Mark 15

Jesus, may I walk with you today.

Matthew 6:5-8

Jesus, may you be my reward.

Matthew 6:16-18

Jesus, may you be the only person in my audience.

Isaiah 58:5-10

Make me a yoke breaker, that I may be guarded by Your glory

1 John 5:14-15

Lord, according to your will, grant me the right confidence towards you

Hebrews 11

Let me be sure of Your hope, Jesus.

Psalm 51:1-4

According to your steadfast love, God, have mercy on me.

1 Peter 2:9-12

wow, can I just say: breath prayer really changes the way you think

I kept finding myself forgetting the simple prayer that I had gotten for the day, and it kept coming back at just the right moment, helping my mind to shift back to where God wanted me. incredible power in such a simple package.

today's breath prayer was a little harder to come up with: "Jesus, help me remember that I am yours"

Philippians 4:4-8

Breath Prayer: "Help me find my joy in You always"

Got back from an awesome retreat yesterday with tons of tools. One of them: breath prayer.

Above is my breath prayer for today. I can already feel the challenge of changing my mindset from one that disconnects quiet time with daily life, to one that infuses daily life with an awareness of God's presence.

Hebrews 12:1-3

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. 

Colossians 2:20-3:4

First reading: pay attention to text as if reading for the first time.

Second reading: listen for words and phrases that seem to resonate with you. Make a note of these bright spots as you meditate on them.

things that perish as they are used
no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh
your life is hidden with Christ in God
Christ who is your life

Third reading: Become aware of your emotional response to what you have noted. Contemplate what are you feeling.

Definitely distracted by the things that need to be done today
feeling nervous that something's going to go wrong
frustrated by the things that aren't going the way I want them to

Fourth reading: Reflect upon what God is saying to you through this text. What is God’s invitation to you today?

"Seek the things that are above, where Christ is..." 

Luke 12:13-21

Lord, may I be rich towards you and you alone

Philippians 4:10-13

"Do not pray for easy lives; pray to be stronger men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers; pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be nor miracle, but you shall be a miracle"

- Phillips Brooks

"They are making a living; they might be making a life."

- Samuel Zwemer

Mark 16

Gearing up for the week by praying for all who I'm planning on meeting today

...

and those that I haven't planned to meet, but God has planned for me to meet

Psalm 66

May I proclaim Your Name not only on Sundays, but every day

1 Peter 5:6-11

"humble yourselves...under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you" 

How can I humble myself in this way? If anything I see myself as someone who rarely feels the need to lift myself up over others, and yet I see that there is more for me to learn about humbling myself under God's hand...what does this look like?

"Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world." 

I see this every day. Our battle in following Christ isn't the trials, but giving up in the midst of those trials.

Philippians 2:1-18

It's one of those days again. Feeling swamped, underwater on a lot of things.

Thankful for the chance to pull back and refocus on God, get his perspective on things.

Philippians 2 a great place to go. 

"Do all things without grumbling or questioning...be glad and rejoice with me." (vv 14, 18) 

This verse reminded me of the fact that the work that I am doing is really God's work. I don't have to get mad about things, even when they don't go my way, because ultimately it doesn't matter if it goes my way...it matters only if it's going God's way...and that's not really in my control. I am called to put my whole being into it, but I'm not called to control the results. They belong to him. 

Thank you, Jesus, that you're an awesome master. I can give you my life, and it is in good hands. 

Mark 15

Easter's still a month away but I left my usual reading plan at home by accident, so today I went to spu.edu/lectio to see what they were going through over there.

Turns out that they're already on Mark 15, and so I decided to check it out and see what God might have to say to me through it. 

Mark 15, which is the account of Jesus being crucified, is one of those passages that we usually read closer to Easter. It was a good reminder to me today, though, of what we're spending Lent prepping for: Jesus' act of love and grace for us done on the cross.

In a sense, Lent helps us to make the connection between suffering and love. When you love someone, you're not only willing, but joyful to suffer on their behalf, which is exactly what Jesus did for us.

God, thank you that you love us so deeply that no amount of suffering was too much for you to bear on our behalf. Let me gladly take on the suffering of others that my heart might be transformed to be more and more like your Son's, and so that this world may come more and more under the power of your Kingdom.  

