August / September 2007

Bystander: The Unclean Woman, by Joyce Catherwood. Jesus praised my faith and said, "Take heart, daughter, you are free from your suffering!"

Getting it back to front, by John Halford. Churches, like British front and backyards, seem to like to separate themselves with walls.

Still small voices, by Shirley Henderson. At this conference, the voice of God was in the still small voice of one woman who stood up unprepared and spoke from her heart.

Church History Corner: Billy Graham: Evangelist to the World, by Paul Kroll. It is estimated that some three million people have responded to Graham’s offer at the end of his campaign sermons to come forward and accept Christ.

Look Again: Was Jesus plan "B"? By C. Baxter Kruger. Jesus is the original plan, the alpha and the omega, the eternal Word of God, the good shepherd appointed before the creation of the world.

"Not Long Now..." By Kerry Gubb. I don’t want to die. I didn’t ask for this wretched cancer to eat away my life.

April / May 2007

Modern Slavery: the unheard cries, by Curtis May and Neil Earle. About 27 million people are trapped in abusive labor.

Bystander: Martha, by Joyce Catherwood. "I suppose I was jealous of Mary. I was sorry I had not understood what Mary did."

Where are you, Lord? by Michael Houghton. "I had blunt, direct words with God this morning. I was not happy with the way things were going."

WWJD? By Kerry W. Gubb. Do people even know what Jesus did?

Bible Study: Victory on the cross: a study of Colossians 2, by Michael Morrison. Jesus triumphed on the cross, and we share in his victory.

Hmm...

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February / March 2007

December 2006 / January 2007

I think God hates me! A cry for help that we just could not resist.

Ev-Angela's Sermon While we were talking about it, a little girl showed us how it is done. By Jeff Broadnax.

In Other Words: A Timely Gift By James Henderson

October/November 2006

August/September 2006

Letters to the editor  I really enjoy reading Christian Odyssey, but I was disappointed to be unable to read large sections of the magazine...

In other words: Don't just go - leave a legacy, by James Henderson. Have you ever heard of the phrase “a parting shot”? It is a term from archery and is a distortion of “a Parthian shot.”... 

Editorial: Praying for the peace of Jerusalem, by John Halford. When trouble strikes the Middle East, prophecy buffs and pundits start quivering. Is this the series of events that will lead to the return of Jesus Christ? Let’s hope they are right. But don’t get your hopes up. The prophecy buffs have never have been right before.

Heaven's above - or is it? By John Halford. Scientific discoveries have made us rethink our ideas about nearly everything on earth. Why not heaven, too? Our only reliable source of information is the Bible, and that is surprisingly vague about what comes next. But the Bible does promise that if we put our trust in God, we will receive many benefits in this life (along with challenges) and we can expect benefits to continue forever in a world to come.  

One pilgrim's progress: Just a nobody? By Mike Feazell. In Jesus’ day, kids were on the low end of the totem pole. But when the time came for someone to step forward with the seeds of one of Jesus’ greatest miracles, our Savior called on a “mere” kid, a “nobody.”  

My father's living will, by Lila Docken Bauman. When Dad died, he left us with much more than memories. Unlike his physical belongings, the bequests of his living will increase and multiply in the giving.

Bystander: The beautiful anointing, by Joyce Catherwood. ...I was rudely jerked back to reality by the voice of Judas, who indignantly complained about the waste of expensive perfume, insisting that I should have used the money instead to help the poor...

"Send us some children": A story of transformation, by John Peterson. When you are down to nothing, God may be up to something.
One gloomy Sunday morning in February 2003, I looked at my “congregation” —just three elderly folks and myself—and faced facts. This church was dying. “Lord God,” we prayed, “if we are going to survive, we must have children. Send us some children.” 

Perichor...what? A discussion with C. Baxter Kruger. God wants us to feel we are "one of the family."
...My son peers around the corner of the door and looks at me, and the next thing I know, he comes flying through the air and jumps on me. We start wrestling and horsing around and we end up on the floor. Then his buddy flies into us and all three of us are just like a wad of laughter.

Church history corner: Persecution, penance, and "the lapsed"  By Paul Kroll. Many Christians steadfastly refused to go along with Decius’ demands and confessed Christ even under brutal torture. They were given the honorary title “Confessor” by the church. However, multitudes of Christians did sacrifice to the gods and the emperor.... But they eventually wanted to be readmitted to the church.

Unmasking male depression, by Archibald Hart. The symptoms are different but the effects are just as devastating. ...She can accurately describe the classic symptoms of male depression: “He becomes irritable, short-tempered, withdraws into a shell, refuses to talk. When he responds he overreacts—whether it be to the news, his dissatisfaction with his meal or the kid’s noise.”

A cup of cold water, by Sheila Graham. Why Good Samaritans need to be careful. 
“Lord,” she prayed, her heart aching, “Forgive me and, please, give me another chance to give a thirsty person some water.”

I've been reading: A Generous Orthodoxy, by Brian McLaren; review by Fraser Henderson. Some Christians might be willing to listen, to consider the culture we find ourselves lost in and, rather than seeking a way out, engage and love a broken world in which God is building his kingdom.

Bible Study: Making grace look good - a study of Titus 2, by Michael Morrison.   Paul is advising believers to perform their social roles well—he is not necessarily saying that those social roles are good. But we can with some modification apply what Paul says to situations today.

Lectionary readings for August to October 2006. 

