From 1993–2009, ER was a popular television series on NBC about the lives of emergency room doctors and nurses. In this scene from the medical drama's third season, Dr. Mark Greene (Anthony Edwards) is upset because one of his patients, a woman with Down's syndrome who is in desperate need of a heart transplant, has been turned down by hospital administrators to receive a new heart through the ...

What we see, and like to see, is cure and change. But what we do not see and do not want to see is care: the participation in the pain, the solidarity in the suffering, the sharing in the experience of brokenness. And still, cure without care is as dehumanizing as a gift given with a cold heart.

My sister recently found a picture of me as a three-year-old, standing next to a birthday cake for Jesus, complete with candles. The cake was my idea. As a toddler, I asked my mother, "Why do we have Christmas?" Mom patiently explained that Christmas is a celebration of Jesus' birthday. In a burst of preschooler inspiration, I concluded with a child's logic, "Well then, we should have a birthday party! ...

I recently saw Religulous, a film that's billed as the "No. 1 sacrilegious comedy in America." It's supposedly a documentary, in which comedian Bill Maher (of Real Time with Bill Maher and Politically Incorrect) travels the world asking religious practitioners questions about their faith. Though Maher makes fun of every world religion, as well as some minor ones, about two-thirds of the film focuses ...

"Redeem the time," Paul says, "for the days are evil."

Or maybe it's me.

I have been thinking a lot about two of Jesus' agricultural metaphors regarding ministry over the past few years.

First, "Put your hand to the plow and don't look back." I have been doing that in my ministry. I have had an extremely strong conviction that I am to follow my calling in the place where I am and not waste energy thinking ...

"On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me." Tony Bennett's voice wove its subtle magic throughout the shopping mall. How appropriate, I thought, as I watched the shoppers scurry from store to store. The advertisements promised "just the right gifts at just the right price," allowing us to "give like Santa and save like Scrooge."

As I listened, I was struck with how we have turned Christmas ...

Collateral chronicles the life of a Los Angeles taxi driver for 18 hours. Max (played by Jamie Foxx) has driven a cab for twelve years while dreaming of starting his own limousine company. This conscientious soul also takes pride in his knowledge of the nation's second largest city, a knowledge that allows him to get his fares to their destination in the shortest possible time.

As the scene opens, ...

When Michigan residents Christine Bouwkamp and Kyle Kramer got married in the spring of 2007, they held a wedding reception that was anything but traditional. Instead of hosting a formal dinner, they held a simple reception at their church where guests were invited to help distribute food to people in need.

In the weeks leading up to their wedding, Christine and Kyle had decided they wanted to begin ...

I had been praying regularly with the deacons for one of our members. His wife, Pat, attended our small congregation faithfully, but John hadn't been to church in years. So every Sunday afternoon before the evening service, we prayed for ways to communicate our commitment to John and his family.

It wasn't long before we received an answer. During the morning service one week, Pat told us through tears ...

Your New Year's resolution for 2008 probably wasn't as extreme as Mark Boyle's. Boyle decided he and two other friends would spend the year walking the 9,000 miles between Britain and India without a dime in their pocket. Their goal was to rely only on the kindness of strangers as they traveled. Whenever they entered a town, they would offer a few minor services and accept food and lodging as payment. ...