“You Are No Angel Yourself”: Why Jonah’s Bitterness Reveals the Uncomfortable Truth About Our Own Hearts
Oh, Jonah. What a hard man you seem to be, so determined to draw the heat away from yourself and aim it toward another. Yet I am not inside Jonah’s mind. I cannot know every thought that moved through him. From where I stand, however, it looks very much…
Jezebel Isn’t Just an Ancient Queen—She’s a Mirror: The Dangerous Path of Unchecked Appetite
Jezebel’s story is found primarily in 1 Kings 16–21, with her death recorded in 2 Kings 9. She enters the biblical account as the wife of King Ahab, one of Israel’s most corrupt kings. First Kings 16:30 says Ahab “did evil in the sight of the Lord, more…
Balaam’s Donkey and the Road We Wanted
Sometimes the problem is not that the traditional lesson is wrong. The problem is that we have become too familiar with it. We hear “Balaam’s donkey,” and our minds go straight to the usual picture: stubborn animal, angry prophet, angel with a sword, and…
Martha, Mary, and the Sound of One Woman Doing All the Dishes
There are some Bible stories that feel far away until you put them in a kitchen. Then suddenly they are not far away at all. Luke 10:38-42 tells us about two sisters, Martha and Mary. Jesus came into their village, and Martha welcomed Him into her house.…
Grace To You and Peace From God
Last Wednesday, our minister asked if anyone had ever counted how many times Paul opened his letters with the blessing or said, “Grace to you and peace from God.” I had not counted them either. (For the record I count 13.) But the question stuck to me…