Part 16 of series: How Does God Guide Us? In my last post, I talked about how important it is to quiet our hearts if we’re to receive guidance through the Holy Spirit. I suggested that literal silence, such as what we might experience on a silent retreat, helps promote internal silence. But how is this helpful to ordinary folks, to people who can’t easily make time to get away for a silent retreat? First, in my experience I am... Read more
Part 15 of series: How Does God Guide Us? Occasionally, the Holy Spirit almost shouts at us. Indeed, “The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD, over mighty waters” (Psalm 29:3). But most of the time, the Spirit deals with us as God did with Elijah, through what we might metaphorically call “whispering.” This presents a irksome problem for us: How can we hear the Spirit’s voice when our hearts are so... Read more
Part 13 of series: How Does God Guide Us? In my last post, I related the Old Testament story of Elijah who, after confronting the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel, retreats to the wilderness where he hears the “gentle whisper” or “still, small voice” of God. I suggested that we too can hear that quiet voice as the Spirit of God speaks even today. Unfortunately, a multitude of contemporary Christians have trivialized this ministry of the Spirit. “God spoke... Read more
Part 12 of series: How Does God Guide Us? The Old Testament book of 1 Kings contains one of the most dramatic stories in all of Scripture (1 Kgs 18-19). Israel was languishing under the corrupt leadership of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. The royal couple had led the nation into the worship of the pagan gods, Baal and Asherah. The king and queen had killed the prophets of God, replacing them with hundreds of pagan psychics. Only Elijah remained... Read more
A recent article in the New York Times examined a trend in medical school admissions to care about more than just top grades and MCAT scores. “New for Aspiring Doctors, the People Skills Test” by Gardiner Harris described a new approach to med school interviews, the “multiple mini interview.” It measures such things as teamwork, relational ability, and ethical reasoning. At least eight school in the U.S. are using this approach, including Stanford and U.C.L.A. “We are trying to weed... Read more
A few days ago, I put up my contribution to the Patheos Book Club’s latest conversation about Mother Teresa, CEO. That conversation has continued, with entries from a variety of writers. One is from my colleague, Marcus Goodyear, who is the Senior Editor of The High Calling. His article is called: “Doubt is Not Despair, If You Act.” I’d encourage to check out the conversation at the Patheos Book Club. While you’re at it, you might find it worthwhile to... Read more
Part 12 of series: How Does God Guide Us? So far in this series I’ve shown that God guides us through circumstances, Scripture, community, and reason. Those who especially liked my last post on divine guidance through reason might find themselves a bit uncomfortable with today’s post. I must admit that the subject of guidance through dreams and visions does not reflect my personal experience to any great extent. In fact, I feel most comfortable among Christians who are guided... Read more
Praying That Our Leaders Care for the Poor and the Oppressed Psalm 72:1-20 He feels pity for the weak and the needy, and he will rescue them. He will redeem them from oppression and violence, for their lives are precious to him. Psalm 72:13-14 Psalm 72 is a prayer for the king of Israel. Though most of us in today’s world do not live under the rule of a political sovereign, this psalm can guide us as we pray for... Read more
I thought I’d share a couple of photos I took recently at Laity Lodge. The first is a male Painted Bunting. The second shows the male with his “wife.” These are beautiful birds. Read more
Part 11 of series: How Does God Guide Us? So far I’ve shown that God guides us through circumstances, Scripture, and community. In my last post, I added that we can be guided through careful reasoning. I want to explain what I mean in this post. Because the Spirit’s guidance can be so marvelously miraculous at times, we can overlook or even disparage so-called “normal” processes of reasoning. Sometimes, we even sit around like spiritual couch potatoes, waiting for some... Read more
Mark D. Roberts
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