No Resting Place – Lamentations 1:3
In order to have spiritual rest, we need to know our identity.
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Alone – Lamentations 1:2
Those who lament are experiencing a deep loneliness, even in a church context where they should find comfort. It is important that the community support hose in sorrow. Christians should confront their own weaknesses rather than judge others, being honest in lamentation as a pathway to healing and understanding.
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Deserted – Lamentations 1:1
Lamentation is important in order to be self-honest and honest with God, and not to pretend that things are better than they are or that we are better than we are.
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The Importance of Studying Together
Church and Sunday School are two different activities. Both can be valuable in one’s Christian life, but they do not substitute for one another. Sunday School has generally been in decline over the last few years, but I think there’s something even more important. Sunday School has too often been a light review of scriptures,…
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Mapping the Political Spectrum
My friend and Energion author Elgin Hushbeck and Larissa Munz (audiobook creator) recently spoke about the political spectrum and some of the difficulties with political labels in a two-part series on their podcast, Into the Desert. There are those who complain about labeling and wish to live in a world without labels. But communication requires…
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Flying Words
My mother used to quote: Boys flying kites haul in their white-winged birds,But you can’t do that when you’re flying words. The poem is titled “Gossip” and the author is Will Carleton Some kind caress—some little petting ways—Commenced a-staying in on rainy days(I did not see’t so clear then, I’ll allow;But I can trace it…
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Translating Puns
Dave Black’s intermediate Greek grammar, It’s Still Greek to Me, is scheduled to be translated into Arabic. One of the features of that grammar is some of the humorous headers that are English puns. Dave wonders how those will be handled in translation. Anyone have suggestions? (Only humorous suggestions need apply!) While I publish many…
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Geoffrey Lentz on Wesleyan Bible Study
On Thursday I had the privilege of interviewing Rev. Geoffrey Lentz, pastor of First United Methodist Church of Pensacola, regarding characteristics Bible study in the Wesleyan tradition. Geoffrey and I have known one another for many years, and authored a book, Learning and Living Scripture, which was published, well, a long time ago. As Geoffrey…
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Reading Hebrew Poetry in English (Brief Edition)
As my Sunday School class is studying Proverbs, I thought I’d provide them with a bit of an explanation of Hebrew poetry. If you’re someone who reads Hebrew and has done any study of Hebrew poetry, this is not for you. Don’t bother to tell me about all the things I’m leaving out. I already…
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Theodicy Again
Some time ago I did seven interviews on theodicy, or the problem of evil. One of the people I interviewed was Elgin Hushbeck. He and Larissa Munz now produce the Into the Desert podcast. They just released a video titled Christianity’s Biggest Problem, which I’ll embed below. The key value for this video is the…
