When it comes to rethinking prayer, one has to ask if we have been overthinking prayer. In some ways it’s like the sun is setting on this ancient spiritual practice. And perhaps the sun is setting. We have certainly examined prayer from every angle. At least that’s what I felt like, until I found a couple ways of prayer that are transformative. One is the ancient practice of Lectio Divina, really a way to pray through Scripture. The second is... Read more
In-Breaking of the Sunrise I’m on the cusp of a new beginning, a new sunrise. The past seems farther and farther away with each passing day. I eagerly look forward to what lies ahead. Just today God opened my mind to a possibility I’ve hoped for since I was young but I never thought would happen. posted on X @jaredingle2022, January 31, 2025 I’m sorry if this reads more like a journal entry than an academic work. Such are the... Read more
Pastor Brandon dissects a couple lines of thought on religion, a term currently misunderstood in Western Society. His views stand as a corrective against those who would popularize Evangelicalism with trite sayings and euphemisms. This may be unpopular; it’ll probably be unliked; and it’ll possibly be misunderstood… For several years now, I’ve heard the phrase, ‘I don’t have religion; I have relationship,’ or some variation of that. AND I totally understand the sentiment behind that statement. I get it. I’ve... Read more
How can there be a government deacon? The operative word is “servant” particularly in verse 4. Romans 13.1-7, NRSV: Let every person be subject to the governing authorities; for there is no authority except from God, and those authorities that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists authority resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgement. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Do you wish to have no... Read more
Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. James 1.21, KJV I awoke this morning at 5:30 AM and got a little snack. As I lay back down to go to sleep, the word superfluity came to mind. Knowing there is only 1 usage of the word in the KJV, I looked it up before drifting off again. Now I know basically in English what... Read more
The Fruit of the Spirit is one of the most recognizable Passages in the New Testament. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. Galatians 5.22-23, KJV I just completed 1 article per word, making a total of 9 articles. These are Word studies. What makes them unique is that I am writing from a Spirit-Filled perspective and so are the authors I highlight throughout the... Read more
Temperance is a multi-faceted word. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance… Galatians 5.22-23 egkrateia The word temperance is egkrateia in New Testament Greek. It can be loosely defined as self control over whatever is needed at the time, often over sensual desires. inward temperance The Holy Spirit helps us to control ourselves. “It is used of the control of the athlete over his body and its desires, during the period... Read more
Meekness in the New Testament stems from the Greek word praotes. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness… Galatians 5.22-23 (KJV) praotes Praotes can mean meekness, gentleness, and mildness. It is often translated “gentleness” (NIV, NKJV, NASB). Meekness is not weakness. Too often we get the mental picture of a mild mannered Clark Kent. It is not weakness. It is not the opposite of strength. Praotes (meekness) is closely related to strength,... Read more
We continue our series on the Fruit of the Spirit with a Word study on faith. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith… Galatians 5.22 Pistis: The Various Nuances of Faith pistis Faith comes from the Koine Greek word pistis, which basically means a conviction. The root word means being persuaded, a firm belief in God. The word occurs often in the New Testament and is defined differently by how it... Read more
agathosyne The Koine Greek word for goodness is agathosyne. It means uprightness of heart and life, and kindness. “A man who is ruled by and aims at what is good, namely, the quality of moral worth.”[1] We might think of this in terms of someone who is highly ethical. “‘Goodness’ has the idea of the development of character that is truly good, upright, dependable, and yet still generous and good to others. This is what makes us God’s noblemen.”[2] This... Read more
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