Posts tagged: faith

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107 posts latest post 2026-09-30
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Sep 2026 | 5 posts
Deuteronomy 6 and the Shema

Deuteronomy 6 and the Shema

The Shema from Judaism, archived in Deuteronomy 6, is a pinnacle tradition in Hebrew Judaism, and should be in Christianity. I cannot claim to be an expert, but it’s one of the fundamentals - shema means to listen AND obey, and this was the primary charge given to God’s people. His people were also to repeat his commandments, make them apart of their lives, and introduce their children to the Laws of God so that the next generation may not lose sight of God’s oracles and truths. The Shema Deuteronomy 6:4–5 (LEB): 4 “Hear, Israel, Yahweh our God, Yahweh is unique. 5 And you shall love Yahweh your God with all of your heart and with all of your soul and with all of your might. My Kids # I talk with my kids about obedience a lot… and it’s fine, because they’re young kids in a stage of life of needing near-constant correction. I love them and so because I love them they need to obey me, because no one in the world cares more about their safety and flourishing than I do, and no matter what…

Reflection - Psalm 9:1

Psalm 9:1 I will thank Yahweh with all my heart. I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. Praise God # The phrase “praise God” has become a common phrase in my life. I’m blessed to have my best friend, Michael, in my life after 15+ years. Back in high school, I forget how it came up, but he told me that anytime something good happens, he forces himself to just audibly say “praise God”. Jesus certainly quickened that to my heart, and it was again in high school that I witnessed some fruit of, not using the phrase, but practicing giving glory to God in the smaller moments. Some youth group kids were helping a church member replace their roof - so lots of high-schoolers tearing shingles off, hauling garbage, etc. As we were on the roof, one of the guys nearly fell off (we hadn’t even heard of “tie-offs” before). Something like a nail caught his shorts and he recovered his grip. I immediately said “Praise God”, and him and another guy looked at me and they go “…. ya! Praise God for sure!”…

Reflection - John 15:19

Spurgeon If Jesus undertook to bring me to glory, and if the Father promised that he would give me to the Son to be a part of the infinite reward of the travail of his soul; then, my soul, till God himself shall be unfaithful, till Jesus shall cease to be the truth, thou art safe. John 15:19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own. But because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, for this reason the world hates you. The World # “Not of this world” was a clothing brand when I was a kid that made emo-styled clothing so edgy teens could be reminded to live a moral life. This was at least how I took the phrase “Not of this world” for most of my life… The phrase shouldn’t be trivialized. But as it was to me (not to blame that clothing brand) it turned one of the most freeing truths about Yahweh’s sovereignty into a list of do’s and don’t’s. It actually moralizes Jesus in pretty much the same way anyone does who brings him up when it’s convenient for the…
Helkyo - What is it for God to draw man to him?

Helkyo - What is it for God to draw man to him?

In John 6 there is a curious phrase about how the Father initiates the process of Salvation in the hearts of men. John 6:44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. The word is the Greek ([ helkyo]). This word doesn’t mean “draw” like how we would immediately understand it - in the sense of wooing, or convincing… I’m not really sure why is the common English translation, I have a theory about theological presuppositions in the modern Christian movement but it’s not super relevant to my thought on it. It’s not relevant, because this word in its most native sense nearly perfectly describes my experience with Jesus. Before diving in - here’s a couple more Biblical examples of the word… John 21:6 And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw [helkyo] it for the multitude of fishes. James 2:6 But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich…

Reflection - Mark 4:1-20

The Soils # I am in the middle of reprocessing the soils’ parable - I heard a very interesting interpretation the other day that I’m following up on. BUt while I wait for clarity in that conversation, there is still obvious truth for me to reflect on this morning… Mark 4:1-20 Mark 4:1–20 (LEB): 4And again he began to teach beside the sea, and a very large crowd was gathered to him, so that he got into a boat and sat on the sea, and the whole crowd was at the sea on the land. 2 And he began to teach them many things in parables, and was saying to them in his teaching, 3 “Listen! Behold, the sower went out to sow. 4 And it happened that while he was sowing, some seed fell on the side of the path, and the birds came and devoured it. 5 And other seed fell on the rocky ground where it did not have much soil, and it sprang up at once, because it did not have any depth of soil. 6 And when the sun rose it was scorched, and because it did not have enough root, it withered. 7 And other seed fell…