Ephesians 3:14-21

Today began as one of those days when I had a bunch of plans but then unexpected appointments started to launch themselves into my schedule and every minute of planning/prep time got obliterated.

It wasn't a good feeling. 

As I've been doing more and more over the past few years, I quickly turned to prayer as I began to feel overwhelmed, and God in turn pointed me back to his word. 

"For this reason I bow my knees before the Father...that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith" 

Exactly what I needed to hear. 

His Spirit is in me, Christ dwells in my heart. In moments like these when I feel weak, I am that much closer to not relying on myself and relying only on Him, which is what I should have been doing from the start! 

God is good: he wants to provide for us. He wants to be our strength. 

Psalm 19

"The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes" 


"Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults." 


Forgot how good this psalm was! 


So often the law seems like a burden to us, but it's actually meant to revive us.

Living in obedience to God refreshes, recharges, and revives us. 

Psalm 139:1-5

First reading: pay attention to text as if reading for the first time.

Second reading: listen for words and phrases that seem to resonate with you. Make a note of these bright spots as you meditate on them.

Wife's favorite chapter! 

Ministering to the Lord. This was on my heart all day today. Full day of ministry: not just preparing for worship and preaching, but also leading a relationships counseling session, meeting with people after service, coordinating a dinner at our place, and emceeing a testimony after service. Not to mention cleaning up the dinner (14 people over for hamburgers hot off the grill!).

Full Day. 

Ministry = service. Worship = ministering to the Lord, serving the Lord. When I serve my brothers and sisters I serve Jesus. 

"Before a word is on my tongue...Lord, you know it" 

"You hem me in, behind and before"

Third reading: Become aware of your emotional response to what you have noted. Contemplate what are you feeling.

I have a God who knows me. 

I feel secure. Sometimes I feel like things are falling apart around me, but knowing this gives me the assurance to not trust my instincts at times. I think about my cat: often I want to help my cat, but his instincts tell him to run from me. If he doesn't trust his instincts, but instead trusts me, I can pick him up and bring him to safety. But if he listens only to his instincts, he will run from me and only make things worse for himself. 

God behind and before me. Nothing can get to me or shake me. I am secure.

I feel worn, but happy knowing this. 

Fourth reading: Reflect upon what God is saying to you through this text? What is God’s invitation to you today?

So thankful for the chance to spend some time with a few folks from church that we don't know as well. Had a blast! What a blessing it is to serve a God who loves it when his children live in unity, feeding each other, having fun with one another, getting to know one another better. 

Am feeling called to begin encouraging other folks in our ministry to invite brothers and sisters over, especially the ones they don't know as well! 

Hebrews 5 and 6

The foundation

• repentance from dead works
• faith toward God: 
• instruction about washings/baptisms
• laying on of hands (receiving the Holy Spirit) 
• resurrection of the dead
• eternal judgment 

Hebrews calls this spiritual milk. Milk is not bad. In fact it is essential. 

"For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God...He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness" 

And Jesus is our high priest, able to understand all of our weaknesses, he deals wisely and expertly with our ignorance and rebellion, like a skilled surgeon, a compassionate father. 

We can, we must be fully vulnerable with him. 

And one of the best things we can give a friend is Him. 

Psalm 103:1-5

First reading: pay attention to text as if reading for the first time.

Second reading: listen for words and phrases that seem to resonate with you. Make a note of these bright spots as you meditate on them.

Bless the Lord, O my soul
All that is within me
His name 
Youth is renewed

Third reading: Become aware of your emotional response to what you have noted. Contemplate what are you feeling.

Bless the Lord - can I do this when I'm feeling stressed out, overwhelmed? 
All that is within me - I can't tiptoe in. I've got to dive in. 
His name - God's going to open my mind to something really important and awesome with regards to his name
Youth is renewed - even as a 32 year old, I feel the effects of age. My body doesn't recover as fast. My neck was ridiculously sore yesterday, could barely turn around to check my blind spot while driving. But hope in God will renew my youth. 

Fourth reading: Reflect upon what God is saying to you through this text? What is God’s invitation to you today?

Remember the truth: God is tossed to and fro by the wind. No storm can touch him. He is solid, and his plans are solid. And, best of all, he is for me, for us. He is working out our salvation, our good. Though I may mess up, though things may not break my way, I can trust that if I remain obedient to him, awesome things are going to happen.

