Cabin Life: Spring is a season of anticipation. As soon as the weather warms,people start getting the cabin ready. The dock gets put in, and the cabingets a summer refresh cleaning. Supplies for parties, swimming, and fishingare all assembled in eager anticipation of a great summer.

Romans Life: Like a trip up north, Paul is making preparations to visit Rome. His joy is not in the destination, but in the opportunity to be with friends. The life of a disciple can be lonely. What a joy it is to be together as a community. Again, like cabin life, he needs to get things in order before he arrives.

Cabin Life: Families have traditions connected to their cabin. Some make sense, others are hard to explain to outsiders. There is the place “we always” stop to eat on the way up. “We always go swimming at this time, fish in this lake, and play this game. Traditions help give meaning, but they can also prevent growth.

Romans Life: The first two chapters in Romans are probably the most misunderstood words in the entire Bible. Paul is not writing on ethics. He is speaking to one congregation with two competing traditions, each complaining that the other is sinning. Paul seeks unity amid division.

Cabin Life: Owning a cabin is work. Something new is being built, and a broken thing is always being fixed. Lawns need mowing, trees need cutting, and the project list never seems to end. And yet, if cabin owners are honest,it is good work. You are building something that is yours, and you are building it together.

Romans Life: Paul is addressing a debate in the Roman congregation. What works, good works, does one need to do to be “right” or “good” with God? Working is not the answer. We are made right with God through faith. The simple act of trusting God is the good work we are called to do.

Cabin Life: To get to the cabin requires a journey. The journey is shaped by distance and the volume of vehicles on the road. Cars move more slowly than we would like, and anticipation can give way to frustration. No gift comes without cost.

Romans Life: God's grace did not just magically appear when Jesus was born. In Chapter 4, Paul reminds us that being saved by God's grace through faith has its own journey. It was first revealed in Abraham and then in David. And, now it's offered to us.

Cabin Life: Summer time at the cabin means a comfortable chair, a good book, and a hot cup of coffee. Evenings around a campfire, eating s’mores, and listening to loons. It’s the stars at night and peaceful sleep. This is where we restore ourselves.

Romans Life: For Paul, restoration is not a temporary condition. It is the peace we experience when we understand that God loves us in our strength and our weakness. God’s love has been poured into our hearts, making us whole.