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  Esther 4 Esther makes a sudden entrance into the story that bears her name. The king had banished his queen, "never again" to enter his presence (Esther 1:19). That led to a search for her replacement. And Esther's name appears matter-of-factly in chapter 2. Hers is the only name given of all the women who endured the king's twelve-month beauty contest. Once she's selected as the next queen, her name takes a chapter off. But the story begins to brew. We learn of Haman's great desire to annihilate the Jewish people. Esther reappears in distress of the news and it's now we get a sense of something important. The new queen didn't know her place. No, she didn't have full access to the king. There were rules, after all. Just ask the replaced queen, if you can find her. Plus, tt had been a month since the king has summoned Esther. But we can't say Esther was a nobody. She's the queen. Still, it's almost like she doesn't sense what that ...

  Psalm 124 I'm reflecting on when we know it was God and when we think it was us. That is, I want to have the same kind of assurance the psalmist did when he declared, "If it had not been the Lord who was on our side (Psalm 124:1). But, surely, our perceived success isn't the only measure of God's active presence with us. Faithful servants of God fail all the time. Jesus told us to make ourselves last place among all people. That's going to look like failure to some, isn't it? And God's people suffer. Not because God is punishing them, but because that's what life is sometimes. Maybe it's like when we blame the enemy. "The devil made me do it," we confess. The thing is, the devil doesn't always have to twist our arms all that much. We're often more ready to do what we want than we care to admit. We have more agency than we realize. Does God split seas? Yes, but not always. Does the Lord make the sun stand still to protect God'...

Acts 4:23-31 Time and history have consumed the songs the early church sang. And we only have ideas of how the first Christians worshiped. Piecing together New Testament passages helps us understand some of their worship practices. But there are still a few things we know with confidence about those early Christians. For example, they heard the gospel of Jesus on repeat. They experienced power through miracles. And they prayed. Not everyone was a teacher. Not everyone performed miracles or was a designated servant of the church. But one thing every person could do was pray. If I could transpose one aspect of Christian life in the book of Acts into our life today, it'd be their way of praying. I'm not so sure they prayed with eloquence and great rhetoric like many of us think we have to. Instead, I'm impressed with their shared faithfulness to the act of prayer. And what about how they prayed. Acts 4 is my favorite example of prayer. I'm a preacher. So, I've preached...

  John 8:31-38 When I need a discipleship punch, I often go to Dallas Willard. Here's something he said that I'm reflecting on today: Our failure to hear his voice when we want to is due to the fact that we do not in general want to hear it, that we want it only when we think we need it. Jesus went back and forth with people of faith. They were "Abraham's descendants" and, obviously, proud of it (John 8:33). Now, there's nothing wrong with appreciating your religious heritage. But their feelings went far beyond mere gratitude. They respond to Jesus' assertion of freedom by declaring they had never been slaves to anyone. How could they think that? Their story included exile. They were under Rome's thumb, many of them hoping for a messiah to overthrow Caesar and his government. The Lord knew they were Abraham's descendants. He knew their stories. It was his heritage, too! But the Son now presented a freedom only God could offer. And it was their inab...

  Ecclesiastes 4:9-16 Jesus' disciples once argued with one another about which of them was the greatest. That was a pretty dumb argument to have considering what Jesus had just taught them. His lesson on suffering, death and resurrection went right over them. Jesus the rabbi went on to teach them how to overcome their desire to be so great. The preacher of Ecclesiastes might've offered a different response. He would've reminded them how the  greatest  is a fleeting position. Let's say one of the disciples won that argument. He reasoned well enough with the others and collected enough votes. Even if they weren't happy about it, the group decided he was the greatest. It wouldn't be long before the others changed their minds. Now, nothing about the greatest disciple changed. It's the others who change. They can't help it. We can't help it. And so, whether it's warranted or not, in time, someone considered great today will become less-than-great. Li...

  Proverbs 30:18-33 Proverbs 30 is a collection of sayings from a man named Agur. Who don't know who he was. He and his father are only mentioned in Proverbs 30:1. It could be that their names are symbolic. For today's reading, though, let's assume Agur is someone like you and me. He opens the chapter with this: Surely I am too stupid to be human;     I do not have human understanding. I have not learned wisdom,     nor have I knowledge of the holy ones  (30:2-3). That seems a bit drastic. Was Agur having a bad day? Or was he overstating his humility? Whatever the case, Agur's wisdom shines through the rest of the chapter. I remember a sermon series I did once on Job. For several weeks we considered what Job and his friends said and the wisdom we could glean from them. We noticed that God doesn't answer Job's every complaint. It takes several chapters before God speaks to Job. The comment I made about God's response was:  It turns o...

