'nature' Tagged Posts

'nature' Tagged Posts

Daily Devotions

For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth…” vss. 10-11a Isaiah 55:10-11 The prophet had made some bold promises to the exiles in Babylon. Speaking for the Lord, he tells them that they will return to their native land…

Daily Devotions

Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God.” vs. 3 Psalm 84:1-7 This psalm was likely sung by believers as they made their way to Jerusalem for one of the three annual pilgrimage festivals of Judaism. It was an exciting time, and everyone looked forward to making their offerings and worshiping in the temple. This was the…

Daily Devotions

When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground.” vs. 34 Psalm 104:30-34 The psalmist believed that all living creatures were a part of a constantly changing, always evolving circle of life. Creation wasn’t a once-for-all time event. Rather it occurred on a daily basis as the spirit of God breathed life into what had died and renewed the face of the earth. Death and the return to dust is never God’s…

Daily Devotions

O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.” vs. 24 Psalm 104:24-28 When we read the foundational writings of our faith community, it is easily seen that our ancestors recognized that there was one God who had brought all things into existence. Mountains, plains, oceans, sun, moon and stars, together with living creatures of all kinds all have their origins in God, the one the Israelites knew…

Daily Devotions

He gives snow like wool; he scatters frost like ashes. He hurls down hail like crumbs— who can stand before his cold?” vss. 16-17 Psalm 147:12-17 It’s almost as though the psalmist is offering this song of praise from Minneapolis instead of Jerusalem, but evidently winters could be tough there too! He wants his readers to know that they have it good, and even cold, snowy weather should be seen as a gift from God. His point is plain! All…

Daily Devotions: January 23, 2019

January 23, 2019                                                                                                                                           To read full passage click: Psalm 19 …“The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork. There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard; yet their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.” vss. 1,3-4 Pastors, jealous of nature’s hold on our imagination, will often disparage those who would rather go to the mountains than sit in…

Daily Devotions: March 3, 2018

March 3, 2018                                                                                                            1 Corinthians 1:22-25 … “but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” vss. 23-34 There are some people who seem content to live in this world without ever thinking about matters of spirituality or mortality. They focus on the material and seem to believe that accumulation is the highest human…

Daily Devotions: March 2, 2018

March 2, 2018                                                                                                            1 Corinthians 1:18-21 … “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation, to save those who believe.” vs. 21 There’s no doubt that there’s more to learn these days. Our children and grandchildren bring home assignments from school that leave us baffled, and we wonder what ever happened to good old arithmetic. Of course, with the advent of Google, all that information…

Daily Devotions: March 1, 2018

March 1, 2018                                                                                                                        Psalm 19:7-14 … “The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the decrees of the Lord are sure, making wise the simple;” vs. 7 We Christians are a silly bunch sometimes. Having fallen in love with grace as the loving word from God, we are prone to be dismissive about the law. Often we imagine that the coming of Jesus negated the law of the Lord and that in Christ we are free simply…

Daily Devotions: February 27, 2018

February 27, 2018                                                                                               Exodus 20:12-17 … “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” vs. 17 The people of God have long agreed that there are ten commandments, though most would be hard-pressed to list them in the proper order. And there’s considerable debate about which commandments should be included in the list of ten. Most folks…

Daily Devotions: February 26, 2018

February 26, 2018                                                                                                   Exodus 20:1-11 … “Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work…” vss. 8-10  The commandment on the sabbath doesn’t seem as significant as some of the others. We can understand the restriction on graven images as idolatry was always a temptation for God’s people. And it seems obvious…