Gary Shogren's Blog
“There are two kingdoms, the kingdom of Satan and the kingdom of God. One works one way and the other another way. And you can really see the difference between them.” That was how Pastor Flor summed up her ministry. I’m visiting her home and her work in a shantytown (or precario), along with my... Continue Reading →
I occasionally visit an English-language church in San José, attended by African-Caribbean believers. For me, their English is harder to understand than most Spanish. A few months ago, a lady behind me was leading us in prayer, and for a heart-stopping 15 seconds I thought she said that we Christians “live according to Fate.” What... Continue Reading →
I guess I came in late for this controversy: from 2008 there’s a YouTube clip of a famous preacher and his wife, responding to the question: “What are your thoughts on stay-at-home dads if the woman really wants to work?”[1] “Too many guys take too little responsibility” was part of the answer, one with which... Continue Reading →
In the first part of this blog, we saw how the shepherds heard the angels’ message, saw the Christ child and went out to proclaim what they had seen. We too should pass on the entire gospel message, not just parts of it. But there is a second application for the Christian, one that pushes... Continue Reading →
A friend writes asks about 1 Pet 2:24-25, where Peter alludes to Isa 53:4-6 – “He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned... Continue Reading →
Burned into our memory is the fact that the shepherds saw the angels, went to Bethlehem and worshiped the baby Jesus. All the Nativity displays end that way, with the shepherds fixed in place. But in fact, Christmas day was the very beginning of the shepherds’ story, since they rushed right out and began to... Continue Reading →
St. Nicholas was a historical person! He was a pastor in Turkey in the 4th century. According to legend, there was a poor man in his parish who had three daughters, and he had no money to get them husbands. There was a danger that the girls would be sold into prostitution. Nicholas quietly raised... Continue Reading →
The first time I listened to a music CD was in late 1986, at my friend Tim’s house. I’d been out of the country for some years, so I was probably the last of my circle of friends to actually hear one. Tim had a monster sound system, and he put on “In the Digital... Continue Reading →
At times long-lost Greek manuscripts pass by my desk. They add a bit of class to the place, to counter-balance the Oreo wrappers, orphaned keys, and cats who like to see if they can type out their names. I put on my special mittons and saw that this particular manuscript is from Luke 15. It... Continue Reading →
On May 21, it was all over the news, that Harold Camping's prediction of the rapture had not taken place and that a worldwide earthquake had not wracked the planet. We predicted on this blog that Camping would Backpedal: for example, change the date, say that the earthquake was “symbolic” not literal Denial: Jesus really... Continue Reading →
Open Our Eyes, Lord! 