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May 21

Wednesday, May 21st, 2025

July 4th speaks to many people on different levels. Some will celebrate the birth of our nation. Some will look forward to the cookouts and grilled burgers, hot dogs, brats, and myriads of other concoctions. Some will relish the day off work and find themselves laying in a hammock. Some will attend a baseball game with the family.

But a good majority of people will take part in and enjoy fireworks-professional or personal. They know just where to park to see the display (and avoid a massive crowd of people). I have only been to a couple of fireworks shows sponsored by organizations who pay big bucks to entertain. And I must admit that I have been impressed by the ingenuity of humans. Sort of reminds me of Gandalf’s displays in the Fellowship of the Ring when he visited the hobbits.

But last night it wasn’t human at all. It was all God. I was struggling to sleep last night and because of that, what I would have normally missed because I was sleeping, I saw God’s creation on full display. It was God’s Sound and Light Show. Didn’t cost me a dime to watch. I didn’t have to sit in a chair on a hot and steamy July evening getting eaten alive by all kinds of pesky bugs. I had a front row seat at my front door or looking out a window at the back of the house. Thunder. Lightning (and plenty of it). Rain (more than plenty). All combined to give me a pretty impressive display of God’s magnificent creation at work. I know there will be people who will downplay it and say, “Well, that was just creation reacting to changes in the atmosphere…blah blah blah.” I can say they are correct, but my next question is, “Who made it?”

Psalm 19:1-4 says, “The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard. Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world.”  Psalm 8:3-4 adds some thoughts to that: “When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers-the moon and the stars you set in place-what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human being that you should care for them?”  Verse 9 completes that chapter with the following words: “O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!”

Next time you look into the night sky or see a sound and light display, give some thought to the ONE who created it. It wasn’t human hands and we certainly can’t duplicate it. Psalm 14:1 also adds this: “Only fools say in their hearts, ‘There is no God.'”

{All Scripture is from the New Living Translation}

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May 7

Wednesday, May 7th, 2025

Viktor Frankl. Douglas Groothuis (pronounced Grewties quiet “s”). What do they have in common? Viktor is a concentration camp survivor. Douglas is a philosopher who anchors all he says and believes in his faith in Jesus.  Around 2014 his wife, Becky, was diagnosed with PPA (primary progressive aphasia). PPA is a rare from of dementia, worse than Alzheimer’s. It took a brilliant wordsmith and a member of the MENSA society and made her a shell. Douglas wrote a book Walking Through Twilight that I am rereading for the second time. There are several reasons, none of which are relevant to this post, so I will forego the reason. Doug is lamenting the loss he is suffering as he watches his once brilliant wife waste away to nothing. (She mercifully went home to Jesus in 2018). 

He was writing at one point about visiting his wife in a psych ward (a terrible place for her). The drive to and from was about 60 miles, so visiting, while still teaching at Denver Seminary, was taxing. But he said, “God met me in those visits.” (p.12). He had been re-reading Viktor Frankl’s classic study of suffering and meaning, Man’s Search for Meaning, in which Frankl expresses that human value can be affirmed in the thick of searing suffering, as he found in Hitler’s prison camps. Be we have to change ourselves. Frankl says,

When we are no longer able to change the situation…we are challenged to change ourselves. (p.12) 

But it is later that Frankl wrote what I consider to be the gem of his work:

We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms-to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way. (p.12)

WOW! That is a mouthful. And a heart full. While I am not one of the “positive thinking gurus” who walk around talking positivity is the answer to all of life’s questions, I do believe our attitude does play a lot in our view of life. Too many people, including those who call themselves Christ-followers, spend way to much time looking like they sucked on pickle juice for a good part of the day-or even their life. It’s the old discussion of is your glass half empty or half full. As I work my way through the book of Job in my reading, I am reminded again of Job’s perspective versus his so-called “friends.” You know the old statement “With friends like you who needs enemies”? That fits. Job didn’t need them. He needed the reassurance of God’s presence. He got it eventually. So do we. In fact, it is never failing. May your day be a reassurance of that truth.

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May 1

Thursday, May 1st, 2025

“Don’t send a boy to do a man’s job.” That is the phrase we use when something is challenging and it is going to take a little extra to get the job done. (or we jokingly use it when teasing someone about coming after us).

