Tag: gift
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Drift Away
Isaiah 49:8–13, John 4:3–14, Hebrews 2:1–4 Has the so-called Christmas euphoria finally died down for you? If this was more of a “blue” (i.e., one of mourning, loss, or depression), are you relieved that you don’t feel the pressure of “keeping up” appearances? Christmas, as with many other family occasions (weddings, baptisms, birthdays, funerals, etc.),…
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Childless Futurism
Genesis 18:1–11, Luke 1:5–25, Luke 1:36–56 (read online ⧉) We are now in a time where having children is no longer an assumed item on the checkboxes of life. As people, especially women, become more educated the birth rate drops. The practical reality is that because women are educated they too can provide for the…
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Hope in Death
Isaiah 4:2–6, Romans 6:1–11 (read online ⧉) If you have been steeped in Christian thinking you can read this passage as an obvious foreshadowing of the Messiah (Jesus). Let’s set aside our Christian thinking, and look at this from a beaten and downtrodden people. This passage provided hope beyond the darkness for them. The dark…
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Everyday Morality
2 Peter 3:8–15, 2 Corinthians 5:16–21 Being human is not particularly easy. Our ability to think abstractly is a great gift. It is also a curse. With the ability to think abstractly, we also have gained a “higher” form of thinking…morality. From the Old Testament to Greek and Roman philosophers to the New Testament to…
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Fruitful Unboxing
Galatians 5:22–26, 2 Peter 1:5–11, 1 Corinthians 12:4–11, Romans 12:9–21 We are all familiar with the list of the Fruits of the Spirit in Galatians. Hopefully, you even have them memorized (If not, there’s your challenge of the week). It is an impressive list. If we are honest with ourselves, were we to be full…
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Repentant Worship
Jeremiah 44:15–23, Hosea 14:1–7 The “tale” told in Jeremiah is a sad one. The people of Israel knowingly and willing worshiped gods that were not theirs. As we read their tale, they saw wealth, prosperity, and security as the gift of their gods, when it was God who protected them. Now that God is calling…
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Just Praying
1 Samuel 1:1–18, Luke 18:1–8, Matthew 6:5–15 “…The prayer of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect.”—James 5:16 As a gift, prayer is probably second only to salvation and reconciliation. The ability to talk to the Creator of the universe. The God who calls us children. Prayer can take many forms. While there…
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Pentecost
John 20:19–23, Acts 1:4, Acts 2:1–36 The short vignette in the locked upper room after the Resurrection seems as if was a snippet of a memory that was lacking something. Yet, John felt it was important. As a precursor to Pentecost, Jesus’ statement/blessing about receiving the Holy Spirit was an important thing. Jesus had already…