Where Do you Take Refuge?

There is a verse tucked into Psalm 73 it is located at the 28th verse: “But as for me, it is good to be near God.    I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge;    I will tell of all your deeds.” As I think about the many things that go into making up our lives, I have discovered that though many ignore it, the spiritual aspect of life is vitally important. On any given…

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Looking Back and Looking Ahead: The Lord Has Been Good!

I was recently on the campus of Olivet Nazarene University for a trustee meeting and graduation weekend. Whenever I am on campus, it causes me to reflect on the goodness of God. I first visited the campus when I was in the eighth grade over fifty years ago. I well remember my freshman year and that I was so out of my element. Little did I know that my life…

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One Day At A Time

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:34 (NIV) We have been wondering for over one year what is going to happen next? How is this pandemic going to end? How will it change things? These and a host of other questions have been pondered by many. Living one day at a time is not only…

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A Distant Country

Recently while rereading the story of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15, I was struck by the statement from Jesus that the prodigal left home for a “distant country.” Now, depending upon what translation you are reading, it can also be translated as a “far off country.” In essence, he ran away from home. He asked for his share of the inheritance and left home. Have you ever run away…

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Remember: Don’t Forget!

As I was reading the Bible this morning, I came again to the book of Judges. Early in the book, we are told that Joshua has died. It is always difficult for folks to lose a leader. For so long, they have followed Joshua’s leadership that they could hardly imagine what life would be like without Joshua around. It is easy to depend on familiar people to give us a…

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God is in the Details..in spite of what you have heard!

There is this verse in the book of Deuteronomy: “Do not be afraid of them; the LORD your God himself will fight for you.” Fear is so debilitating. Anxiety, apprehension, and fear have defeated more people, deflated more dreams, discouraged more plans than perhaps any other source. The people of God had been enslaved in Egypt for so long no one had a memory of what freedom really felt like!…

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Small is the new big!

“Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.” (Zechariah 4:6). Often we think to be noticed or even make progress, we have to do big things in huge ways with enormous amounts of effort. Yet in this verse, God is applauding and extolling the people for a small beginning step in a mighty long project…

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Here We Go

We can start over and change anytime, we feel the need, and there is something about a new year that speaks of new beginnings. It is a natural division visited upon us by the calendar. The way it so happens toward the end of the year, we in the United States celebrate Thanksgiving, Advent and Christmas, and the New Year in around a five-week period. After partying and eating and…

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Nearing the End of A Year that seemingly will not end.

There have been a few memorable years in my life but none have been nearly as challenging as this present year for me personally or professionally. Beginning a little over a year ago my wife and I experienced a few challenges so imagine our surprise when we greeted 2020 and hoped it would be a fresh start after experiencing some difficult times in 2019. Each of us has stories several…

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The Problem of forgetting

As a young pastor, I went to see a long-time parishioner. She lived in a nursing facility in a “memory-care unit” At that time, I do not recall having any experience with people suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s. This lady was sitting by herself in a chair, staring off into the distance. In my ignorant exuberance, I asked her, “do you know who I am?” She looked at me, intently…

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