The Christian Distinctive
Practicing hospitality during the COVID years is not only inconvenient it can be fearful. Yet even during a pandemic the Scriptures call us to live hospitable lives in contrast to the culture we're a part of. There are no asterisks on the scriptures about hospitality that say, "to be practiced only in the healthiest times." Maybe these are the BEST of times to practice hospitality? The Apostle Peter says Christians should be "peculiar people" (1 Peter 2:9). I think he means that we'll be so different from what the world expects that we'll stand out (not weird). But does that mean we practice hospitality in a pandemic? That would be
Insights from Ps. 133
Here is a tremendously insightful look at Ps. 133 from North Waker and SEBTS Professor Chip McDaniel (nope - itâs not a Jurassic park clip - thatâs Chipâs doppelgĂ€nger!).  Buckle up as he takes you deep into this wonderful Psalm! https://multimedia.sebts.edu/?p=3417 Enjoy!
Real Unity
Read: Psalm 133 How providential that the week in which our new president was inaugurated with prolific calls for unity, we find ourselves studying Psalm 133, a psalm that speaks to the beauty and peace that is created by real Christian unity. There is nothing like it. It flows out from its source and it blesses everything downstream, nourishing and bringing life just like the dew that falls on Mount Hermon ends up watering the hills of Zion (Jerusalem).  We wrote a song several years ago from this Psalm. Listen to it here and read the lyrics as you listen.Â
Where Does My Help Come From
By Gloria Furman.  https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/where-does-my-help-come-from Read: Psalm 97 As I looked forward to settling into my new role as a mother, I was given a role that I didnât anticipate â caregiver for my husband. A couple of years after we got married, Dave developed a debilitating nerve condition that afflicted both of his arms. My athletic, cheerful husband became disabled and discouraged. When our first child grew past about eight pounds, it broke Daveâs heart (and mine) that his chronic pain and atrophy wouldnât allow him to hold his newborn. We needed help and hope. We Lift Up Our Eyes for
Learning How to Talk to Yourself
By Ryan Griffith.  https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/psalm-103-learning-how-to-talk-to-yourself Read: Psalm 103 Do you talk to yourself? I donât mean when youâre wrestling through your taxes or walking through your to-do list. But do you talk yourself, really? When you are fearful, do you command your soul to trust in the Lord? When your affections are low, do you command your heart to bless the Lord? As Paul Tripp is fond of saying, âno one is more influential in your life than you are because no one talks to you more than you do.â In the particularly difficult moments of the day, how do you talk to yourself? How
“Is It Selfish For a Pastor To Post This??”
I found this article by Ed Welch (link below) insightful regarding expectations that we carry into church services. While we should expect God to do wonderful things in and through us by the preaching of His Word and the worship of His name, perhaps we sometimes have unbiblical or unrealistic expectations for church (or from our pastors) as well. Welch challenges us to attend church services prepared to engage God and others rather than passively awaiting some sort of pre-packaged experience. What sorts of things do you expect from your time gathered with the church? In what ways can you prepare to be an
More Bad News May Come
Steadiness in a Year of Suffering Marshall Segal (@marshallsegal) is a writer and managing editor at desiringGod.org. Heâs the author of Not Yet Married: The Pursuit of Joy in Singleness & Dating. He graduated from Bethlehem College & Seminary. He and his wife, Faye, have two children and live in Minneapolis. https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/more-bad-news-may-come Read: Mark 6:34 At the end of a year like ours â with tens of millions infected and over a million dead, with rising political hostility and upheaval, with racial friction and distrust inflamed, with economic uncertainty and instability, with more devastating wildfires, with churches struggling to know how to respond â
What Child is This?
Written by Yvonne Nannette.  http://www.hopeinthehealing.com/2014/12/03/what-child-is-this-story-behind-carol/ READ: Luke 2.1-20; Phil. 2.5-11 As a manager of an insurance company, you would not think that William Chatterton Dix (1837-1898) would have written one of our favorite Christmas Carols. Born in Bristol, England, his father was a surgeon who had also written a biography on Thomas Chatterton, the poet, and also the reason for Williamâs middle name. Dix became very sick and was in bed for a long time recovering. He had plenty of time to pray and read the Word of God and from this experience his life was truly changed for the better. He began
A Stable Turned a Temple
READ:Â Matthew 1:1, 18-25 In 2012, Larry preached a sermon from the genealogy of Jesus found in Matthew 1. That sermon and the sermon from the following Sunday sparked an idea for a new hymn that would express the glorious significance of the way in which God the Father brought His Son into this world. This Sunday we will be examining the Scriptures that unpack the importance that Jesus is the Son of Abraham, the Son of David, and the Son of God. As you prepare for Sunday, read through these lyrics and listen to the song here. Take time
Can We Really Compare Todayâs Pain to Godâs Goodness?
Programmers know about incompatible datatypes. If you check to see if âhello worldâ (a string of letters) is greater than 0.05 (a number), most programming languages will refuse. So does it make sense when Christians say this? âLife in 2020 is hard, but we can give thanks because we have Jesus.â It only makes sense if the worth of Jesus can be compared to the disappointments now. If having Jesus is in one category, but âreal lifeâ is in another, it will make no sense for you to compare the two. But if you can think of the goodness of having
