planning ⁽⁹⁾

Genesis 37:16–27, Deuteronomy 30:15–20, Matthew 12:46–50 One of the most heartbreaking things taught by certain Christian traditions is that God wills bad things to happen to people. One of the reasons they draw that conclusion is that we are able to look back at stories…

Ecclesiastes 8:8–15, Psalm 51, Mark 11:12–18 When the writer of Ecclesiastes notes that no one has authority over the wind, he had no concept of the wind power generation farms we have. We may have harnessed the wind to provide power for us, but we…

Psalm 84, 1 Chronicles 28:1–29:9 When we speak of legacy, it is usually about what we leave behind. In Shakespeare’s play Julias Caesar, Anthony says, “The evil that men do lives after them. The good is oft interred with their bones.” That sad truth is…

Psalm 99, Deuteronomy 16:1–17, 1 Corinthians 10:23–11:2 If you look at the calendar of any country, you will find a number of secular (i.e, non-religious) observances. Sometimes these to get mixed into religion, and some are just odd. Today, for example, has the following "observations":…