Collecting Clutter I have moved a lot in my life. I do not recall some of my initial moving around when I was young. I was born in Iowa and we moved to Virginia shortly thereafter. Within a few years, when I was around four years old, we moved to California. I lived in the Bay Area and moved around more times than I can count or remember (mostly in Santa Clara and Campbell) until […]
Two weeks ago today I graduated with my PhD from the University of St Andrews. Being back in St Andrews was a wonderful experience. It was great to be able to show my parents around for the first time. As I was retracing my steps and hitting up all of my favorite places around town I was quite nostalgic and reflective about my time at St Andrews. Every other time that I left St Andrews […]
This summer for me has been one of language learning and travel to foreign countries — an experience that continues to bring home for me the difficulties involved with human communication. It is hard enough to complete a shopping transaction in a foreign language let alone present a lecture or tell someone how I am doing. Even back home, I feel like my language lets me down and I remain less than fully understood by […]
For a flock of sheep, the shepherd is an important figure. Without a leader, the sheep would live aimlessly, only doing what is necessary for survival. This is a wonderful reflection of church structure and the necessity for not just a strong leader; but more importantly, an even greater Shepherd to guide all processes. I am glad and blessed to know that the Lord’s provision is upon our church and can’t wait to see what […]
We believe what we sing, so it’s important to sing the most important doctrines of our faith. But I don’t think we give Jesus’ ascension the attention it deserves. Here is a beautiful hymn text that considers the Ascension biblically, theologically, and with implications for our lives, below with my comments: The author introduces us to the Ascended One with biblical allusions from the Psalms, most notably Psalm 24, from which Handel also helps us sing […]
[If you haven’t read Harry Potter, don’t read this post. Exit out of it and buy the first book here]. This week was the anniversary of when Harry Potter and his friends entered the department of Mysteries in the Ministry of Magic (in Order of the Phoenix). It is by far my favorite scene in the whole series (Order of the Phoenix, however, is not my favorite book!). For those who need a brief reminder: Harry thinks […]
“Probably not pastoral.” I scribbled this note in the margins of Book IX of Augustine’s On the Trinity. He was in the middle of some obscure-sounding argument that the Trinity makes sense of the biblical idea that “God is love.” Because the act of love, “involves three things… a person who loves, that which is loved, and love,” we can understand that the Father loves the Son with the love who is the Holy Spirit. These […]
1 John 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. What’s one defining characteristic the whole world has in common? We seem to have a rather unhealthy appetite for sinning in many awful, albeit often creative, ways. Maybe it was lying to our parents about having homework when we were younger, possibly being a bit too harsh with what we say to […]
Question of Origins What are the origins of Christian baptism? A quick perusal of the biblical texts might leave one perplexed as to the sudden appearance of baptism in the New Testament.1 Immediately and without explanation one is confronted with the appearance of John “the Baptist” and the practice of baptizing in water (Matt 3:1ff). Everyone except the reader (i.e., the author of the text itself, the people in the accounts, and perhaps even the […]
This past week has been tough. Orlando, Paris, Tel Aviv, and many others have been a constant source of tears, heartache and mourning for the global community I know for me, death has hit home in a different way. Last week, my Grandma passed away at 89 years old. She was an amazing woman who was first and foremost, a Christian. She loved Jesus in so many ways, and in every way she embodied a older […]
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