My heart is breaking over events in Ukraine. As I continue to meditate on the readings from Ash Wednesday, I’m drawn over and over to Joel 2:12–13— “Yet even now,” says the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning…” Joel is crying to a people crushed by an […]
WHEN THERE ISN’T ENOUGH
He did it twice. Fed thousands of hungry people with a few loaves, that is. Twice and still the disciples didn’t get it. Comparing the two incidents when Jesus feeds the multitudes in the Gospel of Mark, here’s what I see: Mark 6 (the first time): Jesus calls the disciples away to rest. […]
“COME TO JESUS!”—WHATEVER YOUR NEED
Ever since Advent began, I’ve been praying: Come, Lord Jesus! And come he did, in a whirl of stars and shepherds and “Joy to the World” sung into the night. But Christmas came and went, and although the baby Jesus took his place in the manger in our nativity set, I didn’t feel like Jesus […]
ADVENT: WAITING FOR JOY
“Behold, I am coming soon.” He says it twice in one chapter (Revelation 22:7,12). Really, Lord? I have to ask. Two thousand years and counting … “soon”? And he repeats it: “Surely I am coming soon” (vs 20). Come, Lord Jesus! my heart cries out. Come! Please! It’s not easy to wait, especially in our need. […]
COME, LORD JESUS! — 1st Sunday of Advent
Advent is not a simple season. Its four weeks are full of festive preparation, yet it’s a penitential time as well. Along the way, it asks us to hold in balance three separate “comings”: The coming long ago of Jesus to earth, born as a child in Bethlehem His coming at the end of time […]
GRATITUDE MATTERS
You can’t blame them, really. The men who raced toward the Temple were only following instructions. Just moments before, they were lepers: living on the fringes of society, forced to keep a distance from other people, shouting “unclean, unclean!” to everyone they saw. But now—they are healed! It was all due to Jesus, the rabbi […]
10 WAYS TO KEEP THE WORD IN YOUR HEART
“Blessed indeed is the man … Whose delight is the law of the LORD, And who ponders his law day and night” (Psalm 1:1,2) In other words: You will be truly happy, and you will flourish even when times get tough, if you spend 24/7 filling yourself with God’s word, thinking about what it means, […]
C.R.O.S.S.—”O” is for “One nation”
God didn’t just set Israel free from Egypt, he freed them for a life with him. He does the same for us! “Cross” is a short word of only five letters, but break it apart and it contains the whole story of the Bible. C.R.O.S.S.—Creation, Redemption, One nation, Separation, Salvation. The story of the Bible is our story, too, and each of […]
C.R.O.S.S.—”R” is for “Redemption”
Who doesn’t want to be free? If your life is not your own … look to the God who freed Egypt from slavery in Egypt, as recalled in this post. “Cross” is a short word of only five letters, but break it apart and it contains the whole story of the Bible. C.R.O.S.S.—Creation, Redemption, One […]
C.R.O.S.S.—“C” is for “Creation”
“Cross” is a short word of only five letters, but break it apart and it contains the whole story of the Bible. C.R.O.S.S.—Creation, Redemption, One nation, Separation, Salvation. The story of the Bible is our story, too, and each of these stages helps us get the “big picture” of our life in Christ. Read the […]
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