Crumbs from the Table

Halloween aside, today, 31 October, is Reformation Day.  This date commemorates the day when, in 1517, on the eve of All Saints Day, a young monk and theology lecturer, Martin Luther, according to the custom of the time, nailed 95 theses to the Cathedral door at Wittenberg, inviting debate.  The content of the 95 theses was, in some ways, not that subversive. For example, it begins by saying that repentance is not just about going to confession and performing the acts of penitence prescribed by the priest, but about heartfelt contrition and a life of repentance. However, Luther's actions in 1517 set in motion debate that eventually led, in 1521, to him and others being excluded from the Roman Catholic church and becoming a separate gospel church (German: Evangelisch ). Luther's "brand" of Reformation involved only minimal change to the outward appearance of churches, and focused on the internal message of the gospel, in particular the good news of justification by fai

 A question often asked by new Christians is how God can be part of everyday life. Here is a list with some of my suggestions:  1. Life in prayer. Get into the habit of regular prayer. Make a time for daily prayer (often this will be first thing in the morning). Also get into the habit of responding in prayer throughout the day as you go about your daily business (James 5:13). All of our lives are lived "before God"; one Christian wrote about this as "practising the presence of God. Prayer is not only about presenting requests, but also about giving thanks and praising/worshipping God.  2. "Manna". Just as the children of Israel were fed in the wilderness with a daily provision of manna from heaven, so as Christians we need to feed on God's word on a daily basis. In my experience, this will involve focusing on a verse or word relevant for each day.  3. Household table. A recurring feature in the teaching of the Apostles (written down in our New Testament) i

"One must face the fact that all the talk about His love for men, and His service being perfect freedom, is not (as one would gladly believe) mere propaganda, but an appalling truth. He really does want to fill the universe with a lot of loathsome little replicas of Himself – creatures whose life, on its miniature scale, will be qualitatively like His own, not because He has absorbed them but because their wills freely conform to His. We want cattle who can finally become food; He wants servants who can finally become sons. We want to suck in, He wants to give out. We are empty and would be filled; He is full and flows over.” Screwtape Letters, CS Lewis