Coming to God – Page 10 – A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green

The Best Thing About Church

The best thing about the church isn’t its cutting edge methodologies, its seeker sensitivities or its involvement in the latest, greatest social cause. It’s not its ministries, outreach, or benevolence. Neither is it Lord’s Suppers, sweet singing, or humble prayers. The best thing about the church isn’t its presence on social media, hospitality, or smallContinue reading “The Best Thing About Church”

Thanks

There’s power in words because they can communicate what’s happening in our hearts. “I love you,” is a phrase that comes to mind because it tells someone that they are a special person whom we hold dear. But there are lots of other words that convey important truths: peace, joy, and hope, are a few thatContinue reading “Thanks”

Taking Off Our Sandals

Tim Friede has been bitten by poisonous snakes over 200 times in 17 years. It hasn’t killed him because his body has somehow developed an immunity to snake venom. He demonstrated this recently while being interviewed, when he allowed a Black Mamba to bite him several times. Normally, a Mamba’s bite can be fatal inContinue reading “Taking Off Our Sandals”

Sin and the Cross (3)

In the first two pieces, we looked at sin as a relational act of rebellion against our Father that exists at the community level as well as a personal level. We’ll build on this as we look at sin at a more cosmic level. This is challenging because what we’re told in Scripture leaves usContinue reading “Sin and the Cross (3)”

Sin and the Cross (2)

In a previous piece it was suggested that the ultimate way to look at sin and understand it is in relational terms. Sin is pictured in many ways in the biblical witness: financially, as wages, legally, spoilage, etc. These are all helpful in unpacking certain aspects of sin and enabling us to understand it fromContinue reading “Sin and the Cross (2)”

Sin and the Cross (1)

How do we look at our children? If they’re in school, then we certainly have an academic perspective of them. We keep up with how they’re doing, what their assignments are, and what their proficiencies are as well as what challenges them. We develop realistic expectations and encourage them to reach certain goals. But inContinue reading “Sin and the Cross (1)”

Settling For Less

Not too long ago, I had a dream about Jesus. As is often the case with my dreams, the exact details are fuzzy but I vividly remember that He was hanging out with a small group of people which included me. Jesus fit right in—He looked like us and talked like we did. We wereContinue reading “Settling For Less”

Repentance and Coming to God

One of the ways that a faith that is full, alive, and vital will manifest itself is in what the Scripture refers to as repentance. (I’ve borrowed significantly from J.W. McGarvey on the first three points). 1. Repentance is more than being sorry about your sins. In 2 Corinthians 7, Paul is discussing an earlier letter he wrote to theContinue reading “Repentance and Coming to God”

Pain Management

When you mention this phrase, most of us think of a situation where someone is experiencing a significant amount of pain and discomfort. Pain management speaks to whatever approach they implement to deal with their condition. It might include medication, physical therapy, exercises, counseling, and other elements. It’s not uncommon to hear of people goingContinue reading “Pain Management”

Opening Our Eyes

Our faith is founded on wonder! The Story isn’t the Story without the creation of the cosmos, Noah’s ark, Isaac’s birth, the ten plagues, the Red Sea deliverance, the manna in the wilderness, the spectacle at Mt. Sinai when the law was given (and that’s just two books into the Bible!). These things and othersContinue reading “Opening Our Eyes”