second Sunday in Advent (2020)
contemplating collects
STIR up our hearts, O Lord, to make ready the way of Thine Only-Begotten Son, so that by His coming we may be enabled to serve Thee with pure minds; Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
--Common Service Book of the Lutheran Church
"And there . . .
first Sunday in Advent (2020)
contemplating collects
STIR up, we beseech Thee, Thy power, O Lord, and come; that by Thy protection we may be rescued from the threatening perils of our sins, and saved by Thy mighty deliverance; Who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
--Common Service Book of the Lutheran . . .
Lincoln's Thanksgiving proclamation (1863)
In 1863, to a nation deeply divided along cultural and political lines, to a country wracked by hundreds of thousands of casualties from an endless civil war, to a people who must've wondered if their beloved United States was on the very brink of collapse, Abraham Lincoln called the American public to a day of thanksgiving and . . .
'only-begotten' vs 'one-and-only': a pastoral perspective and plea
Since Dale Moody's 1953 article in the Journal of Biblical Literature, the consensus of modern New Testament scholars through the remainder of the 20th century was that the Greek word monogenes should not be translated and understood in the traditional way as 'only-begotten' (as the KJV, NKJV, NASB, and EHV translate it) . . .
a prayer for our nation and world
In light of the events of these past days and nights, let us pray for our nation and our world, that justice might reign, order be restored, and righteousness be the aim of all.
O God, the King of righteousness, lead us, we pray thee, in the ways of justice and of peace; inspire us to break down all oppression and . . .
happiness, fear, and faith in Christ
thoughts on pandemic from The Jagged Word
My apologies for linking to this late, it was posted while we were recently on family vacation and blissfully disconnected from the internet.
Not long ago, the folks at The Jagged Word posted a synopsis of one of their recent podcasts where they discussed the topics of happiness and fear in a COVID-ridden world. The quotes . . .
pray without ceasing
recommended resources for getting started with the Daily Office
In my last post, I promised to detail some resources I've found helpful in learning to pray the Daily Office. If you're wondering what prompted this post, I suggest you start there. Don't worry, this article isn't going anywhere. It will be here when you get back!
As I mentioned before, there are a number of . . .
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