This article is part of Stephen Paulson’s series on the Psalms.
It is impossible to live our lives in a way that would convince God of our value because he already knows our value. He is the one who gave it to us.
Belief at Christmas is neither neat nor safe. It is the path that leads to the manger and, from there, to the cross.

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In Scripture, laments are raw expressions of grief, but they always point to hope. What if our culture’s obsession with holiday lights is an unconscious way of crying out, “We need good news, and we need it now”?
If we want a true depiction of the Christmas story, we ought to consider the scandal of the coming of Jesus.
Everything was perfectly teed up to move the needle on the baptism metric, but I just couldn’t do it. I told her she shouldn't get baptized.
I saw a commercial once that said I just have to do whatever it takes to actualize my best me. And it makes sense, really. Doing results in being, cause and effect. Want six-pack abs? Just buy the right product and give your new, healthy lifestyle 110% for 10 weeks and maybe you’ll see results.
How are things at your church? Are people getting saved in droves, are there mass baptisms every Sunday, is giving at an all-time high, and are your members model citizens and pillars of the community?
If everyone would just live by the rules, the world would be a better place, wouldn’t it?
Martin Luther knew something about economics. Well, God’s economics anyway.
Is there ever a time in a Christian’s life when there is less need for grace? Think about it.
Americans love the vicarious sense of pride they get from the odds-defying underdog myth.
Your eternal salvation isn’t dependent on performance or effort. Well, not your performance anyway...
To be human is to be preoccupied with averting pain and despair. But despair gets a bad rap.
In our democratic society we love to talk about freedom. But anybody out there ever tried to be perfect? Ah, shucks. Turns out we’re not as free as we thought.