 I started a new playlist on my YouTube channel. It's called "Audio Sermons."  Can you guess what it is?  In case it's not obvious, I started uploading my old sermons I have audio recorded. These were from the days when it wasn't as easy to video record them.  Here's the link to the playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSJ8R4pRJKZUDq6XRlAHsEwf8kFrZra5e Stay blessed...john

Judges 6:1-10 God heard the cry of the Israelites in Egypt (Exodus 3:7). That sparked the exodus, the crossing of the sea and the ultimate entrance into the promised land. When God heard the people, the Lord sent Moses to lead them out of their oppression. Since Moses often spoke on behalf of God to the people, it's appropriate to consider him a prophet. God would hear the cry of the people again. This time, Midian was their oppressor. The "Midianites and the Amalekites and the people of the east" made life unbearable for the Israelites (Judges 6:3). In their impoverishment, "the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help" (6:6). And you know what God did. God heard and sent a prophet to them. This time, though, things were different. Moses went with a message to Pharaoh to free the people for worship. The prophet God sent in the Midianite agitation didn't speak to any king or ruler. He spoke to the people. His message was two-fold. First, they were to rememb...

"Who do you say that I am?" - Jesus  Jesus didn't need marble temples or grand shrines. He had the cross. The cross didn't deny his power. It demonstrated it.  Understanding the cross is key to understanding God's language of grace. It's not about living your "best life" - it's about following Jesus, even when the path leads through suffering. Remember: God's grace means you're never too far gone to follow Jesus. Today is always a new day with God.   

John 7:25-36 Here's my "can anything good come out of Nazareth" story. Once, I attended a spiritual retreat. During the event, there were several free-time slots on our agenda. I used those times to play basketball. Just after one of the games, an older man asked me to come talk to him. He wondered had I played ball in high school and asked what school I attended. Pretty sure that he recognized the name of the school, he verified and asked where I was from. When I told him I was born in Galveston, he said, "If I'd had known you were from Galveston, I would've hid my wallet." People knew Jesus. Not only had they heard him and seen him, they knew where he was from. Word gets around about people, doesn't it? It's not hard to imagine Jesus and his family having some reputation, as many families might. And maybe people knew others from Nazareth or had heard stories about that lowly place. Philip certainly had (John 1:46). But Jesus wasn't concerne...

 Psalm 73:21-28 The apostle Paul wrote that the Holy Spirit intercedes for us (Romans 8:26). That's because we don't know what we should pray for. And he was probably right. I've prayed for certain things to happen before. When something else, something better came out of the situation, it was obvious I had been praying for the wrong thing. But I was praying. That counts for something because of Spirit's work.   Let me share with you some things Christians pray that you might've heard before. Christians pray for God to be with us. They pray for God to be good. I pray every week for God to hear the prayers of the church. Of course, those aren't wasted prayers. They mean something to us. But those are also promises of God.   God is good (Matthew 19:17). We already know God's presence is always with us (Matthew 28:20). And the Lord has promised to hear our praying (1 Peter 3:12). You don't have to pray for those things to be true. They are.   The psalmist...

 It's quite nice to have a thoughtful, meaningful conversation with someone you disagree with. The problem is those kinds of conversations don't always happen. They don't happen nearly enough. As nice as those conversations are, they aren't something a lot of us can pull off. Or care to. I'm convinced it's a sickliness.   If we can't disagree without insulting one another, don't we risk our compassion? Why does someone disagreeing with us upset us so much? And doesn't that anger often turn into resentment? Then what? Name calling and derogatory remarks only deepen our separation.   Differing opinions could be a feature to our relationships. They don't have to be a detriment.   Someone in an online group was preparing for an upcoming Bible study. The study featured the teaching of a respected Bible teacher. Excitement and worry filled the study leader because of one lesson in particular. Actually, one opinion. In the lesson, the Bible teacher shar...

