Arts and Culture on Surprise

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A Surprise Performance

Author

Keywords

Scripture

Exodus 4:10-12, Isaiah 61:1-3 , Romans 8:28, 2 Corinthians 12:9, Psalm 40:2-3

One summer, the composer Edvard Grieg stayed at a small Norwegian hotel. A restless child also resided there, constantly annoying the guests by attempting to play the piano, producing nothing but disc...

liturgy

Living and present Lord (Extended)

Author

Richard Herman

Scripture

Hebrews 12:1-2, Matthew 6:33, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Psalm 34:17, John 14:27

Prayer of Adoration Living and present Lord: You often surprise us, coming when we least expect it; or, You simply fold back the curtain to show us You’ve been there all along to give us hope and to ...

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A Christmas Surprise

Author

Source Unknown

Keywords

Scripture

Luke 1:26, Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 2:8-14

There was a woman who was baking her Christmas cookies and she heard a knock at the door. She opened the door to find a man who was dressed in pretty tattered clothes, and he was obviously poor. And h...

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Al Capone's Vault

Author

Eunice McGarrahan

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 13:12, Luke 24:13-35, Ecclesiastes 1:2-3, John 4:4-26, Psalm 42:11, James 4:13-15, Matthew 6:19-21, John 20:1-10, Matthew 28:1-10, Luke 24:1-10

Do you remember Geraldo Rivera's most famous fiasco? In 1986 he broadcast a television special entitled The Mystery of Al Capone’s Vault. In the publicity leading up to the live opening of Capon...

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Tolkien on Happy Endings

Author

J. R. R. Tolkein

Keywords

Scripture

Titus 3:4-5, Ephesians 2:8, Luke 15:11-32, 1 Corinthians 2:9, Psalm 30:5, Ruth 4:13-17

J. R. R. Tolkien coined the term "eucatastrophe" to refer to the unexpected happy ending at the end of a fairy tale, achieved by grace rather than effort. The consolation of fairy-stories,...

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My Gift to You

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 119:36, Acts 20:35, Luke 21:1-4, Matthew 6:1-4, Exodus 35:21

One day, the famous surrealist painter Salvador Dalí walked into a New York bookstore and asked for a copy of his own autobiography, The Secret Life of Salvador Dalí . The young clerk immediately...

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So he took the paint brush and went out

Author

Source Unknown

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 16:18 , Luke 14:11 , Numbers 22:21-34, Luke 2:8-18, James 1:17, Acts 20:35, 2 Corinthians 9:15 , Jeremiah 31:31 , 2 Corinthians 9:15, John 1:9-10

So he took the paint brush and went out back. She forgot about it until sometime later when there was another knock at the door. It was him. He obviously had been painting because there was paint spla...

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The Power of Privilege

Author

Andy Crouch

Keywords

In January 1999 I was flying on Saudi Arabian Airlines from Mumbai, India, to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and then onward to London. I arrived at the Mumbai airport to find a long line. Perhaps seventy-five...

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Elemental Claims of the Gospel by Walter Brueggemann

A Theological Giant's Final Word Walter Brueggemann’s passing on June 5, 2025 leaves a void in biblical scholarship that will last a very long time. He was still writing books and essays at age 9...

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It Just Happened

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 1:1-31, Psalm 90:1-3, Psalm 33:6-9, Hebrews 11:3, Colossians 1:16

Robert Ingersoll, the well-known agnostic, once visited Henry Ward Beecher, the abolitionist and celebrated American preacher of the time. While there, he noticed a stunning globe that displayed the s...

liturgy

God–Father, Son and Holy Spirit; Lord

God–Father, Son and Holy Spirit; Lord of all our yesterdays, todays and tomorrows: thank you that we don’t need to be afraid of what’s coming because you’re already there ahead of us. Nothing takes yo...

liturgy

Inspired by Psalm 10:1-7

Author

Dustin Ray

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 10:1-7

Leader: Heavenly Father, I confess that I have sinned against you. I have delighted my soul in other things more than I have in you. Why, then, is it any surprise to me that you feel far off from me? ...

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Pop Culture Review: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Author

William Rowley

Keywords

Entertainment

This summer, millions of people across the world will be absorbed in a highly anticipated, years-in-the-making, high-fantasy adventure featuring evil sorcerers, legendary swords, dragons, and a classi...

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The Ted Lasso Effect on Bros

Author

Scott B. Bullock

Keywords

**Spoiler Alert:**This review contains some minor spoilers about the plot of Ted Lasso . Content Alert: Ted Lasso contains adult themes, sexual content, and strong language. I’ve read at least ...

