Lent ⁽⁹⁷⁾

Daniel 9:3-10, Psalm 25:1-10, 1 John 1:5-10 The ashes that many had on their foreheads yesterday are gone, either rubbed or washed off. As we read yesterday, ashes are a sign of repentance. Daniel sought God through prayer, supplication, fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. Daniel uses…

Joel 2:12-17, Psalm 51:1-17, 2 Corinthians 4:21-6:10 (read online ⧉) Through the prophet Joel, God sought to realign the life of the Israelites to Him. God was calling them to live a life oriented to Him. God didn’t want them to miss out on the…

Mark 7:1–13, Galatians 1:13–17, 2 Thessalonians 3:3–15 (read online ⧉) We are rapidly coming (or for some already entered) into some of the heaviest time of tradition in the calendar year. For many, it starts with October observations. For others, it starts with Thanksgiving. For…

Matthew 2:1–12, John 12:1–11 The Magi’s visiting Jesus presented 3 gifts: gold, frankincense, myrrh. Often they are respectively tied to Jesus’ roles as king, prophet/priest, sacrifice/savior. How accurate that is may be questioned. That they were costly and significant gifts is not questionable. Gold is…

Exodus 12:1–20, Nehemiah 8:1–18, Psalm 133 The Exodus story, specifically the first Passover, always comes up around Easter. Which makes perfect sense, as Holy Week revolves around Passover, along with the seemingly obvious linking of Jesus being the ultimate Passover lamb (i.e., the sacrifice needed…