People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I […]
Read More...If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 Years ago, when I was still driving, I was pulled over after going through a school zone. The officer asked me, “Did you know what your speed was?” I didn’t. […]
Read More...…if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. Isaiah 58:10 In the early days of Living Room* I spoke much about what I called other-centeredness – the opposite of self-centeredness. This […]
Read More...Graham Thornicroft, in his book Shunned: Discrimination against people with mental illness said this: “Once a person has been defined as mentally ill, his or her protests are often discredited or, even worse, labelled one more ‘symptom’ of his or her illness.” I have – for a very long time tried to reconcile with […]
Read More...Problems arise when accusations made by mistreated people with mental illness are discredited – when what they say is not believed. When they’re not treated as “real” human beings. They become fair game for those who hold a stigma. Those who might become cruel. Abusers think: “Why worry about how I treat them? If […]
Read More...Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus answered […]
Read More...“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven….Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Matthew 5:43-45, 48 Controlled by an inner […]
Read More...Those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. Romans 8:29 Just before he passed away, Narayan Vaman Tilak (1861-1919), a famous convert to Christianity in India, wrote the following to a missionary friend: “Cease […]
Read More...He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. Ecclesiastes 3:11 I like photographing flowers when they’re past their prime. To me they’re every bit as important as fresh flowers. If we […]
Read More...Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on […]
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