Spiritual Presents

  The Bible is a window to the living God.  Each book, chapter and passage can be thought of as a beautiful stained glass illumination of the divine/ human relationship. The Bible is not God.  It is a lens through which to engage God.  The Holy Spirit inspires every letter that is written and read.  Yet each word is penned by a human hand.  God is alive in the text.  However, the moment we reduce God to words we are limiting the limitless.  Both of these realities can be true at the same time.  It takes inspired wisdom to rejoice in how the Holy Spirit teaches us through the beautiful windows of the Bible. God is always reaching out in love to us first.  The Bible was written, edited, expanded, and redacted by many different people over many centuries.  Thus, it is open to human misunderstanding and even error.  However, knowing this should not lead us to dismiss or discount what is written in Holy Scripture.  On the contr...

We the people …We have a problem.  Fool me once, shame on you.  Fool me twice, shame on me.  There is a time when each of us needs to grab a mirror and do some serious self-reflection and self-examination.  Generally speaking, if someone or something gets our blood boiling and so passionately riles us up, then it is actually an invitation for self growth.  We may or may not be correct in our assessment about that someone or something.  However, if that person or thing drives us so crazy that we go nuts when we even think about it, then it is a clear call for us to shine some light into our own darkness.  There are people on many sides of all spectrums taking advantage of we the people .  If we think this talk show host, that podcaster or a certain politician is going to solve all of our problems, then think again.  Generally speaking the focus is not on intelligent discussion and resolution but on manipulating you and me to keep watching....

God is present.  God is presence.  God is in all things, around all things, and beyond all things.  God is alive, awake, active and moving…all of the time.  God is actually the most real reality there is.  We just can not fully comprehend, contain, or categorize God.  We are limited beings.  God is not.  So we often miss the presence of a loving unlimited God always around us, because we desire to understand God in our limited capacity. Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council.  He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”  Jesus replied… “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” (John 3:1,2,8 NIV) Like many of us, Nicodemus wanted to ...

The End.  Many of us do not like endings.  It is hard to say goodbye.  We want to know what happens in the end, but we are not comfortable with things being over.  Is it a happy or not so happy ending?  What does the end even look like?  Do we move on to something else?  Or do we move into nothingness?  Is nothingness possible?  That doesn't sound like a whole lot of fun, so let's just keep going as we are, don't you think?  However, last I checked, going as we are is definitely not one of the options that we have.  Everything changes.  Nothing stays the same.  Why?! Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life…  And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations…  There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a ...

  “It’s the holidays, Let’s get wild!”  Generally this is not a message heard from a church pulpit.  Preachers usually choose other subjects.  Forgiveness, peace, trust, and reconciliation are topics often heard.  Moreover, most people do not associate going to church with “wildness.”  Church potlucks and picnics are meant to be fun but ideally don't go off the rails.  The choir may rattle the rafters at times but preferably refrain from getting too out of control.  Going nutty at church is hopefully only when people add some toppings to their ice cream.  On the contrary, getting "wild" for most, means going a little crazy.  Some like to bounce around the mosh pit at a concert.  Others want to scream their lungs out at a football game.  Wildness is also not associated with preparing for Christmas.  The holidays are supposed to be filled with peace, warmth and love.  People are to prepare for Christmas by hanging ligh...

Every afternoon on the fourth Thursday in November I find myself in the same place.  I sit in my lazy-boy chair at home filled with turkey and stuffing, watching football.  As I doze off into a deep sleep I wonder, "Is this what it means to be thankful?" Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.. (1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18 NIV) Giving thanks is one of the most important disciplines for our spiritual growth.  However, thankfulness is not just about saying thank you when good things come our way.  It is also not about avoiding unpleasantness or realizing that there is someone out there who has it worse.  Giving thanks is not just learning how to put on a happy face.  Thanksgiving is an avenue to learn more about what is truly important in life.  It is a way of living rather than a state of being.   I try to start my prayers every evening with at least five thanksgiv...