One Bowl

10/12/2024

“One simple way to evaluate partisan bias is to ask, ‘Who does this source want me to fear, and what does this source want me to be angry about?’ when a political message triggers our fear or anger, that can signal us to question the bias and accuracy of the message. We add salt [Matthew 5:13-16] to [politics] when we refuse to consume or spread fear and anger.” – Miranda Zapor Cruz, Faithful Politics

09/11/2024

"Away beyond the blue dome of heaven, beyond the circling horizon, beyond the rising and the setting sun, beyond the stars of light, beyond the last gasp of dying agony, the smoldering grave and the mourner's tear - there is another realm, there is a greater and a better world, there is a home above, there is a heavenly land, the home of God..." AB Simpson, The Cross of Christ

03/16/2024

From Ted Cunningham

11/30/2023

04/29/2023

Be patient; He is working all things for good.

12/17/2022

Mercy. Luke 18.
As I’m reading through Luke – a chapter a day through December leading up to Christmas eve, I’m seeing a new connectedness to the narrative. There was once no verse and chapter divisions, the sixty-six books of the Gospels and letters were once one long narrative each.

In the beginning of chapter 18 He tells the parable [a story] to teach the disciples and us that praying at all times relieves the discouraged soul. Jesus then goes on to tell another story and two actual accounts of people coming to Him in their distress.

The first is the tax collector who prayed at the Temple. Second was the rich young ruler and last was blind Bartimaeus. The tax collector and Bartimaeus pray for something that the young ruler doesn’t – for mercy.

While the ruler prays for understanding, the other two pray simply for mercy. Bartimaeus even asks twice for it. Their problem was not only sin and sickness, but a broken spirit. We need faith and mercy before understanding.

Understanding can come with time, but God’s mercy is available at all times, and that is an encouragement for the soul.

11/25/2022

Clothed and Enthroned, but… Psalm 93.
Sometimes we get the biggest invitations in the smallest envelopes; a child’s first birthday, a wedding or anniversary. Not that the envelope must be physically small, but in comparison to what that moment will give or hold in our hearts forever – those events are pretty big deals.
Psalm 93 is one of the shorter psalms and yet, for this week as I’ve been reading and praying over it, just seemed to get bigger and bigger – and bigger. It is the description of Christ in eternity that we will all one day see. In it there are three distinctions that place Jesus above every other. He is truly the King of kings and Lord of lords.
Verse 1 introduces us to the King who is clothed (robed) with majesty. As any other king, Jesus dresses to the role. We can imagine the most dignified, royal robes and Jesus is dressed even better. There will be no mistaking Him.
And in verses 2-4 it speaks of His throne high above the stormy seas [seasons of our lives] and firmly secure. This is the King that has waited patiently upon His throne who has created us to be in relationship with us, completed the work to redeem us and waits for our joyous entry into eternity.
But verse 5 is the invitation. In it the psalm declares the holiness of His presence and His house (royal courts). This is where Jesus is like no other king and the invitation to learn of Him begins to unfold. What kind of king creates and invites rather than subjugates? What kind of king gives rather than takes? What kind of king dies that we may live evermore? What kind of king adopts the sinners and robes and crowns them? What kind of king is He, indeed, the invitation asks.

11/19/2022

Shine upon us. Psalm 80.

If ever the Psalms felt like a songbook, it might definitely be Psalm 80. It – like many of the psalms, recounts the journey of the Israelites and God’s faithfulness to always intercede, protect and provide for them as He continues to do for us today. And then there are three “choruses” that occur in verses 3, 7 and 19 that spell out the three-point path of His lovingkindness and our (intended) response.

“Restore us, O God; cause Your face to shine, and we shall be saved!” (NKJV)

Restore us. The New Living Translation words it as “Turn us again to yourself” Oh, how true and sometimes painful this reality is. We are in trouble and in very dark places because our decisions have caused us to turn from Him. And in His lovingkindness, He will allow many people and events – some painful, to turn us toward Him where we are once again protected and provided for.

Cause Your face to shine. God’s glory is… glorious. So much so that His face shines when directly looked upon. So, to request His face to shine [upon us] is to request Him to look directly upon us, care for us and reach His hand into our world. It is to surrender our will and our path and to return to His. We are prodigals coming home.

And we shall be saved! The comforting and strengthening surety of His promise. Some translations even end that statement with an exclamation. It is as Asaph (the writer of this psalm) was standing in the face of our pain and saying, “Take that!” and at the same time standing in our faces and saying, “Receive this!”

“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” [Romans 5:8]

What great love is this that looks upon us, sees and saves us. Surrender today.

11/12/2022

Daily.