymous with “sinful.” It is mainly through the interpretation of Paul’s writings, that flesh has come to symbolize uncontrolled passions and twisted desires. (Paul’s thoughts are obviously more nuanced than such a shallow reading would…
Are you open to something truly surprising or have past experiences conditioned you to expect nothing more than what you are already familiar with? Obviously we are meant to learn from our experiences, but the wisdom we gain from them should not close us to the possibilities of the future. It would be a…
Your greatest gift may lie yet undiscovered… This is a season in which both joy and loneliness can be amplified. Many will reconnect with families and friends to eat and laugh and relax. For others loneliness will be intensified. The very fact that so many families come together and celebrate magnifies their own disconnected…
To imagine God as some divine architect standing at the beginning of time with a blueprint in his hand, according to which all things will unfold, is to enter the boredom of a pre-determined universe and the slavery of a manipulated existence. But to recognize God as the possibility beyond the past and present,…
Occasionally the small wood fire crackled. One by one the stars began to wink. The top of the mountains caught the last diffused light, but darkness soon enveloped them as well. Above them the heavens awoke – an innumerable host lit the skies. The only light on earth was distant and dim – a farmhouse…