Author Archives: pastorsteverichards

How and where do you experience community? In today’s readings, I found very different ways of describing community. As the tribes of Israel settled into their new land, faithfulness to God only lasted one generation. The next generation wandered from … Continue reading →

The first part of 1 Corinthians 11 is one of the readings that seems oddly out of place in our contemporary world. Is Paul really saying that a husband has superiority over a wife? Does it really matter whether men … Continue reading →

I like prizes. I can remember how eager I was to find the prize in a box of cereal that my mother brought home from the grocery store. I would empty the entire box if I had to in order to … Continue reading →

Only recently did we have our property line surveyed. When we moved into our home, I continued to mow the lawn to the spot that the previous owner had mowed the lawn. Everything was fine – and frankly it hardly … Continue reading →

Give me this hill country. That’s not how it is supposed to work, is it? Caleb was the early investor. When Moses first brought the people to the edge of the Promised Land, Caleb, Joshua and ten others were sent … Continue reading →

As I was reading 1 Corinthians 6, I remembered this photo that I took several years ago while standing amid the ruins of the city of Corinth. High above the city is the acropolis (literally “high city”). It was the … Continue reading →

Rahab and Achan: two people who encounter God and experience very different outcomes. Rahab is described in the opening chapter of Joshua. She is a Canaanite woman, who provides refuge to the Israelite spies. She shows courageous allegiance and devotion … Continue reading →

Puffed up. Paul gives us words that provide a picture of what pride can look like. Pride is a problem when it becomes something that divides our allegiance. In the Old Testament reading, the people of Israel cross the Jordan … Continue reading →

What is wisdom? We usually recognize it when we see it and yet we can often be deceived into accepting as wise what is not wise. Let’s say you have an important decision to make – maybe it is a … Continue reading →

Have you ever been so excited about something or someone that you could not stop talking about it (or him or her)? If there is any doubt about what Paul was excited about, the center of his thoughts and attention, … Continue reading →