Posts by Rev. Steve Holm (Page 166)
Daily Devotions: October 10, 2018
October 10, 2018 Psalm 90:12-17 …“Make us glad as many days as you have afflicted us, and as many years as we have seen evil.” vs. 15 The psalmist isn’t asking for the moon here, his request is simple, “O Lord, may we at least have as many good days as bad days in life.” We can understand his thinking because sometimes it seems as though things have gotten out of balance. So, if we’ve had a string of years…
Daily Devotions: October 9, 2018
October 9, 2018 Amos 5:12-15 …“Therefore the prudent will keep silent in such a time; for it is an evil time.” vs. 13 These words from Amos seem a bit strange in their context. He’s been railing against injustice and taking shots at the excesses of the wealthy. We’d expect that he would encourage his listeners to speak up and join the crusade. But he doesn’t do that. Instead, he says that the prudent will keep silent in such a…
Daily Devotions: October 8, 2018
October 8, 2018 Amos 5:6-7, 10-12…“Seek the Lord and live, or he will break out against the house of Joseph like fire, and it will devour Bethel, with no one to quench it.” vs. 6 King Jeroboam II, of the tribe of Ephraim, one of Joseph’s sons, was riding high. The country of Israel was enjoying a period of unprecedented prosperity and the wealthy were getting even richer. They were hard-pressed to think of what to spend their money on…
Daily Devotions: October 7, 2018
October 7, 2018 Mark 10:13-16 …“But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, ‘Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs.’” vs. 14 The disciples didn’t want kids around Jesus. In our day, they would empathize with the stern-faced congregants who turn around in their pews to give the evil eye to parents struggling with noisy little ones. They wanted…
Daily Devotions: October 6, 2018
October 6, 2018 Mark 10:2-12 …“He said to them, ‘Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.’” vss. 11-12 When this text is read in our worship services it often triggers feelings of guilt. Many followers of Jesus have been divorced and struggle to align their experience with his teachings. Even those who were in abusive relationships wonder if they should have simply endured. Others…
Daily Devotions: October 5, 2018
October 5, 2018 Hebrews 2:5-12 …“It was fitting that God, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings.” vs. 10 The writer of the letter to the Hebrews was confident that Jesus was every bit as human as anyone else, otherwise, the things that he did and the hope that he brought would have no meaning to mortals. But, since Jesus did share in…
Daily Devotions: October 4, 2018
October 4, 2018 Hebrews 1:1-4 …“Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son…” vss. 1-2a The early Christians treasured their scriptures and regarded them as authoritative guides for living. They particularly valued the words of the prophets and saw in them a reflection of God’s wisdom and judgement. But they also believed that God had brought a new word in…
Daily Devotions: October 3, 2018
October 3, 2018 Psalm 8 …“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?” vss. 3-4 Twenty-five hundred years ago the psalmist was fully aware of the wonders of the universe. Even without a space telescope, he sensed that the earth was but a puny speck among the thousands of stars filling the…
Daily Devotions: October 2, 2018
October 2, 2018 Genesis 2:21-24 …“Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh.” vs. 24 This little verse, found in three different places in our scriptures, has become foundational in our understanding of the marriage relationship. Obviously, marriage practices have changed through the years and there are certainly different cultural standards, but strong marriage bonds are the key to a stable and healthy society. In this ancient creation story,…
Daily Devotions: October 1, 2018
October 1, 2018 Genesis 2:18-20 …“The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every animal of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper as his partner.” vs. 20 This delightful creation story from Genesis presents an important truth about what it means to be human, namely that we’re not meant to live in isolation. Humans are designed for community, and most importantly we’re meant to have companions.…
Daily Devotions: September 30, 2018
September 30, 2018 Mark 9:42-50 …“If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.” vs. 43 Occasionally we’ll hear stories about poor souls who have taken this verse literally and who have used a saw to cut off one of their hands. They’ve been wracked by guilt for some real or imagined sin and think that…
Daily Devotions: September 29, 2018
September 29, 2018 Mark 9:38-41 …“But Jesus said, ‘Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me.’” vs. 39 The disciples had a territorial streak in them. They wanted to be the sole proprietors of the Jesus movement and they didn’t want anyone else horning in on their business. And Jesus could care less! He didn’t even care particularly if people joined his…