Jon C. Swanson's Blog, page 308

I need a campfire.

I have a bunch of topics for this post. There is a list. You may see some of them. But as I was going through a pile of notes today, I found a to-do list with “We need campfires” written haphazardly on the page.

I wrote it while in the middle of a conversation with a friend. We were talking about how to help the lessons of a recent trip resonate through the lives of the 30 teens and adults who traveled together. He talked about the conversations by the campfire during the trip. And I wrote, “W...

Looking for conversations with God.

We talk about prayer as conversations with God. Sometimes we wish that we could hear both sides of the conversation, instead of just our own. One way that we can understand these conversations a little better is to read the accounts of others. There are a few of these conversations in the Old Testament. And, assuming that prayer is talking with God and that Jesus is God, every time there is a conversation between Jesus and one of the disciples, or the Pharisees, or some person that Jesus is h...

In praise of being unoriginal

Paul is writing to his apprentice. It’s likely his last letter, his address at Timothy’s commencement. It’s the speech where every instruction matters, every emotion is raw.

Paul’s words are what no self-respecting American commencement speaker would say.

“What you heard from me,” Paul tells Timothy, “keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus.” A few sentences later Paul writes, “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to r...

Hypothetical willingness

We were finishing talking about 1 Corinthians. It was the end of an eight-month study with a group of men. We were talking about making a difference by expressing love in life-threatening ways. We were talking about the Ebola outbreak in western Africa.

Ebola is a scary disease. No known cure. Spreads crazy fast (every person infected likely means four more people being infected.) Causes death in 60-90% of cases.

We were talking about the role of God’s people in running hospitals, providing tre...

More on helping you read the Bible

This is part two of a conversation about reading the Bible that we started yesterday.

Second, schedule the conversation.

Recently, I started setting the chair time on my calendar for 5:45. I get up at 5:30, and the coffee maker runs at 5:17, so it’s ready when the alarm goes off. And I often look first at email. or facebook. or twitter. or all three. But I need a reminder so I have the alarm go off at 5:45 and I sit in my chair.

Most of us schedule important things. We set time for dates, not be...

How can I help you read the Bible more?

I was talking to a group of young (compared to me) adults the other night. Here’s the first part of what I told them, in answer to the question above.

I’m going to assume that you are typical. I know, you are special and wonderful and amazing. But so is everyone. And so that makes you typical. And I’m going to assume that you are churchgoers. That’s not a negative thing. It just means that you fairly regularly go to church.

There’s a big body of research that says that 45% of churchgoers read t...

waging peace

First published July 26, 2012

When I was much younger, I memorized Romans 12 one summer, for some prize. I haven’t forgotten the first paragraph or two, about being a living sacrifice, about renewing my mind. I remember howJ.B. Phillipsparaphrased the second verse: “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould.”

Paul was writing this letter to a group of people who were following Jesus and living in Rome. They were in the minority. They were talking about teachings that stood a...

There will be distractions.

Sometimes I can make the application for us. Today I can’t. But you may be able to.

I read two things Monday morning.

1. Interruptions make us less effective writers.

2. Paul made every effort to see a small church he started, “but Satan stopped us.”

The research shows that when writing essays that have a deadline, random interruptions during the outlining or writing phases result in poorer essays. Arguments are not developed as well, ideas are not explained clearly, thinking is choppy.

In this re...

A response to putting it on your calendar.

Last week, I talked about scheduling. Here’s an email I received in response. I asked permission to share it. It is a marvelous example of the power of reminders.

Hey Jon,

My name is Bethany. I’m 18 and I just graduated high school.

I’m writing in response to your question about people setting alarms. I don’t really know why I chose to respond to this one in particular, but I suppose I do have a relevant experience. Sometimes during the school year, everything gets so hectic that I forget to con...

on prophets and teachers

Ezekiel was called to be a prophet.

“Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me; they and their ancestors have been in revolt against me to this very day. The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’ And whether they listen or fail to listen—for they are a rebellious people—they will know that a prophet has been among them.”

It’s not easy to speak knowing that people...