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- Wednesday, May 13 – The Good News - The Good News: Your life will be richer if you take joy in the people you love and who love you back. We are in God’s classroom, and, whether you are attentive or not, you are learning your lessons. If you are like me, the lesson is not learned until the teacher beats you over the head with it time, after time. Take the lesson; “Love one another as I have loved you.” If we did that it would produce joy! We would be happy! We would smile at one another, etc. etc. And, Yet… Continue reading
- Tuesday, May 12 – You and God - My daughter found this conversation with God on a Facebook page. It was written by John Roedel and it is such a good and appropriate message that I wanted to share it with you. Keep in mind, this is You and God having a conversation. A Conversation with God: Me: Hey God. God: Hello... Me: I'm falling apart. Can you put me back together? God: I would rather not. Me: Why? Continue reading
- Monday, May 11 – Time to Clarify - Time to clarify. The Bible isn't interested in making people happy. Instead, the Bible focuses on joy. Happiness is something we feel because of our situation or circumstances. We are happy because something made us happy, but we are joyful because of something within us. Somehow, happiness never seems to cross our minds when adversity knocks on our door, and yet… Have you ever thought about this: Can adversity breed joy? How about mistakes? Errors? No? Let me ask this then, who is your worse critic? Who berates you for things you have done, are doing, and did even years ago? Who sticks its ugly head into the present moment of joy, and sours it? We do it to ourselves! Isn’t that the truth? Continue reading
- Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 10 - Mother’s Day, May 10, 2020, a perfect day for all of us. A day for joy, a day for the joy of the Lord to be our strength. Yes, a God-blessed happiness to all you mothers! When the psalmist refers to joy, it doesn’t mean the tendency some people have, because of their temperament, to be happier than other people. For one reason or another there appear to be people who are more naturally wired to smile, who can wake up in the morning singing a cheery song, and who look at their breakfast cereal and simply clap their hands with delight. When I was a freshman in college, one of my classmates was an attractive young lady who walked the campus, always smiling, even greeting others with a ‘hello, there’, and the impression was that of a happy person. It was not long before I realized that she was not what she seemed. Continue reading
- Saturday, May 9 – Short Supply - It seems like happiness is in short supply, these days. You and I look for it. Do we always find it? It can be illusive, if you are looking in the distance, you know tomorrow, as opposed to today, to the now. Happiness could be there, just over your left shoulder, in the next room, or at the end of that telephone line, or the face on your Zoom or facetime loved one. Have you noticed the common denominator in our search for happiness? People! Yeah, people. Jesus is a people person who never left a lesson in the singular, always giving us a bonus. Max Lucado puts it this way when Jesus was asked which is the most important command? “The man wanted one answer, but he got two. ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ Continue reading
- Friday, May 8 – New Normal - A New Normal! Too often that phrase seems to apply to things changing in your life from good to bad, like a medical diagnosis or loss of loved one. Or, the change is from good to “gooder”! You know, like marriage or new babies (especially the first one), or a promotion. For us, it is a phrase that most assuredly applies to these past two months and continuing on into the yet-to-be-determined end time. Sometimes that ‘New Normal’ is a choice, a decision that one makes because of something or someone has entered our lives. Take for example this little bit of an essay written several years ago: The surface of the lake was like a mirror. It was cloudy and the sun was behind the man who stood in the boat, still was as if he were a statue. Continue reading
- Thursday, May 7 – That Terrible Day - That terrible day? Do you remember? Good Friday. That’s when our Lord and Savior, as he was dying, prayed the Prayer of Forgiveness. Do you remember what some of His last words were there on the cross? “Father, forgive them.” He was saying, “I forgive them and, Father, I ask you to forgive them and not to put this on their account, not to blame them.” His cry, his plead to God, was for us. He was crying out that they, you and me, would be released; that God would forgive us. There is a side to the Prayer of Forgiveness that is a form of intercession; a side where we stand in the breach, that God would not remember the sin of the person who has sinned against us. Our sin is all-inclusive. God’s forgiveness is all-inclusive. Why? Continue reading
