I was talking to another recently, and they used these words: “There’s no joy in … ” That saddened me, because it was obvious they were looking for their joy in all the wrong places. I tried to reason with them, to tell them of the true source of joy, but they wouldn’t listen, and…
Adoration and Praise
All Nations exhorted to Adoration and Praise by TATE & BRADY.Taken from Psalm 100 My newly rebound hymn book, originally published in the 1840s and reprinted with new supplements in the 1850s opens with this 17th century Psalm adaptation by Tate & Brady, known for their “New Version of the Psalms of David” published in…
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Peace. My peace, for you!
In the presence of enemies
For some reason, I never published this post from 2015. I just found it in my drafts as I was cleaning out, and thought I would resurrect it. Remember, as you read it, that it was originally written in May 2015. A lot has happened since then – many new enemies have reared their ugly…
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On public worship – do it together
From “Public Worship – Considered & Enforced” by Joseph Kinghorn: “The public worship of God has a great tendency to keep up in our minds, a sense of his character and of our situation.Every part of it suggests that God is great and that we should be lowly before him; that he is holy, but…
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Proper and Ethical
I love this clip from a 2015 episode of the CBS cop show Blue Bloods. Tom Selleck’s character, Police Commissioner Reagan, has this to say: “Something is not proper simply because it is permissible, nor is it it ethical because it is legal.” It’s almost as though he were quoting from one of Paul’s epistles,…
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Declaring our dependence on Him who holds all power
“He demonstrated this power in the Messiah by raising Him from the dead and seating Him at His right hand in the heavens — far above every ruler and authority, power and dominion, and every title given, not only in this age but also in the one to come.” (Ephesians 1:20-21, HCSB) Our nation is…
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Run for peace?
The author of the book of Hebrews has an interesting choice of words in Hebrews 12:14, when he literally tells us to run after peace. Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. The same word translated “strive for” in this setting is translated elsewhere as…
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Singing of Mercy
Gadsby’s Hymns #11. Singing of Mercy 11s John Stocker. Psalm 89:1; Romans 15:9 Thy mercy, my God, is the theme of my song, The joy of my heart, and the boast of my tongue; Thy free grace alone, from the first to the last, Has won my affections, and bound my soul fast. Thy mercy, in Jesus, exempts…
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How can we be joyful in troubled times?
There’s a lot going on in the world today. There are plenty of reasons for people to be at each other’s throats, and quite often we take advantage of it. People are coming down on every side of these issues, with very few in the middle working for resolution. I’m struggling with how to deal…