And I need to tell my soul this. I need to remind every fiber of my body of this. 

Lenten Engagement: Psalm 40:1-5

First reading: pay attention to text as if reading for the first time.


Second reading: listen for words and phrases that seem to resonate with you. Make a note of these bright spots as you meditate on them.


I waited
He heard my cry
He drew me up from the pit of destruction
He set my feet upon a rock
He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to him
Blessed is the man who does not turn to those who go astray after a lie
You have multiplied...your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us
I will proclaim them

Third reading: Become aware of your emotional response to what you have noted. Contemplate what are you feeling. 


A sense of peace and calm
Relief: my feet are set upon safe ground
Frustrated and yet also hopeful: when will we sing a new song? Am I doing something to hold back?
Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord: He is accomplishing this. It doesn't depend on me. A sense of calm once again.
Happy to see that those who deceive will not succeed.
I will proclaim: I feel like I'm behind the pace. I don't think I proclaim enough.

Fourth reading: Reflect upon what God is saying to you through this text? What is God’s invitation to you today?


The Lord knows my problems. I will not be overcome. It is wise to cry out to him and wait for what he will do.

He's waiting for me to cry out for help so that he can show his love and power.

Writing and singing the song of God's faithfulness and goodness leads those who hear the song to trust in God as well.

The Lord is always thinking about me. How can I share this with others?

Lenten Engagement

So I finished Joshua yesterday, thoroughly enjoyed it, and was looking around for what part of Scripture to focus on next when I remembered that one of my ministry colleagues sent over a devotional guide for the season of Lent.

The guide gives each week of Lent a theme. Week 1's theme is "solitude." This week's theme is "silence."

The guide also provides a daily reading and study guide. Today's is Isaiah 6:1-8.



First reading: pay attention to text as if reading for the first time.


Second reading: listen for words and phrases that seem to resonate with you. Make a note of these bright spots as you meditate on them.

Verse 8: "Here I am". Theme theme of our spring retreat!
Verse 6: "a burning coal"
Verse 5: "Woe is me!  For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips"


Third reading: Become aware of your emotional response to what you have noted. Contemplate what are you feeling. 


Feeling: happy to see our retreat theme here. Something about the burning coal...present is the pain of fire, but alongside that is the idea of the freshness that comes from becoming completely clean. Sensing the fear of Isaiah as he enters into such a holy place.

Fourth reading: Reflect upon what God is saying to you through this text? What is God’s invitation to you today?


I can go not because I have made myself ready and worthy, but because God has cleansed me and chosen me. I am right not because of what I've done, but because of who has chosen me.

God has called me to serve. He has made me worthy of this calling. And he will give me everything I need to follow him.

Israel Served the Lord

The book of Joshua ends with Joshua's final words to the nation of Israel, as well as the account of his burial and Joseph's burial. Here's what it says about Joshua:

"After these things Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being 110 years old. And they buried him in his own inheritance at Timnath-serah, which is in the hill country of Ephraim, north of the mountain of Gaash. Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua and had known all the work that the Lord did for Israel." 


Reading through Joshua the Israelites actually make many mistakes and often turn their back on God. Joshua even gives them a chance in this final chapter to turn their backs on God once and for all, knowing that their hearts were so unfaithful to God. You even get the sense that he knows that they've hidden idols of other gods in their tents and worship them when they believe no one is looking.

And yet scripture tells us that the Israelites served the Lord all of Joshua's days, and the days of all of the elders that Joshua appoints.

What this says to me is that even though our church may make mistakes, and even though it may seem like our ministry is not making any difference, things may be better than they appear. God is at work, always.

This renews my hope to continue serving God, to continue putting my heart into preparing sermons and bible studies, organizing activities, and reaching out to people. I may notice a lot of little and even some big things that  I don't like and that I believe God wants to change (both in me and in others), but I can't let those things overwhelm my hope.

Not One Word Has Failed

This is definitely one of the themes running through Joshua. God promised and he delivered down to the last word.

But Joshua makes sure that the leaders of Israel realize that they themselves can get in the way of God's promises. God wants to build them up, but they can get in their own way by not remaining faithful to him. If they do reject God, Joshua says, they need to realize that punishment is coming.

