Tag: hope
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Finding Joy
Luke 1:47 GW: “My spirit finds its joy in God, my Savior.” This third week of Advent is Joy, symbolized by a rose-colored candle. It seems intentionally out of place, breaking up the deep purples of waiting and quietly challenging the long ache leading to Christmas. The origins of the Advent wreath and candles go…
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Finding Peace
Luke 2:14 NIV “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” This is the second week of Advent, when we light the candle of peace. This isn’t peace as in ending every war or resolving every conflict—spoken or unspoken. It is the inner peace of…
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Wounds
John 20:27 NIV: He said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” Poor Thomas, his claim to fame as a disciple stems from this encounter. He just happened to be the one disciple who wasn’t there when Jesus appeared…
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Living Water
Jeremiah 2:13 NIV: My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water. I love moments when I can be near water, whether on the banks of a lake, listening to a babbling brook, or standing at the…
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Cast your Cares
Psalm 55:22 NIV: Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you. Anyone out there carrying some heavy things? This week’s art is for you. David starts this Psalm with, “Listen to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea; hear me and answer me. My thoughts trouble me, and I am distraught.”…
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We had Hoped
Luke 24:21 NIV: “but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel…” I’m reading a very compelling book right now by N.T. Wright’s called “Surprised by Hope”. As he sets the context for his insights about the resurrection, he reminds us that at no point did the disciples have…
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When you…
Isaiah 43:2 NIV: When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. The question is never whether you will go through hard…
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My Plans
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV: For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. It’s graduation time at our house. Our oldest will walk the stage this Sunday to graduate from High School and be off to…
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Not Consumed
Lamentations 3:22 NIV “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.” This verse is part of a greater section of Lamentations that I adore. This chapter starts off very grim. The author of this writing, Jeremiah, laments all the things afflicting him. He mentions being mocked, deprived of peace,…
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His Yoke
Matthew 11:29-30 NIV: “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” I’m doing part 2 this week of an earlier post several months ago titled “Weary.” In that piece,…
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Desperation
Mark 5:28 KJV: “For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.” When you hear the word desperation, what comes to mind? The definition was stronger than I realized. The Oxford Dictionary defines desperation as “a state of despair, typically one which results in rash or extreme behavior.” When were you last…
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Give Thanks
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV: “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances”. These three instructions are divided into three different verses. People always say the shortest verse in the Bible is “Jesus wept” from the Book of John, but “Rejoice always” and “Pray Continually” are also only two words long! I’m not sure why…