Deborah, a Wise and Fiery Prophet

In discussions of women in leadership, I’ve often heard Deborah’s name mentioned. But until recently I had not encountered much thoughtful engagement with the story of her and Barak in Judges 4–5. From reading English Bible translations and from various sermons and writings on this story, I’d picked up a common impression: that Barak was…

Miriam, a Ground-Breaking Leader

This past fall I took a class on women in the Old Testament. Though I’ve been learning about the Bible my whole life, I love that there are always new angles and fresh insights to explore. One of the stories that stood out to me was that of Miriam. I was struck by two aspects…

Prophets and Their Friends (Part 2)

Some biblical interpreters have critiqued Western Christians for always seeing themselves in the heroes of the stories. We like to relate to the great prophets such as Jeremiah, especially the part where God chose him before he was born (Jer 1:5). Jeremiah didn’t see much of what we’d consider success in his lifetime, but he…

Prophets and Their Friends (Part 1)

I’ve been reading through the book of Jeremiah recently. It documents the tragic final breakdown of the relationship between God and Judah that results in their conquest by Babylon. Like most prophets, Jeremiah has a hard and often lonely life. God calls him when he is young and feels inadequate, and he ministers for forty…

Prodigal Desires

Of all the characters in the Bible, one I most often relate to is the older brother in the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15). Like him, I’ve always been dutiful and stayed out of trouble. I understand sins of judgmentalism much better than those of wild living. I’ve thought a lot about this…

Desires God Satisfies

In the Sermon on the Mount, the third Beatitude Jesus lists is, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5). He is likely alluding to Psalm 37:11: “But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy peace and prosperity.” (And remember how many times “inherit the land” is repeated in Psalm…

Desires of Your Heart

When I was little someone gave me a bookmark with my name and Psalm 37:4, “Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.” I’ve had mixed feelings about that verse over the years. In some ways it sounds too good to be true. I’ve heard people use…

Courage and Caution in the Early Church

The Christians described in the book of Acts are usually known for their world-changing courage. Disciples who had abandoned Jesus at his arrest and fearfully huddled in locked rooms became, after the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, bold and unstoppable witnesses. Yet it’s interesting to trace through Acts how the early church makes decisions and…

Trusting Forward

In Holy Invitations, Jeannette A. Bakke writes, “As life progresses and new possibilities emerge, we almost seem to hear the Spirit asking, ‘Do you still want to trust me? Now that you have seen this, what will you choose to believe?’” I wrote in my journal in January about struggling to trust God with my…

The Kingdom of the Unafraid

Where I live, it seems like Halloween gets bigger every year. Scary decorations, creepy stories, and haunted houses are everywhere. I wonder whether part of the reason people get excited about fantastical fears is that there are so many real fears that are harder to deal with. In Luke 12, Jesus is teaching a crowd…