Posts by Scott Tolhurst

You are riding on a bus through the Andes. The road is as wide as a fat donkey, but little more! The driver speeds like this is NASCAR and the drop to your right is a doorway to eternity. How do you feel? Or — you’ve worked hard on a project, but your boss is…

Ryan Bell is a pastor in southern California and a professor at a seminary. Or at least, he was. Today, his pastoral ministry, and even his personal faith, is in his past. Raised in a religious family and having led several congregations, Mr. Bell now identifies and promotes an atheist position, and he does so…

“For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, even as I was also fully known.” 1 Cor.13:12, WEB I have stood at death beds more times than I care to. In my ministry and in my family, I have…

“…Give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever.”  Ps.86:11-12, NIV   For much of my spiritual journey, I had been asking God to help me love Him more. My heart’s capacity has had plenty of…

I usually don’t read cookbooks. I’m not anti-culinary, but I prefer the product rather than the process. So, I have only one cookbook on my shelf. Still, I’ve found it to be worth all the others I could buy. Robert F. Capon was an Episcopal priest, a theologian, a biblical author, a New York Times…

You may recall hearing about Thomas Moore. This Englander was a centenarian, a RAF veteran of WWII and someone who earned global fame in his final year. If you can’t recall his name, you probably remember his story. Mr. Moore had been treated for cancer and wanted to express his support for healthcare workers. He…

Here’s a winning Scrabble word: “Acedia”. It’s in your dictionary, but not a word we use every day. None the less, it is something we see every day. I was preaching through the “Seven Deadly Sins” when I first encountered the word. Acedia is listed as one of the seven, but is translated as “sloth.” So, I thought it would be an easy sermon about laziness. But – my sermon got demolished by a Latin dictionary. It seems that acedia is not really about laziness, but about something far worse.

How quickly we break. How slowly we heal. With a fall and a snap, an arm can be broken in seconds. It will take at least 6 weeks to heal. A long-term friendship can be injured in the time it takes to say a harsh word. It will be longer before trust and laughter are…

You would think that being blind is something you would notice. How could anyone be unaware of it? Yet the Scripture teaches that there was a time when we were all blind, and blind to our blindness! (2 Corinthians 3:12-4:6). Everyone is born insensitive to spiritual light. Our souls are veiled to the truth. We…

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom.8:1, ESV)   There is a difference between guilt and shame. Failing to recognize the distinction leads to confusion or even despair. The distinction between guilt and shame is valid within our courts, relationships and souls. So, the matter is important in…