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Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien declared, “The Incarnation of God is an infinitely greater thing than anything I would dare to write…” (italics in the original). But later on he tried. Here is what he wrote… “The Gospels contain a fairy-story, or a story of a larger kind which embraces all the essence of fairy stories.
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Come and behold Him, born the King of angels… “Here from this stable, here, from this Nazareth, this stony beach, this Jerusalem, this market place, this garden, this Praetorium, this Cross, this mountain, I announce it to you. I announce to you what is guessed at in all the phenomena of your world. You see
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(Back from Israel and Jordan—you gotta go and I’d love to take you.) So—what are you spending on others this Christmas? “And I will very gladly spend and be spent for your souls; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I am loved,” said the Apostle Paul. In the same way, go before God’s people this day
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It’s been a rough year for many, and as Thanksgiving arrives there are empty chairs at the feast and many bruised hearts that find it hard to sing. But God… “If through a broken heart God can bring His purposes to pass in the world, then thank Him for breaking your heart.” —Senior Chaplain John Akers God is
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“Without God, what does being “thankful” really mean? Does it have any meaning at all, even in the moment?” —Pastor Jack Abeelen This week we Americans will feast and give thanks. We don’t thank the earth for giving us food or life—our planet doesn’t give us anything on purpose. We don’t laude over a dead bird for its contribution to
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Tough day? Philosopher Simone Weil had many. She also saw God’s grace while dying of tuberculosis… “The extreme greatness of Christianity lies in the fact that it does not seek a supernatural cure for suffering, but a supernatural use of it.” It amazes me that even when God doesn’t ease our sufferings, He can still be glorified through them. That alone may be the
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It’s not the end of the world—yet. But with all that’s gone wrong on earth, how is it we’re still here? C.S. Lewis wondered that too… “Why is God landing in this enemy-occupied world in disguise and starting a sort of secret society to undermine the devil? Why is He not landing in force, invading it? Is it
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Sometimes Hollywood gets it right. Sometimes. In a quiet scene from “Chariots of Fire”, Scottish missionary Eric Liddell, to assuage his sister’s protests, explained why he would race in the Olympics before returning to his China ministry… “Jenny, Jenny, you’ve got to understand, I believe that God made me for a purpose—for China. But He also made me fast,
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True story? No clue. Good story? Definitely… Several years ago a preacher moved to Christchurch, New Zealand. Some weeks after he arrived, he had occasion to ride the bus from his home into the city. When he sat down, he discovered that the driver had accidentally given him a dollar too much change. As he
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It used to be that Hippies and Beatniks (remember them?) were America’s counter-culture… “As Christians [in America], our challenge is to go back as close as we can to the Gospel and truly be the church. Increasingly, we’re likely to be a counter-culture. As that happens, we will be the last great defenders of reason, truth and
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Jay McCarl 