That is how I felt as I read I Chronicles 10-11 this morning. Chapter 10 is fairly benign-the death of Saul’s sons and the death of Saul himself (by suicide). But chapter 11 opens a whole new chapter as David takes over as king. What is interesting about this chapter is instead of lauding David’s feats, it spends time talking about David’s mighty warriors. He had the mightiest warriors called the Three. The leader of the Three was named Jashobeam the Hacmonite. It says he once used his spear to kill 300 enemy warriors in a single battle. Next in rank was Eleazer son of Dodai. He and David held their ground in the middle of a barley field and beat back the Philistines. This was after the rest of the Israelite Army had fled.

David was also surrounded by his 30 Mighty Men. One, Abishai, used his spear to kill 300 enemy warriors in a single battle. He was the commander of the 30. Another of the 30 was Benaiah son of Jehoida. He killed two champions of Moab (giants?). Another time, on a snowy day, he chased a lion down into a pit and killed it. Once, armed only with a club, he killed an Egyptian warrior who was 71/2′ tall and who was armed with a spear as thick as a weaver’s beam. He wrenched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with it.

Feats like this make us think Marvel-Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, etc. But these men were not armed with superpowers. No machine or pill or something that made Marvel comic book heroes was present in these men. No, in fact, they had nothing of the sort. What they did have is found in Psalm 89:13-14- “Powerful in your arm! Strong is your hand! Your right hand is lifted in glorious strength. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne. Unfailing love and truth walk before you as attendants.” (NLT)  There are multiple passages in Psalms where God’s strength is on full display. I’m reminded of a song I like to listen when I work out. It contains the following lyrics: “Evil is his name/Oh the Dragon’s rage!/Who can save us from his war flame?/ Knight in shining armor won’t do/Jesus, Lamb of God, is His name/Indeed He came to our rescue/We cry victory! Victory! The Dragon’s lost this war!” (“Victory” from Ashes of War by Shining Light Music-2025) (You can find the song on YouTube and Spotify. Be forewarned: it is not tame).  🙂

God has not promised an easy life. He has promised HIS strength to get through every battle of this life. May you experience His Victory today.

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Burning Hearts – April 27

Friday, April 25th, 2025

 

Have you ever noticed that God sometimes does things totally opposite of what we think He will do or something totally unexpected? He is a God of surprises.

We often hear or make the statement that “God has His hand in things.” Honestly, when we look around we have cause to wonder. Does He have His hand in the national stage? Russia/Ukraine. Israel/Palestine.  And how about closer to home? Lawlessness. Distrust. Hatred. Violence. Our own personal desires to be first and to have our own way. On the surface things do look bad…really bad. But underneath it all is a belief that God has got this all under control. I don’t know how and I certainly can’t presume upon Him on how to do His job, but nothing that has happened or will happen flusters Him. He is not surprised. But He often does things which surprise us!

This Sunday’s message is entitled Our God Reigns! and is taken from 2 Kings 1-19.  He is a God of surprises. True. But He is also a God of His Word. He will never contradict Himself or go against His Written Word. We will be talking about Ahab & Jezebel, Elijah, Elisha, Naaman, and a host of other characters. I invite you to join us in person at 9:00 and 10:45. We also live stream both services if you are unable to be with us in person. You can send a request to join our Facebook Group at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship or view our public page at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship-Spencer, In. Or you can watch via YouTube at Owen Valley Christian Fellowship. I look forward to seeing you or hearing from you online. And let me ask you to do me a favor: please let us know you are watching and then feel free to comment-yay or nay. If you have any questions, please ask and I will get back to you. Thanks. And thanks for praying for us.

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April 22

Tuesday, April 22nd, 2025

As I have mentioned in several posts, I am rereading Glynn Young’s 5 part series called Dancing Priest. In fact, due to a schedule that allowed me to read a little more than usual in the evening, and a few later nights than normal, I have completed reading the series again. I plan to use the last two books in the series as inspiration for posts this week. 

