Hallelujah! Literally it means “Praise the Lord.” It opens ten of the Psalms (106,111-113,135,146-150), which are called “hallelujah psalms.” The first half of the word, from the verb hillel, means to praise, and it is used hundreds of times in the Bible. Praise what? Praise “jah.” “Jah” is a shortened form of the 4-letter Hebrew name for the…
Month: June 2020
Glory!
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Isaiah 6: 1-3 New International Version (NIV) “The whole earth is full of His glory.” I pause at those words on a gray, rainy day, the kind of day I rarely associate with glory. Yet that is what the angels are continuously singing before the…
Funny Food?
More Than Enough Bread
For years we attended a church where the Breaking of Bread service was the main gathering of the week. Every Sunday, after a time of singing and testimony, communion was celebrated with a loaf of homemade yeast bread. The loaf, broken in half, was passed through the pews. Each participant pinched off a small piece…
Bread
Give us today our daily bread.Matthew 6:11 New International Version (NIV) Jesus replied, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. John 6:35a New Living Translation (NLT) And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this…
Right Where He Wants Us
Now God has us where he wants us, with all the time in this world and the next to shower grace and kindness upon us in Christ Jesus. Saving is all his idea, and all his work. All we do is trust him enough to let him do it. It’s God’s gift from start to…
Motivations
From my journal, dated 12-7-94, as I studied Six Weeks to a Simpler Lifestyle by Barbara Degrote-Sorensen and David Allen Sorenson. “You will never be entirely pure in your motives.” There among the people was a woman who had been bleeding for the past twelve years. She had suffered very much. Many doctors had tried…
Humility
Recently, I’ve been parallel-reading the New Living Translation, and The Message. (For a discussion of different versions of the Bible, click here.) This week I came to Luke 14:11. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (New Living Translation) I’ve heard sermons about humility. It’s a…
The Funnies
The comics aren’t the only place to find “funnies” in the newspaper! From the classified ads: Free: Piano with matching bench seat, very good condition, all keys work probably (Source: Gettysburg Area Merchandiser) Free: 5 kitchen drawers, all matching naughty pine fronts (Topeka Capital-Journal) Free rent in exchange for elderly woman (Source: 11points.com) HONDA CIVIC…
What Are You Thinking?
(From my journal, dated 12-3-94, as I worked through the book, Six Weeks to a Simpler Lifestyle by Barbara Degrote-Sorensen and David Allen Sorenson) A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. But [Jesus} was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they…