The people of Judah were in the grips of a great enemy. King Nebuchadnezzar and the armies of Babylon had conquered their land, taken away the sacred items from their temple, and carried many of the people far from home. The people needed wise political and religious leadership to know how to live in such difficult times.
Bringing Our Pain to God
September 12, 2023 by Leave a Comment
Think about the people you know who are in terrible pain right now. Violence, death, loss, trauma, or physical or mental illness has touched them, even destroyed them. If they should come to worship, is there an appropriate context for them to acknowledge their pain before God?
God Can See in the Dark
October 18, 2022 by
I can’t see in the dark. It’s a fact of life. I’ve proven it many times, getting up in the night, foolishly believing I can navigate through the house without turning on a light, and then tripping over a sleeping dog.
Exploring the Dark
September 27, 2022 by
This passage is hard to read. In Jeremiah’s mind, God’s back has turned away from the people. Their dead bodies will fill the houses and become defenses at the city’s walls.
With All Your Heart
June 15, 2022 by
Good counselors ask good questions. The counselor who helped me work through my season of depression once asked me a question that revealed a source of my pain and a path I needed to take toward healing. She asked, “Who knows your whole story?”
Lost in Maples
November 30, 2021 by
They wander, these children of mine. They wander and they wonder, and then boom, you take them out of their comfort zone and here comes the whining.
A Dark Day of Rest
April 13, 2021 by
The disciples, the women who had been following Jesus, and the other followers of Christ rested on the Sabbath. Joseph of Arimathea had taken Jesus’ body on that Friday and placed him in a tomb.
Formations 03.19.2017: Light and Dark
March 12, 2017 by
I have a friend who cites learning to use the conjunction and more than or as the high point of his education. Conjunctions reflect the way we make sense of information. They allow us to show cause, to distinguish, to divide, to connect.
Praying in the Shadow of Death
March 9, 2016 by
The Internet has been good for us in many ways. But, I feel that a warning should be issued at this point….If you begin to experience any of these symptoms, please stop using the Internet and consult a real person in real life.
Praying in the Dark
July 8, 2015 by
More often than not, we talk to God with the lights on. This is not to suggest that prayer is scary, that there are monsters under the pews or in our prayer closets.
That Dark Thursday Night: A Maundy Thursday Reading
April 2, 2015 by
“Go into the city,” he said. “A friend of mine will show you a large, upper room, furnished and ready.” Strange. Peter and I rounded a corner and there, coming out of a narrow alley was a man we didn’t know, but he looked at us as if we were expected.
Uniform 10.26.2014: Hope in Front of Me
October 19, 2014 by
We’ve all been in a situation where we doubted God. We may have accused God of not answering us, failing to guide us, or even deserting us. Despite his insistence that “my Redeemer lives, and…in my flesh I shall see God” (Job 19:25-27), Job had his doubts about the Lord.