January 2016 - UNIVERSAL FAMILY

My germinating podcast, Toastmasters, and the drama of public speaking

January 22, 2016 by Jeff

During recent weeks, I have been too involved with other projects to sustain my previous pattern of blogging roughly every week. I have accepted a new teaching opportunity, joined Toastmasters to learn about their program in public speaking, and began working to create a podcast. This combination of new activities has been challenging and growth-stimulating; … Read more

Revisit Galilee (revised)

A dozen years ago I went with about twenty-five believers on a pilgrimage to Israel and beyond. I was greatly moved to discover how seeing places of Jesus’ ministry enabled me to remember, ponder, interpret, and commune. One thing that I brought back home was a placemat which I have on the dinner table. It […]

Jesus’ Scientific Knowledge: Scientific Living and Spiritual Living in the Teaching of Jesus

Jesus was not only an idealist. He was also a realist. He had his feet on the ground, and his knowledge of facts was excellent. And excellent knowledge includes some scientific knowledge. I believe that as the human Jesus grew up, he learned to be Watch the 3:50 video or listen to the podcast episode. […]

The Treasure in your Field

The kingdom of God is like treasure hidden in a field that a man found. He covered it up again, and in his joy he went out and sold everything he had and bought that field. What was this treasure in the field? I think it’s what Jesus was talking about when he said, “The […]

A man with a funnel in his head

A few years ago, on several occasions, when I looked out from the window in my study, I would see, across the street, my tall neighbor standing in the middle of his front yard. His little girl, about two years old, was running around in the yard, staying fairly close to him. Every few minutes, […]

A workshop, a reflection on truth and love, and a correction

There is some business that I want to mention at the end of this post, and it connects directly with some of the most important teachings of Jesus. Here is the question that I want to answer today. Jesus taught that we should love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength—and our neighbor […]

With all our strength

I’ve been on a quest to live–and write about–loving God with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength. Yesterday I sent to my editor friend a revised section on strength. She discovered weaknesses in it. It didn’t take long for me to realize (this is a pattern) that she had uncovered a fresh, hungry need […]

Faith child

The faith of a little child not only enables us to join the kingdom family of God, it also continues to guide us as we progress. Jesus’s teachings and interactions on this theme are marked by a wonderful simplicity. And the variety of these teachings touches on several concepts that are part of the whole […]

Sean finds God

A 21-year-old computer whiz embraced the concept of the wonderfulness within, but rejected the idea of the spirit of God within–until two weeks ago. How did philosophy help? Watch the 9-minute video or listen to the podcast episode. For the video, I simplified the philosophy so much it’s hardly recognizable. I have organized some ideas […]

Falling across the Pentecost finish line

After acknowledging the failure of an experiment in the last class meeting (falling across the finish line), I summarize a five-week class, "The Journey from Easter to Pentecost." Then I distinguish garden-variety spiritual experience from the taste-and-see variety. The post Falling across the Pentecost finish line appeared first on UNIVERSAL FAMILY.

The Journey from Easter to Pentecost

"Lazarus, come forth!" Imagine Jesus saying this to you, and you saying this to others. Here's class that has embarked on that venture. The post The Journey from Easter to Pentecost appeared first on UNIVERSAL FAMILY.