A version of this article first appeared at Word&Way January 2022 It is always fun to discover which persons throughout history with whom you share a birthday. I learned at an early age that I share January 15 with Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This insight has been a source of secret pride for …
As seen in Word and Way May 4, 2020 In December 2019 I was playing basketball with my nine-year-old son and his friends. As I had done a million times before in my life, I jumped on my way to an easy layup. SNAP. PAIN. Choice words. Collapse. An ER visit, MRI, and surgical consult …
As seen in Word&Way June 2, 2020Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2 NIV Habits are amazingly powerful patterns of behavior and practice that …
As seen in Word&Way July 1, 2020 https://wordandway.org/2020/07/01/it-goes-without-saying/ “It goes without saying” is a curious phrase. Whenever someone says, “it goes without saying,” it is usually followed by them saying something so self-apparent it need not be said. I will take that bait and say the thing that is so obvious it might not need …
Enough! That was the simple tweet shared by many players and fans last Wednesday (Aug. 26) as NBA MLB, WNBA, and MLS athletes and teams chose to sit out games in recognition of ongoing racial, social, political, and economic injustices in America. Of course, we know not playing a game, no matter if it is …
This article first was published in Word and Way October 21, 2020. Luke 8.26-39 tells the encounter between Jesus and a Garasene community. Among their citizenry was a man overwhelmed by the constant presence of a Legion of demons. For as long as he had been under demonic control, his community stood in solidarity beside …
This article was first published by the Christian Citizen November 6, 2020. Used with permission. Fall in the Midwest is a season of long hours, hard work, and celebration. Dust clouds form in fields as perpetually running combine harvester tractors scoop crops from the earth. Kernels of corn, soybeans, sugar beets, and wheat grains are …
As seen in Word&Way December 2, 2020 I did not grow up following a Christian liturgical calendar, utilizing its rhythms of Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter, and Pentecost. But I have noticed a trend in our Baptist churches toward at least acknowledging these classic Christian seasons more often, even if we do not fully understand …
The original version of this article appeared in Christian Citizen December 3, 2020 The church calendar is an amazing resource to us as followers of Jesus. It helps us live into a different rhythm than that of the world around us. Like the classic Spirograph toy from our childhood, Christians observe repetitive seasons that focus …
An earlier version of this article first appeared in Christian Citizen, Jan 12, 2021 Photo by Bruno Nascimento on Unsplash As the calendar turns and an extraordinary 2020 concludes, advertisers for gyms and weight loss programs bombard us with some version of, “A New Year, a new you!” The fitness industry’s perennial pursuit of profit based on our …
https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-35kuw-f820be Our conversation today is with Rev. Joy Martinez-Marshall, Pastor of FBC Lincoln, NE. We talk about her call to ministry, the way challenges, nay sayers, and injustice only serve to fuel her passion for ministry. Links: https://www.facebook.com/FirstBaptistChurchLincoln and http://fbclincoln.org/ FBC Lincoln https://www.facebook.com/joy.e.martinez Rev. Joy Martinez-Marshall http://campmerrill.com/ Moses Merrill Camp and Conference Center https://table-life.org/ Table …
Mission, Justice, and Comedy with Joy Martinez-Marshall Read More »