Category: Bible Study

Advent Week 1 -The Promise of Joy

No matter how far in advance I begin preparing for Advent--and as church Communication Director, that can be much farther in advance than you'd think--the first Sunday of Advent always strikes me as a bit of a surprise. End-August through end-November are my professional busy season, reflecting on the past year as I compile the annual report and … Continue reading Advent Week 1 -The Promise of Joy

Out of Whack

Note: This is Part 3 in a Sunday series on the life of Joseph. Part 1: Messy Family Part 2: Resisting Temptation The other day a friend said, “It sounds like your life is out of whack.” Out of whack…sounds about right. My kids have this cool math toy, like a Rubik’s Cube but a … Continue reading Out of Whack

Jesus & Women

This morning Guy and I taught one of our church's adult classes on the topic of "Jesus & Women." We talked about 1st century Greek, Roman and Jewish culture in which women were powerless possessions of their male head-of-households. We looked at biblical examples of Jesus' interaction with women and saw how He respectfully engaged … Continue reading Jesus & Women

Resisting Temptation

My pastor-husband believes he witnessed our oldest son’s first sin. Teen was less than a year old, nine or ten months, and exercising his newly-gained crawling and climbing independence. Even though we had covers on all the electric outlets, we still wanted our babies to learn not to touch these at-their-level wall plates. Guy called … Continue reading Resisting Temptation

Messy Family

How would you describe your family? My description might go like this: Dramatic. Quirky and Creative. Outdoorsy and Eco-friendly. Open books. Welcoming. (I have to laugh as Teen adds: “Zookeepers!” With twelve pets and four people living in approximately 1600 square feet, our home often feels like a small zoo). Same question, different audience: How … Continue reading Messy Family

Romans

Honestly, when our pastor announced that we’d study Romans for fifteen weeks, spring straight through summer, I felt more apprehension than enthusiasm. Paul’s letter to the church in Rome contains some of my favorite verses in Scripture but, as a book, it has not been my favorite. Paul’s convoluted courtroom argument hurts my brain. So when … Continue reading Romans

Thankful (Maundy) Thursday

Maundy Thursday. Also known as Holy Thursday, Covenant Thursday, Great and Holy Thursday, Sheer Thursday, and Thursday of Mysteries (loving this last one - because isn't God's love SUCH a mystery?). Maundy Thursday is the day on which we commemorate Jesus' last supper with His disciples before He was betrayed (later that night), crucified (Good Friday), and … Continue reading Thankful (Maundy) Thursday

How Do We Pray?

As we walked the trail, my friends talked about dealing with stress: exercise, meditation, therapy, hypnosis… I said, “Or you could pray.” They expected that from me, but I didn’t expect their response: “Well, you know how to do that. We don’t know how to pray. Maybe you need to pray for us every morning.” … Continue reading How Do We Pray?

Don’t Give Up

Persistent defines Teen well, one of his stronger personality traits. We have snakes in our house because of Teen’s persistence. I said yes to geckos but NO to snakes. For years, Teen argued, researched, debated, cajoled, prayed – and believe me, we had long conversations about how God answers prayer: yes, no, or not now. … Continue reading Don’t Give Up

Good Gifts

As a high school senior, my favorite teacher taught Child Development, the most fun elective a baby-loving kid could take. Also our Senior Class Advisor, Teacher was wild and crazy in all the ways teens love: funny, with a huge laugh; refreshingly honest, telling us truths about which our parents only blushed; smart and engaging, she made … Continue reading Good Gifts