Walk in the Light

June 30, 2024

June 30th, 2024

Sunday – Poetry

Reading – Ecclesiastes 11-12

Highlight Verse:

“Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest.”
‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭11‬:‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

My perfectionist heart cringes.

But I want it to be just right.

Maybe the weather will be better next week.

Fortunately, many years of experience usually overrules my perfectionist tendencies.

On one such experience, I managed to get a ticket to a Christian concert festival at a big farm in New Jersey. (I lived near Philadelphia at the time).

The only problem was the remnants of a hurricane were due to blow through the area that day.

The event went on, though not exactly as planned.

The main stage faced the rain-filled wind. It never opened.

But the worship tent was active all day and the alternative stage gave me new respect for the likes of MXPX and KJ52 who performed straight through downpours.

After KJ52 finished I met a few artists at their merch tables in a big tent. I spent the next couple of hours with a group of guys helping push cars out of the muddy fields.

When I finally arrived home, I was covered head to toe with mud.

It was one of the best days of that otherwise lousy year.

Sure, the biggest bands never got to play, and I ruined a brand-new T-shirt, but I got to meet a bunch of interesting people. I got to jam out in the rain to some awesome new-to-me rock and hip-hop. And I got some great stories to tell.

So, the next time the weather threatens to dampen your big event, prepare to dance in the rain!

Have you ever danced in the rain? Are you willing to try?
Can you share stories of when things didn’t go as planned but turned out better?
June 29, 2024

June 29th, 2024

Saturday – Open Topic

Reading – Psalm 23

Highlight Verse:

“The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭23‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I want a new iPad.

I’d like a newer car.

I’d love to have a little more money in savings… okay, a lot more.

If only my body would work and feel like it did in my twenties – and I had the free time to do the things I used to be able to do.

But…

I have all that I need!

In fact, I have far more than I need.

I’m blessed with a loving family.

I live in a house with plenty of room and a roof that keeps off the rain and windows and doors that keep out the heat and cold.

This old body can still walk and run – just a little slower nowadays.

I have a Heavenly Father who loves me, a church that is alive, and an eternal home under construction in heaven.

I have rest when I need it and energy when I don’t.

And, in the middle of the whirlwind of my life, I have peace that passes all understanding.

Life is Good!
God is great!

What is the difference between want and need for you?
Has God filled all those needs for you?
June 28, 2024

June 28th, 2024

Friday – Prophets

Reading – Amos 3-4

Highlight verse:

“This is what the Lord says: “A shepherd who tries to rescue a sheep from a lion,’s mouth will recover only two legs or a piece of an ear. So it will be for the Israelites in Samaria lying on luxurious beds, and for the people of Damascus reclining on couches.”
‭‭Amos‬ ‭3‬:‭12‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Sometimes one needs to be shockingly graphic or blunt to get people’s attention.

This is one of those times.

The people of Israel, Samaria, and Damascus needed a serious wake-up call.

Amos, a shepherd by profession, was not afraid to grab people’s attention.

Maybe I could learn a thing or two from Amos.

I tend to dance around issues instead of dealing with them directly.

Amos got right to the point.

As a result, some followed.

What gets your attention in Scripture?
How does it affect you when you see such graphic imagery in the Bible?
June 27, 2024

June 27th, 2024

Thursday – Letters

Reading – 1 John 4

Highlight Verses:

“Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”
‭‭1 John‬ ‭4‬:‭7‬-‭8‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Welcome to one of the first scriptures I memorized.

As a child and teen, I would sing a song that quoted these two verses exactly, albeit in an older version of the Bible.

I can still sing it today.

Think about the songs you can sing. Chances are there are many you know by heart.

Now think about the number of Bible verses you know by heart.

There’s a good chance you know more songs than Bible verses.

What if those verses were put to song?

There are many songs that directly quote scripture. Quite a few written with the purpose of helping people memorize Bible verses.

What are some songs you love that directly quote scripture?
If you don’t know any search for “Scripture Songs”. What did you find?
Feel free to share links to scripture songs.
June 26, 2024

June 26th, 2024

Wednesday – History

Reading – 2 Chronicles 7-9

Highlight Verse:

“Each year Solomon received about 25 tons of gold.”
‭‭2 Chronicles‬ ‭9‬:‭13‬ ‭NLT‬‬

That’s well over a billion dollars in gold every year. And that was just part of his income.

It’s probably safe to say that Solomon was wealthier than anyone living today.

More importantly, he was wiser.

But he was still human.

I have a hard time reading all these descriptions of his wealth and wisdom without thinking about his failures later in life.

As you read how amazing the guy was, don’t forget that he was an imperfect human.

You and I probably don’t come close to his wisdom. We certainly can’t match his wealth.

If this amazing guy could have major failures, so could we.

We would do well not to rest on the wisdom we believe that we have gained and stay on our guard against that which could make us fail.

We’ll read more about Solomon’s shortfalls before too long.

Have you ever found yourself falling into sin despite your apparent wisdom?
What can you do to stay on your guard against such failures?
June 25, 2024

June 25th, 2024

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Numbers 17-18

Highlight Verse:

“And the Lord said to Moses: “Place Aaron’s staff permanently before the Ark of the Covenant to serve as a warning to rebels. This should put an end to their complaints against me and prevent any further deaths.””
‭‭Numbers‬ ‭17‬:‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

It should have put an end to rebellion.

It didn’t.

But at least the people recognized that they were helpless before God.

They knew at this point they needed someone to mediate between themselves and God because of their sin.

That’s where the Levites and priests came into play.

Ultimately, that’s why we needed Jesus.

This period of history laid the groundwork for Jesus to make the sacrifice in our place and give us back direct access to God.

