DAILY READING Galatians 6:14 & 17   Reflection: Countercultural By Todd Marti “ May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world .”   ***   “. . .   I bear on my body the marks of Jesus .” Galatians 6:14 , 17  (NIV)   These statements from Saint Paul call us to an intensely countercultural world view. That becomes evident when we consider the Greek underlying them and the context in which they were written. ...

DAILY READING Acts 7:54-60 ; Jude 17-25 & Ephesians 6:10-18 REFLECTION   Responding to Distortions & Attacks By Todd Marti As I dug into today’s reading, I was struck by its similarity to yesterday’s reading, Jude 17-25 . I was also struck by how both readings parallel Ephesians 6:10-18 . Given that God often repeats Himself  when He communicates key precepts, it strikes me that we should spend some time looking at the directions given in all three of those scriptures. Initially, it is...

DAILY READING James 1:17-18 REFLECTION   Being First Fruits By Todd Marti “ Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures .” James 1:17-18 (NASB, other translations here ) This week’s readings have shown how God extends his grace to us through Jesus , and  ...