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Psalm 35:11–28, Exodus 35:1–29, Acts 10:9–23 Sometimes the greatest evidence that we are doing well is those that oppose us. Another way of perhaps saying that is that the measure of one's success is the quality of one's enemies. Some scholars have claimed that part…

Psalm 103, 1 Samuel 4:1-22, Isaiah 43:14-25 Imagine being someplace you've never been and driving down the road only looking at the rear-view mirror. Your peripheral vision would catch some of the more dangerous things, but you would miss a lot. All too often we…

Psalm 97, Hebrews 1:1-2:9, Galatians 4:4-7 During this Holy Day, in the midst of gift-giving, family, loneliness, heartache, healing, hurting…look to God. Two holidays often are the most bittersweet, Thanksgiving and Christmas. The joy of gratitude (Thanksgiving) and celebration of the Savior (Christmas) can get…

Luke:1:46b-55, James 5:7-10, Hebrews 12:1-2 Mary’s song/poem of praise is often called the Magnificat in the Protestant/Roman Catholic tradition, or the Ode of the Theotokos (Bearer of God) in the Eastern Orthodox tradition. It is a joy-filled response to God by Mary that appears to…

Job 33:14-30, Psalm 126, Luke 1:35-45 In many respects, joy is both easy and incredibly difficult to truly understand. On one hand, we understand that joy is something much deeper than the feelings of the moment. Yet, on the other hand, we use the word…