- Wednesday, May 6 – Meet Me in the Morning - Jesus Calling a few days ago was so strong and encouraging, and even though many of you follow this devotional, I include it here as our meditation for all those who may not have seen it: “Meet Me in morning stillness, while the earth is fresh with the dew of My Presence. Worship Me in the beauty of holiness. Sing love songs to My Holy Name. As you give yourself to Me, My Spirit swells within you till you are flooded with divine Presence. The world's way of pursuing riches is grasping and hoarding. You attain My riches by letting go and giving. The more you give yourself to Me and My ways, the more I fill you with inexpressible, heavenly Joy.” Sarah Young Continue reading
- Tuesday, May 5 – Cinco de Mayo! - Cinco de Mayo, everybody! Time to celebrate! Drink up! Oh, what are we celebrating? Nothing, really. This is the day celebrated by bartenders everywhere! The distilleries are alive with music. Some believe that we celebrate Mexican independence, but, no. That is in September. Then what? The Virgin Mary? No. How about Kahlo? Or Hidalgo? Juarez? What then? Tequila! Drink up! Is that a false holiday? Maybe, depends of how you look at it. Maybe celebrating a day, any day, is a good thing. Which is more important? The day, or the celebration? Continue reading
- Monday, May 4 – Given by God - In this scripture passage, John is answering his worried disciples that everything he had was given by God, a gift. Even they, who followed John, likewise, were gifts from God and as gifts, they had a purpose, for which they should be grateful. John knew who he was, he was not the Christ. He made that plain. In the Jewish wedding customs of that day, the friend of the bridegroom was like a combination of best man and wedding planner, they arranged everything, and wanted no attention. John saw his role was to bring two people together; Christ and His bride, you and me. In our societal mind set we think we know what a bridegroom is but in Biblical terms, it means that Jesus is God. Continue reading
- Sunday, May 3 – His Word Unchanged - Sometimes when we read the Message version of the Bible we hardly recognize the…well, message. Sometimes, however, it speaks to us more clearly than, say, King James, even though it is James! In King James, the subject of this passage is right up there in the first sentence: ‘If any of you lacks wisdom…’ Wisdom. In the Message, the subject is implied, ‘If you don’t know what you are doing…’ Yet, to me, the instruction in the Message is more straightforward on how to proceed, ‘Ask boldly (of God), believingly, without a second thought.’ In other words (King James), no doubts. Continue reading
- Saturday, May 2 – Silly Saturday - What are you doing in this isolation to keep your mind working and your hands active? I could not help but notice so many nests, piles of stuff that I wanted to get to “someday”. Well, I tackled one of those nests a few days ago and I came across a book that was given to me in 1972 entitled Pop/Rock Lyrics 3, Copyright 1971. It was surprising to me how prophetic some of those lyrics were, that I hardly paid much attention to them, back then. Let’s review. Remember this by Joni Mitchell? Can you name it? "They paved paradise and put up a parking lot With a pink hotel, a boutique and a swinging hot spot..." Continue reading
- Friday, May 1 – What Are You Afraid Of? - hat Are You Afraid Of? The 11-year-old girl stands at the service line of her school volleyball game. It is the first time she has been called upon to serve. The score is tied and her team is counting on her. She is nervous, she is fearful. She never expected the coach to put her into this important game, and now, here she is about to serve. All she could think about is getting this ball over the net. Her parents, in the crowd of cheering parents and fellow students, are thinking the same thing, “please let her get the ball over the net”! Her hand is shaking and breathing is not easy. She starts to serve, strikes the ball, and it sails… Fear. Fear hits us all, maybe differently in you or in me, but, nevertheless it’s part of our lives, it’s part of how we function in this complicated and difficult time of life. What are you afraid of? Continue reading
- Thursday, April 30 – Ancient Clay Lamp - True story. In 1939 or 1940, a great uncle of mine was part of an archaeological ‘dig’ somewhere in the Holy Land and uncovered a clay lamp. I inherited the lamp from my father. Inside is a yellowed piece of paper which reads, “Lamp – oil. Ancient – est. 2500 BC. Found within the project near Tel-Aviv, 1939-40.” It’s a small lamp, bird-shaped, 3” tail to beak, made of clay. I suppose removing the lamp from the Holy Land project was some kind of violation. But the act of holding a 4500 year old hand-made lamp carries with it a reverent sense of history, and the fact that it was made by someone during the time of Moses! Well, wow! If you would like to see it, just ask me. Continue reading
