About a month ago, my husband and I were enjoying lunch at a Japanese restaurant when the thought occurred to us, “What if we switched roles?” We had really been dancing around the issue for some time. I have been staying at home with our boy since shortly after he was born, but have dreams of further academic study and continuing my church ministry work with kids. He had realized that he was craving more...
To continue my series on Ruth (after Part 1 and Part 2), I’ll be sharing some thoughts from chapter 3. Ruth 3 is the climax of the story. It’s when Ruth boldly goes to the threshing floor in the middle of the night and lays at the feet of Boaz. She takes a huge risk in doing this action as she she asks him to be her kinsman-redeemer and spread his cloak over her to...
This past week a few people alerted me to Dave Garner’s article on The Gospel Coalition website regarding Insider Movements (IM). While I strongly agree with Dr. Garner’s overarching assessment of IM, certain aspects of the essay needed further clarification and elaboration. It is my hope that this rejoinder can further the discussion on IM and possibly even prompt additional clarification from Dr. Garner. In his essay, Dr. Garner addresses five concerns. I will address...
I’m going to continue with thoughts from the study of Ruth, as I started in my last post. These past two weeks, I’ve been leading the study on Ruth 2. In this chapter, we are introduced to Boaz’s character, and we see him as being a worthy man, inquires about Ruth, meets her, and generously allows her to glean in his field. Throughout this story, we see God’s hesed – covenantal loving-kindness and faithfulness –...
For Lacan, the Real [or God] is that which breaks into our Imaginary and Symbolic constellations. The Real is a rupture. The Real cannot be imagined or symbolized, it does not occupy a place, and yet it takes place. The Real is a crack within our existing political, religious and cultural configurations, a resistance that prevents systems from claiming absolute knowledge. It is a destabilizing event that threatens to disrupt the balance maintained by our...
“A leader’s greatest fear is not something that might happen to us, is it something that might happen in us.” (John Ortberg, Willow Creek Leadership Summit 2007) Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in...
I’m currently studying the book of Ruth with a small group at my church. I have to honestly admit that after finishing my seminary degree last year, that I hadn’t really studied the Bible in-depth until we started studying this book together. Studying the Bible in community really does bring a freshness to the text, as I hear and engage with other people’s thoughts and questions, which also spur on my own inquiry and contemplation....
When I first came to the mission field I spoke with a teammate who told me about a man named Mamadou who I would meet shortly. He told me, “Mamadou is a Muslim background believer from Africa. And just so you know, he fasts more than he eats.” When my teammate relayed this information to me, I thought he was being facetious. Then I met Mamadou. Mamadou has been following Christ for over 30 years....
I recently faced a Dad-moment that I had been dreading for a while. It’s one of those times where your son faces his first major disappointment in life. So far my oldest son Ethan had led a somewhat charmed existence. He’s the one that: wins the giant Lego set in the church raffle, gets picked out of the crowd to lightsaber fight Darth Vader at Disneyland, wins the principals award for leadership at school, scores...
When my brother entered our house last Thursday night, he was impressed. Our house was clean. Not just tidy, but actually clean. We scrubbed, dusted, de-cluttered, de-catted, even steam-mopped. Yeah. That happened. Our preparation for his long-distance girlfriend’s arrival was intentional and meticulous. We spent several hours a day for three days cleaning as much of our house as we could so that she would feel comfortable and welcomed during her stay with us. This...
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