Posts by Rev. Steve Holm
Daily Devotions
Psalm 8:1-4…“When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him?” Vss. 3-4a The psalmist had been contemplating the heavens and marveling at the wonder of it all. Because in those days there was no light pollution it’s likely that every night he was treated to a show, the likes of which few of us have seen. The night sky would have…
Daily Devotions
Genesis 1:26-2:4a…“And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.” vs. 31 The writers of this creation story from Genesis described the universe and the world that God had spoken into existence as being very good, and that included the humans who had been charged with its stewardship. It is so important for us to remember this bold affirmation as we struggle with the…
Daily Devotions
Genesis 1:1-25…“And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.” vss. 2-3 While some read the Hebrew story of creation in Genesis with a sense of incredulity and disbelief, others are deeply moved by the theological and spiritual insights of its writers. They know that it is not a…
Daily Devotions
John 20: 21-23…“Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’” vss. 21-22 While the writers of the gospels were certainly aware that Jesus had entrusted his disciples with his message of love and forgiveness, they chose to describe that moment by recounting different stories. Here John combines Matthew’s Great Commission with Luke’s…
Daily Devotions
John 20:19-20…“Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.” vss. 19b-20 The disciples, wracked by fear, had locked themselves away in a hidden upper room within the walled city of Jerusalem. Even though they had heard that Jesus had risen from the dead, they had no idea what to do. They didn’t even know if…
Daily Devotions
1 Corinthians 12:12-14…“For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.” vs. 13 Strange as it may seem, in recent years the word inclusive has fallen out of favor, along with related words like diversity and equity. All this would come as a surprise to the Apostle Paul who regularly used these concepts to describe what he called the Body of Christ. He…
Daily Devotions
1 Corinthians 12:3b-11…“To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.” vs. 7 Paul’s words to the Corinthians undermine one of the basic assumptions of contemporary Christianity, namely, that we engage in spiritual practices for the sake of strengthening our personal relationship with Jesus Christ. That sounds good and it speaks to our love of individualism as a national creed. But it wasn’t Paul’s vision of the Church. His phrase “for the common good” implies that…
Daily Devotions
Psalm 104:24-34, 35b…“O LORD, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures…When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground.” vss. 24, 30 The psalmist couldn’t contain himself! He was full of praise and exultation. Everywhere he looked he saw the hand of God. God was the creator and the sustainer of the universe and everything that it contains. There couldn’t…
Daily Devotions
Acts 2:14-21…“In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.” vs. 17 Luke understood the Day of Pentecost as being a great Spirit-filled revival with Peter as the principle preacher. Peter, in addressing this diverse crowd of Jews, used a passage from the prophet Joel to describe what…
Daily Devotions
Acts 2:1-13…“All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, ‘What does this mean?’ But others sneered and said, ‘They are filled with new wine.’” vss. 12-13 For sheer dramatic effect there is probably no event more compelling than Luke’s account of the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Think of it! There had been a gathering of Jews from around the Diaspora for the annual festival of Shavuot or Feast of Weeks and suddenly Galileans, the followers of…
Daily Devotions
John 17:6-11…“And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one.” vs. 11 For the people of Norway this is Syttende Mai or Constitution Day, their national day of celebration. It’s a big day, the Norwegian equivalent of the Fourth of July, and many Americans of Norwegian…
Daily Devotions
John 17:1-5…“I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do.” vs. 4 In John’s gospel, Jesus concludes his ministry by gathering his disciples in an upper room for final instructions and a closing prayer. In that prayer he indicates deep satisfaction with the way his life has unfolded. He believed that he had successfully concluded all the work that he had been given to do. That conviction is borne out the next day by…