Devotionals from South Durham Church
Over the past 20 years, book after book has been published on the decline of social life in America. From Robert Putnam’s Bowling Alone to Sherry Turkle’s Alone Together to Yuval Levin’s The Fractured Republic, many people have been trying to help us understand the problem. It’s not only books. Magazines like The Atlantic are […]
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God… —Colossians 1:1 An apostle is literally, in the Greek, a “sent one”—an official, authorized messenger. Not this Sunday but the next, we’ll begin a sermon series through the book of Colossians. Before it was a book of the Bible, Colossians was a letter written […]
When Mary came to Joseph to announce her pregnancy, Joseph was ready to break off their betrothal. Mary, it seemed, had been unfaithful. He knew it was not his child. But an angel of the Lord got involved. The angel came to Joseph in a dream and said: Joseph, son of David, do not fear […]
As I write this, the state funeral of President George H. W. Bush is on TV in the lobby of the downtown Durham hotel where I sit. As the President’s casket is brought into the cathedral, I’m struck by two things. One is the universality of human frailty. A Commander-in-Chief has died. We are all […]
“Whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” —Jesus Christ, Mark 10:43–45 Are you willing to become […]
And the Spirit told me to go with them, making no distinction. —Peter, Acts 11:12 God welcomes all people in Christ.