Happy Good Friday Today is Good Friday. Happy Good Friday! Seriously. Today is the day we remember Jesus’ sacrifice so that we could be made right with God. It stands as the ultimate sacrifice to end all sacrifices. For many people, Good Friday is a solemn day, in which we take time to gratefully recall […]
Wrapping Up Our Year of Visiting Churches Our journey of visiting fifty-two churches is over, though the memories will last forever. With much to consider, this wrap-up pulls together key elements of our adventure. I hope this helps you and your church better interact with and respond to visitors, as well as find new ways […]
Today’s passage: Matthew 21:7–11, Mark 11:7–11, Luke 19:35–38, and John 12:12–16 Focus verse: The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” (Matthew 21:9) Having secured the colt for him to ride, the disciples lay their coats on the donkey as a makeshift saddle for Jesus. […]
We don’t know the name of Jephthah’s daughter, but we do lament what happened to her, all the while applauding the honorable way she accepts her fate, showing her faith and confidence in God in the process. Here’s her brief story: When the elders of Gilead ask Jephthah to lead them into battle against their […]
Today’s passage: 1 John 4:13–15 Focus verse: If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. (1 John 4:15) In yesterday’s reading John said that anyone who loves has been born of God and knows him (1 John 4:7). Later we’ll read that anyone who believes in Jesus as […]
Don’t Be Bound by What Was and Embrace a Better Way Forward We need to stop using the phrase “dysfunctional family.” Every family is dysfunctional. Only the degree of dysfunction varies. Dysfunction exists on a continuum, from highly dysfunctional to marginally dysfunctional, but all families—as with all relationships—have some dysfunction. Not an Excuse When people […]
Wrapping Up Our Journey of Visiting 52 Churches in a Year We’ve just completed a stint of visiting churches in three specific geographic areas. Now our focus shifts to a fourth: the churches to the east of us. We’re on the home stretch of visiting 52 churches in a year. We’ve already visited eight of […]
The Teacher Makes a Big Ask Today’s passage: Matthew 21:1–6, Mark 11:1–10, and Luke 19:28–34 Focus verse: “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me.” (Matthew 21:2) As Jesus and his followers approach Jerusalem, […]
Serving God or Being Self-Serving? In reading about Balaam’s story in the post “The Error of Balaam, it’s difficult to see what he may have done wrong. Indeed, based on this record alone, he seems like an upstanding guy. Therefore, we need to dig into his story to what he did wrong. There are several […]
Today’s passage: 1 John 4:7–12 Focus verse: This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. (1 John 4:9) So far in John’s letter he’s already talked a lot about love, building up to this passage in chapter four, where the […]