I don't believe in doing things right because you're worried about punishment. But I do believe that doing wrong things results in bad consequences (which is what makes them bad in the first place!). There's no such thing as a harmless sin. Even more importantly, I believe being faithful to God and pursuing him is not a part time job. It must flavor all that we do, otherwise we're not really doing it.

Mondays are tough for me because they're my day off. And somehow a day off easily turns into a day off from God.

It's good to be here, online, fighting this battle and making strides by turning first to God's word before anything else.

Today we know that the Lord is in our midst...

Joshua 22

So this passage is about three tribes that had faithfully fought alongside their brothers, even though they didn't have to. You see, these tribes had already received their land before the fighting really began, and so they were fighting solely to help their brothers.

A band of brothers.

But then something interesting happens that I had forgotten about. After the war is finished the three tribes return to the land that they had left behind in order to fight alongside their brothers, and they end up building a huge altar at the border between their land and the land of their brothers.

Their brothers hear about this and assume that their brothers have turned from God and have built this altar in order to worship an idol. Figures: the Israelites are always making idols and turning from God. So they get ready to head over there and make war against them before God punishes all of them for this idol worship.

But the three tribes don't build this altar in order to worship an idol, but instead to remember all that God had done for them, and to teach their children as well.

When the other tribes hear this, they say, "Today we know that the Lord is in our midst, because you have not committed this breach of faith against the Lord" (22:31).

God is at work in places we don't always see. Sometimes we assume the worst about others and forget that God is at work among them. But the truth is our lives are in his hands. We are not perfect, but we worship a God who is. And if he is at work among us, if we are his handiwork, then what does that make us?

We are in good hands. Even those of us who are far out of sight.

Hebrews 3

This was the chapter for today's early morning prayer.

Usually I get anywhere from 20 to 60% of a sermon.

Today was closer to 2%. Yikes!

But, thankfully, I was able to use the time to meditate on the passage. And the part I walked away with was verse 13, "But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called 'today,' that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin."

Encouragement is key!

God uses an encouraging community to turn the tide.

All Came to Pass

"Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass."

Joshua 21:45

Two things that stuck out to me from Joshua 21. First was the verse that I quoted above. It's funny how this is something almost everyone who goes to church hears and knows, and yet it's also one of the hardest things for us to believe. I find myself in a daily, perhaps hourly struggle to believe this with both my head and my heart.

But it's a fight worth fighting.

The other thing that stuck out was the way the Israelites used lots to determine which cities would be given over to the Levites as their inheritance. Casting lots is basically like rolling dice. What's being described in this chapter is how, after conquering the land of Canaan, the tribes went around and "rolled dice" to see which of their cities they would hand over to the Levites.

It seems pretty random. And it doesn't really say whether God approved of this method or disapproved (at least as far as I could see in this chapter). It's clear he wants the Levites to have these cities, but it's not clear how he wants the cities to be picked.

This is actually reassuring to me. I take it to mean that God's given us plenty to go by. We know what his vision is: love him, be loved by him, and love others. The means by which we do that, though, will vary. Sometimes we'll have a clear sign to move in a certain direction. Other times we might be going for awhile unsure of how exactly we're supposed to accomplish that. And that's okay. It won't be time or effort wasted.

It's simple: trust him, seek his kingdom, and don't obsess about the rest. This is good news for someone like me who gets tempted to over think every single decision, and blame himself for every single mistake to the point of paralysis.

It's really not about me. It's about him. Gotta keep my focus right.

City of Refuge

Joshua 20

We often look at God and following Christ like it's a game: there are certain rules we have to follow, and if we mess up, then too bad for us. In this perception, God is almost like a computer or robot, dealing out punishment without any understanding except for what the rules say.

In the rule given to the Israelites, families who lost someone due to someone else killing them could rightfully take vengeance and kill the murderer. But what about those who accidentally killed someone else? Wouldn't it be far too harsh for someone to be killed in revenge if they didn't do anything intentionally?

In this chapter we see God providing a way out for those who committed manslaughter while still maintaining justice. He had the Israelites build "cities of refuge", places where those who had killed people accidentally could run to and be given safe haven after explaining their case to the city elders. This didn't mean that these people got off scot-free. They had to remain in these cities until a certain period of time, almost like going to prison. Payment still needed to be made for the life that was lost. But they would still get to keep their lives, and eventually they would be permitted to return home.

