The synopsis of this scripture passage could be put in the form of a question. Do you want “stuff” or would you rather a long, happy, pleasant life full of wealth and honour?

A friend tells the story of his mother and aunt who ingeniously developed a way to navigate the stampede for Black Friday deals.

Photographers and film-makers know how crucial it is to focus on the right object to get the right picture. Unless done intentionally, blurred pictures do not communicate well. The Pharisees sent priests and temple helpers (Levites) to John the Baptist, thinking they needed a clearer picture about him, since the people took him to be a prophet. John’s answer was as cryptic as it was plain: “I am neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor even the prophet Moses spoke about. Instead, I am the voice preparing for the Lord’s coming.”

I enjoy a good book, written in such a way as to whet my appetite, making me eager to discover more and more and the story unfolds.

The future apostles Andrew, Simon Peter, Philip and Nathanael slowly discovered Jesus’ identity. They found out that Jesus was the Lamb of God, the Messiah, the one that Moses and the prophets wrote about.

Jesus changing water into wine is said to be a sign by which Jesus manifested his glory. As a result, the disciples believed in him. As we read this passage in John’s portrayal of Jesus, we are left wondering what exactly happened.

Temples. Holy places. Sacred spaces. We multiply shrines and worshipping places throughout the world in order to commune with the divine. Unfortunately, they often substitute for a true way to God.

“You must be born again.” This well-known saying, as any one-liner, needs a wider context to communicate its true meaning.

Nicodemus came to see Jesus by night—one of many temporal references in John, probably meant here as a subtle allusion to Nicodemus’ spiritual state.

I’ve learned through the years that not everybody can be trusted with my heart. Not everyone can handle my innermost thoughts. I have also learned, the hard way, that not everyone has a right to them. I have learned the wisdom of being quick to forgive, slow to trust and even slower to entrust.