Timshel

Laws are being crafted right now which will, if passed, demand the removal of children who have only known the United States as their home - forcing them to be relocated. Kids who are legally your neighbor today, will very soon be pulled out of their homes and placed on flights and buses to countries of which they have never consciously known. These children are currently legally here per actions of former President Obama which has not yet been rescinded. Today, they are allowed to be here. Tomorrow - they may not be. These kids are, in a very real way, some of the most vulnerable of our society. The Christian community must speak up now in order to craft a future where we won't be forced to break the law of the land in order to be obedient to the command of Christ to love our neighbor, specifically the lost, poor, broken and oppressed. There is still time, though it may be limited, to advocate for our legislators to speak out on behalf of these children. If we are unsucces...

It blows my mind when Christians both refuse to travel to the nations with the message of the gospel - AND - do everything in their power to keep those very same people from literally moving to their neighborhoods. I imagine the Father's heart breaking when, as His children in the USA fiscally and theologically grow to the point where we are thoroughly capable of bringing the Kingdom of God to the end of the earth - yet we are trending downwards. I can only imagine what He thinks as most of us don't even consider the potential of being used to take the goodness of his Kingdom to those living in darkness. We easily sing His praises on Sunday mornings, yet quickly reject any thought that He may be calling us to more, outside of our county or country lines. Then, perhaps in a desperate attempt to reach the lost with His love, he begins creating opportunities for those very same people to get on planes and boats and arrive at our shores - this land that we so quickly claim to h...

Today I finished "Letters and Papers from Prison" by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. For those who aren't familiar with Bonhoeffer, he was a Lutheran Theologian and pastor in Germany before and during Hitler's rule. He was arrested for his public opposition to the regime and eventually executed on April 9, 1945. This book is a compilation of his writings while imprisoned. I would definitely suggest this read to anyone who is interested - perhaps, it would be best as a follow up to "The Cost of Discipleship," "Ethics," and "Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy" by Eric Metaxas. I realize that yesterdays post could be read as quite harsh and perhaps difficult to read. I hope that today's brings encouragement, yet also furthers you along your path of obedience to where the Father is calling you. ***** Being in a season of transition (physically, occupationally, spiritually), I've been more acutely aware of common struggles that are ...

"I do not delight in the blood of bulls or of lambs, or of goats." Isaiah 1v11b "Cease to do evil, learn to do good;  seek justice, correct oppression;  bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause." -Isaiah 1v17 I've been writing a lot recently about our culture, specifically Christian culture, and how we are doing. At times these thoughts have crept into "real-life" conversations and have often lead to arguments - as I fear some people take these questions as accusations rather than conversation and invitation to help identify issues and mold our lives to better reflect the Kingdom of God. I'm hoping that this is a better platform to flesh out these thoughts and ideas - as well as to hopefully get insight from others.  This morning I read Isaiah 1-5 and the two verses above stood out to me. I love Isaiah, partly because of his writing style - and partly because of the heart and message within each chapter. He ...

This morning I am asking myself the question of where the line is drawn between vocal assent to an idea and a life that portrays true conviction of that idea. I've realized that much of life is held in conversation. Sometimes this "conversation" is had between an individual and Youtube or a book - other times it is had between two individuals. This is how ideas spread, convictions are developed - and theoretically, how change begins. Today however, I am not convinced that this truly impacts the live of the individual and, more broadly, history. I think back to people like Martin Luther King Jr. and question whether he ever asked these questions. Did he question whether it was okay for him to limit his pursuit of justice to the pulpit and pen? Or was he, from the beginning, yolked to the unquestionable understanding that action was the only logical next step to his ideas? And it's not just MLKJ - it's really anyone whose name we remember. In a way, I believe th...