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Knit

                 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. (Psalm 139:13-16) This is from my favorite psalm, but I must admit that this has not been my favorite part of the psalm. I’ll share that tomorrow, though I’ve commented on it before. The ridiculous thing is that the only difference in focus is time. Today’s passage deals with the past; tomorrow’s deals with the present. There are lots of ways you can describe me. I was a latchkey kid. I’m now a sort of hermit. I don’t think about how I fit in. I think in terms of how I don’t....
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Touching

                 Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens. Through the praise of children and infants you have established a stronghold against your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet: all flocks and herds, and the animals of the wild, the birds in the sky, and the fish in the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas.           Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!  (Psalm 8:1-9)   ...
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In His Image

                 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them...   God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day. (Genesis 1:27 & 31)           Seeking God by Trevor Hudson provides exercises for our souls, and this exercise is one I’ve used before. The author provided a nice list of verses and passages, and suggests that we read them while looking in a mirror or write them down in a manner that personalizes them. Notice or circle the phrases that touch you deeply. Take note of other verses that this verse brings to mind and add them to the list. The idea is that once you’ve gone through all the verses and passages, your goal will be to write a 6-8 sentence paragraph to remind yourself of the way God sees you. He only sugges...
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Bethlehem

              When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’” (Matthew 2:4-6)           “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” (Micah 5:2)           This is one of the prophecies about which I’ve heard derision from some. Jesus was born in Bethlehem because Caesar Augustus declared that a census be taken. Detractors chortle and proclaim, “That’s not the way Rome did ce...
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Scents of Christmas

  Then the Lord said to Moses, “Take the following fine spices: 500 shekels of liquid myrrh, half as much (that is, 250 shekels) of fragrant cinnamon, 250 shekels of fragrant calamus, 500 shekels of cassia—all according to the sanctuary shekel—and a hin of olive oil. Make these into a sacred anointing oil, a fragrant blend, the work of a perfumer. It will be the sacred anointing oil. Then use it to anoint the tent of meeting, the ark of the covenant law, the table and all its articles, the lampstand and its accessories, the altar of incense, the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the basin with its stand. You shall consecrate them so they will be most holy, and whatever touches them will be holy. “Anoint Aaron and his sons and consecrate them so they may serve me as priests. Say to the Israelites, ‘This is to be my sacred anointing oil for the generations t...
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The Virgin Birth

              Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14) “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). (Matthew 1:23)   This is a favorite prophecy for Atheists. “Parthenogenesis is impossible for humans, so it’s impossible, so it didn’t happen…and by the way, prove your god exists. How? I don’t know, but no, something happening that isn’t possible isn’t evidence because it couldn’t happen, so it didn’t happen, blah, blah, blah, case closed.” Of course, even if they saw a clear miracle, after a short time, they’ll decide it was a trick. This is also a favorite prophecy for Christians. I like it, too, but we tend to only read the Matthew quote and don’t put the Isaiah quote in context. At the time of the prophecy, it referred immediately to t...
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Listen To Him

              The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him . (Deuteronomy 18:15)           Today, we switch from Jesus’ claims of “I am” to prophecies made about Him. My Bible platform is starting in Deuteronomy. I’d start in Genesis, where we would learn that the one who would save us would be a descendant of Eve (Genesis 3:15), of Noah (by default), Abram and Sara(Genesis 12:1-3). Isaac (Genesis 17:19), Jacob (Genesis 25:23), Judah (Genesis 29:8), and David (II Samuel 7:12-16). There were also references to a new covenant (Jer. 31:31-34; Ezek. 36:22-32). In addition, there were prophecies about when and where the prophet/Messiah would be born and what would happen to him.           Of course, naysayers will claim that Jesus’ life was retrofitted or reverse enginee...
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