Category Archives: Devotional Reflection

The Offense and Power of Forgiveness

Posted on October 13, 2009 by PaulVK

Jim Belcher wrote a nice piece on forgiveness on SermonCentral.com. It got me thinking about the kind of prison bitterness can be. I wrote a post last July about the transferability of bitterness. What struck me was that in an … Continue reading →

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Time and Pain

Posted on October 2, 2009 by PaulVK

Part of why we doubt God is the relationship of time and pain. Pain is in fact all about time. When there is no time, there is no pain. In Luke 13:6-9 the master of the fruitless fruit tree is … Continue reading →

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To Know Good and Evil

Posted on September 17, 2009 by PaulVK

I’m in Revelation 13 in my Adult Sunday School class. Revelation 13:7 says that the beast, the empire/proxy of the dragon was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. Isn’t that a strange verse? Why would … Continue reading →

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The fool says in his heart "there is no God" and even Peter's got his doubts

Posted on August 12, 2009 by PaulVK

Peter’s question in Luke 12:41 is interesting. What motivated him to ask it? He was clearly referring to the parable that comes right before this verse. This is a parable about the coming of the Son of Man who is … Continue reading →

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"Don't be anxious" yeah right…

Posted on July 22, 2009 by PaulVK

This week I preach on Luke 12:22-34. This is the Lukan treatment of Jesus commanding his disciples “not to worry.” It follows directly on the heels of Jesus telling the parable of the barn builder. Some weeks the text is … Continue reading →

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Why we love Rocky from the first movie

Posted on July 15, 2009 by PaulVK

Everyone knows the first Rocky movie was the best of the bunch for lots of reasons. Rocky in that movie exhibits a quality which we recognize but don’t wish for ourselves. Rocky can endure. He says of himself that he … Continue reading →

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We do not journey alone

Posted on July 13, 2009 by PaulVK

One of my favorite sections of the Lord of the Rings books is in the Fellowship of the Ring where Aragorn is trying to get the hobbits to Rivendell. They are being chased by the ring wraiths. At this point … Continue reading →

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Why no one wants to be a great saint when they grow up

Posted on July 10, 2009 by PaulVK

I can’t think of anyone who has ever told me they wanted to be a saint when they grew up. I’ve heard a lot of things, but never a saint. We all know why no one wants to be a … Continue reading →

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The un-celebrity church

Posted on July 9, 2009 by PaulVK

The phone rang. “Did you watch it?” “Watch what?” ( I suspected what ‘it’ was but I didn’t really want to talk about “it” anyway.) “The funeral” After which she recounted to me a lot of the post-death spiritual paraphernalia … Continue reading →

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Resisting the transfer of bitterness

Posted on July 8, 2009 by PaulVK

I’ve noticed that third-personification of one’s grievances is a critical feature of the anatomy of bitterness. When a person has chosen to take residence in near perpetual anger and bitterness the task of seeking validation and vindication for this bitterness … Continue reading →

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