peter – 300 words a day

who else is there?

What makes you stay? When you are part of a group and public opinion shifts, what makes you stay? How much attention do you pay to the way people are talking? If lots of people are talking positively about your group, does that make you feel more attached? If lots of people start to raise […]

by Jon Swanson

Jesus sees what we may not

First published January 26, 2010. Andrew is a connector. He brings people to Jesus. The first person we know of is his brother, Simon. Andrew brings Simon to Jesus. Jesus notices Simon. He looks at him. He sees him. (Just as a thought experiment, imagine walking up to Jesus with your brother after listening to […]

by Jon Swanson

Affirmation to exiles.

I was out on a run, listening to Chris Brogan. He was talking about helping people feel like insiders, like they matter to your company. I thought about a study we did in 1 Peter the night before. Peter is talking to people living in modern Turkey. According to one commentator, these readers had started as […]

by Jon Swanson

Another look at Peter

“His robe was spotted with blood. A head wound of any kind is messy, and Peter had cut off a man’s ear. He probably had never used a sword before, “ That’s how I was going to start telling the story of Peter denying that he knew Jesus. I was pretty sure about the blood. […]

by Jon Swanson

How one disciple paid his taxes.

Sometimes we promise more that our friends want to deliver. “Of course he’ll buy you supper.” “Of course we can help you move next Tuesday.” “Of course he likes t-shirts with funny sayings.” “Of course he pays the temple tax.” The temple tax? Yes. Everyone over 20 in Israel was counted. When they were counted, […]