“As the years passed, I found I rather liked having an enemy. It sharpened my sense of identity.” — Eugene Peterson, As Kingfishers Catch Fire

Peterson referred to growing up in a small church that pitted “us against the world.” I’ve grown up that way as well. I had enemies. I know I still have enemies, but back then, it was about creating enemies.

We still like to create enemies.

“Merry Christmas” anyone?

We used Scripture to create the dividing lines.

I’ve learned over times I don’t have to create enemies. They are there and it comes from my life being deep in Christ. It’s not out of my own doing… or even desire.

I don’t want to utilize Scripture to create new divisions. I want to read Scripture to recapture the beauty of the story. It’s what we are working to do every Sunday this fall at Heights Church. We are diving deep into the New Testament and drinking in huge portions at a time because we need the story. We don’t need ammunition anymore. We need the story.

Let’s dive in!