Mission Faithwalk

           Husbands,  in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers. (I Peter 3:7)   Most of the people who read this blog are women, so… Ladies, this is not meant as a stick with which to beat your guys. Just as men should not say, “Woman, submit!” women should not say, “Yeah, men, in the same way!” But Peter has done both men and modern women a favor in today’s passage, as he tells us what submission looks like. It is being considerate as you live someone and treating them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life. It means treating them as if they matter in your life, and both men and women are to practice it. And when we say we will not submit, what we are saying is that we will not be considerate of the person with whom we share a vow and a home. It means we will disrespect the

            Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives,   when they see the purity and reverence of your lives.   Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes.   Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands,   like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.   (I Peter 3:1-6)   Yes, the same verses as yesterday, and now we’re back to the dreaded discussion of submission. I think one of the reasons God brings this subject up in Scripture is because it’s on

  Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives,   when they see the purity and reverence of your lives.   Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes.   Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.   For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands,   like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear. (I Peter 3:1-6) “Whatever you give a woman, she will make greater. If you give her sperm, she'll give you a baby. If you give her a house, she'll give you a home. If you give her groceries, she'l

  For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)   In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged  sword . His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. (Revelation 1:16)   I love swords. I’d own some if I had the money to get them, somewhere to keep them, and the time and money needed to learn to use them. Somehow, it doesn’t seem quite right to hang a sword on a wall and use it for decoration, though that’s what the one sword I own is – decoration. Years ago, I gave a speech about swords, letter openers, and life that won a local speech contest. The point was that swords were hard to find (they’re easier to find now), cost a lot, are difficult to store as a collection, and don’t have many uses on a daily basis. They represent the big events in our lives.

                  Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh.   For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God. But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God.   To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.   “He committed no sin,      and no deceit was found in his mouth.”   When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.   “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.”   For “you were like sheep going astray,” but

  Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority,     or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.     For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people.     Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves.     Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor. (I Peter 2:13-17) “You have heard that it was said, ‘ Love   your  neighbor and hate  your  enemy.’ But I tell you,  love   your   enemies  and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of  your  Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous .   (Matthew 5:43-48) I have to tell you, I’m concerned and praying about the next four years. The way I see it, if the Democrats lose, the sort

    Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. (I Peter 2:12) So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. (Matthew 7:12)           Oh, if there was ever a verse that was meant for today, these are at least two of them! The first issue, of course, is the definition of “good lives.” I think it safe to start with the idea that Peter was talking about moral goodness, not material wealth. I’m not sure that we need to specify it further. If you think that inclusiveness and tolerance are the highest forms of moral goodness, then be inclusive and tolerant. If you think that sobriety and temperance is the highest form of moral goodness, be sober and temperate. If you think charity, volunteering, advocacy, or evangelism are the highest form, do them. Whatever the highest form – live it out in your life in such a way

  Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul.   (I Peter 2:11) Thanks to the pandemic, we have an excellent picture of what this verse is about. Viral particles aren’t really alive. They can’t reproduce on their own. They infiltrate a human body, then a human cell, and enslave the cell’s factories into producing viral particles, which then invade other cells. In response to the invasion, the body jacks up its heat, floods the bloodstream with antibodies (soldier-cells), and builds up mucus to try to rid the body of the invaders. Sometimes, its soldier-cells work so hard at killing the virus that they don’t notice the amount of collateral damage they’re causing. That’s what is called a Cytokine Storm. Sinful desires are viral particles. They can’t do anything by themselves, but they can cause our souls to produce more sinful desires, and as we give in and give way, the infection spreads not only in us, but to

       But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.   Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (I Peter 2:9-10)           In the King James Version, “God’s special possession” is translated as “a peculiar people.” I have to admit that I liked that notion. Like a lot of people, I would like to be special. Of course, it wouldn’t be enough to be different. If I had purple skin, I’d be different, but so what? Purple would only be skin deep. No, the difference needs to be something more significant. It needs to be a difference with a purpose, a connection, or, to be honest, a sense of superiority. At the same time, I’ve never felt as if I fit in.   I was a Conservative in a Liberal city, a Protestant among Catholics, etc. Once, I drove into my driveway blarin

  As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him—   you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.   For in Scripture it says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion,     a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him     will never be put to shame.”   Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, “The stone the builders rejected      has become the cornerstone,” and, “A stone that causes people to stumble      and a rock that makes them fall.” They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for. (I Peter 2:4-8) Remember little Joseph, the boy with big dreams who ended up in prison? David as he went up against Goliath, and later against Saul? It’s a cliché, a horrible trope, the nobody from nowhere who somehow ends up being ju

  Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. (Psalm 51:12)        This is my prayer for today. It’s yet another of those days where it’s well after noon and I’m just starting to work on the things that I like to have done before 9 am. That doesn’t mean I didn’t do anything this morning. But things that I wanted to do this morning aren’t done and I’m struggling. What I need is the joy of my salvation and a willing spirit. Another way to describe this is “attitude.” Attitude sustains us when circumstances aren’t the way we want them to be. Attitude sustains us when we aren’t the way we want to be. “Attitude” doesn’t have to mean being “a Karen” (if I may use the colloquial term without battering myself.) It can also mean that our awareness of God’s care for us has been restored. It can mean that the chains we place on ourselves with all of our can’ts and won’ts have been moved to our tires as maybe , perhaps, and let’s try.

