This week we have been studying Psalm 126 which reminds us that when you plant seeds of sorrow, God can give you a harvest of joy. In my previous post, I talked about the difficulty of gardening, and how the psalmist uses that as a metaphor for life. But after all the clearing, tilling, weeding, and watering,Continue reading “How to lament: keep holding on to God”
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What to do when life is hard and filled with tears
A friend of mine has graciously allowed me to borrow his tiller each year to get our garden ready for planting. It is a monster of a tiller. You have to grip that thing with all your might, lower your center of gravity, and hold on for dear life. I am not kidding. It isContinue reading “What to do when life is hard and filled with tears”
What is a song of ascent? (the next U2 album?)
For years the rock band U2 has been hinting that they are going to release an album called Songs of Ascent. What might “Songs of Ascent” refer to? Why would U2 think of that title? As the years went by, U2 changed directions a bit, first releasing an album called Songs of Innocence, and justContinue reading “What is a song of ascent? (the next U2 album?)”
How lament can bring beautiful restoration
Throughout this second week of Advent 2017, we’ve been talking about restoration from Psalm 85. We’ve seen how God is at work to bring restoration and revival. We’ve also learned our responsibility to work alongside God. It can seem too hard sometimes when the restoration is going to require lots of sacrifice and effort. SoContinue reading “How lament can bring beautiful restoration”
Who is responsible for restoration and revival? God? Us? Both?
Restoration and revival might take a lot of work. I just did a Google image search on the phrase “the hard work of restoration”, and almost all of the pictures are about car restorations. Some furniture. Some homes. There is restoration from natural disaster that can take years. I suspect only a few of usContinue reading “Who is responsible for restoration and revival? God? Us? Both?”
The Freedom of Forgiveness Received
In the Gospels Jesus tells the story of a certain servant who owed millions of dollars to a king. When the king requested an accounting of the debt, the servant couldn’t pay. The king ordered the servant, the servant’s wife, children and all his possession to be sold to pay the balance. Horrified, the servantContinue reading “The Freedom of Forgiveness Received”
What if America was invaded? A thought project to teach us how to be restored
Imagine that some nation invaded the USA, defeated us, and started carrying us away back to their land where we worked for them as slaves! How would that feel? Horrible, right? And life in that foreign land would not be like life here. It would be very, very hard. And we would cry out inContinue reading “What if America was invaded? A thought project to teach us how to be restored”
Do you struggle with FOMO?
Do you struggle with FOMO? Fear of missing out. I recently read an article where a guy talked about his fear of missing out. Because of the prevalence of social media in our society, and the quick access to social media accounts on our phones, FOMO is a real thing for many. The author ofContinue reading “Do you struggle with FOMO?”
How lament can shine light into the darkness of our world
Do you sense the darkness in our world? I started this series of posts by describing the tragedies in our world, all adding to the darkness. Just last evening, my wife and I watched the episode of The Crown where a dense poisonous smog settles on London. It stayed there for days, and thousands lostContinue reading “How lament can shine light into the darkness of our world”
When you cry out to God over and over and he doesn’t respond
Have you ever waited for something a long time? I feel like I regularly get in the store check-out line that has the longest wait. It’s uncanny. But that kind of wait is not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about waiting for something for months or years, and often the waiting involves pain. ItContinue reading “When you cry out to God over and over and he doesn’t respond”
Engaging Scripture 