Each year, I listen to a daily audio Bible podcast—and complete the Bible in one year. This year marks my sixth year through the Bible.
Why don’t I stop?
Every year, I learn new aspects of the Bible because each year, I am in a different place in my life, and the Holy Spirit speaks to me where I am.
The Bible is always fresh! It is always alive!
It is the only book that has a Living Spirit within it.
Each year, when I get to Judges in the Old Testament, I say, “Oh boy!” because I know what is ahead.
Passover begins this evening.
It is one of the most significant Jewish Holidays, commemorating when the angels of God “passed over” the Hebrews as the firstborn children and animals of the Egyptians were killed—all because Pharoah would not set the Hebrews free as God commanded.
With this final plague on Egypt, Pharoah agreed to free the Hebrews so they might begin their journey to the promised land.
God instructed the Jews to commemorate the first Passover, when they had marked their houses with blood, alerting the angels to “pass over” their homes.
Christians draw parallels in their faith,
This week, I was listening to a minister on the radio who noted that in the days after His resurrection, Jesus did not appear to Pilate to tell him that he had been wrong in ordering His crucifixion.
Jesus did not appear to the Jewish leaders and chastise them for not believing and demanding His death.
He did not appear to the Roman soldiers who nailed Him on the cross.
Why?
Today, I was drinking in the beautiful hymns of Psalm Sunday. They are majestic, powerful, and inspirational!
Among my very favorites is All Glory, Laud and Honor. When I close my eyes and listen to the lyrics, I can feel all the emotions I imagine those present at Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem. The hope. The joy. The expectation.
As Christians, we carry the hope, joy, and expectation at our Lord’s second coming. Feel this excitement. Play this song and sing along. It is a wonderful way to enter into the spirit of Holy Week.
What are some of your favorite Holy Week Hymns/ song?
Two weeks before Christmas, I heard a very thoughtful sermon preached by Pastor Kendell Harger of the Spring Green Community Church in Spring Green, Wisconsin. The sermon was part of a series on
“Hope Because..” and this one focused on Mary.
One of the key takeaways I had from the message is that because Mary trusted God, much was entrusted to her.
Svea Flood.
You’ve never heard of her.
I hadn’t either.
So often, we look at our lives and wonder if we have made, are making, or ever really will make a difference for Christ. Will Jesus look at us and say “Well done.”?
The answer for all but a few is that we simply do not know the impact our lives have on others.
As a child, our truth rests with our parents. They are our truth. They tell us what is right, what is wrong, how we should feel, how we should adapt. They are our true north.
Soon, that true north is challenged. Friends enter our life, and they reflect the truths of their parents and siblings. And sometimes, that truth does not jive with our parents’ truth. Who to believe? At this point, most of us go with our parents, because they are our protectors, and we trust them.
But subtly, over time, we lose that true north. We begin to question what our parents have told us. Other authority figures enter our lives, and we start to wonder, what is truth? Where does it rest? School teachers teach truths that don’t mesh with what we have learned at home. Friends start to challenge our truth—and they make sense. What to believe? Where to go?
The power of a new year rests in one word: New.
Newness is something we seek. We want new life, new chances, new hopes. As we go through life, we know as Christians that key components of this life are endurance and perseverance. Yet, in the midst of difficult times—when our perseverance wears thin—we all want “new” hope, new dreams, a new life.
So how do we satisfy this desire for a “new” or “renewed” life?
I recently heard a message Dr. John Piper gave at the Sing! Global 2021 Conference. He so clearly outlined the purpose singing plays in our walk with God, that I wanted to share my notes on his message with you in preparation for the next six weeks, between Thanksgiving and the new year, when I will focus on some of this Holy Season’s most treasured songs.
Dr. Piper began his message by stating that human language does not suffice as an expression of the greatest realities of the universe, adding that the realities of the Christian faith are so glorious that they will never be adequately expressed by spoken language alone. They must be sung.
