“Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us, even as we hope in you” (Psalm 33:22).      Wendy and I were at Sam’s Club the other day, “and what, to my wondering eyes should appear?” Why, Christmas decorations of every kind. I thought there was a rule forbidding this until at least after Halloween. Oh,…

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world – the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and the pride in possessions – is not from the Father…

“And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the people of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe a day of solemn rest, a memorial proclaimed with blast of trumpets, a holy convocation. You shall not do any ordinary work, and you shall present a…

“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep” (Romans 12:13-15). As I scrolled through Facebook this morning, a video popped up of the Carpenter’s singing “Rainy Days and Mondays.” It is a fitting reminder to me today that not all days are…

“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving” (Col. 2:6-7). I have a friend who usually begins each conversation he has with his friends this way: “How is your walk?” Every one…

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will…

“Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways” (Psa. 119:37). Countless times during the week I am deep in thought either reading or studying when I am jolted out of that reflection by the loud thumping coming from a car passing by. And other times it is the…

“Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him” (Isaiah 30:18). “Good things come to those who wait.” You probably heard that many times through the years. Be patient,…

“The roads to Zion mourn, for none come to the festival; all her gates are desolate; her priests groan; her virgins have been afflicted, and she herself suffers bitterly” (Lamentations 1:4). This coming Sunday we will embark on a seven-week journey through the book of Lamentations – “Hope in a Hopeless World.” This may be…

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Romans 1:16 This Sunday we will be looking at Mark’s account of the crucifixion. Sadly, it is often only at Eastertide that we stop to…