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Spring Always Follows Winter
ByEmily
In much of the northern hemisphere, spring has arrived. The seasonal change is certainly evident here in the Middle East. Last month, when we took a picnic up to a lone tree on a hill, its March branches were still barren. It was that week that we celebrated “Nawruz,” the “new year celebration” that coincided…
Death Cannot Stop True Love
ByEmily
My favorite movie is “Princess Bride.” [Spoiler alert! If you haven’t seen the movie, skip this paragraph!] Westley, the humble farm boy becomes the valiant rescuer of Buttercup, all in the name of “true love.” Even after being brutally killed by the corrupt prince, at least to the point of being “mostly dead” (according to…
Trusting God When Plans Change
ByEmily
Traveling to Chile I was excited about going to Chile, the country where I was born and lived the first eight years of my life. My last visit was after the massive earthquake in 2010. My focus then was providing psychological first aid in a town that had literally crumbled. There, 90% of the adobe…
Reactions to Trump’s Victory: Learning from African Elections
ByEmily
In 2013, I was living in Kenya while their presidential elections were looming. Everyone was remembering the previous election in 2007, when violence erupted and over 1000 people died in the aftermath, as tribal differences were triggered. As expats, we had our contingency plans set up, but were mostly expecting to hunker down inside our…
El Camino: Balugães to Ponte de Lima
ByEmily
Devotional Day 8 Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. No one is to say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by…
El Camino: Barcelos to Balugães
ByEmily
Devotional Day 7 Now the brother or sister of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position; but the rich person is to glory in his humiliation, because like flowering grass he will pass away. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; and its flower falls off and the…
There is no suffering that He himself did not endure, we are told in scripture again and again. The apostle Paul reminds us in Hebrews 2:14-18, that Jesus shared in our humanity and chose to share our experiences of life, so that he could break the power of the Devil and provide a way of salvation. That Jesus became one of us so that he could identify with us and help us, is the heart of the gospel message. Thanks, Emily, for reminding us that love is expressed in many and varied ways, with none more poignant than the love Jesus displayed when he died on the cross.