- Faithful Love - Last night I was in turmoil when it was time to turn the light out and go to bed. I had written a meditation for this morning, but, frankly, it was silly and I wasn’t happy with it. Yet, beside the crazy twists and turns that my mind was doing, I had my conversation with God and then went to sleep…6 hours! For me, that’s great! This morning, the turmoil of yesterday was gone, and in its place, we’re five separate thoughts, each born of my morning meditation readings. One, had to do with my book on Barabbas that is in the hands of the publishing house, and I can’t change a word without losing the fall release date. Still, it’s a thought, so I jotted a note to myself. Continue reading
- Tuesday, April 28 – Peace is Not Fear - Peace is not fear… With God, our fear doesn’t stand a chance! (Excerpt from an essay, Holy Fear, 2008): “We are humans, we all experience fear in some form or another; for our own safety, sometimes the fear is of the unknown, or comes out of our worry about tomorrow. We hear plenty of scripture passages that say to us do not fear, and certainly do not worry about tomorrow… What about holy fear? The kind of fear that God implants in us that guides us closer to him?” In Acts 2:1-4, we read about the event during Pentecost in the temple in Jerusalem. It was a fearful, violent wind and tongues of fire. All that would be fearful enough, but then they were filled with the holy spirit. God’s purpose, God’s plan. Sunday night, some of you may have watched Pastor Robert Morris, TBN, who dedicated his entire broadcast talking specifically to me. Continue reading
- Anger? Hope? - I was thinking about fear, empathy and compassion, and trying to sort out the differences and the characteristics of those common states of mind. I suppose I could’ve thrown in anger as well, because in my mind each one of us has gone through a period of anger, that we may not have identified as such. But, I would argue that it is hard to go from a busy life to isolation and not have that abrupt change produce frustration and anger. Anger, in my mind, is tied to hope in kind of a weird way. In our present circumstance, we have anger because we want a better narrative. We don’t like the one we have. What actually matters? Human connection, touch, dinner together, hair appointments, hugs, kisses, protest marches, work, and down a long, long list of ‘normal’ activities, now out of reach, and our sense of hope is paused for a time. I was listening to a podcast interview of Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat Pray Love and Big Magic, and she was drawing the line between empathy and compassion, and making some interesting points. Continue reading
- Sunday, April 26 – T’ween Heaven and Earth - In my manuscript, Middle of Nowhere, there are parallel narratives: a mortal and a heavenly. There has just been a collapse in the mine with loss of life, and the tragedy that has been observed in Heaven: “Far above the valleys, the thunder rolled on and on, and clouds gathered, illuminated by flashes of lightning. In the midst of the chaos in the Heavenly Vast, a voice; a voice that said, “Do not surrender to discouragement, my little ones. The Great One reminds us that for lo these many years we have been on the glorious mountaintop with the believers, gathered in Living Light. All those happy years were meant to teach and to strengthen our faith. Put all doubt aside.” “What happened? Those poor Mortals, and those poor, sad children. Why would Great One do this? We don’t understand.” Continue reading
- Saturday, April 25 – Worrier’s Prayer - Back when my granddaughter, Hazel Jane Escott, was 5, 6 or 7, she and I had a song that we would sing. We were pretty lousy and we were pretty hokey but we enjoyed each other. She’s old now, a sophisticated 16-year-old, accomplished cellist, a serious young lady. I wonder if she would sing that with me? Well, of course she has, but only in the family. The other day I was playing with the lyrics, and I came up with this version to match our present State of affairs. You know the song, here are the new words... Continue reading
- Friday, April 24 – Faith Kicked In! - Faith Kicked In! If you follow Our Daily Bread, then you read the one for this past Wednesday, entitled ‘The Saddest Goose’. Geese, you may know, are social critters, they have partners for life, and they live in a flight of fellow geese. I’m sure you’ve seen them gather, sometimes in the most nuisance kind of ways. Watch where you step! The ODB author speaks about human beings being created for community, as well. In the Ecclesiastical reading, Solomon describes how vulnerable we are when we are alone. For many readers of this email, you are blessed to have a spouse, a partner, your children to enrich your lives. Blessings beyond measure, most of the time. How does one live as a solo, a single, separated from the grounding that loved ones give to your life? How do you love from afar? Continue reading