  All the hype September 13, 2024 Psalm 19:1-14 Recently, a church included in their worship a Christianized version of a popular song. That's not unusual. I've heard churches do that plenty of times, whether it was a good idea or not. This song, though, made waves because it was unusually loud and rock concert-y. Some of you may already be thinking all new church music sounds that way, doesn't it? Well, not like this. Now, I'm not against new or loud music, mostly. I want creatives to have space to express their creativity. What got me about this piece was the rationale behind it. Come to think of it, this church voiced what other churches haven't explicitly said. They played this song right before the sermon. The reason for its placement was to "hype" people up for the pastor's message. Ouch. To be fair, I've heard my share of stale sermons. You know what a sermon is, but do you know the definition? One definition is "a long or tedious piece...

  So much information Proverbs 15:1-17 A daily edition of  The Wall Street Journal  includes more information than the average person had available to them one hundred years ago. That surprised me when I read or heard that some time ago. Having read the paper, though, I can believe it. It speaks to the bombardment of information into our regular lives. One of the consequences of our information age is the bidirectionality of it. That is, we aren't just reading information. We're contributing to it. Everyone has access to distribution. We can all share our voice life never before. I, for example, easily self published a book of devotionals a few years ago. And I've written over a thousand more since. Over two hundred people receive a text message I produce every day. That's not to mention that I video and audio publish my weekly sermons. I also host a podcast. Who knows how many church newsletter articles I've written? Oh, and I update a personal website. You see, I...

I know there are people all around the world.  But I came across a website that emphasized that a little more to me. It's radio.garden. The site allows you to click on a green dot around the globe. Each dot is a radio station transmitting in real time.  Initially, I went through a bunch of American stations. I heard a lot of news about last night's presidential debate. Then I started clicking around the world. I heard languages I couldn't understand. And music I had never heard. The world is my radio station. As I listened, I thought about every day people living their lives all around the planet. God loves each of them. I wonder if they know that.  I hope they have a good day. Stay blessed...john

  Back to life Matthew 17:14-20 You spent the weekend on a spiritual retreat. It was a most revealing time when you experienced the presence of God. Now, you can't help but carry the excitement with you as you drive home. There's a song in your heart and you sing it with a joy you didn't know you could have. But the first thing you see when you get home are the bills you left piled on the kitchen table. They don't bother you at first. And they wouldn't if you didn't also notice the mounds of laundry. Then there's the voicemails you have to respond to. Plus, tomorrow, you have to go back to a job you don't really enjoy. As the song says: Back to life. Back to reality. Is that how Jesus and three of his disciples felt? Whatever the Transfiguration was, they had just experienced it together, and it was awesome. As soon as they come down the mountain, though, there's a fuss waiting for them. Back to life. Back to reality. A man had brought his epileptic ...

  A changed mind Psalm 73:1-20 As a kid, TV sitcoms convinced me there was a devilish, red version of me sitting on one of my shoulders. Sometimes, he made a case that could lure me to do what I knew I shouldn't. Not to worry, though, because the other shoulder carried my angelic counterpart. He wasn't always as fun, but I knew he gave better advice. Of course, I've relied less on TV religion as I've gotten older. I've learned it's the Holy Spirit that guides and inspires us to become holier versions of ourselves. Part of the Spirit's role is to uncover God's image within us. In that process, the Holy Spirit might direct us to do and not do certain things. We mature as we learn to do more of what might not come naturally to us. Giving, for example, stretches my compassion for others and my trust in God. The Spirit moves me to give when I don't want to give. Likewise, the Spirit teaches us to discipline ourselves. This training keeps us from doing thi...

 This was the final sermon in our Summer Sermon Series on the Ten Commandments. I'd never done a series that long before. But I think people were engaged with it. After this sermon, a youth asked me, "So, is it okay to cut the grass?" Ooops. Maybe I should've said more 😂 Stay blessed...john

  In this together Hebrews 11:29-12:2 Not alone we conquer, Not alone we fall; In each loss or triumph Lose or triumph all. Bound by God’s far purpose In one living whole, Move we on together To the shining goal! That's the final stanza of the hymn  Forward Through the Ages . Notice the unity theme. God's church isn't just a grouping of people. She is God's living, loving movement. As a part of God's church, your life victories are yours. But they are ours as well. We're there to celebrate and rejoice with you. Your failures are yours, but we share them with you. We don't think less of you after a loss. We're grateful you trust us enough to allow us to experience your pain and missteps. This is an attitude of the heart, but also a connection of will and purpose. Move we on together towards holiness and perfection. Our faith tells us we can't attain perfection ourselves. We do so only with God's help. Likewise, we can't pursue perfection ourse...

