A Fresh Perspective

In the movie, The Help , Aibeleen Clark is the maid who is the first to volunteer to share her stories with Skeeter, who writes a book about their experiences. At the end of the movie, Aibeleen says: “God says we need to love our enemies. It’s hard to do. But it can start by telling the truth. No one had ever asked me what it feels like to be me. Once I told the truth about that, I felt free.” The truth really can set us free—free from having to be someone we are not, free from having to conform to other people’s expectations. It begins by being honest about who we really are and what we really feel. One of my most liberating experiences, an “aha” moment, though I came to it only gradually, was when I gave myself the freedom to be honest about what I was really thinking and feeling about God and the spiritual life. I gave myself the freedom to question things that I was taught by Christian pastors and leaders should never be questioned. Is there a danger going down this path?...

In 2 Corinthians, Paul refers to what he calls a “thorn in the flesh”—not a little prickly thorn, but a damaging, debilitating thorn. Paul mentions it as part of his defense of his apostleship. Apparently, his apostleship was being questioned by self-acclaimed super apostles who were making inroads and gaining influence in the Corinthian congregation (see 2 Cor. 12:1–10). Paul does not name or explain it, probably because whatever it was, the Corinthians knew exactly what he was talking about. It was probably some sort of physical ailment or disability that could not be hidden, but we don’t know. The interesting part is how Paul interprets it.   On the one hand, he says that it is “a messenger of Satan” sent to torment him. Paul is speaking metaphorically of course, like when my nephew calls his little dog a manifestation of Satan, which I would not dispute. The difference between my nephew and Paul is that my Nephew is joking, Paul is not. This is metaphorical language, ...

If we allow them, our fears can become huge obstacles that stifle a healthy spiritual life. One of the great fears that many Christians wrestle with is named in Mark 4:38. It’s the story of the disciples on the Sea of Galilee in a storm, fearing for their lives. Jesus is on board, sound asleep. They wake him, terrified: “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” In some of the Hebrew creation stories the raging sea often stood for the powers of chaos opposed to the creative will of God. The disciples are up against chaotic forces as they struggle to make it to the other side of the Sea of Galilee . We live in a world where all sorts of chaotic things can happen to us and the people we love. We live in a world of natural disasters, of hurricanes, tsunamis, and floods. We live in a world of uncertainty and unpredictability, where there is still much evil. We live in a world of war, a world filled with violence—with terrorist attacks, drone strikes, and where inexplicable acts of ...

Amos, an eighth century (B.C.E.) prophet , claims that he was not a prophet, nor the disciple of a prophet, but a herdsman and dresser of sycamore trees (7:14–16). What he is saying, I think, is that he had absolutely no aspirations of being a prophet. Prophets lived rough lives. They were on the run much of the time. Amos is saying, “I was out tending the sheep, taking care of my trees, minding my own business, when the Word of God seized me. I couldn’t get away. I am compelled to speak the Word of the Lord.” Amos prophesied judgment on the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Amaziah, the priest who advised King Jeroboam of the Northern Kingdom, told Amos to hit the road—to go prophesy to the Southern Kingdom (7:10–13). Religious leaders like Amaziah, who have a cozy relationship with the powers in charge, are not interested in hearing a word from the Lord that would challenge the status quo. Amos’ vision of a plumb line is a vision of what is true, right, just, and good (7:7–9). Wh...