We are working our way through Judges; there’s a common theme. When the Israelites get a good leader, they do well; when the leader dies, they screw up. ‘That is the story of how the people of Israel defeated Midian, which never recovered. Throughout the rest of Gideon’s lifetime—about forty years—there was peace in the…
We are rolling right through our year-long reading of the Bible. I love how the Angel greets Gideon in Judges 6, even though Gideon didn’t have a high opinion of himself. ‘The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!” “But Lord,” Gideon replied, “how can I…
I love how the people in today’s reading, Joshua 24, that Joshua says – “But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord,” and the people declare out loud, “We will serve the Lord! ‘But the people answered Joshua, “No, we will serve the Lord!” The people said to Joshua, “We will…
Today is Ascension Day, marking 40 days after Easter, a time to reflect on Jesus ‘ return to Heaven. Fittingly, today’s New Testament reading is Philippians 4. ‘Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which…
I don’t believe it’s a coincidence that today’s verse of the day is Proverbs 13:20; the Old Testament reading is Psalm 53. ‘Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble. ‘Proverbs 13:20 I had a friend, Mike, who was a genius when it came to cars and could figure…
We’re chugging right along in reading the Bible through the year. Camping kept me from posting, but we are still on track. We started reading Philippians, and a couple of verses in chapters 1 and 2 stood out to me. ‘And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue…
The Israelites are on a quest to take the Promised Land. In Joshua 8, the Israelites just defeated Ai—a victory that leads me to think about the ‘AI’ of our own time: software. I use AI daily, and for many things, it’s great. But there’s a danger in AI replacing human connection. There’s a difference…
This morning’s readings were Ephesians 3 and Joshua 7. Joshua 7 teaches that Achan (pronounced “a can”) stole a robe, silver, and gold that were supposed to go to God. His disobedience caused a humiliating defeat for the Israelites, in which 36 men were killed. Joshua and the Elders can’t believe the defeat and went…
Life is hard. We all have our struggles. Reading Psalm 71 this morning, I feel like David. ‘And now, in my old age, don’t set me aside. Don’t abandon me when my strength is failing. ‘Psalms 71:9 My employer recently reduced its workforce and fired about 1% of the people in my department. And we…
Today, we started 2 new books in our Bible reading through the year: Joshua and Ephesians. In Joshua, we learn that Moses has died, and Joshua is now tasked with leading the 2 million people to the promised land. Be Strong And Courageous God tells Joshua that he’ll be with him, as he was with…