Death is an enemy. The Christian who has lived his life at peace with God and with his fellow man does not experience death as an enemy, but the doorway into eternal happiness. But for those who he leaves behind death is an enemy. Someone who has been part of their very existence has been … Continue reading Funerals
Faith and life
I Owe the Lord a Morning Song
Amos Herr (1816-1897) lived on a Lancaster county, Pennsylvania farm that had been in the Herr family since 1710 when his ancestors fist arrived from Europe. In addition to being a farmer, he was a minister of the local Mennonite congregation. One wintry Sunday morning about 150 years ago, he awoke to a raging blizzard … Continue reading I Owe the Lord a Morning Song
Followership = Discipleship
Followership in the Christian sense is another word for discipleship. Do we need another word? If it helps us take another look at just what discipleship is, then I believe followership is a useful word. Jesus told His disciples, “All authority is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and make … Continue reading Followership = Discipleship
Followership
I have discovered a new word - followership - and I'm looking it over to discover what it can do. Sort of like acquiring a new tool and trying it out. It's really not a new word, online dictionaries say it is almost 100 years old. Yet it is not in any of the published … Continue reading Followership
Self-centred or God-centred?
We entered this world as helpless babies and we were totally self-centred. We had to be. We needed nourishment, we needed help when we hurt, we needed help when we were afraid, but we could not provide any of those things for ourselves. So we were vocal about our needs and our parents had to … Continue reading Self-centred or God-centred?
Without God, we don’t know who we are
If the things we see, hear, touch, taste and smell are the sum total of reality, then we are orphans cast adrift in a meaningless world. Life has no meaning, no purpose. People may try to construct their own meaning, but that leads to conflict with the meanings imagined by other people. We have been … Continue reading Without God, we don’t know who we are
Knit together in love
In Ephesians 4:16 and Colossians 2:19, the apostle Paul describes the church as a body. Christ is the head and nourishment flows through the body from one member to another so that all members are fed. The members are bound together by sinews that enable the body to function in a coordinated way according to … Continue reading Knit together in love
The still small voice
This phrase is so often repeated by Christians that we have come to think of it as the main point of the account of Elijah in the cave. Recently though, in studying 1 Kings chapter 19, it has become clear to me that this is a beginning, not a conclusion. It doesn't even appear that … Continue reading The still small voice
Be still
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. The more I see what … Continue reading Be still
Empathy vs Compassion
empathy noun. Psych. The power of identifying oneself mentally with (and fully comprehending) a person or object of contemplation. (Oxford) I was 15 when this word was first being introduced to the population of North America. It was touted as the best way to relate to the sufferings of others. I didn’t buy it then; … Continue reading Empathy vs Compassion
Flatlander Faith 