In response to yesterday's question asked by God in Ezekiel 33:11, "Why will you die?" today's reading asks the corollary: "How will you live?" Consider 1 Peter 2:21: "For you were called to this, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps." (CSB). In His Steps, written by Charles Sheldon, became a spiritual classic because it addressed this b...  Read More

The LORD God: "Why will you die, house of Israel?" (Ezekiel 33:11)In Deuteronomy 30:19 God challenges Israel through Moses to choose life, defining that choice as loving Him, obeying Him and holding fast to Him. Why is it that the sinful heart chooses the total opposite of the heart of God. Here in Ezekiel 33, Israel is blaming God for being unfair, and in essence using that as an excuse for their...  Read More

Today is Thanksgiving Day in the USA. There are countless people and events and things for which I am grateful, but for this moment, I am remembering the example of 'the prophets' (James 5:10-11). Prophets...all those who have spoken truth as God has revealed it to them and through them. There is a price to be paid and the patience of faith to be borne out. Speaking truth is not always popular. In...  Read More

"Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you." (James 4:10, CSB)Let's pick up the conversation about the marigolds. So, I decided to do a little research. This morning I shared this with the students at the school where Rondalyn teaches. With a small bouquet of marigolds, fifteen in all, I made this discovery. The seeds are in the flowers. When the flower dies and dries out, the seeds...  Read More

"The seed that flowers into righteousness will always be planted in peace by those who embrace peace." (James 3:18, The Voice)This past spring we planted marigolds among the other flowers in our flowerbed. Conditions must have been just perfect for them, for they flourished. In fact, they took over the flowerbed. They are such common flowers, and yet I find their variegated shades of yellow, orang...  Read More

Mercy triumphs over judgment (James 5:13)What grand news! To know and understand that our God, the consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29), is supremely merciful, how marvelous. Isolate that passage and you and I have a sentimental universalism. A loving God would never...you know the claim. Dietrich Bonhoeffer called this sentimentality 'cheap grace.' True, the news of mercy and judgment is powerful and w...  Read More