There was a time, not too long ago, when I knew how to thank God for suffering, but I had virtually no idea how to thank him for blessing. I knew how to praise him when he took stuff away but not when he gave. Inextricably related, I knew my deep unworthiness before God as Judge but had a hard time grasping the kindness of God as Father. How could I reconcile the truth that he demanded my …
Zeal: The Healthy Way to Compare Ourselves to Others
This is the third post in the series on Envy. Click here for Part One and Part Two. We can overcome envy by pursuing the virtue of zeal. Zeal appears similar to envy, but is a healthy way of comparing ourselves to others. Timothy Perrine and Kevin Timpe give an example of Christine and Cathy: Christine sees Cathy’s piety. Christine notices her own piety, and then sees that …
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Use Your Gifts
One of my lovely friends spoke at graduation. She gave a short, five-minute speech that cut to my heart. She spoke on the parable of the three servants. Each were given money from their master. Two of them boldly used their wealth to make more money, while the last one fearfully hid her wealth. When the master came back, he praised the first two servants and scolded the last one. They had been …
Spiritual Warfare is Everywhere
In the church, we know there’s a difference between ministry in our home culture and cross-cultural ministry. The former we just call “ministry” and the latter we usually call “missions.” I’m fine with this distinction. But I’ve recently noticed that the fundamentals behind ministry at home and ministry abroad are not all that different, though we often act like they are. Or at least I …
Envy is Absurd
This post is Part 2 out of four posts on Envy. To read the first post click here. All sin is absurd because it’s rebellion against God. But envy is particularly insane. Envy has a backwards and illogical nature; it despises good and delights in evil. Yet, envy doesn’t make us ignorant of good and evil. We don’t blindly believe vice is virtue. We still recognize the good that others possess, …
Gender Isn’t Everything
Does gender* affect everything? Is biological sex the determining factor of our personalities, temptations, interests, and paths in life? God made me female—and that is no small thing. And yet, it’s not everything. Katelyn Beaty, managing editor for Christianity Today, writes, If mainstream culture reduces femaleness to a construct, church culture loads femaleness with a ‘universal …