The spoken word of the king carries great authority, in the same way the written word of our Constitution in America carries authority today. The view of civil authority in the ancient Near East, is it does not flow from the written law as much as it flows from the king. The reading is Ecclesiastes 8.1-5, primarily with the NRSV and NLT CLICK HERE i. obey the king as if obeying God From a compassionate look at injustice in the... Read more
I know strong Christians who had adult conversions because they came face to face with the reality of hell, in one way or another. Their level of commitment to the Christian faith after their unusual conversion baffles me. i. recently, four people have passed who have impacted me One is Billy Abraham. A second is part of my extended family. The third is part of my close-knit high school. Finally, many of us recognize the great leader Colin Powell. The... Read more
In essence, I’m my own chef right now. I’m on a pretty strict diet this year, and experiencing some amazing results, thanks to my team of nutritionists. Last Sunday, Columbus Day weekend, our extended family dropped in for games, food, and fun. I was cooking my meal, only to look up, and find myself in an impromptu video. They’ve been accusing me of becoming a master chef. Columbus Day Weekend Healthy Chef Here are the basics: Yerba Mate (pronounced Mah-tay)... Read more
The Preacher (Koheleth or Qoheleth) weighs in on the gift of work. The Bible has much to say on the topic. Ecclesiastes offers some interesting insights as well. i. opinion | a little more about the author In my opinion, Koheleth is most likely King Solomon sharing wisdom near the end of his days. He’s seen it all, been there, done that, got the t-shirt. I picture Koheleth as perhaps a late middle aged man, maybe a little older, working... Read more
Don’t act like you have it figured out better than Job. He is like your voice when no one else is around and you’re facing terribly difficult times. He’s expressing what you may only express after the kids have gone to bed, or when you get up for your midnight snack because you can’t calm down and go to sleep. For those who don’t know, I write a couple times per week. One is generally a formal, longread, full article.... Read more
Koheleth draws our eyes to abuses of power. The oppressed often have no one to comfort them, no one by their side, no advocate, no one to plead their case. I have started a series on select passages from Ecclesiastes, offering a couple different approaches so far. regarding Solomon and the authorship of Ecclesiastes CLICK HERE knowing the times | an introduction to Ecclesiastes 3 CLICK HERE resonating in awe with the presence of God in Ecclesiastes CLICK HERE peace, love, and good... Read more
A presentation of Baylor University Honors College, Torrey Honors College at Biola University, Templeton Honors College at Eastern University, University of Dallas, Whitworth University, Gonzaga University, and Gonzaga in Florence. A couple weeks ago, I wrote an article like this, based on social media posts from the preceding week. To read Snyder, Lenarduzzi, & Dante CLICK HERE We all probably write a lot of words on social networks, in pm’s, and in texts if we stop and think about it.... Read more
One of the words in my life had to do with speaking before 1,000’s. This same word has been spoken repeatedly from the time I was young, in many different ways, many different locations, and from many different people. I’m sharing a quick vlog after a run on a trail that I like. I’m filming in an interior part where there are a bunch of wildflowers. There are bees bumbling along just going about their day. Last week I shared... Read more
Not every journal entry explores the nature of the prophetic as this one does. Some are just good family memories, experiences I don’t want to forget, etc. When I open the pages of my journals, I have something of importance to read. This is an actual entry from my journal. Let me explain the “why” real quick and then offer a couple of my guidelines for journaling, to set up this piece for you. “why” make a journal entry a... Read more
Koheleth seems to be an elder, reflecting on what is truly meaningful in this life. Life is brief. Our lives and times are in the hands of God. After taking last week off from Ecclesiastes, I am now returning to this study. For the most part, this is my original work submitted for publication, and originally published in 2013. This portion of Eccl 9 was originally published with what I have shared so far in Eccl 3 because of the similar themes.... Read more
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