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(51) Reheboam’s No
After King Solomon’s death, his son, Rehoboam takes the throne. Upon taking to the throne, he is approached by Jereboam and the people of the land, asking for a break per some difficult labor conditions. Here is the passage: “Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king. . .…
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(50) Nehemiah’s No
“Now when Sanballat and Tobiah and Geshem the Arab and the rest of our enemies heard that I had built the wall and that there was no breach left in it (although up to that time I had not set up the doors in the gates), 2 Sanballat and Geshem sent to me, saying, “Come and let us meet…
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(49) Faith && Fear Can Coexist Together
In the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought for him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before, so the king asked me, “Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be…
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~ Land of Uz ~ Poem on Job w/ John Piper Devo
~ I wrote the above poem years ago. It is based on Job 13. In addition, I put a photo of a sculpture, to wit, Job by Ivan Mestrovic. The sculpture can be seen on the campus of my alma mater, Syracuse University. Words for the Wind “Do you think that you can reprove words,…
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(11′) Jeremiah & Imposter Syndrome
“Get yourself ready! Stand up and say to them whatever I command you. Do not be terrified by them, or I will terrify you before them.” ~ Jer. 1:17 (NIV). Reflection: That word “terrify” should not sit well with any of us. Other Bible versions use terms like “confound,” “dismay,” “cower,” “afraid,” “shatter,” and “destroy.”…
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(10′) Ruth & the Heebie Jeebies.
The warp and woof of ancient Israelite culture was the idea of redemption. On the one hand, you have the exodus which was Redemption par excellent from slavery in Egypt. On the other hand, you have all these other little redemptions going on such as redeeming widows, redeeming slaves, redeeming animals (clean/unclean), redeeming housing, farms,…
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(48) Overcommunication is Better Than Undercommunication
Pray without ceasing (1 Thess. 5:17). ~ If you are going to err between overcommunicating something or under-communicating something, then its better to err on the side of overcommunication. Vertically speaking, you can never pray too much. Never. Horizontally speaking, under-communication leaves gaps that the devil can fill in with his own whispers, innuendoes, lies,…
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(47) Commitment & Guidance
The following is a thought that I picked up from Pastor Ken Smith of the Reformed Presbyterian Church. I am putting it in my own words with a different set of scriptures. (1) Paul Now when we heard these things, both we and those from that place pleaded with him not to go up to…
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Quick Thoughts (1)
(1) “Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” ~ Matt. 6:34 ~ Worry is working overtime for no pay. (2) Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me?…
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Note (6): Living Our Lives As Eden Interrupted ~
1) The Bible begins with a man and a woman in a garden. This is of course Genesis. 2) Then it continues with a man, a woman, flitting between a garden and a city. This is Song of Songs. 3) Finally, the Bible ends with a Bridegroom, a Bride and a Garden-City, i.e. the New…
The Dew and the Rain 