Like food, sexual activity is necessary for survival. But while food is needed for each individual, in the case of sex the need is for the species. Nobody, as they say, ever actually died of chastity. The understanding of many Christian centuries that chastity is actually better for you may seem at least foreign. In our society we equate sexuality with […]
Lent 2: Lenten Fasting and My Potato Chip Problem
Once upon a time, a marketing genius thought up a great slogan for Lay’s potato chips: Betcha can’t eat just one.” My waistline has testified to the truth of this for decades. They are right. I can’t. My conversation partner for Lent, the great Desert Father Evagrius Ponticus, had the same insight back in the […]
Lent: Taking Stock with Evagrius Ponticus
Lent is a season for self-examination. It is not mainly about feeling guilty. It is more like a chance to check the GPS (that might be “God Positioning System” if you like acronyms) and figure out exactly where you have come and where you still have to go. We often describe this life as a spiritual journey, […]
Join Me for My First Webinar! “A Prayer Life that Gives Life”
Thanks to the good folks at the Presbyterian Outlook I’ll be doing my first webinar on February 17! The title is “A Prayer Life that Gives Life: Renewing Faith and Ministry in Lent.” (Get the details and sign up here.) Prayer is CRUCIAL Lent is a time to renew our connection to God. Prayer is […]
The Good Samaritan: A Lenten Reflection on Heidelberg Catechism Q. 9
I can’t do it! You are not being fair.” Both as a parent and as a teacher I’ve inspired those accusations. Does our ability change our responsibility? If the rules tell me I have to do something, but my life says I just can’t do it, what happens? Of course I don’t ask people to […]