Weekly Overview: 　　As this year comes to a close, it’s vital that we take time to both reflect on what God has done and allow him to prepare us for what’s to come. A new year marks a fresh opportunity to center our lives around the goodness of God. I pray that as you begin looking toward what is to...

　　Traditionally, Christmas was seen as ghost story season. Charles Dickens’s Christmas Carol may be universally praised as one of the genre’s crowning holiday achievements, but one of America’s contributions to the canon—1984’s Ghostbusters—deserves just as much consideration. This year marks the film’s fortieth anniversary, and it is certainly worth revisiting for the enduring themes it wraps in great humor. 　　I...

　　Preparing for Intimacy: Mind, Body, and Spirit 　　By: Vivian Bricker 　　My beloved has gone down to his garden, to the beds of spices, to browse in the gardens and to gather lilies. I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine; he browses among the lilies. (Song of Songs 6:2-3) 　　Have you ever considered intimacy as something to prepare for,...

　　EDITOR'S NOTE: Crosswalk will proudly present one New Year's-themed devotional per day during a season running from the day after Christmas through the first three weeks of January. Check back every day for a new devotional reflection about fresh starts, resolutions, growth and change, featuring the God who makes all things new. And Happy New Year! 　　Resolutions and Redemption 　　by...

　　Editors Note: This essay was originally published on December 24, 2018. 　　Miracle on 34th Street (1947) is the finest cinematic exploration of the commercialization of Christmas. The central story is that Kris Kringle, a man who looks like and believes he is Santa Claus, is hired to play Santa Claus at Macy’s department store. When it is revealed that he...

　　In ancient Greece, those who sought counsel from the Oracle at Delphi passed under an arch that bore the inscription, “Know thyself.” Presumably, those who did not know themselves would be ill-equipped to hear the truth. Yet unanswered questions reverberate down through the ages: what form does such self-knowledge take, how are we to gain it, and what difference will...

　　Immanuel: How God Is with Us? 　　By Emma Danzey 　　Bible Reading 　　“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel (which means God with us”). – Matthew 1:23 　　Did you know that when you woke up this morning, God was with you? Did you know that when you received that horrible news, God...

　　A few years ago, family therapist Joshua Coleman wrote a piece in The Atlantic on a distressing phenomenon he was witnessing more and more frequently: generational estrangement. Parents and adult children are cutting ties more than ever before, usually because one party decides unilaterally that a relationship with the other is no longer wanted. Most frequently, it’s the kids who...

　　Take Time to Enjoy God's Blessings This Christmas 　　By Laura Bailey 　　Bible Reading 　　“A person can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in their own toil. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?” - Ecclesiastes 2:24-25 NIV 　　“Are you getting my calendar invites?”...

　　HAS THE GRINCH STOLEN YOUR CHRISTMAS? 　　And the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people; for today in the city of David therehas been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” 　　Luke 2:10-11 　　Without a doubt, Christmas is...

　　Weekend, December 21, 2024 　　God in Human Form 　　So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. (John 1:14 NLT) 　　Can you imagine looking at God in human form? During the earthly ministry of Jesus,...

　　The newest Hollywood fad is trying to launch the next “Barbenheimer”—the unexpected cultural event that came about when two movies, Oppenheimer and Barbie, refused to move from releasing on the same day. This turned into a social media trend and ended up buoying both movies to box office smash success and cultural dominance. Naturally, Hollywood would like to recreate the...