Ordinary Grace Blog
The Latest Posts
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The Simple Thing
“‘If he had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it?’” –2 Kings 5:13b One day during my seminary years, I went to see a movie called “Fanny and Alexander.” Usually, I would check out a review or act on the recommendation of someone who had seen a film before going
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Reminders from a Marathon
“Each one helps the other, saying to one another, ‘Take courage!’” –Isaiah 41:6 As part of a recent trip, Lori and I arrived one Sunday morning in Copenhagen. We took a train from the airport and upon arriving at the city’s Central Station, began to walk the few blocks to our hotel. It soon became
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When the Moment Comes
“When your children ask you in time to come, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ then you shall tell them..” –Joshua 4:6b-7a As a high school student, I studied French all four years. There was more than one teacher of that foreign language at Hardaway High, but Mr. Robinson was always my instructor. Thus,
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How We Witness
“He was a devout man who feared God …gave alms generously …and prayed constantly to God.” –Acts 10:2 The words above refer to a man named Cornelius. Luke tells us that he was a centurion, an officer in the Roman army. By implication it also meant he was a Gentile, a term that
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One Perfect Mom
“As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you.” –Isaiah 66:13 In May of 1986, I traveled to Phoenix, Arizona for the summer. That isn’t the time of year most people choose to visit since temperatures regularly top 110 degrees. I was in town to take part in a unit of Clinical Pastoral
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The Stranger
“Then one said, ‘I will surely return to you in due season, and your wife Sarah shall have a son.’” –Genesis 18:10 I firmly believe that God is always at work. The Bible makes clear that such activity can happen in dramatic ways, but I suspect it occurred then and now far more often in
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Returning Home
“Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” –Luke 8:38a The verse above comes from a day when Jesus healed a man described as having many demons. That transformation was so dramatic that neighbors who had known the man for years asked Jesus to leave. They didn’t understand what had occurred
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Telling the Story
“For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received.” –1 Corinthians 15:3a Year ago, a friend of mine met a young woman whom he liked immediately. It was one of those times when two people were instantly comfortable with each other and soon they began to spend every
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The Ones Who Inspire
“We want each of you to show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope to the very end.” –Hebrews 6:11 Without even counting two full-time vocational chapters, my working life has been quite diverse. During the summers between school years I bagged groceries and mowed grass, worked as a lifeguard
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When Patience Wins
“Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” –John 20:29 Before my final year of seminary, I worked as an intern at a church in Prince George, Virginia. One of my roles was to plan and oversee the congregation’s youth ministry. In