temptation ⁽²⁹⁾

Psalm 107:1–16; Numbers 20:1–13; 1 Corinthians 10:6–13 Imagine saying, “Give thanks to the Lord because he is good, because his faithful love lasts forever,” to the Israelites at Kadesh. Those words would have been grating (at best) the ears of all the tongues lashing against Moses and…

Psalm 77; Proverbs 30:1–9; Matthew 4:1–11 In Through the Looking Glass, Alice comes to a mushroom. Eating from one part of the mushroom causes her to turn into a giant. Eating from a different part she turns smaller than normal. She finally ate from the…

Proverbs 16:28; Philippians 2:1–13; James 3:1–13 A pyromaniac is a person who continually fails to resist the temptation to start fires, often as a sort of method to relieve tension or for instant gratification. Pyromania (the term for the condition) is an impulse control disorder.

Job 1:9–22; Ecclesiastes 3:1–11; Ezekiel 18:5–18 You are probably familiar with Pete Seeger’s Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season). Written in the late 50s, it was commercially via The Byrds in 1965. It takes Ecclesiastes verses 3:1–8 and puts them to music.

Psalm 98; Micah 7:7–9, 18–20; 1 Timothy 6:11–20 (read online ⧉) Micah’s unwavering loyalty and trust in God can be hard to swallow for many. Micah believes that he can wait for and trust in God. What is fascinating with Micah’s words is that he…