Signs and the Wonder

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I awoke from a dream asking a question: Would we sin less if we could see God? I don’t know what the dream was about nor does it matter, but it got me thinking. The short answer to this is no. Having God imminently present among us, or revealed to us in some way, in itself, would do very little to change our hearts, no more than he being powerfully present among the children of Israel kept them from falling into sin or Jesus being among the Jews stopped them from rejecting him as Messiah. Remember, Lucifer fell in the very presence of God.

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A Portrait of Trust

Michael4 Comments

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We are exhorted to trust God throughout Scripture. It is a biblical essential. A scriptural definition of trust in a single word is confidence, revealing that matters of trust toward God are inextricable of the term faith, a spiritual hallmark. My guess is that if you asked most Christians if they trust God or trust in him, they would say yes. But what does trusting God look like and how does one know they are confiding in him? That is my goal here, to envision it.Read More »

Lectio Divina: Psalm 37:3

Michael2 Comments

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The entire 37th chapter of Psalms is a marvelous encouragement. It was written by David to reassure the godly of God’s providence and care amidst the sinful and prosperous who seemed to flourish. The admonishment is that the righteous should not worry, grow unconfident, or lose their stability and, in temptation, flip sides when they see the ease with which the scoffer may live.Read More »

Be Open to God

Michael2 Comments

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The best gifts I’ve received have been those that were unexpected or completely out of my control. What I mean by that explains a peeve of mine today where increasingly people feel an undue burden with pleasing others with what they give. We want people to like what we give them, but today we stress over how satisfied they will be if our gifts are not to their liking. Our charitableness must bow to lists of buying options or we give gift cards and money so there is no question that one got what he wished for. I’ve fallen into that trap, too. But that practice robs the giver of the joy that comes with presenting a particular item that has first filled their heart for the special one. Read More »

Dirge of the Wretched

MichaelLeave a comment

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I sat in the courtroom for jury duty and thought about the people and situations that featured there. My mind flitted about, thinking of the accounts they told while in the dock. Good and bad folk came to accuse and defend, but only the truth mattered here, although sometimes it must have been hard to confess. Truth reveals. As a juror I was “the system”, a peer to try my peers; yet I concluded how little difference there was between me and them, the ones who really were guilty. The only divergence I could posit was they acted on impulses I denied.

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Life Sinks Sometimes

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Kayaking was a newly introduced pastime for me, and this was my third time on the river. This portion of the river, above the dam, was very calm and incredibly beautiful. I joined folk from church and a co-worker, her first time kayaking. Everyone was excited to get started.

My co-worker and I chatted with the attendant who was very cordial and reassuring to her because she was concerned about capsizing. “It’s virtually impossible to flip the kayak,” he told us. He explained how the instructors were required to pass rigorous tests that included attempting to capsize; it would really require work to do so.Read More »

Purposeful Seasons

Michael4 Comments

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Drawing close to God will destroy our assumptions about who he is. That is a good thing and shouldn’t be a surprise. A growing relationship is a learning process that helps us discover things about ourselves and the other, replacing error with knowledge. We assume many things about God and about his motives. People will proclaim “God won’t let” this or that happen, and I will think, Don’t be so sure about that. The notion develops when we are not intimately acquainted with God in a bond cemented by relationship in the best and worst of times, often at his behest. It is to trade insight of his character for low-level spiritual experiences that do no more than keep us excited and “churchy”. Read More »

A Lasting Word

Michael4 Comments

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Aristocats-hat/CC BY-NC/Foter

A lesson I’m still learning is the eternality of God’s word. Isaiah 40:8 states, “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” That poses no problem for many of us when we relate it to the word of God as “the Book” or divine rule for humankind. But I find myself becoming farsighted and doubting at times when relating that verse to the quiet assurances the Lord has instilled in my own heart.

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