Hmm...  When one door of happiness closes another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.

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Editorial: An E-ticket ride: First was a long slow haul up an incline, and a brief moment to admire the view and catch a glimpse of less adventurous friends far below. Then you hurtled down towards what looked like a sheer drop. "No way," you’d think. "We’re going to come off." But as the bobsled careened around the track you realized that the ride only looked impossible. If you stayed with it you’d be okay. In some ways a journey from legalism to grace is like that. You see, a legalistic approach to your relationship with God is "safe," like an A ticket ride. The pace is slow and the rules seem clear-cut. By John Halford.

Will it play in Peoria? This midsized midwestern city is considered an ideal test market for the USA. They say that if you want to know if a new idea or product will be successful, find out if it "plays in Peoria." So what two visionary pastors are attempting to do here is worth watching. Cliff Parks is the pastor of a congregation that is mainly Anglo-American. Tony Pierce pastors a congregation that is mostly black.

Going on a Guilt Trip? Guilt trips. They’re all the rage, you know. Everybody’s taking them. No date restrictions. Availability unlimited. People of all ages are welcome. But there are a few hidden costs. Among other things, guilt trips cost you your stomach lining, your sleep, your sense of humor, your ability to have fun, your productivity and any realistic sense of who you really are and what your purpose really is. By Mike Feazell.

Turn-key or makeover? If you are thinking about finding a new church home, you might want to consider doing your shopping with a real-estate tip in mind. The "perfect" church might not be the best spiritual investment.  In the real estate market, a house that is in tip-top shape is often referred to as a "turn-key" house. If you buy the home, it is in nearly perfect condition. By Shane Bazer.

A new look at The Good Samaritan: The Good Samaritan is one of Jesus’ most popular parables. We preachers often use it to encourage people to be unselfish and to be proactive in serving others. But there is more to the story than that. Jesus was doing far more than putting hypocritical religious leaders in their place. Let’s take a closer look. By Joseph Tkach.

Majors & minors: Family night is a real learning experience in our household. What I learn during our meal continually amazes me, yet validates my sense that children want parents to care about what the children care about in their developing world. It is comforting for me to realize that the stages of emerging adolescent independence are fairly predictable, and as parents we can look for two common signposts... By Rose Huff.

Mary Magdalene: I probably have more reasons than anyone to respond with fierce loyalty to our Lord. He lifted me out of wretched conditions, conditions so desperate they are hard to describe. I lived in terrifying darkness, plagued with despair and depression. Often I didn’t know who I was, where I was—I had lost complete control over my life. By Joyce Catherwood.

I've been reading... Pocket History of Theology: I know, theology is a boring subject. But, wait! Don’t turn the page. Theology is an exciting subject because it’s central to our Christian lives, and so is knowing something about the history of the church, our heritage. Studying historical theology also connects us to two millennia of history and the ancestral people of our church. By Paul Kroll.

The faith of an atheist -- a discussion with Alister McGrath: I was a very aggressive atheist as a schoolboy. I believed that atheism was the way of the future, and that religion was an evil relic of the past. So nowadays, when I read books expounding atheism, I can say: "that was me, once." There were several things that made me change my mind. I began to discover while still at school that the sciences cannot disprove God.... 

Right idea... Wrong foundation: 800 years ago, the people of Pisa in Italy decided to build a tower. The tower was to have bells that would ring out to the surrounding countryside as witness to the glory of God. Things began to go wrong almost at once.

The Protestant Church in Hitler's Germany and the Barmen Declaration: Many German Christians at first welcomed Hitler’s Nazi party to power as a historic moment of Christ’s work on earth. The Nazi "Führer Principle" was to be adopted by the churches, which was a claim that Hitler was "lord" over the German church. But some German Protestant pastors, led by Martin Niemöller, were opposed. Church History Corner, by Paul Kroll.

A miracle in torn blue jeans: In the blackness of those weeks that stretched into months, God sent me a miracle that I almost did not see. I never would have noticed it at all if I had not been sick. We have a young man in our congregation who attends with his sister. It would have been easy to overlook him. But when God slowed me down, I began to notice this eight-year-old boy, who attended with his sister. By Michael Houghton.

A covenant of forgiveness: Some cultures have customs of forgiveness. The Masai in Tanzania perform an "osotua." If a sin has occurred between families within a community, the parties are brought back together. The community prepares a meal, and both families must bring food. The offended must accept and eat the food prepared by the offender, and vice versa. It is called "holy food." In Other Words, by James Henderson.

Tell Peter: The life of Peter, Jesus’ friend and leading disciple, is a lesson for all who are discouraged. He struggled with despair but, through the faithfulness of our Lord, he found acceptance and forgiveness. By Eugene Guzon.

Loving in deed: The four oldest kids could only think of one way to find out. They grabbed their youngest brother’s arms and legs, dragged him kicking and screaming to the edge, threw him out, and watched to see what would happen. A Jump Start article, by Pete Ahlstrom.

Leaders in truth: a study of Titus 1: In the first chapter of his letter to Titus, Paul describes the qualities of a good church leader. He warns that some people try to lead believers away from the truth. Even in the 21st century, Paul’s advice is still needed. Bible Study, by Michael Morrison

Lectionary readings for June-July

Hmmm... No man has a good enough memory to be a successful liar.... If you lose hope, you lose everything.... The peacemaking meeting scheduled for today has been canceled due to a conflict.

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