Bible and Coffee Time

Looking Forward to Next "I   am   with   you  and will watch over  you  wherever  you  go, and  I  will bring  you  back to this land.  I  will not leave  you  until  I  have done what  I  have promised  you .” (Genesis 28:15 NIV) By now, things have definitely changed. Things simply are not the same as they once were. We are having to stay home, families are having to homeschool children, many people who work in healthcare, childcare, and other "essential" jobs have extra workloads, and those who are working from home are still dealing with the realities of doing so. Stores still remain short of certain items. Many people have been laid off from their jobs, and are wondering about finding a new paycheck. The number of those infected increases exponentially, and the death toll continues to rise. The pandemic  has put us on a journey, which we do not exactly ho...

He Still Provides “Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor  was dressed like one of these." (lLuke 12:27 NIV) In spite of the pandemic, in many ways life still continues as normal. The seasons continue to change, and many things are proceeding as natural. Around here, it is becoming Spring, as the signs of Winter begin to fade and the signs of Spring begin to emerge. Wild flowers are beginning to pop up and bloom. Trees are beginning to bud, and will soon sprout leaves. Lawns are beginning to flourish, which means more people are out mowing lawns - something I myself will be doing in the next couple of days once the ground dries out. In between rainstorms, many of my neighbors are already starting to clear out their flowerbeds and begin planting flowers. Many people are planning their vegetable gardens. Once again, even though life has been disrupted in many ways because of the ...

Still In His Good Hands "The earth is the  Lord ’s,  and everything in it,  the world, and all who live in it." (Psalm 24:1 NIV) A certain insurance company frequently asks in its ads, "Are you in good hands?" And frequently we may wonder, with the pandemic seeming to worsen and not even reaching its predicted peak, whether we are in good hands, or whether events are doomed to spiral out of control.  The answer to that question can simply be found in a  popular gospel and camp song, which goes, "He's got the whole world in His hands." Our passage today gives us the promise that all the earth still belongs to God, and remains under His control. He created the earth - but He then did not, as some would imagine, step back and simply watch everything unfold, as a machine. Nor did He simply set natural processes in place, but remains distant and uninvolved Himself. Instead, He continues to remain actively and intimately involved. So much so that He ...

Still Connected "These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God, under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy  and praise among the festive throng." (Psalm 42:4 NIV) One of the hardest adjustments many of us have had to make has been our churches closing. Worship services have stopped for at least the last couple of weeks all over the country, and this has affected both small and large churches. It has been hard having to stay home, seemingly disconnected from our friends and support at our churches, and having our worship routines seemingly disrupted. Yet the good news is that God is with us, any time, any where. He is not confined to one location, building, time of day, or day of the week. He is with us at every moment, and does not take a break from watching over us, because He is all-powerful. He is almighty and all-seeing, so He is able to be everywhere at once, and handle everything for every per...

He Understands " For we do not have a high priest  who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are —yet he did not sin." (Hebrews 4:15 NIV) Once upon a time, there was a young man for whom life turned out to be one great disappointment and sadness after another. Born in Ireland, he was engaged to be married in 1843. The night before their wedding, his fiancee accidentally drowned. Heartbroken, he moved to Canada not long afterwards. While in Canada, around 1855 he received word that his mother back home in Ireland was seriously ill. As a way of lifting her spirits, he sent her a poem he had written with the title "Pray Without Ceasing." A few years later, he became engaged to be married again, but his fiancee died of pneumonia shortly before their wedding. He himself died by drowning in 1886. In all this struggle, his faith did not waver. He still remained strong in his trust in Jesus, and belie...

Even in Disappointment "The  Lord  is close  to the brokenhearted  and saves those who are crushed in spirit." (Psalm 34:18 NIV) In a way, this may seem like a trivial illustration, but it is relevant. The last day or so, I've been on a mission: to go shopping. Specifically, to look for much-needed items for our village food pantry. Even more specifically, bread, eggs, and toilet paper. The last of these, as many of you have experienced, has been difficult to find. However, by the grace and mercy of God, I was able to find a small number of stores that still had toilet paper on their shelves, and was able to buy a limited number at a time for the food pantry. At other places, I walked in, expecting to find toilet paper, but finding empty shelves instead. Needless to say, I was disappointed. Not for myself, but for the people who would be unable to have toilet paper, and probably really needed it. We have all been experiencing a number of disappointments since t...

