Will Vaus

“Gordon Brownville’s  Symbols of the Holy Spirit  tells about the great Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen, the first to discover the magnetic meridian of the North Pole and to discover the South Pole. On one of his trips, Amundsen took a homing pigeon with him. When he had finally reached the top of the world, he opened the bird’s cage and set it free. “Imagine the delight of Amundsen’s wife, back in Norway, when she looked up from the doorway of her home and saw the pigeon circling in the sky above. No doubt she exclaimed, ‘He’s alive! My husband is still alive!’ “So it was when Jesus ascended. He was gone, but the disciples clung to his promise to send them the Holy Spirit. What joy, then, when the dovelike Holy Spirit descended at Pentecost. The disciples had with them the continual reminder that Jesus was alive and victorious at the right hand of the Father. This continues to be the Spirit’s message.” [1] Let us read what Jesus had to say to his first disc...

Author and Presbyterian pastor Eugene Peterson has written, What is hazardous in my life is my work as a Christian. Every day I put faith on the line. I have never seen God. In a world where nearly everything can be weighed, explained, quantified, subjected to psychological analysis and scientific control I persist in making the center of my life a God whom no eye hath seen, nor ear heard, whose will no one can probe. That’s a risk. [1] In 1 John 5:1-5 we learn more about the risk of faith, its nature and its effects. Listen for God’s word to you… Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is ...

What is love, from a child’s point of view? Here are some actual definitions of love given by children…. ·       “When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn’t bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That’s love.” ·       “When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You know that your name is safe in their mouth.” ·       “Love is when someone hurts you, and you get so mad, but you don’t yell at them because you know it would hurt their feelings.” ·       “Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is okay.” ·       “Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.” ·       “Love is like a little ol...