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  Jeremiah 42:18-22 Listen to today’s devotional Most of us have gone to a doctor's appointment hoping for a simple answer. Actually, we really want an answer that affirms what we have already decided is right. We tell ourselves it's just our allergies. Or it's something that will clear up in a few days. Then we hear results that say something entirely different. Now, imagine telling your doctor, "Thanks for your opinion, but I've decided not to accept your diagnosis." As ridiculous as that sounds, that's pretty much what happens in Jeremiah 42. The people of God asked the prophet Jeremiah to seek God in prayer on their behalf. They promised they would obey whatever God said. See where this is going? They waited ten days while Jeremiah prayed. But when God's answer came, it wasn't what they wanted to hear. So, they didn't do anything Jeremiah instructed them to do. That means their problem wasn't hearing God's voice. How often do we tal...

  Psalm 86:11-13 Listen to today’s devotional I often think about an illustration I once used with a youth Sunday School class. For several weeks, we kept two pictures posted on the wall. One was a classic TV dinner. The other was a chicken pot pie. Whether we were studying Psalm 86 or not, the lesson connected to a truth found in the poem. The psalmist asks God for "an undivided heart," and later says that he gives thanks to God with his “whole heart." When you listen to people talk about their lives, many of us live more like a TV dinner than a pot pie. We have a church self, a work self, a social media self, a political self, and a friend self. Each compartment has its own space, carefully separated from the others. As long as the sections stay divided, everything seems fine. But the faith of the Bible doesn't recognize that kind of life. The psalmist longs for something different. He prays for a heart that is whole, integrated, and fully devoted to God because fa...

  Acts 5:17-21 Listen to today’s devotional Among several things my hometown is known for, Galveston, Texas, is also the birthplace of Juneteenth. On June 19, 1865, the news finally arrived that enslaved people in Texas were free. Now, freedom had been declared more than two years before, but many had not yet heard the announcement. When I moved away from the city, I was surprised to learn it wasn't a big deal in the other places I lived. Most people hadn't even heard of the holiday. I couldn't help but remember that while reading Acts 5 today. The passage shows us the power of God that comes through announcements. The apostles had been arrested for preaching about Jesus. The religious authorities thought they could silence the gospel by locking its messengers in prison. But during the night, an angel opened the doors and set them free. Then came a surprising command: "Go, stand, and tell." God did not open the prison doors just so the apostles could admire their ...

Psalm 69:7-10 Listen to today’s devotional I always laughed at the old Snickers commercials. Someone would be cranky, irrational, or completely unlike themselves until they took a bite of a candy bar. Then their slogan would appear: "You're not you when you're hungry." If the sermon's ever kept you too long from lunch, you know there's truth in those funny ads. Hunger has a way of revealing what's going on within us. When our stomachs are empty, our patience gets shorter and our tempers get quicker. Those little inconveniences that never bothered us before start to get to us more. Maybe that's one reason fasting has long been a spiritual practice. In Psalm 69, David says he humbled himself through fasting. That means he did not see fasting as a way to impress God or earn God's favor. He wasn't even trying to get God to do something for him. Humbling your soul has a way of creating space for God to reveal what is in your heart. When we fast, we ...

I met with my new congregation last night. Gloria and I traveled to Del Rio to participate in an Onboarding Session. This meeting gave the church leadership and others a chance to ask questions about who I am and my approach to ministry. They also voiced their hopes and dreams about what our ministry would look like.  The meeting was led by a moderator. Or a facilitator?  My role was to come at the end to answer some questions. More than anything, I was to offer a sense that we're going to be okay. I waited in my new office and received text updates on how things were going. The group discussed six questions with the moderator. When they finished one question, someone sent me the responses.  I couldn't sit still that long. So, I started a self-guided tour. Some doors were locked. Some rooms were empty. I got turned around once and even walked around the block. It was my responsibility to close the time. I shared a bit of my call story and a few other things about my famil...

  Nehemiah 9:1-3 Listen to today’s devotional As our nation approaches its 250th anniversary, it's fitting to celebrate our achievements, remember our heroes, and tell stories of courage and sacrifice. But Nehemiah also reminds us that honest reflection requires more than celebration. After returning from exile, the people of Israel gathered to fast, mourn, and listen to the Word of God. Then they did something surprising. They confessed not only their own sins but also “the iniquities of their ancestors” (Nehemiah 9:2). They seem to have understood that faithfulness requires telling the whole story. Before they could move forward, they had to acknowledge where they, and those who came before them, had fallen short of God’s purposes. It's worth asking why we so often see this kind of honesty as a weakness or inappropriate. In truth, there is deep wisdom and faithfulness in naming where we have not lived up to God’s ideals. What is true for individuals is also true for nations, ...