Beginning next Sunday, I am going to begin writing a new series of posts lasting exactly one week. Each day will include three praises, one for each of the three traditional hours of prayer in a Jewish day. I am not oblivious to what is going on in the culture today. The injustice, the racism, … More Why I Am and Am Not Writing About Riots and Injustice
Read Psalm 38 God’s words are authoritative. Mine are not. Sometimes however, trying to put God’s word’s in our own “paraphrase” can be helpful at getting to a deeper understanding of God’s authoritative standard. In the following lines I have tried to rephrase “the feeling and passion” of God’s word. I hope it is helpful … More When We Deserve the Worst
Audrey Assad has been around for a bit. But she is a new discovery for me. And the delight of her artistry and the passion of her heart for our magnificent God is intoxicating. His mercies are new. Greet the days of your life with the knowledge of His mercy.
Born in November of 1932, Eugene Peterson is now 85, retired and the possessor of a wikipedia bio that is a woefully inadequate summary of his impossibly huge influence on the Church. He has been a mentor to many almost from the beginning of his ministry when he planted Christ Our King Presbyterian Church in … More Why Prayer is So Difficult?
Reading with the Pastor Luke 19 and Psalm 100-101 It has been fun to see how appropriate the coupling of these psalms with the Gospel portions has turned out to be. Today, we read two short psalms and the familiar story of Zacchaeus climbing a tree to get a better glimpse of Jesus. Don’t you … More A Postcard from God
Today’s Readings AM Matthew 3 and PM Psalm 5 & 6 For those of you joining us on the journey of reading through the New Testament by the end of the year and the book of Psalms twice, here’s a pattern for how to organize your devotional time and record what you … More Need a New Pattern for Your Daily Devotions?
Part of the “Poetry Project”* Read Psalm 69 Psalm 69 and 70 were the evening readings on the schedule last night (three nights ago). I read two verses that I don’t remember reading in the other 200 plus times I have read the book of Psalms. Of course, that last sentence is both improbable and … More When Friends Fail You
Monday is for Discussion Five principles from Psalm 106. You can search them out for yourself in the Psalm, they are all clear enough. But in the interest of brevity let me just state them and ask a few questions. It forgets its past. It murmurs against God. It yokes itself to false gods. It … More How a Nation Destroys Its Greatness
Wednesday is for Heart Songs “I am” declarations in Psalm 119: “I am a stranger in the earth” vs. 19 “I am the companion of all those who fear You” vs. 63 “I am Yours” vs. 94 “I am exceedingly afflicted” vs. 107 “I am Your servant” vs. 125 “I … More Being Small and Despised Isn’t So Bad
Sunday Evening Musing These are times when we should cry out our laments to God. Times when the heart is so raw because of the evil of this world’s heartache and brokenness that nothing but a mournful, tear-filled shout at God can be both relief and the path to health. The book of Habakkuk records … More The Substitution of Complaint for Lament
