Our pastor brought a thimble to church. I was sitting so far back that I could barely see it. He held it up between his thumb and forefinger and stood in front of the pulpit. “If what there is to be known about God is an ocean,” he said, “this represents how much we know.”Continue reading “Into the Deep”
Tag Archives: Bible
Playground Philosophy
Vacation Bible School is not for the faint of heart, and I am very thankful for the army of people who helped do two in my community last week. Needless to say, I spent a lot of time supervising the playground. It led me to contemplate the deep differences between poetic justice and karma, evenContinue reading “Playground Philosophy”
Jesus is Enough
Or, When Drowning Makes You Thirsty… For the woman at the well, carrying much more of a burden than her water jar. For the hypocritical Pharisees who didn’t really want answers to their questions. For Mary and Martha, drowning in grief. For Thomas, doubting the intangible, fearful of what the tangible might mean. For theContinue reading “Jesus is Enough”
Impoverished
There are many kinds of poverty. Several weeks ago, an eleven year old boy told me that when he was younger, there had been no food in the house. He had seen puppies nursing and had realized that they were receiving sustenance. He was so hungry that he had fed alongside those puppies from theContinue reading “Impoverished”
Chrome Commodes and Other Idols
The heavy metal door swung closed with a clang, and I was alone in the drunk tank. (That’s what they call the solitary confinement room in my local jail.) The block walls and cement floor are bare. A shiny chrome commode adorns one corner. It seems larger than it is because it is the onlyContinue reading “Chrome Commodes and Other Idols”
Of Nails and Sparrows
Heman was an important man. He was the grandson of Samuel, the prophet, in the Old Testament days of conquest. He was a Levite, of the tribe of Levi, specially chosen to serve God in regard to the holy things of the tabernacle. Talented. Pedigreed. Chosen. Capable. During David’s reign, Heman was appointed as aContinue reading “Of Nails and Sparrows”
The Chicken or the Egg?
I collect eggs from my chicken coop everyday. It’s an opportunity to practice philosophy: Which came first? The chicken or the egg? Philosophy is limited, however. It only leads full circle. If there weren’t any eggs, there would cease to be chickens. And if there weren’t any chickens, there wouldn’t be any eggs. I foundContinue reading “The Chicken or the Egg?”
Climbing the Ladder
They tithed their mint and rue and dill. They saw each little pinch of powdered herb as a step up the ladder. The Pharisees were climbing their way to heaven, and no renegade street preacher was going to say otherwise. They were offended when He insulted their good works, and they pressed him hard, provokingContinue reading “Climbing the Ladder”
When Buying Seeds…
Be sure to read the description! While the rest of the world is posting about daffodils, we here in the Dakotas are still discussing inches of snow, below zero, and blizzard warnings. This is just the time of year that Jung Seed sends out its second catalog as a reminder that spring will indeed come,Continue reading “When Buying Seeds…”
Sarah Dixon Young 