Tag Archive | "arters"

Old Testament

Joshua Judges Ruth29 Apr

After the book of Deuteronomy is finished, the books of history that flesh out the Law begin. Joshua is about the conquest of the land, and the establishment of obedience to the Law in the land. The narrative portions (that which is not about allotments and borders) are all about fleeing idolatry. Rahab forsaking her [...]
Devotional,NJ

Day 80- No compromise23 Mar

In John’s account of Peter’s denial of Jesus, John makes it clear that Peter is struggling with the fear of identifying with Jesus. I think that this is a very real concern in our day, as Christians are portrayed so disparagingly in the media. Though sometimes deserving of criticism for being less loving and honest [...]
Devotional,NJ

Day 55- When God Ran24 Feb

There are so many things I can write about todays passage. I want to offer a few options: Watch this video my Phillips, Craig and Dean which puts one one Jesus’ ideas of the story into music Buy today this incredible book by Tim Keller, called Prodigal God. Here’s the introduction: The targets of this [...]
Devotional,NJ

Day 50- An honest look at ourselves19 Feb

The good samaritan story is pretty famous. And we’d like to think we’d be the Samaritan. Statistically it a NO. Psychologists John Darley and C. Daniel Batson wanted to test if religion has any effect on helpful behavior. The Setup: Their subjects were a group of seminary students. Half of the students were given the [...]
Devotional,NJ

Day 49- Deny Yourself, Take Up Your Cross18 Feb

Jesus is not looking for the self-willed, independent-type who will look at Jesus’ teachings and say, "Yeah,but" or "Jesus, lets tweak that idea"…his disciples did enough of that already. He not looking for the one who is really embracing Jesus for his/her own sake,though frankly, we start there…all of us. But rather, if we are [...]
Devotional,PsJ

Day 48- When prayers hit the ceiling17 Feb

Psalm 44 keeps it real, and it is a tough psalm to read. Verses 1-3:You showed up in the times of our forefathers, in power and glory Verses 4-8: I trust in You, not in myself, nor in a great army. Verses 9-16: We are getting hammered, we are getting persecuted, but You have not [...]
Devotional,OTJ

Day 47- Othniel & Bezalel: Tabernacle Artisans of God16 Feb

This is where some of the repetition might start getting to us, as we wonder about and try to picture the tabernacle. The picture at right is from a great site i encourage you to head to for a few more details about the significance of each piece, and the meaning that Christ fulfilled in [...]
Devotional,OTJ

Day 44- Yahweh or My Way?13 Feb

Reading these three passages together, there is only one thing to talk about, temptation to sin! when i began to read the Exodus reading, I thought how cool to write about Oholiab and Bezalel, guys that God created with great gifts of craftsmanship, guys who’s skills had probably been honed in slavery and oppression. But [...]
Devotional,PsJ

Day 43- A Psalm for everyday12 Feb

Heard about a friend in the church just diagnosed with breast cancer, and my heart is heavy for her and for her husband. Prayer goes up to the Lord, but at the same time, I am not at left with peace. i am frustrated by this sinful world that contains sin and disease, bad news, [...]
Devotional,PsJ

Day 32- A Song of Life01 Feb

Psalm 29 is awesome. You need to read it out loud. One of the distinctive features of the Lord, over against other ancient “gods” was that he spoke the creation into being. It was a demonstration of his power that he could declare it and it would be. Even in theological circles, the “divine decree” [...]

Sacred Desert

Meeting the Lord in Dry Places:

None of us really want the Dry Spells of life. We become tired, and thirsty for something that satisfies, we are uncomfortable, we are unsure of the future. The dry places of our lives feel the most distant from the Lord. We think that the dryness is an expression of God’s removal of blessing, the absence of his presence, when in reality, it is the desert places that allow us raw and concentrated time with Him. Allow this series to challenge your thinking of that a time of blessing from the Lord looks like.

“There is in true grace an infinite circle:
a man by thirsting receives,
and receiving thirsts for more.”

- Thomas Shepard

Victorious Life

Too often Christians talk about just scraping by, lacking joy in the Lord, being defeated by temptation. When we read Deuteronomy, Joshua, Acts and Romans, we get a very different picture…celebration of victory and the gift of God’s strength to conquer evil. Over the weeks following Easter, we will find out what it means to live in the victory won  by Jesus in his resurrection.

Join the Discussion on this Series

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