It's easy for me to lose hope and think about all the ways that I'm not living up to what God is calling me to do. But the God who creates cities of refuge is a God who understands how imperfect we are, and yet still uses us to accomplish his mission to redeem the world. He is both loving and just. He works both to help the one who has made the mistake, as well as the one who is hurt by the mistake. He is the Leader and Author, not me.

This renews my confidence in the Holy Spirit. I can lean on him, even when I have no clue what my plan should be. I know that if I trust in him and obey him, he will cover over all of my shortcomings.

Joshua 19

Realized that in the previous chapter the first verse reads, "The lot of the tribe of the people of Benjamin according to its clans came up...." In other words, Benjamin is the first chosen to receive land.

Verse 9, "Because the portion of the people of Judah was too large for them, the people of Simeon obtained an inheritance in the midst of their inheritance." How fair and considerate.

Verse 33, "And their boundary ran from Heleph, from the oak in Zaanannim...." Important tree!

Verse 49, "When they had finished distributing the several territories of the land as inheritances, the people of Israel gave an inheritance among them to Joshua the son of Nun. By command of the Lord they gave him the city that he asked...." Special treatment for their leaders. First Caleb, then Joshua. Jesus tells his disciples that Godly leaders are not to lord their power over others, and Caleb and especially Joshua do not. But at the same time it looks like, after they have run the race, their obedience is recognized. A special inheritance is provided for those that take on the extra burden of watching over the people.

I'm in ministry for a variety of reasons, not one of which is a typical "worldly" reward. I'm not in it for the money, for the schedule, for the ease. If anything most other jobs out there, in my opinion, would pay more, require fewer hours, and be less stressful. I'm also not in it for any "eternal" rewards, at least if we're talking about special heavenly jewelry or more square feet in heaven. Somehow those things just don't seem to be all that important.

But if we're talking about smiling faces in eternity, if we're talking about the knowledge that life was well spent, if we're talking about knowing that I was working alongside God in his mission, that's an inheritance I will gladly fight for.

Thinking about my calling to minister to others, it helps to stay the course when I know that this will all be worth it one day.

Matthew 5:31-46 Part 2

"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.'"

As I was praying and looking over my readings for the course that I'm taking on Wednesday nights (Perspectives), God helped me to see more clearly that I'm called to be a maker of disciple makers. Really, that's a redundant way of putting it, but it helps make the focus clear: leading people to Christ naturally should lead into them leading others to Christ.

I'm excited about that day when those that I'm ministering to and leading now are ministering and leading others.

Joshua 18

'So Joshua said to the Israelites, "How long will you wait before you begin to take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given to you?"' (18:3)

This sounds kind of weird, but I get pretty frustrated when people don't see how gracious God is being to them, or when they get all depressed and moody and mad at God when the reason why they're in their funk is completely self-made (i.e. when they play the victim). I feel kind of like Joshua might've felt: how long will they wait before they begin to take possession of the rich inheritance they have in Christ, the victory of being God's adopted sons and daughters?

But then I realize that that anger itself in me is connected to an inheritance that I'm not taking possession of. I can't really put it into words yet, but God has been showing me more and more that pastoring is much more (at least most of the time) than scolding people for keeping their eyes closed.

I've got understand better what it is that's at the root of my anger. And in that case the question I need to ask is: what am I looking for that's not being given to me when I see people slow to realize how much God has already given to them, and how much power they really have?

Joshua 17

Joshua 16

"the people...received their inheritance"

I'm reminded not just to talk about God, but to talk to God. To listen. To say hello the Holy Spirit once again.

To pay attention.

To remember.

To pursue my Pursuer.

Joshua 15

I don't want to stumble anyone, but this chapter is quite likely the least interesting (at least at face value) chapter in Joshua. It's a description of which cities were given to which tribes after the Israelites were given the promised land.

It's very...geographical.

But God's word never returns to him empty (Isaiah 55:11), so I'm going to sit on this chapter for awhile and let it sink in...even if I'm not sure how it's sinking in.

...

Wow, as soon as I paused there to pray and be with God, I was reminded that I'm leading us in an introduction to prayerwalking tonight. Prayerwalking is a spiritual exercise that helps us to see our geography through God's eyes. Now of course I'm not just talking about points on a map. Prayerwalking actually focuses more on the people and events at those points on the map. But still, prayerwalking is a very geographical exercise.

