Tag: wisdom
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Heart of God, Speak
Deuteronomy 18:15–20; Mark 1:21–28 Prophetic speech is not unique to the Judeo-Christian community, not by a long shot. In the current world, there are many forms of prophetic voice. A short list (i.e., not exhaustive) of prophetic voices: environmental collapse; sustainability (related, but not the same as environmental collapse); gender identification; minority redress (including, but…
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Promises of Grace
Psalm 111; Romans 9:6–18 Promises hold a significant place within the stories in the Scriptures. Much of this has to do with having to trust the fulfillment of a promise that people would not see. Abraham is one such example. He was given a short (one year) promise as a “down payment” for the long…
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Change of Plans
Judges 2:16–23; Acts 13:16–25 There is a saying that you are probably familiar with: repeating the same thing and expecting different results is the definition of insanity. When it comes to practice, that isn’t the case. When it comes to many other things in life, though, it is very true. In manufacturing (where I work…
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Path of Strength
We often choose to model the behavior that appears successful, or model what we think is the behavior that achieved success. Other times, we are confronted with the fact that we are not that person. Their way of success is not ours. Solomon did not follows his father’s way of success. He chose a different…
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Neglection
Proverbs 1:20–29; Hebrews 2:2–11; Hebrews 10:23–25 It’s been pretty normal that there will be some dramatic (and probably horrific) story of neglect that will be in the news. Children and animals recovered from bad situations; situations where the health and well-being (including mental and spiritual) of children is neglected. Most of us usually respond with…
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Incomplete Armor
Psalm 27; Zechariah 10:12; Ephesians 6:10–18 This passage from Ephesians is one of those common favorites. Building and putting on the armor of God is still a popular activity for children. As a formation tool, it was and remains powerful. From the point of the Ephesians, they were very familiar with the attire of the…
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Bound Emotion
Ezekiel 24:15–27; Jeremiah 16:5–9 There is something unusual about marriage. For whatever reason, a man and a woman have a special kind of relationship that transcends logic. There is a deep spiritual aspect to it that is part of the Christian marriage ritual, “what God has joined let man not separate.” While this is the…
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Good Bad Stuff
Jeremiah’s complaint is that he was faithful and a good steward, and yet nothing good is returned.