ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSAugust 24, 2020Prayer for the Week: Allow for simple words to spill into our ears and our minds – words like grace and mercy, kindness and love, steadfastness and compassion, forgiveness and justice. Simple words woven into the scriptures; simple words whispered by the Spirit; simple words enfleshed in Jesus. Holy God, we do not require a dictionary for these simple words, but if they are ever
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSAugust 23, 2020Scripture: Acts 10:34Peter said, “I really am learning that God doesn’t show partiality to one group of people over another.” Thought for the Day: Our carbon monoxide detectors went off yesterday here at the house. We were not concerned, but when we called the manufacturer of the detectors, they (for true safety and legal reasons) told us to call the fire department. Now we tried
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSAugust 22, 2020Scripture: 1st Thessalonians 2:8So deeply do we care for you that we are determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you have become very dear to us. Thought for the Day: An individual can communicate certain ideas adequately without any personal involvement in the actual idea. I can explain a basic math problem or how
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSAugust 21, 2020Scripture: Acts 10:1-2In Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of the Italian Cohort, as it was called. He was a devout man who feared God with all his household; he gave alms generously to the people and prayed constantly to God. Thought for the Day: This Sunday, I will be referencing the story of Cornelius and his encounter with the Apostle Peter.
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSAugust 20, 2020Scripture: Hebrews 10:25Don’t stop meeting together with other believers, which some people have gotten into the habit of doing. Instead, encourage each other, especially as you see the day drawing near. Thought for the Day: This passage speaks to our current situation. Right now, we are not meeting together for the safety of individuals and to hopefully curb the number of COVID cases. There are
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSAugust 19, 2020Scripture: Jeremiah 9:24bI am the LORD who acts with kindness, justice, and righteousness in the world, and I delight in these things, declares the LORD. Thought for the Day: The Hebrew word translated here as acts is `asah, a word that has been translated as pressed, produces or brings about. An old preacher I knew translated it as habit, describing the habits of God as
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSAugust 18, 2020Scripture: Luke 12:18-19Then the man said, “I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” Thought for the Day: I was all excited about the LiveStream for
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSAugust 17, 2020Prayer for the Week: A simple message of love and forgiveness unleashed upon a complex and self-obsessed world. What were you thinking when you entrusted this message to those first followers, O Breath of Life. From the beginning, you went straight for those bottom of the barrel kind of folk – the bruised, the unwanted, the discarded. Why not use the powerful and wealthy whose
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSAugust 16, 2020Scripture: Luke 9:20Jesus said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered, “The Messiah of God.” Thought for the Day: When Peter gave the answer to the question posed by Jesus, he had absolutely no idea what he was saying. We could be tough on Peter, but most everyone would have failed to understand the implications of suggesting that Jesus was
ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGSAugust 15, 2020Scripture: Psalm 5:1-3Give ear to my words, O Lord; give heed to my sighing. Listen to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you I pray. O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I plead my case to you, and watch. Thought for the Day: In the morning… Don’t you imagine that some people hear