I have a confession to make first. I have really struggled with this post. NOT because of the book. It was fabulous. Well-written, holding my attention as each page wrapped me into the story, I struggled, not because of the story, but because of the subject matter. To clarify: I am not trying to scare anyone away, but you must be aware of the seriousness of the subject matter. Woven in the story of newly crowned King Michael and Queen Sarah Kent-Hughes, is a story so heart-wrenching I had to stop a few times to gather my emotions. King Michael is ready to get down to business serving the people of the UK, not knowing a looming scandal involving the Church of England (CoE)-of which he is an ordained priest- is about to rock his world. Michael is forced to take on the job of running the government because politicians do what politicians do best-fight each other and refuse to compromise and get along. (Hmmm sounds familiar).  In the midst of all of this, Michael is made aware by various different ways (one which involves his and Sarah’s adopted son, Jason), of the sexual abuse running rampant in the CoE.  I’m not going to go into detail on the scandal. You will have to read it yourself to find out more! 🙂

However, there is a discussion between King Michael and Queen Sarah that stuck out to me. As Michael was looking back over what was (his preparing and preaching) and Sarah was expecting their first child (Hank), he says, “It seems like decades, and another life.”

Sarah replies: “It was another life. Even if we don’t know what we’re doing, Mike, or what we should do, God does. The stuff that’s horrible or appalling or perplexing, He knows it. He has us both here for a reason, if we can’t fathom it and even if we want to be anywhere else but here. Mike, He’s ripping the lid off the sewer; it’s just hard to be one of the workers He sends in to clean out the pipes.” (p.222)

What a vivid description of what often has to happen to ugly situations. Rip the lid off the sewer and clean out the pipes. Spoiler alert: the subject matter is a clergy scandal of abuse which rapidly spreads. It is ugly. It is a sewer. But Glynn rips the lid off and gives us a whiff of the smell. Glynn could have taken this from the headlines. 

‘Nuff said. I’d suggest reading the book yourself. But start with #1.  And if you, or someone you love, is a victim of clergy abuse, report it and get help.

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April 17

Thursday, April 17th, 2025

“My hope is built on nothing less/Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness/I dare not trust the sweetest frame/But wholly lean on Jesus’ name/On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand, All other ground is sinking sand. When darkness veils His lovely face/I’ll rest on His unchanging grace/In every high and stormy day/My anchor holds within the veil/On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand.” (Traditional)

I hate to say it since I am a contemporary worship kind of guy (except for most songs from Hillsong, Elevation, and Bethel), but sometimes the old hymns have it all over the newbies. Whether it is sung in a more traditional way and setting or in a more uptempo style, there is not much more that can be said about what this song is teaching. In his devotion for today, April 17, Paul David Tripp wrote this:

Thankfully, God is not like me. Nothing can thwart His will, nothing can challenge His rule, and nothing can stop the march of His grand redemptive plan. The hope and spiritual security of every believer rest on the fact that our Lord cannot be stopped. His rules rules. (Everyday Gospel Devotional-p.133)

That first phrase strikes a chord in me. “God is not like me.” I cannot even find the words to express my joy in them, other than to say, “I am so-o-o-o-o glad He is not like me.” I make a mess enough of things without doing it on a grand scale. When I am faithless, He is faithful. When I am fearful, He is fearless. When I am blind, He is light. When I am wishy-washy, He is ever true. Nothing moves Him. Nothing overwhelms Him. Nothing overcomes Him. Nothing surprises Him.  He never has to say, “Ooops.” He never has to say, “My bad.” He never does a face plant. He never slaps Himself on the forehead and says, “I should have had a V-8.” 🙂

God is always the same. He never changes. He never waffles. He never has to say, “I forgot about that.” God is my hope. God is my rock. God is never-changing. God is my firm foundation. (Check out this song). This Resurrection season I pray you know that truth because that truth is the anchor for our hope.

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April 10

Thursday, April 10th, 2025

“God doesn’t really care.” If I have heard that once, I’ve heard it a thousand times. (It may or may not have slipped from my lips a time or two in the past. Just sayin’) 🙂

Last night during my Wednesday Night Conversation class, this was the topic of discussion. Everyone there acknowledged what I just said: they had heard (or used) it before.  We also came to realize that much of the belief in that lie is too many think that God is just like we are. He has failures, limitation, and weaknesses…just like us. We sometimes give off the idea that God is prone to doubt, questioning His actions, and even prone to regrets that He could/should start all over again. Here’s truth: God is not like me. God is not like you. He is God, and I am not, neither are you (even though we act like it sometimes).

