prayer ⁽⁴⁵⁸⁾

Psalm 107:1–3, 17–22; Genesis 9:8–17; Ephesians 1:3–6 I don’t remember elementary school sports very much. I do know that while I was never picked first, I was rarely picked last. I was neither particularly good nor bad at sports, hence being a middle pick. I…

Psalm 84; Ezra 6:1–16; Mark 11:15–19 If you are unaccustomed to the lectionary (again, what is being used this year for the passages), it can seem odd, annoying, and definitely repetitious to see the same Psalm for multiple days. As I, too, am reading it…

Psalm 84; 2 Chronicles 29:1–11, 16–19; Hebrews 9:23–28 A few days ago, we read about Jesus cleansing the Temple. As noted, then, prophets doing “over-the-top” things weren't totally unexpected. Generally, it was uncomfortable, but God’s true prophets weren’t known to bring comfort without discomfort. Sometimes…

Psalm 84; 1 Kings 6:1–4, 21–22; 1 Corinthians 3:10–23 Based upon the description of the First Temple, it was impressive. The structure perched on a hill made it even more so. Culturally, physically, and religiously, it was the center of the Israelite city. We are…

Exodus 20:1–17; Psalm 19; 1 Corinthians 1:18–25; John 2:13–24 Jesus’ “cleaning” of the Temple is often focused on how the Jews “corrupted” the House of God. There is truth in it. The scary part is that it often seems to be a, “look at them”…