Across Church Street

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It would be just like him

The God of the Bible looks like Jesus, the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being. It would be just like him to go to the cross.

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Practicing Our Scales

Imagine if our walk with Christ, representing his kingdom in the world, were as practiced and pure as Hania Rani’s fingers on the piano keys.

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Rescue

I practice the spiritual discipline of rescuing earthworms on paved surfaces. It's a reminder to me that I can pause what I'm doing, get a little dirty, and help. Also, that I've been given the responsibility to care.

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Your Roots Are Showing

The life that I bring to the world can only be found in my attachment to Christ. His presence with me is essential.

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Connection

I live in a U.S. county with traffic problems. It's a peninsula, and what's not swamp land has been developed. Building new roads is difficult and expensive. Making things worse, roads that could connect don't.

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What's in the Bowl?

During a spring trip, my wife and I purchased a glass bowl. It's colorful and handmade. When I turn the bowl upside down, nothing falls out. Does that make it empty?

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Happy Thanksgiving!

God's manifold grace. A day to be grateful and to accept responsibility.

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. — Colossians 3:17

Two gauges of spiritual maturity to consider today. The first is gratitude. Do we recognize that everything we have is a gift from God— his grace? Can we show him our gratitude? Another gauge is responsibility— faithful stewards of the many forms of God's grace. We enjoy his gifts as we share them with others.

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Umbrella

There are some in my life who stand out as people who shaped me in significant ways: parents, my wife, pastors, and a few teachers. Today, I'm feeling a sense of gratitude for the many others who have dripped things into my life—things I don't really notice but subconsciously depend on every day. Here's an umbrella expression of gratitude to all of them!

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The Message

Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. — Colossians 3:16

We consider Jesus's divinity, his place as a member of the Trinity, coexisting with the Father and the Spirit from endless antiquity. The message of Christ and the word of God form a consistent revelation. Jesus's message, God's Word, is living and active. And Paul urges us to let that Word live with us, among us (the word you is plural) richly, abundantly, generously.

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