God, through Joshua, explained to the Israelites exactly where they should live, and where to place their borders. He knew every rock in the promised land, and he knows every building, every door, and every tree that we're going to walk by tonight. Prayerwalking is letting God the Holy Spirit speak to us as we encounter the people and places of these areas.

I'm reminded now that God has a purpose and a heart for each place, even that there is a battle going on over each place.

I'm also reminded that his word never returns to him empty. Scripture is never useless.

Joshua 13

Joshua and God were in close relationship, to the point that Joshua regularly received guidance from God. In this chapter we see God showing Joshua what was left to be done as the leader of Israel, and how God was going to lead him in doing it.

Today we have the awesome gift of not having to seek God through a person like Joshua, but through the gift that he gives us, the Holy Spirit. Each of us can be guided by God if we put our faith in him and seek him.

I need this reminder daily. Every day, probably every hour I catch myself planning all on my own, with no thought to what the Holy Spirit might be saying to me. I guess one could say that the Holy Spirit isn't into nagging. If we don't turn to him, he's not always going to tug at us and try to get our attention.

Every day I'm challenged to remember the truth: that God is with me right now, right here in the Holy Spirit.


Hello Holy Spirit. Good afternoon. I'm sorry for not seeking you as often as I should and can. Thank you for being with me now. 


I'm ready to listen, and to act on what you reveal to me. 

Joshua 12

There are 30 to 31 days in the typical month.

In this chapter, Scripture recounts that Joshua defeats 31 kings, all feared warriors, rulers over people, chosen by their gods. Yet no matter how great they were by worldly standards, none could stand in the way of God's mission.

This is a good reminder for me to know that no obstacle is too great for God.

It's also a great reminder to constantly align my life with and seek first God's mission. "Seek ye first the Kingdom of God."

Isn't it always when I seek other things that I get lost? And when, on the other hand, I seek his kingdom first, doesn't everything begin to click and make sense?

Joshua 11

After I finished reading today's chapter I realized that a lot of times I go into prayer without a plan, and that leaves me feeling kind of overwhelmed, which then leads to pretty short, generic prayer.

On Saturday mornings I pray for the pastors of our church and their family, and just going through that takes about 15 to 20 minutes. The cool thing, though, is the structure really helps me stay focused with God, and then leads to an even better and more focused time of prayer afterwards (after I finish praying for the other pastors).

So today, instead of just diving in like I normally do, I decided to structure things around the prayer that Jesus taught us:

Our Father, who is in heaven...


Hello Dad/Apbba

Hallowed be your name...


God...teach me about your name. I don't always know clearly what it means to "make your name holy". Teach me to be a person of your name, one who is known by your name, but also lifts up the reputation of your name in the things I say and do. Teach me about your name.

Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven...


Yes, God, may your kingdom, your rule, your government come to us as a community, both in this city and in our church. I ask for our people to stop fighting, to stop acting out of selfish motives, to stop seeking only their own good, and instead that we would love you first, and love others out of that. I ask for us to see ourselves as you see us, as your beloved children, and I ask that we wouldn't hesitate to give our lives for one another.

And I pray the same for myself. God, use my life as a landing pad for your kingdom. You have every hour, every minute of my life. May I take every breath in you. When I work, I work for you. When I rest, I rest in you. My life is yours. It belongs to your kingdom, it finds itself only in your will.

Give us this day our daily bread...


I pray this for myself, my family, and for my community, United Life. We know that everything we have comes from you, and so today I remember that and remember to go to you, the true source. I lift up my personal needs to you, as well as the needs of my people. May there be no one in United Life who goes hungry or who suffers for lack of anything, especially while others, including myself, have something to give.

Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil...


Dad, we need your protection around us like a fortress, a wall, a hedge. Defend us. We know that if we trust you with our lives, you will guard our paths. I put my life, and the life of my people, into your hands. Help me not to stray from your path, or to lead others astray.

We know we have an enemy. But we know we have a greater friend and king. We turn to you. I turn to you.

For yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, now and forever. Amen. 


True, true, true.

Joshua 10

"All these kings and their lands Joshua conquered in one campaign, because the Lord, the God of Israel, fought for Israel."

I'm challenged to remember that no matter how large my foe seems, if he/it is also the enemy of God, then I have nothing to fear.

