In Genesis 31:53, Laban makes a covenant with Isaac, calling upon a nonexistant god: "The god of Nahor." Laban, an idolator and son of an idolator, profanes the title of God (אלוהי) by making it level with his own idols. 1/

November 24 I'm thankful for the start of Thanksgiving week, where we start setting up the house for the people who will join us for dinner.

November 23 I'm thankful for the delicious combination of cold weather and hot soup.

November 22 I'm thankful for the people in my life who reach out and check in on me.

If you feel like you are a good judge of good and evil, but you cannot clearly discern the difference between a righteous gay person and a wicked gay person, I have some terrible news for you.

"You can't be straight and go to heaven." In Matthew 22, Jesus tells the Sadducees that, in the resurrection, we are not given in marriage, but are like the angels. The resurrected life doesn't seem to involve sex, unless Jesus means that we'll have sex outside the confines of marriage. 1/

A recurring theme in Scripture: various kings making an irrevocable decree that someone wicked uses to lead the people of God into doom. The primary example: "Whoever doesn't bow down and worship will die." 1/

A fascinating notion from CS Lewis/Screwtape Letters: When we feel high, sexual desire is linked w/ falling in love. When feeling low, sexual desire is twisted into self-loathing. Not the case for everyone, but an interesting insight and perspective into the human condition.

Perhaps Genesis 1:1 to Genesis 2:3 is like a Table of Contents for the rest of the book. It reads like a summary of the story to unfold.

Godly conviction doesn’t place a burden of blame on your shoulders. People do that. Godly conviction tells you to love your neighbor.

Life is hard. Love harder.

The story of Adam and Eve involve two characters who were not born: one was made from the same stuff as the earth; the other was made using the first as the source of material. On the one hand, they are not like any of us. But on the other hand, they are clearly all of us.

November 21 I’m thankful for the way my wife and I work on projects together.

November 20 I’m thankful for a house full of music.

November 19 I’m thankful to have a home where four generations are regularly under our roof.

Concepts to hold together: 1: Torah is not our book about God. It is God’s book about us. 2: We always talk endlessly about the thing we love most. 3: See point 1.

Love cannot be explained outside of story. Love cannot be understood outside of experience. This is a theological post.

November 18 I'm thankful for friends who allow me to disagree, sharply at times, and yet we remain friends.

November 17 I'm thankful for birthdays, and being able to celebrate one for someone I love dearly.

When I picture Eve crying out her dead son's name, beating her chest and weeping, right after a chapter where her husband brings a curse of death on himself and all flesh, I see something: 1/

November 16 Thankful for the way a pet dog is just so happy to see you when you get home.

The greatest human achievement is Empire. We cannot build anything greater. And yet Empire always enslaves us.

November 15 I’m thankful for reconciled relationships.

November 14 Thankful for the people in my life who have created safe spaces to allow me to be vulnerable.

November 13 I’m thankful for the opportunities I have been given, and the opportunities I can give others.

Brokenness longs for wholeness.

November 12 I’m thankful for the weekly dinners that draw our three daughters (and their husband/boyfriends) home to spend time with us.

The great tragedy is that the relationships broken because of pro/anti-Trump positions will not be mended by the upcoming revelations. I suspect that many who are on the wrong side of the evidence will never come out and say "I was wrong, and I'm sorry. How do we fix this?" It's heart breaking.

When Rachel prevents Laban from finding her hidden transgression, she says that she's on her period. In Hebrew, the phrase she uses is interesting: "for the Way of Women is upon me." 1/

I really hate that I get my best story ideas while I'm driving and I can't write things down and diagram plot lines and doodle my newly imagined monsters.

November 11 I'm thankful for breaks in the rain. As much as I love gray skies, it's nice to be able to see the sun peek through at times.

When you peel back all the superficial layers, every beautiful or hideous human face is merely a skull, largely indistinguishable from every other skull. Memento Mori. Remember you are dying. Love your neighbor without partiality.

November 10 I’m thankful for the people in my life who served as examples for me to either emulate or avoid.

November 9 Thankful for the lessons I've learned as a parent that (hopefully!) will help me be a good grandparent.

Cain offered God a gift that God did not accept. In Jesus, maybe we see God offering Cain a gift that Cain will not accept. Perhaps this is a theological echo.

Maybe this is a precursor to the destroying angel who passed over the homes in the Israelites in Egypt. Maybe Rachel’s blood points to the blood on the door posts that covered the presence of sin.

November 8 I’m thankful for morning coffee time with my wife.

If you, a Christian, study the Torah and the rest of the Hebrew Scriptures the way Jewish scholars study the Torah, you may end up encountering a rather biblical kind of Jesus. Hope that helps.

A: In the Kingdom, the first shall be last and the last shall be first. B: The Kingdom is here. 1/

November 7 I’m thankful that our children know that we love them.

Using Genesis 31:33, please diagram the arrangement of the tents, or parse out the order of events and see if you can make sense of it. How are the tents arranged?

November 6 I'm thankful for the career paths that have opened up in my life, and that I've been given the opportunity to share the same opportunities with other people.

Last week, I attended a zoom meeting that centered around the idea of Gentlemen. But actually, Gentle Men. The topic is rooted in kicking against the "warrior-man" ethos, and addresses the hidden shame that men feel for not being "enough." 1/

November 5 I'm thankful for small things that make me laugh.

My wife decided to buy a large supply of both Charmin Ultra Soft and Ultra Strong toilet paper and *mix them up,* so every other trip to the bathroom is an adventure now.

There is a view among the Rabbis that Genesis 31:32 is the cause of Rachel's death in chapter 35. Because she did possess the idols/teraphim in question, she fell under Jacob's curse and was doomed to die. I disagree. 1/

Arguably one of the funniest passages in the whole Bible.

November 4 Thankful for the mild weather of the Pacific Northwest.

Those who have Hope can maintain these paradoxical truths: You are flesh, and you are spirit. You are dying, you will live forever.

My dear theobros - If you want to reign as Christ will reign, you’re going to have to live as Christ lived. And you’re going to have to die as Christ died. I don’t make the rules.