Perhaps you had the same experience in elementary school. When it was time to do math or English, the teacher would ask a student to distribute the textbooks stored in the cabinet. As the class drew to a close those textbooks would be collected and returned, ready for the next time they’d be needed. […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on Take-Home BibleMourning has broken. Hearts are heavy with the news that the senior pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church has broken covenant with the wife of his youth. Assuredly, there are those from the spectator seats of the world cheering and jeering. But I suspect there are also those within the larger church who are […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on Coming OutKnock, knock. Who’s there? Noah. Noah who? Noah good place for seafood? Knock, knock, Who’s there? Olive. Olive who? Olive you! Knock, knock. Who’s there? Two knee. Two knee who? Two-knee fish! Knock, knock jokes can be funny—and pretty silly. But the silliness is what makes the humor. In the Bible, however, […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on Knock, KnockI just returned from a preaching conference at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. Dr. R. Kent Hughes, pastor of many years and author of 30 books, was the featured speaker. I’m not sure that I learned anything new but I did find the time stimulating and refreshing. It was nice to be back at […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on Asher’s AnalogyI posted a blog on Monday entitled, “Praying on Paper.” It commends the idea of writing out prayers, much as did the psalmists. It also gives an example of written prayer. One reader asked for a recommendation of written prayers, saying he needed a “jump start.” Before I give my response to him, let […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on Three Prayer ResourcesIt’s something David and the other psalmists must have experienced. It’s one thing to pray prayers in the mind or with the mouth. It’s another to pray them on paper, finding just the right words and phrases that capture our heart’s communion with God. Anytime we commit something to writing it requires greater precision […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on Praying on PaperNow therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate. O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on Beseeching God“Great Ceasar’s ghost!” That was one of my grandfather’s favorite expressions. Most of us have certain pet phrases and ways of saying things that others recognize in our discourse. One friend of mine in campus ministry frequently used an expression to describe responsibilities or intent. He would say, “It’s on my radar.” In other […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on On Our RadarI was a bit dispirited. I had just met with a couple from my congregation who told me they were looking elsewhere for a church. One of their grievances was that I talked and preached too much about prayer. I thought about that. Was I harping on prayer? In our conversation the couple had […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on Prayer LogGod’s answers to prayer don’t always follow our expectations. David, king of ancient Israel, was reaping the fruit of his sin. God had told him after his adultery with Bathsheba that, although his sins would be forgiven, his household would never be the same. Sure enough rape and murder and strife descended upon his […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on When God Answers Prayer the Wrong Way