What this means is that when we write to pursue an area of inquiry in obedient and affectionate response to the call of Christ, our writing is an act of worship that reveals both us and God in the process.Read more…
Thinking as Worship
Sometime in my junior year a faculty member spoke to our InterVarsity chapter. I remember distinctly one element of his talk, a quote in German that he attributed to Luther. It is a message that has stayed with me and a few years ago I set out to track down the origin of the quote. Read more…
Daniel: Notes for Bible Study Groups, Part 4
Why does a book of the Bible spend so much time on a king who isn’t following God? Check out Kathy Cooper’s study notes for some ideas. Read more…
Daniel: Notes for Bible Study Groups, Part 3
“There’s a difference between being functional in a culture and assimilating into that culture.” —Carl EllisRead more…
Summer Snapshot: The Secret of Solitude
Same setting yet different pace of life. A transition from being an undergraduate student to graduate student at the same university is a place of mixed feelings. As I’m utilizing my summer by starting a research project, the reality of large time commitment is becoming very tangible for me as I realize how quickly time escapes from me.Read more…
Book Review: In The Beginning, GOD, by Marva J. Dawn
Summary: A series of reflections on the texts of Genesis 1-3 focused not on questions of beginnings and the controversies that surround these chapters but on what they show us of God and how this may lead us into worship.Read more…
Book Response: Desiring the Kingdom, by James K. A. Smith
Smith’s “core claim . . . is that liturgies—whether ‘sacred’ or ‘secular’—shape and constitute our identities by forming our most fundamental desires and our most basic attunement to the world. . . . [i.e.,] liturgies make us certain kinds of people, and what defines us is what we love” (25)Read more…
Loving Your Spouse, Kids (And Anyone, Really) While You’re Still In School—Part 2
But all this begs the question: why would we put our thesis or research in God’s place anyway? Read more…
Why should Christians care about diverse worship?
Here at the Urbana conference, the worship has represented a cosmopolitan range of cultures, languages, and worship styles. . . . What motivates this focus on diversity?Read more…
The Earth is the Lord’s: Worship as Vocation (Scholar’s Compass)
I had an amazing week at the Lausanne Creation Care and the Gospel conference. Many of those present were involved in very active work to care for God’s creation, whether that meant working for a missions organization that helps communities improve agriculture and care for the environment by planting trees, or facilitating Christian academics to partner with local organizations in ecological research.Read more…
Advent Awakening: How The Story of the Wise Men Can Transform Our Worship Once Again (Scholar’s Compass)
As I sank down in my chair, I felt deeply frustrated. Another ‘through the bible in a year’ reading finished. My smartphone app congratulated me with a ‘great job,’ but it felt hollow and empty. I had read the words, but they weren’t transforming me.Read more…
James K.A. Smith on “Liturgical Discipleship”
Discipleship, becoming Christ-like, empowered by the Spirit to image God to the world is not magic. Nor is it merely intellectual. It’s a matter of re-forming our loves, re-narrativing our identities, re-habituating our virtue. And that is centered in the practices ofRead more…
Supporting Cast to the Christmas Story: The Magi
What is of interest to us is the fact that when they inquire of Herod they say, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him” (Matt 2:2). Read more…
Interview with Jennifer Wiseman, Part 2
Jennifer Wiseman is an astronomer who studies star forming regions of our galaxy using optical, radio, and infrared telescopes. Her career has involved oversight of national astronomical facilities as well as public science policy and discourse. In 1987 she co-discoveredRead more…
Why Should You Celebrate This King?
A point often overlooked when we talk about Lent is its celebratory nature. Throughout the week we remember our complete need for healing, but doing so makes our rejoicing all the more honest. During the week we are reminded thatRead more…
Repentance and Lent
As a fairly young Christian I thought of repentance for my sins in terms of being sorry for things I had done. I was really, sincerely sorry, yet kept doing the same things over and over again. You mayRead more…
How Did You Celebrate Easter?
How did you celebrate Easter yesterday? Do you see celebration as a spiritual discipline? Read more…
Week in Review: Last Minute Shopping Edition
What are you reading, watching, thinking about this week? Anything special with some time off or is there too much going on with the holiday? As usual, here’s a few which have been on our mind. Let us know yourRead more…
Your Mind Matters 4: Acting on Our Knowledge
John Stott wraps up Your Mind Matters with “Acting on Our Knowledge.” He begins by pointing out that we avoid the swing from anti-intellectualism to hyper-intellectualism, by remembering “just one thing: God never intends knowledge to be an end inRead more…