With that in mind, let’s take a look at what God is like. I called these 3 non-negotiables + one:

God is Omnipotent. God is all-powerful. He can do everything-possible or impossible. He is not limited. He never gets tired. He never forgets. Take a moment to pick up a Bible and read Psalm 115:3 or Isaiah 40:28.

God is Omnipresent. This is an easy word to figure out. God is all-present and everywhere present. He cannot be confined, either in heaven or on earth. He is not confined to a building, nor is He removed from our lives. Wherever you are He is there. Psalm 139:7-12 will blow your socks off.

God is Omniscient. He is all-knowing. He knows all that can be known. He knows all thoughts, all desires, every unuttered secret (hence my mom’s words: “You can’t hide, Bill. God knows what you are thinking.” (Thanks mom for keeping my “guilt alarm” on high alert!)

God is Omnibenevolent.  Yeah…I know it isn’t a word. God is all-loving. He loves perfectly and is full of love.  His love never runs out and never lessens. He doesn’t need us to feel satisfied, but we need Him to be fulfilled.  “For anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” (I John 4:8 NLT)

So what does this all mean to me, to us?  Four things:

  1. God has proven Himself.  He has nothing more to prove to anyone.
  2. God always keeps His promises. Take that to the bank.  What He says, He will do.
  3. God has come and will come again. The first time He came as a baby; the next time He will come as conquering King.
  4. God’s presence always brings a presence of peace. In spite of the circumstances, His presence will being peace and calm.

I hope this encourages you today.

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April 7

Monday, April 7th, 2025

For those of you who don’t live anywhere around here, I can just put the weekend into one word, no make that three: RAIN and MORE RAIN. The river in our town is supposed to crest today around 25′. In ’08 it crested at 26.8′. The highest? 28.5 in 1913. The RED travel advisory means Emergency personnel only so we cancelled church yesterday and school is cancelled today while in an ORANGE. Reason? Flooded roads. Like a lot of them. I heard over 50.

So…rather than talk about that, let’s talk about something much more fun and meaningful. Last week I mentioned that I have begun rereading a series by Glynn Young called The Dancing Priest series. I finished #1 and find myself more than 1/2 way through #2- A Light Shining. #1 found Olympic hero, Michael Kent, ordained into the Anglican church and being sent to St. Anselm’s in San Francisco. Across the street from the church building was a warehouse which housed several children, the oldest being Jason, Age 15. He was the “father” to the 6 kids who lived under his care. When Michael decided to do something about it he sat down with Jason, who had just accepted Christ. Following is the conversation which ensued:

J: “So why’d you do it in the first place? Why do you have this class we go to on Sunday’s?”

M: We’re trying to reach out to you.”

J: “Everyone else ignores us, except when the shop people think we’re stealing or the cops decide to hassle us. Why don’t you just ignore us?

M: “Because you matter. You matter to God. And because you matter to God, you matter to us. Jason, God sees you as something valuable. You have great value in His eyes.”

J: “I’m a piece of crap, Father Michael. That’s all I am. I steal when I have to. I’ve done drugs, all of them. I hustle tricks to make money. There’s no value here. I’m a piece of crap.”

M: “That may be what you think. And that may be what a lot of people might think. But it’s not what God thinks. And it’s not what Father John and I think. Jason, you and maybe others see what’s on the surface. And what’s on the surface may be ugly, to you and to a lot of people. But what really matter is what’s inside and what’s in our heart. What God sees is the man He created you to be.” (pp.8-9)

There is more to the conversation. I have edited it to fit the format, but what it does say is that each one of us matters to God. He sent Jesus to die so that we could be forgiven. While a story written by Mr. Young, the conversation is heard all over the planet. Every person has value and merit. Each one matters. We are all sinners, for sure, but we still matter to God. I hope you will carry that with you today.

(May I also suggest you read this fantastic series? It can be found on Amazon. Start with Dancing Priest) 

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March 26

Wednesday, March 26th, 2025

One of the most intriguing books in the Bible is the book of Ruth. For those who may not be too familiar with it, let me summarize it for you.