This removes one major obstacle to following God daily, especially since my nature is to worry about what people think of me. If I have nothing to fear, even disapproval by all, then that's one less major thing standing between me and pursuing God's call to a) love others and Him with everything, and b) make disciples of Christ of all nations and people groups.

something about Saturdays...

"Make room in your hearts for us"

2 Corinthians 7:2

Something about this verse jumped out at me today at KM EMP. Paul's writing this to the Corinthians. Actually a verse later he says to them, "you are in our hearts, to die together and to live together." Definitely we're getting a picture of what being brothers and sisters is all about.

My question: what do you do when brothers and sisters are fighting? What role do I have when the two parties seem so far apart?

And worst of all, it's not the loud, in your face kind of fighting. It's the kind of fighting that simply writes the other person off and puts both parties at opposite corners of the room, hoping not to bump into each other.

Must fight for reconciliation. Until we get to a place where we each have room in our hearts for one another, then we have not reached our destination.

Now what about me? Do I have room in my heart for all? Who are those that are hardest to make room for?

Joshua 9

I realized that one of the things that I'm tempted to do through this blog is to write little mini-sermons. Now while that's not a bad thing, I think I can get caught up in writing about what I think others need to hear rather than what God is saying to me.

Reading some of my brothers' blogs has inspired me to make this a bit more raw. So here goes...

"So the men took some of their provisions, but did not ask counsel from the Lord. And Joshua made peace with them...." (9:14-15)

Joshua and his generals were in the middle of a war when some of their enemies came up with a plan. They would disguise themselves as people from a far away land and come to Joshua's camp. There they would say that they had heard of how great Joshua was and try to get him to sign a peace treaty with them.

The plan works because not only do they really look like foreigners who've traveled a far distance, but also because Joshua does not "ask counsel from the Lord."

I do this as well. I start off with the right intention, I start off by putting my trust in God and listening to him, but then, along the way, I take over. I start planning and doing things while losing touch with why I'm doing them in the first place.

One way that I'm seeing this in myself is in how I see people. I often think the worst of people. The upside of this is that I rarely get disappointed when they do something sinful. But the downside is that I easily get discouraged in ministry. I start to think that no matter how many sermons I preach, no matter how many bible studies I lead, nobody's changing, that everyone will always stay stuck in their same sins, their same way of thinking.

But the truth is, even when I don't feel like it, I'm actually seeing a lot of change in people, and it's all God. The truth is it's God who called me into ministry in the first place, and if he's called me, then he's going to be the one to transform people, not me. I've got to remember to focus not on trying to change people, but on being faithful to him, risking in faith, and telling people about him.

Matthew 25 and Isaiah 58

Re-read the two passages that I read yesterday and the day before today (I definitely recommend doing this from time to time...sometimes just a day later you see something new).

One thought that came out last night during Perspectives that has to do with these two chapters and what we're talking about in my discipleship groups:

How often do we make the mistake of thinking that the main character of the Bible is us and not God? 


We often ask: how does this apply to me? But a better question to ask is: what is this telling me about God, and how can I be a part of what he is doing? How can I hear what he is saying (both to me and others)?

Here's what Isaiah and Matthew are telling me about God today: he's all about those at the bottom, those on the fringes. When we take notice of the invisible, the voiceless, and when we work on their behalf, we line up with what he's doing. When we are the invisible, the voiceless, the powerless, then we should take comfort in knowing that God is tirelessly working to save us.

Matthew 25:31-46

"There is a healthy tension in Scripture between deeds done for salvation and deeds done as evidence of salvation. It is clear that we cannot earn a righteous standing before a holy and perfect God, yet it is also clear that if we do not show evidence of a changed heart through our deeds of compassion, the reality of our salvation can be questioned." Ogden, 157

As a follower of Christ, this is something that I've been growing in my whole life. I moved from someone who never felt sure about his salvation because of my imperfections, to someone who was sure because I stopped looking at myself, and I started to trust in God's love and grace, to someone who now understands that putting our faith in Jesus doesn't just mean receiving from him, it also means following him.

As a pastor, this is something that I've been learning to explain over the last nearly 9 years. I began stressing God's grace and love, something I still do, but I'm recognizing that Jesus didn't call people to receive his grace and then not be changed. He said, "Follow me."

