Seeds of Love Have Been Sown In You By Beth Demme I know many people who have beautiful stories about their conversion to Christianity. I love those stories! However, I don’t have a story like that. Not exactly. Because I grew up in the church, I don’t have a day circled in red on the calendar that marks my “before …
God Chooses You
God Chooses You By Beth Demme Last week I shared my thoughts on how some Christians take on legalism and judgmentalism instead of the yoke Jesus offers. Like the Pharisees, they focus on the letter of the law instead of the spirit of the law. I think Jesus releases us from the prison of self-righteousness. We don’t have to try …
Wearing the Right Yoke Leads to Freedom
Wearing the Right Yoke Leads to Freedom By Beth Demme “Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden …
Messy Beautiful
Messy Can Be Beautiful By Beth Demme My daughter is an artist. She has always had an eye for shape and color and an incredible ability to understand spatial relationships. I find her skills especially amazing because they are so different from my own. Spatial relationships–and all things geometrical–are fairly mysterious to me. I remember feeling utter confusion as a …
God Is Bigger Than My Theology
Boat Theology By Beth Demme You know the passage in Matthew where Jesus walks on the water? Jesus and the disciples feed over five thousand people with only five loaves and two fish. (Matthew 14:17-21) Jesus then herds the disciples into a boat and sends them across the Sea of Galilee. Later, Jesus was ready to join them and “he …
God’s Love Comes Before Your Mistakes
What if God’s Love Comes Before Your Mistakes? By Beth Demme It surprised me. I didn’t expect to find new, and personal meaning, in a concept as old as shepherding. I was studying John 10:1-10 for a recent sermon. In this passage, Jesus refers to himself as the shepherd and also the gate. My favorite part of this passage has …
Do You See Yourself Clearly?
I just celebrated the third anniversary of this blog! Woo hoo! Let’s eat cake! In honor of this “birthday” of sorts, here is a post from way, way back in the beginning (April 2014). As it happens, I needed to hear this today. Maybe you do too? Do You See Yourself Clearly? By Beth Demme Do you ever look in the …
Wholeness and Doughnuts
Wholeness and Doughnuts By Beth Demme If you were a doughnut, what kind would you be? Would you be a delicious hot glazed Krispy Kreme, fresh off the conveyor belt? Would you be a Dunkin’ Donuts Old Fashioned, ready to dive into a hot cup of coffee? Or are you a jelly-filled doughnut, sweet and surprising inside? I know this …
We Are All Waiting For God
We Are All Waiting For God By Beth Demme Happy New Year! I know we haven’t dropped the ball yet or toasted with champagne, but we have, in fact, begun a new year in the life of the church. Advent has begun! Advent is a season of waiting, and preparation, “for the birth of Christ, and a celebration of God’s …
Wrestling With God
Wrestling With God By Beth Demme Sometimes I hold on too tightly to God. To be more precise, I hold on too tightly to my ideas about God. I unintentionally put God in a box. You probably know the story of Jacob wrestling with God. I love how Jacob’s story gives us permission to “wrestle” with God. It’s a poignant …