Omar Hassan

Rubbish Compared to Knowing Christ

Paul lists his credentials - Hebrew heritage, studied under the best rabbi, zealous, blameless according to the law. Everything he built his identity on, he calls rubbish. The word is skubala, which a

Crown of Righteousness

Paul says there's a crown of righteousness laid up for him and for all who've loved his appearing. A reward for faithfulness. I don't live for reward, but knowing there's something waiting - not in a

Radiance of God's Glory

I'm a physicist and the language about Jesus being the radiance of God's glory speaks to me in a strange way. Radiance is light coming from a source. When you look at the radiance, you're seeing the s

Souls Crying Out

I'm a genocide scholar, and I spend my days studying massacres - Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, Myanmar. The casual way humans slaughter each other. The way the world watches and does nothing. John's visi

Stand Still and See Salvation

Moses tells a panicked people hemmed in by the Egyptian army: 'Stand still.' Don't fight, don't flee, don't strategize. Just... stand. I've never been comfortable with passivity. My whole personality

Looking Up Reorients My Whole Perspective

I grew up always looking down, always worried about what people thought, always anxious about whether I was doing enough to please my parents, my teachers, my peers. Reading this verse changed somethi

Rejoice With Those Who Rejoice

Paul calls for empathy in both directions: 'Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.' Not 'fix those who mourn' or 'explain to those who rejoice why they shouldn't.' Just: be presen

The Woman Who Touched His Garment

A woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years... had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. She heard

Submitting to Joy

I've lived my entire adult life wrestling with God. Not Jacob-wrestling in a holy way - more like a sullen teenager resisting parental authority while secretly hoping someone stronger would take the w

I Am the Root and Offspring

I'm a genealogist, and I trace families back centuries. I see the patterns - how traits pass down, how families branch and reconnect, how origins matter and descendants matter. Jesus saying he's both

The Word Became Flesh

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John emphasizes the scandal of incar

How Beautiful the Feet

Paul asks: 'How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?' He

A Prophet Like No Other

Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face, who did all those signs and wonders the Lord sent him to do in Egypt, before Pharaoh and all his officials and a

God in the Gentle Whisper

The Lord said, Go out and stand on the mountain in my presence. Then there was a great and powerful wind, then an earthquake, then a fire. But the Lord was not in any of these. And after the fire came

We Will Be Like Him

I'm 67 and I've spent my whole life working toward something I haven't been able to name. I wanted to be a better version of myself, to grow, to change. But I always felt like I was falling short. Jo

Judah Steps Forward

Joseph has threatened to keep Benjamin as a slave, and Judah steps forward with a long, elaborate plea. He speaks for the family, for his aging father, for the promise made to Rachel. He volunteers hi

The Prayer That Gets No Answer

This is the darkest psalm in the entire collection. The whole thing is one long cry for help with no moment of resolution. The psalmist cries out continually and gets nothing. His soul is full of trou

Jesus Growing Strong

And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him. Luke gives us three brief glimpses of Jesus's childhood, and this is one of them: he grew. Physically,

Abraham Fell on His Face and Laughed

Abraham is ninety-nine years old when God promises he'll have a son. His immediate response is to laugh - not in joy, but in the face of absurdity. The text doesn't describe his laughter as sinful, ju

The Father's Pleasure

Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Luke uses a familial image: you're God's little flock, and the Father delights in giving you the kingdom. It'