34 Then Simeon blessed them, and he said to Mary, the baby’s mother, “This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall, and many others to rise. He has been sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose him. 35 As a result, the deepest thoughts…
It’s dinnertime. My young children are old enough now that I can actually sit down for most of a meal. This is good. This is fun. Our table time is comparable to a dinner party. Given the number of kids I have, there are often two conversations…
What can we bring to the Lord? Should we bring him burnt offerings? Should we bow before God Most High with offerings of yearling calves? Should we offer him thousands of rams and ten thousand rivers of olive oil? Should we sacrifice our firstborn children to pay for our sins?…
No one wants to get the call that their loved one has been arrested. This news is in a category far, far from bad news. And here we are. Jesus’ cousin John gets arrested. This fact opens the Gospel reading for this past Sunday, January 22nd. No…
Listen to me, you islands; hear this, you distant nations: Before I was born the LORD called me; from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name. He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me into a…
I didn’t see it coming. We were approaching the middle of November. Our Christian Education director was talking about the upcoming Christmas pageant. Her thought never occurred to me. “I think your foster son should play baby Jesus.” A slight pause followed. “I mean he’s not a newborn,” she added…
You’re sailing along on a good day. Coffee’s good. The donut is even better. The weather is decent. You’re in no rush. Oh, yes, it’s good. And then there’s that headline. That bit of news. We are too familiar with headlines that make our hearts hurt. I won’t list…
With this news, strengthen those who have tired hands, and encourage those with weak knees. — Isaiah 35:3 “You can’t detect it until it’s already there,” the hospice nurse says when speaking of pancreatic cancer. Something else is not detected until it’s already there. That something is…
Concern popped into my head immediately because the buck was down. Hunting season, I thought. He’s hurt. After a moment of eye contact with me, he slowly came to his feet. He was not injured. Our eyes remained locked. He stood on the wooded path I was taking. I kept…
Out of the stump of David’s family will grow a shoot— yes, a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root. — Isaiah 11:1 No one wants a stump. Sure, creative types may use a backyard tree stump for seating or as the base of an outdoor coffee table, but no…
