Tongues of Fire & Breath of God
By Donavon Riley
06/27/25
11mins

Tongues of Fire & Breath of God

The Church speaks not with the cleverness of men, but with the breath of God.
Dignity is not Enough: Thinking Biblically About Assisted Dying
Amy Mantravadi
Amy Mantravadi
06/26/25

Dignity is not Enough: Thinking Biblically About Assisted Dying

I always imagined dying a faithful death for Christ would mean burning at the stake. Now, I suspect it will mean dying in my bed of natural causes.
Sigh, Cry, and Be Still
1517 Staff
1517 Staff
06/25/25

Sigh, Cry, and Be Still

How many times in our lifetime must we sigh, floundering through this world with our sins, sorrows, struggles, frustrations, fears, and foes?

All Articles

Jessica Thompson
Jessica Thompson
06/28/14

I'll Get the Tip

It was happening again. I sat across from my dear friend at one of our favorite restaurants. We were finishing our glass of wine and eating the end of the sushi when the waitress approached.
Steve Byrnes
Steve Byrnes
06/19/14

Lazarus, Loss, and Regret

“Now, a certain man was sick...” Rick was kind. He knew my name before I knew his. The few times we talked, I felt like I should get to know this guy. I had actually planned to strike up a conversation the next time I saw him at church.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
06/13/14

How to Reach Your Full Human Potential

How will they reach this magical moment, this milestone on the journey of life? Perhaps by chasing their dreams, pursuing their passions with a heart wholly devoted to the attainment of whatever goals they set for themselves in life?
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
06/09/14

A Conversation with Jesus About Genesis 1

In the beginning I was the Word, and I as Word was the Beginning. By me all things were created, both in the heavens and in the earth, visible and invisible. All things have been created by me and for me (Colossians 1:16). Therefore, already in the opening word of the Hebrew Bible, Bereshith, I am.
Steve Byrnes
Steve Byrnes
06/04/14

Christless Christianity in Church

I’ve come to realize at the tender age of 47 that sometimes church doesn’t work.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
06/03/14

I'll Teach You the Whole Law While Standing on One Foot

We have violated not that of which we are ignorant, but that of which we are fully aware. If you want proof, simply look at how well we attempt to cover up our evil deeds.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
05/23/14

Call Me Lazarus...One Year Later

I was angry at heaven, at earth, and everything in between, for my life and my love and my hopes had all gone wrong, terribly, irreversibly, wrong.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
05/15/14

Bows, Arrows, and Baptismal Fonts: The Significance of the Rainbow in the Bible

The instrument of execution has been changed into an emblem of peace--a hawk become a dove, a sword hammered into a plowshare. Now every time God sees His bow, He who never forgets will nevertheless remember His oath never to draw it again to punish the earth by a cosmopolitan flood.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
05/12/14

What's So Wrong with a Golden Calf? What Happens When We Make Our Own Ways to God

So the law was shattered, our icon was becoming urine and dung inside our guts, and lots of bloody corpses littered our camp. All this because we decided that it was okay for us to choose how we approach God.
Mark Pierson
Mark Pierson
05/09/14

Burial of Jesus and Bart Ehrman

If you haven't seen this video clip yet (and even if you have), it's worth watching (again) regardless of your taste for Colbert's style of humor. In it, he trounces the typically smug fundamentalist-turned-liberal Bible scholar Bart Ehrman, who is so used to being fawned over by members of the media that Colbert's defiance leaves him at a near loss for words.
Steve Byrnes
Steve Byrnes
05/05/14

Christian Drinking: Wine that Overflows

The wine of communion is a gift from God and the blood of Christ we receive at the rail an inebriant that encourages and frees us.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
04/12/14

What Would You Want for Your Last Meal?

I am lord of all I eat. I lord it over meat, potatoes, pecan pie. I make those foods serve my body, transforming them into me. But it is not so with the meal of Jesus.
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