Martyrdom of Paul Carlson, Covenant Missionary

You cannot be part of the Evangelical Covenant Church family very long before you come to know the story of Dr. Paul Carlson, a medical missionary to Congo (1962-1964), who gave up his life in service to Jesus. Here’s his story: Doctor Paul E. Carlson, or Monganga Paul as he was known by the Congolese…

The Martyrdom of Perpetua (203 AD)

The Passion of Saint Perpetua, Saint Felicitas, and their Companions is one of the oldest and most notable early Christian texts. It survives in both Latin and Greek forms, and contains a first person prison diary of the young mother and martyr Perpetua. Scholars generally believe that it is authentic although in the form we…

CrossRoad 6: Cruciformity Quotes

Here’s a collection of great quotes on “cruciformity” from Bruxy Cavey’s teaching ministry. Enjoy! “I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” —Apostle Paul “The great paradox is that one comes to know the power and glory of Christ, the resurrection and life of Christ, through cruciformity.” —Michael J. Gorman As…

The Martyrdom of Polycarp (155AD)

Source: The text below is the full story, from around 160 AD, of the martyrdom of Polycarp, the Bishop of the church in Smyrna, a city in Asia Minor (modern Izmir in Turkey) devoted to Roman worship. The account is in the form of a letter from eye-witnesses to other churches in the area. It…

The Martyrdom of Ignatius (c.107AD)

This Holy Week, as an outflow of our CrossRoad sermon series, I am sharing some stories of early martyrs who took up their own cross and bore the ultimate witness to the cross-shaped Kingdom. One of the great treasures of church history is the collection of writings called The Apostolic Fathers. These are the earliest writings outside the…

Can You Drink the Cup?

Jesus asked, “Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has…

StarryEyed Birthday Girls & CrossEyed Disciples

Yesterday our youngest,  Abigail, celebrated her 4th birthday with a day filled with  sparkly balloons, glittery outfits and unicorns! She is crazy about unicorns at the moment. I just tucked her into bed wearing her unicorn jammies, a unicorn snap bracelet on her wrist, a unicorn headband, hugging a unicorn stuffed animal, and reading her…

Christian Colonists or Tourists?

Here’s another good challenge from Skye Jethani on the idol of nationalism: The temptation to root our identity in our country is certainly nothing new. It was equally prevalent during the early church when Christians were divided by their loyalty to Christ and his church, and their loyalty to their nation of origin—whether Rome, Greece,…