So…I asked for a way to give order to my days, and attempted to make a to-do list that matched my calendar slots. I made a plan. I asked for instruction in what to celebrate in preparation for Christmas. He said, “My plan.” So, I set up the manger and Read more…
Yesterday was a day full of ministry opportunities. It was a day of revelation and insight, confession and restoration, battle and victory. In all this, Jesus is the mighty Victor. Overcomer is His name: He overcame Satan’s plot to destroy God’s glory and usurp His throne; He overcame death through Read more…
My garden…yeah, about that… My Asian yard-long beans are climbing and blooming, but not bearing. My okra is beautiful and growing, but not blooming. The oregano and mint are threatening to take over the planet! Almost the only things out there I can eat are the weeds! The point of Read more…
By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 1 John 3:16 …Righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne. – Psalm 79:2b Following Jesus every day in the everyday means He Read more…
Knowing that our God is intimately aware and knowledgeable of all our inner thoughts as well as outer deeds can be a reason to clothe ourselves in fig leaves and hide in the bushes, or it can be the best reason to run to Him with our hearts, twisted and Read more…
Since the beginning of the disease-generated restrictions, most of us have experienced what happens when invitation collides with separation; the pain combines with creativity: graduation exercises conducted by robot in a mostly empty auditorium, drive-by birthday parties, masked air-hugs, group video chats, home-style 3D printers creating face masks to protect Read more…
John reports (John 13) “the time had come” for Jesus to go to the Father. In this case it was a period of about 50 days. For the last three years Jesus had loved His own…His own disciples, the Twelve; His own people, Israel; His own sheep, any who heard Read more…
I woke this morning with unanticipated pain. In a fallen world like ours, pain is to be expected: It came with the first act of disobedience. It is a gift: It warns us that something is amiss. It is an opportunity: It invites us to explore our hearts. My first Read more…
Caution tape surrounds my house today, and there are the sounds of drills, hammers and work boots on my roof. After what seems like too long a time, our solar panels are undergoing the process of restoration. For the last few years, they have faithfully converted our abundant sunshine into Read more…
Ancient covenants were more like peace treaties, but between ruler and subjects. The sovereign promised protection from enemies and provision of shelter and sustenance. The burden for these two things rested on the one ruling. The subjects were responsible for loyalty and obedience. They were not to commit treason, or Read more…