Protection On Our Side "The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress." (Psalm 46: 7, 11 NIV) Doubtless one of the biggest adjustments we are dealing with is being at home for longer periods of time, given the current Stay-At-Home order. When schools were closed, children either began to be homeschooled or put in day care for longer times. Parents and others who were able to work from home were mandated to, and those who are now classified as "essential" and continue to perform their duties as before also deal in many cases with the realities of families and others being at home for longer periods of the day. For those who live alone, the isolation is the most challenging. Yes, modern technology has given us greater access to entertainment and opportunities to continue to reach out, as yesterday's devotional reminded us. But it is still a challenge to be forced to refrain from physical and face-to-face interaction. Indeed, the isolation ...

Still Reaching Out " For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,  neither the present nor the future,  nor any powers,   neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God  that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39 NIV) It finally happened. On Sunday afternoon, here in Ohio, Governor Mike DeWine issued a Stay-At-Home Order, which went into effect at midnight last Monday night. What does it mean? Well, simply that now we have to remain even more separated than ever before. We can leave our homes to care for relatives, go shopping, engage in outdoor activities, and that's essentially all. The biggest challenge is going to be remaining connected to each other - which, actually, is much of the reason this devotional blog exists: as a way to keep connected. Even though technology can keep us connected with each other, especially by telephone and video chat, it's st...

Love in the Midst of Fear "How priceless  is  your unfailing  love , O  God ! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings." (Psalm 36:7 NIV) If there is one word that would describe the atmosphere these days, it is fear. Many people are afraid. The news seems to be feeding into this fear, by constantly running stories and sound bytes about the growing number of coronavirus cases and the effects of the growth of the virus. Unfortunately, one trend that seems to feed into the fear is the idea perpetuated by certain pundits, prophets, and preachers that this virus has been sent by God - either as a punishment for sin, or some other sort of "wake up call." Some may claim that God has sent the virus for certain "sins," thus creating more fear by causing fear of certain individuals or groups of people. Some may point to certain verses in the Bible claiming that this pandemic was  prophesied, and, again, that it serves the purpose of God venting His ...

What's Hiding in the Darkness? "Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me, your rod and your staff, they comfort me." (Psalm 23:4 NIV) When I was much younger, I used to watch the "X-Files" TV show regularly. I loved watching it back then. The only problem was, I would usually watch it in my college dorm TV room, or in a friend's seminary dorm room, which meant that I had to walk through darkness to get back to my room. A dark hallway, or dark outside, never seemed more frightening than after watching "X-Files." What was scariest, however, was not the darkness itself I had to face, but the fear that something would jump out at me from the darkness and attack me. Silly as it sounds, because that was frequently something that would happen on the show, that's what I was afraid of - that something was hiding in the darkness that would suddenly jump out and try to hurt me. And, frequently, whenever...

Hello Everyone!  This devotional blog is being started in response to the current COVID-19 pandemic which we are going through. Currently, as the pandemic continues to intensify, the need to reach out utilizing the technology we possess, namely the internet, has become more of a priority. Since it looks even more likely that, at some point, St. Andrew Lutheran Church will be required to move toward fully online worship, as many churches already have, this blog will serve as the platform for this to take place. Originally, the blog was going to be called "PJ Leads Worship in PJs," after a suggestion made by one of our deacons. However, it occurred to me that that would lead to the expectation that I actually was  going to lead worship in my pajamas. A nice gimmick indeed - but the problem is, not only do I not own a decent set of pajamas, but I'm still traditional at heart. This blog will feature daily devotions, occasional videos/vlog entries, and, as mentioned, vid...