THE VIEW FROM UP HERE

hopes up

GET YOUR HOPES UP

I had hoped COVID would be over the day after the election like many people had told me. Everyone hoped their guy would win in a landslide. We have all been setting our hopes on the end of this year as if the calendar is...

SO NOW WHAT?

You hoped your guy would win. At least you wanted a clear outcome. The only thing clear from the election is that we are split down the middle. Your neighbor, your friend, your sister and your spouse see things differently than you. So now what...

unshakable ground

WHAT IS UNSHAKABLE?

This has been a year of shaking. A pandemic, protests and a divisive political season have upended our lives this year. The economy is a roller coaster ride. Guidance from experts is contradictory, confusing and constantly changing. It's hard to know what to believe, who to...

baptism

BAPTISM IS A PICTURE AND A PROMISE

Baptism is an outward picture of what God has done on the inside of you. Since the early days of the church, baptism has been the rite of passage for people to become followers of Jesus. Leaving our old lives behind, we have a fresh...

hear good news

WHO NEEDS TO HEAR GOOD NEWS?

This season has been brutal. Everyone is tired. Many are disillusioned. Lots are struggling. Some are giving up hope. Who do you know who needs to hear good news right now? Maybe it’s you.   You need to hear good news.   You may be one whose marriage is...

what credit is that to you

YOU WANT CREDIT FOR THAT?

“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you...

immeasurably more

IMMEASURABLY MORE

How much is immeasurably more?    The apostle Paul had just prayed for the Ephesian church to “be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (Eph. 3:19) His next line says that God is “able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or...

why worry

WHY DO YOU WORRY?

I worry because I’m smart.   Birds don’t worry, Jesus said. God provides for them. Flowers don’t worry. God dresses them. But come on Jesus, birds don’t have the mental capacity to imagine all the bad things that can happen. Flowers don’t have brains at all.   Humans worry...

do you see her?

DO YOU SEE THIS WOMAN?

It was a simple question Jesus asked his host. "Do you see this woman?" (Luke 7:44)   Simon wasn’t blind, but he didn’t see the woman. Not really. He let what he thought he knew about her get in the way of truly seeing her. Textbook prejudice.   The...

where is your faith?

WHERE IS YOUR FAITH?

Where is your faith?  It’s a good question. Why don’t you sit with it a minute? Jesus asked it. How would you answer?   Right here, under my seat! Or maybe I left it with my car keys. Obviously, the question is not about where you left...