Is the wild ox willing to serve you? Will it spend the night at your crib? Can you tie it in the furrow with ropes, or will it harrow the valleys after you? Job 39:9-10 NRSV The King James translation refers to a unicorn. I’ve never tended to a unicorn, or an ox for … Continue reading Life’s goats
Month: June 2017
The tough choice
Now during those days he went out to the mountain to pray; and he spent the night in prayer to God. And when day came, he called his disciples and chose twelve of them, whom he also named apostles. Luke 6:12-13 NRSV When we face a difficult decision there are numerous resources to which we … Continue reading The tough choice
Free yourself
But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors, brought them out, and said, “Go, stand in the temple and tell the people the whole message about this life.” Acts 5:19-20 NRSV When we are in a jam it’s natural we turn to God for relief. Like the apostles, we want God … Continue reading Free yourself
Praying for strength
2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 NRSV Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and through grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, comfort your hearts and strengthen them in every good work and word. It was in high school that I first began to practice meditation and prayer. One of … Continue reading Praying for strength
Silence the whirring machine
Romans 8:26-27 NRSV: Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will … Continue reading Silence the whirring machine
Your ship has come in
Romans 8:18-21 NRSV “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of … Continue reading Your ship has come in
Martha, Martha, when will you find peace?
Luke 10:41-42 NRSV “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.” It should be obvious we’re meant to emulate the attentive, peaceful, and adoring Mary, more so than her harried and jealous sister Martha. … Continue reading Martha, Martha, when will you find peace?
Three in Us – Thoughts on the Trinity
When I was in grade school I loved to read Greek mythology. The pantheon of gods and their twisted interactions with mankind always enthralled me. They constantly were into some bit of intrigue, fomenting love, lust, and war. Heroes and cowards were revealed in mankind’s dealings with them, and you never knew when they might … Continue reading Three in Us – Thoughts on the Trinity
Embracing change to build up Christ’s church
For most active Christians, church offers benefits that go beyond the spiritual provisions of regular worship attendance. Church provides a haven into which we can withdraw, where we are surrounded by our church family and a very comforting sense of familiarity. It is a solid, unwavering foundation in a stressful, ever-shifting world. This sense of … Continue reading Embracing change to build up Christ’s church
The Light Within Us
John 1: 1-4, NRSV: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the … Continue reading The Light Within Us
James R. Neal 