Lord Jesus, who as on this day didst curse the fig tree bearing leaves, and nothing but leaves: Grant that we, warned by this example, may never seek to make a fair show in the flesh, but strive to bring forth the fruit of a holy and godly life, acceptable in thy sight; who with the Father and the Holy Ghost art one God, world without end.

Jesus does something strange in Mark 11. He’s hungry, sees a fig tree full of leaves but with no fruit, and curses it, saying, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again” (Mark 11:12–14).

So was Jesus just hangry, having a bad day, or is something else going on?

What we see here… pic.twitter.com/RSriHDIh0l

— Chad Bird (@birdchadlouis) February 9, 2026

But why does God care who we sleep with? Let me give you three reasons

1. He cares because he created us

To understand the purpose and limits of sex, we have to refer to the creator of sex: 

God himself. Yes, as one writer puts it, “sex was God’s idea, not ours. It’s not something we discovered behind God’s back…. His first command to humanity in the Bible involves and necessitates sex!” Genesis 1:28: “Be fruitful and multiply!” So, if you are married, have sex and feel free to have it often!

2. He cares because he loves us

God is all about love. He love us, and he longs for us to love him too. We’re designed to live lives of love. Ultimate reality isn’t grounded in cold submission to an authoritarian deity but in heartfelt response to the God who wants his universe pulsating with love. God cares who we sleep with because he cares that we really do love each other well, and that might mean loving in a different way to how we feel. Christopher Yuan, author of the excellent,

“Holy Sexuality and the Gospel”, (and a man who wrestles with same-sex attraction but who’s chosen the biblical call to chastity), puts it this way,  “Human emotions can’t be the determining factor for any gift from God.” No,  Jeremiah 17:9 says: “the heart is deceitful above all things”. And as Ashley Null says, summarizing the theology of Anglican reformer Thomas Cranmer, “What the heart loves, the will chooses, and the mind justifies.” So be careful when people say “Listen to your heart.”

Yes, sex matters to God because people do. He cares because misusing sex can cause profound hurt and damage. He cares because He regards us as worthy of His care. 

And, in fact, that care is not only seen in telling us how we should use sex, but also in how He makes forgiveness and healing available to us when we mess this up.

3. He knows what’s best for us

This is a hard one for many of us to accept. But, Jesus is for you, and even his difficult directives are for your good….

Read it all.

A young Sam Elliott and Katharine Ross on the set of The Legacy in 1978, the film where they met and fell in love. They've been together ever since. pic.twitter.com/y84yc97LhM

— History Defined (@historydefined) September 21, 2025

In a statement suggesting the enormity of Canterbury’s failure to be a focus for unity, the former archbishop Rowan Williams recently admitted: “I honestly don’t know whether the communion will survive.” Such a statement from a former leader of the Church of England reflects the gravity of the current crisis. It is not merely a matter of internal disagreement but a question about the very future of Anglicanism.

A significant turning point came in 2023 when the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches (GSFA) issued what became known as the Ash Wednesday Statement. In this declaration, the GSFA announced that it would no longer recognize the archbishop of Canterbury as primus inter pares and the head of the Anglican Communion. This decision marked a historic shift: The symbolic center of Anglican unity was effectively withdrawn by churches representing the majority of Anglicans worldwide.

The roots of this shift are not only historical but also theological and structural. The traditional configuration of the Anglican Communion emerged during the era of the British Empire. During that time, the Church of England functioned naturally as a coordinating center for Anglican churches established through missionary and colonial expansion. However, the global context has changed dramatically. The demographic center of Anglicanism has moved decisively to Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Today, the vast majority of Anglicans live in what is commonly called the Global South.

The departure of several western provinces from the traditional Anglican faith inevitably raises questions about unity, governance, and authority.

Read it all.

Canterbury and the Collapse of Anglican Unity
by Mouneer Anis @bishopmouneer https://t.co/5oNTQIwrz3 pic.twitter.com/LVjAFzbJjP

— First Things (@firstthingsmag) March 31, 2026

These poems speak, as [Philip] Yancey says, to “the guilt and fear and helpless faith that marked [Donne’s] darkest days.” They also answer one of the toughest questions we can face, “In the midst of plague times, how can we give thanks?”

Here are the three poems excerpted by Yancey, with his clarifying revisions of Donne’s eighteenth-century language…

Read it all.

25 Nov 1625: exiled in #Chelsea due to plague, John Donne reports #otd he has written out 80 of his sermons (NPG) #lockdown pic.twitter.com/cob4YrgVSo

— John McCafferty (@jdmccafferty) November 25, 2025

Almighty God, the root and fountain of all being: Open our eyes to see, with thy servant John Donne, that whatsoever hath any being is a mirror in which we may behold thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

“Then, as my soul to heaven, her first seat, takes flight,
And earth-born body in the earth shall dwell,
So fall my sins, that all may have their right,
To where they’are bred, and would press me, to hell…”
John Donne, died 31 March 1631#johndonne #poem pic.twitter.com/quP2lXIVW3

— Peter Parker (@PParkerWriting) March 31, 2026

O Lord Jesu Christ, who as on this day of the Holy Week didst teach the people in the temple at Jerusalem, and also instruct thy disciples on the Mount of Olives: Grant us the ready mind at all times to learn what thou wouldest teach us, that thy word may dwell in us richly in all wisdom; for the glory of thy holy name.

There's always something very special about watching a fogbow appear: It's like a portal to another world!#ukweather #BBCWeatherWatcher #fog #spring #stormhour #Yorkshire #Holmfirth #DunfordBridge #loveukweather @metoffice @StormHour #PeakDistrict pic.twitter.com/mRooegEvcx

— Sandie Nicholson (@holmfirthphotos) March 31, 2026

And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, and they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?” Jesus said to them, “I will ask you a question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Was the baptism of John from heaven or from men? Answer me.” And they argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ But shall we say, ‘From men’?”—they were afraid of the people, for all held that John was a real prophet. So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

–Mark 11:27-33

You can never have too many bluebells. Happy Tuesday folks 🥰 pic.twitter.com/TcFjeNZHTp

— Andrew Edwards (@AndrewOpera) March 31, 2026