TODAY WE REMEMBER 9/11 WE THINK OF THE SORROW AND WE WONDER IF THE RETURN OF JESUS IS NEAR WE KNOW HE TOLD US TO BE READY WE LONG TO BE THE KIND OF BRIDE THAT WILL NOT BE ASHAMED WHEN HE APPEARS AND SO WE ARE RETURNING TO A STUDY THAT HAS BEEN CHANGING OUR HEARTS AND TO THE PROMISE FROM EZEKIEL THAT GOD WILL REPLACE OUR HEARTS OF STONE WITH HEARTS OF FLESH TO REPLACE DEAD, UNRESPONSIVE HEARTS WITH PASSIONATE, REAL, AND POWERFUL HEARTS Welcome to those of you who have done parts of “The Stonecutter” study before — I’m counting on you to be mentors! Welcome to those who are just joining … [Read More]
THE GOD HUNT
NEXT WEEK : THE STONECUTTER BUT THIS WEEK WE’RE GOING TO PAUSE AND TAKE A BREATH AS WE SAY GOOD-BYE TO SWEET SUMMER AND PREPARE TO FACE, WITH JOY THE BRISKER PACE OF FALL Labor Day itself was designed to honor the Labor movement that brought relief to so many workers who were abused and over-worked by those in power. Many have come to think of it as a day where you have a break from labor, pause, and relax, and, perhaps, reflect. It’s a good time to slow down and think about what life is really about — a pause, a “selah,” before we turn to the many responsibilities that come with the fall. The homework this week is … [Read More]
TO GOD AND TO THE LAMB, I WILL SING
“Each new morn New widows howl, new orphans cry…” Suffering, Shakespeare knew, is a given in life. Yet God has not hidden His face. Earthquakes come to places they have rarely come. Hurricanes increase in frequency and ferocity. Yet God has not hidden His face. Our own sins reap us sorrow cut us to pieces Yet God has not hidden His face. When the storm is raging When the terror and rumble of the world, the flesh, and the devil come to us He asks us to come to Him To find shelter under His wings When we suffer God is not punishing us For He took that punishment He is the Lamb of … [Read More]
RAINY ROMANTIC RESCUE MOVIES AND OUR REDEEMER
(The following excerpt is from The God of All Comfort) I’m not giving away Steve’s trench coat. I want to see it when I open the closet. I want to run my hand through its soft furry lining. If I have to run up to our mailbox in the rain, it’s that trench coat I reach for – a sheltering shield covering me from head to foot, protecting me from the wet, yet flooding my heart with memories: The day I met him – a cold February day on the campus of Northwestern University. He caught up with me after class and introduced himself. I was so excited that this man whom I’d secretly … [Read More]
DON’T SEND A SYMPATHY CARD
I thought I was a wise comforter. I wasn’t. I’m wiser now. Yet I still need to be continually reminded on what helps and what hurts. Dogs know how to bring comfort. They simply come alongside and are silent. But people, even Christians, often try to fix the unfixable, uttering platitudes, pointing out the silver lining, or preaching little sermonettes based on Romans 8:28. I believe Romans 8:28, but it was all I could do when people quoted it to me not to give them a swift karate kick. Solomon tells us there is a “time to speak and a time to be silent,” and high tide grief is the time to be silent. Ironically, two women who comforted me … [Read More]
THOUGH STILL OUR ANCIENT FOE
WE MUST NOT FORGET WE MUST BE SOBER-MINDED WE WRESTLE NOT AGAINST FLESH AND BLOOD OUR ANCIENT FOE STILL ROAMS STILL LOOKS FOR THE WOUNDED STILL HUNTS EASY PREY Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. (I PETER 5:18) The great hymn of Christendom, “A Mighty Fortress,” became the theme song for our personal battle. God gave it to us right away, though we misunderstood what we were fighting. We thought we were fighting cancer. It was the week after Steve’s diagnosis. We had come rushing home from the Indiana retreat, despondent. He told us that the Lord had told him “to fight.” We were heartened. If the Lord told him “to … [Read More]
THE TSUNAMI HAS COME. BE STILL MY SOUL.
You may not have had a chance to say “good-bye.” Death, depression, or divorce came uninvited to your door. The waters are roaring. The mountains are trembling. You may wonder how you can possibly go on. It’s time, as Martin Luther used to say to his despairing friend, Philip Melanchthon, “Come Philip, let’s sing the Forty-Sixth.” God is our refuge and strength a very present help in trouble Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling Psalm 46:1-4 The forty-sixth psalm is meant to inspire hope in the midst of a storm. Just as … [Read More]
BE STILL MY SOUL (Part 1.)
It was the perfect storm. Jesus was asleep. They were terrified for their lives. Yet He was surprised that they were. Oh! He is speaking to each of us in this account. Our current study on The God of All Comfort has a very similar theme to our last study on overcoming the idols of our heart. We trust in our idols instead of God because we think He’s asleep. We think He doesn’t care. We think He won’t help us. We go to the depths of despair when we face trouble because we think He’s asleep. We think He doesn’t care. We think He won’t help us. That day in the boat the disciples said: “Teacher, do you not … [Read More]
DEEP CALLS TO DEEP
In the midst of the deadly “D”s (disappointment, death, divorce, disease, depression) there is a beautiful and mysterious D phrase: DEEP CALLS TO DEEP. For those of us who are children of God, there is such hope. Weeping may last for the night, but joy comes in the morning. At the time our heart is sinking down, God may come to us, and His deep voice may speak deep into our souls.Last week Anne, who has journeyed with us for sometime, wrote something profound, something very related to this phrase: Deep calls to deep. She listened to Keller’s message Questions of Suffering on Job and responded: My greatest take away is the idea that suffering is what bonds me to … [Read More]
SONGS IN THE NIGHT
I promised to keep this fresh, especially for those of you who have been through The God of All Comfort before, so this is new material. Even in the storms of life, we can see God’s power and have His peace. I am seeing that happen here — one of our new members, Chris S., who lost her teenage son tragically just a year ago, brought me to tears last week as I am seeing God whispering to her, bringing her songs in the night. And there are others of you too. How thankful I am to God for honoring us here with His presence. This is one of my favorite photographs, of my dear daughter-in-law Julie with her arms … [Read More]
