6:2 “So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Continue reading 210220 Don’t be a hypocrite.
6:1 As we work together with him, we urge you also not to accept the grace of God in vain. 2 For he says,
“At an acceptable time I have listened to you,
and on a day of salvation I have helped you.”
See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation!
Continue reading 210219 We plead, ‘Come back to God.’
Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin.
Blow the trumpet in Zion;
sound the alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
for the day of the Lord is coming, it is near—
2 a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and thick darkness!
Like blackness spread upon the mountains
a great and powerful army comes;
their like has never been from of old,
nor will be again after them
in ages to come….
The season of Lent starts tomorrow, February 17 with Ash Wednesday. The Lenten season is 40 days long, not counting Sundays, and it closes on Easter Day, April 4. Lent/Easter is the most important commemoration in the Christian year because of its focus on the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ as well as the central place that death and resurrection occupy in the theology of the New Testament.
Continue reading 210216 Lent 2021
O God of paper and ink
Like a nib –
fine, medium, or broad,
stub or italic,
You press into my life
and make your mark
sometimes scribbles
rarely neat or calligraphic.
Your ink, the Holy Spirit
Gives form and visibility
To the power of your influence
in my life.
Your beauty in the shape and
decoration of the pen,
and its ornamentation.
Today, O Lord, write on my heart
Let me see what is true –
messy or neat.
In Jesus’ name I pray this.
Amen.
Yesterday a friend of mine told me about “One-way Missionaries.” In the early 1900s there was a group of missionaries who, when they were about to embark on a mission to a foreign land, would not pack a suitcase as most people would. Instead, they took a coffin which they packed with their belongings, along with a one-way ticket. By so doing, they demonstrated their intention to die sooner or later in the new land they were adopting.
Continue reading One-Way Missionaries
I notice that a fairly high percentage of people don’t seem to know how to nourish a conversation. By “nourish” I mean using skills that encourage and foster deeper, longer, more interesting exchanges between people. This skill is useful and leads to better interviews, smoother working relationships with others, and long-term friendships with people that will surprise one.
I became aware of this when I used to belong to a business networking organization. One of our tasks in the group was to schedule a “dance card” with each of our chapter associates. A dance card was simply a coffee appointment or maybe even lunch, and during that hour we were to find out how we could assist each other in business connections.
Continue reading The Question
Some of the major English dictionaries select a “Word of the Year.” The word is selected basically on its frequency of use in the past year. Selfie was the Oxford Dictionary word of the year in 2013, because Oxford research noticed a 17,000% increase in its use since the previous year.
So popular the word, people began playing with the word and gave birth to welfie which is a workout selfie, drelfie, a drunken selfie, and bookshelfie which is a selfie in front of your bookshelves. All linguistic good fun.
Continue reading The Selfie
In 1947, the year I was born, television had been invented and was being used in some U.S. households that could be measured in the thousands. However, by the late 90’s, 98% of U.S. homes had at least one television that was one for more than 7 hours per day.
Continue reading Boredom, Part 2
MonoLogue 