Mark 4:35-41 Dear Partner in Preaching, What moves us from fear to faith? Hold that question for a moment; we’ll come back to it. For now, though, notice with me how similar what we perceive as very distinct responses actually are. Or at least their roots. Think about it. Both fear and faith make sense only in relation to something that is unknown, challenging, difficult, or threatening. I mean, it’s just those kinds of things that make us afraid. And, when you stop to think about it, it’s just those same kinds of things that summon faith to face them. Indeed, in the face of things that are unknown, challenging, difficult, or...

Dear Partner in Preaching, Do you remember what they called Harry Potter early on in the stories that bear his name? Folks called him “the boy who lived.” He wasn’t supposed to, you see. He had been struck by a killing curse from the dark wizard Voldemort and should have died, but he didn’t – he lived. And so that became his name. Names – especially nicknames that are given by others to describe something about us – can be pretty hard to shake. Whether they are accurate or not, whether we like them or not, whether they are flattering or not, the descriptors hung on us have significant power. Why? Because in naming one reality...