 I found this prayer in David Jeremiah's Forward . It was written by Catherine Marshall. It seems to me to be something that needs to be shared, without commentary.     Father, once - it seems long ago now - I had such big dreams, so much anticipation of the future. Now no shimmering horizon beckons me; my days are lackluster. I see so little of lasting value in the daily round. Where is Your plan for my life, Father?     You have told us that without vision, we men perish. So Father in HEaven, knowing that I can ask in confidence what is Your expressed will to give me, I ask You to deposit in my mind and heart the particular dream, the special vision You have for my life.      And along with the dream, will You give me whatever graces, patience, and stamina it takes to see the dream through to fruition? I sense that this may involve adventures I have not bargained for. But I want to trust You enough to follow even if You lead along new paths. I admit to liking some of my ruts. But

    Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,   now that you have tasted that the Lord is good. (I Peter 2:2-3)             According to studies, babies should eat every 1.5 to 4 hours – never longer than 4 hours (but according to experienced mothers, you never wake a baby just to feed it.) Experts also say that babies have to try something 12 to 30 times before they can truly decide whether or not they like them. This suggests that if we’re to be like newborn babies, if we are to grow up in our salvation, we need to feed from Scripture often – as often as 6 to 10 times per day, and we are to continue to do so even if we don’t think we like this stuff on which we are spiritually munching.             I’ve been trying to learn how to eat more healthfully this summer. I have to admit, I’ve taken notes more than I’ve learned. I need to go back to the notes and apply them. Among the things I’ve learned is that I should be eating b

  Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.   Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,   now that you have tasted that the Lord is good. (I Peter 2:1) Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things . (Philippians 4:8) “All” is a big little word. It means “being or representing the entire or total number, amount, or quantity.” It does not mean “if and when you feel like it.” It doesn’t mean “unless they deserve it.” So, what are we to rid ourselves of? Malice: the intention or desire to do evil; ill will. Deceit: the action or practice of deceiving someone by concealing or misrepresenting the truth. (Oops, there goes the “little white lie.”) Hypocrisy: the practice of claiming to have moral standa

  For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.   For, “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you. (I Peter 1:23-25)           Many of the Eastern religions teach reincarnation. The idea is that when you die if you weren’t perfect, you are reborn and get another try. Of course, you aren’t given sufficient memory of your past lives to know what you did right or wrong. You might even have been an animal in that past life, so this one as a person might show that you did a pretty good job as that animal, but is what passes for a “pretty good job” as that animal be the same as what is expected of you as a person? Whether you’re a person or an animal, unless you reach perfection during a lifetime, when you die, you’ll be reborn to die again.

    Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart [1] . (I Peter 1:22) And the second is like it: ‘ Love   your   neighbor  as  your self.’ ( Matthew 22:39) I’m writing this at lunchtime. Blogs are supposed to be written before 9 am, but I spent most of the morning removing the last of the boxes from the truck, mowing the lawn, and pulling weeds. I set up my little roadside sitting area, except for the signs. And I discovered that my four pots of succulents and two poinsettias survived. So did 2 thymes, parsley, rosemary, lantana, a mint, and maybe a Greek oregano. I watered them all. They’re going to need some TLC, but my little garden may come back. But, I discovered a wasp’s nest less than 3 feet from my front door, in the area where Grace spends time. I had to go get some wasp spray, and while I was at the store, I found myself rehearsing the same old song. “I’m not getting an

  He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.     Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God. (I Peter 1:20-21)           Have you ever watched someone who really knows what they’re doing cook a big meal? They may start by putting an egg and butter out on the counter, before putting garlic and onions into a pan on the stove. They walk away and put flour, sugar, salt, and spices into a bowl. They leave the bowl a pull out other ingredients, working on many different dishes all at once. What’s more, by the time you see them preparing the meal, they may have already other dishes. If you’re lucky, they may have a list to show you some of what they’re doing. Somehow, it all comes together, and an amazing dinner is served.           Today’s passage hints at this idea. From before the creation of the world, God planned out what He would do. Various ingredient