I had someone whom I refused to forgive for years. The odd thing was that I was sure I had forgiven them. I had prayed about the hurt they caused, told others I had let it go, and even made a point to build a relationship with them.
Tag: religiousness
How to Know You’re Saved
A significantly modified version of this post appeared at the Boundless Blog. You can find that here. (I like them both.) I was sitting in the church service when I heard the preacher say something that made me cringe: “If you can’t remember the day you gave your heart to Jesus, then you probably never were saved in the first place.”
My Southern Accent and My Relationship With God
I grew up in the deep south – a Mississippi town called Petal that’s 65 miles from the Gulf Coast. And naturally, after spending the first part of my life there, I developed a southern accent.
Five Ways to Make Visitors Feel Awkward at Your Church
It wasn’t that long ago that my wife and I were visiting churches after having moved to a new city. Before moving, we were part of a church where almost everyone knew us, and everything about the Sunday services felt familiar. So it was odd to suddenly be strangers in a meeting that used to feel like home.
Loving a Mormon Never Hurt Anybody
One Sunday last summer, my wife and I pulled out of the church parking lot, and there was an elderly woman walking down the street in her Sunday best. It was 12:15 in the middle of a sweltering August day, and I felt sorry for her.
Caught Between Love and a Cigarette
I was a child when I started hating cigarettes. Blame my dad. His smoking habit clung to him like a dirty, old coat. He said he hated it, but the only thing that could stop him from puffing was dipping snuff. I found that equally disgusting. Over time, my disgust with dad’s smoking habit turned into a disgust with anyone who smoked cigarettes. It only got worse in college when I became a neurotic, Bible-thumping church cop who gratuitously looked for reasons to condemn people to hell.
Joshua Rogers 