The battles of life

Ah, simple boy! - well had it been for thee Had thy ambitious longing been confined To objects wisely placed beyond thy grasp. But years stole on – thy ardent spirit broke Its childish trammels, and with eager joy Explored the warlike annals of the past, And called up spirits of the mighty dead, To … Continue reading The battles of life

God and Mammon

No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.  (The words of Jesus, quoted in Matthew 6:24 and Luke 16:13.) Here is a stark warning that the pursuit of … Continue reading God and Mammon

Knowing our own wretchedness

I am quite well aware that I am an imperfect person. Such awareness means that I am a truly humble Christian, doesn’t it? Or am I mistaking complacency for humility? Perhaps I should come right out and call it lukewarmness. That is what God called it when He told me what He thought of me … Continue reading Knowing our own wretchedness

Living faith

It appears that many Muslims in Syria and Iraq are beginning to realize that the Wahabi branch of Islam is not their friend. As long as Wahabi-inspired terrorism seemed to be mainly directed at Jews, Christians, and Western civilization in general, they could cheer for supposed Islamic victories and overlook attacks against other Muslims. But … Continue reading Living faith

Strange Gospel

Approximately 300 years ago there arose a line of thought in pietistic Protestantism that God’s reign would progressively manifest itself through human action cooperating with God’s action. The belief that the gospel will gradually Christianize the world, bringing a reign of peace and harmony preceding the return of Christ, is known as postmillenialism. In 19th … Continue reading Strange Gospel

Dorothy Sayers on the origin of evil

The orthodox Christian position is . . . [that] the light, and the light only is primary; creation and time and darkness are secondary and begin together. When you come to consider the matter, it is strictly meaningless to say that darkness could precede light in a time process. Where there is no light, there … Continue reading Dorothy Sayers on the origin of evil

Pookie come home

Pookie wasn't here to greet me when I came home Tuesday evening after taking my wife to the airport. Pookie,a little flame point Siamese, showed up on our doorstep two years ago in fall, a feral kitten looking for a home. We didn't need a third cat, but pretty soon he had captured our affection … Continue reading Pookie come home