The Hermit and the Blackbird
By Donavon Riley
03/27/26
11mins

The Hermit and the Blackbird

Lent exists because we are forgetful creatures. We forget how hungry we really are.
Getting Over Your Moral Superiority
Daniel Emery Price
Daniel Emery Price
03/26/26

Getting Over Your Moral Superiority

The Pharisee valued fasting and giving tithes, but could not find value in his fellow sinner.
The Original Sin of Preaching: The Constant Craving for a Useful God in Pulpit and Pew
Magnus Persson
Magnus Persson
03/25/26

The Original Sin of Preaching: The Constant Craving for a Useful God in Pulpit and Pew

God is not a tool in our hands. He does not exist to serve our goals, our metrics, or our platforms.

All Articles

Chad Bird
Chad Bird
10/12/18

Whose Bones are Buried Beneath the Cross?

Let’s take a walk together. And as we do, I’ll tell you a mystery.
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
10/02/18

Two Kings, Two Kingdoms

We are caught up in a battle between two kings and two kingdoms. And, whether we like it or not, we are ruled by one king or the other.
Jake Allstaedt
Jake Allstaedt
09/28/18

It Never Depended Upon You

I visited a senior man at his home the other day. I'll refer to him as “Jim.”
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
09/25/18

I’d Never Go to That Church

Would you go to the church on the corner knowing that the pastor is an ex-con?
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
09/08/18

Do I Even Matter in this World?

As every nail that Jesus hammered was a delight to his Father, so every email you send, every purchase you ring up, every table you wipe down, is a delight to the Father.
Gretchen Ronnevik
Gretchen Ronnevik
09/04/18

Grace for When You Can't Forgive

She was my friend, walking through marriage troubles. Her husband was unfaithful to her, with the technicalities and carefully drawn lines of “not technically sex” and justifying himself, which had wounded her deeply.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
08/25/18

Our Retribution Shrines: Why Forgiving Others Hurts Like Religion

For on the other side of the death of forgiveness is the resurrection of joy. An easter in which we emerge from the tomb in the arms of the man whose scars glow with mercy.
Robert Kolb
Robert Kolb
08/24/18

Every Preacher, A Translator

Prechers translate as a calling. Called by God, they are given a message, and for most of their hearers it is to one degree or another a message in a language from afar, with strange concepts, sometimes with a more familiar ring, sometimes with a strange sound.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
08/03/18

We Don't Need "Worship Options" on Sunday Morning

The church is a home for the family of God. It’s not a mall, a café, a coffee shop, or Amazon. It’s where we usually don’t get what we want, but what we need.
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
07/31/18

Set Free to Forgive and Love

Jesus dies for the sin of the world. That means he dies for the person who disappoints us. He shed His blood for the person who doesn’t love us the way we want to be loved.
Joel Hess
Joel Hess
07/26/18

Why Church is For You

All other wonderful teachings of Holy Scripture from creation to Christ’s coming again are absolutely worthless without being understood in light of Jesus, death, and resurrection for sinners.
Cindy Koch
Cindy Koch
07/19/18

Worth Your Meditation

Our meditation listens to the King of Kings when He says; it is finished.
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