Pastor – Coach – Reader – Cook
I've been blogging about my 100 favorite books of all time for the last four months or so. My favorite books cover a variety of genres - history, biography, fantasy, fiction, theology and spirituality. Yesterday I got to number seven! I hope to get finished in the next two weeks. But here's a spoiler alert…
Continue reading ➞ Blessed is the one Who is Forgiven (Psalm32, Weekly Word)
1 In you, Lord, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame; deliver me in your righteousness. 2 Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me. 3 Since you are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of your name lead…
Christians sometimes speak of the various prophecies fulfilled by Jesus as the long-awaited Jewish messiah. Whatever truth there is in that, there is one thing Jesus did that was not prophesied: the resurrection. There is no hint in the Old Testament that the coming Messiah would die and rise again. The very thought of the…
Continue reading ➞ Hope Beyond the Grave (Psalm 30, Weekly Word)
This morning at breakfast, my kids were arguing about what food is gross. My daughter insisted plain cream cheese is simply nasty. So my son responded by sticking his finger in the cream cheese and sucking it off to her horror. My kids are pretty relaxed mostly, but they can argue with the best of…
Continue reading ➞ The Voice of God in a Noisy World (Weekly Word)
I decided this past January to send out devotional emails each Friday, in the hopes of encouraging and challenging you all. When it came to choosing what to write about, the Psalms popped immediately into my head. There are 150 of them so if I did one a week, it would give me material for…
Last evening at CSF our theme was "Listening". We've been examining spiritual disciplines this semester and previously we had looked at speaking, service and prayer. With all of this sort of outward focused, with the emphasis on our actions whether serving or speaking to others or talking to God in prayer, it seemed to make…
What is pressing in upon you right now? What is stressing you out? Read Psalm 27 This psalm begins: The Lord is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid? This passage is why I want to pray the psalms…
Continue reading ➞ The Lord is our Strength – Psalm 27 (Weekly Word)
After last week's detour to Psalm 55, we are back on track with where we left off - Psalm 26! As I read this Psalm two thoughts ran through my mind: This is beautiful! I want to have this sort of confidence and pray like this. This is so different once we bring Jesus, the…
Continue reading ➞ Praying the Psalm And Questioning it At the Same Time (Psalm 26 – Weekly Word)
For our Friday Psalm, we are skipping ahead to Psalm 55. Go ahead and read it. The first fifteen verses of this Psalm reveal a man in anguish and despair. Apparently a close friend of David's has betrayed him, which hurts more than any attacks from his enemies. Following this he writes: 16 As for…
Continue reading ➞ Three Times a Day I Cry Out (Psalm 55, Weekly Word)
Who are the people in your life that you trust? Has anyone ever betrayed a trust? How does that feel? What would it take for you to trust them again? Read Psalm 25 The Psalm begins with a declaration of trust, "In you, Lord my God, I put my trust." After this the Psalm seems…
Continue reading ➞ Who do you trust? (Psalm 25, Weekly Word)
