This morning while reading a section on humility in The Imitation of Christ, an interesting question came to mind: If Jesus was physically here on earth today, would He be on Facebook? If so, would a typical post look like this? Jesus Christ Great day sharing a lunch with 5,000 people at Bethsaida. Would the Son of God have His phone in hand taking a selfie while walking across the water—to later post it on social media? Somehow I have a hard time picturing Jesus doing either of these things. Why? Because the life of Christ supremely embodied humility. His words and…
Book Review: The Imitation of Christ: Classic Devotions in Today’s Language
Last summer I had the joy of sitting in a class at the Montrose Christian Writers Conference taught by James Watkins. I immediately sensed him as a man who deeply loves the Lord and desires to live for Him. This month I’ve been enjoying a new book compiled and edited by Watkins called The Imitation of Christ: Classic Devotions in Today’s Language by Thomas à Kempis. For five hundred years à Kempis’ devotional classic has brought wisdom and comfort to millions of readers in over fifty languages—second only to the Bible in sales! Watkins’ new paraphrased version has “modern and inclusive language…
Trusting God With All Your Heart
In New York, high school students are expected to take Regents exams. These are statewide standardized tests in core high school subjects. For me, studying for them was a big deal. As a college bound student, I wanted to achieve the best possible grades. In addition to spending hours memorizing and reviewing information, I adapted special scriptures I called my “Regents verses”: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6) Pausing to pray before taking an exam, I would…
Your Best Love
Do you sometimes feel that you fall short in living the Christian life? If we’re honest, I think many of us would say yes. We may put self before service; perhaps we deny Him by the words we speak, the way we live. We may be easily distracted, love only when it’s convenient, and at times willfully disobey God’s word. Yet Jesus has an amazing way of restoring us back to Him when we fail. He doesn’t ask us to try harder. He doesn’t demean, degrade, or disgrace us. Rather, He simply asks that we consider our love for Him….
Fog and Faith
December brought record-breaking warm temperatures throughout the northeast, with Christmas Eve hitting a balmy 70 degrees in northern New York. Because of this trend, a number of mornings we woke to a heavy fog covering the earth. Motorists were cautioned to drive with care because of limited visibility. Isn’t our journey through life like travelling through fog? We make our plans, envisioning results to unfold a certain way as we strain to peek ahead, anticipating what may or may not be around the next corner. Then sometimes, life throws the unforeseen curve ball at us, and we end up travelling…
