5You prepare a table before mein the presence of my enemies;you anoint my head with oil;my cup overflows.- Psalm 23 Sometimes I feel entirely unwelcome to approach the Lord. For example, if I’m worked up about something I resist turning on worship music, because I think I need to cool off and “get it together” …
For you are with me – Psalm 23, Part 2
He leads me in paths of righteousnessfor his name’s sake.4Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,I will fear no evil, for you are with me;your rod and your staff, they comfort me. - Psalm 23 “Heads against the headrest!” my dad called back to us from the driver seat. His …
The Lord is my Shepherd – Psalm 23, Part 1
1The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.2He makes me lie down in green pastures.He leads me beside still waters.3He restores my soul.- Psalm 23 My daughter wants to be a mommy when she grows up. My son wants to be a football player. And my youngest, well she just wants to be “tall”. …
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New Years for All Year – Encouragement to read through the whole Bible
We live in a world of endless resources. We have information in print and online, audio and read, free and paid, entertainment and education, tabloid and truth. It can be wonderful. And overwhelming. In a spiritual context, it is no different. We can find Bible studies, articles, sermons, commentary and blog posts for any topic …
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Hark! and worship, part three.
We have been spending the last couple weeks looking at the Christmas carol, “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.” In the first week, we saw how the first verse of the carol commanded us to “join the triumph of the skies” by proclaiming Christ to everyone, near and far. In the second week, we saw how …
Hark! and worship, part two.
We all love a good birth announcement. Social media is filled with pictures of newborns, announcing names and genders and health, and these posts are immediately smothered in likes and loves and hugs. But there was one birth announcement that trumps all other birth announcements, one that we keep talking and singing about, and that …
Hark! and worship.
It’s officially post-Thanksgiving, which means that whether yours is a family that listens to Christmas music year-round, turns it on after Halloween, or strictly adheres to the “No Christmas music until the day after Thanksgiving OR ELSE” rule, it’s likely that our houses are all, at this moment, filled with familiar Christmas tunes.But how many …
Innocent Distractions
My son recently turned two, and the majority of my days surrounding his birthday were filled with errands and endless tasks prepping for the celebration and a weekend away from home. The whole week felt chaotic, and the morning before our trip, I thought for sure I would lose it, scrambling to somehow get everything …
Christ and competitors for our affections
It was a Saturday morning. I sat poking through my Bible, aimlessly reading some Scripture, hoping to accomplish some Jesus time so I could next scroll through Pinterest. And then I read the first couple verses of John. “In him was life” (John 1:4). I paused and sighed. Of course it is - life is …
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Worship – The Best Advice
“You’re gonna have to worship your way through.” It really wasn’t even part of the sermon. Pastor Joby Martin was just recounting a conversation with a staff member walking through a hard time, and that was his advice. The Lord God, Yahweh, Adonai, Elohim. He is the same today, yesterday and forever. And he is …
Soaking in the Son 