Author Archives: salooper57

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About salooper57

Husband, father, pastor, follower. I am a disciple of Jesus, learning how to do life from him. I read, write, walk, play a little guitar, enjoy my family.

The Story’s Told That Adam Jumped (But I’m Thinking That He Fell)

Posted on March 12, 2019 by salooper57

In our world, we have beauty and cruelty, hand in hand; wisdom and insanity, side by side. We have the glory of Bach coming out of Weimar, and the barbarity of Hitler coming out of the Weimar Republic. There is … Continue reading →

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The Other Problem of Pain

Posted on March 9, 2019 by salooper57

C. S. Lewis’s book, The Problem of Pain, was published in 1940. In it, Lewis responds to an argument against the existence of God that goes something like this: An all-good God would not want his creatures to suffer; an … Continue reading →

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Something Has Gone Dreadfully Wrong

Posted on March 7, 2019 by salooper57

“We often talk of man’s ‘bestial’ cruelty, but that is. . . insulting to beasts. . .” – Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov Continue reading →

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Humans Are the X-Factor: God’s Biggest Risk?

Posted on March 5, 2019 by salooper57

God has painted on a very big canvas. But do you know what the centerpiece of his creative genius is? It’s you and I, and the people around us. As far as we know (though there is much we don’t … Continue reading →

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The Difference Between Failure and Success: Learning to Pay Attention

Posted on March 2, 2019 by salooper57

I was driving on a primary north-south route before dawn. A half-mile away I could see a car coming toward me with his bright lights on. When he went down a hill and disappeared from sight, I turned my bright … Continue reading →

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The Artist

Posted on February 28, 2019 by salooper57

He paints his birds and fish and sunsets with hues so vivid and lines so bold that our most Avant Garde painters seem tame by comparison. Continue reading →

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Playing Favorites (Sermon from James 2:1-13)

Posted on February 27, 2019 by salooper57

Here is a link to the latest sermon from the James series titled Wise Up. (Total run time is 24:35.) http://clovermedia.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/store/79806b0d-0c80-4d63-83ea-040d8666d19a/7b390a18cb/audio.mp3

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A Key to Understanding Difficult Bible Passages

Posted on February 23, 2019 by salooper57

When we enter into that confluence of time, God will bring “all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.” Then the old order of things will pass away… Continue reading →

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The Old Suitcase

Posted on February 21, 2019 by salooper57

Many people come to the Bible the way I go to that suitcase. They rummage through it, looking for anything interesting or anyone they might recognize. Continue reading →

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Panorama

Posted on February 19, 2019 by salooper57

We look to the beginning, to creation, and then turn our gaze to the end, to the judgment and beyond, and at both the beginning and the end, we find the same figure. Continue reading →

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