I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me! (Job 19:25-27) Within the confines of this Old Testament book of wisdom literature is a statement that is incredibly profound. Job ... [Continue Reading]
The Other Side of a Story (Job 14-16)
I also could speak like you, if you were in my place; I could make fine speeches against you and shake my head at you. But my mouth would encourage you; comfort from my lips would bring you relief. (Job 16:4-5) We live in a culture that applauds the armchair critics. Everyone has a platform to speak his or her mind on the issues of the day without fear, behind the ... [Continue Reading]
When Less is More (Job 10-13)
If only you would be altogether silent! For you, that would be wisdom. (Job 13:5) One of the prayers that I have regularly prayed over the last decade or so has been a prayer for wisdom. I want to make wise choices, I want to say wise things, and I want to live my life wisely. The thing about wisdom, though, is that it knows when to keep silent. The fool blathers on ... [Continue Reading]
Pleasing God (Genesis 4-7)
Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away. (Genesis 5:24) Trust is the key to any relationship, and Enoch was a man of trust. Rather than doubting God or living life his own way, he trusted God and lived in a way that was pleasing to Him. How do we know this? We know because Enoch never experienced death. Rather than losing life ... [Continue Reading]
A Fresh Start (Genesis 1-3)
Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living. (Genesis 3:2) It's remarkable to me that Adam decided to name his wife, "Eve." After all, one of the biggest let-downs of human history had just occurred. God created this masterful new world, and the new man and his wife were given one rule: don't eat from the tree. One rule. And they ... [Continue Reading]
Restore Us (Psalms 82-83, 137, 126)
God, we have fallen away from you and away from the things of you. In our world of busyness, we have allowed the noise of technology to overpower your voice, and we have made amusement our first priority over spending time with you. Please restore us, Lord. Restore us to the place where we first found you – when we were in awe of you and when we ... [Continue Reading]
Beyond the Requests (Psalms 134, 146-150)
I’m not sure what your daily prayers are like, but many of mine come down to asking God for things. Typically they hover around “bless me,” “help me,” or “give me.” In each one of those prayers, the idea is that I am lacking and that I want God to help make up my deficit. These aren’t necessarily wrong prayers, but if they’re all that I pray, then I’m ... [Continue Reading]
The Lamp (Psalms 119:89-176; 136)
One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Psalm 119:105 where we read that God’s word is a lamp to our feet. A better rendering of “lamp” might be “lantern” because it gives a clearer image of what a lamp from that time period actually was. It was not a flashlight that illuminated a large area in front. Rather, a lamp shed light on a 2-3 foot radius ... [Continue Reading]
The Other Side of Grace (Psalms 119:1-88; 72)
Grace is a wonderful thing. It truly is the unearned joy of the Christian life because you can never behave so badly that you lose it, nor can you behave so good that you deserve it. Grace, by its very nature, does not demand anything from us; it is simply granted when we choose to trust in Christ’s death for the forgiveness of our sins. When we accept ... [Continue Reading]
Delighting in God (Psalms 37, 71, 94)
Over the past several years I have been seeking to perfect my recipe for grilled pizza. I have been a pizza lover ever since I can remember, and I’ve always enjoyed grilling food, too. So it seemed like a natural progression to put the pizza on the grill. It was an awful mess the first time, but it has improved as I’ve learned better dough recipes and ... [Continue Reading]
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