by Barry Creamer | Sep 21, 2022 | Devotionals
Mowing a strip of grass beside the alley behind my house, I nudge against a low, dead stump. The fungus I did not formerly notice erupts, producing a shockingly dense plume of ashen spores. The release continues for several seconds, a gentle breeze wafting the cloud...
by Barry Creamer | Sep 14, 2022 | Devotionals
I spend Sunday morning this weekend at a church I have never previously served a couple of hours east of Dallas. As is to be expected for a first worship time together, all is well. After lingering in conversation with some congregants and church leadership, I pile...
by Daisy Reynolds | Sep 14, 2022
What do drooling on one’s beard and finding victory through praise have to do with one another, you may ask? Barry talks about the background of Psalm 34 and the elements that lead to heartfelt praise: Praise rises when need becomes faith, faith becomes hope, and hope...
by Barry Creamer | Sep 7, 2022 | Devotionals
The west Texas of my earliest childhood is desert. Green grass and trees taller than children erupt only where wells peek into the water table and pipes or channels distribute the benefit. Nearby sandhills, reminiscent of Mojave dunes, emphasize the region’s...
by Daisy Reynolds | Sep 7, 2022
Have you noticed how many times you can repeat the same argument with your loved one and the outcome never change? Barry talks about seeing the structures or system behind a particular argument/situation in order to bring about lasting change. Link to...
by Barry Creamer | Aug 31, 2022 | Devotionals
Papa (paw’paw’) is my closest grandparent. From my earliest years even I notice he treats me like the lost dauphin. When I stay with him, I get whatever I want, which is, as it turns out, mostly just to stay with him. Some of Papa’s edges are not just rough but gone....
by Daisy Reynolds | Aug 31, 2022
Information may be freer, but truth—not so much. Barry describes how we can see the truth and cling to it, while also improving our Spidey sense to recognize when something is wrong with the words we have received. Scripture: 1 Samuel 28 Philippians 1...
by Barry Creamer | Aug 24, 2022 | Devotionals
When he seeks refuge at the cave of Adullam, David’s legitimately earned reputation is already mythic: shepherd-protector of his father’s flocks, hero of Elah’s valley, and ten times over the greater warrior than king Saul. Saul’s own daughter and son are more loyal...
by Daisy Reynolds | Aug 24, 2022
The modern and existential paradigms seem worlds apart, and neither is necessarily better than the other—so how do the different paradigm-holders connect with each other? The life change described in Psalm 32 is a great place to start. Scriptures:...
by Daisy Reynolds | Aug 17, 2022
In our second part of the In Bad Faith series, Barry provides another example of when the result of our faith’s practice contradicts its real end: inequality vs complementarity. Scripture: Genesis 2:18-25 Referenced Episode: In Bad Faith: Part 1 (Ep...
