I have never been confident enough in my evangelistic approaches to recommend them to others, but they sometimes do make for good stories. In a previous job at a coffee shop, I remember a conversation with a co-worker who expressed being bent . . . Continue reading →
Psalm 13 is about how to navigate waiting before God. The Psalter functions at least in part to instruct us about the godly response to the full spectrum of experience and emotion that we encounter in the Christian life. Psalm 13 considers . . . Continue reading →
If you are anything like me, waiting in line is really hard for you. Some of my more frustrating experiences are when I see no forward motion in the line I am waiting in. As you are waiting for your turn to . . . Continue reading →
Recently, the King of Spain, Felipe VI, met his subjects in the streets. Floods have lately ravaged Spain, and the monarch came to meet his people. Continue reading →
Recently, the King of Spain, Felipe VI, met his subjects in the streets. Floods have lately ravaged Spain, and the monarch came to meet his people. Continue reading →
Yuri Gagarin is an unlikely candidate to make an appearance in our churches. The Russian cosmonaut died in 1968. Nevertheless, you may have heard of him. He was the first man in space. He is also becoming a favorite sermon illustration of some. Continue reading →
God hears the lament of his people and preserves them unto salvation. Continue reading →
This series walks through Psalm 12 and its teaching that God’s Word is the pure and protecting source of guidance and deliverance. Part one outlined the three-act structure that developed the problem (1–2), proposed David’s solution (3–4), and presented God’s Word as . . . Continue reading →
With some irony, one of the hot topics in the news today is whether the news is reliable. The so-called “legacy media,” which is basically the major networks and news outlets, seems to face the common accusation of promoting agendas and certain . . . Continue reading →
From deep waters we cry to an attentive Lord for deliverance and forgiveness. Our watchful hope looks to his word of promise and plentiful redemption. Continue reading →
As this series has explored, Psalm 11 is a prayer of trust in how God will come through for his people when dangers seem threatening. What could be a real threat to us if we lived in a poor shelter becomes no . . . Continue reading →
David has two problems. There is David’s sin and there is David’s self. He faces his guilt as well as his guilty feelings. His repentance finds its voice, as does his faith, in the hope that God’s grace is sufficient for both his problems. Continue reading →
Psalm 11 is an expression of trust that God is our ultimate and true source of safety.1 It shows how the place where we find our refuge plays a key role in how threatened we will feel by the potential dangers around . . . Continue reading →
It is funny how our lodging place changes our perspective on the severity of our surrounding conditions. In a nice and sturdy house, a basic rainstorm seems inconsequential—people inside often even enjoy the patter of raindrops against their windows. On the other . . . Continue reading →
Having given this wonderful text of Psalm 42 an expositional and pastoral survey in our previous three articles, we return one last time for a fourth installment wherein we consider some further implications and applications: 1. The great Matthew Henry writes in . . . Continue reading →
When we left this psalm at the end of part 2, we noted that the psalmist was drawing from his spiritual reservoir, so to speak. Continue reading →
Last time, in part 1 of our study on Psalm 42, we began to consider how love for God’s house is the essence of true piety. Continue reading →
One reason to love the Psalms is that they serve as a fierce rejoinder to the trendy spirituality of our age. If we are honest, sometimes (whether through the influence of our wider culture or through the influence of other Christians), we . . . Continue reading →
During the height of Nazi ascendency in early twentieth-century Germany, when the Confessing Lutheran Church was becoming more and more oppressed by the regime, a young preacher gave a sermon on the 58th Psalm. Continue reading →
It is the practice of the congregation that I serve to gather together on Wednesday evenings for a fellowship meal, and what we do after supper truly thrills my soul. We sing consecutively through the Psalter—every word, every verse—and I have the . . . Continue reading →