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Cupcake volunteers

  Deuteronomy 6:5-7 Listen to today’s devotional This year, my mother-in-law's birthday fell on a Sunday. So, we set up a table of cupcakes for everyone to enjoy after worship. The plan was for our children to serve anyone who wanted a treat. When I finally made it outside, I didn't see my kids serving. Instead, I saw four younger children standing behind the table, with gloves on, carefully handing them out. I thought that was a cute idea to ask them to help. But they weren't asked to help. They asked if they could help. Sure, I bet the proximity to the sweets might have influenced their request. But that didn't take away from how they served. They smiled so much, were fully engaged and attentive to their job. I smiled when I heard them ask several people waiting off to the side if they wanted a cupcake. They wanted to make sure no one was missed. Someone snapped a picture of them in action. Someone else said they looked like the adults who often do the same thing in o...
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A new verse

Don't tell anyone! Yesterday, I snuck in a new verse to "Because He Lives." I don't know if that's some kind of copyright infringement, but I did it.  The verse is based on 1 Peter 1:3-9, which we used as our call to worship. I took the cue from GBOD and had people from the congregation stand to read each verse. I actually forgot who was doing the readings. So, I didn't know everyone who would stand and speak. It was intriguing to wait and see where the next voice came from.  My message was about believing and having life in Jesus' name. Knowing so many people love that song, it felt like a great spot to tie in the 1 Peter passage.  I don't know if anyone noticed that it wasn't the usual second verse. But I can tell you they sang it! Though trials may come and fear would shake us, we still rejoice with precious faith. We may not see the face of Jesus, but we believe and give him all our greatest praise. Stay blessed...john
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He was there

  Psalm 114 Listen to today’s devotional Psalm 114 remembers and celebrates God's deliverance. Through the psalm, Israel looks back on the Exodus. That was a moment when the slaves of Egypt became God's people. Notice how creation is caught up in the storytelling. The sea runs away. The Jordan turns back. Mountains skip like animals. And in the middle of it all comes an almost playful, taunting question:  “Why is it, O sea, that you flee?” I wonder if the psalmist wants us to laugh as we're asking it. What made the sea move like that? Now, the answer is there, but barely. In Hebrew, verse 2 doesn’t name God directly. It uses the pronoun  He.  It's almost as if God’s presence and power are so obvious it doesn’t need explanation. The sea didn’t flee because of wind patterns or some weather event. It fled because  He  was there. But that raises a question for us. When we look back on our own lives, how do we know what was  Him ? Because not every moment i...
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Wherever you go

  1 Corinthians 15:1-11 Listen to today’s devotional Jesus once asked his disciples if they wanted to quit following him. One of them spoke up, saying, "Where would we go?" That's a question we have a lot more answers to today. In a world shaped by competing loyalties and distractions that often pull us away from faithfulness, the question of commitment remains central to our Christian life. The nineteenth-century hymn “ O Jesus, I Have Promised ” captures this tension. It was written by John Ernest Bode for his children's confirmation and expresses a lifelong vow of discipleship as an intentional decision to follow Christ despite the pressures of the world, internal struggles, and external opposition. The hymn frames discipleship not as passive belief but as active, persevering commitment even in the midst of challenge. Paul, writing to the Corinthians, brought that same hope of commitment. He reminds them of what he “received” and what he “passed on.” Specifically, ...
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Choosing your God

  Psalm 16 Listen to today’s devotional The Bible doesn't pretend there aren't other "gods." Those ancient writers knew better. Instead of ignoring them, scripture sometimes names them. And it's good for us to learn to do the same. Psalm 16 starts with a pretty bold statement. "You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing." That sounds like an affirmation of faith. In some ways, it is. But it's also a statement of direction. God's Spirit knows how easily our hearts attach themselves to other things that promise life. Security, success, control, or approval rank high on our lists. They may not be real in the way we sense that the Lord is real, but they are real in the way they shape us. "They who chose another god multiply their sorrows," the psalmist says. If there are no other gods, discipleship isn’t that important. Those sorrows the psalmist speaks of come because those other gods cannot fulfill what they promise. Every god c...
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Rejected stones

  Psalm 118:20-24 Listen to today’s devotional One man's trash is another man's salvation. That's not quite how that old saying goes. But it might as well be scripture. Psalm 118 says it like this: "The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.' And once you start looking, you realize how often that pattern emerges. Not just in scripture, but in the world around us, too. Vincent van Gogh died with little recognition, calling himself a "nonentity." Thomas Edison was labeled slow and unteachable. Frida Kahlo was overshadowed and dismissed. But what was overlooked became undeniable. What was once rejected became a fascination. What we're not used to is realizing we would have done the same thing to Jesus. Not to compare him to artists or inventors, but to confess something about ourselves. We don't always recognize what God is doing, even when it's standing right in front of us. Jesus didn't fit the blueprint for so many pe...
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The desk where it happens

I'm not good at keeping my desk clean. So, I take great pride in the notion that a messy desk is a sign of genius.   It's been a busy few months. Plenty of reading and writing. This year, I even wrote the narration for our church's Easter cantata. It was an idea my daughter and I had wayyy last year.  I read through several old cantatas we have at the church to look at the rhythm and style that most use. So, it sounded like one of those canned music pieces. But I was happy with it. It did what we wanted it to do.  Of course, all my daily text messages, daily devotionals, sermons, and papers have happened in this small space. Confession: There was once more than 3 Dr. Pepper cans there.  Where do you do your best work?  Stay blessed...john
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