Our lives are lived out in a rich cultural framework that has been created for us by the genius and hard work of countless men and women. We know this, even if we are often blind to the fact, or simply incurious about who it is we are indebted to.
Is there a God who embraces us when we cry out in the darkness, or is there just the empty echo of our own voices? Screenwriter Joe Eszterhas has found a surprising answer to that question.
Juno is not in any obvious way a Christian movie, except in its celebration of the miracle of life and our deep longing for a love-centered, lasting relationship with someone who sees us just as we are, and wants us anyway.
God has not made us all equal, but he has given every one of us a unique set of abilities and opportunities. We get to choose whether to use those things boldly, or timidly.
In 1913, former President Theodore Roosevelt began an expedition down an unknown river in the heart of the Amazon that would test the character of every member of his team.
Consumers and media producers are involved in a continuing cat and mouse game, in which ever more complex and restrictive systems are created to protect intellectual rights, only to be broken by clever, and frustrated, consumers who want full benefit from the products they have purchased.
The thing about Unitas was, he played for the team. In the huddle, he always asked for ideas from the other players. He always wanted to know who needed a little help from the rest of the team. On field and off, those old Colts talk about being a family. They were there for each other, and in the long years after the glory of those days had faded, they continued to be there for each other in times of trial and hardship, as old age and the assaults of life took their toll.
I suspect Michael Fox has thought a lot about God since he first received his diagnosis. Perhaps he has even wondered, as many have in his place, how a good and loving Father could allow his children to suffer so terribly.
Flamenco is joyous music, but bittersweet — joy in the midst of a life filled with sorrow and uncertainty. Music connected to the passionate heart of God.
Third Day concerts are joyous affairs. Everywhere arms were raised in praise. It reminded me of an old-time tent revival -- sinners all, lead singer Mac Powell invited us to lay our burdens at the foot of the cross and drink deep from the well of forgiveness in Christ.
Messiah is one of George Frideric Handel's greatest musical creations, and arguably the greatest piece of Christian music ever written. The Hallelujah Chorus is instantly recognizable, even by those who do not consider themselves members of the Christian faith. Messiah has become a part of our Christian cultural heritage.
Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt is Anne Rice's beautiful and meticulously researched story of the young Jesus Christ, the child who would become the Redeemer.
You always knew when you saw Johnny Cash sing that he had made his way down to the church altar more than once, to kneel and weep and ask Jesus to wash him clean. That's the part of the story that Walk The Line, the new film about Johnny Cash's life, doesn't tell.
Add to the Beauty is a wonderful collection of music about living a redeemed life, a life that isn't always pretty, but is always washed over by the miracle of God's grace.
The Ebenezer stone represented a fresh beginning, a reversal of course for God's people. It also said something important about God: his mercies are everlasting; his covenant is forever.
Sara Grove's music is at times edgy and dissonant, like life. She puts her heart and faith out there, naked, and says, "Well, here it is. I'm trying to figure this out. Maybe in my honesty, you'll see yourself, and you'll see God at work in the two of us."
God has placed among us men and women with unusual insight—artists, poets, musicians. They have the ability to lift our hearts in worship, to help us see God.
How can we, who have benefited so lavishly from their sacrifices, ever adequately honor what they did to alter history, to preserve liberty, and to restore justice to a period of terrible human suffering?
To be like Jesus requires more than simply answering the question: "What would Jesus do?" It requires us to build into our daily lives the same spiritual disciplines that he relied on: prayer, meditation, fasting, etc. These are hard things, but there is a payoff: rest, an "easy yoke", and our burdens shouldered by the living God.
In an effort to separate Jesus mythology from Jesus fact, Philip Yancey examines his own preconceptions about Jesus and how they measure up against the Gospel accounts.
