Character

One of the first sermon series I ever preached was on the life of Samson. I was new, at the time, to expository preaching, and I wanted to start with something manageable and familiar. Little did I know, a careful study of Judges 13-16 would radically alter my understanding of not just Samson, but...

While rereading Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol I stumbled across something I had forgotten. When Jacob Marley appeared to Scrooge his body was transparent, so that Scrooge could see not only the front of his long deceased partner’s waistcoat but the back of it too! But then this line appears, “...

Hannah Allen – Rescued from Serious Mental Struggles One of the most moving, honest, and encouraging stories of a battle with mental disturbances comes from a 17 th -century English Puritan, Hannah Allen, born around 1638 to pious parents. Her father, John Archer, a merchant, died when she was...

You and I spend a lot of time interacting with others. In conversations and meetings, texts and emails, and social media posts, we communicate a lot of words and ideas. And in our actions we communicate a lot too, especially about what’s important to us. But do we, in all of these interactions,...

If someone observed your life for a week, for what would they conclude you are living? Would they observe that you oppress others for power? Would they witness you being envious, foolish, a workaholic, or greedy? Would they say you pursue rugged individualism, or isolate yourself to gain power,...

In her rich fantasy novel, Piranesi, author Susanna Clarke has the main character, whose name is also the book’s title, keep a journal for each year he has been living in the Beautiful and Kind House. As described on the back cover, the rooms of the House “are infinite, its corridors endless, its...

Christmastime often gives believers more opportunities with family and friends to discuss the true wonder of the season. We can tell them that we need not wonder who God is and what He is like. He has condescended to us through both the living Word and the written Word. If we want to know the...

Anne Askew and Her Influence on the English Reformation On July 16, 1546, Anne Askew was burned at the stake after suffering terrible tortures – the only woman on record to have tortured in the Tower of London. What caused such a fury against her? Anne was born around 1521 to Sir William Askew and...

Katharina Schütz Zell – Church Mother of the Reformation Often described as “Church Mother,” Katharina Zell was one of the pillars of the Protestant Reformation and one of the most prolific women writers of her time. Unlike other well-known writers such as Katherine Parr, Marguerite of Navarre,...

In the 1984 film Amadeus , the fictional rivalry between Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri is explored. At multiple points, the great compositional skills of Mozart operate as the bane to Salieri’s existence. Salieri, confronted with the unimaginable skill of Mozart, is unable to contain...