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Spare: Privilege and Pain

Author

Colleen Strachan

Keywords

What do the royals and a Rorschach test have in common? Both provoke reactions that tell us more about the attitudes and beliefs of the beholder than about the object of their gaze. This is not to say...

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Realizing We are Biased

Author

Timothy Keller

Keywords

Scripture

James 2:1-9, Leviticus 19:15, Deuteronomy 1:17, Romans 2:1-11

When I went to seminary to prepare for the ministry, I met an African-American student, Elward Ellis, who befriended both my future wife, Kathy Kristy, and me. He gave us gracious but bare-knuckled me...

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Re-Wilding and Restoring Balance to Nature

Author

Mark Batterson

Keywords

Scripture

Galatians 5:1, Galatians 5:13, John 8:36

In 1995, the gray wolf was reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park after a seventy-year hiatus. Scientists expected an ecological ripple effect, but the size and scope of the trophic cascade took th...

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More Isolated than Ever

Author

Alexandra Kuykendall

Keywords

Whether young or old, Americans are feeling more isolated. According to a recent study from the Pew Research Center, about half of Americans have weekly interactions with their neighbors, which means ...

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Understanding Cultural Identity

Author

Daniel Hill

Keywords

No writer has had a greater impact on my understanding of cultural identity than Dr. Beverly Tatum. …When introducing cultural identity (or racial identity, a term she uses synonymously), Tatum tells...

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My Keeper’s Brother?

Author

Source Unknown

Keywords

One day the zookeeper noticed that the Orangutan was reading two books – the Bible and Darwin’s Origin of Species. In surprise he asked the ape, “Why are you reading both those books”? “Well,” said ...

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Alone Together

Author

Jay Y. Kim

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 18:24, Romans 12:9-12, Hebrews 10:24-25, Galatians 3:2, John 13:34-35, 1 Thessalonians 5:11, Proverbs 27:17, Proverbs 18:1

In this excerpt from Jay Y. Kim’s book, Analog Church , the author shares about an experience at a local restaurant after being convicted of his own smartphone use at home, keeping him from being p...

Quote

Author

Brenda Salter McNeil

Keywords

The development of different cultures didn’t take God by surprise! This is what the triune God intended from the beginning. Cultural difference and diversity was always a part of God’s original plan f...

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Everything is Required?

Author

Ben Witherington III

Keywords

Scripture

Leviticus 27:30, Matthew 23:23

“A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord,” reads Leviticus 27:30. It may come as something of a surprise bu...

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Cutting Ourselves Off

Author

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 14:12, Luke 14:28-30, Matthew 7:24-27

I have a neighbor who is obsessively neat. He lives on ten forested acres, and every time he drove up his long, winding driveway, the disorderly dead branches on the Ponderosa pine trees bothered him....

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Author

Steven Tyler

Keywords

You'd be surprised how expensive it costs to look this cheap.

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Honoring the Body without Worshipping It

Author

Ruth Haley Barton

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 1:26-27, Genesis 1:27, Song of Solomon 4:7-10, Proverbs 5:18-19 , 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 , Ephesians 5:31-32, Psalm 139:13-14

The spiritual discipline of honoring the body helps us find our way between the excesses of a culture that glorifies and objectifies the body and the excesses of Christian tradition that have often de...

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Socrates and Jesus against the World

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Mark 8:35-36, Mark 10:25, Matthew 19:16-26, Luke 18:18-29

Those not familiar with ancient Greek philosophy may be surprised to find deep resonance with the teachings of Jesus. When on trial for his life, the 70-year-old Socrates pugnaciously responded that,...

liturgy

God of lasting forgiveness, You are not

Author

Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church

Keywords

God of lasting forgiveness, You are not surprised to find us standing before Your throne once again, asking for Your forgiveness. It’s true, Father: we have sinned again. In our thinking, in our doing...

liturgy

Faithful and Good God–our Father,

Author

Richard Herman

Scripture

Psalm 46:1, Matthew 11:28-30, Philippians 4:6-7, James 1:5, 1 Peter 5:7, Isaiah 41:10

Faithful and Good God–our Father, Redeemer and Companion. You know all about us–and love us anyhow; nothing we are or do surprises you or puts you off. Therefore, we turn to you with assurance and tru...

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What Is Our Calling, Really? Thoughts From the Founder's Desk

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Work

I mentioned last week that I spent time recently with friends from college, and this group loves asking deep questions about life and faith. During our time together, we had some assigned reading by...

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