Posts with the category “articles”

Terry Johnson wrote, “Presbyterians make poor Anglicans” (Serving with Calvin, 325). I would add that we make poor Roman Catholics. Yet, over the past decade, there has been a rise in the celebration ...  Read More

In his book The Orthodox Church, the late Bishop Kallistos Ware shared the story of a group of emissaries sent out by Prince Vladimir in search of “true religion.” They make their way through various ...  Read More

It has yet to happen, though it still could. But someone could ask their pastor to help them formulate their New Year’s resolutions. Think that’s too much? Perhaps. But aren’t pastors supposed to be s...  Read More

In 2025, we are going to memorize Scripture together! This year we read the Bible together following the Robert Murray M’Cheyne plan. The Christian Education Committee felt a natural next step would b...  Read More

As we would look for God's leaders, one of the best ways we does this is to remember the sage wisdom offered to us from 1 Samuel 16 concerning the section of King David. For it is there that we learn ...  Read More

A couple of weeks ago on our podcast, Theology Lunch, we were asked the question, “Do Presbyterians follow the church calendar?” I would encourage you all to give it a listen here. In this article, I ...  Read More

For the past several mornings, my oldest has been bombarding me with questions about Leviticus. They have a common theme - “Why is this book so gross?” Just this week we’ve read about leprosy in great...  Read More

This past week we started reading the book of Psalms, which got me thinking, “How should you read the Psalms?” Many of you might know that the Psalms are songs and have been described as the church’s ...  Read More

This week we have read from some of the richest parts of John’s gospel. I was particularly struck by John 15:11, “These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may ...  Read More

“Never forget that you are a sheep” so begins a book I have on pastoral burnout. It is a needed reminder for pastors - don’t forget you are a sheep. In ministry, we get so focused on being under-sheph...  Read More

One of my favorite Scripture references in a movie, always a dangerous thing, is in “The Davinci Code.” The verse is, “Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further” (Job 38:11). The verse is quoted by a n...  Read More

This week we read the story of Jethro visiting Moses in Exodus 18. Jethro was Moses’ father-in-law and he came to Moses to bring his daughter and two children back to him. While there, Jethro observes...  Read More

Job 27:19, speaking of the godless, “he opens his eyes, and his wealth is gone.” Luke 12:15 Jesus said, “one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” On Monday we read from Job 27...  Read More

You Never Pray Alone In seminary, I was introduced to the most popular sport in the world - soccer. I say introduced because I only knew of the janky major league soccer teams of my youth. I had no id...  Read More

Part of my daily morning routine is listening to “The World and Everything In It.” I appreciate the balance between current events, fascinating news stories, cultural commentary and all done through a...  Read More

Family Worship provides an opportunity for fathers and mothers to fulfill a biblical command to raise their children in the “discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4). Paul places this comman...  Read More

What time is it? On Wednesday, we began Luke’s gospel. Luke begins with a prolonged account of John the Baptist’s birth. Mark begins his gospel with John the Baptist preaching and baptizing in the wi...  Read More

How then shall we live? We’ve begun working our way through the letter to the Romans. This is one of the most famous books in the Bible and contains Paul’s mature theology. It was significant for the...  Read More

I want to start with a story about fleas, bats, and the providence of God. When my family moved to Savannah last year, we rented a house that ended up having fleas. The landlord could not get rid of t...  Read More

My denomination growing up, The Assemblies of God, had a boys program similar to the Boy Scouts but way better (trust me I did both). It was called “Royal Rangers.” Similar to the Boy Scouts we had a ...  Read More

If you were to ask a random person on the street, “What is the Bible?” What are some responses you think you would get? I imagine some would say, “It is an ancient book with lots of wisdom” or “It is ...  Read More

Some weeks, our devotional will be covering multiple passages read throughout the week. Other weeks, I may focus on just a particular passage. Today, I am going to do the latter from the reading for t...  Read More

We are almost a through our first week of 2024. How is it going so far? One person in the Bible Reading Group (which you can find in the app) asked, “Why does M’Cheyne start one of his sections in Ezr...  Read More

We all need encouragement to abide more in Jesus and His world. So here are ten beautiful benefits of being in God’s Word... ...  Read More

We have several upcoming opportunities this coming winter how you may grow in your walk with the Lord. Whether you're looking for a group that meets in person or you're just looking for a tool to aid ...  Read More

Everyone has their own traditions for Christmas, even churches. Some churches have the advent wreath and the lighting of the candles, others have the big Christmas trees in the sanctuary, and still ot...  Read More

Helpful Resources for learning more about the Presbyterian Church and its government: BooksHow Jesus Runs the Church by Guy Prentiss Waters. This is a great, accessible book into how a  Presbyterian c...  Read More

Religion is far more than a list of duties. It is about seeking our delight in the Lord. Let's look into Book of Delight (the Psalms) and learn some lessons from those who have dabbled with delight ar...  Read More

But what I would like to consider about is the irony of this Passover, and particularly for Jesus. Jesus knew this Passover Celebration wouldn’t just be special, or even memorable; it was going to be ...  Read More

Really, I’m just not the baking type. I know many people bake because they just love it. But, I’m more the person for whom people bake, because I love eating! That’s at least the way it works out in m...  Read More

Lunchtime at the Whitney household is probably the best time of the day for the kids. Not only for the fact that we have food (most all Whitneys love food), but Mom is reading the lunch-time devotiona...  Read More

Don't discriminate against me, but I love math, even though I have forgotten much of it. I love the principles and theory of it, and how it just works (even though the back of the book saved the day m...  Read More

Psalm 139 is God’s way of telling the Christian, “I’ve been thinking about you!” That’s a funny phrase, isn’t i? We use it all the time in our conversation with others. It conveys warmth, concern, wel...  Read More

Though God is always active everywhere and in everything, most of His best work is done quietly and gently, behind the scenes. He works with a quiet persistence lifting us up from guilt through grace...  Read More

I just got back and I feel invigorated. The past several weeks, I have taken up a morning walk. Getting out of bed, dawning my sport attire, and sneaking out of the house before anyone else awakes. It...  Read More