  1. Ruth is 4 short chapters and not one word of God, Yahweh or any other title you might want to give Him is included.
  2. A famine strikes the land of Israel so a Jewish man named Elimelech takes his wife, Naomi, and his two sons, Mahlon and Kilion (Chilion in some translations) to Moab. A Jew in Moab? Hmmm.
  3. Elimelech dies. The two boys marry Moabite women, then they both die 10 years later.  Naomi, while grieving, hears that the famine is over so with nothing to live for she decides to move back to her hometown of Jerusalem. On the way she gives her two daughters-in-law a choice of returning home. Orpah returns home but Ruth goes with Naomi. Her classic response in Ruth 1:16-17 is often used in weddings because it talks about commitment.
  4. Ruth begins working in the fields to bring home some food for the two of them. The fields belong to a wealthy man named Boaz. Boaz offers Ruth protection from other men and also a job gleaning in his fields.
  5. Boaz is a relative of Elimelech and is known as a kinsman-redeemer. He offers to buy the land and with that land comes Ruth, whom he takes as his wife. The great part of that arrangement is found in Ruth 4. Naomi is given a grandson but there is more! “And they named him Obed. He became the father of Jesse and the grandfather of David.” (4:17). And if you are putting 2 + 2 together you know the rest of the story. Jesus, the Messiah, the Promised King, is from the lineage of David.

How refreshing it was to read again this story this morning. And how fantastic it was to be reminded (again) of God’s goodness and His plan and to watch it all come together. Who knew (but God) that a trip back home by a sad, defeated, and heart-broken Naomi would lead to Ruth becoming the wife of the kinsman-redeemer of Elimilech’s family. I marvel at God’s good timing and His way of working things out far beyond my ability to understand and to know. I may not always grasp the Omniscience (All-knowing) of God; I certainly don’t always understand His ways; but one thing I will drive a stake through is that He does all things well and His Word and love for me never changes.  Have a blessed day my friends as you consider the teachings of Ruth. 🙂

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March 19

Wednesday, March 19th, 2025

The book of Judges in the Old Testament is aptly named. It is about judges. Not judges as we know them-sitting behind some desk with a lawyer or two debating the merits of a case or of a person the case involves. This was a different kind of judge.

The people of Israel had promised Joshua that they would do as he had committed to: “As for me and my house we will serve the Lord.” That lasted…until Joshua died. In fact, immediately after Joshua’s death (recorded in Judges 2:6-9), verse 10 is pretty poignant: “After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things He had done for Israel.” Well…so much for the “As for me and my house” promise.  What is even more telling is what it says in the following verses: “The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight and served the images of Baal. They abandoned the Lord…They went after other gods, worshiping the gods of the people around them…They abandoned the Lord to serve Baal and the images of Ashteroth.” {Editorial interject here: this is exactly what God has warned them against! This is why God wanted them to wipe out of people as they took over the Promised Land.}

God was not going to stand by and watch that happen, so He allowed foreign nations to take His people captive. But in His mercy He heard the cries of His people and raised up leaders (judges) to lead the people out of captivity. The pattern is simple to see. Taken captive by a foreign king. Live in slavery and captivity. Cry out to God for forgiveness and relief from captivity. God raises up a judge. The judge brings freedom. As long as the judge is alive, the people know freedom. The judge dies and they return to their sin and idol worship. The Israelites taken captive again. Rinse and repeat the cycle.

The judges are not household names: Othniel. Ehud (the left-handed warrior who plunged a knife into a very fat King Eglon). Shamgar who killed 600 Philistines with an ox goad (a traditional farming tool, a long stick with a pointed end-and sometimes a scraper or chisel at the other end-used to spur or guide oxen while they are pulling a plow or cart). Deborah (and her sidekick Barak).  Other more well-known judges are Gideon and Samson. 

The sad part is the Israelites kept repeating the pattern-the cycle- time after time. And each time a merciful and forgiving God would come to their rescue and free them. Sound familiar? It does to me. I am them. I go from “As for me and my house” to “I am going to do this on my own.” Fortunately, God is a merciful and forgiving God who lovingly envelopes me in His arms and says, “I forgive you my son.” How about you? Do you have that kind of God?

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