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Jesus Was a Literature Professor
Literature professors are a determined lot. Our goal is to deepen our students’ engagement with the text at hand. We desperately want them to dive for the pearls deep below the surface and come up triumphant, gasping for air and eager to go deeper next time. I am aware that literature professors weren’t a thing in Jesus’ time. Jewish students who sat under their rabbis studied the Old Testament (though not as Christians today understand it.) They became rabbis and scribes, teaching what they learned to the next generation. And then came Jesus. He understood all the old texts and the traditional ways of reading them. But the way he…
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How Narcissists Misinterpret Scripture
Many of us misinterpret Scripture. It takes both the guidance of the Holy Spirit and serious study to figure out what the Bible is telling us and avoid misinterpretation. We all have our filters that obscure the truth, and translations are sometimes spotty at best. But the difference between a sincere Christian’s attempt to understand the Bible versus how a narcissist uses it for his or her advantage becomes apparent with a little digging. Any interpretation of the Bible that does not involve the Holy Spirit is bound to be inaccurate. But as unfortunate as that can be, the real danger lies in those who use it for their selfish…
- Abundant Life, Self, Self Awareness, Self-Acceptance, Self-awareness, Self-forgiveness, self-improvement
Godly Self-Care: Learning to Live Whole
Self-care is often the source of disdain for Christian bloggers. Sometimes they have a point in that much of self-care advice is shallow and merely a diversion from the actual underlying issues that cause us suffering. I have nothing against pedicures, chocolate, soothing music, or hot baths. But I truly believe that self-care, in its proper sense, is absolutely godly and even more of a command than a suggestion. The human is the crowning glory of creation, whose central injunctions are to steward the earth and make more humans. I hate those memes suggesting that humans are an invasive species or a virus from which nature suffers. But in all…
Healing Through Art & Words
