How Christians spice their words
I DON’T THINK I’ve been as surprised by the Bible in any writing project I’ve ever done before this one, paraphrasing the Casual English Bible. It’s because I don’t just read what the Bible says and report it, like …
Human rules—too human
THIS JOB of paraphrasing the New Testament gives me a headache sometimes. Like yesterday. I’m working in Colossians now, and I spent some time yesterday with my face in my hands, trying to figure out how to put some of Paul’s abstract ideas into …
God in a gut-wrenching world
LADIES MARCHING IN WASHINGTON DC this week during the inauguration will include at least two of my friends. A woman in my Bible study group has taken her daughter, a student at Kansas State University, to join the march. Not everyone in Kansas is …
Jesus: “Stick your neck out”
PEOPLE TOLD ME NOT TO DO some of the best things I’ve ever done. Colleagues advised me against quitting work at the denominational headquarters where I spent a dozen years writing and editing magazines and books. They said I shouldn’t give that up …
Paul’s prayer for strength
I LOVED PARAPHRASING THE HAPPY BOOK of Ephesians. I finished it last week and posted it on the Casual English Bible website. I even uploaded an accompanying leader’s guide and atlas, which can be downloaded as a PDF for a buck. Paul cared a …
How God’s people approach the end of everything
I’M TOO YOUNG TO REMEMBER the Cuban missile crisis, when the world teetered on the brink of a nuclear shootout between America and the Soviet Union. Insiders alert at the time were terrified. I wonder if that depth of fear is what many Americans feel …
God, be kind in 2017
WE’RE AFRAID. More than half the population of the United States is deeply disturbed about what is coming in 2017. Our nation is about to get a radically different kind of a president…one that the majority of the voters rejected, by about …
Battle with otherworldly beings
I JUST ADDED EPHESIANS to the Casual English Bible, paraphrasing Paul into everyday English. Paul doesn’t always make sense. Plenty of times his writing leaves Bible experts scrambling with guesses. Several of those times show up in his letter …
Mary’s baby boy
LIKE YOU’VE NEVER HEARD BEFORE, here’s the Christmas story from the new Casual English Bible I’ve been paraphrasing. I loved working with this cherished story. I hope it shows. Joseph goes home to Bethlehem 2:1. About the time Mary …
Putting Paul in plain English
I WANTED TO WORK ON A HAPPY BOOK in the Bible, as I continue paraphrasing for the Casual English Bible. It has been a vicious year for those of us who follow the news—and especially for news journalists and former news journalists like myself. We …
Leader’s Guide & Atlas for Luke just released
I SCRAMBLED to get this done before Christmas. Just in time for a Christmas Bible study, I’ve finished and released the Casual English Bible Leader’s Guide & Atlas for the Gospel of Luke. It has 260 discussion questions and answers …
Song of the pregnant virgin
MARY WAS QUITE THE SONG WRITER, considering the probability that she didn’t get much of an education, what with being a girl in a man’s world. Her song shows up in the Gospel of Luke. As Luke tells the story, Mary burst out into poetic …