Category: Christian Spirituality
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Not in Vain (Letters to a Samuel Generation)
It is the ultimate question of life. The one question we find ourselves asking again and again, no matter who we are or where we come from. The heart of our nation asked it as we watched the Twin Towers fall on our television screens. We ask it when the job we wanted so badly…
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Unity May Be Simpler Than We Think (Letters to a Samuel Generation)
Very few of the prayers of Jesus are recorded in the Bible. The longest of them is found in John 17, and takes up all twenty-six verses of that chapter. It seems to me that this address from Son to Father ought to be of immense importance to us. As it was important enough for…
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We Are the Miracles (Letters to a Samuel Generation)
I was born into a Christian home, and so many of the words of Jesus are familiar to me. They’re so familiar, in fact, that I often forget to listen to them. There’s a great temptation to take for granted that which is most precious, only because God has blessed us with an abundance of…
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Letters to a Samuel Generation: An Introduction
While I work hard to finish Seeds 2, I’ve hit “pause” on new Matthew commentary for this blog. Until I’m able to resume, I wanted to share from an older-but-still-oh-so-relevant work with you. For the next six weeks I’ll be posting from Letters to a Samuel Generation, a book about knowing the mind and heart of God. When I…
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We Are in the World, But Not Of It
“To the temporary residents of the dispersion,” Peter writes. What is, in my Bible, translated “dispersed” is more properly a noun: the dispersion, or the diaspora. The English Standard Version renders it “those who are elect exiles.” In this first-century world Peter was writing to Jewish communities planted throughout the Greek-speaking and Greek-encultured Roman Empire.…
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I Am Not Enough (And That’s Just Fine)
Recently I heard someone talking about this incredible truth he had discovered, that “I am enough.” It’s a popular idea right now, especially among the quasi-Eastern mindfulness crowd. The idea is that we are enough, in ourselves; we have everything we need; we are all we need. On the surface, this seems like clear nonsense.…
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A Christmas Letter
Almighty God, I don’t understand. What are You doing in a child’s body? Why are You putting Yourself in a dirty stable on a cold night? Why are You entrusting Your beautiful Son to the care of two confused and vulnerable human beings? The angels are singing tonight: the King has come! The Mighty God,…
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I Remember Christmas
Note: Refiner’s Fire will return in January 2020. In the meantime, I hope you’ll enjoy this reflection from my book Now for the Not-Yet: And Other Essays on Everyday Discipleship When I was small we lived in a northern part of Ontario, in Canada, and up there the snow falls early and thick on cold, clear nights…
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WDJD?: How Jesus Walked His Talk, and Why What He DID Matters
Note: Refiner’s Fire will return in January 2020. In the meantime, I hope you’ll enjoy this reflection from my book Still Praying in the Wilderness and Other Essays for the Spiritually Thirsty. My old journals line my top shelf, crammed in next to each other, a mishmash of colours and styles. Hardbound books, cheap scratch pads, date…
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The Other Christian Faith: On Trust, Works, and Putting Our Faith Where It Counts
Note: Refiner’s Fire is set to return in January 2020. In the meantime, I hope you’ll enjoy this reflection from my book Still Praying in the Wilderness and Other Essays for the Spiritually Thirsty. When I first fell in love with God, I thought the initial starry glow would never wear off. I cared so much about…