The Bible on Cursing
Well, finding broad commands to not curse was surprisingly more difficult than finding the same for not swearing. Whereas swearing was forbidden directly and clearly, cursing seemed to be handled more circumspectly. [...]
Archive
Your Face – Song of Songs 2:14
Song of Songs 2:14b KJV: Let me see thy countenance… NIV: show me your face… NASB: Let me see your form… There are two key words here that reveal a [...]
Midnight Friskies
We call them midnight friskies, which really sounds like a sexy breakfast cereal. Which is appropriate, I suppose, since it’s also a late night snack of choice… [...]
Gathering Myrrh – Song of Songs 5:1
Song of Songs 5:1b KJV: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; NIV: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice. NASB: I have gathered my myrrh along with my balsam. The Hebrew [...]
Evangelical Malaise – When Christian Culture Doesn’t Sit Right
When I truly dug into the Bible and the life of Jesus for myself, what I found often didn't align with what I'd been taught by Evangelical culture. [...]
Gifts of Gratitude – What Thanksgiving Really Means
We've turned the giving of thanks into a courtesy. We rarely give thanks anymore. We say "thank you" as readily as we say "please". But this isn't giving thanks; it's just saying thanks. [...]
Truth in Love at a Candlelight Service
Like so many believers around the world, we have an annual Christmas tradition of attending a candlelight service. You know the scene: singing lots of Christmas music, [...]
My Joseph Journey – Introduction
A Christian in Prison It’s a new year, so let’s start things out with a bang. I’m a felon. Yeah, that’s right. I committed a crime. And got caught. I [...]
Antlers Only
It’s only fair. I’ve added a bit of #irreverentholidays flair to our Christmas Eve traditions with having my wife get all dressed up, so on Christmas night, [...]
Unnatural Hair Colors
I’ll be the first to admit my wife has gorgeous hair. Its sweet cinnamon tresses tumble in a rich medley of cutesy curls, luxurious locks, and wandering waves. Each [...]
Korean Cucumbers — Rejecting the Unique Beauty in Us All
I have long been frustrated by how marketers are able to foster a cruel, seemingly counterintuitive combination of vanity and self-loathing that sells products. I hate it [...]
When I Tease My Wife
I love to tease my wife. A lot. Does that make me a sociopath? A sadist? Or just a guy? Or, perhaps, is there not much difference between the three? [...]
Healthy Truth #1 – Created to Be Me
Truth #1 – I was created to be me and no one else. Read Psalm 139:13-16 (NIV) and ponder your Creator and His creation: For you created my inmost being; you knit me [...]
“Drink Your Fill.” – Christian Sex Shouldn’t Be Boring
Sex is fun. Good sex is really fun. I don’t think these truths would come as a surprise to people with healthy sex lives. Between hormonal chemistry and nervous [...]
Mare – Song of Songs 1:9
Song of Songs 1:9 KJV: I have compared thee, O my love, / To a company of horses in Pharaoh’s chariots. NIV: I liken you, my darling, to a mare / among Pharaoh’s [...]
My Joseph Journey – The Prison Staff
I use the term prison staff to keep the label deliberately ambiguous. Most outsiders would simply call them “guards” collectively. Most insiders call them [...]
My Love with Your Delights
Song of Songs 7:6 KJV: How fair and pleasant art thou, O love, for delights! NIV: How beautiful you are and how pleasing, / my love, with your delights! NASB: How beautiful [...]
Building a Nation of Compromise
I’m talking about politics as much as religion in this series. At least on the surface. Feel free to move along to something more innocuous (like dwarf bunnies) if you [...]
Confronting Boundaries — Part 1
I recently wrote about my recognition that some boundaries aren’t as universally absolute as some Christians believe. Murder is wrong across the board, but can the same [...]
Pierced for Our Fashions
Apart from keeping all those small kiosks in malls busy, are there serious consequences to wearing such jewelry? Don't some people say the Bible says we're not supposed to pierce our bodies? [...]