thoughts on life and faith
23 Sing to the Lord, all the earth! Tell of his salvation from day to day. 24 Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples! 25 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and he is to be feared above all gods. - 1 Chronicles 16:23-25 Last night was one of those moments of grace … Continue reading Last Night At WR Was Special
Asa began to reign over Judah . . . 11 And Asa did what was right in the eyes of the Lord - 1Kings 15:9b, 11a) You see some interesting things in the accounts of the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Many times it plays out like a sitcom. Good king, bad king, good king, super … Continue reading Asa Was A Good King
18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he my become wise. - 1 Corinthians 3:18 Do you ever grade yourself? Do you sit in the car and develop a point system to determine your growth as a human person … Continue reading Why I Curse In Traffic
14 Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. 15 And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. 16 Even in Thessalonica you sent me help for my needs once and again. 17 Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the … Continue reading We Don’t Give “To” But “Through”
6 The heavens proclaim his righteousness, and all the peoples see his glory. 7 All worshipers of images are put to shame, who make their boast in worthless idols; worship him, all you gods! - Psalm 97:6-7 Worship is sneaky. If we were to disengage ourselves from the daily grind and examine objectively our actions and … Continue reading The Factory Of Our Hearts
The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad! 2 Clouds and thick darkness are all around him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne. 3 Fire goes before him and burns up his adversaries all around. 4 His lightnings light up the world; the earth sees and trembles. 5 The mountains melt like wax before the Lord, before the Lord of all … Continue reading Justice
Oh sing to the Lord a new song . . . - Psalm 96:1a Oh sing to the Lord a new song, for He has done marvelous things! - Psalm 98:1a Jim Brown . . . Bernie Kosar . . . As fans of the Cleveland Browns, we often love looking to the past. While there … Continue reading The Browns, A Psalmist, and A New Song
33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. 34 And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus wept. (John 11:33-35) When I had first heard the music of Linkin Park as a high schooler, I had my … Continue reading Jesus Wept
9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. 10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith. (Galatians 6:9-10) You have heard the voice before, I know you have. The one deep within … Continue reading The Time This Pastor Ignored God
There is one taboo subject in the Church. Staff squeamishly speak of it and congregations defensively cross arms at the mention of it. Money I imagine most pastors would rather speak of the physical act of lovemaking (err. . . . you know, sex) than to speak of the responsibility of giving charitably. Yet, Jesus … Continue reading Student Loans and the Subject Church Folk Hate Talking About
Matt simon blog 