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Obedience of Faith
Nehemiah 9:26โ38, John 5:19โ29 (read online) We struggle with obedience. We struggle with rules. We often donโt like the rules created by others, especially if we are to live by them. The reality is that rules do govern our lives. Sometimes the โrulesโ are not truly rules but are written descriptions of reality. The laws
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Humble Knowledge
1 Samuel 2:1โ10, Job 36:1โ4, 2 Peter 1:3โ8 (read online) Knowledge is power, so it is said. One of the great gifts of the Enlightenment was indeed the removal of knowledge from the monopoly of the church. Knowledge, when freed from the shackles of human power and control, can grow. Knowledge, by the way, does
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11 November 2019 โ Armistice Day / Veterans’ Day
Isaiah 11:1โ10, Isaiah 2:2โ4, Jeremiah 8:14โ15 (click to read online) Humanity has been killing humanity since Cain and Abel. It is nothing new. There was some idealistic optimism, not shared by all, that World War I would be the war to end war. Instead, it saw the first widespread use of machine guns and then
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Seen In Heaven
Job 19:23โ27, 2 Corinthians 12:1โ6, Revelation 4:1โ11 (read online) John Wesley and George Whitfield were once total brothers in the faith and theology. Eventually, however, there were divisions, and the amicably went their separate ways on positive terms. Yet, people still assumed that there was something more serious. “One day, after Whitefield’s decease, John Wesley
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Fields of God
Matthew 9:35โ38, John 4:34โ38, 1 Corinthians 3:5โ11 For a culture that is generally separated from the people and land that provide its food, the imagery of harvest can be hard to grasp. Many of us drive by hay, alfalfa, and cornfields. We have no idea when the crop is ready, but the farmers do. One
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Broken Family; Broken Community
Genesis 38:1โ30, Deuteronomy 25:5โ10, Ruth 4:1โ10, Mark 12:18โ27 Migration has long been the story of humankind. People would move from place to place. The United States mythos includes a strong migratory component, from the theorized migration of First Nations peoples over the Bearing Land Bridge to the European migration to the Western Expansion, along with
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Pride Versus Repentance
1 Kings 8:44โ53, Zechariah 1:1โ17, Acts 3:13โ26 That Solomon included this request for the Israelites who would be in exile while inaugurating the newly built temple should not be overlooked. It is significant. With so much foreshadowing of the Israelites going into exile, one would think that the Israelites would have figured it out. The
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From the Heart
Colossians 3:12โ17 ฮฟแผฐฮบฯฮนฯฮผฮฟแฟฆ (oiktirmou) :: mercy and concern with sensitivity and compassion ฯฯฮทฯฯฯฯฮทฯฮฑ (chrฤstotฤta) :: giving to or providing for a person as an act of kindness ฯฮฑฯฮตฮนฮฝฮฟฯฯฮฟฯฯฮฝฮทฮฝ (tapeinophrosynฤ) :: humble attitude and without arrogance ฯฯฮฑฮฐฯฮทฯฮฑ (prautฤta) :: gentleness of attitude and behavior / not harsh with others ฮผฮฑฮบฯฮฟฮธฯ ฮผฮฏฮฑฮฝ (makrothymian) :: emotional calm despite provocation
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Service of Response
2 Kings 6:18โ24, Romans 12:3โ8, Colossians 2:8โ23 Service can take many forms. The story of Elisha and the Arameans is an interesting form of service. In this roundabout case, it was the service of peace. Elisha prayed for the blindness of the Arameans. Instead of taking advantage of the enemyโs blindness by killing them, he
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Thriving Together
Exodus 22:21โ27, 1 Timothy 5:3โ16, 2 Thessalonians 3:6โ15 โGod only helps those who help themselves.โ This is one of those statements that should be considered a swear phrase in the church. This statement has been misused and people have been abused with it. Truly, if we put this to the extreme test we can definitely