The call of scripture is to “speak the truth in love.”
One of the amazing claims of the Bible’s account of creation is that humans as well as all of life were created by God’s word.
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Abram and Sarai’s experience is just one of many, many stories of calls and answers: God’s call and the answers of God’s people down through the ages.
Today’s reading comes from the recitation of the law in Deuteronomy.
How do you describe God’s nature? Down through the ages, people have used expanded language — poetry, metaphor, and simile.
In our reading for today we have Luke’s version of Jesus calling his first disciples — the calling of Simon Peter, James, and John.
Our names are personal. They are extensions of ourselves. They not only identify us to others, but they take on our own identity and we wrap ourselves in them.
Bad things happen to good people. Everyone knows that. Good, faithful, honest, hard-working, loving, committed — you can plug in any adjective here you want — people get sick, get hurt, and experience suffering.
Paul calls to mind some of the very difficult circumstances and experiences in life and in that context he brings up prayer.
Ecclesiastes’ philosophy has resonated with many people down through the ages and continues to do so today. Today’s reading catalogs various seasons of life, 28 of them, arranged in sharp contrast to one another and yet each an undeniable part of human existence.
The psalmist says, in prayer and song, “You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy.”