context in Bible reading | Stray Thoughts

I’m happy to share some thought-provoking reads found this week:

No Confidence? No Problem! “I used to think it was important to project confidence when it comes to parenting, and I wanted everyone to think that I had everything under control at all times. But the deeper I have gotten into this lifelong job, the more I have realized how complicated and special each little soul in my care is, and I have learned that there are very few one-size-fits-all philosophies of motherhood. Each child and each phase is its own adventure, with its own set of variables, and I have learned that I need God’s help with each and every bit of it.”

Is ChatGPT Forming Your Faith? “ChatGPT and similar tools have made it easier than ever to locate and interpret Bible verses, to receive guidance on challenging topics, and to get answers to questions we’d normally hesitate to ask out loud. Is that a bad thing? Are the alarms unwarranted? As I’ve talked to friends about their ChatGPT usage and paid more attention to my own, it’s clear that using the latest AI to find answers for our spiritual lives involves a degree of danger that would be foolish to ignore.”

The Devil Hates Context. Use It, HT to Knowable Word. “You can see why the devil left out Psalm 91’s context. Verse 13 preaches his demise. It reveals Christ’s victory over him. I’m sure the devil hates context. So, in our spiritual warfare, in wielding the sword of the Spirit, use the whole weapon—the whole canon—context and all.”

Is Tribalism Bad? HT to Proclaim and Defend. “Why can’t individuals assess the values and ideas held by themselves and others, then socially associate with respect to those shared values? An us-versus-them social landscape emerges for every possible topical issue in our free society because we occupy an idea-versus-idea environment. Rather than shriek about the human impulse to join a tribe, it’s more productive to explain which tribes are worthy of members — and doing so is necessarily a form of intertribal competition. Alternative strategies end up with the self-defeating claim: Join me in the fight against tribalism.”

What Does the Bible Say God Can’t Do? “In the back of my mind I thought I remembered hearing that there were only 2 (or was it 3?) things that God cannot do. I did a quick search online to refresh my memory. Well, I was surprised to find that everyone had a different opinion on how many things God can’t do!”

Ordinary Faithfulness: A Life That Says Come and See. “Life right now is normal. For some reason the thought of this being ‘all there is’ can feel almost startling. But when I take a step back to assess this dread, the Lord uses His Word to whisper a quiet question into my heart. What’s wrong with a life filled with ordinary faithfulness?“

The Foibles and Fallibility of Christian Leaders, HT to Challies. “Encourage your leaders, pray for them, help them serve Christ as they serve you, overlook some things just as they overlook the faults you have, confront them with love when necessary if you are prayerful and spiritually-minded and aware of your own sins, follow them as they follow Christ, but don’t idolize them. Encouragement is different than that.”

Learning how to love your neighbor requires a willingness to draw on the strength of Jesus Christ as you die to self and live for Him.–John C. Broger

Though I am way behind on my blog reading once again due to a busy week, I still came across some good reads I wanted to share with you.

Why Don’t I Care? Steps to Overcoming Spiritual Apathy, HT to The Story Warren. “One of the most frustrating parts of my life is that I’m not as passionate about God as I should be. I imagine many Christians feel similarly. There are some, however, for whom this feeling goes deep and lasts long.”

Strengths, Weaknesses, Warts, and All. “Here’s what she knew, and I do too: We all have done bad things, experienced bad things and had bad things done to us. But God uses all those things to help others if we let Him.”

God’s Healing: Kintsugi in Practice. “It literally takes brokenness and turns it into beauty, and it sees the brokenness not as something to hide, but as something to value as part of the object’s history. As I looked into Kintsugi, I discovered many similarities with God’s healing work.”

Prayer That Pleases God. “We pray. We pray because God tell us to. We pray because we need to. We pray because prayer matters. But do we pray with confidence that God is pleased with our praying? Do we pray with confidence that God is pleased with our praying even when he does not grant our petitions?”

Dishes and Divorce: Why Little Things Can Lead to a Breakup. “How do couples come to a place where something as small as a plate on the counter has them contemplating divorce? I believe it comes down to one basic reality: the little things either communicate love, or they don’t.”

Never Forget! “The book of Deuteronomy contains Moses’ words to the Israelites as they are on the verge of entering the Promised Land, and one message comes across loud and clear: Don’t forget!”

Context Matters: The Whole Armor of God. “Context matters. If we learn to read the Bible for what it is—and not simply as a collection of vibrant metaphors for vague spiritual truths—we’ll discover that some of our most familiar passages may have far more usefulness than we’d previously assumed.”