FIRST WAY TO BE HOLY: STOP DOING EVIL By: Carol McClain The early chapters of Isaiah have me seeing our precious church and the miracle of grace portrayed poorly. Isaiah 1:16b-17 reads: Cease to do evil. Learn to do good. Seek justice. Rebuke the oppressor Defend the fatherless Plead for the widow. Sometimes our society …[ read more ]

@carol_mcclain Poverty defined most of my life. I was the oldest of six children, and still I wore hand-me-downs from the daughter of my mother’s best friend. At dinner, my mother loved to eat the meat off of bones we discarded. Only recently had I learned that meat was her sole portion. My father fished as …[ read more ]

carol_mcclain I’m sure glad Lemuel’s mother isn’t my mother-in-law. She asked her son this question in Proverbs 31 verse 10: Who can find a virtuous wife? I’ll rephrase for the purposes of this blog–are you a virtuous wife? Wait-wait. Here’s the answer. No one Don’t believe me. Take this quiz and see how you match up …[ read more ]

@carol_mcclai n Over the past few months, we’ve looked at four mighty women in Jesus’s genealogy. All lived sinful or abused or despised lives. Despite their reputations and upbringing, each woman defied society’s definition of her life and left a legacy for Christ. Who are you? Tamar–Jacob believed she killed his sons. He deceived Tamar when …[ read more ]

@carol_mcclain Little is known for certain about Bathsheba  (the fourth woman mentioned in Jesus’s genealogy)and her relationship with King David. I highly recommend reading the Jewish Women’s Archive for a Jewish perspective on this complicated woman. For certain, we know: She was beautiful (1 Sam. 11:2) Her father and husband were elite members of David’s vanguard. (2 …[ read more ]