Reflection - John 21:12

John 21:12 Jesus said to them, “Come, eat breakfast!” But none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?” because they knew that it was the Lord. Come and eat # Jesus offers this communion with himself every day, and to very believer… Sharing a meal with someone is a pretty intimate thing (it’s why hibachi with strangers is awkward). Sitting around a table, especially where you’d be eating with your hands, is a setting for family, or the family you choose (friends). Jesus is the King of the universe, and he offers a seat at the table. I want this to sit in my head without some unknown ethereal deep metaphorical meaning… The simple truth is Jesus offers not only a place to sit next to him, to enjoy his company and wisdom, but the contents of the table. At the Last Supper he says he is the bread and cup, and after his resurrection he invites his disciples to sit with him on the beach and eat breakfast here in John 21. Every invitation to eat with him is to share the same meat, the…

Reflection - Philippians 3:8

Philippians 3:8 More than that, I even consider all things to be loss because of the surpassing greatness of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for the sake of whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and consider them dung, in order that I may gain Christ Loss # Paul’s words are convicting this morning… I even consider all things to be loss. Danger Do I? Do I consider anything and everything as closer to literally nothing when compared to knowing Jesus? I don’t know, this morning I can’t even articulate what it means to consider allthings “loss”. What a trivial picture but how often is my mind and spirit stuck between the green boxes… fixated again on my retirement, kid’s school costs, the fact that ribeye steak is still $20/lbs. I have anxities like anyone else over things in the world, and if my net worth increased by $3M today what would my response be… would I consider it a loss when compared to the knowledge of Jesus Christ? Or would I experience joy and hope for my earth…
Reflection - Psalm 119:15

Reflection - Psalm 119:15

Psalm 119:15 I will meditate on your precepts and look at your ways. Meditate # Spurgeon had a good thought here… It is not the act of eating that actually nourishes our bodies, it is digestion… The same is true for our spiritual growth - merely listening to a sermon will not transform your heart and life, the Word of God must be digested and meditated upon to work in our members and change us. What is it to go to church every week but never spend time musing upon the things of God? If you chew your food and spit it out right after the meal what good did it do you? Maybe you felt good during the songs, liked the taste of the food, heard something interesting from the pastor, commented on the decor in the dining room…. but once you leave, do you remember what you ate? Do you talk about it with those who ate with you? Did you practice cooking that delicious meal later in the week? So it is with us and the precepts of the Lord. The law of God, in light of Jesus, is not a burden any longer…
Reflection - Jude 24

Reflection - Jude 24

Jude 24-25 24 Now to the one who is able to protect you from stumbling and make you to stand before his glory blameless with exultation, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time and now and for all eternity. Amen. make you to stand before his glory blameless with exultation # The ultimate hope of the one called to Jesus - to be made blameless. Those who are blameless are those who are free. When we are in debt we are limited - this feels like a pretty natural thing. I owe money on my house, so there’s about $1000/mo that I have to put towards that, no options. Worse than a necessity (cause a place to live is a foundational need for humans) is unnecessary debt - debt for free choices. pay as you go Have you seen these pay-as-you-go services? Affirm and Klarna, etc…. You can finance (go into debt) your door dash orders, uber rides, amazon cart all usually with just a few clicks! They want you poor. Jesus doesn’t…
Reflection - Numbers 11:11

Reflection - Numbers 11:11

As if the Lord orchestrated Spurgeon’s meditation to give me a spring board to what I need for the third day in a row… Reflection - 1 Kings 19:8 He showed me that he sustains me unto his own service and glory Reflection - John 4:14 He showed me that I’ve been pushing away aspects of his provision And today I see the trials in my life reveal the status of my faith… Last night I got a phone call that I missed a credit card payment, which I thought odd since everything is on auto-pay. Well, turns out our checking account got a smidge low, low enough that the credit card payment was cancelled… In reality this isn’t a huge deal, but it threw me off and continues to this morning. The truth is, the only issue is my lack of in-depth understanding of our money movement. Our lifestyle and living expenses are well below what we can otherwise afford, but in my laziness I have mostly neglected each of our accounts individually. No doubt this “trial” is self-imposed but Spurgeon’s meditation is snap…