  Walk talk Proverbs 4:10-27 We call our life a walk with God. Enoch walked with God (Genesis 5:24). Noah did as well (Genesis 6:9). Micah, the prophet, said part of what is good is to walk humbly with God (Micah 6:8). Later, the apostle Paul would instruct the church to walk by the Spirit (Galatians 5:16). And to walk in love (Ephesians 5:2). To walk, therefore, is to live. As Christians, we "walk in the same way" as Jesus (1 John 2:6). Walk talk brings to mind paths and trails. Sure enough, the psalmist recognized God's path of life (Psalm 16:11). And if you've ever walked, ran or ridden a path, you know it's a simple task that can go wrong. You can get lost or find yourself without enough energy to continue. How many people have stumbled and injured themselves while on their favorite paths? With all that in mind, considering our faith as a walk makes complete sense. One day we're walking, feeling good about where we're going. We're confident in what...

  The same boat Romans 2:1-11 It's helpful to distinguish the difference between judging and making judgement calls. Judging mandates a future only God can control. Judgment calls see current circumstances for what they are. Christians often get accused of being judgmental. To be fair, we've both probably known those kinds of Christians. They're always sure of what's in everyone else's heart. They know what God wants to do to every other person. Of course, the Lord is overwhelmingly gracious with them. That grace, though, finds its limits, apparently, in who other people are. Judging, then, is placing yourself in God's chair, so to speak. Only God is judge over our lives. And God judges according to truth (Romans 2:2). When we live to point out everyone's flaws and determine their eternal destinies, we, eventually, lose sight that we're in the same boat. We have the same kinds of attitudes in our hearts. It's an easy task to overly concern yourself w...

  Gotcha! Mark 7:1-15 We assume the group of religious leaders were hoping to catch Jesus in the wrong. Waiting for a  gotcha  moment. Well, they didn't have to watch him or his disciples long. Mark tells us they noticed "some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands" (Mark 7:2). That means they hadn't washed their hands before eating. In this context, washing hands had a spiritual meaning, at least to the religious leaders. It was their custom to wash a certain way, perhaps up to their elbows. As their luck would have it, they just happened to notice a disciple or two not washing properly. This made their hands, and I guess themselves as well, defiled. Mark's reading audience is Gentile. So, they probably didn't have much concern with defilement or uncleanness. That's why Mark offers parenthetical remarks as he tells the story. They wouldn't have seen the problem otherwise. Mark wanted them to know what was of most concern to Jesus. Whereas the...

This was the Sunday I baptized five children. I love preaching, but I was ready to get this sermon over with In a world where dishonesty seems prevalent, how can Christians stand out as beacons of truth and trustworthiness? And I couldn't help but think of Will Smith's "Tell the truth" clip.   Stay blessed...john

  What not to learn Psalm 106:1-6 Does anyone make it through life not becoming like their parents? There's a word, a mannerism or something you do that reminds you of your parents or grandparents. You laugh every time you notice it. It also reminds your family and friends of the those who raised you. People have told me my entire life that I look, act and sound like my father. Can anyone of us help it? Of course, having a similar laugh or sharing the same cooking skills is a blessing. But are there family traditions or beliefs you've needed to separate yourself from? Are there ways of thinking and being that don't align with your current values? That's often a hard conversation to have. It can feel dishonorable to challenge your inherited belief system or culture. Many family fights begin that way. And what of all the talk of personal salvation? Should we even concern ourselves with the sins of our ancestors? Scripture gives us a voice to. In today's reading, the p...

  A way to remember Deuteronomy 4:9-14 There were times I forgot what my children didn't know. Sometimes it was something related to our family. Other times I'd have to wonder what someone their age would know about certain topics. When that would happen, I did better off asking them. What did they remember? What had I shared with them already? There's an entire world of lessons to teach our young people. So many experiences we want to share with them. But that happens over time, and no one is following a schedule. So, we need to be mindful about how we share and what we share. Make no mistake, our children are learning from us and other people they know. But are we intentionally passing on to them all that is important to us? Before the Israelites entered the promised land, Moses instructed them in God's way. He showed them the way to live obedient to God. From reading the Bible, I've learned obedience is both personal and communal. For example, Moses told the peop...