How Do We Know God?

How do we know who God is? After all, there are dozens of religions who all make competing claims about God’s nature. God has revealed themselves to us through God’s actions in human history. From the Exodus to Jesus himself, God shows themselves to be a liberator. God rescues us from injustice and oppression. God works for the flourishing of all of us!

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Who’s Thirsty?

What does it mean for us that the Holy Spirit is alive around and within us? On Pentecost, the birthday of the Church, we’re exploring one of Jesus’ stranger word pictures. It all has to do with an ancient festival, the Dead Sea and of course the book of Revelation. Hey… it’s our birthday, so we have to party!

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Good Code

Jesus prays that God will make us one the same way Jesus and the Father are one. What does this oneness look like? Think of us all like lines of computer code. We’re all different, and all have different roles to play. Oneness doesn’t mean uniformity; it means we’re all working together to execute God’s mission of liberation in our world!

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Good Trouble

What do we do when the right thing is wrong? Ever since Jesus was executed by Rome as a political criminal, Christians have often found our commitment to God’s Kingdom at odds with the nations and cultures in which we live. What are we supposed to do when we’re in way over our heads?

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Your Temple is a Body

Everyone knows you should follow Jesus so you can go to heaven when you die… and get a mansion, if we’re to believe the songs! But would you be surprised to know that Jesus never promises us mansions? And… it’s not even really about what happens when we die. No, when we crack Jesus’ code, we realize he’s promising something much more immediate – and much better!

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A Leader You Can Trust

How do we know what God is doing? With so many opinions in the world, it’s hard to know who to trust. But who would know better than… God? After his resurrection, Jesus appeared to a family on a road trip, and he showed them who he really is – who God really is. How can we see what they saw? How can we trust who God says God is?

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Peace and Fear

Misunderstandings cause a lot of friction in our lives. But bad communication isn’t always the culprit – sometimes we just don’t know how to use the right language. Could the same be true of faith, too? Is it possible that God is speaking to us in a way we can learn to hear, a way that’s accessible and transformative for humanity? What does that sound like?

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The Magic Number is 8

Easter is more than a celebration of that thing (Jesus coming back to life!) that happened that one time (2,000 years ago). It’s liberation – the beginning of a new reality that hides in plain sight. Jesus, the resurrected one, is the key to learning to discern this new reality. So just remember… if you want to find God hiding in plain sight, the magic number is 8.

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Just Play the Hits

We all bring expectations with us into relationships, and not having them met can be a source of real pain and conflict. Palm Sunday illustrates how Jesus refused to meet the expectations of anyone – not Rome, not the leaders in Jerusalem, not the pilgrims with whom he traveled. In fact, it was their refusal to see Jesus for who he is – and not who they wanted him to be – that led all these groups to conspire to crucify him. How can we learn from their failure to be very careful to align ourselves with Jesus’ agenda, and not the other way around?

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When God Fails Us

In our most honest moments, we recall times God has let us down. Prayers unanswered, illnesses unhealed, relationships not mended. We wonder, in those times, what the point of faith is. Why follow God if God does not (cannot?) keep us from harm, from grief. Jesus’ approach to Lazarus’ tomb reveals much about the God who does not leave us in our grief – even as we hope for something better.

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