jmariegreen

When Church is Over

I suppose just about everyone can relate to the story of Jesus returning to his home town of Nazareth (Luke 4:14ff), but especially those who have been away from the place where they grew up for a significant amount of time. Just as it’s hard for us not to think of our hometown in theContinue reading “When Church is Over”

Staying Humble and Hungry

Most of us have heard of the John Godfrey Saxe poem, The Blind Men and the Elephant. It is based on a traditional Indian parable and tells of six blind men from Indostan who come across an elephant. As each touches a different part of the animal, they come to different conclusions about what theContinue reading “Staying Humble and Hungry”

Holding Out for a Hero

Joseph Campbell spent his entire life reading, writing, studying, and lecturing about mythology. For Campbell, mythology was much more than just stories from the Egyptians, Greeks, or Romans — it embraced historical figures as well as fictitious ones. Someone asked him one time why there were so many stories of heroes in mythology and CampbellContinue reading “Holding Out for a Hero”

We Must Have Wonder

Israel’s golden calf episode (Exodus 32), didn’t happen in a vacuum. They had been exposed to the wonders of God through the plagues, the deliverance at the Red Sea (while Pharaoh and his army were buried in the same waters), and God’s continual presence in the cloud and pillar of fire. But they soon forgotContinue reading “We Must Have Wonder”

Witnesses of God’s Glory

Mothers, I’d like to ask you a question. Think about when you first held your son or daughter in your arms for the first time. Now here’s the question: What kind of moment was that? It was a moment from God, wasn’t it? It was a moment delivered from Him to you, from His handsContinue reading “Witnesses of God’s Glory”

Your Texts and Your Bible

Imagine someone with access to all of the texts you have ever written. They’ve gathered them together and bound them into a book which they go around sharing with others. Only they rarely ever read a complete text — instead, they usually just quote a few sentences here and there. The quotations are accurate, butContinue reading “Your Texts and Your Bible”

Working Off a List

“For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.” (2 Peter 1:5-7) A list can be a real lifesaver, can’t it? In the midst ofContinue reading “Working Off a List”

Working With Pictures

You don’t have to read the Bible very long before you appreciate the fact that God speaks to us in pictures a good deal of the time. Pictorial speech is part of the language of Scripture in the same way that rain is part of the weather. It may rain more at certain times ofContinue reading “Working With Pictures”

Who Needs Your Music?

I watched The Shawshank Redemption recently. I’ve seen it a few times over the years, but it has probably been a couple of years since I last saw it. One of the tests of a picture’s greatness is how it ages over time. When you initially see a movie that impresses you, there are certainContinue reading “Who Needs Your Music?”

Rainy Nights and Dark Caves

Years ago, Brooke Benton recorded a song called, A Rainy Night in Georgia. As you might guess from the title, it was a melancholy tune that told the story of a man who had fallen on hard times. As the song began, it was late in the evening and he was “tryin’ to find aContinue reading “Rainy Nights and Dark Caves”