Category Archives: Uncategorized

Did Jesus die for our sins?

Posted on April 11, 2017 by jim

Did Jesus die for our sins? That’s a common question the week between Palm Sunday and Easter. Jesus took on the sins of the world, suffered and died, so that we might have eternal life. Right? This was the point … Continue reading →

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Spiritual refugees

Posted on April 6, 2017 by jim

Most of us are refugees in someway. Many are emotional or spiritual refugees, as distant and isolated from others as physical refugees are removed from homelands. We are separated from feeling our own pain, refugees rejecting our own emotions. Unaware … Continue reading →

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God’s power in weakness

Posted on March 31, 2017 by jim
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The Jesus you follow

Posted on March 30, 2017 by jim
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Family reunion 

Posted on March 25, 2017 by jim

Note: This isn’t the sort of thing I usually write on this site.  But, here it is. A day on Walton’s Mountain Thousands traveled to remote Schuyler, Virginia this weekend for the Waltons 45th Anniversary Reunion. From more than a … Continue reading →

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Resident Aliens

Posted on March 16, 2017 by jim

I met Will Willlimon recently. (His preaching technique was exactly what I was taught in seminary. But that’s another story.) In my first semester of seminary I read Resident Aliens: Life in the Christian Colony, written by Willimon and Stanley … Continue reading →

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Middle class Messiah

Posted on March 7, 2017 by jim

Recently I wrote: The Bible is clear. Jesus is with the losers, not the leaders. Jesus was an unemployed Palestinian. A Syrian refugee child. A Honduran roofer. Jesus is the dark-skinned woman cleaning your table, your hotel room, your office. … Continue reading →

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Shacking up

Posted on March 2, 2017 by jim

The Shack, the book and movie, is another stark example of the differences among modern Christians. Some Christians are quick to discredit and criticize a movie they’ve never seen about a book they’ve never read. They casually toss around words … Continue reading →

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A Prayer for Ash Wednesday

Posted on March 1, 2017 by jim

Originally posted on Will Willimon:
He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other…

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The long, dark tunnel of Lent

Posted on February 28, 2017 by jim

Originally posted on Faith on the Fringe:
Lent begins this week, with Ash Wednesday. One of the oldest traditions in the Church calendar, the season reminds us to: “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you will return.”           —…

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Posted on February 23, 2017 by jim
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Love

Posted on February 14, 2017 by jim

The message of Jesus is simple: Love God. Love others. That’s it. Everything else is secondary. No “buts.” No sinner’s prayer. No conversions. God loved us before we knew who God was. So we should love God, it’s only fair. … Continue reading →

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Baptist women in ministry

Posted on February 10, 2017 by jim

Despite the efforts of Southern Baptists and other fundamentalists to rewrite history and erase ordained women preachers from history, Baptist women have persisted. There have always been Baptist women preachers. Perhaps taking inspiration from examples in Paul’s letters, as well … Continue reading →

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Anne Frank

Posted on February 8, 2017 by jim

People are suffering. Seeking freedom and the American Dream. Searching for safety and security. Many American Christians have gotten so used to not seeing the poor at their church doors, that they can no longer see the refugees at our … Continue reading →

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