As the party died down and people began to disperse, Jesus offered me a tour of the Father’s cabin. “Now, as you probably already know in my Father’s house there are many rooms,” he said tongue in cheek. I chuckled as he quoted himself again. “Yes, I’ve heard.” As I mentioned earlier, the cabin was … More Cabin 09: It Just Keeps Going
This is a timely repost from about 2011 when MainStreet was just getting launched. It was during another local election season where people were passionately campaigning for and against a school referendum. You can sense my urgency and deep burden for our local community. Regardless how we vote on November 8, may we vote Jesus leader of our lives … More Political Fervor & Christian Apathy
Tonight will be the third and final presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. It promises to be another 2 hours of childish mudslinging and below-the-belt personal attacks. This election cycle has become such a circus (or train wreck) that people are watching in record numbers. Young people are throwing viewing parties much like … More “I Approve this Message!”(1 Peter 1:22-2:3)
I’m sure you’re wondering what its like to go on a road trip and ride shot gun with Jesus. Several things stand out from that surreal ride to the Father’s Cabin. First, Jesus was in no hurry! We were being passed all the way there. “Why are people in such a hurry?” Jesus commented. “Even while heading … More Cabin 06: Scenic Overlooks & Antique Shops
After a short snooze, I awoke. Restless. Nervous. No sign of my family anywhere. I still had no sense of time, and my surroundings still looked altered in some inexplicable way. Familiar and yet strange. Hazy yet somehow clearer than ever before. I tossed and turned, trying to sleep. How could anyone sleep with the … More Cabin 04: Riding Shotgun
Here’s a timely repost from 2010. -JB It’s that time of year again. The leaves are turning colors and the trees are raining down acorns like rogue astroids in our backyard. They’re more plentiful this year than ever before at our home. I literally need to shovel off the deck every morning to avoid a … More Squirrel Spirituality
Join us as we continue our journey through 1 Peter verse by verse! Last post we explored 1:13-16 where Peter helps us set our hopes not on any earthly hope but on the salvation realities found in Christ. In a world driven about by knee-jerk emotionalism and untamed desires, we are called to be driven instead by minds … More Why Fear a God of Love? (1 Peter 1:17-19)
I was jolted out of a deep and dreamy sleep by my vibrating cell on my night stand. Light beamed through the crack in my window shade, a sharp focused ray of sunshine right in my face. Blinded and disoriented, I fumbled for my phone. As my eyes adjusted, the room looked somehow different. The … More Cabin 01: The Voice
Hope is a rare commodity these days. The fashions of the day are cynicism, anxiety and self-indulgence. With violence and discord stealing the headlines daily, we tend toward one of three different coping mechanisms (or a combination of the three): Our minds grow cynical in the midst of confusion and ideological impasses in the public discourse. … More Activate the Mind, Stoke the Fires of Hope (1 Peter 1:13-16)
Christianity Today (September ’16) featured the findings of a LifeWay Research survey that asked 2,000 people who do NOT attend church what would draw them to one. The results were revealing: Skye Jethani, on the Phil Vischer Podcast, insightfully asked the following question while discussing this survey: What does it say about our deepest concerns and highest … More A Non-Anxious Presence in an Anxious World
In Paul’s letter to Timothy, his young apprentice and “son in the faith,” Paul mentions 10 important things that Timothy knows full well about Paul’s own life and faith journey. So, I’m very excited to share a guide to help others have 10 spiritual legacy conversations based on 2 Timothy 1:5, 3:10, 14 (see below). How … More 10 Spiritual Legacy Conversations
Peter shares the purpose of his letter in 5:12 to encourage believers to “stand firm in the true grace of God.” The letter aims to ground us in a rock-solid faith that can withstand the trials that come our way, and to let God’s grace shape the way we interact with others as we live out … More Faith Proved Genuine (1 Peter 1:3-9)
Radical, unquestioning obedience to God is not in vogue in the church today. We’ve moved beyond that bossy God of the Old Testament, preferring the more gentle, easy-going Jesus who fits conveniently in our own hearts. We prefer t-shirts that say “Jesus is my homeboy” over ones that say “Jesus is my master.” Muslims approach … More Recovering Obedience at the Heart of Discipleship
Originally posted on Jeremy L. Berg:
Our first born is named Peter. This means, among other things, that we’ve been given many copies of Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit books. I can’t count how many times I’ve read the tale of that fluffy, nosey rabbit sneaking into Farmer McGregor’s garden only to steal a carrot and…
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved….” (Eph. 2:4-5). I have trouble finishing an entire piece of french silk or pecan pie. Not because I don’t like it enough. … More EPHESIANS 11: A Truth Too Rich to Swallow
It’s easy to get obsessed with numbers in our world. The more the merrier. The bigger the better. A packed room makes a fun party, and a poor turnout has us asking, “What’s wrong?” Make no mistake about it, numbers do matter. Especially when it concerns the spreading of the gospel and reaching people for … More Counting on God: Kingdom Mathematics
I wrote this blessing for an outstanding young Christian graduate and musician friend. But it is a good challenge to all. -JB Dear young Christian graduate, As you graduate from high school and prepare for the chapter of your life (“adulthood”), allow me to offer this blessing and challenge. From one musician to another, we … More A Graduate Blessing: Live A Love Song
Reposted from July 2012. -JB This July the City of Mound celebrates her centennial. It’s a time to look back and remember the people and places that have shaped our shared history. As a pastor called to start a church in Mound where I grew up, I’ve been fascinated by the beginnings of other local … More The Spiritual Legacy of the City of Mound
Tee off on the course of life and let the game of Golf guide you closer in your walk with God. In the “Golf & God” series Jeremy teaches you how to keep your faith on the fairways, avoid living out of bounds, make the most of life’s sand traps, stay out of the water, … More Golf & God: Spiritual Links to Life with God
SERIES INTRO: One divine melody permeates the grand narrative of redemptive history. In this series, Jeremy guides us through the main episodes of the biblical narrative with “ears to hear” the penetrating God-beat keeping everything in sync. Leave the dissonance of the world and join the Dance of the Trinity as we catch a glimpse … More FATHER’S SONG 1: The Dance of the Trinity
A few years back I was able to blog through the entire Letter to the Philippians, which was a long and arduous journey. But rich and rewarding too. I hope to do the same with the Letter to the Ephesians. Let me start with Klyne Snodgrass’s introductory words in his commentary on Ephesians to whet … More EPHESIANS 1: Introduction
Jeremy L. Berg 