When I turned the first pages of Anthony Doerr's Cloud Cuckoo Land, I wasn't sure what to expect. I had received the book, along with Kate Quinn's The Rose Code, as birthday gifts from my mom. She chose the titles from a list on The Gospel Coalition website: TGC Editorial Staff: Books We Enjoyed in 2022.… Continue reading TGC’s Spicy Book Picks
Tag: love
St. Valentine and the Tyranny of Aphrodite
Today is February 14 -- the day history tells us St. Valentine was martyred. It also marks 51 days since retail stores were stocked with heart-shaped boxes of chocolate, shiny red balloons, innumerable stuffed animals, and enough Hallmark cards to provide kitschy reading material for even the longest winter. Of course, since St. Valentine is… Continue reading St. Valentine and the Tyranny of Aphrodite
Who Can You Trust?
"Everybody lies." My nineteen-year-old eyes widened as I listened, speechless. How could my fiancé excuse his dishonesty like that? How could he think that way? He was a Christian. We read the Bible together. I trusted him. How could he lie to me? In the aftermath of my teenage betrayal, I was baptized into adulthood… Continue reading Who Can You Trust?
Love is a Tree in Winter
Love is a tree that shimmers verdant light on those who rest in its green shade. It is safety and rest. Love is the home we always long for, even when we sit in our living rooms, feet propped up on the coffee table. Sometimes, love finds us. We open our closet doors one morning… Continue reading Love is a Tree in Winter
Bonhoeffer and the Under-Estimated Human Example
Earlier this week, I reached mentally for the source of a passage I’d recently read on the importance of example. I could not remember where the bit of writing came from, but tonight I stumbled across it in a seminary class forum. Of course, the passage came from Bonhoeffer. The church is the church only… Continue reading Bonhoeffer and the Under-Estimated Human Example