Concentrated Faith

Daily discipleship Consistency is key. A rare jewel, as they say. We know this is true. Nobody ever got in shape going to the gym once. Nobody ever lost weight following a diet for one day. Saving ten dollars is a different from saving ten dollars a day for 40 years. Jesus tells us, “If…

Paradoxical progress Sometimes faith looks like irrational optimism (e.g., “Despite the odds I believe things will get better”). Other times it looks like stoic resiliency (e.g., “Even if things get worse I believe I’ll be okay in the end”). Faith is a paradox. To have faith is to let go; to have faith is to…

When glory breaks in Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, “Do…

Sweet and bitter I love trail mix. When I worked at Walgreens in high school, I would use my employee discount to buy their brand of trail mix almost every day. I would have a whole bag of trail mix for breakfast during my senior year of high school… until I learned that the whole…

Slowly but surely It is human nature to become like that which we love. Married couples grow more and more alike as the years go by. Children act like their heroes and seek to emulate their behavior. But there can be a dark side to this truth as well. Those who love violence develop bloodlust…

Class is in session Few people in the Bible are more interesting (enigmatic?) than Pontius Pilate. He was the Roman governor of Judea during Jesus’ time. History tells us that Pilate was, in many ways, a standard Roman politician on the outskirts of the empire: corrupt, domineering, and pleasure-loving. Historians tell us he was well-known…