Cross-Cultural Metaphor Interpretation
A Jackpot with a Countdown Timer
Let’s imagine this situation: in a very posh casino, with a very unique promotion, and some crazy luck, not one but two people end up hitting an “Easy Money” jackpot at 11:00 pm exactly. The time stamp is important, because this never-before and never-to-be-repeated jackpot comes with $50,000 of the house’s money; but there’s a catch. (Of course there’s a catch.)
Please Pass the Potatoes
In response to a blog about making room for doubting people at the table, I want to talk about the different ways we experience doubt depending on whether we came of age in a Culture of Certainty or a Culture of Skepticism. Ultimately, I think we have to lead by combining authentic vulnerability, struggle, and doubt with authentic trust, delight, and dependence on Jesus. And there has to be room at the table even for those who are uncomfortable with uncertainty.
I’m Not So Sure About Certainty
Certainty is kind of a tricky thing. I mean, there are some Bible passages that seem to make certainty something we all should not only strive for, but already have in spades. The flagship verse for certainty is probably Hebrews 11:1. Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do […]
We Are The Coals
Paul seems to think that faith is a living thing that gets passed on from generation to generation. This faith that lived in Louis, and in Eunice, and in Paul now lives in Timothy, too; so Paul encourages his young friend to “fan into flame” this gift that now dwells in him.
We need each other to fan into flame the gift of faith.
Look, Lift Up Your Eyes, And See
Warfare, Containers, Harvest, Living Water, and the LCMS Constitution and Bylaws By Justin Rossow One of my favorite moments in the Gospels comes in John, chapter 4, right after the Samaritan woman at the well leaves her empty jug behind to share what she has seen about this Jesus guy: So the woman left her […]
Plato’s Cave, Hymnody, and Metaphor Theory
Editor’s Note Deaconess Ruth McDonnell shows her skill with metaphor and her interest in the worship life of the Church with this, her first article as a guest contributor. She presented this two-part blog as a single paper at a regional meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature. Ruth brings a complex view of metaphor […]
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE IS A BATTLE
From Brazilian Culture to Biblical Thinking In the first part of this blog, we took a look at how the Brazilian culture thinks about, speaks of, and experiences LIFE in terms of BATTLE. This structured way of thinking, speaking, and experiencing is also one way Christians conceive of discipleship or LIVING THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. According to David […]
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