“…we had hoped He was the one…” Luke 24:21Everybody’s theology is just one good crucifixion away from collapse.We don’t know much about these two men except one of their names and the town where they lived. We do know that, somewhere along the line, their spirituality, likely dry and dutiful, came alive. They met Jesus.Were they in earshot the day Jesus prayed a blessing over a basket of loaves an...  Read More

INTRODUCTIONThe following is a guide to help facilitate discussion. Feel free to add or subtract or change questions to fit the conversation, and pray for the Spirit to lead in all things.OPENShare a time when you experienced growth. What did you learn that was new and helpful? What did you let go of that seemed to not work for you anymore? What was that process like?HEADRead Psalm 46:10; Isaiah 5...  Read More

“The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27Jesus was a deconstructionist. He reorganized culture, reinterpreted scripture, and broke the rules. Nowhere is this more evident than in the stories of His behavior on the Sabbath. The Hebrews of Jesus' day had built their identity around rule-following. Under the direction of the Rabbis, the ten commandments slowly grew to 613, mo...  Read More

“[Jesus] is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.” Colossians 1:17Every once in a while, I field concerned questions about how much focus a faith community places on Jesus. It usually sounds something like, “They only preach Jesus there, right?” The implication is that too much emphasis on Jesus avoids the meatier subjects. It’s as if we understand that the immature probably need...  Read More

“…choose for yourselves this day… But as for me…” Joshua 24:15Let’s admit something. As we start reconstruction by grabbing a meaningful brick and looking for a foundational keystone, we are not equals in this conversation. I’m the writer, controlling which blocks we look at, the sequence, and priorities. You, the reader, decide if I’ve shared anything of value. We each have choices to make. But I...  Read More

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” Psalm 119:105I love this verse of scripture. But my reasons have changed over time. Initially, I read this as a promise of certainty and clarity. I considered this God’s way of saying that reading the Bible was a sure way of sorting out questions about right and wrong. God was saying His desire for me was to have absolute doctrinal clarity....  Read More