Read Philippians 3:4b-14. Rubbish. (Philippians 3:8) May I drive 30 mph in a 25 zone? I have spent an embarrassing amount of time thinking about this question. For a time I religiously paid attention to speed limits and to my own speed. I think I’ve driven my wife to exasperation Read more…
Read 2 Corinthians 5:16-21. We entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. (2 Corinthians 5:20b) Our Lord said “I am the light of the world.” This light travels the land with the speed of, well, light, and it does not return before it illumines. This light draws Read more…
Psalm 63:1-8. My flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water (Psalm 63:1b). Where is that dry and weary land where there is no water? Where is that land of emptiness and of solitude? Where is that land of thirst and of Read more…
Read Philippians 3:17-4:1. For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ (Philippians 3:18a) Enemies in the church! Idolators! Many of them! They worship their bellies or their treasures or their pleasures or their honor. Their mind is on earthly things and they are bound for destruction. They are Read more…
Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:29-30) Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, Read more…
Read Luke 4:1-13. Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness. (Luke 4:1) I have long found the particular temptations Jesus went through in the wilderness in preparation for his ministry to be puzzling and difficult to empathize with. Read more…
Luke 9:28-36 O light of everlasting love By which the world was made, Illume your people from above With veins of gold inlaid. O light of never-ending fire On Moses’ holy tree, Consume our darkness on your pyre, And set your people free. O light of eye, O life of Read more…
Read Jeremiah 17-5:10. They shall be like a tree planted by water. (Jeremiah 17:8) Does God really care for us? We are abused. We get cancer. We die in car accidents. We live in war-torn countries and are oppressed and exiled. We are poor and don’t have enough food. We Read more…
Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? (Isaiah 6:1-13) Questions: What is a divine calling? Is there a calling for every Christian? Are there multiple callings? Is purification necessary? Empowerment? Should we attempt to serve God without an explicit and personal call? Why does Isaiah preach to Read more…
Prov. 4:23: Guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. (Proverbs 4:23) Politics. For me it’s junk food—the guilty pleasure of someone falling off his diet. Sometimes, if I’m tired or bored, or if I find what I’m supposed to be doing difficult, I’ll look at a news Read more…