In Lutheran churches, on each of the four Sundays preceding Christmas, an Advent candle is lit. The four candles have names: hope, love, joy, and peace[1]. But where is the Candle of Faith, I wonder? What is faith, I ask? Hebrews 11:1 comes to mind, and it reads: “Now faith is being sure of what we …
The Father of Faith threw his wife under the bus. Twice. Read More »
I sent these three questions to many friends and relatives. Question 1: Are you looking forward to Christmas? Question 2: Can you explain why? Question 3: What do you wish for this Christmas? I got 44 responses. The answers were interesting! Here’s what I learned. Question 1: Are you looking forward to Christmas? 25 persons …
I asked, you answered: Christmas is magic, panic, romantic … Read More »
I feel compelled to give the backstory of the sermon (49:33) I preached yesterday, and to reinforce and summarize it. John Calvin famously said that our hearts are idol-factories. We want God to give us peace, tranquillity, comfort. Therefore, we shape him so. We spiritualize texts. Take for example Psalm 23, the shepherd song. We …
I have a confession to make. When I awake, I immediately reach out for my mobile phone. I start by reading the WhatsApp chats and Google news feeds. Throughout the day I scroll up and down looking at the chats, the reactions, videos, YouTube, social media. The stuff I receive ranges from the newsworthy, banal, …
The Bible, in 2 Samuel 11, records a sordid incident which happened during the height of King David’s reign. What is this sordid incident? Was it a war? Was it an act of treason? No, actually it started off involving 2 individuals. And then it escalated into a national catastrophe. It was springtime and King …
A night of revelry turned into a nightmare in Itaewon, Seoul on Halloween 2022. The cause of death was asphyxiation, from the crowd crush. Simply put, the victims just couldn’t breathe. A normal adult breathes 12 to 20 times per minute[1]. Breathing is an activity which we do naturally, automatically, mostly without thinking. Yet in …
Humans are creatures of habit. After many years of doing the same worship style/practices every week, whether is it liturgical, open worship, led worship, or any other kind of worship, we’re bound to reach a point where we ask ourselves, “Why are we doing this?” or “What is the right way to do Sunday Worship”? …
Liturgical worship – my journey from copy-paste to practitioner Read More »
“But Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?” John 14:22, NIV That’s the question Judas (not Iscariot) asked Jesus at the last supper. On the face of it, the question seems innocent enough. But in fact, what Judas (not Iscariot, also called Thaddeus or Jude) was asking …
What can one vote do? Jesus answer to Judas (not Iscariot) Read More »
“I don’t belong here.” “No one understands me.” “Do I have a place that I can fit in?” At some point in our lives we may experience this feeling of disconnect with the people around us. These feelings may arise at the workplace, family, community, and even in church. We feel alienated, alone and we …
“Peace be with you” is the salutation we use to greet each other during our church services. But what does peace really mean? I know what peace feels like after digging into a sumptuous buffet and having a food coma. I also know when I don’t have peace, by just simply checking my blood pressure. …
