Brimming

with promise,
the hopes
of if…

When Birth Pains Look Like Death Throes

When I read this verse today, I realized how a difference in perspective can change things:

Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains.

Mark 13:8 (NIV)

When earthquakes, wars, famines, and other disasters occur, we often lament the death and destruction. Our first response should absolutely be compassion. People are suffering, families are grieving, and we are called to mourn with those who mourn (Romans 12:15). But how often do we consider what these events point to?

What Did Jesus Say About Sex in Heaven?

In the twenty years or so that I’ve been a Christian, there’s one topic I’ve never heard a pastor bring up: that’s sex in heaven. I’ve not even heard other Christians bring it up. Yet people still ask about it online. Don’t you find that strange? Just between you and me—no one is looking over your shoulder to judge.

Must We Confess to One Another?

Before I was saved, popular culture primarily shaped my view of Christianity. In that culture, people confessed after sinning and then did it again. That perspective came mostly from watching mob movies with Catholic mobsters confessing to a priest. But I didn’t know the difference between Catholics, Protestants, and those guys in black suits knocking on doors and asking if you’ve met Jesus. No, not the MIB, those other guys.

Nevertheless, even after I was saved and began to learn about confession, I still found it odd that people would confess their sins to other people. There’s something invasive and unsettling about sharing the worst of myself with another person. I suppose this is why I’ve always thought James 5:16 was curious.