elisha-watching-elijah-depart

When I Leave, I Want To Go Out Like Elijah

Death. Nobody really likes to talk about it. And for good reason; it’s a raw, gritty topic that throbs with the pain of past losses, the fear of future losses, and the threat of the ultimate loss—ourselves. Even for Christians, who believe that death is the start of an eternity of the kind of joy that human hearts were made for, death is still incredibly painful and sad. But for those who believe, there is … Continue Reading →

Three crosses

Three Criminals: Hope from Galatians 5

And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.1 In the version of the Bible I read, the New Testament talks a lot about the “flesh”—that is, my sinful nature, the part of me that is hell-bent and always wanting to do the wrong thing. The flesh is synonymous with my old nature, the way I used to be before I became a Christian (in Greek it’s even … Continue Reading →

The τέλος of all things

The τέλος of all things

One of the things about my seminary experience that changed me for good was the opportunity to take introductory Greek and Hebrew classes. While I am no scholar and unfit to accurately translate anything not written by the apostle John on my own, I have nonetheless been blessed with a plethora of dictionaries and resources that I can use to go deeper and learn more than ever before. I think of these language resources as archaeological tools that help … Continue Reading →

Jesus Christ is Risen Indeed

Happy Easter!

This morning in church my pastor said something profound: Why don’t Christians make more of Easter? He didn’t mean it in a guilt-inducing, shame-on-you sort of way; that doesn’t help anybody. But he had a good point: on Christmas we give gifts and eat rich food and take off of work and gather together to celebrate. Why is it that we don’t do even more than all that on Easter? Think about it. If it’s … Continue Reading →

The Death of Moses

Moses and the Promised Land

Oftentimes when God says, “No,” to something we really want, it’s hard to believe that His heart toward us is tender and loving and that He delights to give us good things (Psalm 107:9). But He has been teaching me recently that sometimes when He says “No,” He is actually concealing an even greater blessing that He has decided to give us at a later time–maybe even after we die. Moses (who is the “main … Continue Reading →

Tree Stump

This only shall not pass…

I’m reminded tonight that of all the things I put my time and energy into, only two will remain: people and the Bible. People last forever. Whether in Heaven or in Hell, I believe we all have a permanent, everlasting existence. Thus, my time spent with people is an investment in eternity, for better or for worse. Good to remember when I’m tempted to feel guilty about spending time with my kids, playing games with … Continue Reading →

Jen and Ian

Announcing the birth of Ian Gabriel Costanzo!

(New pictures as of 9:00pm) Please join us in welcoming Ian Gabriel Costanzo into the world! Ian was born at 5:12am on 8/28/2011, was 8 lbs 11.6 oz, and 21 inches long. Mother and baby are doing just fine—both a little tired, but healthy and happy as can be. Daddy is so proud of both Mom and baby! She’s been doing great in recovery as well; all the nurses have been pleased (and some even … Continue Reading →

Life packs

Why I Am Still Going

These have been some crazy days…initially I was hoping to blog every day before the trip, but that got blown out of the water because God’s plans have been so much bigger than ours! The team I’m with is now officially 8 people, and in only 6 days God has raised up $30,000 toward relief efforts in Japan! Not only that, but so many people in our church gave sacrificially to put together “life packs” … Continue Reading →

Water of Life

Japan and the Water of Life

May the floods that they so much dread make blessings break upon their head. -John Piper On March 11, 2011, the dreaded tsunamis swept away hope and life, leaving death and ruin in its wake. The water that swept them forward was dirty and dark, and carried the wreckage of homes and factories and human lives. But Scriptures tell us of a River of Life that flows from the throne of God that brings life … Continue Reading →

Old & New Testament “Wordles”

Have you ever wondered what the Bible would look like if the most common 150 words were ranked, made into different sizes, and arranged together in a huge ‘word cloud’? Well, I hadn’t either until my sister Lisa introduced me to Wordle.net. If you haven’t seen it yet, you should check it out–you just paste in some text, and Wordle automatically creates these really cool ‘word clouds’ based on the relative frequency of the 150 … Continue Reading →