The Prodigal Life

Throughout Scripture we see leaders and prayer warriors walk, pray, and listen for what God is doing and desires to do. -        Caleb and Joshua helped spy out the promised land in Numbers 13 -        Nehemiah rode around the city of Jerusalem praying and assessing the work to which God had called them (Nehemiah 1). -        Paul wandered around the city of Athens making spiritual observations and allowing the Holy Spirit to disturb his heart about the false gods and idol worship in the city (Acts 17). Ways we may hear from God during a prayer walk: -        A passage of Scripture comes to mind -        A song or poem or sometimes even just one word keeps coming to mind -        You may notice things you’ve never noticed before or you may see patterns or themes that stand out to you - ...

"You have your mom's hands!" I looked down at my hands, unsure what to say. It was the second time someone said those words last weekend. I noticed my long, thin fingers and knobby knuckles, slightly deformed from jammed fingers, childhood adventures, and a few years of rock climbing. One of my fingers points slightly to the left. I'm not sure when that happened, but I am sure it came from a stubborn, competitive attempt to win at some childhood game or dare. My mom's hands are neither small nor large. They always seemed just the right size to me. She, too, has knobby knuckles from childhood games, teenage adventures, and hard work on the farm. I remember a story Mom told me once about getting a jammed finger while playing (I think at school and I think the game was tetherball). The nurse put her finger in a a jar of some antiseptic or peroxide and Mom's finger swelled to the point she couldn't get her finger out of the jar. Mom's hands are not rough...

The Story Project was created by Shin Maang  as a creative way to engage students with stories from Scripture where Jesus enters into places of pain and brokenness to bring healing and hope. At Radford I have been using this mural to help students journey through Jesus' ministry and challenge them to invite Jesus into the places of pain in their own lives. This week I sat with four students in the corner of Young Hall for our weekly "Core" gathering. I pointed to the woman dressed in red in the lower right corner of the mural. I asked if any of them had an idea what story this might be portraying. One or two students had some guesses but the rest had puzzled looks on their faces. "This woman was caught in adultery and brought to Jesus," I explained as I handed out copies of John 8. As the students read the story, a lively conversation ensued among the students. "This woman is just being used by the Pharisees for their set-up plan against Jesus!" on...

I arrived for our weekly Intervarsity gathering surprised to see chairs set up and Jack waiting eagerly. "I set up all the chairs and I was really hoping there would be more people than last week! Last week was so great!" Jack said as he excitedly put together our Intervarsity banner. I affirmed his work and his enthusiasm... then we sat down... and waited... ten minutes went by. Fifteen. I checked my phone to see if any other students texted. Both Jack and I looked up in anticipation every time the door opened, only to sink back in our seats as one student after another walked through to some other meeting. I became very aware of the large size of the circle of chairs. "Well," I turned to Jack. "Let's go ahead and talk about Exodus." (Jack and I have been reading Exodus during our weekly discipleship meetings). But even that felt risky. When I was preparing for our discipleship time, I wondered how I would help Jack apply Exodus 5 to his life. It ju...