Correlations a poem for May 27, 2026 The proximity of gladiators to the center of one’s society is directly proportional to its distance from the brink of oblivion. The nearer our feet to the shoes of our neighbor and our hands to the towel and basin, the closer we are to seeing the face of God.

The book of Acts doesn't just follow one person's journey or actions, but traces how the Spirit works through many people in different directions at the same time. God is at the center of that story, and it has room for each of us. youtu.be/YlmCssXz-rs

Emperors like Caesar are so insecure about themselves and their legacies that they need to build monuments and stage gladiator fights to try and convince people they are powerful. The Spirit shows us that Jesus is Lord from a cross. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/the-...

Good morning to the play of light and shadow on the early morning clouds in the east over the world that God loves…

Good evening to the cottonwood seed caught between two white rosebuds waiting to open for the world that God loves…

Hey friends! A new week brings a new episode of our weekly podcast, "Crazy Faith Talk," so listen in here! How do we hold different images and metaphors for God together, and how do they develop over the course of the biblical record? open.spotify.com/episode/1W2L...

The old way of living in the world--divided and segregated and isolated from one another, viewing the other with suspicion and fear--is coming to an end. God has begun a new order of the day, taking shape right before our very eyes. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/new-...

Word for the Week: (for Holy Trinity Sunday) The same God who is beyond our comprehension shares our life in Jesus and dwells in us by the Spirit. #WordForTheWeek

To say that God is "triune" or Three Persons in One Being can sound like a lot of complicated theological jargon to modern ears. But it's really a way of saying that the same God who is BEYOND us has also come to be WITH us, and indeed to dwell IN us--all at the same time. youtu.be/Rbr8nC_6ez4

From today’s reading in Wendell Berry’s “Citizenship Papers” (2003): “One’s obligation to oneself cannot be isolated from one’s obligation to everything else. The whole thing is balanced on the verb ‘to love’. Love for oneself finds its only efficacy in love for everything else.”

God deliberately brings about a miracle that meets everybody where they are, speaking their own language rather than insisting that they all learn one chosen language first in order to belong. And God does that because that's the nature of the Gospel. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/a-pe...

Good afternoon to the columbine blossom looking down at the world that God loves…

Tell Me a poem for May 24, 2026

From this afternoon’s reading in Wendell Berry; here, from his “Thoughts in the Presence of Fear”: “The key to peaceableness is continuous practice.”

Good afternoon to the raindrops suspended on the new yew leaves reaching for the light in the world that God loves…

The world didn't stop being a scary, possibly dangerous place. But Jesus' disciples are changed--they are given a borrowed courage to see things wider, bigger, further out and including more and more and more... all the way to the ends of the earth. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/ever...

Tonight’s completion: Jesus Contemplating His World

Good evening to the underside of the mushrooms growing on a broken branch on the ground here in the world that God loves…

Good morning to the dogwoods blossoming outside the church as we begin a new day in the world that God loves…

Good afternoon to the comfrey blossoms beginning to attract bees to our part of the world that God loves…

The first followers of Jesus knew that they needed to be with each other, not just for the climactic moments of history, but for the ordinary daily routines of life, which are the times that form the kind of people we are in the big decisive moments. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/real...

A pleasant Bow Tie Thursday to you all, wherever you are…

Good afternoon to the salvia blossoms offering their deep purple color to the world that God loves…

We are not scattered into the world alone, either, with no hope of homecoming. We do the work to which we are called today, and for as long as it is ours to do it, but with the assurance that we will be welcomed back to the family table in time for supper. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/home...

Jesus just isn't interested in "taking his country back for God" with weapons and wealth, but instead inaugurates God's Reign in the self-giving love of a cross and empty tomb, and he entrusts us with sharing that news with eveyone. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/thes...

Hey friends! We've got a brand-new series starting on our weekly podcast, "Crazy Faith Talk." Join us for the first episode in a new series, "A Faith of Both Testaments"! open.spotify.com/episode/3WCG...

There's never been an easy time to be the church. The earliest followers of Jesus had to figure out on the fly how to move where the Spirit was leading, how to hold together across distances, and how to persevere even when the powers of the day threatened them. youtu.be/_TwzoA6OCRA

Good morning to the sun staring at me beneath the clouds that hang like a furrowed brow giving an intense look at the goings on of the world that God loves…

Good morning to the ant waiting in stillness on the edge of a leaf as the sky brightens over the world that God loves…

In a time when so many other Big Deals and So-and-Sos seem to care only about their own interests, saving their own skin, or managing their own fortunes, Jesus is more concerned about the likes of us. That kind of love is mind-boggling. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/what...

Good afternoon to the delicate woodruff blossoms still looking up the sky as thunder rumbles over this part of the world that God loves…

Word for the Week: (drawn from John 20:19-23) God’s Spirit dwells within you as close as your own breath. #WordForTheWeek

As the opening poetry of Genesis puts it, in the beginning, God's Spirit broods over the void like a wind over the waters, bringing forth creation from chaos. As the story of Pentecost puts it, the Spirit moves again like the wind bringing a whole new creation--including us. youtu.be/woHOi9MOiVc

Confirmation a poem for May 18, 2026

A little late to the party, but read Goldenrod by Maggie Smith today, and it was absolutely lovely. Grateful for her voice and insight.

The life we call "eternal" is about relationship, and the way that relationship changes everything else. This is the life that Jesus gives us. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/qual...

Good morning to the lingering fog beneath the evergreens, as its misty blanket waits to dissolve in the dawn of a new day in the world that God loves…

Good afternoon to the lavender waiting to open and offer its namesake color to the world that God loves…

Good morning to the ants taking a springtime stroll among the blossoms, like me, each of us on our ways through the world that God loves…

The resurrection is a sign that Rome's rule is not permanent, and that the powers of the day will not last, no matter how much they bluster. The resurrection confirms Jesus' agenda as well as his authority. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/a-wo...

Good morning to the quilted blanket of clouds pulled up over the sleepy world that God loves…

And another Bow Tie Thursday is begun…

Ascension a poem for May 14, 2026

To hear the New Testament tell it, once you start making gold or silver statues as objects of devotion, it's a sure sign you have lost sight of the living God. Instead, God chose to be tangible in the flesh and blood of humanity--in Jesus himself. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/the-...

Good morning to the raindrops still clinging to the coreopsis blossom that faces the light of the sun rising over the world that God loves…

Unpainted Roses a poem for May 12, 2026

When we take seriously the Scriptures' claim that all people everywhere belong to a common human family, and that God's intention is to reach all of us with the love and news of Jesus, we can no longer accept the faulty "Me and My Group First" mindset. beinggraced.blogspot.com/2026/05/gods...

Good afternoon to the white petals still clinging to the stems after the cold night last night gave way to this day in the world that God loves…

Hey friends! Join us for this concluding episode in our series, "Why Our End Times Theology Matters" here on Crazy Faith Talk! open.spotify.com/episode/3jJZ...