Tag: peace
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2nd Saturday after Pentecost
Jeremiah 28:1–9, Luke 12:49–56, John 14:27–31 There is something quite jarring in Jeremiah’s response to Hananiah. Did you catch it? Only when peace actually comes true will a prophet who prophesied peace be considered a true prophet. If you prophesy war, famine, pestilence, death, it’s all good. What? Think about that for a moment. The…
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2nd Thursday after Pentecost
Numbers 20:1–13, Jeremiah 35:1–19, Matthew 15:1–20 Traditions are wonderful things. They can bring peace and order. They can help a person find themselves and understand where they came from, and what has shaped them to this point. Traditions can also blind us. While slavery was not a “tradition”, the practices that had to be lived…
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5th Sunday after Easter
1 Kings 8:41–53, Ruth 1:7–17, Luke 9:57–10:16 Where are you going? It’s a pretty basic question until we apply it to our lives. It wasn’t long ago, the question was followed with, “…to Heaven or Hell.” However, where are you going isn’t just about the destination, it is also about the journey. In fact, who…
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Holy Saturday
Psalm 25, Lamentations 3:22–27, Matthew 27:62–66 Are your clothes in 1 piece? One of the traditional Jewish responses of extreme grief or anguish is the tearing of their clothes. Yesterday was Good Friday. Jesus died on the cross. Are your clothes torn? While they were able to put Jesus’ body in the tomb in time,…
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Ash Wednesday
Isaiah 58:1–12, Psalm 51:1–17, Matthew 6:19–21 Ash Wednesday is the start of Lent, the reflective Christian journey to the cross. One of the symbolic pieces are the ashes themselves. The “official” tradition is that the ashes are from last year’s Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday is the day that observes Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem with…
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Seventh Monday after Epiphany
Psalm 120, Mark 13:9-13, 2 Peter 1:20-2:9 Psalm 120 is a lament. The psalmist is among those who live a life of lies. These same people are warmongers, seeking strife and conflict. The psalmist is living in foreign lands that seek no peace, but the cry of the psalmist’s heart is for peace. The psalm…
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New Year’s Day
Psalm 8, Galatians 4:4-7, Numbers 6:22-27 “What is a human being that you remember him, a son of man that you look after him?” [Psalm 8:4] “So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then God has made you an heir.” [Galatians 4:7] There are some important concepts shared…
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Foundations and Firmaments
Psalm 148, Colossians 3:12-17, Luke 2:41-52 What are your thoughts when reading Psalm 149? Do you ever think of all of Creation praising God, the Creator? If you haven’t seen Louie Giglio’s Stars and Whales (link below), I strongly recommend it. To think that it is not just us (human beings) that are called and…