How is it that we freely do so many things we despise?  Perhaps we’re not so free after all.

In Shooting an Elephant, we have a haunting, brutally honest confession of a powerful man, powerless to do what he knew was right.  This wonderfully written little essay by George Orwell serves as a rich mountain for us to mine; providing the coal to fire a discussion of our own powerlessness in the face of unending societal pressure.  I hope that, as we gather for this Sunday’s roundtable, we’d be as sober in our assessments of ourselves and as unflinching in our pursuit of the honest truth.  Are you tired of shooting elephants?

 

Follow this link to read “Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell.

March 4, 2018

Matthew 20:17-19

17 And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them, 18 “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death 19 and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.”

The same fire that heats your home can burn it down.

Passion is a blessing from God and few would want to try and live and love without it.  But the same passion that can stir your heart can break it as well.  In Austen’s Powers, Jennifer Farrara compares the passions of two of literature’s most famous leading men and offers many reflections into matters of love, romance, marriage, and our relationship with God.  Some of Farrara’s insights are a little provocative and I’m not sure I share all of her convictions.  That said, I think there’s a lot here that merits discussion and there’s much to apply to our relationships with each other and the Lord.  Please take time to read the article and consider joining us for a roundtable discussion of it this Sunday morning at 8:30 in room #208 in the Family Life Center.  Hot coffee and a homemade treat will greet you at the door!

Click Here to read the article for Week 1

February 25, 2018

1 Peter 5:6-11

6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 11 To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

February 18, 2018

John 12:44-50

44 And Jesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. 45 And whoever sees me sees him who sent me. 46 I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness. 47 If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. 48 The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day. 49 For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak. 50 And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.”