If nothing else, we should look at this era of Hebrew history and the magnitude of God’s saving grace and exude unceasing gratitude.

Were you aware of how deep the gulf was between us and God?
How can we even come close to expressing an adequate amount of gratitude for the grace God has given us?
June 24, 2024

June 24th, 2024

Monday – Gospels and Acts

Reading – Acts 2

Highlight Verse:

“These people are not drunk, as some of you are assuming. Nine o’clock in the morning is much too early for that.”
‭‭Acts of the Apostles‬ ‭2‬:‭15‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Did you ever notice that the first pouring out of the Holy Spirit on the New Testament Church occurred around 9 in the morning?

Why?

Why would Peter even mention the time?

Obviously, we cannot know for certain the reason. But we can conjecture.

The tongues of fire arrived with a great deal of noise.

This was on the day of Pentecost when a large number of people from all over had assembled at Jerusalem.

I would not be surprised if God chose that time of day as a moment when a large number of people were passing nearby.

It is possible that, at any other time, the noise would have been missed.

It wasn’t missed.

God brought the exact right crowd to witness the different languages being spoken through the power of the Holy Spirit.

This was no small crowd. From that crowd and those who heard from them that day, 3000 people were added to the believers!

I have known enough people who just happened to be in the right place at the right time to know that God still works that way today.

The Holy Spirit is still being poured out on the Church.

God is still arranging the timing that the right people would hear the truth.

He is still touching hearts that people may understand and find salvation.

That gives me hope, even for those loved ones who seem to have no hope of salvation.

In that hope I continue to pray.

Do you have that hope?
Will you continue to pray that the Holy Spirit reaches those you love in the way that only God knows how to arrange?
June 23, 2024

June 23rd, 2024

Sunday – Poetry

Reading – Ecclesiastes 9-10

Highlight Verse:

“Using a dull ax requires great strength, so sharpen the blade. That’s the value of wisdom; it helps you succeed.”
‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭10‬:‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I spent most of this morning organizing my workshop in our garage.

I still have a long way to go. It was a hot day, and I don’t yet have my cooler set up in there (another long story) so I quit by noon.

Two large trash bags and a full recycling bin later and it is much more usable.

I was even able to get one quick project done on my now mostly visible workbench.

My workbench had become my dull axe.

Now I can use it to get stuff done without requiring “great strength.”

If you’re wondering, I even got my sprinklers working right.

What are your dull axes?
What would it take to sharpen them?
June 22, 2024

June 22nd, 2024

Saturday – Open topic.

Reading – Proverbs 12:10 and 2 Samuel 12: 1-3

Highlight Verse:

“The godly care for their animals, but the wicked are always cruel.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭12‬:‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

When Nathan told the story of the poor man with a pet lamb to get David to repent, the concept of pet animals was not foreign to him.

In fact, people have been keeping pets as early as 12,000 years ago.

I don’t know if today’s proverb is about livestock or pets or both.

I do know that people who show kindness to animals are far more likely to show kindness to others.

So, if someone gives you a hard time for spoiling your pet, remind them that you are just practicing being kind for them.

Are you a pet lover?
What has taking care of a pet taught you about taking care of people?
June 21, 2024

June 21st, 2024

Friday – Prophets

Reading – Amos 1-2

Highlight Verse:

“This message was given to Amos, a shepherd from the town of Tekoa in Judah. He received this message in visions two years before the earthquake, when Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam II, the son of Jehoash, was king of Israel.”
‭‭Amos‬ ‭1‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Have you ever had the thought, “I’m just a (insert your occupation here). God’s not going to use me to lead people.”

Well, Amos was just a shepherd.

Shepherds were at the very low end of the socio-economic scale of that culture, not too far above beggars.

Yet, King David started as a shepherd.

And Amos was apparently still a shepherd when these messages came to Him.

But he didn’t let that stop him.

He went on and prophesied anyway.

And the words he wrote made it into the Bible.

The cannon of the Bible has been closed for a long time but that doesn’t mean that God can’t use your words.

How have you seen God use ordinary people around you?
In what ways do you think God want to use you to get His word out?

My perfectionist heart cringes.

Fortunately, many years of experience usually overrules my perfectionist tendencies.

It was one of the best days of that otherwise lousy year.

So, the next time the weather threatens to dampen your big event, prepare to dance in the rain!

I have all that I need!

Life is Good!God is great!

Sometimes one needs to be shockingly graphic or blunt to get people’s attention.

Maybe I could learn a thing or two from Amos.

Welcome to one of the first scriptures I memorized.

I can still sing it today.

There’s a good chance you know more songs than Bible verses.

It’s probably safe to say that Solomon was wealthier than anyone living today.

I have a hard time reading all these descriptions of his wealth and wisdom without thinking about his failures later in life.

We would do well not to rest on the wisdom we believe that we have gained and stay on our guard against that which could make us fail.

But at least the people recognized that they were helpless before God.

If nothing else, we should look at this era of Hebrew history and the magnitude of God’s saving grace and exude unceasing gratitude.

Did you ever notice that the first pouring out of the Holy Spirit on the New Testament Church occurred around 9 in the morning?

God brought the exact right crowd to witness the different languages being spoken through the power of the Holy Spirit.

In that hope I continue to pray.

I spent most of this morning organizing my workshop in our garage.

My workbench had become my dull axe.

Now I can use it to get stuff done without requiring “great strength.”

I do know that people who show kindness to animals are far more likely to show kindness to others.

So, if someone gives you a hard time for spoiling your pet, remind them that you are just practicing being kind for them.

Well, Amos was just a shepherd.

But he didn’t let that stop him.

Life is Good!
God is great!