Is There Hope This Christmas Season?

     

There’s a lot of turmoil and pain in this world right now. Here we are in another Christmas season. My 67th Christmas season, and a season I definitely enjoy. Part of that is due to nostalgia, and part of that is due to the recognition and celebration of my savior’s birth. The latter…

What is Man That You Are Mindful of Him?

 The title of this little devotion is taken right out of Psalm 8:4, Where David is looking at the glory of the stars and wondering why God cares about such an insignificant group of troublemakers, or at least that's what I often wonder. I have so often heard that this universe is so…

Hope = Gospel + Nothing

 

 

The immortal philosopher George Costanza once quipped, "I don't want hope. Hope is killing me. My dream is to become hopeless. When you're hopeless, you don't care, and when you don't care, that indifference makes you attractive."

Ahh, so true, and so hopeless! If there were no chance of living past this life, these words…

Taking the Lord's Side and Praying For the Marginalized

 I suppose since I just returned from the Middle East and may return soon, my mind and my heart has been thinking of the issues that are happening there including the war in Gaza and the tension between Israel, Iran, and Lebanon. Though these conflicts are horrible, I am more concerned for our brothers and…

Being Patient When Your Patience Has Run Out

 Change of regimes in business, sports teams or churches is always difficult, and I've often heard the term, 'Trust the Process,' which means "we stink right now, but if we keep doing the same thing, it will get better!" Isn't that the definition of insanity? Well when you apply it to a very broken world,…

Peace On Earth

 

Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased
!”
Luke 2:14

In the season of our Savior's birth, we often reflect on the past…

Israel-Gaza-What Would Jesus Do?

 If you've seen any news in the past 2 weeks, you know there is a war in the Middle East. Atrocities are occurring and fake news is everywhere. Not surprisingly, people are taking sides along ethnic and idealistic grounds,  and the hate continues. But what should we do? What would Jesus Do? Well 2000 years…

Hurry Up and Wait

 Waiting is not my forte! I do love Eagles however. They are a beautiful animal, that represent a soaring freedom I'm drawn to. I've watched eagles in the wild soar to incredible heights and then swoop down onto a mountain lake to snatch their food from the unsuspecting fish that will soon be their lunch.…

What Role Do I Play?

 

"if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?"
1 John 3:17

I was recently assigned to preach out of James 5:1-6 last week. It…

For the Least of These

 Ten year old Ahmed (Pictured) sat there as we engaged his mom and siblings with the gospel of Jesus Christ. He listened intently as we dialogued around Issa Al masih, "Jesus the messiah!" It was a good discussion, and very normal to the many visits we have…

God of Comfort

 

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God."
2 Corinthians…

Roe v. Dobbs: What Just Happened? Seperating Fact From Fiction

 In the culture wars, there are many weapons and many different topics that keep adding to the war and keep dividing this country. No topic is as volatile as abortion; it's the nuclear bomb of American Culture wars, and on June 24th, 2022, the sitting nine supreme court justices launched their bomb by overturning what…

War and Meaning

  "War exposes the capacity for evil that lurks not far below the surface within all of us"
Chris Hedges
 

I have been in and near a few war torn countries including Syria, and while the reasons for conflict might be different, the horror and devastation experienced by refugees and those displaced by war are…

How Holy Is God?

 I guess the quick answer is VERY! As I said in my last blog, I am reading through the Chronological Bible, and have just come out of the very bloody wars post Exodus Israel, and am now into the choosing of Israel's King, Saul. It doesn't surprise me that men like Sam Harris…

Does God Owe You An Answer?

I have been reading through the One Year Chronological Bible for my time in the word, and Job comes up chronologically right after Genesis. Some scholars actually believe it was written before Genesis. It was a timely read, and although I have read it before, it seemed as though I was…

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