Pursuing the Good Life

Have you ever noticed how easy it is to feel like you are stuck in a rat race? We dream about the house, car, vacation, clothes, and electronic devices that we see on TV or in the driveway next to ours. We work harder to obtain more, only to find out that we need to keep making more money in order to sustain what we already have and to strive for the next dream or goal that we have for our life.

In this passage of Scripture, the wisdom we are being taught is not that having material possessions is a bad thing, but that there is a better life to pursue.

Read More joy, poverty, peace, possessions @en

The Hinge of the Whole Story

“She gave birth to her firstborn, a son . . .” Such a simple description of an event that’s happened millions of times in this world. Except that this time it was unique. Earth changing.

Luke the historian frames the story in the political history of the day. Augustus, the adopted son of Julius Caesar and the Roman Emperor, had ordered a census. Joseph, in obedience to the Roman authorities, had gone back to his ancestral town to register. Augustus, who by an iron hand had brought peace to the whole empire, was in control.

Read More birth, poverty, history, kingdom

The Challenge Of Riches

This passage calls for us to reflect on our attitude toward our possessions and our riches. Whether we are rich or poor, we all have challenges.

If you don’t have enough, you depend on others to survive (whether by means of a social system or by friends and relatives). This takes humility. It’s not easy to ask for assistance. What’s more, it’s sometimes a challenge to remain honest, especially when there are pressing needs.

Read More contentment, Riches, honesty, poverty, pride

Just Because I Can

There are some things that we do “just because we can.” Freedom of choice is such a core value in our culture. We are libertarian in nature. We fervently believe that the only thing that should limit our choices is if our action adversely effects or hurts another person. But here is where I am pretty naïve – my actions almost always impact another person.

Read More poverty, generosity, integrity

Integrity and Contentment

This proverb is a prayer to the Lord that reveals certain aspects of our human nature. The author has two prayers that are intertwined. First of all, he prays for the moral fortitude to be a man of integrity, then he requests to be preserved from the circumstances that could jeopardize that moral integrity.