Jesus centers God’s purpose and hopes for marriage from the beginning of our species. He recenters the radical nature of marriage, the “one flesh-ness” of it.

What continues to make the difference in structures as big as governments and as small as relationships are those people who have been influenced by Jesus and in response influence others for the good of all.

Any public policy, or Sunday preaching that tells you it’s based on the values of Jesus and doesn’t address poverty, inequity, human dignity, and is unrepentant for previous missed marks is “earthly.”

Thank God for those in our midst who have Isaiah’s gift- those who have strength, clarity and compassion enough to lend because they themselves have been sustained by others and the One who is “…the giver of every good gift.”

Exploitation and manipulation of any person is an offense to God. But, according to Scripture, the exploitation and manipulation of the poor particularly displeases God.

Here’s to the men and women who: work long hours, serve and protect, go the extra mile, dig the ditches, stay on their feet all day, build, heal, teach, plant and harvest.

God is political but not partisan! That’s important for followers of Jesus to remember as we make our way to November.

It’s possible to be awash in information while only possessing a drip of insight. Information is about volume, insight is about the depth of knowing.

Our faithfulness isn’t measured by us becoming a perfect replica of God, our faithfulness is measured in choosing to make God’s ways our aspiration especially when life is most trying.

Remembering that God is my firm foundation is one way God has continued to show me to trust without hesitation. The lesson in this passage is to trust God in every capacity of life.