Jesus says to the goats, "Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me." Jesus isn't saying that if we do all these things we'll earn our salvation. He's saying that trusting him means following him. If we're not following him (which looks like all those things above) then likely we're not actually trusting and worshiping him as God, but we're worshiping something else.

Enough sermonizing...more confession: I let my comfort and worry keep me from pouring myself out in love often. But last night we in our discipleship group we took a minute to write down one thing we could do out of love for another. I nearly forgot it even though I wrote it down, but when I did it I could sense the Holy Spirit leading me. I think things don't change with a big resolve and a total transformation, but rather day by day, minute by minute obedience to the Holy Spirit.

Gotta keep my mind on the now, not the tomorrow.

Isaiah 58

Some good stuff up in here:

• Verses 2-4: "Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high". Ever feel like you're praying and seeking God but he's not responding? These 3 verses (and this whole chapter) make it clear that the problem may be that we're mocking him because our prayers and worship and fasting don't line up with the way we're living our lives. Gotta look at ourselves honestly. 
• Verse 7: "Is not this the fast I choose...not to hide yourself from your own flesh?" How often do we "hide" from those that ask of us something? Even walking down the street or pulling up to a stoplight, isn't it our first instinct to not look a beggar in the face? But they're not "some beggar", they're us. They're our own flesh, and God wants us to seek to help with their needs. 
• Verse 13: "If you...call the Sabbath a delight...if you honor it, not...seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly; then you shall take delight in the Lord, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth...." Wow, how many of our Sundays are filled with "our own pleasure" or "talking idly"? Have we ever thought that Sundays were meant for something else, something more? 

Philippians 2:19-30

"For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare..." (2:20)

This was the passage that our head pastor preached on this morning at early morning prayer, and it really hit home for me. As he spoke, I realized that this is one of the most critical attributes of a ministry leader, and one of the main things that I need to focus on developing as I raise up more leaders in United Life.

Number 1 is definitely a personal relationship with Christ. But I'm beginning to see that, besides that, a leader needs above almost anything else a passion for the welfare of others.

We talked about loving like Jesus during our Thursday discipleship group. It's something we all know we should be doing, but it's so hard. Yet now I'm beginning to see that developing that heart is our leaders is perhaps my main mission as the pastor of United Life.

John 17:20-26

Jesus' prayer for the church: "I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word (that's us), that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me."

Interestingly we talked about this yesterday night at Perspectives: that Jesus' final prayer was for our unity as brothers and sisters in Him...just goes to show you how critical it is that we fight through our differences and reconcile. Satan loves it when we fight or, even worse, when we just simply ignore each other and shut each other out. (Speaker shared a brutal story yesterday: we all know about Rwanda and the terrible genocide that happened there. But did we know that Rwanda was about 90% Christian when the genocide took place? Christians killing Christians...and before that Christians exploiting Christians...terrible, terrible stuff. And a key warning to all of us about how critical it is that we pursue reconciliation and unity)

One other cool thing in Jesus' prayer: "I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them."

In other words, Jesus is saying that through his efforts to build God's reputation, to "make a name" for God (so to speak), he actually opened the door for God's love and the Holy Spirit to enter into us. Not sure exactly how that works yet, but it is a really cool connection (the building up of God's name leads to God's love and Holy Spirit entering his people) that we usually don't talk about.

and with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all...

So we're starting something new in our MDG, and it was inspired by one of our brothers speaking up and challenging the rest of us to really do something about our desire to get more into the Word. Everyone in our group was talking about it, and it just took one brother speaking up one night for something to happen.

And that thing is this: a new blog ring featuring all of us sharing, at a minimum, what verse/chapter we opened up that day, every day. So, some days, all you may see is this:

Today: Joshua 7

Other days you may see something a bit longer.

Regardless, what I'm excited about is that this will no doubt help us as a group start to see all of the awesome things God is putting on our hearts, showing to us through his word, not to mention the stuff that we don't see that he shows us as we open up the Bible more regularly as disciples.

In the title I quoted Acts 4:33, and the reason why is, just as the movement of the Holy Spirit among the disciples and apostles manifested itself in the sharing of their testimonies with one another and outsiders, so I see this blog ring as being a chance for us to share our mini-testimonies with one another. Every time a bible verse is posted, every time a story is shared, we'll be stepping into God's story together. The steps might be small, but they'll be in the right direction, and that's getting me EXCITED!