In this week’s chapters from our companion book, The Shepherds Wife, Pheodora reflects on a lifelong struggle with low self-esteem. While she believes God takes care of important people and situations, she is not so sure that God has time to worry about a shepherd’s...
The deeds I do by my Father's authority speak on my behalf. John 10:25 Questions for Life Groups Read John 10:22-42. What things that Jesus did do you remember most? Why? Which ones validate that Jesus is the Son of God? Read this week’s articles titled Proof. Do...
One of life’s more disappointing moments is when we bite into something that looks scrumptious only to discover that the taste doesn’t match the presentation. Often, our disappointment may be based on prior experience and less on the merit of whatever we’re biting...
How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news. Isaiah 52:7 Questions for Life Groups Read Isaiah 52:7 and Luke 2:8-20. Imagine you’re one of the shepherds, how beautiful are your feet? Who would you want to tell? What would you say? Read this week's article...
I still remember the hours following the tragedy at the Boston Marathon in 2013. Many of us in Flint knew some of the runners and anxiously awaited the news that our colleagues were unharmed. Three people, including an eight-year-old boy, were killed, and hundreds...
Whenever you refused to help one of these least important ones, you refused to help Me. Matthew 25:31-46 Questions for Life Groups Read Matthew 25:31-46. Are you familiar with this teaching? What comes to mind as you read it? How does this teaching affect your...
Discernment is a twenty-five-cent word that implies a process that tries to determine God's preference regarding a particular situation in the pursuit of better decisions. In our tradition, discernment involves phrases like prayerful consideration and the Holy...
You are stained red with sin, but I will wash you as clean as snow. If you will only obey me, you will eat the good things the land produces. But if you defy me, you are doomed to die Isaiah 1:16-20 Questions for Life Groups Read Isaiah 1:1-20. Are there any parallels...
Cyndi and I are dealing with a rather large infestation of poison ivy. Both of us are allergic and risk serious side effects if we allow one of the plants to come in contact with our skin. However, we hope to put a fence through the middle of a large patch. My...
Cancel all the debts owed you whether money, grain, wine or olive oil. And give them back their fields, vineyards, olive groves, and houses. Nehemiah 5:1-13 Questions for Life Groups Read Nehemiah 5:1-13. Are you familiar with the stories found in Ezra and Nehemiah?...